Hanukkah

This year Hanukkah (also spelled Chanukah) starts on December 7 and ends December 15. It’s a time to celebrate miracles and the importance of light and freedom from oppression. For me, it also means baking and decorating cookies. I love the colors of this season: all shades of blue with white and gold added for a touch of elegance. I’ve never attempted to make the more traditional treats like latkes or jelly donuts, but beautiful and tasty cookies are always welcome at any celebration, right?

This year, Hanukkah and Christmas occurred about the same time. Hanukkah was from December 22 through 28 and Christmas, of course, was December 25. To celebrate both holidays, I made cookies for each. I wanted to try something new and discovered Melt-in-Your-Mouth Hanukkah Gelt Cookies on the Overtime Cook blog, which turned out to be both pretty and delicious.

Sometimes I just have to have someting that’s totally chocolate, with no distractions. This fudgy, dense, decadent cookie topped with dark chocolate frosting is the perfect answer to my question: “Where’s the chocolate?”

Hanukkah, also known as the Festival of Lights, is an eight-day festival that involves food, prayer, dancing, oil, candles...and cookies, of course!