Swiss eat a lot of potatoes – it’s an important part of a hearty Alpine diet. You can get them mashed, baked, fried, covered in cheese – the possibilities are endless. And while I grew up eating a lot of potato based dishes, I’ve never had latkes. Latkes would be very similar to rösti, which could be considered a Swiss national dish – except that rösti doesn’t have eggs or onions. Since moving to North America I’ve heard and read a lot about latkes and we thought we’d finally try them. The only thing I regret is not having tried them earlier! They are the perfect potato dish – crunchy, soft, small – and adding sour cream just makes them that much better!
Potato Latke (adapted from Martha Stewart Living)
- 2 1/2 pounds potatoes, peeled (I bought the small ones and didn’t peel)
- 1 medium yellow onion
- Coarse salt
- 3 large eggs
- 1/2 cup flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 cup vegetable oil
With a food processor, grate potatoes and onion. Toss with 1 1/2 teaspoons salt. In 2 batches, pile potato mixture on a clean dish towel and really squeeze out excess liquid. Transfer to a bowl and mix in eggs, flour, and baking powder.
