Modern nutritional advice recommends avoiding fried food. Although I am a proponent of Jewish healthy eating, for one week a year I make an exception. Yes, I am referring to Hanukkah (aka Hanukah, Hannuka or Chanuka) or the fried food festival. Hannukah is different to many of the other Jewish festivals in that there are no restrictions on food preparation or cooking during the holiday. It is a holiday when family can get together without the pressure of preparing food in advance; which is a good thing because fried food tastes bests when it is served fresh!
Hannukah is the Jewish festival of lights and celebrates the rededication of the second temple, and the miracle of a small amount of olive oil lasting for 8 days. To commemorate the miracle, candles or oil lamps are lit for 8 days. Every home has a Hannukia and candles are lit each day starting with one on the first night and finishing with 8 candles on the eighth day. Due to the proximity of Hannukah to Christmas, some traditions have been adopted such as decorating the house, and giving large gifts. The main Hanukkah traditions are eating foods that are fried in oil, and playing with a dreidle (4 sided spinning top).
Traditional Hannukah foods include potato latkes and donuts. Latkes, which are not dissimilar to potato rosti, are enjoyed with a variety of condiments ranging from apple sauce and sour cream to cinnamon and sugar. In recent years different latke versions have become popular; sweet potato latkes, zucchini fritters, kohlorabi and carrot rosti, you are only limited by the vegetables you have on hand. Latkes are delicious served fresh - every year after lighting the Hanukkah candles I prepare different latkes, which we enjoy whilst spinning the dreidle. Latkes can also be prepared in advance and reheated, and can be baked for a healthier treat.
The other traditional Hanukkah food is donuts. These are commercially available with an astounding array of wonderful fillings and toppings. If you are lucky you will be able to find small donuts, as a large donut contains at least 300calories and ~16g of fat, which is equivalent to a small healthy meal. Even home made donuts are calorific, but they have the advantage of having been prepared at home with you knowing exactly what ingredients went into them, and they can be made as small (or large) as you like. In addition, you can fill them with whatever you like, and can enjoy them fresh. I usually make donuts with a mixture of whole wheat and white flour, use very little sugar in the dough, low fat milk and fry in canola oil. If I fill them with jam I use no-added sugar 100% fruit jam. Whilst these are not low-fat or healthy, they are better than anything you can find commercially. If you want something even healthier, try baking your donuts instead of frying them, but remember Hannukah is all about the miracle of oil!
To find more recipes for latkes and different donuts including baked donuts, check out the Hannukah section at http://www.jewishholidayrecipe.com/Hanukkahrecipes.html
Wishing you a happy and not-too calorific Hanukkah!
