Chanukah, the festival of lights

Hanukkah 2016 will start the evening of
Saturday, December 24
and will end the evening of
Sunday, January 1, 2017
"Chanukah is the Jewish eight-day, wintertime “festival of lights,” celebrated with a nightly menorah lighting, special prayers and fried foods.

The Hebrew word Chanukah means “dedication,” and is thus named because it celebrates the rededication of the Holy Temple (as you’ll read below). Also spelled Hanukkah (or variations of that spelling), the Hebrew word is actually pronounced with a guttural, “kh” sound, kha-nu-kah, not tcha-new-kah.
In the second century BCE, the Holy Land was ruled by the Seleucids (Syrian-Greeks), who tried to force the people of Israel to accept Greek culture and beliefs instead of mitzvah observance and belief in G‑d. Against all odds, a small band of faithful Jews, led by Judah the Maccabee, defeated one of the mightiest armies on earth, drove the Greeks from the land, reclaimed the Holy Temple in Jerusalem and rededicated it to the service of G‑d.
When they sought to light the Temple's Menorah (the seven-branched candelabrum), they found only a single cruse of olive oil that had escaped contamination by the Greeks. Miraculously, they lit the menorah and the one-day supply of oil lasted for eight days, until new oil could be prepared under conditions of ritual purity.

To commemorate and publicize these miracles, the sages instituted the festival of Chanukah."

Gluten Free Latkes

(Dairy Free)

Prep time: 20 minutes | Cook time: 20 minutes | Serving size: 20-24 gluten free latkes (6 people)

Ingredients:

  • 4 large potatoes, peeled and grated (5 cups)
  • 1 large onion, grated
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 cup of brown rice flour
  • Pepper to taste
  • 4-8 Tbsp grape seed oil (if frying)
  • Salt to taste
  • Garlic Cream Sauce for serving (recipe below)
  • Organic unsweetened apple sauce for serving

Directions:

  1. Roll grated potatoes and onion in a tea towel and wring out as much liquid as possible.
  2. Mix the potatoes and onion with the eggs, flour, and pepper in a big bowl.
  3. To fry:
    1. Place 2 Tbsp oil in a large frying pan and heat to medium-high heat.
    2. Once the oil is hot, add ¼ cup scoops of the potato mixture to the frying pan in batches, pressing down with a spatula to flatten.
    3. Cook each side for 2-3 minutes or until golden brown.
    4. Transfer cooked latkes to paper towels to drain the oil and sprinkle with salt.  Add additional oil to the frying pan as required.
  4. To bake:
    1. Pre-heat the oven to 400F and line two large baking pans with parchment paper.
    2. Add salt to the gluten free latkes mixture to taste.
    3. Form 1/4 cup scoops of the mixture into round disks and place on the baking pan, flattening with the back of the spatula.
    4. Cook for 8 minutes, flip, rotate racks and cook an additional 8 minutes until golden brown.
  5. Serve hot with a dollop of garlic cream sauce and apple sauce. If you are not serving immediately, preheat the oven to 250F and place the cooked latkes on a wire rack on top of a baking sheet to keep warm in the oven.

Dairy Free Garlic Cream Sauce

Inactive prep time: 30 minutes | Prep time: 5 minutes | Serving size: 1.5 cups

Ingredients:

  • 1 1/4 cup cashews
  • 3/4 cup water
  • 1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • 1 garlic clove
  • 1/4 tsp dijon mustard
  • Salt to taste

Directions:

  1. Soak cashews in water for 30 minutes to overnight.
  2. Rinse the cashews and place in a food processor with the water, apple cider vinegar, garlic, mustard, and salt. Process until silky smooth.


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