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Recipe: Smoked Salmon Latke Bennie

Posted at 3:03 PM, Jan 29, 2018
and last updated 2018-01-29 17:06:06-05

Neighbour Dave shows us how to make one of his favorite dishes. You can follow this home taught chef's cooking adventures on his Instagram page here.

Smoked Salmon Latke Bennie

Latke

Ingredients:

2 lbs russet potatoes: unpeeled, scrubbed clean & shredded

½ cup grated white onion

¼ tsp salt

1/8 tsp black pepper

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

2 tsp minced fresh thyme

½ cup Extra Virgin Coconut Oil (plus a little more to replace what’s lost between batches)

Directions:

Mix potatoes, onion and salt in microwave safe bowl (you will re-use this same bowl to heat

this mixture in a couple of steps from now, so why dirty another bowl?).

Empty potato mixture onto the center of thin dish towel (tea towel).

Gather ends together (so no mixture falls out) & twist tightly to drain as much liquid as you can

into a liquid measuring cup. The drier the better.

Set potato liquid aside and allow starch to settle at bottom, at least 5 minutes.

Place potato mixture back into same microwave safe bowl. Cover and microwave on high until

warmed, about 2 minutes.

Remove from microwave, uncover, stir & let cool for 10 minutes.

Slowly pour off water from reserved potato liquid, leaving the white potato starch in bottom of

measuring cup.

Add eggs to potato starch and mix until smooth.

Add thyme, black pepper, potato starch mixture and mix until thoroughly combined.

Place wire rack in rimmed baking sheet and cover with two layers of paper towels.

Heat coconut oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering but not smoking

(about 350 degrees).

Place 1/4-cup of potato mixture (packed down tight when measuring) in oil and press with

nonstick spatula into 1/3-inch-thick disk.

Repeat until 5 latkes are in pan (ensure there is at least 1 inch of space between latkes. If they

are too close together, your latkes won’t get as browned).

Cook (without moving the latkes) for about 3-5 minutes until they are golden brown on the

bottom. Adjust heat as needed, the oil should just bubble around the edges of the latkes.

Turn latkes over & cook another 3-5 minutes, until this side is golden brown as well.

Remove latkes and put them onto the paper towel covered rack so the oil can drain off.

Add more oil (to maintain original depth from first batch) & return it to 350 degrees again.

Repeat the same process with remaining potato mixture.

Season with salt to taste.

Cover with foil to keep warm while you make the eggs & sauce.

Poached Eggs

Boil water in a pot with a tight fitting lid.

Drop temp so water is at a gentle boil- if boiling too hard, the end result will be messy.

Spray non-stick cooking spray into inside of Silicon Egg Pod.

Gently crack egg into Pod - make sure that the yolk doesn’t get broken.

Carefully place egg pod into water using this method (the eggs can easily spill during this step).

Place pod on a slotted spoon & hold with one hand.

Using a pair of tongs with your other hand, grasp the top edge of the pod & gently guide

pod into water. Repeat up to 3 more times for a total of 4 eggs.

Cover pot.

Set timer for 5 minutes.

Once timer is up, remove from the water.

Using a spoon, ensure egg is loose inside pod so it will come out easily when assembling).

Perfect Hollandaise Sauce

Ingredients:

2 egg yolks

2 tsp water

1 ¾ tsp lemon juice

16 Tbsp butter

Pinch of cayenne pepper

Directions:

Combine egg yolk, water, lemon juice & a generous pinch of salt in the bottom of a blender cup.

Melt butter in a small saucepan over high heat, stirring constantly, until foaming subsides (about

5 minutes).

Transfer butter to a heat resistant measuring cup that has a pour spout. You will

notice the milk solids from the melted butter at the bottom of the measuring cup. When

adding the butter try to leave these solids in the measuring cup & don’t add them to the

blender cup. Your sauce will be smoother without them added. Just pour slowly & they

should stay at the bottom without effort.

Place head of immersion blender into the bottom of the blender cup and turn it on.

While the blender is constantly running, slowly pour some hot butter into the blender cup. Do not

pour in too much, as the heat from the butter will cook the eggs & ruin your sauce.

Move the blender slightly up & down every few seconds to ensure full emulsion.

Once it has emulsified and you cannot see melted butter unmixed, repeat process until

you’ve poured in all the butter. This should take around 30 seconds or so.

The sauce should now be thick and creamy (with no visible melted butter unmixed).

Season to taste with salt and a pinch of cayenne pepper (if desired).

Assembly

Place 1 Latke onto plate.

Place Smoked Salmon (suggest you use thin pre-sliced) 1-2 slices per Latke per your taste.

Gently place poached egg on top of salmon (for stability, ensure wider end of the egg is down).

Drizzle at least 2 large spoonsful of Hollandaise Sauce (or more if you can’t get enough of it!).

Garnish with Minced Chives.

Enjoy!