Sweet Potato Curry Latkes

 

Potato pancakes are a comfort food and they are even better when made with sweet potatoes. The curry in this recipe is a brilliant addition and very tasty. These are a good accompaniment to soup for lunch or dinner. They could even be a breakfast or snack. This recipe is from a small collection in Jessica Fechtor's very compelling memoir, Stir, given to me for my birthday by my friend, Diana.

Sweet Potato Curry Latkes
Makes about 15
From Stir by Jessica Fechtor

1/4 cup flour

1/4 cup cornstarch

2 tsp sugar

1 tsp brown sugar

1 tsp baking power

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

2 tsp curry powder

1 tsp cumin

2 tsp salt

black pepper, to taste

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

1 lb sweet potatoes (I don't peel them)

peanut oil for frying

sour cream and apple sauce for serving

In a large bowl combine the flour, cornstarch, sugars, cayenne, curry, cumin, salt and pepper. Add the eggs and mix to form a thick batter.

Cut the sweet potatoes into tall thin pieces by cutting them into quarters lengthwise, and then each quarter into half again lengthwise. Set up your food processor with a grating disk (if you have a choice, I like the coarse grating disk) and grate the sweet potatoes by feeding them into the chute vertically.  (This ensures nice even small shreds.) Stir the grated potato into the batter.

Heat 1/2" of oil in a 12" cast iron pan over medium-high heat until a test fleck of batter sizzles on contact.

Using your hands squeeze out the liquid from 1/4 cup of batter, form a ball and place it in the hot oil carefully. Flatten it with a spatula. Continue to squeeze and drop balls in the pan, being careful not to crowd the pan. Cook each latke for 2-3 minutes per side, until crisp and brown. Remove to a paper-towel lined plate. 

Let cool slightly and serve warm with sour cream and apple sauce.