Cooking with Facts #11

I’m neither particularly religious nor a Jewish individual in ethnicity, but I must admit that potato latkes- the undeniable Jewish version of a potato pancake- have a distinct taste and look that remind me of why I continue this blog in the first place.

I mean… other than for the facts I get a weekly grade for and I quite enjoy creating such…

Anyway, as you can already tell, I chose to do potato latkes for today’s blog insert with personal influence coming from a dear friend of mine. She, who most definitely is Jewish with her ties to the religion of Judaism, recommended I try to make this as a sort of dare on behalf of her mother’s birthday- which will be this weekend actually… so, happy birthday to a lady whom I do not have the pleasure of knowing.

Anyhow, there I was, supplied with my recipe from this site; http://recipes.teen-recipes.com/latkes.html, as well as with the ingredients I would need to whip up some latkes. Everything was going good until I discovered that, to achieve my goals, I would have to grate a raw onion…

May I remind you that, no matter how much I look like such, I am not Shrek. I can not chop up or eat a raw onion and all its ‘layers’ without a couple of tears slipping down my cheeks. I will tell you here and now; if you cry at an onion- even when you are not the one cutting it- I suggest you find a gum-chewing, mouth-breathing chump to grate the onion for you; it will be your safest bet at no-tear survival.

The final result was, in my opinion, worth the unneeded evilness brought forth by a root and metal grater. Though slightly difficult to make, the taste and appearance was quite nice (though possibly a little bland), and overall I would give it an 8 out of 10. That grading mainly due to my younger brother merely saying “good” when I asked him how it was, not something more exotic like “superb” or “eating this potato-item was a flavor quest for my taste buds.”

Recipe:

Potato Latkes

Ingredients

• 4 C. Grated Potatoes

• 1 Large Grated Onion (Turns into a mushy substance)

• 1/4 C. Flour

• 2 Eggs

• 1/2 Tsp. Salt

• 1/2 Tsp. Ground Black Pepper

• Lots of Vegetable Oil

Steps

• Prepare the ingredients. Soak up some of the water from the potatoes with a paper towel.

• Combine all ingredients in a large bowl (excluding the oil). Press the mixture together into patties around the size of a business card, except round. Press well, and just drip the juices into your sink. Do this four times.

• Cover the bottom of a large skillet in oil. Heat up the oil until a drop of water hisses and splatters. (Be careful with this). Reduce heat to low and place in the four patties. Cook them until very brown and crispy on the bottom and top. Flip every minute or so (Should take 5 minutes).

• Repeat until all the patties are made. Place on a plate lined with paper towels, serve hot with applesauce and sour cream and enjoy