A classroom Hanukkah treat.

This is a belated post about a Hanukkah treat another classroom Mom and I made for a classroom snack. For those of you familiar with my post, my preschoolers’ program has several dietary restrictions: no nuts (statewide requirement), and no eggs/no dairy when a certain child attends Tuesdays and Thursdays. And even though I’m a professional chef, I’m not allowed to bring homemade items due to possible home environment cross-contamination.

This means that I usually have to buy something pre-made and bring it in the container which lists its ingredients and warns whether it was made in a facility which processes nuts. Or, I can make something from scratch in their “kitchen”–a cramped, unorganized space with no stove. However, at one time, they did buy two electric griddles.

So, I offered to cook Trader Joe’s Latkes on the griddles while my Mom friend, Melanie, read about Hanukkah to our children’s class. I was allowed to use the conference room which had more space. You’ll notice a computer in the background of my iPhone photo. We served them with a dollop of applesauce and sour cream. And in deference to some picky eaters, we separated each item so they weren’t touching–something so strange to my chefly artistic sensibilities. But, hey, the potato-onion latkes smelled wonderful, they were served warm and it was something they probably normally wouldn’t eat for lunch.

Another Exquisite Schoolbox Lunch victory!