{"id":3626,"date":"2023-11-26T01:58:00","date_gmt":"2023-11-26T09:58:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/?p=3626"},"modified":"2023-12-29T12:41:18","modified_gmt":"2023-12-29T20:41:18","slug":"chanukah-potato-latke-recipe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/","title":{"rendered":"Chanukah Potato Latke History and Recipe"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Audrey's<\/p>\n

\"potato
Photo credit: Peggy Gilbey McMackin of Spiced Peach Blog<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Latke<\/strong> (pronounced LOT-keh, LOT-kah or LOT-kee) is Yiddish for \u201cpancake.\u201d On Chanukah<\/strong>, it is traditional to serve latkes (most often potato) fried in oil to celebrate the Chanukah miracle, which involved the oil of the Temple Menorah\u00a0lasting for eight days instead of just one. Jews eat foods that reflect the significance of a holiday \u2014 such as matzah on Passover and apples dipped in honey on Rosh Hashanah \u2014 and Chanukah is no exception. For at least the last thousand years, Jews have traditionally eaten oily foods on Chanukah.<\/p>\n

The latke is one of those Jewish foods that feels steeped in tradition, as if it\u2019s been made the same way since the days of the Maccabees.<\/p>\n

But in a revelatory article<\/a>, Atlantic senior editor Yoni Appelbaum explains that the latke as we know it \u2014 grated potatoes fried in olive oil \u2014 is a relatively new culinary invention. Here, in brief, is the Chanukah staple\u2019s origin story.<\/p>\n

As early as the 14th century: Deep-fried ricotta cheese<\/h3>\n

That\u2019s right. Latkes were originally an Italian cheese dish.<\/p>\n

According to Appelbaum, they were inspired by The Book of Judith, set hundreds of years before the Maccabean Revolt. The book, from the Catholic Bible, tells the story of a daring widow who seduced and killed the Assyrian general Holofernes to save Israel from invaders.<\/p>\n

In an obscure Hebrew version of the story, Judith distracted Holofernes in part by feeding him pancakes \u201csalted and mixed with cheese.\u201d Italian Jews adopted the custom of deep-frying cheese pancakes on Hanukkah to honor the story, which they apparently conflated with that of the Maccabees.<\/p>\n

Up to the 19th century: Grain pancakes<\/h3>\n

Appelbaum notes that potatoes were originally cultivated in South America and weren\u2019t introduced to Europe by Spanish explorers until the second half of the 16th century. Potatoes weren\u2019t widely grown and consumed in Eastern Europe \u2014 the Old World from which many Jews emigrated to the United States \u2014 for a couple more centuries.<\/p>\n

Until the early 19th century, Eastern European Jews made pancakes from grains, such as buckwheat and rye, according to food historian Gil Marks. Those were among the few crops available to them during the frosty early winter, when Chanukah is celebrated.<\/p>\n

The 19th century: Potatoes fried in schmaltz, not oil<\/h3>\n

In the 1800s, even after potatoes took root in Eastern Europe, latkes were still not fried in olive oil (as they are today, providing a convenient link to the oil-rich story of Chanukah). Olive trees were uncommon in the region, and people cooked with schmaltz, fat rendered from chickens, geese or beef.<\/p>\n

In fact, schmaltz remained a traditional latke ingredient well into the 20th century. Appelbaum cites a stipulation from a 1927 issue of The American Mercury magazine (which he says includes the first mention of the word \u201clatke\u201d in English) that the potato pancakes be \u201cfried in schmaltz.\u201d<\/p>\n

From the 20th century: Today\u2019s latke \u2014 potatoes fried in oil<\/h3>\n

The advent in 1911 of Crisco, the first shortening made entirely of vegetable oil, changed the way latkes (and many other fried foods) were made. Kosher Crisco was once marketed as the miracle for which the \u201cHebrew race had been waiting 4,000 years.\u201d<\/p>\n

When Crisco \u201cfell from favor,\u201d as Appelbaum writes, olive oil took its place at the Hanukkah table \u2014 and the modern latke was born<\/p>\n

Why Latkes Go With Sour Cream<\/h3>\n

\"potato<\/p>\n

Potato latkes are traditionally served with applesauce and\/or sour cream, but they are perfectly tasty with nothing at all In addition to being delicious with fried foods, sour cream is symbolically significant. Dairy treats are reminiscent of the milk-based (and intoxicating) meal that the brave Judith fed the Greek general before she decapitated him in his sleep.<\/p>\n

The Modern Day Chanukah Latke Recipe<\/h2>\n

Ingredients:<\/strong><\/p>\n

5 large potatoes, peeled
\n1 large onion
\n3 eggs
\n1\/3\u00a0cup flour
\n1 tsp. Salt
\n\u00bc tsp. pepper
\n\u00be cup oil for frying<\/p>\n

Use:<\/strong> 10-inch skillet
\nYields:<\/strong> 4 to 6 servings<\/p>\n

Grate potatoes and onion on the fine side of a grater, or in a food processor; or put in a blender with a little water.<\/p>\n

Strain grated potatoes and onion through a colander, pressing out excess water. Add eggs, flour, and seasoning. Mix well.<\/p>\n

Heat \u00bd cup oil in skillet. Lower flame and place 1 large tablespoon batter at a time into hot sizzling oil and fry on one side for approximately 5 minutes until golden brown. Turn over and fry on other side 2 to 3 minutes.<\/p>\n

Remove from pan and place on paper towels to drain excess oil. Continue with remaining batter until used up, adding more oil when necessary.<\/p>\n

Serve with applesauce and\/or sour cream on the side.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Latke (pronounced LOT-keh, LOT-kah or LOT-kee) is Yiddish for \u201cpancake.\u201d On Chanukah, it is traditional to serve latkes (most often potato) fried in oil to celebrate the Chanukah miracle, which involved the oil of the Temple Menorah\u00a0lasting for eight days instead of just one. Jews eat foods that reflect the significance of a holiday \u2014 …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":21622,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[25],"tags":[594,242,595,593,592,30],"class_list":["post-3626","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-travel-recipes","tag-chanukah","tag-history","tag-jewish-cuisine","tag-latke","tag-potato","tag-recipe"],"yoast_head":"\nChanukah Potato Latke History and Recipe - Traveling Archive<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The potato latke as we know it \u2014 grated potatoes fried in olive oil \u2014 is a relatively new culinary invention.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Chanukah Potato Latke History and Recipe - Traveling Archive\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The potato latke as we know it \u2014 grated potatoes fried in olive oil \u2014 is a relatively new culinary invention.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Traveling Archive\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-11-26T09:58:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-12-29T20:41:18+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/Potato-Latkes.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"850\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"478\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Ed Boitano\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Ed Boitano\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Ed Boitano\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/#\/schema\/person\/cc5e9b0798361556863d3d8f10280368\"},\"headline\":\"Chanukah Potato Latke History and Recipe\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-11-26T09:58:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-12-29T20:41:18+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/\"},\"wordCount\":782,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/Potato-Latkes.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Chanukah\",\"history\",\"Jewish cuisine\",\"latke\",\"potato\",\"recipe\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Audrey\u2019s Travel Recipes\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/\",\"name\":\"Chanukah Potato Latke History and Recipe - Traveling Archive\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/Potato-Latkes.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-11-26T09:58:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-12-29T20:41:18+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/#\/schema\/person\/cc5e9b0798361556863d3d8f10280368\"},\"description\":\"The potato latke as we know it \u2014 grated potatoes fried in olive oil \u2014 is a relatively new culinary invention.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/Potato-Latkes.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/Potato-Latkes.jpg\",\"width\":850,\"height\":478,\"caption\":\"potato latkes\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Chanukah Potato Latke History and Recipe\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/\",\"name\":\"Traveling Archive\",\"description\":\"Traveling Adventures\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/#\/schema\/person\/cc5e9b0798361556863d3d8f10280368\",\"name\":\"Ed Boitano\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1c89b0ccad1c0b879bf4de47ee404f8691fdb8f72ef939a4b8320f2c93b4b2b7?s=96&d=retro&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1c89b0ccad1c0b879bf4de47ee404f8691fdb8f72ef939a4b8320f2c93b4b2b7?s=96&d=retro&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Ed Boitano\"},\"description\":\"A Seattle native, Ed Boitano has devoted 25-years of his life to writing about travel. As a descendant of both Leif Ericson and Christopher Columbus, the Amer-Norsk-Italian Boitano quite literally has a passion for travel to unexplored locations in his blood. He has traveled to over 56 nations, including Antarctica and the Arctic Circle, as well as lived with a nomadic Basque shepherd family outside of Bakersfield, California for six hours. He brings to Traveling Boy a love of all forms of travel, and a disdain for any lamb food products.\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/author\/ed\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Chanukah Potato Latke History and Recipe - Traveling Archive","description":"The potato latke as we know it \u2014 grated potatoes fried in olive oil \u2014 is a relatively new culinary invention.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Chanukah Potato Latke History and Recipe - Traveling Archive","og_description":"The potato latke as we know it \u2014 grated potatoes fried in olive oil \u2014 is a relatively new culinary invention.","og_url":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/","og_site_name":"Traveling Archive","article_published_time":"2023-11-26T09:58:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2023-12-29T20:41:18+00:00","og_image":[{"width":850,"height":478,"url":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/Potato-Latkes.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Ed Boitano","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Ed Boitano","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/"},"author":{"name":"Ed Boitano","@id":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/#\/schema\/person\/cc5e9b0798361556863d3d8f10280368"},"headline":"Chanukah Potato Latke History and Recipe","datePublished":"2023-11-26T09:58:00+00:00","dateModified":"2023-12-29T20:41:18+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/"},"wordCount":782,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/Potato-Latkes.jpg","keywords":["Chanukah","history","Jewish cuisine","latke","potato","recipe"],"articleSection":["Audrey\u2019s Travel Recipes"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/","url":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/","name":"Chanukah Potato Latke History and Recipe - Traveling Archive","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/Potato-Latkes.jpg","datePublished":"2023-11-26T09:58:00+00:00","dateModified":"2023-12-29T20:41:18+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/#\/schema\/person\/cc5e9b0798361556863d3d8f10280368"},"description":"The potato latke as we know it \u2014 grated potatoes fried in olive oil \u2014 is a relatively new culinary invention.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/Potato-Latkes.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/Potato-Latkes.jpg","width":850,"height":478,"caption":"potato latkes"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/chanukah-potato-latke-recipe\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Chanukah Potato Latke History and Recipe"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/#website","url":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/","name":"Traveling Archive","description":"Traveling Adventures","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/#\/schema\/person\/cc5e9b0798361556863d3d8f10280368","name":"Ed Boitano","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1c89b0ccad1c0b879bf4de47ee404f8691fdb8f72ef939a4b8320f2c93b4b2b7?s=96&d=retro&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1c89b0ccad1c0b879bf4de47ee404f8691fdb8f72ef939a4b8320f2c93b4b2b7?s=96&d=retro&r=g","caption":"Ed Boitano"},"description":"A Seattle native, Ed Boitano has devoted 25-years of his life to writing about travel. As a descendant of both Leif Ericson and Christopher Columbus, the Amer-Norsk-Italian Boitano quite literally has a passion for travel to unexplored locations in his blood. He has traveled to over 56 nations, including Antarctica and the Arctic Circle, as well as lived with a nomadic Basque shepherd family outside of Bakersfield, California for six hours. He brings to Traveling Boy a love of all forms of travel, and a disdain for any lamb food products.","url":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/author\/ed\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3626","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3626"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3626\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":33657,"href":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3626\/revisions\/33657"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/21622"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3626"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3626"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3626"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}