How a Phoenix family makes Hanukkah their own: 'We go a little rogue with fried foods'
Each year, the Jewish community celebrates Hanukkah in remembrance of the Maccabees' victory over the massive Syrian-Greek army of King Antiochus in 139 BCE and the reclamation of the holy temple in Jerusalem. When Jewish soldiers cleansed the temple, they only found enough oil to light the menorah for one night. Yet that little oil miraculously lasted for eight days. Ever since, the miracle has been commemorated by the lighting of a menorah each night during the eight-day celebration and by cooking traditional fried foods.
"What I love about the holiday is the length," said Leah Zigmond, director of the early childhood center at the Valley of The Sun Jewish Community Center. "I love these traditions of family gatherings for eight nights in a row. These days, most families barely have dinner one night a week. To have a holiday that centers around being together for eight nights in a row in itself is quite a modern-day miracle."
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When is Hanukkah?
Hanukkah 2022 begins on Dec. 18 and ends on Dec. 26.
Because the holiday falls in the same month as Christmas, some families have incorporated gift giving into their celebrations so kids don't feel left out, but Zigmond said her family celebrates in more traditional ways, like lighting the Hanukkiah or menorah, a candelabra with nine candles. The central candle or shamash, is also known as the helping candle, and is used to light the rest, one candle per night starting from right to left.
"Many families have more than one Hanukkiah or Hanukkah menorah," she said. "In my family growing up, and in my family now, everyone lights their own. In some families, people even light more than one menorah. If you think about it, we are at the darkest nights of the year. It's almost winter solstice and here we are increasing the light every night."
Zigmond's family also celebrates by singing songs, playing with dreidels and cooking together.
"We have this song Mi Yimalel that we sing and pick up speed every round."
The history behind the dreidels goes something like this: Since King Antiochus had outlawed studying the Torah, Jewish kids had to learn their Torah in secret. When a soldier would pass by, the kids would spin their dreidels, which had the Torah inscribed on its sides, and pretend like they were simply playing with the top. Today, the dreidel signifies their resistance.
"We have a lot of dreidels and it's a race to see whose spins the longest," Zigmond said.
Some of her family's newest traditions started in the kitchen.
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A new take on traditional Hanukkah foods
Fried foods are a staple of the Hanukkah table with potato latkes and sufganiyot jelly-filled doughnuts the two most popular. Zigmond's family hasn't had much success making jelly donuts. "The inside kept coming out raw," she said, adding that they've since decided to skip them in favor of other fried sweets. "We go a little rogue with fried foods."
Potato latkes are traditionally eaten with apple sauce or sour cream. According to Zigmond, there is passionate debate over which topping is the right choice. "There are t-shirts that say team sour cream or team apple sauce," she said. She is team applesauce and her husband team sour cream.
Cooking together and experimenting with new recipes has become the Zigmond family's most cherished tradition as they find delicious new ways to celebrate their history and heritage.
"We make funnel cakes, deep-fried Oreos," she said, and instead of potato latkes, they go a little wild with vegetable latkes made with sweet potatoes, zucchinis and carrots.
"My miracle of Hanukkah is being together for eight nights in a row and cooking as a family is about that togetherness for us."
Zigmond family recipe for "random" vegetable latkes
These vegetable pancakes are Leah Zigmond's twist on the traditional potato latke. As for the right topping? That's still up for debate.
Makes: 10 to 12 latkes
Ingredients:
About 2 cups grated vegetables (radish, carrot, zucchini, potato, sweet potato, parsnip, whatever veggies are in your refrigerator)
1 small onion, grated
A few cloves of minced garlic, optional
Dash of salt
Additional spices, per your taste (everything but the bagel spice mixture is a fun choice)
1 egg
A few tablespoons flour (or oats) to thicken, as needed
oil for frying
Instructions:
Mix grated veggies and grated onion and squeeze out excess liquid using a cheesecloth or thin dish towel. Alternatively, press with paper towels until dry.
Mix with garlic, spices, eggs and flour until well coated. Set aside for 10 minutes to allow the flour to soak up any excess liquid.
Heat ¼-inch of oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until a piece of the latke mixture sizzles immediately when added.
Scoop ¼ cup of the latke mixture onto a flat spatula and flatten with your fingers to a 4-inch patty, or whatever size you like.
Slide the latkes into the hot oil, one at a time. Repeat until the pan is full but not crowded. Cook until deeply golden-brown, 4 to 5 minutes per side, adjusting the heat if necessary.
Remove the latke from oil and place on a paper towel-lined baking sheet to drain for 2 minutes.
Serve with applesauce and sour cream right away. Or you can keep them warm in the oven by placing them on a wire cooling rack on a baking sheet and setting the oven to warm. They will hold for up to 30 minutes, which should be enough time to finish cooking the remaining latkes.
Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container and recrisp in a 300°F oven or air fryer for 5 to 10 minutes. Keep a close eye on the latkes when reheating so they do not burn.
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Reach the reporter at BAnooshahr@azcentral.com. Follow @banooshahr on Twitter.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Hanukkah traditions: Phoenix family celebrates with menorahs, latkes
