Thanksgivukkah: Two Celebrations, One Common Ingredient

Quote du Jour
     Two roads diverged in a yellow wood... ~ Robert Frost 
      (read the complete poem at the bottom of this blog)

Two Celebrations Converge November 28, 2013

Thanksgiving and Hanukkah: Won't happen again for 70,000 years
To honor our Jewish friends, for years we would invite them to celebrate one of the 8 days of Hanukkah with us. We wanted our children to learn about and respect other faiths, and every time, we learned so much about the Jewish experience. One friend sang the blessing for most years. He would put on his skullcap and sing a blessing as the candles were lit. Our little daughter started to call him "the man who sings for his dinner!" It was always a special occasion, and we all love l.o.v.e. LOVE the traditional Latkes served during Hanukkah.

And my favorite holiday of the year is Thanksgiving. It's good to be thankful. It's good to gather together with the only goal of being together, eating a particularly American meal and being thankful together. On Thanksgiving afternoons, if you step outside and take a whiff, the whole country seems to smell of roasting turkey. Fellow citizens are sharing the same meal on the same day, and it only happens in our country, the United States of America. Turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes...

It wouldn't be Hanukkah or Thanksgiving without it 

The Potato
What a versatile veggie! Baked, boiled, mashed, roasted, fried, scalloped, steamed, diced, sliced, grated, whole - the list goes on and on. According to Wikipedia, there are more than 5,000 varieties, native to South America. It was only 400 years ago that the potato was introduced to the rest of the world. Then came gnocchi, french fries, nuggets, hashbrowns, goodness, I'm getting hungry. I guess the only way we don't eat potatoes is raw!

Potatoes: The Perfect Food
Watch a short video featuring John McDougall, MD discussing all the benefits of eating potatoes.

    John McDougall MD, Potatoes, The Perfect Food

Latkes = Potato Pancakes

Our three children attended the Lafayette Co-operative Nursery School. We valued the play-centered learning environment. For young children, their work is play…and they need plenty of time to do their work! The children prepared their own snacks. I have used this Lafayette Nursery School recipe for Latkes, for years.

Served with applesauce and a dollop of sour cream, this is an easy dish to UnClog by eliminating the animal based ingredients, and serving with cashew cream instead of sour cream. (For a cashew cream recipe, see October12, 2013 VeggieBound Post, My Bridge to a Plant-based Diet). 

Here are recipes for both Clogger and UnClogged versions of Potato Pancakes and applesauce. 

These instructions are designed for children to prepare with an adult

Latkes—Clogger (Potato Pancakes)

Serves 4-6 adults

                4 large potatoes                   2 Tbsps flour

                2 onions                              1 tsp baking powder

                3 eggs                                 salt and pepper

Children do these tasks: 1) Peel and grate potatoes, 2) Peel and grate onions into potatoes, 3) Combine baking powder, flour, salt and pepper, 4) Add to potato-onion mixture and combine, 5) Crack and stir eggs and 6) Add to potato mixture and stir.

Parents do the cooking: Heat griddle till drops of water dance on the griddle surface. Add oil to griddle. Form 1/4 -1/3 cup potato mixture into a “pancake.” Place on griddle. Cook each side 3-5 minutes, turning once. Serve with applesauce and sour cream.

UnClogged
I prefer the plant-based version of Latkes. The hint to making these excellent potato pancakes is to rinse the grated potatoes in water. Then, using your hands – hands are a great mixing tool– squeeze out excess liquid. Any good parent will remind you to wash your hands first!

This recipe is modified from Alicia Silverstone’s (she's in the movie “Clueless”, I could not count the number of times my daughter and I watched this wonderful movie!) Recipe

Latkes—Unclogged (Potato Pancakes)
Serves 4-6 

    1-1/2 pounds russet potatoes, peeled and grated 
    1 small yellow onion, peeled and grated 
    1 Tbsp fresh parsley, minced 
    1/4 cup all-purpose flour 
    1/2 tsp baking powder 
    1 tsp salt 
    1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper 
    a small amount of vegetable oil, for frying 

In a colander set over a large bowl of water, place peeled and grated potatoes. Rinse the grated potatoes in the water. Using your hands, squeeze out excess liquid from the potatoes. Place the squeezed, grated potatoes in the bowl. Add onion to potatoes along with parsley, flour, baking powder, salt and pepper, and mix well.

In a large skillet over medium heat, heat a thin layer of oil. Take a heaping 1/4 cup batter and flatten it before gently placing it in the hot oil. Make three or four more potato pancakes this way, and add to skillet without crowding pan. Fry until golden brown on both sides, turning once, about 8 minutes total. Repeat with remaining potato mixture, adding more oil as necessary.

Serve with applesauce and cashew cream.

Variations

• Try other types of potatoes, including sweet potatoes. Yukon Golds give a buttery taste
• This recipe can be baked in a casserole pan. Turn the batter into a greased baking pan, cover with foil, and bake at 375º. For the last few minutes of baking, remove the foil.

Applesauce Notes: Making your own applesauce unbelievably simple, and it’s 
a good way to use any aging apples that might otherwise be discarded. At a local grocery store, sometimes their produce department bags bruised apples – 6-8 in 
a bag – for a dollar. Boy does that make me feel thrifty! Just cut away the bruised areas and use the rest of the apple. 

Use a variety of apples for the best flavor. For “pink” applesauce, use red apples 
and don’t peel them. When the cooked apples are soft, to remove the apple peels, put them through a food strainer. Use applesauce to replace half of the shortening, butter or oil in baked recipes.

  

Applesauce

The number of servings depends on how many apples are used. Scanning online recipes, it looks like 1 fresh apple yields 1 serving of applesauce.

To a heavy saucepan add

                Juice of one lemon (keeps apples from turning brown)

                6+ apples, cored and sliced

                      I like to use a combination of apple varieties

                2-4 Tbsps of water

                Optional, to taste: sugar, honey or maple syrup to sweeten

                                             

Over medium heat, cover the saucepan to help the apples “steam” and release their juices. As the apples cook…tah dah…they naturally turn into applesauce.    
      

This pumpkin is about to become pie!

L'Chayim!