Comin' on Chanukah

You see the word spelled "Chanukah" and "Hanukkah" - it means the same however you spell it.  (Rob prefers to use "Chanukah" as the spelling.)  Chanukah, the eight-day festival, is also known as the Festival of Lights.  Since Judaism follows a lunar calendar, Chanukah is never a fixed set of dates such as Christmas is always December 25.  This year, Chanukah begins at sundown on December 18 and ends at sundown on  December 26.

Chanukah is a holiday that celebrates the liberation from oppression and has become one of the most beloved of Jewish holidays. In the second century BCE, the Holy Land was ruled by the Seleucids (Syrian-Greeks), who tried to force the people of Israel to accept Greek culture and beliefs instead of observance and belief in God. Against all odds, a small band of faithful but poorly armed Jews, led by Judah the Maccabee, defeated one of the mightiest armies on earth, drove the Greeks from the land, reclaimed the Holy Temple in Jerusalem and rededicated it to the service of God. When they sought to light the Temple's menorah, they found only a single cruse of olive oil that had escaped contamination by the Greeks. Miraculously, they lit the menorah and the one-day supply of oil lasted for eight days.

How Chanukah Is Observed

“We light candles in testament that faith makes miracles possible.” — Nachum Braverman

At the heart of the festival is the nightly menorah lighting. The menorah holds nine flames, one of which is the shamash (“attendant”), which is used to kindle the other eight lights. On the first night, we light just one flame. On the second night, an additional flame is lit. By the eighth night of Chanukah, all eight lights are kindled. Special blessings are recited, often to a traditional melody, before the menorah is lit, and traditional songs are sung afterward.

A menorah is lit in Jewish households and also lit in synagogues and other public places. In recent years, thousands of jumbo menorahs have cropped up in front of city halls and legislative buildings, and in malls and parks all over the world.

“A candle is a small thing. But one candle can light another. And see how its own light increases, as a candle gives its flame to the other. You are such a light.” — Moshe Davis

 

On Chanukah, it is customary to play with a “dreidel” (a four-sided spinning top bearing the Hebrew letters, nun, gimmel, hei and shin, an acronym for nes gadol hayah sham, “a great miracle happened there”). The game is usually played for coins, Chanukah chocolate gelt, nuts, or treats, which is won or lost based on which letter the dreidel lands when it is spun.

The tradition is to give Chanukah gelt, gifts of money, to children. The cash gifts give the children the opportunity to give tzedakah (charity). Small gifts may be given on Chanukah, as well.  From can openers (as requested by one child) to a book or Yahtzee game, the gifts are typically small in nature.  Midge Maisel, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, got socks for Chanukah and she wasn't exactly excited, based on her expression in the photo at the top of the blog post.

To get into the spirit of Chanukah, Rob chose to bake a Chanukah cake. The recipe is from Chelsweets. https://chelsweets.com/hanukkah-cake/

Ingredients

Blue Vanilla Cake Recipe

• 3 cups all-purpose flour (390 grams)
• 3 cups granulated sugar (600 grams)
• 2 1/2 tsp baking powder (10 grams)
• 1 tsp salt (5 grams)
• 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature (226 grams) - 2 sticks
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract (9 grams)
• 1 cup egg whites (or about 7 egg whites) (244 grams)
• 1 1/2 cups buttermilk, room temperature (360 grams)
• 1/8 cup vegetable oil (28 grams)
• Blue gel food coloring

Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

• 2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature (434 grams)
• 7 cups powdered sugar (907 grams) - one 2 lb bag
• 1/2 tsp salt (3 grams)
• 2 Tbsp heavy cream (or whipping cream) (30 grams)
• 1 Tbsp vanilla extract (12 grams)
• Blue gel food coloring

Blue Drip Recipe

• 1/3 cup heavy cream (77 grams)
• 1 cup white chocolate chips (175 grams)
• Blue gel food coloring

Additional Decorations

• Blue and white sprinkle blend
• Blue and white sixlets
• 15 pieces of chocolate gelt
• tooth picks
• 3 1/2 inch circle cutter

Instructions

Blue Cake Layers:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line three eight-inch pans or four seven-inch pans with parchment rounds, and grease with non-stick cooking spray.
2. Mix together all dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt) in a stand mixer with a paddle until fully combined.
3. Mix chunks of room-temperature butter slowly into the dry mix, on a low speed. Continue to mix until no large chunks of butter remain, and the mixture becomes crumbly.
4. Pour in egg whites, and mix on low until just incorporated. Mix in the buttermilk in two installments, on a low speed. Add in vanilla and oil, and mix at a low speed until fully incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula, then beat on medium speed for about 30 seconds. 
5. Add in a generous squirt of blue gel food coloring. Mix the batter on a low speed, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl part way through to evenly color the batter.
6. Divide batter evenly between the prepared cake pans. I like to use a digital kitchen scale to weigh my pans, and ensure they all have the same amount of batter. This guarantees your layers will bake to be the same height.
7. Bake for 34-36 minutes (or until a skewer comes out clean). Allow to cool for 10 minutes, then run an offset spatula around perimeter of the pan to separate the cake from the pan.
8. Place cake layers into the freezer for 45 minutes, to accelerate the cooling process.
9. Once the cake layers are cooled. level the tops with a serrated knife.
10. Use a large circle cutter to remove the center from two of the cake layers, to allow you to fill the cake with sprinkles.

Vanilla Buttercream Frosting:

1. Beat the butter on a medium speed for 30 seconds with a paddle attachment, until smooth. Slowly add in the powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time. Alternate with small splashes of cream.
2. Once fully mixed, add in the vanilla and salt, and beat on low until the ingredients are fully incorporated, and the desired consistency is reached. 
3. If the frosting is too thick, add in additional cream (1 Tbsp at a time). If the frosting is too thin, add in more powdered sugar (quarter of a cup at a time).
4. Wait to color the buttercream blue with gel food coloring until you've filled and crumb coated the cake. The white buttercream will have a great contrast against the blue cake layers.
   

Blue White Chocolate Ganache Drips:

1. Heat heavy cream in a heatproof bowl in the microwave for 45 seconds, until it's just beginning to bubble. Gently pour white chocolate chips into the heavy cream, making sure they are fully covered with cream. Allow mixture to sit for 1 minute.
2. Stir slowly until the cream and white chocolate are combined. Some bits of chocolate may not be fully melted yet. Heat the mixture again for 20 seconds, and stir. Repeat as necessary until all the chocolate bits are fully melted and incorporated.
3. Add in the blue gel food coloring, if desired. Allow to cool until desired viscosity is reached (barely warm to the touch).
4. If it seems too thin or thick, you can add a touch more chocolate chips or heavy cream! The type of cream and white chocolate that you use can affect the consistency, so feel free to adjust as needed.

To Assemble The Cake:

1. Start with an uncut cake layer. Stack and frost the cake layers on a greaseproof cake board, using a dab of frosting to help stick the first cake layer to the board.
2. Add an even layer of buttercream between each cake layer.
3. Add the two cut cake layers next.
4. Frost the inside cavity of the cake with a thin layer of buttercream. Fill with blue and white sprinkles and sixlets, and a few pieces of gelt (if desired).
5. Top with the final uncut cake layer.
6. Spread a thin coat of frosting around the the cake, to fully cover the cake layers. Smooth using a bench scraper, then chill the cake in the fridge (10 minutes) or freezer (5 minutes) until the frosting is firm to the touch.
7. Color the remaining frosting different shades of blue, leaving one cup uncolored. Place each color into a piping bag and cut openings varying in size from 1/2 cm to 1 cm.
8. Pipe stripes of different colored frosting around the cake, and smooth using a bench scraper.
9. Add the blue drips to the cake using a spoon.
10. Pipe swirls on top of the cake with a french tip, and place pieces of gelt on top.

 

Below are the photos of Rob's bake. If any of you do celebrate Chanukah, chag Chanukah sameach, Happy Chanukah. 

 

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