By NERIA BARRSpinach and cheese latkes(photo credit: DANIEL LAYLA)
One way of enjoying the holiday’s staple food without the guilt is to bake the latkes. Yes, we know, the whole idea of eating latkes on Hanukka is to use oil, but we need to think about our health, not to mention our waistline.Lehamim, recently voted the best bakery in New York, with several popular branches in Tel Aviv, offers many baked options of latkes that can be eaten year round. Using not only potatoes but also spinach, zucchini and cheese, Michal Mendelssohn developed the following recipes that we just had to try at home, holiday or not. Use them as a basis for improvisations.ZUCCHINI AND DILL LATKESMakes about 30✔ 100 gr. pumpkin, peeled✔ 500 gr. zucchini (about 5 small ones)✔ 1 small onion, chopped✔ Handful dill, chopped✔ 2 eggs, beaten✔ 1 cup breadcrumbs✔ Handful walnuts, chopped✔ 2 Tbsp. olive oil✔ 150 gr. feta cheese, crumbled✔ 1 Tbsp. frying oil Preheat oven to 180º.Fry onion until golden and let cool.Grate the zucchini and the pumpkin coarsely and squeeze out the liquids.Place in a mixing bowl and add the rest of the ingredients. Mix and shape into 5-cm. latkes with wet palms. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and place the latkes 2 cm. apart. Bake 15 to 20 minutes until golden.SPINACH AND CHEESE LATKESMakes 15 to 20✔ 500 gr. fresh spinach leaves✔ 1 Tbsp. olive oil✔ 1 Tbsp. cream✔ 1 clove garlic, minced✔ ½ tsp. salt✔ Pinch nutmeg✔ Pinch black pepper✔ 2 eggs, beaten✔ 1 tsp. baking powder✔ 6 Tbsp. flour✔ 200 gr. ricotta cheese✔ 100 gr. Gouda or other yellow cheese, grated✔ 150 gr. feta cheese, crumbled Preheat oven to 180º.Wash the spinach leaves and towel-dry them. Chop coarsely.In a pan, sauté the spinach until wilted and let cool.Transfer to a mixing bowl, add the rest of the ingredients and mix well. If the mixture seems too wet, add a little flour.With wet palms, form the batter into 5-cm. latkes and place them on a lined baking sheet. Bake 15 to 20 minutes until golden.POTATO, SWEET POTATO AND CHEESEMakes about 30 latkes✔ 750 gr. potatoes, peeled✔ 250 gr. sweet potato, peeled✔ 120 gr. Parmesan cheese, grated✔ 4 eggs, beaten✔ 2 Tbsp. self-rising flour✔ Pinch each black pepper, nutmeg and salt Preheat oven to 180º.Place potatoes and sweet potatoes in boiling water and simmer over medium heat for 12 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool.Using a grater with large holes, grate the potatoes and sweet potatoes into a bowl. Add eggs, Parmesan, flour and seasoning and mix well.With wet palms, shape into 5-cm. latkes and place them on a lined baking sheet. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until golden.Recipes and photos courtesy of Uri Scheft and Lehamin bakery