Applesauce & sourcream is a traditional topping for latkes, but we think it's time to get creative. Try these six delicious toppings for your latkes this season.

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Created with the generous support of the Jewish Community Foundation of Los Angeles & NuRoots. 

A short video about latkes and how you can bring an interfaith elements into serving them. For more resources, please visit www.interfaithfamily.com/decemberholidays

By Jeffrey Yoskowitz & Liz Alpern

If you haven’t made homemade pickles yet, the recipe also works with store-bought sours. Fried pickles make a great hors d’oeuvre, especially with the garlic aioli. Sweet pickles will definitely work in place of sour pickles, but may put your Ashkenazi street cred in jeopardy. Note that a thermometer is important for this recipe.

Serves 8 

INGREDIENTS

FOR THE AIOLI:  

1 large egg 

1 egg yolk 

2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice 

1 Tbsp spicy brown mustard, homemade (page 32) or store-bought 

2 garlic cloves, crushed 

½ cup grapeseed oil 

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper 

FOR THE FRIED PICKLES: 

Peanut or canola oil, for frying 

6 large sour or half sour dill pickles, store-bought or homemade, cut into ½-inch thick rounds 

2 Tbsp all-purpose flour 

4 large eggs, beaten 

1 cup panko bread crumbs 

1 tsp ground coriander 

¼ tsp mustard powder 

1 tsp kosher salt

DIRECTIONS:

1. To make the aioli: In a blender or food processor, combine the egg, egg yolk, lemon juice, mustard, and garlic. With the machine running, slowly drizzle in the oil and blend until the aioli thickens. (Your blender or food processor will do this easily and quickly, but you can also make the aioli in a large bowl and whisk the oil in by hand.) Season with salt and pepper to taste. Transfer to a small bowl, cover, and refrigerate until ready to serve.

2. To make the fried pickles: Fill a large, heavy-bottomed pot with at least 2 inches of oil for effective frying and attach a thermometer to the side. (The thermometer is critical here.) Heat the oil over medium heat to 325ºF. Be patient. This may take a few minutes. Monitor the temperature and do not let it go above 325ºF. 

3. Meanwhile, set up four wide, shallow bowls near your stovetop. In one, place the pickle rounds; in the next, place the flour; in the next, place the eggs; and in the last, place the panko, coriander, mustard, and salt and whisk with a fork to combine. Finally, line a wide plate with paper towels and set it nearby.

4. Once your oil has reached 325ºF, you’re ready to fry. Coat a pickle round in flour, then dip it in the egg, then in the panko. Carefully drop it in the hot oil—avoid splashing. It’s important that the temperature doesn’t dip too low, so work on about 4 pickle rounds at a time and don’t crowd the pot. Fry the pickle rounds until the coating turns golden brown. This should take about 1 minute per batch. We recommend timing this. You don’t want them to get any darker and burn. 

5. Using a small mesh strainer or spider (or even a fork, but be careful), transfer the fried pickles to the paper towel–lined plate. Repeat with the remaining pickle rounds. Fried foods are best served immediately, so if you are serving these for a party or other gathering, set up your frying station in advance and start frying when everyone has arrived. Serve with the aioli on the side for dipping.

Excerpted from the book THE GEFILTE MANIFESTO by Jeffrey Yoskowitz & Liz Alpern. Copyright ©2016 by Gefilte Manifesto LLC. Reprinted with permission from Flatiron Books. All rights reserved.

By Amy Kritzer

For an extra sweet Shabbat, and especially sweet Rosh HaShanah, this variation on traditional challah adds some sweet apples to the dough just before braiding. (To shape the round challah traditional of Rosh HaShanah, see Tina Wasserman's how-to video.)

INGREDIENTS

DOUGH

1 envelope instant yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)

2 1/2 cups bread flour

1/2 cup warm water (100 degrees)

2 eggs for the dough and 1 egg for an egg wash

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1 teaspoon cinnamon for the dough

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup sugar

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FILLING

2 apples

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon sugar

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DIRECTIONS

1. Whisk yeast and 1/2 cup of flour with warm water (100 degrees). Let it sit for 10 minutes until puffy.
2. Whisk two eggs, oil, vanilla, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/4 cup sugar and salt into the yeast slurry until mixed in.
3. Add the remaining 2 cups of flour and mix with your hands into a  ball.
4. Knead ball of dough for about 5 to 10 minutes until smooth; add more water if it is tough or add flour if it is sticky.
5. Put the dough in a clean and warm bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let it ferment for one hour until puffy.
6. Peel and chop up your apples into bite sized pieces and sprinkle them with cinnamon and sugar.
7. Once dough is ready, divide into three sections and roll each one out into a flat piece on parchment paper. Sprinkle some apples at one end and roll up the long way making sure to avoid air bubbles.
8. Repeat with other dough balls.
9. Braid strands starting in the middle, braiding each side and securing at the ends. Put challah on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper.
10. Cover with plastic wrap and ferment another hour and a half until it is triple the size.
11. Preheat oven to 350°F.
12. Wash challah with last egg and bake for 35 minutes until golden brown.
13. Serve with honey!

All Ethiopians eat injera, a spongy flat bread made from teff, an ancient (gluten-free) grain. For celebratory occasions like the Sabbath, Ethiopian Jews eat a more special wheat bread called  defo dabo, often studded with nigella seeds, as their unbraided challah. This differs from village to village, family to family, depending on tastes and availability. Try making it next Shabbat (recipe here), knowing that this tradition goes back to antiquity.

INGREDIENTS:

1 Tbsp yeast
3 Tbsp sugar
3 Tbsp honey
2 Tbsp sea salt
1 1/2 tsp nigella seeds, plus more for sprinkling (optional)
1/4 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp ground coriander
Scant 1/2 cup vegetable oil
6 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour, divided, plus more as needed
1 large egg (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

1. In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the dough hook, stir together the yeast, sugar, honey, salt, nigella seeds, turmeric, ground coriander, and 2 1/2 cups of warm water. Add the oil and mix well.
2. Add 6 cups of the flour and mix until a very wet, sticky dough forms. Scrape the dough into a large greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap (spray plastic wrap with oil to prevent dough from sticking) and let rest for an hour.
3. Uncover the dough, let it breathe, and, if the dough seems too sticky, stir in 1/2 cup more flour with a wooden spoon. Cover the dough with the plastic wrap and let it rest for another 40 minutes.
4. Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper and preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
5. Lightly flour a work surface and your hands. Gently punch down the dough, then scrape it onto the work surface and shape it into a round loaf. Put the loaf on the parchment-lined baking sheet. If you want, beat the egg, then brush it on top of the bread and sprinkle with additional nigella seeds. Let rest, loosely covered with the plastic wrap, for 30 minutes.
6. Bake for about 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and the bottom sounds hollow when tapped.

Yields 1 large or 2 small challahs

Note: If you prefer to make two smaller dabos (loaves), line two 8-inch round baking pans with parchment paper, then pour half the dough into each. The baking time will be reduced to about 30 to 40 minutes.

By Jeffrey Yoskowitz & Liz Alpern

Part of what made mushrooms—one of the primary flavoring agents of Ashkenazi cuisine—so popular was the fact that they could be foraged from the forests, free of charge. The best foragers, often peasant women, would gather extras after a rain spell and sell them at markets.

This recipe is best with porcinis, both dried and fresh, but other mushrooms, including shiitakes and portobellos, will taste great. The dried mushrooms give this soup particular depth. Also note that the barley is cooked separately from the broth, to ensure a soup that isn’t gummy or porridge-like, as mushroom barley can sometimes be.

Serves 8

INGREDIENTS:

2½ Tbsp. vegetable oil 

½ cup pearl barley 

8 cups vegetable broth, store-bought or homemade (page 123, made with red wine) 

4 sprigs fresh dill, plus chopped fresh dill for garnish 

½ oz dried mushrooms (about ¾ cup loosely packed) 

½ cup boiling water 

1 large carrot, peeled and diced 

1 celery stalk, diced 

1 small onion, diced 

1 lb fresh porcini mushrooms, stems removed, quartered 

1 tsp kosher salt 

1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

DIRECTIONS:

1. In a small nonstick saucepan, heat ½ tablespoon of the oil over medium heat. Add the barley and toast it, stirring frequently, until it becomes fragrant and flecked with dark brown spots, about 7 minutes. Pour in 1 cup of the broth and add 1 sprig of the dill. Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer over medium heat until the barley is cooked through but not soft, about 25 minutes. Remove from the heat, discard the dill sprig, and drain any remaining liquid from the grain. Set aside. 

2. While the barley is cooking, place the dried mushrooms in a small bowl and pour the boiling water over them. Let them rehydrate for about 25 minutes, then strain through a fine-mesh strainer into a bowl, reserving the liquid and slicing the reconstituted mushrooms into small pieces. 

3. In a large stockpot, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons oil over medium heat. Add the carrot, celery, onion, and porcinis. Sauté, stirring frequently, until the onion starts to brown, about 10 minutes. Add the rehydrated mushrooms, reserved mushroom soaking liquid, remaining 7 cups broth, the salt, pepper, and remaining 3 sprigs dill and simmer until the vegetables are soft, 25 to 30 minutes. Remove and discard the dill sprigs. Stir in the barley. Salt to taste. 

4. Serve the soup garnished with chopped fresh dill. It tastes best when reheated the next day.

Excerpted from the book THE GEFILTE MANIFESTO by Jeffrey Yoskowitz & Liz Alpern. Copyright ©2016 by Gefilte Manifesto LLC. Reprinted with permission from Flatiron Books. All rights reserved.

INGREDIENTS

• 1/3 cup fresh basil leaves, finely chopped
• ½ cup of olive oil, divided
• 4 thick slices of crusty bread
• 1 garlic clove, cut lengthwise in half
• 6 oz of goat cheese cut into ¾ inch slices
• 5 cups of arugula
• Juice from one small lemon
• Salt and freshly cracked black pepper
• Pitted olives (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. In a mortar and pestle, mash the basil together with ¼ cup olive oil to make a watery paste. Set aside for at least 1 hour.
2. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
3. Rub each slice of bread with the cut side of the garlic clove and place the bread on a baking pan. Top with goat cheese slices and bake for roughly 8-10 minutes, or until toasted. Remove from oven and top each piece with the basil sauce.
4. Whisk together the lemon juice, remaining ¼ cup olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste. Toss the arugula with the dressing.
5. To serve, place arugula on a plate and top with the goat cheese toasts and basil sauce.
6. Scatter pitted olives on the plate if desired.

Recipe by Becky Jaye

Growing up, my mother made these latkes for our family during Hanukkah. They were such a hit that we started serving them at all of our holiday gatherings, including Thanksgiving dinner and family parties. Her recipe includes elements of  pajeon , a Korean potato pancake often made with scallions and other vegetables.  Pajeon  is sometimes served as a single, large pancake, cut into smaller pieces for a family to share.

As we made  pajeon  and latkes over the years, I realized that they started to become more like one another – and eventually, the two met in the middle! These latkes, for me, represent the harmonious integration of two cultures and traditions brought together by a common love for food and one another.

In this recipe, I’ve added my own spin (carrots!) to the  pajeon /latke amalgamation that has filled my family's tummies and hearts with love for decades. When I eat these latkes – or  paj- kes, as I call them – I think of the beauty of my parents' worlds coming together, and how each has highlighted the best attributes of two cultures I am immensely proud to call my own.

INGREDIENTS

5 lb. shredded Idaho potatoes

2 large, shredded sweet yellow onions

6-7 shredded orange carrots

3 bunches of scallions, quartered length-wise and sliced diagonally in lengths of 1 to 1.5”

5 eggs

1 ½ cups Korean pajeon potato pancake flour, for example, Beksul Korean Pancake Mix, available in Asian grocery stores and online (Note: You may substitute the same amount of regular flour, though your pancakes will be less like pajeon and more like latke

3 tbsp garlic powder

Salt and pepper to taste

1 cup soy sauce

3 tbsp of rice vinegar

Minced garlic, chopped scallions, and sesame seeds to your liking

DIRECTIONS

1. Combine all shredded vegetables, keeping any liquids that come about from the shredding process in the mixture. The starches will help the shape and form of the latke stay put.
2. Add eggs. Fold in flour and seasoning with hands until all is incorporated.
3. Heat generous amount of frying oil (e.g. avocado or vegetable oil) in a deep frying pan. Spoon out latke recipe into oil once it is heated. Make medallions roughly 3-4” in diameter, or the size of your palm. Fry until golden brown on both sides.
4. Serve warm with optional accompanying sauce. These latkes also pair well with kimchi or sour cream and chopped scallions.
5. Enjoy to your heart's content, and share with love. Happy Hanukkah!

Want more from Becky? Check out “Kimchi and Latkes,” our interview with her on the podcast Wholly Jewish. Then find additional recipes for a festive Hanukkah. 

Becky Jaye is from Brooklyn, N.Y. and is a rabbinical student at Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion. She completed her B.A. in American studies and creative non-fiction writing at Yale College and, after working as a Yale-China Association Teaching Fellow in Zhuhai, China, for two years, continued her studies at Yale Divinity School, where she completed an M.A. in religion, focusing her studies on interfaith dialogue and Sephardic Jewry.

By Tina Wasserman

This Latkatini mirrors the ingredients in latkes with applesauce, and the milk stands in for sour cream. Don't worry: no onion!

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INGREDIENTS

LATKATINIS:

½ cup sugar

¼ cup water

1 teaspoon rosewater

3/4 cup unfiltered apple juice or cider

1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

2-3 tablespoons plain or horseradish potato vodka (recipe below)

1/3 cup milk or milk substitute

¼ cup Hungry Man mashed potato flakes

1 cup of ice

Baharat or cinnamon for garnish

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HORSERADISH VODKA

4-inch piece of horseradish

2 cups potato vodka

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DIRECTIONS

Vodka Latkatinis

1. To make the rosewater simple syrup, combine the sugar and water in a 1-quart saucepan.  Bring to a boil and stir once or twice until the liquid is clear. Boil for 1 minute, remove from heat and stir in the rosewater. Pour into a clean jar and store in the refrigerator until needed.  
2. Combine 1 tablespoon of the rosewater simple syrup with the next five ingredients in a blender. Blend until combined. Let mixture rest for a minute or two to allow the potato flakes to hydrate.
3. Add the ice to the blender and blend on high until ice is totally incorporated. If necessary add a little more apple juice for desired consistency. Pour into martini glasses and sprinkle with some baharat or cinnamon as a garnish.

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Horseradish Vodka

1. Peel a 4-inch piece of horseradish. Rinse.
2. Using a vegetable peeler or a julienne peeler/shredder, shred about ¼ cup.
3. Place shredded horseradish in a quart jar and add at least 2 cups of potato vodka (I prefer Tito's).
4. Let the jar of infused vodka sit on your counter for at least two days but preferably four.
5. Refrigerate with the horseradish until needed.

Additional Notes:

• Rosewater simple syrup will last for months in the refrigerator.

Have you ever wondered how bakeries make jelly donuts? Well, we went over to Frena Bakery, one of the few kosher bakeries in the San Francisco Bay Area, to see how its made.

The Hebrew word for jelly donut is sufganiyah (sufganiyot is the plural form). Sufganiyot are originally from Israel. Sufaniyot roughly translates to "sponge." Like most other donuts they are deep-fried but these sweet sponges are often filled with jelly or custard. They are also typically eaten during the Jewish holiday, Chanukah.

Learn more about Chanukah here: http://bit.ly/2j3YaP9

And don't forget to check out Frena Bakery in San Francisco if you're in the area.

Tannaz Sassooni of "All Kinds of Yum" teaches us how to make this delicious Persian treat. See the full recipe here: http://tannazie.blogspot.com/2016/12/hanukkah-video-zoulbia.html

Created with the generous support of the Jewish Community Foundation of Los Angeles & NuRoots.

Ingredients:

Vegetable oil
1 package of prepared pizza dough
¼ cup sugar
1 Tbsp cinnamon

Optional topping ideas :

Powdered sugar
Cocoa
Jelly
Melted chocolate chips

Preparation:

1. In a large saute pan (or electric skillet), add enough oil so that it is about one inch deep. Heat over medium high heat (between 375 and 400 degrees). 

2. Roll out pizza dough until it is about ½-1 inch thick. Cut rounds of dough using a one inch cookie or biscuit cutter. If you've got a kid helper on hand, pass off the cookie cutters and put them to work, just make sure a grownup does the next step.

3. Carefully place each dough round in the oil, and cook about 1 minute per side.

4. Remove the rounds from the oil, and place them on a plate lined with paper towel.

5. Now it's time for your toppings! Combine the sugar and cinnamon in a bowl, and while the rounds are still warm, roll them in the mixture to coat. You can try some of the alternate toppings we listed above here too!

6. Serve immediately.

Glam up your dessert table with these easy & delicious golden gelt cookies.

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Created with the generous support of the Jewish Community Foundation of Los Angeles & NuRoots. 

By Deborah Rood Goodman & Ellen Zimmerman

It can be difficult to find fun Hanukkah kitchen activities for little ones. Making fried foods, like latkes and  sufganiyot, can be dangerous to make with children, and even cut-out Hanukkah cookies require some dexterity. That’s why my family likes making edible  hanukkiyot  (Hanukkah menorahs).

1. DOUGHNUT MENORAH

This edible  hanukkiyah isn’t messy, but it can be a little sticky. My family made ours by stacking donut holes atop brownies and securing them with toothpicks. The kids decorated the tops of the brownies to make them extra festive, and we double-stacked brownies to make the  shamash  candle higher than the others.

2. NUTELLA-AND-MARSHMALLOW  HANUKKIYAH

This one requires a few extra ingredients, a little more time, and the willingness to make a bit more of a mess – but it’s worth it. You’ll need regular-sized (not mini) marshmallows, unwrapped chocolate gelt, and Nutella. Line up nine marshmallows, and use a dab of Nutella to “glue” them to the gelt as a base. For the  shamash candle, use extra gelt or an extra marshmallow to make it higher. Not a fan of Nutella? Colorful frosting works just as well. 

3. COLORFUL MARSHMALLOW  HANUKKIYAH

"Paint" large marshmallows with milk mixed with food coloring or an all-natural alternative. Then push small birthday cake candles into the marshmallows for a  hanukkiyah that you can light, or use pretzel sticks for one you can eat!

4. FRUIT AND VEGGIE  HANUKKIYAH

People create all kinds of amazing food art with fruits and veggies, turning them into patterns, faces, animals, and entire scenes. This concept can easily be adapted into an edible  hanukkiyah design that lies flat on a plate; no need to figure out how to stand it up. Let the kids go wild with the options: alternate carrot, celery, and zucchini sticks for candles; use red grapes or cherry tomatoes for flames; use whole carrots as candles and kiwi rounds or halved strawberries for flames… the options are endless!

5. "GO BANANAS"  HANUKKIYAH

Slice one-half of a banana lengthwise and put the pieces cut-side down on a plate as the  hanukkiyah  base. Push a raisin onto the ends of pretzel sticks to represent the flames and push each pretzel into the banana to make a row of edible candles.

The best part? Your family can gobble up your homemade  hanukkiyot while the Hanukkah candles are burning!

Original article: https://reformjudaism.org/jewish-holidays/hanukkah/5-kinds-incredible-edible-hanukkah-menorahs