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What you need:

1 fairly large russet potato
1 large egg
oil to grease a frying pan
salt to taste
Toppings as desired - applesauce, sour cream, whatever. (I stick with a touch of salt.)

Peel the potato, then grate it on a coarse grater. Soak the gratings in cold water for 5 minutes, then drain into a colander and rinse it with more cold water to wash off the starch. (This is important - the starch can make the latkes unpleasantly soggy, as I found out on my first try.) Squeeze the extra liquid out of the potatoes by mashing them down in the colander, or using a potato ricer if you have one.

Put the potatoes into a bowl. Beat the egg with a little bit of salt, then add the egg to the bowl and mix until the potatoes are evenly coated with egg. (They won't be terribly eggy, so don't worry if it looks like you haven't used enough egg.) Grease a frying pan and heat it up to medium hot, then spoon the mixture in to make cakes of whatever size you like. Press them down so they're flat and a little less then 1/2 inch thick. Let them cook until one side is browned, then turn it over and cook the other side to the same degree. When they're done, serve with the topping of choice.