Photo by Lisa Hubbard

This classic Jewish recipe is perfect for any holiday menu. Latkes are fabulous for many reasons, but I usually find them on my list of holiday go-to recipes because of their versatility. The myriad of topping options -- smoked salmon, apple sauce, and sour cream are the most popular -- lends this dish a range of menu-placement choices. Whether you celebrate Hanukkah or not, latkes are a great appetizer for a holiday party -- they also work well as a side dish (they can easily take the place of mashed or baked potatoes) or as part of breakfast. Heck, I've been known to make an entire meal of these fried potato goodies.

Yields: about 12 pancakes

Ingredients
1 small onion
3 russet potatoes
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 teaspoon salt
Dash of pepper
1/2 to 1 cup vegetable oil, for frying

Directions
1. Coarsely grate the onion into a large bowl. Peel the potatoes and coarsely grate them into the onions. Stir in the flour, eggs, salt, and pepper.
2. Heat about 1/3 cup oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until very hot. Drop heaping tablespoons of the mixture into the oil and flatten with the back of the spoon. Fry, flipping once or twice, until crisp and brown on both sides. Drain on paper towels. Repeat until all the latkes are fried, adding more oil as needed.

Excerpted from Jewish Holiday Treats by Joan Zoloth with permission from Chronicle Books 2000. Photographs by Lisa Hubbard.

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-- Sara Hennessey

See More: Dinner , Food & Recipes , Holiday , Recipes