Feel empowered to tackle Israel’s beloved Hanukkah treat, a jelly-filled doughnut called sufganiyot, at home!

Most Americans, when they think of Hanukkah food, think of latkes — crispy potato pancakes fried in oil and topped with either applesauce or sour cream depending on your personal predilections. (I’m Team Sour Cream, all the way.)

Latkes are a special holiday treat that my family looks forward to all year. But they are not the end-all and be-all of Hanukkah foods. Not even close! In truth, any food fried in oil is traditional for this holiday. That’s because Hanukkah commemorates a miracle from the second century BCE when, after a Jewish victory over the Greek army, a day’s worth of oil used to light the eternal flame in the temple lasted for eight days.

In Israel, for example, the food most associated with the festival of Hanukkah are fried jelly doughnuts known as sufganiyot. Israelis go mad for sufganiyot during Hanukkah with hundreds of thousands of the pastries sold throughout the country and newspapers holding competitions to see which bakery makes the best ones.

In my area, one of the local doughnut shops offers sufganiyot during Hanukkah by special order and their version is pretty tasty. I definitely go the store-bought route some times. But sufganiyot are a fun project to tackle at home, especially if, like me, you have a stockpile of homemade jam left from the summer. (That’s why I included a recipe for these iconic Israeli treats in my book The Joys of Jewish Preserving.) But you can fill your sufganiyot with custard, lemon curd or even chocolate spreads like Nutella if that is more to your taste.

Sure, frying food at home is messy. And makes your house smell like oil. But sometimes in this life, you just have to go for it. Investing in a deep-fat fryer – like the ones they use on The Great British Baking Show – will help. But you can also use a deep saucepan or Dutch oven. I do recommend using a thermometer though, to check the temperature of the oil. Maintaining your oil at the right temperature is the secret to fried foods that do not taste heavy or oily. (That’s also a tip from The Great British Baking Show, which I am just a little bit obsessed with.)

Sufganiyot is made from a yeast-risen dough, so start the project several hours before you plan to fry your doughnuts. Begin by mixing the dough and kneading it until smooth. Allow the dough to rise for at least an hour in a warm place. Then roll out the dough on a well-floured board. Next, cut out circles of dough using a 3-inch round cookie or biscuit cutter. Allow the circles to proof for an additional thirty minutes prior to frying.

While the dough is proofing, preheat the oil in the fryer to between 360 and 365 degrees. Then fry the dough in batches, turning the doughnuts once halfway through cooking. They only take a minute or so in the fryer so pay attention! Remove the doughnuts with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. When the doughnuts are cool enough to handle, make a small hole in the side and pipe in the jam using a piping bag outfitted with a 1/4 inch tip. Dust with powdered sugar and enjoy.

Your family will devour the hot, crispy sufganiyot until their fingers are sticky with jam and their mouths coated in powdered sugar. Latkes? Who needs latkes?

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Homemade Sufganiyot

Ingredients

• 2 ¼ tsp yeast
• ½ cup milk, warmed
• 2 1/2 cups flour
• ¼ cups sugar
• Pinch salt
• ¼ tsp cinnamon
• 2 eggs at room temperature
• 2 TB butter, softened and cut into small pieces
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 12 oz jam (preferably a smooth variety, not chunky)
• 64 oz (1.8 L) neutral oil for frying such as vegetable or canola

Instructions

1. Mix yeast, warm milk and a pinch of sugar together in a small bowl and allow to rest until foamy, about ten minutes.
2. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, salt and spices. Add yeast mixture and start to mix with a wooden spoon.
3. Add eggs one at a time followed by the butter in small pieces.
4. Continue to mix until the dough comes together. Turn out onto well-floured board and knead by hand until dough is smooth and elastic, roughly five minutes.
5. Place bowl in oiled bowl and allow to rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about one hour.
6. Punch down dough and turn out onto a well-floured board. Roll out until 1/4 thick. (Dough may spring back. If so, allow it to rest for a few minutes and try again.)
7. Using a round cookie cutter 3 inches in diameter, cut out as many circles of dough as you can. Gather the scraps and roll out again. Cut out more circles until you have used all the dough.
8. Place circles on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Cover with a clean towel and allow to proof for 30 minutes.
9. Meanwhile, heat oil to between 360 and 365 degrees in deep fat fryer OR large deep Dutch oven.
10. Add doughnuts in batches of no more than four so as not to reduce the temperature of the oil.
11. Turn after 1 minute. Cook until both sides are golden brown, about 2 minutes total.
12. Drain on paper towels. Repeat with remaining doughnuts.
13. When doughnuts are cool enough to handle, poke a hole in one end with a skewer and move the skewer around inside the doughnut to create space.
14. Fill a piping bag fitted with a small tip with your favorite jam.
15. Pipe jam into hole in sufganiyot just until it starts to spill out. Repeat with remaining doughnuts.
16. Dust with powdered sugar and serve!

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