Fried Oreos

Welcome to my blog! I'm so happy to have you here. Yes, I have an amazing recipe for you, which you can find here.

But first, I'd like to tell you about how it came to be my specialty dish for Hanukkah.

My husband and I went to a county fair. We've gone to several over the years, some with our kids and some without. And on one of those trips, we came across a vendor selling fried Oreos. They were amazing--decadent, delicious, and filling. We both loved them, which is kind of an amazing thing to happen since our food tastes differ drastically.

After the fair, I mentioned how I thought I could make them myself. As you'll see from the recipe, they're not hard. So I did. And, after seeing how much oil they require, I decided that they'd be the perfect addition to our Hanukkah celebrations.

You see, during Hanukkah, we eat sweet fried foods, like donuts, to commemorate the desecration of the temple and the miracle that the oil to light the lamps in the temple lasted for eight days, even though it seemed as if there wasn't enough oil to last for more than one. 

Well, a fried Oreo is similar to a donut, so it makes perfect sense that we'd eat it then. And our friends and family love it! In fact, I'm now asked to make it even during other times of the year (although I usually decline--there's only so much oil one can consume).

I hope you enjoy the recipe, which you can find here. And, if you like to read about food and other traditions, I hope you'll take a look at my contemporary romances. Many of them feature Jewish characters, they all feature witty banter, delicious food, and well-deserved happily ever afters. 

Happy Chanukah!

Tomorrow night is the start of Chanukah and this year is going to be a very different type of celebration.

To start with, the Princess will still be in school for most of it, so we won’t get to celebrate with her until the last two nights of the holiday. I picked out and wrapped her presents, as well as included an electric menorah for her to light in her room. I mailed her the ones she can open at school. And we hope she’ll be able to call or FaceTime us while she does it, even though she’s in the middle of finals. But it won’t be the same.

Chanukah’s not a big holiday, and even though it falls around Christmas usually, it’s NOT a Jewish version of Christmas. But it is a holiday and I like to gather my family around during that time. Short of a very select few things that absolutely can’t be skipped, everyone is expected to be at home, together, while we light the candles. That often means they leave afterwards, but for that half hour each evening, we are together.

It also means most of the traditions will fall on Banana Girl—putting up the window clings, lighting the electric window menorah (which I have never liked), and making gelt. The presents have been sitting out, wrapped, since I started purchasing them—I was very organized this year, which even surprised me—and there’s only been some of the interest level in them, probably because we’re missing a child. Although Banana Girl did show concern when she counted and didn’t see enough presents for the entire holiday (that’s because some of the orders haven’t come in yet, despite my best intentions).

We’ll be FaceTiming the grandparents in for the first time, and I’ll be introducing a whole additional group to the joys of fried Oreos. This year, the family Chanukah party is at my house. I still haven’t quite perfected the food pairings that go with fried Oreos, but I suspect no one will care. And I think even my husband got a little carried away with the amount of Oreos needed this season.

So, like everything else in this year of change, things will be different. And while I hate change, I have to admit that it’s been fun trying to figure out new traditions and balancing the old ones.

To all those who celebrate, wishing you a very Happy Chanukah!