Shedding some Light on Channukah

Despite being raised in a Jewish home, I am not a religious person. I do not belong to a synagogue, or keep kosher,. But I still consider myself Jewish. Being Jewish to me is being a part of something bigger than me, something that transcends time, and something that has been around for thousands of years. And, despite constant efforts to eradicate it, something that will continue to survive for thousands more. Being a Jew means being a part of a culture and heritage that embraces knowledge, family and the love of giving to others.What a wonderful holiday. Full of joy and happiness. and a true lesson in faith. Eight days of songs and festivities .

To know the entire history of this holiday of Hanukkah, called the “Festival of Lights“, it would be easy to simply Google your way around. There are tens if not hundreds of places that tell the story in many ways.

Your intrepid innkeeper presents the “cut to the chase version:

It was during the Second Temple Era, when the Greeks decided that Judaism would no longer be practiced. Jews who refused to convert to the Greek way of life hid out in caves. Hellenism became an enemy. Enlightenment as the Greeks saw it, just was not going to encompass the Jews and their religion. It could merge with it, but Idol worship was simply out of the question. The Maccabeean war began and ended with the Jews once again taking control of the central, And came about the day when according to legend, the remnants at the Temple in Jerusalem were scoured for an unbroken bottle of “pure” oil to light the Menorah in the Temple. This bottle required a seal of the High Priest. And only one bottle was found. Enough for one day.

And the Miracle of Hanukkah took place. The oil was used and burned for eight days. Long enough for the Temple to be somewhat cleaned and more oil to be produced. Eight days, symbolizing the number beyond nature. Eight days symbolizing the Miracle.

And the Holiday of Hanukkah was born. One in which we as Jews light up the night and chase away the dark. One where we say in a combined, united voice, the night will not last. And light is not brought to humankind through death and destruction. It is brought into this world by lighting the oil. By spreading the light, night after night. For even during the blackest of moments, even during the times when blackness threatens to engulf our entire being, there is the miracle of but one small vial of oil that managed to chase away all that evil darkness.

Hanukkah is indeed a time for celebration and joy and love and sharing. It is a time for light - and a time to chase away the darkness.

Our family has twice as much to celebrate during the holiday season. Along with an estimated 1 million couples in the United States, we’re an “interfaith” couple—a term we define as “offering twice as many reasons to party.”

For us, holidays are all about warm gatherings of friends and family—and sharing great food. We put together menus that acknowledge traditions from both our backgrounds. At this time of year, that means we join Christmas and Hanukkah at one table.

My husband’s Christmas food traditions included a special roast as the centerpiece of the meal. As the star of the table, this was often an indulgence for his family: rack of lamb, standing rib roast or beef tenderloin were not cuts of meat his family could afford to eat very often.

For me, Hanukkah is practically synonymous with latkes, the fried potato pancakes served by many Jews to commemorate the miracle of the oil in the Temple burning for eight days. We’d eat the pancakes with applesauce and sour cream, or sometimes straight from the frying pan before my mother could even get them to the platter.

And because of this, tradition has it that we eat foods made in oil throughout this holiday. “Latkes” (potato pancakes), “Sufganiyot” (Jelly Donuts) and other fried foods are all over. Fried foods remind Jewish celebrants of the 2,000-year-old miracle that turned one day’s worth of candle oil into the eight days of light. Centuries later, we can recommend latkes, blintzes and jelly doughnuts to keep you full for eight days straight. So put on your yarmulka, it’s time for Hanukkah!” [Adam Sandler]

Although latkes come in all shapes and sizes, according to personal preference, Fry em up to a crispy crackly crunch and oy, these are good! From Cooks.com

3 large starchy potatoes , peeled
1/2 small to medium onion, minced
1/2 to 2/3 cup all-purpose flour mix
2 to 3 organic eggs, beaten
1/4 teaspoon salt, to taste
fresh grated pepper, to taste
organic high heat safflower oil, for frying

Grate the potatoes by hand or in a food processor . Press the grated potatoes between clean paper towels, to extract moisture.

In a large bowl, combine the grated potatoes with the onions and flour, then add the beaten eggs, salt, pepper. Stir well. Start with 2 eggs, and a half cup of flour; add more of each if you need to.

Heat a good inch and a half of oil in a deep sided skillet over high heat. Carefully drop the batter with a large spoon, or fork, into the hot oil, and press down with a spatula. Cook the latkes until they are golden on each side - crispy on the outside, and tender in the middle. (about 5 minutes )

Remove the latkes with a slotted spatula and place on paper towels, to drain. We keep the drained latkes warm in a hot oven, at 400 degrees F., until all the latkes are ready to serve, and try to work fast, Serve the latkes immediately with applesauce.

More Channukah recipes to keep you full for eight days (or more!)

And as part of the “innkeeper’s creed” of safety (as well as complying with state fire regs), check out this fancy little gadget is a fire extinguisher. The HomeHero Kitchen Fire Extinguisher. Aside from being aesthetically pleasing, the HomeHero is designed to be easier to use - and therefore provide potentially greater benefit.

Traditionally, fire extinguishers are large, cumbersome and difficult to use, requiring two hands to operate. HomeHero’s™ greatest ergonomic feature is its simple, single-handed deployment. The accessible style and shape of the canister, and the molded rubber grip and trigger on its handle allow the consumer to deploy the product in comfort and ease, even under the most challenging circumstances.

You can find it at HomeDepot. The only caveat: if you have guests stay over, you might want to show them the extinguisher. At first glance, you’d never realize what it was. Perhaps it should be red?

L’Chaim