Matzo Balls and Latkes: A Culinary Homage to Grandma Tema & Grandpa Leib

December 21, 2011


Last nights' sunset marked the beginning of Hanukkah in the Jewish faith. For the past few years the Wife and I have spent time with friends during this holiday, usually with one friend in particular who makes the most sinfully delicious latkes. They are usually scooped up and eaten as fast as she gets them out of the pan! Over the years she and I have talked about making latkes and I have observed them being created, but never took the time to actually get my hands into the mound of potatoes and onions crucial to making them.


This year for the first time I decided to try my hand at making some of the foods that have become associated with this holiday. The added challenge for me was that I wanted to surprise the Wife and have dinner ready when she got home from work. Compounding the pressure, was the fact that the Wife always reminisces about her Grandma's matzo balls. According to Sandy a.k.a the Wife, her grandmother was not the greatest cook but one of the things that she did amazingly well was make matzo ball soup. I love hearing hearing the stories of this diminutive woman who along with her husband overcame amazing odds and came to this country after WWII to start their lives again. Both of them were holocaust survivors who in the case of her grandmother lost her entire family to the nazis. Her grandfather and his brother Meyer who moved to Brazil prior to the outbreak of the war were the sole remaining members of their family.


Sadly, both grandma Tema and grandpa Leib passed away before I had a chance to meet them. So this year I dedicate my first attempt at the Hanukkah meal to them.




The Soup
2 lbs of chicken thighs and chicken breasts chopped
2-3 carrots diced
1 small sweet onion diced
1 parsnip peeled and diced
salt to taste
1 bunch of dill coarsely chopped
handful of flat leaf or italian parsley minced


Wash the chicken and pat the pieces dry. Place in a large pot and add the salt, dill, parsnip, onion and carrots cover with water and bring to a boil. As the soup boils skim of the foam the accumulates on top. Reduce the heat to medium low and simmer for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, continue to skim the foam from the broth as it cooks. After the soup has cooked toss in the parsley.


While the soup is simmering it is time to prepare the matzo balls.


The Matzo Balls
1 cup matzo meal
2 tablespoons of schmaltz or vegetable oil
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons of seltzer or other sparkling water
1 egg

In a bowl, whisk together the schmaltz or vegetable oil and egg. Add the matzo meal, and salt and whisk to combine. Add the seltzer water and whisk until blended. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 20 minutes. 



Bring a large pot of water to a boil over medium-high heat. Using your hands shape the matzo mixture into golf ball sized balls. Reduce the heat to just below a simmer and drop the balls into water. Cover the pot and simmer until the matzo balls are cooked through, 20 or so minutes.

• The Latkes
  1 lb. russet potatoes or yukon gold
  1 small, sweet onion
  1 large egg
  1 tsp baking powder
  1 tsp salt
  3 tbsp all-purpose flour
  
  
  Preheat oven to 425F. Wash and dry potatoes (there is no need to peel the potatoes). Grate potatoes and onion. Place mixture in a colander and press down firmly with a paper towel to remove the excess moisture. Or place it in cheese cloth and squeeze the moisture out. 
                       
  Transfer potato mixture to a large bowl and stir in the egg. In a small bowl, mix the baking powder, salt and flour together then add it to the potatoes, onions and egg, mix well.
  
  
  Drop latke mixture in 2-3 tbsp measures, on a lightly oiled baking sheet. Bake for 15-20 minutes, turn them over, and bake for an additional 10 minutes. 
  
  
  To Serve
  Place one or two matzo balls into a soup bowl and ladle in the soup. 
  Traditionally, the latkes are served with apple sauce and sour cream to accompany them.
  
  
  We had a dry sparkling rose with this meal.