Secret Ingredient

(4 pm.  Visiting relatives. – promoted by ek hornbeck)

Wrote this a year or so ago and thought I’d share it here, as there ought to be at least one Chanukah essay!

Prose poem, title is “Secret Ingredient”

Chanukah began at sundown on the winter solstice this year, December 21.  It’s a story of great loss and great faith.

Secret Ingredient

by Nightprowlkitty

Latkes, potato pancakes, made during Chanukah, Festival of the Lights, holiday for frying, oh mercy, well it’s because of the oil, of course, the miracle of finding oil to keep the eternal flame burning in the Temple, the one that got destroyed, oh yes it did.

Smashed, looted, desecrated, no more big splendor in the House of God, all for naught, despair so thick you could cut it with a knife, all gone, lost, forsaken, what dread, what terrible fears and glooms manifested among the newly dispossessed!

Who was it, I wonder, who saw the flame, the eternal flame symbol of indestructibility of light of the spirit, who saw and thought to keep it alive amid such devastation, such destruction? What would be the point? Surely judgment of fate was so evident as to overshadow any higher decree, what was there to save?

Why, I wonder, why did that person do it, why put the oil in the lamp, knowing there was not enough, not enough to last until further supply could be obtained, seems sort of cruel to build up hope only to have it crashing down, yet again, crashing and crushing the small spark of humanity flickering in the assembly, oh perhaps the fellow was mad with grief and simply holding on to habit, in some daze of horror, not even realizing what he was doing.

And yet it lasted, the fuel lasted far beyond the time it should have, as fate warred with spirit, oh a mighty battle, offering made, such trust, a naked plea to make the fates themselves weep and perhaps soften just a little, oh there would be hard times, hard times ahead, but for now, yes, now let the light continue, feed the spirit once again, and so it was and so the miracle of the lights.

And so the tradition of using oil in cooking during this Festival, and of course traditional food such as latkes, potato pancakes, a festive food, have it with applesauce or sour cream (and caviar if you wanna get fancy), or just with salt, heaped high on a big plate, whoo!

Carrots. That’s the secret ingredient. Just a little, grated along with the potatoes and onions. Cuts the grease, gives a little sweetness, a little tiny kick, oh those are good eating.

20 comments

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  1. When I make them, I grate the potatoes by hand, squeeze out the water and let sit because then potato starch ends up accumulating which you later add back to the mix, discarding the liquid itself.

    Grate onions by hand as well (ouch!) and then a little bit of carrot.

    Combine with matzoh meal (just a little), an egg or two depending on how much you’re making, salt, make into small patties and fry ’em up.

    I like mine with applesauce but some folks love them with sour cream.

    Mine turn out ok, but my mother’s latkes were out of this world, light as feathers, she had the knack all right.

    • Edger on December 26, 2008 at 15:44

    • Robyn on December 26, 2008 at 16:59

    …and some people like lefse.  But a potato pancake is a joy to behold.  ðŸ™‚

  2. I bet I could even make them on my hot plate, secret ingredients don’t need a gas range. . Nothing like not having a kitchen to make me appreciate a good recipe. It also makes me appreciate the holiday of light, refined down to it’s essentials, and the candles are burning bright. Just not the hearth. Happy Chanuka NP.    

  3. I bet I could even make them on my hot plate, secret ingredients don’t need a gas range. . Nothing like not having a kitchen to make me appreciate a good recipe. It also makes me appreciate the holiday of light, refined down to it’s essentials, and the candles are burning bright. Just not the hearth. Happy Chanuka NP.    

  4. Saw this on Food Network maybe 5 years ago: I think it was Rachel Ray who went and interviewed a 90 year old grandmother in Canada for her latke secrets.  She used the smallest size on a box grater to grate the potatoes by hand.

    I’ve been using her recipe ever since.  Fabulous.

  5. I’ve made them from time to time.  I mostly do it your way, NPK, but without the carrots.  I think making smaller latkes tend to come out crispier, than the “hamburger” types.  

    I’ve also heard of the addition of baking powder, but haven’t tried it.

    This got my mouth watering for some!

    Thanks!  

  6. You want the secret for latkes?  I have to tell it to you with this silly accent that sounds like my grandmother.  That way you’ll know it’s authentic.  Listen, honey.  The most important thing, are you listening to me? The most important thing is to get all of the water out of the grated potatoes.  You understand this?  You have to get it all out.  If you don’t get it out, your latkes will not be good.  So you have to take the grated potatoes and you have to put them in cheesecloth, and then you twist the cheesecloth and you wring all of the water out of the grated potatoes.  This is very important, you understand?  You don’t want to put too much grated potato in the cheesecloth at any one time.  No that makes it way too hard to squeeze out the water.  You need just the right amount.  Honey, not too much, ok?  Now listen.  We used to do this in Minsk before your great grandfather came over here on the second Mayflower.  And this is the way to do it.  You understand this?  Oh.  And another thing.  The griddle or frying pan.  Those have to be really oily and very, very hot.  If it’s not hot enough, your latkes will have problems.  That’s the secret.  Actually, two secrets.  Do you think you can remember this?  

    • OPOL on December 28, 2008 at 04:55

    Homer_Simpson_Sideart_Homebrew

  7. Thanks, Youffraita

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