Light up Your Appetite

Hanukkah, also known as the festival of lights, brings with it an impressive tradition of foods. The common ground for all of these holiday dishes is the generous use of oil. To make a (very) long story short, this custom is in memory of the miracle of the oil-jar. According to the tradition, Jewish troops were determined to purify the Temple and light its menorah. But to their dismay, they found only a single jar of oil that had not been destroyed by the Greeks. They lit the menorah anyway and to their surprise, the small amount of oil lasted a full eight days. This is the miracle of the Hanukkah oil that is celebrated every year when Jews light a special menorah known as a hanukkiyah, for eight days.
 
During the eight days of holiday, people in Israel host Hanukkah parties in their homes and serve traditional food—or a modern twist of it. The two most popular treats are sufganiyot and levivot.
 
Sufganiyot are fried doughnuts filled with jam or another sweet mixture like chocolate or dulce de leche. Young people totally love them. However, personally I prefer the levivot.

Levivot is the Hebrew word for fried potato pancakes—known as latkes. While traditional latkes are made from potatoes, today, people who love to cook are using all sorts of vegetables. There are many creative versions to the traditional latkes recipe, such as sweet potato, leek, cauliflower, broccoli, zucchini, cheese and even avocado! 
 
For this special occasion, I’m sharing with you a winner recipe from the fabulous “Orna and Ella” bistro, based in Tel Aviv. If I had to form a list of the 10 best eateries in Tel Aviv, “Orna and Ella” would certainly be at the top. It serves the best that the Israeli kitchen has to offer, with a homey yet sophisticated menu that uses healthy and fresh ingredients. Whenever I visit “Orna and Ella,” I always face the dilemma of ordering the same old favorites (white fish ceviche, rice and vegetables prepared in Turkish style, the “everything salad”) or trying something new that would probably knock my socks off.

One thing’s for certain—their sweet potato pancakes are killer.   

“Levivot Batata” (fried sweet potato pancakes)

Ingredients
 
2.2 pounds peeled sweet potatoes
1 spoon soy sauce (good quality)
1 cup flour
½ teaspoon salt 
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
Butter for frying

For the sauce:
1 ¼ cup sour cream (can be substituted with rich yogurt)
2 spoons mayonnaise
2- 3 spoons finely chopped chives
2 drops of lemon juice
Salt and pepper to taste

Method

1. Peel the skin of the sweet potatoes and cut them into quarters.
2. In a large pot, cook the sweet potatoes in water until they get softened (about 40 minutes).
3. Put the potatoes aside in a strainer and let them dry and become completely chilled.
4. In a large bowl, mash the sweet potatoes and add the soy, flour, salt and pepper. Mix and mash them until you get a uniform mixture.
5. Mold the pancakes using your hands or a spoon (the mixture is very sticky so you could try to wet your hands while creating the pancakes).
6. Heat the butter on a Teflon frying pan.
7. Fry the pancakes over a low fire for a few minutes on each side, until they’re nicely browned. 
8. Mix the ingredients of the sauce. Season to taste.
9. Serve the pancakes while they are hot with the sauce on the side.

Be-te-avon!!!

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