I look forward to Chanuka every year - giving gifts to the grandchildren, having dinner with the family, and eating lots and lots of latkes.
But I don't look forward to making the potato pancakes! Each year I try, in vain, to make perfect pancakes or at least better ones than the year before.
But it's a struggle.
My Mother, G-d rest her soul, made great latkes.
However, she cooked them while we ate dinner, jumping up from the table every few minutes to turn over the potato pancakes or to bring us a fresh, hot batch.
I, on the other hand, wanted to sit with my family during dinner.
This meant I had to fry my latkes before my guests arrived.
Unfortunately, well you know how the saying goes, "The best-laid plans of mice and men..
..
..
" The first time, I made potato pancakes, I fried them early in the afternoon then put them in the oven at a low temperature to keep them warm until dinner.
But when I pulled them out of the oven I looked with dismay at my pitiful latkes.
They had turned black! The following year, after frying the latkes, I put them in the refrigerator instead.
I was delighted that they didn't turn black.
But, the oven temperature to reheat the latkes was too low and we ate luke-warm potato pancakes.
Another year I decided to simply buy my latkes from the Pancake House.
It certainly was a lot less work, the house didn't reek of oil, and they tasted good.
But, still, they weren't as tasty as my Mother's recipe.
Then a friend told me that when she lived in Chicago, she bought potato pancakes at a Polish market.
The pancakes were packed in a bread pan on their sides, in an upright position.
In addition, the instructions were to reheat them at 425 degrees for 10 minutes.
"Great," I thought I could do that and lo and behold I finally made a decent batch of latkes for my family.
Though, bless their hearts they always said, "Oh Mom, they're fine.
" Thus, this year I was prepared to enjoy a "stress-free" Chanukah.
I even bought Yukon Gold potatoes so that I didn't have to peel them.
But when I took the oil out of my cupboard, I was frustrated to discover that I only had a small amount left in the jar.
I quickly drove to PDQ to buy more and began again as soon as I returned home.
I grated the potatoes, squeezed out all the excess water (the trick for really good latkes), heated the pan, and started frying the latkes.
When I finally finished making my potato pancakes, washing the dishes, and cleaning the kitchen, I breathed a sigh of a relief.
And as I replaced the cover on my original bottle of oil, a huge smile broke over my face.
A small amount of oil remained in the bottom.
What a Chanukah coincidence.
I had thought I wouldn't have enough oil, but..
...
I did!