Chop the onions and set your timers! We’re going to pick the best recipe for Fall 2023. The following two recipes are going head-to-head in the first bracket. Let me know which one is your favorite, and the winner will advance to the second round!

For the second bracket, you are welcome to send me a recipe you’d like to see in the competition.

RECIPE ONE: Really Grate Sweet Potato and Apple Latke

Ingredients: 4 sweet potatoes, 5 green apples, 1 large onion, 3 eggs, 3/4 cup flour, oil for frying, salt & pepper

Directions: Peel sweet potatoes and grate into a large mixing bowl (grate with fairly large holes so pieces aren’t too small). Squeeze out liquid using a cotton cloth. Grate apples, remove excess liquid, and mix with potatoes. Peel and grate onion into the potatoes and apples. Add eggs, flour, salt, pepper. Stir to make smooth batter that drops heavily from a spoon. Heat the oil in a heavy frying pan and use enough to cover pancake edges. Drop spoonfuls of batter into the oil and heat til brown. Turn over and brown. Drain on paper towel. Recipe serves 4-6. Serve with applesauce and/or sour cream. 

RECIPE TWO: Gonzo Garbanzo Chickpea Burgers

Ingredients: 3 cups of dried chickpeas (aka garbanzo beans) or 5-6 cans, 1 large onion, bunch of cilantro (optional), jar of salsa, tablespoon of cumin, salt — the last crumbs from a bag of tortilla chips

Directions: Mash the chickpeas and finely chopped onion in a large bowl. Add cilantro and salt to taste. Add salsa, but don’t add so much that the mixture becomes too runny. Make patties out of the mixture and coat in crushed tortilla chips. Pan fry in a light oil. Serve with hamburger buns and all the condiments or make it a patty melt by serving atop melted cheese on toast.

Bon appetit!