'Meet the Latkes' - Read and Rise Book Club December 2020

Someone recommended "Meet the Latkes" by Alan Silberberg as a fun Hanukkah (and Chanukkah!) story and as soon as I read it, I knew it was the perfect book to teach us a little more about Hanukkah. The story is absolutely hysterical and engaging, while teaching you about the history of Hanukkah. This read aloud version done by Shira from Shira's Story Corner* and Scott Speiser is just perfect too - you definitely don't want to skip this one!

Featured story: "Meet the Latkes" by Alan Silberberg

Activity: Have latkes! You can absolutely purchase latkes from the store and just heat them up at home, but if you have the time and energy to make your own, this recipe was recommended to me.

Homemade Latkes

Ingredients:

- 2 1/2 pounds potatoes (about 8 large)

- 2 medium onions

- 2 large eggs

- 1 1/2 tsp salt

- 1/2 tsp ground white pepper

- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour

- a pinch of baking powder

- about 3/4 cup vegetable oil (for frying)

Directions:

1. Line a tray with paper towels for draining latkes and have a baking sheet ready for keeping latkes warm.

2. Peel and grate potatoes and onions on the large holes of a grater or with a food processor fitted with a coarse grating disk, alternating onion and potato. Transfer grated onion and potato to a colander. Squeeze mixture by handfuls to remove as much liquid as possible.

3. Put potato-onion mixture in a bowl. Add egg, salt, pepper, flour, and baking soda and mix well.

4. Heat 1/2  cup oil in a large, deep, heavy skillet. For each latke, drop about 2 tbsp potato mixture into pan. Flatten with back of a spoon so each pancake is 2 1/2 to 3 inches in diameter. Do not crowd the pan. Fry over medium heat 4-5 minutes on each side, or until crisp and golden brown. Transfer to paper towels. Stir batter before frying each new batch and add more oil to pan as necessary to fry all the latkes.

5. Serve with applesauce.

*I just happened upon the read aloud of "Meet the Latkes" on Shira's Story Corner and found that it was an adorable super fun reading. But when I clicked to learn more about Shira, I was so touched and inspired by her story! After touring the Children's Hospital of Los Angeles and finding out that some children are too sick to receive visitors, Shira decided she could "visit" them by making videos of herself reading stories and sharing them online for them to see. She also writes a book every year and all proceeds from the book sales go to the Children's Hospital! 

If you'd like to find out more, visit Shira's Story Corner.