A mashup of my Italian and Jewish heritage, these rosemary potato latkes, inspired by rosemary potato pizza, are traditional latkes studded with rosemary and topped with lemony ricotta cheese.
It was actually my mom who inspired these Rosemary Potato Latkes. I am Jewish from my mom’s side and Italian from my dad’s side. And with food being such a huge part of both of these cultures, where pretty much all celebrations center around a huge meal, my mom suggested I come up with some recipes that are a mashup of the two. I originally thought of something like a latke pizza, but that felt a little bit too on the nose for the Italian inspiration. So I came up with these rosemary potato latkes, which take inspiration from one of my favorite pizzas, the rosemary potato pizza, that I had for the first time in Italy as a teenager. Traditionally we serve latkes with sour cream or applesauce, but for these I took another note from my Italian heritage and served them with rosemary salt and lemony ricotta.
Of course latkes are a staple in Jewish cooking, a treat made mainly for Hanukkah because the oil they are fried in represents the oil that miraculously lasted the Jews eight nights instead of one. I actually usually make latkes for Thanksgiving, which I celebrate mostly with my dad’s Italian side of the family. There was one Thanksgiving about eight years ago when Thanksgiving and Hanukkah overlapped (Thanksgivukkah), so I made latkes. The Italian side of my family flipped out over how much they loved them, so our new tradition is latkes for Thanksgiving. I usually make them a few weeks in advance of Thanksgiving or Hanukkah, because they are time consuming to make day-of. Instead, you can make them ahead of time and freeze them, then reheat in a very hot oven when ready to serve.
AN ITALIAN AND JEWISH MASHUP
The base recipe for these rosemary potato latkes is my grandmother’s latke recipe. It’s a simple one, made up solely of shredded potato, onion, eggs and a bit of flour. But anyone who’s ever had a latke knows that simplicity can be deceiving, because there is possibly no better bite of food in the world than a fried latke. I have the best memories of Hanukkah at my grandmother’s house and the perfectly crisp latkes she would serve. While everything on her Hanukkah table was undoubtedly incredibly delicious (Nana’s brisket coming in close second) there was nothing better than her latkes. It took every ounce of willpower I had not to gorge myself on them, and to save room for some of the other delicious dishes.
While nothing beats a traditional latke served with sour cream or applesauce, I think that my non-traditional rosemary latkes are a close second. Fresh rosemary is the Italian spin on these latkes, both in the form of leaves studded throughout the latke batter and a rosemary salt that tops them after frying. Rosemary and potatoes are a classic combination, and I think that the herb just gives the potato that extra oomph of flavor. And just to drive home the Italian spin even more, I serve my rosemary latkes with lemony ricotta, taking another bit of inspiration from my favorite potato pizza which also uses ricotta cheese. Adding a bit of lemon zest to the ricotta brightens everything and gives you the slightly sour bite you’d usually get from sour cream.
Rosemary Potato Latkes
Ingredients
For the latkes
- 3 lb potatoes
- 2 exta large eggs
- 1 large onion
- 1/4-1/2 cup flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 6-8 sprigs fresh rosemary
- kosher salt or rosemary salt (see recipe) for finishing
- sour cream, apple sauce or lemony ricotta (see recipe) for serving
For the Rosemary Salt
- 1/2 tbsp kosher salt
- 1 tbsp rosemary
For the Lemony Ricotta
- 8 oz ricotta cheese
- 1-2 lemons, zested
- salt and pepper
Instructions
For the latkes
- Peel and shred the potatoes on the largest sized shred on the box grater or using a stand mixer or food processor with shredding blade. Remove the excess moisture from the shredded potatoes by wringing them in a clean kitchen towel.
- Halve and shred the onion the same way, removing the excess moisutre by wringing in a kitchen towel as well.
- Mix together the shredded onion and potato. Whisk the eggs in a sperate bowl and add to the potato mixture. Season with salt. Add the flour a bit at a time until the mixture is thick and does not contain too much extra moisture.
- Strip the rosemary leaves from the stems. You can chop the leaves if you want, or leave them whole. Mix them evenly into the latke batter.
- Cover the bottom of a heavy skillet with about 1/4 inch of oil. Heat over medium-high heat until oil is very hot and shimmering.
- Using your hands, form the latkes by taking about 1/4 to 1/2 cup of the latke batter and squeezing out the extra moisture between your your hands, then pressing it into a patty. Fry in batches until both sides are golden brown, 3-5 minutes per side. Add more oil to the pan between batches as needed. Sprinkle with sea salt (or rosemary salt, see recipe) while they are still hot.
- Serve with lemony ricotta (see recipe), sour cream or apple sauce.
For Rosemary Salt
- Roughly chop the rosemary leaves. Mix them into the salt with your fingertips, using the salt to crush them so they release their oil.
For Lemony Ricotta
- Combine lemon zest and ricotta to taste. Season with salt and pepper.
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