'Tis the season for potato latkes with horseradish sauce

by June

Our family is knitted together of strands that stretch back in time to the island of Manhattan and to a little town in the midwest where Main Street was also Route 66 and to the vast Yangtze river valley. We have many traditions to celebrate.

This past week, we've been lighting candles for Hannukah. Along with the twinkle from the Christmas tree, the candles create a glow that warms us against the cold, dark approach of the solstice.

All year, we anticipate these nights when we shred potatoes with onion and fry them on a griddle.

But latkes wouldn't be latkes if we didn't top them off with our favorite mid-winter sauce: creamy horseradish sauce. The girls and I have to resist the urge to slurp it...well, sometimes we resist. Do try it, please. (Note: I leave out the garlic because I don't like the competition with the horseradish.) It's amazing as a dip for roasted vegetables.

We've just managed to squeeze in this post as the last candles of the season are burning down, but we have much celebrating ahead...Christmas, then the festivals of Chinese New Year as we welcome the Year of the Tiger. Which means our holiday spirits won't burn down until February 28. Hope you won't mind joining us for our beloved traditions all along the way.