seasoned with Oriental spices are
among the Chanukah favorites
of Moroccan Jews. Bukharan
Jews bake cakes with coins hid-
den inside to be presented to
teachers and elderly relatives. In
Turkey, the elders of the corn-
munity carried platters of latkes
to the homes of the affluent who
exchanged the food for Chanukah
gelt for the poor.
Even now, on the last day of
Chanukah Turkish Jews gath-
er friends and family together to
eat a special meal, called meren-
da; each brings a dish to be
shared, a version of our pot-luck
dinner. At the end of the meren-
da, the children receive
Chanukah gelt.
In ancient times on the Sab-
bath during Chanukah, besides
feeding the poor it was custom-
ary for Eastern European Jews
to bring clothing to the synagogue
to be distributed to the homeless
in anticipation of winter. This
was known as Shabbat Hal-
basha. Sephardic Jews have a
rich, culinary heritage quite dif-
ferent from their Ashkenazi
brethren. Their ancestors were
expelled from Spain in 1492 and
from Portugal in 1497 and they
fled to Mediterranean countries
and the Middle East.
Influenced by the culture and
by the profusion of herbs, spices
and fresh sunny produce that
grew abundantly in their adopt-
ed countries, they created the
spicy, aromatic cuisine that has
become so popular. Sephardic
Jews I've spoken to insist that
potato latkes were never served
in their homes. Instead, patties
were prepared with zucchini or
pumpkin or other cheap vegeta-
bles, flavored with cumin and
mint, and topped with herb-fla-
vored yogurt.
Oil, not schmaltz, was a basic
cooking ingredient in every
Sephardic kitchen since oil is a
native product in Mediterranean
and Middle Eastern countries.
In The Jewish Holiday Cook-
book, author Gloria • Kaufer
Greene describes the fried pas-
tries typically prepared for
Chanukah by Sephardic Jews.
All are irresistible. They combine
the most appealing in culinary
flavors — sweet and fat!
Turkish and Greek Jews eat
bimuelos, honey puffed pieces
of yeast dough, which are fried
in hot oil and drenched in a cin-
namon-flavored honey syrup.
Zelebi, crisp fried pastry swirls
similar to the Amish funnel cake,
are eaten by Israeli Yemenite
Jews.
The South African Chanukah
specialty, koeksisters, are dipped
in syrup and resemble glazed
miniature challahs. The Bene-
Israel Jews of India make a
similar fried pastry dessert, Gu-
lab Jamin, but the syrup is fla-
vored with cardamom, an Indian
spice.
In Israel, sesame candy is es-
sential to Sephardic Jewish fam-
ilies at their Chanukah
celebrations, seeds being the sym-
bol of growth and fertility.
Edda Machlin, author of The-
Classic Cuisine of the Italian
reminisces about
Jews,
Chanukah celebrations in the vil-
lage of Pitigliano, Italy, where she
grew up before World War II. As
a child she helped cut pieces of
bread dough stuffed with anise
seeds and raisins. These dia-
mond-shaped Frittelle di Hanuk-
ka (Chanukah fritters) were
fried, then coated with hot hon-
ey.
Ms. Machlin adds that "eaten
in summer, these fried foods
would be hard to digest, but in
the cold season, it was both di-
gestible and delicious."
Although these Chanukah
dishes all tend to be sweet and
cakelike, Jews in the Middle and
Near East prepare Enjadara, a
simple dish of rice, lentils and
fried onions. This is eaten at all
festive holidays including
Chanukah. Iraqi Jews spice up
the daily fare of rice and lentils
with the addition of turmeric and
cumin, as common to them as
salt and pepper is to us, and this
dish is often cooked long and slow
in oil to form a crust on the bot-
tom of the pan.
On Rosh Hodesh or the "New
Moon" which is on the sixth night
of Chan-ukah, Moroccan Jews eat
a dish of sweet, spiced couscous
with fruit and nuts.
Dairy dishes are usually asso-
ciated with Shavuot, but they are
also linked to Chanukah. Ac-
cording to legend, the beautiful
Judith, a member of the Has-
monean family, plotted and
planned a cozy dinner for two
with the enemy general,
Holofernes.
It was easy for her to tempt
him to feast on an assor tinent of
salty cheeses, then satisfied his
thirst with generous drafts of
wine. After he had fallen into a
drunken stupor, she killed him.
His army fled at the news of his
death and the Maccabees, against
enormous odds, were inspired to
victory.
Each country has its own clas-
sic dishes that fit in with this
Chanukah "dairy" custom. In He-
bron, Israel, on the last night of
Chanukah, women gathered for
their own celebration – a kind of
coffee-Match – but they ate mac-
aroni and salty cheeses. British
Jews have a similar version of the
dish which is served on at least
one night of Chanukah. As a
child, I remember dinners of
Cheese Rarebit (toasted cheese
on crumpets or bread), welcome
on a cold winter's night.
In Hungary, Czechoslovakia
and Austria, steamed sweet
dumplings are served with dol-
lops of flavored cream and every
European family has its own ver-
sion of a dairy kugel. Cholestrol
watchers need not be deprived.
Nutrition experts suggest mod-
eration — once in a while, you
can indulge in a small portion.
Otherwise, here in America,
countless recipes abound for
kugels prepared with egg substi-
tutes or egg whites.
The Sabbath during Chan-
ukah was especially meaningful
in Eastern Europe. On that day,
two different kugels were served,
one in honor of the Sabbath and
the other for the glory of the Fes-
tival of Lights.
Chanukah is a home cel-
ebration with eight
evenings to get togeth-
er with family and
friends. Catalogs such
as Kosher Cornucopia
will mail holiday food gift
packs and toys to those
who can't come home for the
holidays and Pelican Bay Ltd.
offers a bucket of ingredients,
complete with Star of David
cookie cutter, for children to
make their own cookies.
At home, suppers needn't
be fancy or planned ahead
to serve traditional dish-
es. In fact, if you're
pressed for time,
pick up a couple bags of frozen
latkes, refresh by brushing with
a herb-infused oil, and crisp in a
preheated oven for a few minutes.
Or if you like, get everyone in-
volved and cook up a batch of
doughnuts or latkes. Then light
the candles, sing happy Cha-
nukah songs and spin the drei-
dels.
(For further information on
Kosher Cornucopia, call 800-756-
7437; Pelican Bay Ltd, 800-826-
8982.)
cheese and sugar until light and
fluffy. Beat in eggs, sour cream
and vanilla, scraping mixture
down from sides of bowl. Care-
fully pour over noodles. Bake in
preheated 350F oven for 1 hour
or until kugel is firm to touch in
center and nicely browned.
Serves 20.
Note: Ingredients may be
halved and cooked in a 9 by 9-
inch baking dish.
VERY-RICH DAIRY
KUGEL
2 eggs
1/4 small onion, cut up
4 medium potatoes, peeled and
cubed
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour or
4 tablespoons matzo meal
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
vegetable oil for frying
Note: You can substitute 2 egg
whites for 1 whole egg
8 oz fine noodles, cooked and
drained
8 oz (2 sticks) sweet butter,
softened
8 oz cream cheese,softened
1 cup sugar
8 eggs
1 pint sour cream
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 350F. Line 11
by 14-inch baking dish with
cooked noodles. Set aside. In large
mixing bowl, cream butter, cream
EASIEST POTATO
LATICES
Place eggs in food processor.
Add onion and potatoes. Cover
and process to chop coarsely.
Pour into a bowl. Add flour, salt,
pepper and baking powder and
stir to mix well. Heat enough oil
to come about 1/4-inch deep in
heavy skillet. Slide table-
spoonfuls into hot oil and
cook over medium heat
until nicely browned
and cooked through,
about 2 minutes on
each side. Drain on pa-
per towels. Serve hot with
applesauce, cinnamon sug-
ar, or sour cream.
Makes 24.
Note: If a non-stick skillet is
used, only a thin film of oil is
needed for frying each
batch. D