Latkes!

Confession: I am a bad person. Bad. I cannot control my jealousy.

It started with a good thing. The nursery school at my work asked me to do a latke demo for the parents yesterday morning. Latkes! Cooking! Not sitting at my desk and instead, talking about something I love-- frying potatoes.

So I got all set. Put on my cute jeans instead of a silly pants-suit. Donned an apron, got my talking points in order (latke tips to follow, just hang in there during the angst), and waltzed down to the kitchen. But when the stay-at-home mommies, arrived, a dark place in me opened. Well, not immediately. When they first came in, they were talking about nursing. Well, I nursed! I'm a pro at nursing! Boobs, milk, hungry babies-- bring it ON.

The subject turned to pumping, which was my saving grace while preparing to go back to work. Pump and freeze, keep that baby in mommy-milk for months after the return to work. So the mommies are talking about what to do when baby only nurses from one side. And I chimed in and said, I always pumped when that happened.

Oh PUMPING, they *hate* pumping. It's so awful. Why would anyone DO that?

Okay, that's not really what they said. What they said more or less was, pumping kind of sucks (it does) and it wasn't for them (understandable). I'm a green, green monster-- hostile at a group of women who never had to develop a relationship with a pump because they never had to plan on leaving their baby.

Of course, if I had never gone back to work, I never would have gotten to make a bunch of latkes on an industrial grade stove, so....

Latke Tip #1: How to make 'em crispy

Shred the potatoes, and heap a pile into the center of a length of cheesecloth. Squeeze the heck out of them, catching all liquid in a bowl. Discard the liquid by pouring down the sink. Preserve the potato starch left in the bottom of the bowl. Add dry, shredded potatoes to the starch. Stir. A dry latke mixture makes the latkes nice and crisp.

Latke Tip #2: Keep them from turning grey

Squeeze two lemons into a bowl. Soak a strip of cheesecloth in lemon juice and then lay it over the top of your latke mixture.

Latke Tip #3: The recipe

Classic Potato Latkes

1 medium yellow onion, shredded
2 pounds potatoes, peeled and shredded
1/3 cup matzo meal
2 eggs
1 ½ teaspoon salt
15 turns black pepper
½ cup parsley, chopped

The trick to these little crispy latkes is to drain them of all excess liquid before frying. Shred the onion first and squeeze out excess moisture. Add to a large mixing bowl. Shred the potatoes. Gently squeeze excess liquid from potatoes using cheese cloth (thick paper towel will work in a pinch, but squeeze gently). Stir potatoes into onion mixture. Add matzo meal, eggs, salt, black pepper and parsley. Heat 1/8 inch corn oil in a shallow skillet until hot but not smoking. Pan fry tablespoon-size dollops of latke mixture 2-3 minutes per side until golden. Serve with sour cream and apple sauce. Yield: 24-30 pancakes

Hard to be angsty while the smell of fried potatoes are in the air. I guess I'm over it. Although I do put parsley in the latkes....green, green, green.