Hanukkah Food and Recipes

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Hanukkah Celebration: Understanding the Jewish Festival of Lights

For eight nights each year, Jews celebrate the Festival of Lights, known as Hanukkah. Hanukkah celebrates the miracles that occurred more than 2,000 years ago when Judah and the Maccabees fought against religious persecution, rededicated the Holy Temple in Jerusalem and lit the menorah (a candelabrum) with one day’s worth of oil that, amazingly, lasted for eight. Let the Hanukkah Celebration Web Guide show you where to find information on Hanukkah customs, traditions, food, blessings, music and more.

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Hanukkah Traditions

Hanukkah traditions date back to Hellenistic times and the reign of one of ... read more »

Hanukkah Food and Recipes

Fried and oily are the words most commonly associated with Hanukkah food. They are the staples of the holiday because they commemorate the miracle of the oil burning for eight days instead of one. We can thank that legendary miracle for the delicious latkes (potato pancakes) and jelly doughnuts that are favorite Hanukkah treats. Use the sites below to learn about the Hanukkah food tradition and find Hanukkah recipes. If fried foods aren’t on your diet, there are some slimming options to choose from as well.

Insights for Hanukkah Food and Recipes

Chocolate coins, representing what’s known in Yiddish as gelt, have come to be a ubiquitous Hanukkah treat. Buy this candy at supermarkets or from many of the Web sites in the “Hanukkah Products” section of this guide.

Craving a healthier Hanukkah meal? Look for healthy recipes (traditionally Jewish and otherwise) in the findingDulcinea Recipes Web Guide. This sample Hanukkah menu from the food Web site Sally's Place may also help.

Top Sites for Hanukkah Food and Recipes

For an explanation of Hanukkah's culinary customs …

MyJewishLearning.com does a good job explaining why Jews eat the food they do on Hanukkah. The article focuses on the significance of cheese and foods cooked in oil.

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The New York Times has an article from 2005 entitled “Out of the Fryer, Into the Lights,” about celebrating Hanukkah with jelly doughnuts, called sufganiyot in Hebrew. A longstanding hit in Israel, jelly doughnuts are rising in popularity among American Jews.

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For Hanukkah recipes …

Chabad.org introduces some traditional Hanukkah recipes in an easy-to-follow manner. The site presents eight popular Hanukkah dishes with a list of ingredients, cooking/baking directions and reader comments for each one.

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Food Network offers an extensive array of recipes. Learn how to make dishes like latkes, fried zucchini, pumpkin and corn fritters, noodle kugel, brisket, yeast doughnuts and blueberry blintzes, among other savory and sweet possibilities.

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Allrecipes.com has many of the same recipes as the previous sites but it is particularly helpful in that it has user reviews and a “More Recipes Like This” link. Look for free recipes from cooks all over the world, making for such potential gems as “Jewish Grandma's Best Beef Brisket,” rated four-and-a-half stars out of five.

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