Potato Latkes

Have you ever sent a message to the wrong person? Was it bad? Did you get in trouble? Well, today I sent an email to the person I was actually discussing on accident. I have yet to get a response, and I am honestly terrified.

When I was in college, I had a crush on this boy for about six months before he even realized I was alive. The night after we had our first kiss, I was so excited that with out a thought, I sent my best friend a text message about it. It read, “E*%$^& and I finally kissed!” Yes, E*%$^*& is totally his real name. At the time, I was in class and was trying to quickly send off the message before getting caught by the teacher. Maybe this is why I didn’t the best grades.

About thirty seconds later, I received a text from E*%$^*&. I was so excited. I opened the message and it was actually a response to the message that I thought I sent my friend. It read, “I don’t think this message was for me.” I was mortified. My jaw dropped, my face turned beat red and I’m pretty sure I stopped breathing for the next three minutes. I might not have started breathing again had a friend not shook me.

Lucky for me, he was not offended and we ended up dating for a year and now it makes for a really great party story. I really hope that in the not so distant future, I will look back on the message I sent today and tell it at a party. And that people will laugh and not make the faces people made today when I told them the story.


What does this have to do with food? Nothing. But, I can think of what I want to eat to comfort me. These potato latkes. I made them with the brisket from the other night and they are the ultimate comfort food. They are something between a pancake and a hash brown.


I am now going to home and drown my sorrows in latkes and dipping sauce.


Maybe someday I’ll tell you what I did and we will all laugh. But, at this moment, that is seriously doubtful.

Love and Beer Floats
Angela

P.S. Here is an article that was sent to me today after my awesome blunder. It totally made me feel better. NOT!
Ingredients
5 large or 6 small firm Yukon gold potatoes (about 2 1/4 pounds)
1 large onion, halved
1 large egg
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour or matzo meal
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
Vegetable or canola oil, for frying
Applesauce or Dipping Sauce (recipe to follow)

Directions
Peel the potatoes, immediately immersing them in very cold water as you finish each one.
Remove the potatoes from the water. Grate the potatoes and onion with a food processor fitted with the grating blade. Don't press too hard on the potatoes going in -- just enough to get them through.
Transfer the potatoes and onion to a fine-mesh strainer; squeeze out all the water into a bowl. Let the potato starch settle, then pour out as much water as possible, leaving the starch in the bowl. Add the potato-onion mixture to the bowl and mix in the egg, flour, 1 teaspoon salt, and pepper to taste.

Heat a well-seasoned pan with a thin layer of vegetable oil over medium heat. Scoop large spoonfuls of the potato mixture into the pan and flatten them out (thin pancakes yield crispy ones). Fry until golden on the bottom, then gently flip and fry the other side, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Drain on paper towels. (If you have to wait to serve, re-crisp them on a baking sheet lined with clean paper towels in a 350degrees F oven.)

Dipping Sauce
Ingredients
3/4 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon capers
2 tablespoons whole grain mustard
1 tablespoon chopped chives
1 tablespoon chopped parsly
1 tablespoon chopped basil
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

Directions
Put all ingredients in a food processor or blender. Blend till smooth and serve.