While most of the country is busy buying and decorating Christmas trees, putting up lights and anticipating cookie exchanges and yule logs, the Jewish community — at least the Ashkenazi, or Eastern European part of it — will be pulling out their bubbe’srecipe for potato latkes, making applesauce and buying sour cream. But do we have to have the same latkes year after year? And the same accompaniments? Wouldn’t it be nice to add some new flavors and new colors, even new textures?

Tracy Borkum, the owner of the new restaurant Gold Finch Modern Delicatessen, thought so. For this year’s holiday, she brainstormed with chef and partner Tim Kolanko and executive chef Jeff Armstrong and the trio are serving not just the traditional potato pancakes with sour cream and house-made applesauce, but also beet latkes to be served with whipped feta and pistachio gremolata, and kabocha squash latkes with mango chutney and raita. You’ll want to make these versions at home, so read my new story for The San Diego Union-Tribune’s Food section to get the recipes! And kudos to photographer Eduardo Contreras for capturing just how beautiful they are. He’s so damned good!