Lazy Latkes

Could there be a month more steeped in tradition than December? The holidays – Christmas and New Years and Hanukkah – and all the ways we choose to celebrate them throughout the month are filled with meaning, and more than a bit of nostalgia.

For Jewish people celebrating Hanukkah, latke recipes are one of those things we look to our grandmother (or somebody’s grandmother) for. The hashbrown-like, fried potato pancakes remind us of the Hanukkah miracle that a single day’s worth of oil lit up the temple for eight days. (Hence, the eight-night Hanukkah celebration.) The thing is: Cooking latkes is oily, splattery, and leaves behind a sticky, smelly mess. Short of picking some up at Kenny & Ziggy’s (which are delicious) or resorting to hashbrowns in the freezer section, a latke mess is just par for the course. Or so we thought.

Last year in our online cooking column Back Porch Table, we tried a lazy version of the real deal, which amazed my own family and also prompted a Buzz reader to chime in and ask, “Why haven’t I always done it this way?!” 

Food writer Rebecca Firkser shared a recipe with Food 52 called “Shockingly Crisp Baked Latkes,” that uses an oven instead of a stove for frying, making quick – and much less messy – work of a generations-old major Hanukkah project. We took her technique and paired it with a very slightly adapted version of Pam Gruber’s latke recipe – the one made famous by her son Ziggy’s restaurant Kenny & Ziggy’s – and we think we have landed on the great Hanukkah latke compromise (miracle?). And if you are looking for a fabulous New Year’s Eve nibble, try these topped with a bit of sour cream, a sprinkle of chives, and a dollop of caviar. You can’t get much better.

Lazy Latkes

Avocado oil (or another neutral, high smoke point oil)
2 pounds russet potatoes
1 large onion
2 large eggs, beaten
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup flour
2 teaspoons kosher salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
Applesauce, sour cream, snipped chives, and/or caviar for serving

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees and pour a generous ½ cup of oil on a rimmed baking sheet.

Peel and grate the potatoes, using a large box grater or a food processor fitted with the grating blade, and do the same with the onion. Place the grated potatoes and onion in a clean kitchen towel over a colander, and press down to eliminate excess water. Gather the edges of the towel and squeeze out as much liquid as possible. Do this a couple of times.

Place the baking sheet in the oven for 10 minutes to heat the oil. Meanwhile, place the potatoes and onions in a large bowl. Add the eggs, baking powder, flour, salt, and pepper, and mix well with your clean hands. 

Remove the sheet pan from the oven. Scoop ¼-cup mounds of the potato mixture carefully onto the sheet pan. Use an offset spatula or the bottom of a ¼-cup scoop to slightly flatten each mound. Bake for 20 minutes, until the bottoms and edges are golden. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and use a spatula to carefully flip the latkes. Bake for another 10 to 15 minutes, until golden on both sides. Transfer the latkes to a paper-towel-lined clean baking sheet and sprinkle with salt. 

If needed, add another ¼ cup or so of oil to the original baking sheet and warm in the oven for 10 minutes. Repeat the process with the remaining potato mixture.

Applesauce and sour cream are the must-have accompaniments to latkes. Here is a recipe that we love at our house, Hanukkah or otherwise. 

Spiced Homemade Applesauce

9 apples (we like to use 3 Honeycrisp, 3 Fuji, and 3 Granny Smiths)
2 cinnamon sticks
3 whole star anise pods
1 teaspoon whole cloves
Juice and zest of 1 lemon

Peel the apples, then core and chop them into 1-inch chunks. Put the chopped apples into a large pot with a lid. Add the cinnamon sticks, star anise, cloves, lemon juice, and zest. Mix everything together, turn the heat to medium-low, and partially cover the pot. Cook for an hour or so, stirring occasionally. Once the apples are soft, turn the heat off, keep the pot covered, and let it sit for 30 minutes. Then, stir the apples with a wooden spoon to break them up. From here, you can leave the sauce chunky, or you can mash it with a potato masher, the back of a fork, or an immersion blender. 

Wishing everyone a Happy Hanukkah, Merry Christmas, and happy, healthy 2026!