Chanukah Foods

There are three foods most often associated with Chanukah and recipes for each:

• Latkes (potato pancakes)
• Gelt (chocolate candy in the shape of coins)
• Sufganiot (jelly doughnuts)

Latkes (Potato Pancakes) for Chanukah

Ingredients:

• 6 large potatoes, scrubbed clean
• 1 large onion
• 3 eggs
• 1/2 c matzah meal
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon pepper dried parsley
• 1 teaspoon pepper garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• canola oil

Directions:

1. Chop onion finely in food processor or by hand.
2. Grate potatoes in food processor or by hand. (You can leave the potato skins on if you like, as long as you scrub the potatoes well.)
3. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl.
4. Heat canola oil in frying pan.
5. Form potato pancakes with your hands, keeping them thin and approximately 3"-4" in diameter. Fry latkes at medium-high heat until each side is golden brown. Drain on layers of newspaper covered with paper towel.

Serve with applesauce and sour cream! Enjoy!

Gelt

You can purchase gelt in stores. Small chocolate "coins" are wrapped in silver or gold foil. It is also fun to make gelt with your children. This is an easy recipe for fudge, which you can then cut into the shapes you want and wrap in foil. Please note that the pieces of fudge will need to be refrigerated.

Ingredients:

• 3 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Procedure:

1. Combine chocolate chips and condensed milk in pyrex bowl and heat in microwave for 1 minute. Stir. If more time is required, continue heating in microwave in increments of 10 seconds.
2. Add vanilla and salt and stir.
3. Spread into pyrex dish which has been coated with a layer of waxed paper. Refrigerate for 1/2 hour.
4. Cut fudge into desired shapes and wrap in foil. Refrigerate fudge.

Sufganiot (Jelly Doughnuts)

Most of us lack the fortitude and patience for making our own doughnuts and take the Dunkin' Donuts route to enjoying this tradition. However, if you are especially ambitious, here's a recipe for making your own doughnuts. We learned the age-old secret of how one gets the jelly into sufganiot from our cousins in Netanya, who make them every year for Chanukah: The jelly is injected into the doughnuts after they are cooked.

Ingredients:

• 1-1/2 cups flour
• 2-1/2 teaspoons dry yeast
• 1/2 cup warm water
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cupt sugar
• 2 tablespoons oil
• oil for frying (3 inches deep in pan)
• confectioner's sugar

Procedure:

1. Mix together half the water with yeast and 1 teaspoon sugar. Allow to sit so that yeast activates.
2. Add the rest of the sugar, salt, egg, and 2 tablespoons oil.
3. Put flour in a large bowl and pour the yeast mixture into the flour and combine well. Add the remainder of the water and mix well.
4. Cover the bowl with a damp dish towel and allow to rise in a warm place for one hour.
5. Heat oil in a deep frying pan or pot until small bubbles rise the surface. You can test the oil by dropping a small piece of bread into it. If it sizzles and bubbles, the oil is ready.
6. Scoop a tablespoon of dough and very carefully, lower it into the oil. (Don't drop the dough into the oil or it will splatter into your face!) The doughnuts will puff up and eventually float to the top of the pan. Turn them with a slotted spoon several times and cook until they are golden brown on all sides.
7. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on several layers of paper towel with newspaper underneath. Sprinkle with confectioner's sugar.
8. When sufganiot are cool, inject with jelly. (The syringes used for administering medicine to young children can be used, but better ones are available at cooking supply stores.)