Zucchini Potato Latkes

At the beginning of fourth grade at Sugarland Elementary School, there was a flurry of excitement amongst the girls because we were placed in the same class as David Zeitz. David was not only cute, but he was Jewish--the only Jewish kid in the whole school--and that meant that his mom would come into school at Hanukkuh and make homemade potato pancakes for the entire class. Plus she gave out dreidels and chocolate gelt and taught us about the story Hanukkah, which took up the remainder of the school day.

This was my first taste of what was to become a lifelong love of jewish cuisine, which was cemented into the salty/fatty cravings corner of my brain during four years at Emory University. I attended every Seder dinner I could get invited to. I consumed as much matzah ball soup, potato knishes, cheese filled blintzes, and (my Dad's favorite) noodle kugel as I could find. Still to this day, my favorite breakfast is smoked salmon or whitefish, cream cheese, and capers on a bagel.

Now that I'm living with the likes of celiac, my kosher indulgences are only when I can track down GF options. The Sensitive Baker has fabulous bagels, thank goodness. I've not found a GF matzah ball soup, but with the cold I have going right now, I sure could use some (future blog post alert).

I adapted this recipe for Zucchini Potato Latkes from Kashrut. My big warning is to make sure you squeeze out as much water as possible from the grated zucchini, potatoes, and chopped onion, or else you're gonna have a soggy mess in the frying pan. Also, if you want chunkier latkes, then use the larger side of the grater. I prefer a more cakey latke, so I use the small grates on the thin side of the large grater.

Thank you, Mrs. Zeitz, for giving me yet another way to enjoy a fried potato.

Zuccini Potato Latkes

2 medium zucchini, peeled
4 large potatoes, peeled
4 Eggs
4 tablespoons GF Flour (more if your mixture is too soggy)
1 large onion, Quartered
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Canola or other vegetable oil, for frying

Grate the zucchini. Squeeze out any extra liquid and place in a large bowl.

Grate the potatoes. Squeeze out any extra liquid and add to the zucchini.

Add the eggs and the GF flour until the mixture is no longer runny and stir to blend.

Finely chop the onion, squeeze out any extra liquid. Add to the zucchini-potato mixture. Season to taste with the salt and pepper. Stir to blend well.

In a large, heavy skillet, heat 1/8 to 1/4 inch of vegetable oil over medium heat. Stir the batter if it appears to have separated. When the oil is hot (a drop of the potato mixture added to it will sizzle immediately), spoon quarter-cups of the mixture, or tablespoons for cocktail lakes, into the oil. Do not crowd. Brown the pancakes on both sides, about 5 minutes total. Drain them on brown paper or paper towels and keep warm while preparing additional batches.

Serve immediately with applesauce and creme fraiche.