I celebrated my very first Hanukkah with my husband’s family nearly two and a half decades ago.  It was memorable for many reasons, not the least of which were my mother-in-law’s latkes.  Until then, the only latkes I had ever eaten were from a tiny deli in Cincinnati, Ohio.  On the occasional Saturday when my dad would have a hankering for a corn beef sandwich, he would make the trip across the river to Izzy’s and return with a paper sack bearing sandwiches layered with brined beef tucked between slices of rye.  Crispy, oily, oniony latkes, along with sour cream and applesauce, accompanied every sandwich served at Izzy’s.  I couldn’t have imagined or known then that latkes would become a yearly ‘event’ in my life; an event that eventually would require me to learn not only the intricacies of frying the perfect latke, but also how to make homemade applesauce.  Of the two, the applesauce posed the bigger challenge. Continue reading →