Latkes, lat-kee, lat-kuh, potato pancakes, fritters, lakes (what I say, because I have awful grammar and am obviously not jewish).
Whatever you decide, know one thing. They are good!
Crispy, spicy, cheesy and delicious!
I was flipping through one of my many food magazines I subscribe to (I am a complete magazine hoarder! I love um! Oddly, I do not like the trashy ones though) and saw a simple recipe for latkes. Then flipping through another magazine when I saw yet another recipe for these simple little pancakes. I’m telling you, it was a sign. Well at least this is what I am telling myself. I needed to make me some latkes. Now!
The thing is, I can not follow a recipe for the life of me! Seriously, give me a recipe and I will end up changing 3/4 of it and making a completely different dish. Which again is another odd thing because this is not my personality. Total type A here! In life I follow directions, am a total clean freak, and do not like to stand out. In my cooking however I seem to take on another personality. I guess, it must be my way of rebelling! Yeah, that is totally it.
So, yeah I definitely invented my own latke. I hope it does not offend and of my Jewish readers, but I am pretty sure you will love um! They are definitely not your average potato latkes. I spiced them up with some smoky chipotle peppers, which I seem to be mildly obsessed with lately! Then the cheddar cheese happened……….of course. Really everything is better with cheese!
You can serve these as an appetizer or side dish or with some eggs for breakfast on a Sunday morning. They are perfect for holiday entertaining. I promise everyone will love them, serve as and appetizer or side along with some greek yogurt for topping.
Crispy, spicy and cheesy latkes (potato pancakes). Perfect as an appetizer or side dish!
Ingredients
- 1 large baking potato (about 10 oz) peeled and quartered lengthwise
- 1/4 onion, peeled and quartered
- 1 large clove garlic, peeled
- 1/4 flour
- 3/4 cups sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1 egg
- coarse salt and pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1-2 chipotle chiles in adobo sauce, minced (I used 2)
- 1-2 teaspoons adobo sauce (I used 2)
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1/2-1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- EVOO or peanut oil, for frying
- greek yogurt or sour cream, for serving
Instructions
- Using a food processor fitted with a coarse grating disk, grate the potato, garlic and onion; discard any large pieces. Transfer the mixture to a clean dish towel and squeeze out any excess liquid, then transfer to a large bowl.
- Stir in the flour, egg, cheddar cheese, 3/4 tsp. salt, 1/4 tsp. pepper, chipotle chilies, adobo sauce chili powder, paprika, cumin, oregano, crushed red pepper flakes and the baking powder.
- In a medium skillet, heat 1/4 inch oil over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking. Working in 5 to 6 batches, drop 2-tbsp. scoops of batter into the pan about 2 inches apart. Using a spatula, flatten the batter into disks. Cook, turning once, until browned and crisp, about 5 minutes. (Lower the heat if the latkes darken too quickly.) Drain on paper towels.
- serve arm with greek yogurt or sour cream.
Notes
*To tone down the heat only use 1 chipotle pepper,1 teaspoon adobo sauce and 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes.
*These can me made ahead and reheated in the oven before you are ready to serve. Just warm at 325 degrees for 10-15 until warm.
Ok, now I need to do some Christmas shopping. Help. I am SO behind. Major panic mode has begun!
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These sound wonderful! I can’t take the heat, but love potato pancakes and will definitely try them with the cheese! Brilliant! My son-in-law loves spicy so ehe will get the spicy ones … and he said he and his friends in college decided everything is made better by adding cheese and/or bacon … I think they are right! Thanks again for yet another great recipe!!!
Just leave out the chipotle peppers and crushed red chile flakes! They will still be yummy and delicious! Enjoy!
these look super delicious. i have never had anything but regular latkes, which i am about bursting with longing to eat this saturday night, but i could get on board with these. the only thing with the cheese is that some people who keep kosher might not want to involve cheese if they plan on eating meat with these. b/c i was gonna be all like, yeah, let’s add some chopped up bacon, which i think might not actually fly. but i agree with your everything is better with cheese, and i raise you a bacon to add to that comment.
These Latkes look delicious. Have a great day.
Debi
I can’t see where in the recipe that you add the cheddar… Are they in the latkes or a topping?
Oh my gosh I am so sorry! The cheddar is in the latkes. Just mix it in with rest of the ingredients. Sorry for the confusion!
Tieghan,
I made these on Saturday, but I used mozzarella instead of cheddar. They were great, but next time I think I will use old cheddar as we couldn’t taste the cheese!
Yes, you have got to use cheddar! It complements the chipotles pepper and potatoes so well!
Seems very tasty ,,,
Why do not you add it as photo link to http://www.foodlve.com to get more traffic
Why have I never thought of doing this before? I must give it a try before Chanukah ends! Looks so amazingly delicious!
How much cheddar cheese is in the recipe?
Opps! So sorry! It is 3/4 a cup. I added it to the recipe. Sorry for the confusion! And thanks for letting me know!
These sound great. I am going to pin these to make later. Saw you at the Pin Me Party at Diana Rambles. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for pinning!
These look so delicious and gorgeous photos, too!
Thank you! I am working on improving my photos!
What a fabulous and creative recipe! I have to make these!!
Good heavens – these look wonderful! I’ve never had a latke like this, but I’d sure like to try! Thanks for bringing them to Tuesday’s Table – hope you come back next week!
This looks absolutely fantastic! And I am type A also…..when I found out, I cried. But by the looks of this masterpiece, type A is not all that bad. Thank you for sharing at Foodie Friends Friday.
nice,,,,
why you do not try adding it to http://www.foodlve.com as photo link to get more traffic and reach more food lovers
These look so delish! Such a great spin on a classic.
These look delicious! My family usually just makes plain ones, but I love your spicy, cheesy version!
Yum! Looks amazing. Check out this chipotle paste in a tube…solves the problem of dealing with those messy cans:
http://www.amazon.com/Olo-Foods-Olos-Chipotle-Paste/dp/B0097UW3EK/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1349385678&sr=8-5&keywords=chipotle+paste
How do you do it? How do you get so many luscious delicious meals and posts made each week?
These look fabulous! I never would have thought of spicing up Latkes this way.
We like the heat around here so it is ALWAYS an option!
Nom nom nom!
These were so awesome. I have never had latkes before and loved them so much!
So glad you gave them a try and liked them!
These sound fantastic! I love the addition of cheddar and chipotle – I just made some apple-cheddar latkes (which were delicious!) so I’m positive these will be wonderful as well.
No adobo around here so substituted diced jalapenos and chipotle salsa. HOLY GOODNESS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Holy Yes!!!! So glad you like these!! Thank for trying the recipe and letting me know you love them!!