hanukkah desserts

Baked or fried sufganiyot (soufganiyot) are the perfect Hanukkah dessert. And like the oil that lasted for 8 days, this dough is a miracle because it will work in the fryer or oven!

Sufganiyot - Baked or Fried Jam-filled Donuts for Hanukkah

(281 grams) all-purpose flour,

sugar

7 grams/1 packet active dry or instant yeast

salt

(161 grams) warm milk (105°F to 115°F)

(27 grams) vegetable oil

vanilla extract

lemon zest

unsalted butter, melted (if baking)

Vegetable oil (if frying)

(240 grams) seedless jam

Mix: In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, sugar, yeast, and salt. Add the milk, oil, egg, vanilla, and zest if using, and mix with a wooden spoon until a rough, wet dough forms.

Knead

Knead: Place the dough on a well-floured surface, dust the top of the dough with flour, and knead for about 2 minutes. If it remains sticky while kneading, add more flour 1 tablespoon at a time. It should be tacky but not too sticky to knead.

Rise

Rise: Oil the bowl you just used and place the dough back inside. Cover with a towel and let it rise until doubled in size, about 1 hour.

Roll

Roll dough: Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. On a floured surface, roll out the dough to 1/2 inch thick.

Cut donuts: Using a 2 1/2-inch round cookie cutter or the rim of a glass, cut out as many rounds as you can and place them on the baking sheet. Re-roll the remaining scraps and repeat. You should have 14 to 16 rounds total.

Second Rise

Second rise: Cover the baking sheet and let the donuts rise until they puff up slightly, about 30 minutes, depending on the temperature of the kitchen.

Dough:

Prep for Baking

Prep for baking: While the donuts rise, preheat the oven to 375°F.

Bake

Bake: After the donuts have risen, bake them for 10 minutes, until golden.

Prep for Coating

While the donuts bake, melt the butter. When the donuts come out of the oven, brush each of the donuts with the melted butter. Proceed to COAT step.

If Baking:

Prep for Frying

Prep for frying: Add vegetable oil to a medium pot, at least 2 inches deep. Heat the oil to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with paper towels to drain excess oil.

Deep-fry

Deep-fry: Place a few donuts at a time in the hot oil, avoiding overcrowding. Fry for a minute on one side; then flip and fry on the second side for another minute, until golden brown. This is a fast process, so watch carefully. Once fried, transfer the donuts to the prepared baking sheet. Proceed to COAT step.

If frying:

Coat

Coat donuts: Place the sugar in a gallon-sized resealable plastic bag. Working one at a time, place each donut in the bag of sugar, seal shut,and shake it around to coat the donut. Return the donut to the baking sheet. Repeat with all donuts.

Coat:

Fill

Fill donuts: Fit a piping bag (or a plastic bag) with a decorating tip with a 1/4-inch-wide opening or use a plastic squeeze bottle. Fill the bag or bottle with the jam of your choice. Using a paring knife, cut a 1-inch horizontal slit in the side of each donut, slicing through to the center. Place the decorating tip in the hole and squeeze until the jam starts to ooze out of the donut (some spillage is okay). Repeat with the remaining donuts. The donuts taste best if served immediately, but they will maintain their freshness for several hours.

Fill:

These Hamantaschen Cookies are made with a shortbread dough stuffed with sweet jam. While these popular Jewish cookies are traditionally enjoyed for Purim, they&#039;re great for Hanukkah too.

Hamantaschen Cookies

unsalted butter (, room temperature)

egg (, room temperature)

vanilla

orange

flour (, spooned and leveled)

raspberry jam

apricot jam

Cut the room temperature butter into cubes and place in a large mixing bowl. Add in the powdered sugar and cream together with an electric mixer until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add in the egg, vanilla, and orange zest; beat until thoroughly combined.

Sift the flour and salt into the bowl.

Blend until the dough forms large clumps. (To test, take a little bit of the dough and press it together with your fingers; if it holds together, it’s good to go. If it feels crumbly, add water, 1-2 teaspoons at a time only if necessary. Be careful - too much water will require more flour, which will make the pastry tough.)

Using your hands, begin to knead dough until it comes together into a smooth soft ball. (Try not to overwork the dough. It should be slightly tacky, but not at all sticky, with a good texture for rolling.)

Flatten the ball of dough into a disk and wrap in plastic wrap. Place in the refrigerator for 1 hour or overnight.

Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and have your jam ready to go.

Unwrap the dough and place on a clean work surface that&#039;s lightly dusted with flour.

Using a heavy rolling pin dusted with flour, roll the dough between 1/8 to 1/4-inch thick. The chilled dough will be firm and initially a bit tough to roll out. Let it sit for a couple minutes to soften. (Don&#039;t worry too much if the dough breaks along the edges as you&#039;re rolling, since you will be re-rolling the scraps.) Lightly re-flour the rolling pin occasionally to prevent sticking, if necessary.

Using a 3-inch cookie cutter or glass with a 3-inch rim, cut as many circles out of the dough as you can.

Collect the scraps of dough, re-roll, and cut more circles. Repeat this process until you can&#039;t make any more circles from the dough. You should end up with about 30 circles (the thickness of your dough will determine how many you get.)

Using a thin spatula, gently slide under each circle to release it from the work surface and transfer to the prepared baking sheets, 1- inch apart.

Put 1 rounded teaspoon of jam in the center of each circle, then fold up the edges to form a triangle, pinching the 3 corners together gently but very well to secure the shape and prevent filling from leaking while baking. (Use the warmth of your fingers to smooth out where the dough has been joined or if there are any cracks.)

Transfer baking sheets to the refrigerator to chill while you preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Place in the oven and bake for about 15 minutes or until the cookies are just starting to brown around the edges. (Because the thickness of the dough can vary and can cook quite fast if rolled thin, start checking them at 12 minutes and watch them carefully, especially if your oven runs hot.)

Remove from oven and let cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely. They&#039;ll firm up as they cool.

https://mediavine-res.cloudinary.com/video/upload/t_original/v1670881285/glbgovelapoymszjitkh.mp4

These Hamantaschen Cookies are made with a shortbread dough stuffed with sweet jam. While these popular Jewish cookies are traditionally enjoyed for Purim, they're great for Hanukkah too.

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The most viewed hanukkah desserts recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine