Chanukah is all about the oil. You light it! You eat it! .... and 8 days later you are guaranteed to gain weight. It is interesting how we Jews have decided to celebrate the miracle of Chanukah. Of course, being Jews, it is all about the food... not the decor so much.... not the gift-giving so much... At least not when I was growing up. Every Jewish child I knew wished for a Christmas tree, good songs, and really good gifts.
I am not complaining though! It was part of our heritage. Although, if you go into Bed, Bath and Beyond in Miami, there is a whole section on Chanukah wreaths, lights, blow-ups for your front lawn.. except, so as not to get it confused with Christmas, it is all in blue and white. If you go into Crate & Barrel in New York, you can by Chanukah decorations like menorahs and dreidls instead of balls to hang from the "Chanukah bush".
Okay, back to the food, after all, it is my heritage. Latkes by far heads the list of traditional dishes. My Mom made them from a mix. I used to do the same. Now creative cooks grate potatoes into long strips and fry them of course with the traditional egg, flour, salt and pepper. Numerous modern recipes call for the addition of ingredients such as onions and carrots. It initially came from Russia or the Ukraine. However, I just learned from Wikipedia that there is a Polish variety topped with meat sauce, pork crisps or goulash, as well as sour cream and apple sauce. Who would have thunk? Definitely, not Jewish. Then there is a Czech version that was similar to the Jewish version but most importantly added garlic and marjoram. Sounds okay to me but that same potato dough is also used as a coating to a fried pork chop. Aha! there lies the difference.
So, I wanted to find out where the fried donuts came from. I never had them as a kid and neither did my husband. So I checked that out too. And I found out that foods either had to be fried in oil, or made with cheese. The cheese thing is something else I had never heard about. And I never found out where the jelly doughnut tradition came from. The cheesy foods tradition is based on a story from the Book of Judith. An Assyrian warrior besieged a town where Judith lived. Judith entered the Assyrian camp and gave the warrior salty cheese to make him thirsty, and wine to make him drunk. After he became intoxocated, she seized his sword and beheaded him, bringing the head back to her village in a basket. The next morning when the Assyrian troops found the headless body of their leader, they fled in terror. In honour of Judith's victorious and brave use of cheese, we incorporate the food into our Chanukah menus. A gruesome story to celebrate with cheese.
I am surprised we could do anything after consuming oily foods, salty cheese and wine. It tastes good but what a cholesterol bomb. I think we go into a lethargic stupor and go to bed.
If you are not Jewish don't think you get off so easy. If you like potato chips and consume them regularly you are in for long-term weight gain. It is the number one culprit. When was the last time you ate potato chips or looked for an alternative in the snack aisle? It is a massive runway of salty, processed crunchery. Potato chips are nothing more than thinly-cut, deep-fried potatoes with added salt. Surely, the healthier versions are better for you, right? Not so much. Granted Baked Lays will save you 8 grams of fat and 40 calories, but the added sugar, corn sugar, and soy lecithin to enhance their taste but... but even the no fat, but Olestra, the fat substitute used in many low and non-fat snack products, has been shown to promote weight gain. An animal study last year showed rats ate more of their regular food, which led them to gain more weight and body fat than rats fed regular high-fat potato chips.
I am not exactly a maven on food yet but here is my advice. Enjoy the eight days of Chanukah. Home-made latkes and doughnuts may still have an advantage over anything processed but on the other side of the coin, fried is lethal. So, take it all in moderation and enjoy the holidays and when it is all over don't go for a bag of potato chips.
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