In previous Hanukkah blogs, we introduced the idea of edible dreidels and edible menorahs. Easy. Great for any age. And can serve as a great canvas to learn how to write the Hebrew letters that are on the dreidel. We also talked about using Hanukkah cookie cutters for pancakes. Although I still love the small Hanukkah cookie cutters from my youth, and that I used to make cookies with our girls as they grew up, I bought a set of larger ones – perfect for pancakes. And then . . . In scouting around in cookbooks, I saw the idea for Hanukkah Dreidel Sandwiches in … [Read more...]
Celebrate Olive Oil During Hanukkah
While most of us light candles to celebrate Hanukkah, we know that the miraculous oil that lasted for eight days came from olives. If you have kids and grands who enjoy discovering “how” things work, like our little ones, teach them more about growing olives. Allison Ofanasky’s book, “Harvest of Light,” takes you through the steps of how an Israeli family harvests olives to be processed into oil. The story is told from the daughter’s perspective of gathering and sorting the olives to pressing then and then, finally, using that special light to light their menorah. How to bring oil into our … [Read more...]
Hanukkah Kitchen Fun
I’ve pulled together a few of my favorite and super easy Hanukkah kitchen ideas to share with you. Enjoy! A super simple one is to get Hanukkah cookies cutters to use with breakfast pancakes. When the kids are six and up, they can help cut the shapes. Hanukkah starts Saturday, December 24th. Pretzel Rod Candles My daughter made these cute pretzel rod candles a few years back. Delish and easy to make. Here’s what she did: Dipped pretzels into melted chocolate (melted in Mason jars in a slow cooker in a water bath), Placed them on parchment paper. Drizzled them with melted … [Read more...]
Hanukkah DIY Gifts
A great gift to give your children is to encourage them to create presents for friends and family, instead of buying them. Think simple, loving, homemade. Hanukkah starts on Saturday, December 24th. Here are three ideas: Goodies in Glass Jars If you save jelly jars, you’re in luck. Or you can pick some jars up at a hobby store. Depending on their size and shape, fill them with: Mixed candies Hot cocoa mix Honey Individual spices (e.g., cinnamon sticks or bay leaves) Spice mix (with recipe ideas that go with that kind of spice mix) One year, a friend gave me ingredients to … [Read more...]
Hanukkah Themed Nights
In our family, we want to tone down any hint of mad gift-giving at Hanukkah. We failed a bit last year, so we’re rethinking for this year. Hanukkah starts Saturday, December 24th. Our daughter is now contemplating how to do themed nights, where the presents lead to family fun activities – focusing on togetherness vs. on getting loot. Since we are a games-loving group, this should be very doable. Calendar Night It is my tradition to create personalized calendars for our little boys. So we will plan a calendar night, where the calendars will be that night’s presents. To expand the calendar … [Read more...]