Baked Doughnuts
If you want to enjoy the taste of traditional doughnuts without standing over a pan of hot oil to 
cook them, this is a great recipe for you.
2 packages dry yeast (about 35 grams of fresh, or 2 scant Tablespoons
1/4 cup warm water
1-1/2 cups milk, scalded and cooled
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)
2 eggs
1/3 cup shortening
4-1/2 cups flour
In a large mixer bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add milk, sugar, salt, spice, eggs, shortening and 2 cups flour. Blend 1/2 minute at medium speed, scraping bowl occasionally. Stir in remaining flour until smooth, scraping sides of bowl. Cover. Let rise in warm place until double (50 to 60 minutes).
Turn dough onto well-floured cloth-covered board; roll around lightly to coat with flour. Dough will be soft to handle.
With floured, stockinet-covered rolling pin, gently roll dough about ½ inch thick. Cut with floured 2-1/2 inch doughnut cutter. Lift doughnuts carefully with spatula and place 2 inches apart on greased cookie sheet. Brush doughnuts with melted butter. Cover; let rise until double (about 20 minutes).
Heat oven to 420° F. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until golden. Immediately brush with melted margarine or butter and shake in Cinnamon Sugar or spread with Creamy Glaze (recipes below). Makes 1-1/2 to 2 dozen doughnuts.
Toppings (best if made while doughnuts are baking):
Cinnamon Sugar
1/2 cup sugar and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Creamy Glaze
Melt 1/3 cup butter. Blend in 2 cups powdered sugar and 1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla. Stir in 4 to 6 Tablespoons water, one at a time, until melted glaze is of proper consistency.
Note: It's true; the dough does not have to be kneaded. This gives an extremely light and loose dough. I did not use a cloth or stockinet; a floured surface and floured rolling pin were sufficient. With the dough so light, a feather touch rolls it out. Nonetheless, the doughnuts rolled out from the "scraps" of dough did come out thicker and nicer. I did not brush them with butter either before or after baking, with no apparent harm (since I was using glaze instead of cinnamon sugar). As far as the glaze is concerned, I went for a thinner version and simply dunked each doughnut in it.
Final verdict: They may look a bit like bagels, but they taste as doughnuts should.
No-Fry Latkes
2 shredded russet potatoes (about 3 peeled medium potatoes)
1 cup finely chopped onion
1 cup toasted wheat germ
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
Oil spray
Preheat oven to 425° F. In a large mixing bowl, blend ingredients well using wooden spoon or hands. Coat two baking sheets with oil. Drop 1/4 cupfuls of batter onto prepared sheets and press down. Bake for 15 minutes, turn, then bake 10 minutes longer, or until browned. Serve with applesauce or sour cream.
Traditional Latkes
5 large potatoes, peeled
1 large onion
3 eggs
1/3 cup flour
1 tsp. Salt
¼ tsp. pepper
¾ cup oil for frying
Use: 10-inch skillet
Yields: 4 to 6 servings
Grate potatoes and onion on the fine side of a grater, or in a food processor; or put in a blender with a little water.
Strain grated potatoes and onion through a colander, pressing out excess water. Add eggs, flour, and seasoning. Mix well.
Heat ½ cup oil in skillet. Lower flame and place 1 large tablespoon batter at a time into hot sizzling oil and fry on one side for approximately 5 minutes until golden brown. Turn over and fry on other side 2 to 3 minutes.
Remove from pan and place on paper towels to drain excess oil. Continue with remaining batter until used up, adding more oil when necessary.
Serve with applesauce on the side.
Variation: Zucchini or Carrot Latkes: Substitute 5 medium zucchini or 5 medium carrots for potatoes.
Sweet Potato Latkes with Cinnamon
For those sweet-toothed people out there, these sweet potato latkes are perfect. Even better, they are easy to make using canned sweet potato puree. (Pumpkin puree can also be substituted.) The taste of these latkes is a welcome twist on the traditional, and they will also add a little color to your plate.
15 oz can of pumpkin /sweet potato puree
2 eggs
1 tsp. baking powder
¼ cup sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon (or to taste)
¼ tsp. nutmeg
¼ tsp. cloves
¼ tsp ginger
¼ tsp allspice
Directions:
Mix pureed sweet potato or pumpkin with flour, spices (I made these very spicy, but you can lessen the spice for a more mild flavor), and sugar. Drop spoonfuls (carefully--oil can really burn) into pre-heated oil. Fry each side for about three minutes, or until light brown. Lightly lift out of the hot oil with a slotted spatula and place on a pan or tray lined with paper towels. The latkes can then be eaten right away or kept in a 300 degree oven to stay warm.
Chocolate Marshmallow Dreidels
Ingredients:
12 chocolate kisses
8 ounces melted semisweet chocolate
12 marshmallows
12 thin pretzel sticks
2 ounces melted white chocolate
Directions:
1. Dip bottom of chocolate kiss in melted semisweet chocolate. Press onto marshmallow; transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Repeat to make 12 dreidels. Refrigerate for 10 minutes.
2. Cut a small slit in bottom of each marshmallow; insert 1 thin pretzel stick. Dip dreidels in chocolate, and return to baking sheet. Refrigerate until set, about 15 minutes.
3. Fill a resealable plastic bag with melted white chocolate; cut a tiny opening in a corner, and pipe Hebrew letters onto 4 sides of each dreidel. Refrigerate at least 5 minutes or up to 8 hours before serving.
Adapted from MarthaStewart.com
Dreidel Surprise Cookies
Ingredients:
4 1/4 cups all purpose flour, plus more to dust work surface
3/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup butter or margarine
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
3/4 teaspoon almond extract
1 cup vanilla frosting
Blue food coloring
Small candies, raisins, or nuts
Directions:
1. Mix flour, salt, and baking powder together in a bowl. Set aside.
2. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, vanilla and almond extract. Mix until well combined.
3. Add dry ingredients and stir just to combine.
4. Use a small square cookie cutter or a knife to cut the centers out of 1/3 of your cookies leaving at least 1/4 inch all around the dreidel.
5. Refrigerate cookies for 30 minutes.
6. Bake cookies one tray at a time at 375 for 12-16 minutes until the edges just begin to brown.
7. Allow cookies to cool completely.
8. Color vanilla frosting with blue food coloring. Fill a disposable pastry bag or a zip top bag with frosting. Snip off the end of your bag.
9. Decorate one third of the dreidel cookies using the frosting. Pipe two lines of frosting across the dreidel as pictured, then add one of the four Hebrew letters. Allow frosting to dry for about 15 minutes.
10. Set the cookies with the square cut outs upside down on your baking sheet. Pipe a thin line of frosting down the middle of the cookies all around the square opening. Press cookies, frosting side down onto a plain dreidel cookies.
11. Fill the square opening with small candies, raisins, or nuts. Pipe a thin line of frosting down the middle of the cookie all around the square opening. Top it with a decorated dreidel cookie.
12. Allow cookies to sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes before serving, so the frosting has time to harden and the cookie layers will stay together. You can store the dreidel cookies in an airtight container for up to five days.
Adapted from hungryhappenings.com
Menorah Snack
Ingredients:
Banana
Skinny pretzel sticks
Peanut butter, cream cheese, or marshmallow fluff (to serve as "glue")
Chocolate chips
Directions:
1. Slice the banana into 8 equal slices and 1 double (at least) in size
2. Arrange the slices in a straight row with the tallest banana slice in the middle
3. Dip one end of each of the 8 pretzel sticks into your "glue"
4. Stick the end of the pretzel stick that does NOT have the "glue" on it into the center of the banana slice
5. Stick a chocolate chip on the "glue" on top of the pretzel stick to represent the candle flames
Adapted from pre-kpages.com
