Sweet Potato Spiced Latkes with Creme Fraiche Honey & Spice Dip

Crispy fried sweet potato latkes are my modern take on the Jewish holiday classic. I am always looking to reinvent soul foods and holiday classics when entertaining, which usually means incorporating spices and flavors that wouldn’t usually be used with that dish. Lightly spiced with cumin and ginger give these potato cakes a fresh, delicate flavor that is enhanced and made extra special with a rich and creamy creme fraiche dipping sauce.

Prep Time
Cook Time
Total
Servings
Ingredients
  • 2 large sweet potatoes
  • 1/2 Tbsp. ground cumin
  • 1 tsp. fresh ginger
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1/4 cup flour (AP or Gluten Free AP)
  • 1 Tbsp. salt + pepper
  • 1/4 cup Neutral Oil, such as vegetable, for frying
  • Dip:
  • 1/4 cup high quality creme fraiche
  • 1/2 Tbsp. honey
  • 1 Tbsp. freshly squeezed orange juice
  • 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
  • 1/4 tsp. ground turmeric (optional)
  • 1/4 tsp. salt
  • 2 scallions or green onions
  1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
  2. Peel the sweet potatoes. Using a box grater or mandolin, shred the sweet potatoes.
  3. Layer 4 large paper towels on the counter top. Place the shredded potatoes into the paper towels and roll up, extracting the excess water. Potatoes fry better when they are dried out. Reserve on the side, still folded up, while you get the rest of the ingredients together.
  4. In a small bowl, combine the eggs and beat. In another medium sized bowl, combine the cumin, ginger, and flour. Add in the sweet potatoes and stir to combine. Add in the eggs and continue to stir together. Add salt and pepper.
  5. In a large cast iron skillet, fill with the oil and heat up until very hot, about 5 minutes.
  6. Meanwhile, let’s make the latkes. Place a piece of parchment paper onto 2 seperate baking sheet. Using an ice cream scoop, make 12-15 balls of latkes. Place each ball onto one of the baking sheets and flatten with your palm. Make sure they are thin, but don’t fall apart.
  7. Once the oil is very hot, do a test latke. Allow it to completely fry and then take out. Now, working in batches, fry 4 at a time. Depending on the heat, fry on each side about 2-3 minutes or until you can see it start to brown. The first batch will take more time than the last batch, as the oil will be very hot by the end, so make sure you adjust how much time you allow on each side.
  8. Once each latke is finished place on the clean baking sheet.
  9. Place in the oven and bake for 7-10 minutes, until browned a little more and cooked through. If you want to make the latkes ahead of time, make up until this point and then store covered in the refrigerator until ready to finish and cook.
  10. While baking, make the dipping sauce. In a small bowl, mix together all of the ingredients. Chop the green onions into small pieces. Add into the dipping sauce
  11. Serve warm with dipping sauce.

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