Zucchini Parmesan Latkes

Joan Nathan | Jewish Cooking in America | Alfred A. Knopf, 1998 | Makes 24 pancakes

“At Hanukkah I always made potato pancakes at the last minute so we tried my recipe but added zucchini to change the color. I wrang out the hand-grated potatoes in a tea towel and got rid of as much of the liquid as possible but retained the starch. I always add scallions, onions, and eggs but no filler.” — Rochelle Rose, mother of the proprietors of Mrs. Simpson’s Restaurant.

This recipe was created at the first of Mrs. Rose’s sons’ restaurants, 209 1/2, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. This recipe appeared in the “You Asked for It” column in Gourmet in 1977.—Joan Nathan

Zucchini Parmesan Latkes Recipe

Directions

1. Grate the zucchini and potatoes and toss in the lemon juice to prevent browning. Squeeze the zucchini and potatoes through towels or a sieve. It is imperative that you get almost all the moisture out of the vegetables.

2. Add the scallions, cheese, garlic, 1/2 cup of the parsley, salt and pepper, sugar, flour, and eggs and toss to make sure that the ingredients are well mixed.

3. Heat a 1/2 inch of peanut oil in a pan until hot and add thin silver dollar-size pancakes, frying over high heat until golden brown and crispy. When serving, sprinkle with a little more salt and the remaining chopped parsley.