Celebrate Thanksgivukkah with this Mash-up Menu!
“Thanksgivukkah,” a term coined in Massachusetts (obviously), describes the convergence of Thanksgiving and first day of Hanukkah, an event that hasn’t happened since 1888 and won’t happen for another ~77,798 years. Basically this rarity occurs because of the weird entanglement between the lunisolar Hebrew calendar (which reflects on both the moon phase and time of the solar year) and the Gregorian calendar. Since each calendar isn’t calculated the same way, Hanukkah kind of jumps around the Gregorian calendar every year.
Pretty cool, right? What’s cooler, is that both Hanukkah and Thanksgiving both celebrate religious freedom. The Pilgrims rebelled for liberty in the New World and the Jews fought the Greeks who had banned the practice of Judaism. Both parties won, so hoorah for all (Well not all, and I’m not getting into the whole Pilgrims-destroying-the-civilization-who-was-living-in-the-States-first aspect because I’m sure that will be another article in and of itself, so let’s just celebrate these two glorious, food-filled holidays in the name of family, and well, food)!
Since both holidays basically revolve around food anyway, it would be super fun to take Thanksgivukkah to a whole new level and create a mash-up menu that includes all things Hanukkah and Thanksgiving. So I found recipes that take the best parts of each holiday tradition and mix them together, creating Thanksgivukkah fusion food!
Pumpkin spice latkes
These latkes are entirely made of pumpkin (and onion). This recipe also teaches you how to make a spiced cranberry sauce (using cranberries, sour cream, nutmeg, cinnamon, brown sugar, and cloves), which is a creamier, more complex condiment. Plus, these latkes are pretty low-carb. Just sayin’.
Sweet Potato Bourbon Noode Kugel
If you’ve ever been to a Jewish deli, you might have seen kugel on the menu. Or if you’re like me and have a ton of Jewish relatives who insist on bringing kugel to every family event, you might have just grown up with it around. This recipe steps it up a notch and uses sweet potato, bourbon, brown sugar, corn flakes, pecans, and tons of butter. What’s not to love?
Challah stuffing
Challah is one of those delectable loaves of bread that are somehow ten times more addicting than normal bread. It’s soft, slightly sweet, and has a glazed crust that just melts in your mouth. So when I saw this recipe for challah stuffing, I was all in. Essentially, you just trade corn bread or regular bread for challah bread, add mushrooms (and anything you want, really). Also, if you’re a fan of challah bread, I would totally recommend challah French toast in the morning if you have any leftover bread that is.
Pastrami-wrapped fried turkey with horseradish pickled onion
This recipe definitely calls for a little bit more than throwing a turkey in the oven, but the end result is ridiculously good and totally worth it. Essentially, this recipe combines all good things about Thanksgiving and deli food: turkey, pastrami, and pickled onion. Oh yeah, and it’s FRIED, so be prepared to be a little bit naughty.
Pumpkin Ginger Rugelach
If you’re rushing, but don’t feel like buying a store-bought dessert, this recipe is pretty simple and extremely delicious. No, it’s not your traditional rugelach, but it’s pretty close. If you’ve never had rugelach before, they’re kind of like mini-strudels.
Post-football bagel chips and pumpkin cream cheese dip
You can buy pre-made bagel chips at the grocery store, or you can make your own. Just slice bagels super thin and bake them for about 10 minutes (at 350, and be sure to spray the pan first). Then, for your cream cheese, you can either buy some (Trader Joe’s has amazing pumpkin cream cheese) or you can DIY. Just combine cream cheese, pumpkin from a can, cinnamon, nutmeg, and brown sugar.
Do you guys have any Thanksgivukkah recipes you’re going to try out this year?
