5 Healthy Latke Recipes for Hanukkah

by DailyBurn’s
Zucchini Latkes

Ingredients:
2 cups shredded zucchini
1 tablespoon grated onion
3 eggs, beaten
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 cup peanut oil for frying
1 cup plain nonfat greek yogurt

Directions:
In a medium bowl, combine the zucchini, onion, eggs, flour and salt. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat the oil until hot. Place large spoonfuls of the zucchini mixture into the oil, while pressing down with a wooden spoon to form thick patties. Brown on one side, turn and flip brown on the other. Let drain on paper towels. Serve hot with a dollop of plain nonfat Greek yogurt.

Sweet Potato Pancakes by Aviva Goldfarb
Prep (20 minutes) + Cook (20 minutes)
Makes 16 pancakes, or 4 servings 1 large sweet potato, 1 large white potato, 1 medium yellow onion,
2 eggs, lightly beaten,  1/2 cup flour, 1 tsp. salt, 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper (optional), 6 Tbsp. vegetable oil, divided,
1 cup nonfat or low fat sour cream (optional for serving),
1 cup naturally sweetened applesauce (optional for serving)

Using a hand grater, coarsely grate the potatoes and finely dice or grate the onion. Drain the vegetables then wrap them in a clean dish towel for a minute or two to get the excess water out. Transfer the grated vegetables to a large bowl. Stir in the beaten eggs. Thoroughly mix in the flour, salt and cayenne pepper (optional).
Preheat the oven to 250 degrees and line a baking sheet with foil. In a large nonstick skillet, heat 2 Tbsp. oil over medium to medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, scoop in spoonfuls of the potato pancake mixture and flatten them with the spoon or a spatula. Cook the pancakes for several minutes per side until they are browned. After each batch, add 1 – 2 Tbsp. oil to the pan and let it heat for a minute or two, to keep the pancakes browning nicely. If they start to get too browned on the outside before the middle is cooked, reduce the heat. Transfer the cooked pancakes to the baking sheet and keep them warm in the oven while the rest cook. Serve them topped with the sour cream and applesauce (or dipped in ketchup, as our kids like them!)

sweet potatoes and gluten free!
Potato Latkes

Ingredients:
Canola oil (expeller pressed is better for you)*
¼ cup of grated fresh onion
1 pound of shredded peeled baking potato (about 2 medium sized potatoes)
½ pound of shredded peeled sweet potato (1 medium-sized potato)
½ cup of all-purpose gluten-free flour
1/3 cup of finely chopped green onions (I made it without these and they were still good)
½ teaspoon of salt
¼ teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper
1 garlic clove, minced
1 large egg, lightly beaten

Preheat oven to 425°. (If your oven runs hot, like mine, take the temperature down to about 400.)
Grease a jelly roll pan with about a couple of tablespoons of canola oil, and either smear it around with your fingers or use a wad of waxed paper to distribute evenly. (I didn’t have a jelly roll pan, so I used a cookie sheet lined with heavy-duty aluminum foil and parchment paper on top, but this made the latkes brown a lot faster – next time I’ll probably just go out and buy a jelly roll pan.)

Combine grated onion and potatoes in a sieve; squeeze out excess moisture. (A good way to do this is to place a heavy bowl over the top of the potatoes and onions so it presses down on them.) In a large bowl, combine potato mixture, flour, green onions, salt, pepper, garlic, and egg. Divide mixture into eight equal portions (for some reason I got 16 out of this recipe, and had to use two baking pans) squeezing out excess liquid. Shape each portion into ¼ inch thick patty, place on prepared pan. Drizzle a bit of canola oil on top of each patty and smooth it around with a spoon (or you can use one of those pump oil sprayers.) Bake at 425° for 12 minutes. Carefully turn patties over (use the biggest spatula that you have), and cook for 30 minutes or until lightly browned, turning every 10 minutes.
Then serve them up hot with either applesauce or sour cream (I like them with cranberry sauce), or anything else you might like.


Oven Baked Latkes
1-lb. russet potatoes (or Yukon Gold)
1 small, sweet onion
1 large egg
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
3 tbsp all purpose flour

Preheat oven to 425F.
Wash and dry potatoes and remove the dry, outer skin from the onion (there is no need to peel the potatoes). Grate, perferable using a fairly large/coarse grater, potatoes and onion. Place mixture in a collanger or sieve and press down firmly with a paper towel to remove some of the excess moisture. Stir potato mixture and repeat.
Transfer potato mixture to a large bowl and stir in the egg. In a small bowl, mix together the baking powder, salt and flour, then stir that in as well.
Drop latke mixture in 2-3 tbsp measures, forming 2-3 inch pancakes that are about 1/4 inch thick (sightly thicker is ok), on a lightly oiled baking sheet. Bake for 15-20 minutes, then turn the pancakes over, and bake for an additional 10 minutes. Latkes should be deep gold on both sides when done, so add a minute or two to the baking time, if necessary.

The latkes can be served immediately, but will stay crisp a bit longer than their fried counterparts and can also be served at room temperature.
Makes about 16 latkes, enough for 4 as a side.
This recipe can easily be doubled to make more.
( feel free to reduce to 1/2 tsp if salt-sensitive)

Chinese Latkes with Tangy Dipping Sauce By Annie Bond
The tangy dipping sauce replaces sour cream as a garnish and more than makes up for its absence. Just be sure to make a lot of these latkes: They disappear quickly!
INGREDIENTS
2 medium potatoes
3 scallions, green and white parts, finely chopped
1 egg
1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Chinese Dipping Sauce, see below
1. With a fine grater, grate the potatoes into a medium bowl. Add the scallions. In another bowl, beat the egg with the cornstarch and salt, then add to the potato mixture, stirring well.
2. In a large nonstick frying pan, heat 12 tablespoon of the oil over medium-high heat. When hot, drop a tablespoon of the potato mixture into the pan and flattens slightly with the back of the spoon.
3. Continue making pancakes in this way until the pan is filled. Cook the pancakes 3-4 minutes on each side, or until lightly browned. Drain on paper towels. Add the remaining oil and cook the rest of the potato mixture in the same manner. Serve hot with the Chinese Dipping Sauce on the side.

Yields 12-15 small pancakes; serves 4.
Chinese Dipping Sauce
1 teaspoon sesame seeds
1 small clove garlic, minced
1 scallion, green and white parts, finely chopped
4 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons white vinegar
2 teaspoons sesame oil
1 teaspoon sugar

In a toaster oven or heavy skillet, toast the sesame seeds over medium-high heat until slightly browned. Transfer the sesame seeds to a small bowl and add the remaining ingredients. Mix well. Serve at room temperature.
Yields 1/2 cup.