Why is this doughnut different from all other doughnuts?
This Chanukah, will you be dunking your zalabi or sprinkling your fritelle? We explore delicious traditional Chanukah foods around the world
The word tradition conjures up different memories for each of us, from what we remember seeing our parents and grandparents do, to newer traditions we introduce to our own families. The wonderful thing about our diverse Jewish community is the variety of food that comes out of the many countries from which we hail. And it is for that reason that chag recipes are spun and reinvented with the same but slightly different ingredients and a new name.
Take the zalabi, the Iraqi-Indian squiggly, sticky Chanukah treat. This is made from a yeasted batter that is fermented and put into a squeezy bottle before being dribbled into hot oil to create its unique shape. Dunk it into a rich, sweet syrup flavoured with rosewater or orange blossom water to eat. The Iraqis call the same thing a zengoula (funnel cake) as the batter is poured through a funnel into the hot oil, while the Syrians, who vary the shape by pouring it into balls, call it zalabia. The syrup that the Syrians use is shira – thicker than the rest and never flavoured with rose.
Frittelle di Chanukah, aka Chanukah fritters with figs and sambuca honey, are a staple for Italian Jews. During the festival in Italy there aren’t many potato latkes, but there are fritters of all kinds, and a bread-like fritter with anise, olive oil and dried fruit and honey is a Jewish-Italian classic. The dough is left to rise overnight before frying and is then covered with sprinkles in red, white and green – colours of the Italian flag. Another updated Italian classic is the pasta latke, which is gaining in popularity.
The Greeks are partial to loukoumades, delicious doughnuts drizzled with honey, which have a fascinating history that began in ancient Greece, where they were served to the winners of the first Olympic Games in 776 BC, thus earning the nickname ‘honey tokens’.
Traditionally known for being on the Sephardi seder plate at Rosh Hashanah, keftes de espinaca (spinach patties) and keftes de prasa (leek patties) are a delicious alternative to the customary latke. Sliced leeks are sautéed and cooled before being folded into a light batter of flour, water and,sometimes, an egg before being fried in batches. The spinach version is the same, and sometimes the two can be mixed. I prefer to use frozen spinach that has been thawed and chopped. Totally moreish and four or five can easily be devoured at once!
Cassola (sweet cheese pancakes) are said to be the original latkes. After the Spanish expelled the Jews from Sicily, the exiles introduced their ricotta cheese pancakes, known in Rome as cassola, to the Jews of northern Italy.
Another variation on the delicious doughnut we know and love are the bimuelos, which are puffed and served with an orange glaze, and originate in Spain. In Mexico, the buneolos – meaning fritters – are more or less the same and one of the foods emblematic of Marrano Jews, who were forced to convert. Often sprinkled with cinnamon sugar, they have also been dipped in guava syrup.
For the Spanish Jews who relocated to Morocco during the inquisition, the bimuelos evolved into the sfenj, which, in recent years, have become a popular alternative to the regular jam doughnut we know and love in Europe. Knobbly, spongy doughnuts, dusted in sugar and shaped as a ring, they are often made by street vendors, who serve them tied in ribbon or layered up on a skewer and sold directly on the street. Once shrouded in secrecy by grandmas across the globe, the internet has made these wonderful diverse recipes available to all.
Happy Chanukah!
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