How to Make Potato Latkes

SERVINGS: 2

PREP TIME: 20 MINUTES

COOK TIME: 10 MINUTES

MEAL: LUNCH-DINNER

STYLE: WESTERN

PREPARATION: SAUTEE

EAT IN: AUTUMN-WINTER

FOR OCCASION: MOVIE-NIGHT, BRUNCH, KID-FRIENDLY

How Can Potato Latkes Make You Feel Great?

AYURVEDIC ANALYSIS

Crispy and hot around the edges, sizzling Potato Latkes will be devoured as soon as they leave the frying pan. As this fun & hearty treat sizzles in the pan, it will warms your heart in the cold winter. Bright green scallions sprinkled on top add a light freshness. A dollop of yummy applesauce or sour cream adds cooling sweetness.

Potato Latkes are a traditional food served at Hanukkah. Their appeal draws kids and adults alike to gather around the holiday table. A variety of cultures throughout Eastern Europe, such as in the Ukraine, each offer unique variations of these crunchy, crispy, satisfying potato pancakes. Latke is a Yiddish word, but the Hebrew word for lakte is levav. Levav translates to both "heart" and "potato pancake." So, you could say that latkes are truly a heart-warming choice for Hanukkah.

A Lighter Version

An Ayurvedic preparation of Latkes has several minor changes: instead of wheat flour, substitute easy-to-digest and lighter spelt flour. Potatoes can be a little hard to digest because of their cold and heavy qualities. Black pepper is a remedy because it stimulates digestion. Sunflower oil lubricates the digestive tract and counteracts potato's dryness. If you've never experienced potato's dryness, compare the difference between a baked potato and a latke. The baked potato may leave your mouth feeling parched. Many people who suffer from gas and bloating will be surprised to find that it's often due to dryness, so have a latke!

Medicine for Vata/Winter

Oily, heavy, salty, and slightly sweet, Potato Latkes stengthen those with a dry or fragile Vata constitution. However, latkes and other fried foods are aggravating to oily Pitta and heavy Kapha-types.

Grounding Traditional Foods

Holidays are grounding by nature. They remind you of who you are and where you come from. Incorporating foods from different cultures and traditions creates a sense of togetherness and understanding, and isn't that the very spirit of the holiday season? If you are Jewish, there's a good chance you grew tapping your toes waiting for Potato Latke season. But if you're not, the savory pancakes are a delicious introduction to traditional Jewish cuisine.

WHY SHOULD YOU EAT AYURVEDICALLY?

Eating Ayurvedically makes you feel nourished and energized. An Ayurvedic diet is tailored to your individual body type and the specific imbalances you are working with at any given time. Foods that supplement your specific body type’s needs and digest easily create your menu. Watch as you eat less but feel more satisfied because what you are eating truly nourishes you. Since Ayurveda believes all disease begins in the digestive tract, food is your first medicine. By eating a healthy diet that’s ideal for your body, you experience optimal health.

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Is Potato Latkes Good for Me?

Find out by taking this free, easy quiz. You'll learn your body type, and whether Potato Latkes is a good fit for you. Time to complete: approximately 1 minute.

MEDICINAL QUALITIES

INCREASES Increases These Qualities (Gunas) Functional Ayurveda helps you assess imbalances through 20 main characteristics (gunas). Aggravating these characteristics weakens your body and causes imbalance. By knowing which characteristics are habitually imbalanced in your body, you will be able to identify and correct imbalances before you get sick. Every characteristic has an opposite which balances it (i.e. hot balances cold). You restore balance by favoring diet and lifestyle choices that increase the opposite characteristic. Learn More	CLEAR ABOUT CLEAR GUNA Clear refers to anything that cleanses or flushes out wastes, or that digests ama. LEARN MORE ABOUT CLEAR EASY ABOUT EASY GUNA Easy refers to anything easy to digest, or digests quickly. LEARN MORE ABOUT EASY HEAVY ABOUT HEAVY GUNA Heavy is identified by sedation, sluggishness, or increased weight. LEARN MORE ABOUT HEAVY
TASTES The 6 Tastes Taste is used to sense the most basic properties and effects of food. Each taste has a specific medicinal effect on your body. Cravings for food with certain tastes indicate your body is craving specific medicinal results from food. Taste is experienced on the tongue and represents your body's reaction to foods. Sweet taste causes physical satisfaction and attraction whereas bitter taste causes discomfort and aversion. Kapha should use less sweet taste while Vata and Pitta would benefit from using more sweet taste. One of the first signs of illness is that your taste and appetite for food changes. The six tastes are sweet, sour, salty, pungent, bitter, and astringent. Do you crave foods with any of the tastes below? Learn More	SWEET ABOUT SWEET GUNA Sweet refers to anything builds tissue, including macronutrients such as carbohydrates, proteins and fats. LEARN MORE ABOUT SWEET
DOSHAS The Three Doshas / Body Types People tend to get sick, over and over again, due to similar causes and habitual imbalances that are unique to the person. Your body type summarizes this tendency, showing you the 'type' of conditions and imbalances that frequently challenge your health & wellness. Using body type, you can also identify remedies likely to improve your strength and resiliency. Your body type identifies physical and mental characteristics as well as your personal strengths and weaknesses. The calculation of your body type is based on your medical history. The 3 functional body types (doshas), are Catabolic (Vata), Metabolic (Pitta), and Anabolic (Kapha). Catabolic individuals tend to break down body mass into energy. Metabolic individuals tend to burn or use energy. Anabolic individuals tend to store energy as body mass. Catabolic people tend to be easily stimulated, hyperactive, underweight and dry. Metabolic people tend to be rosy-cheeked, easily irritated, focused, driven, and easily inflamed. Anabolic people are heavy, stable and grounded, but if they store too much energy, they could gain weight easily and have congestion. Learn More	PACIFIES
HAS THE FOLLOWING	EFFECT: Ojas OJAS Ojas is the essence of healthy tissue, immunity, stable energy and happiness. Substances that improve ojas are recommended after long-term illness, debility, emotional and physical trauma, and even sadness. LEARN MORE ABOUT OJAS , Rajasic RAJASIC Rajasic foods stimulate desire or nervous energy. Red meat, high protein food, garlic and onions stimulate desire. Rajasic foods include chili peppers, coffee, and anything that stimulates movement. LEARN MORE ABOUT RAJASIC , Tamasic TAMASIC Tamasic foods promote rest, sleepiness and stillness. Examples include wheat, mushrooms. LEARN MORE ABOUT TAMASIC , Alkalizing ALKALIZING An herb or food that makes the urine more alkaline (higher pH). This herbal action can be helpful for a number of inflammatory conditions. LEARN MORE ABOUT ALKALIZING TYPE: Vegetables, Roots CONTAINS: Nightshade NIGHTSHADE A member of the plant family Solanaceae. Members of this family have a tendency to irritate the liver and arthritic conditions. Tomatoes, potatoes, eggplant, and bell peppers. LEARN MORE ABOUT NIGHTSHADE , Allergens, Non Vegan NON-VEGAN A recipe or diet that includes meat and/or dairy products. LEARN MORE ABOUT NON-VEGAN , Gluten GLUTEN A constituent of wheat, barley and rye that is sticky, heavy, and cold. Many people are allergic to gluten. LEARN MORE ABOUT GLUTEN ELEMENT: Earth EARTH Resembles earth (prithvi) in quality - heavy, dense, solid, stable, hard. LEARN MORE ABOUT EARTH SUBTASTE: Bland BLAND Bland means doesn't have much taste. In Chinese medicine, bland taste refers to afood without little macronutrients, such as cabbage, radish or bok choy. LEARN MORE ABOUT BLAND , Crunchy CRUNCHY Makes an audible noise when you eat them. Can provide fun texture variation. LEARN MORE ABOUT CRUNCHY NUTRIENT: Carbohydrate, Fats COLOR: White, Yellow NOURISHES: Fat FAT Fat tissue (Meda Dhatu) includes adipose tissue and sebum (skin oil). LEARN MORE ABOUT FAT MOVES ENERGY: Downward DOWNWARD Downward-moving (Adho Gati Marga) substances move food downward in the GI tract, settle the nervous system, and relax muscles. LEARN MORE ABOUT DOWNWARD

MEDICINAL PROPERTIES

Experiences are Personal

Experiences vary according to the person and constitution. Individual results may vary. The list of actions below has not be approved by the FDA and should not be used to treat a medical condition.

Energy Vitality Strength:

Satisfies stomach

SATISFIES-STOMACH

Provides a sense of gratification and fullness in the stomach.

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Nutritive

NUTRITIVE

An herb that is strengthening and nourishing.

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Lung and Sinus:

Demulcent

DEMULCENT

Herbs that coat or form a soothing film over a mucous membrane, relieving minor pain and inflammation of the membrane.

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Mind, Stress & Sleep:

Relaxes mind

RELAXES-MIND

Reduces mental agitation, irritation, stress and racing thoughts.

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Makes you tired

MAKES-YOU-TIRED

Induces drowsiness and promotes sound sleep.

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Grounding

GROUNDING

Encourages feelings of stability and heaviness. Makes you feel settled, mentally relaxed. Mildly sedates the nervous system to ease stress. Can bring a spacey or anxious person back to earth.

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Sedative

SEDATIVE

Sedative herbs create a sense of calm in the mind and body by specifically calming or quieting the nervous system. Excellent for anxiety, stress and chronic pain.

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