84 Friday, December 14, 1984 THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS . = M11111111111111111111 =MINIM M1111111•1111111•11111111MINIIMIllIMIII 11 - To: The Jewish News •11 COOKING 17515 W. 9 Mile Rd. Suite 865 Southfield, Mich. 48075-4491 he Chanukah miracle in food Virtif AST BY GLORIA KAUFER GREENE from Paste in old label NAME 1 1 Effective Date MO MO =II MO IN NI MI IN MI Ell MO MOO IMMO SUBSCRIBE TODAY TO The Jewish News I OM UM UM ME UM ME MO UM WM UM MO MO OM MS MN --- 1 To: The Jewish News 1 17515 W. 9 Mile Rd., Suite 865 Southfield, Mich. 48075-4491 Please send a year's gift subscription to: NAME I ADDRESS I CITY STATE ZIP FOR state occasion FROM 111$18 enclosed 111111r 1111r Off I= MI Ili me imm mie um um um SS UM IS um us 11111 It is quite customary to eat foods fried in oil during Chanukah. They symbolically re- call the miracle of one day's worth of oil that burned for eight in the ancient Temple. Dairy foods are also eaten, but for a completely different reason. This is to recall the story of the beautiful widow, Judith, who saved her Jewish community from almost certain destruction. Judith arranged to dine with the enemy general, then fed him great quantities of salty cheese, which drove him to drink so much wine that he collapsed into a drunken stupor. She immediately killed him, sending his soldiers fleeing in fear. Her bravery is said to have inspired the Maccabees. Following are some Chanukah recipes: CHANUKAH BURMEULOS OR LOUKOUMADES These fried "honey puffs" are the most traditional Chanukah treat for Sephardic Jews who come from Greece and Turkey. Burmeulos (or bimuelos) is the pastry's Judeo-Spanish name, loukoumades (or loukoumathes) is its Greek one, and lokma is its Turkish one. The following are- irregularly shaped, yeast-raised doughnuts that are drenched in a honey syrup. Occasionally, they are coated with confectioner's sugar instead of syrup. BATTER 1 packet (about 2% tsps.) active dry yeast 1 cup warm (105-115 degrees F.) water, divided % tsp. sugar 1 large egg 2 cups enriched all-purpose or unbleached white flour 1 /4 tsp. salt HONEY SYRUP 1 cup sugar 3 /4 cup water % cup honey 1 tbsp. lemon juice FOR FRYING AND GARNISH Vegetable Oil Ground cinnamon, as desired For the batter, mix together the yeast, 1/2 cup of the water, and the sugar in a medium-sized bowl. Let the yeast mixture rest about 5 minutes or until frothy. Stir in the remaining batter ingredients until smooth. The batter should be very loose and sticky. Cover the bowl loosely and let the batter rise for 1 hour. (If necessary, the bat- ter_ can be stirred down at this point and allowed to rise another 30 minutes.) While the batter is rising, pre- pare the honey syrup. Mix to- gether all the ingredients in a 2-quart (or similar) saucepan, and slowly bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring only until the sugar dissolves. Reduce the heat slightly, and boil the syrup for 5 minutes. Remove it from the heat, and set it aside to cool to room temperature. When the batter has risen, stir it down. Put enough oil in a large saucepan (or a wok) so that it is about 11/2 inches deep. Heat the oil until it is very hot, about 375 de- grees. Dip a teaspoon into the oil, Apple latkes, top, can be enhanced with a dairy topping made with Philadelphia Brand Cream Cheese. The latkes can be accompanied by a fruit salad accented with bits of ca ndied fruit. APPLE LATKES 1 cup flour 1 tbsp. sugar 1 tbsp. baking powder 1/2 tsp. salt 1 cup milk 1 egg, beaten 2 tbsps. Parkay margarine, melted 1 cup shredded peeled apple 1 8-oz. pkg. Philadelphia Brand cream cheese, sof- tened 1/2 cup sour cream 1 tbsp. sugar and then use, it to scoop up a small portion of the batter. Gently drop the batter into the oil. (Keep your opposite hand wet, in case you need-it to nudge the batter off the spoon. The batter will not stick to wet hands.) The dollop of batter will quickly puff up to almost twice its original size. Make some more puffs in the same manner, but do not crowd the pan. Fry the puffs, turning them oc- casionally with a slotted spoon, until they are browned and very crisp. Drain them briefly on paper toweling (or on the rack that at- taches to some woks). Then drop 1 or 2 at a time into the cooled syrup.* Use a different spoon or tongs (so the syrup will not get oily) to turn the hot puffs in the syrup so they become completely coated with it. Lift the puffs up, and let the excess syrup drain off. Put the puffs on a large plate. Re- peat the frying and dipping proc- ess until all the batter is used. Then sprinkle the puffs gener- ously with cinnamon. For best taste and texture, serve them as soon as possible. *Note: If desired, the honey puffs may be fried in advance, and coated with hot syrup just before serving. Some Sephardic cooks prefer to stir about 1 teaspoon cinnamon into the syrup, and then let each guest pour a bit of syrup over his or her own serving of puffs. In some households, pur- Combine dry ingredients. Add combined milk, egg and mar- garine, mixing just until mois- tened. Fold in apple. For each latke, pour 2 tablespoons batter onto hot, lightly greased griddle. Cook until surface is bubbly; turn. Continue cooking until golden brown. • Combine cream cheese, sour cream and sugar, mixing until well blended. Serve with latkes. Yield: about 1 1/2 dozen. Variation: For dessert sauce, add 1 tablespoon sugar and 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon. chased pancake syrup is used. Another easy alternative is: 1 cup honey mixed with 1/4 to 'A cup water and heated just until blended and hot; use while warm. . Makes about 3 dozen honey puffs. KOEKSISTERS This delicious South African specialty looks like glistening, miniature challah breads. Though koeksisters are so popu- lar in South•Africa that Jews (and others) eat them throughout the year, particularly at afternoon "teas," this oil-fried treat seems especially appropriate for Chanukah. SYRUP 1% cups sugar 1 cup water 2 tbsps. honey 1 tbsp. lemon juice Pinch of ground cinnamon (optional) DOUGH 2 cups enriched all-purpose or unbleached white flour tsps. baking powder Pinch of salt 2 tsps. butter of margarine, softened % cup milk or water 1 egg yolk FOR FRYING Vegetable oil First, prepare the syrup so it