I Just Found Out I'M The One Making All The Food For Hanukkah This Year—Here Are My Last-Minute Go-Tos
+The not-so-last-minute ringer recipe I'll make if all else fails.
I love Christmas, but my wife is Jewish and grew up celebrating Hanukkah, so now we observe both every year, picking and choosing the traditions that now fit us best. This year, because they fall on the same day, we’re celebrating both in one multi-denominational Christmukkah celebration. Because it’s also our year to spend Christmas with my family, my parents, sister, and grandma are also along for the ride. Because my wife can’t cook (sorry my love, but it’s true), that means if we’re having any traditional Hanukkah foods, I’M the one who has to make it all. I still haven’t quite pinned down my menu, but here are my picks for a last-minute, thrown-together Hanukkah meal that everyone in my family will enjoy, without killing me in the kitchen.
One of the core tenets of Hanukkah traditions is foods fried in oil (as a reminder of the one day’s worth of oil that lasted for eight days in the original Hanukkah miracle)…but that feels like a recipe for disaster around my family, so there’s a potential for me to ditch it all together. Instead of classic latkes, I’ll make our giant skillet latke or our latke cookies. Instead of sufganiyot, I’ll make our pull-apart jelly donut. My mom might not know about the miracle of the menorah oil, but she does love a nice olive oil, so I might make our citrus olive oil cake with it as a nod to both.
Speaking of things my mom loves, I plan to take advantage of some of her favorite appliances for this meal too. I’ve got our instant pot applesauce, our slow cooker quinoa chili, our air fryer Moroccan-spiced carrots, or our slow-cooker vegan butternut squash soup all bookmarked as definite maybes.
Oh yes, I forgot to mention another snag in the planning: I’m vegan, and almost never cook meat at home. My family is, uh, not vegan, so if I’m going to really impress them, it’s gotta either be meat or be really good. To make sure they’re blown away, I’m armed with a mix of foolproof omnivore recipes like our roast chicken or our everything bagel crusted salmon, as well as some extra-tasty vegetarian/vegan recipes, like our vegetarian matzo ball soup, our one-pot creamy vegan greens, or our sesame tofu & broccoli (this was multiple team members favorite recipe of 2024, and we published over 500!).
If all else fails, I’ve got one recipe I KNOW will kill: our big mac latkes. I can’t eat them (cheese, egg), but I watched the way the entire Delish team lost their minds over them, so I know they’re worth busting out the fryer oil for.
Giant Skillet Latke
While frying up an endless supply of latkes is part of the holiday fun, this recipe turns the classic into an impressive dish that is great for a last-minute celebration. It’s all the flavor and crispiness of a traditional latke with less oil, in half the time!
Get the Giant Skillet Latke recipe.
Sesame Tofu & Broccoli
In this vegetarian version of a Chinese-American favorite, oven-baked tofu gets tossed in a savory, sweet, and slightly spicy sauce along with crisp-tender broccoli, then topped with toasty sesame seeds and scallions. This was one of the Delish team's top recipes of 2024, so I know my family will love it too.
Get the Sesame Tofu & Broccoli recipe.
Pull-Apart Jelly Donut
Although baked instead of fried, this pull-apart ring is reminiscent of sufganiyot, made easier for those of us who don't have a good fryer set up at home. Try it with whatever kind of jam you like!
Get the Pull-Apart Jelly Donut recipe.
Roast Chicken
The perfect centerpiece to any holiday dinner, the steps to make this chicken are simple: You season the bird (just salt & pepper!), then roast it at high heat until the skin is bronzed and crisp and the flesh juicy. Even I can manage that!
Get the Roast Chicken recipe.
Big Mac Latkes
A crispy, fresh latke is one of life’s greatest joys, but when you make it Big-Mac-style, you’re in a whole new universe of delicious. Packed with dill pickles and sesame seeds, stuffed with melty American cheese (optional), and drizzled with Big Mac sauce, this fresh spin on the classic Hanukkah treat will truly have you lovin’ it.
Get the Big Mac Latkes recipe.
Everything Bagel Crusted Salmon
Bring the brunch vibes to dinnertime with everything bagel seasoning crusted salmon and a refreshing salad that’s reminiscent of the toppings on everyone's favorite loaded bagel & lox. If you’ve never turned cream cheese into a salad dressing, you're in for a treat.
Vegetarian Matzo Ball Soup
Cozy and nourishing, we crave matzo ball soup pretty much year-round. Although schmaltz (AKA chicken fat) and chicken broth are typically included in this classic Ashkenazi Jewish soup, it’s not hard to swap in vegetarian-friendly ingredients.
Get the Vegetarian Matzo Ball Soup recipe.
One-Pot Creamy Vegan Greens
Creamed spinach without the dairy? Yes, please. Did you know that by substituting a few key ingredients, you can make these easy, creamy greens without sacrificing any of the rich flavors you’d usually get from dairy? Not only is it a bit more nutritious, but it’s also just as delicious.
Get the One-Pot Creamy Vegan Greens recipe.
Maple-Mustard Glazed Chicken
A roasted chicken is a classic Hanukkah main, but I'm not sure I'll have the solid 2 hours it takes to roast one. These glazed then baked chicken leg quarters are the perfect compromise. Also featuring potatoes and carrots, they're guaranteed to be an crowd-pleasing Hanukkah dinner.
Get the Maple-Mustard Glazed Chicken recipe.
Gelt Thumbprints
Dreidel is one of my favorite games to play with my family—for such a simple game, it easily inspires some fierce competition over who will end up with the largest pile of gelt. The thing is, those coins are usually made up of not-so-great chocolate. What then to do with your sweet spoils? Make these chocolate-orange thumbprint cookies!
Get the Gelt Thumbprints recipe.
Slow-Cooker Vegan Butternut Squash Soup
This vegan butternut squash soup is made in a slow cooker, so after you chop up all your vegetables, it’s essentially hands-off. A quick blitz with an immersion blender at the end, and you’ve got a silky, drinkable butternut squash soup.
Smoked Salmon Crostini
Smoked salmon has been endlessly married with cream cheese, and we're not tired of it. In fact, we encourage it full-on. Whether it’s smoked salmon dip or in a pasta, there is no denying the perfection of this combo. So, for a quick hors d'oeuvre, like this salmon crostini, we couldn’t shy away from it.
Get the Smoked Salmon Crostini recipe.
Winter Rainbow Panzanella Salad
This winter rainbow panzanella salad is packed with in-season veggies like delicata squash and beets and crisp and crunchy sourdough croutons, and is coated in a tangy grapefruit vinaigrette, making it the perfect way to brighten a gray winter day.
Slow-Cooker Quinoa Chili
Unlike traditional Texas chili, this one contains lots of beans, making it a high-protein vegan dish (or the kind you can put cheese/sour cream on without breaking kosher!). This is one delicious and satisfying chili that even meat-lovers will want seconds of.
Get the Slow-Cooker Quinoa Chili recipe.
Sweet Noodle Kugel
Kugel is basically the Yiddish/Jewish word for casserole. While there are many savory versions (such as this giant-latke-esque potato kugel), I've got a soft spot in our hearts for this eggy, cinnamon-y sweet version too.
Get the Sweet Noodle Kugel recipe
Air Fryer Moroccan-Spiced Carrots
A combo of spices adds a riot of flavor to those carrots that may or may not have been sitting in my mom's crisper for too long. These add a much-needed bit of freshness to heavier Hanukkah foods, and who doesn't love the gorgeous pop of color and sweetness from the pomegranate seeds?
Hanukkah Gelt
Okay, so making my own gelt might not sound the most last-minute, but hear me out: Playing dreidel is the BEST part of Hanukkah, and it's not always so easy to find vegan chocolate to play with, so if I can't, I'll be making my own using chocolate, sprinkles, and a mini muffin pan.
Get the Hanukkah Gelt recipe.
Latke Cookies
No Hanukkah celebration is complete without a big plate of crispy, craggly latkes...but sometimes, even the best laid plans go awry. If you can't manage a big pot of oil or shredding all those potatoes, make these Hanukkah cookies instead. Best part? An apple caramel as a nod to the applesauce often enjoyed with potato pancakes.
Get the Latke Cookies recipe.
Mulled Wine
Making this mulled wine couldn't be easier: Combine a bottle of red with some orange slices, warm spices, honey, and brandy, and let it simmer for 10 minutes. THAT'S IT.
Get the Mulled Wine recipe.
Instant Pot Applesauce
While you can’t beat the taste of homemade applesauce, most of us don’t want to stand over the stove and stir it all afternoon. This wildly easy recipe speeds things up by using the instant pot, so I can be eating warm, fresh applesauce with my latkes in under an hour.
Get the Instant Pot Applesauce recipe.
