Hanukkah Apple Fritters
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It’s customary to eat foods cooked in oil for Hanukkah as a remembrance of the miracle of the Temple oil. However, the menu varies from country to country. Jews who come from Eastern Europe serve potato pancakes, called latkes. Israelis eat jelly-filled fried doughnuts called soofganiyot, and the Greek specialty is loukoumades.
Another Hanukkah favourite, apple fritters, makes a fine sweet ending to the holiday feast.
- 1¼ cups flour
- 1 to 2 tbsp. sugar
- ¼ tsp. salt
- ¼ tsp. baking powder
- 1¼ cups white wine or apple cider
- Vegetable oil, for deep-frying
- 4 apples, peeled and cut into thin wedges
- Confectioner’s sugar
Place the flour in a large bowl. Add one Tbsp. sugar if using apple cider; add 2 Tbsp. of sugar if using white wine. Stir in the salt and baking powder. Add the wine and whisk to mix. Set aside for I hour.
Pour I inch of oil in a large, heavy-bottomed skillet and heat to 375ºF. Dip a few apple slices at a time in the batter. Ease into the oil. Fry until golden on one side, about 2 minutes, turn and brown the second side, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon. Drain on a platter lined with paper towels. Dust generously with Confectioner’s sugar. Serves 8.

Christmas is the feast commemorating the birth of Christ. It is fixed in the liturgical year as December 25th and is preceded by four week of fasting called Advent.