Applesauce + Latkes

Honeycrisp, Golden Delicious, Ginger Gold, McIntosh, Granny Smith, Fuji—it seems there are as many apple varieties as there are ways to enjoy them. We mash them into sauce, fry them into fritters, bake them into pies, press them into cider, shred them into slaws, ferment them into vinegar. We bob for them, candy them, dry them, carve them, and remain faithful to the notion that eating one a day will help keep the doctor away. I’ve even been told that by having an apple pie baking in the oven when you’re selling your home will make buyers stay longer & look more intently.

Our collective love of apples started with poor Eve, who despite living in the Garden of Paradise with Adam simply couldn’t resist having a taste of that sweet, forbidden fruit. (I’d do a lot for a Macoun picked straight off a tree on a crisp October day, but I draw the line at bearing the burden of Original Sin.)

Personally, I’m a sucker for warm, cooked apples. Give me a slice of hot apple pie, an apple fritter, or a big stack of cinnamon-topped apple pancakes--and a fork--and I’m happy and content. This weekend I'll be making some homemade apple sauce to spoon over a batch of crisp latkes that I've had a hankering for lately. These go perfectly with a pot roast, or a roast chicken. Or, standing over the kitchen counter, if you simply can't wait until dinnertime.

CROCKPOT APPLESAUCE (PRINT RECIPE CARD)
10 large apples, peeled, cored and cut into chunks
1/2 cup water
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 to 1 c. sugar

Place all the ingredients into a crockpot, cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours, or on high for 3-4 hours. Note: If you want to do this on the stove, just simmer, covered (stirring frequently), until the apples are tender.

LATKES (Potato Pankcakes)
1 pound russet potatoes
1 small onion
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1/2 teaspoon salt
Dash of pepper
1/2 to 3/4 cup vegetable or olive oil


Peel potatoes and coarsely grate using a box grater. Grate the onion as well. Soak grated potatoes and onion in a bowl of cold water for a minute or two, then drain well.

Spread potato and onions out on a dry kitchen towel, roll up and twist, wringing out as much liquid as possible. Empty mixture into a bowl, mix in the egg, salt and pepper.

Heat 1/4 cup oil in a nonstick skillet over high heat until it is hot but not smoking. Working in batches of 4, spoon 2 tablespoons potato mixture per latke into the skillet, flattening into 3-inch rounds with a slotted spoon or fork. Reduce heat to moderate and cook until brown on one side (about 4-5 minutes), then flip latkes and cook until the other side is brown.

Carefully transfer to paper towels to drain and season with salt. Continue cooking batches of latkes, adding more oil as needed. To keep latkes warm, place them on a wire rack set in a baking pan in a 250 degree oven.

Makes about a dozen latkes