Side dish

Team Chiswitz Award-Winning Latkes

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Want to cook latkes like the reigning champions of  the Congregation Shir Tikvah Latke Cookoff (2012)?  Just follow these instructions an amaze yourself!

  • 10 medium russet potatoes (about 4 pounds)
  • 2 medium yellow onions
  • 3 large or extra large eggs
  • 1/4 cup flour
  • salt and white pepper to taste
  • plenty of vegetable oil

First things first: If you have never fried latkes before, you need to know that, while they are delicious to eat, cooking them can make your house smell like oil and onions. For days. Take a few minutes before you start to make sure that nobody’s coat is hanging in the kitchen (unless you want to wash it), that closet doors are closed, and that you are wearing clothes that can be easily laundered. Also, be prepared for a thorough clean-up afterward.

OK, now you’re ready: Wash potatoes thoroughly.

Beat the eggs in a large mixing bowl.

Line a medium-sized mixing bowl with cheesecloth.

Using the grating blade of a food processor or a hand grater, grate potatoes and onions. It’s helpful to alternate them for easier mixing later. After you have grated a food-processor-bowlful, transfer grated potatoes/onions to the cheesecloth-lined bowl. Gather the cheesecloth up into a bundle. Twist the top to form a ball.  Squeeze as much liquid as you can from the potato/onion mixture.

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When no more liquid comes out, remove from cheesecloth and transfer to large bowl with eggs. Repeat with remaining onions and potatoes until all have been grated and squeezed. You may need to replace the cheesecloth.

Combine eggs with potato/onion mixture. It may be easiest to use your  hands here.

Sprinkle flour, salt and pepper over egg/potato mixture. Mix thoroughly to combine all ingredients.

Heat 1/2 – 3/4” of vegetable oil in a large skillet. We use an electric skillet set at 350 degrees, but a good skillet on the stove will do as well.  Our standard electric skillet uses about 22 ounces of oil per recipe. Drop a piece of potato into the oil. When it sizzles, the oil is ready.

Form potato mixture into patties and carefully place in oil. Fry to desired brownness, turn over and fry the other side. If you are going to be freezing the latkes, it’s a good idea to under-cook them a little, as they will get browner when they are reheated later.

Repeat until all of the batter is used up. No need to change oil between batches.

Transfer cooked latkes onto a plate lined with several layers of paper towel to drain. If serving right away, transfer to a serving plate and enjoy! They are delicious served with applesauce and/or sour cream on the side.

Freezing instructions:  Line two cookie sheets with paper towel. Set a cooling rack over each cookie sheet. When the latkes on the plate are cool enough to handle, transfer them to one of the racks. When they have cooled completely, transfer them to parchment-lined cookie sheets. It is OK to place two layers on a sheet, with parchment in between the layers. Cover tightly with aluminum foil and place them in the freezer. If you do not wish to store them on cookie sheets, they can be transferred to freezer bags or other containers once they are frozen solid. When it’s time to reheat, remove the foil, place latkes on a cookie sheet (if they aren’t already on one), let them sit out while you heat the oven to 450 degrees, then bake  for 8 minutes or so until hot and brown.

NOTE: Latkes do not keep very well in the refrigerator. If you are going to hang on to them, it’s best to freeze them.

IMG_0843Here are some latkes getting ready for the freezer. Note that they are slightly under-cooked.

Makes about 25 latkes.

I don’t recommend doubling the recipe, as it becomes difficult to handle and keep the potatoes in good shape. If you need more than 25 latkes, make additional recipes from the beginning, starting with fresh oil each time.

Aunt Kay’s Sweet and Sour Carrots

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  • 2 pounds carrots, thinly sliced
  • 1 onion or 1/2 cup scallions, chopped
  • 1/2 cup vegetable oil
  • 1/2 cup green pepper, chopped
  • 1/2 cup white vinegar
  • 1 can Campbell’s tomato soup
  • 1/2 cup sugar

Boil carrots for 10 minutes or until tender-crisp.

Layer carrots, onions and pepper in a casserole dish.

Mix oil, vinegar, soup, and sugar in a small saucepan.  Bring to a boil and pour over vegetables.

Refrigerate. Will keep for weeks.

Simple Sweet Potatoes

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From Andrea Suttles who brought them to Karen Schihl’s epic Margarita lunch.

  • 2 pounds sweet potatoes
  • 2 Tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 Tablespoons Honey
  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

Peel and cut the sweet potatoes into 1-inch chunks.  In a medium bowl, whisk together olive oil, honey, and lemon juice.  Throw in potato chunks and toss well.  Spray a jellyroll pan or pyrex dish with Pam and spread sweet potatoes out evenly.  Sprinkle with salt.  (I actually cover my pan with parchment or foil, so it’s easy clean up)

Bake at 350 degrees for about 1 hour, stirring once halfway through.

Makes about 4 1-cup servings.

Dijon Mustard Green Beans

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Adapted from The Fruit of Her Hands, Published by Temple Israel’s Sisterhood of West Bloomfield, MI, 2009 Edition. 

  • 2 1/2 pounds green beans, ends trimmed
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 1/2 cup light brown sugar
  • 3 Tablespoons Dijon mustard
  • 1 teaspoon dried tarragon or oregano
  • 2 teaspoons garlic powder or 1 clove minced fresh garlic
  • 1 Tablespoon kosher salt
  • Fresh pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 250 degrees.  Combine green beans, olive oil, brown sugar, mustard, tarragon or oregano, garlic, and salt in a large bowl and toss well.  The beans will be sugar coated; this will melt during cooking.  Transfer the beans to a large baking dish, cover with foil, and bake for 1 hour.  they will be tender-crisp.  toss the beans with the sauce that has accumulated at the bottom of the pan.  Transfer to a serving dish and season to taste with pepper.

Makes 12 servings.

Pineapple Upside Down Kugel

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Submitted by Beth Isola

  • 1 lb medium noodles
  • 3 eggs beaten
  • 1/2 pint sour cream
  • 1/2 cup melted butter
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 1 tsp. vanilla
  • 2 cans sliced pineapple (you’ll need enough slices to cover the bottom of a 9×13″ pan)
  • 1 1/2 cups brown sugar (either light or dark, whichever you prefer)
  • Marachino cherries — enough to place one inside each pineapple slice

Cook noodles in salted water, drain and cool.

Add eggs, sour cream, butter, salt and vanilla to cooked noodles.  Mix well.

Prepare 9×13″ pan by buttering well.

Sprinkle brown sugar on bottom of pan.

Arrange pineapple slices over sugar.  Put one cherry in center of each pineapple slice.

Pour noodle mixture in pan.

Bake at 350 for one hour.

Invert immediately onto serving platter.

Enjoy!

Can be frozen and reheated at serving time.

“Cream” of Carrot Soup

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From The Occasional Vegetarian by Karen Lee with Diane Porter.

  • 2 cups chopped leeks, white and light green parts only (about 2 medium), cleaned before chopping
  • 2 Tablespoons olive oil
  • 3 cups chopped unpeeled carrots
  • 2 teaspoons sugar
  • 2 Tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 6 cups vegetable stock or stock of your choice
  • 2 Tablespoons minced fresh dill

In a large, heavy-bottom pot, sauté the leeks in the olive oil over medium-low heat until they’re wilted, 3 to 4 minutes.  Add the carrots, sugar, parsley, salt and pepper.  Stir.

Add the stock and turn the heat to high.  Bring the soup to a boil, then turn the heat to low, cover, and simmer the soup until the carrots are soft, about 15 minutes.

Lift out the solids with a wire strainer of slotted spoon and put them in a food processor with a little of the liquid.  Puree.  Return the carrot puree to the pot, add the dill, and stir.  Serve hot.

Can be refrigerated for two days.  Reheat before serving.

Serves 6 to 8 as a first course.

Polish Beets

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Submitted by Julie Lichtenberg Stern, who got it from her friend Linda Hahn, who got it from from Mary Kramer’s Illustrated Guide to Foreign and Fancy Foods.

  • 1 bunch beets, cooked (I cut the leaves from the beets, leaving about two inches of stems on the beets. Then, I cook these in boiling water until done. Depending on the age and size of the beets, this can be anywhere from 20-40 minutes. If you want to use the leaves in Spinach/Chard Sauté, cook them separately in a couple inches of boiling water for 10-12 minutes and then add them when you would add the chard.)
  • 3 Tablespoons margarine
  • 1 Tablespoon flour
  • 1 Tablespoon regular vinegar
  • 1 Tablespoon sugar
  • 1/3 cup sour cream or plain Greek yogurt

Grate the cooked beets coarsely. Melt butter in skillet and add the flour and stir. Remove from heat and add vinegar and sugar to flour mixture. Add the beets and return to moderate heat. Stir while simmering for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in sour cream. Can serve warm, hot, or cold.

Spinach/Chard Sauté

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Submitted by Julie Lichtenberg Stern, who got it from her friend Linda Hahn, who got it from from Mary Kramer’s Illustrated Guide to Foreign and Fancy Foods.

  • 2 bunches of spinach, leaves only (or you can use two bags of pre-washed spinach – a lot easier. Last night, I combined some chard with this. I cooked about 8 leaves (minus the stems) in about two inches of water for 4 minutes after cutting the chard into 2 inch pieces. Then I drained the water, which is rich in nutrients, and put it in the freezer to use later as soup stock)
  • 1 Tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 Tablespoon salad oil
  • ½ cup to 1 cup of chopped onion
  • 1 clove of garlic, or more
  • 1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
  • 1/3 cup sour cream or plain Greek yogurt
  • salt to taste

In a large skillet melt the butter and oil. Sauté the onions, caramelizing them, for about 20 minutes. During the last five minutes, add the garlic. Then, add the spinach a handful at a time and stir-fry until wilted. If you have used chard, add it now. Combine lemon juice, sour cream, and salt in a separate bowl. Stir sour cream mixture through spinach. Heat but do not boil.

 

Serves 4.

Corn and Basil Salad

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Submitted by Julie Lichtenberg Stern, who got it from her friend Linda Hahn, who got it from from Lauren O’Connor, CSULA dietetic intern.

  • 2-1/2 cups of corn (I cook mine for 3 minutes, but I know some people who don’t even bother to do that)
  • ½ cup of red onion, diced (I used mild, sweet Walla Wallas in ours last night)
  • 1-1/2 Tablespoons cider vinegar
  • 1 Tablespoons olive oil
  • ½ cup fresh basil, cut into thin strips (or chopped)

In a large bowl, combine everything except the fresh basil. Add this right before serving.

Makes 5-6 ½ cup servings.