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Though Chanukah is traditionally celebrated with a lot of oily dishes, your cholesterol levels will be just as miraculous as the way the oil kept burning for eight days if you indulge that much! Are you a real Maccabee? Rebel against unhealthy holiday foods and choose these less dangerous options that will still make your entire family and all your guests very happy instead.
Making Latkes Less Oily
If you're Ashenazi, latkes are a must for Chanukah. Latkes just have to be fried, and there is no avoiding a bit of oil. You could experiment with different additions to make your latkes more nutritious, though. We've tried adding lots of garlic and grated carrots, for example. Some people add baking powder, and apparently that makes the latkes “lighter” and it makes them rise a bit.
Latkes aren't nice if you worry too much about them burning, and you keep turning them from one side to the other. You need to let them fry until you can see that the side you are frying is done, from the top. Turn them over just the once for the best results.
Now, how do you get the oil out? The only way I've found is to let them drip out in a metal colander, or to let them rest on some paper kitchen towels — not very environmentally friendly, I know! We usually use washable towels, but getting oil stains out is almost impossible.
Repeat the same two steps if you'd like to serve falafel, which is just as tasty as latkes and makes for a lovely change.
Some people actually fry their latkes a little bit, and then continue the process in the oven. I have heard that this results in a less fatty latke, but I have never tried it myself. If you want to give this a go, make sure your latkes are golden brown before you remove them from the oven.
Latkes aren't complete without sour cream or apple sauce (and that's something you can easily make yourself, with all the addons you might enjoy), but you may also like to serve a healthy, oil-free dinner salad with the latkes. If you offer your guests lots of salad before you bring the latkes in, they will go home with a less oily experience, ultimately making sure that you contribute to a healthier Chanukah experience this year.
Dried Apricot And Fig Chanukah Gelt
If you're playing dreidel, you may like to make your own chocolate covered “Chanukah gelt” by dipping dried figs and apricots into melted chocolate. This only takes a minute, and is bound to impress everyone — from health nuts to small kids! Choose cooking chocolate to make sure that the chocolate dries completely, or you'll get sticky stuff all over your home.