Hanukkah, the Festival of Lights, begins this year at sunset on Dec. 15, and commemorates the Maccabeean victory some 22 centuries ago. A miracle happened at the cleansing of the temple when the Maccabees found only enough sacred oil to light the menorah for one day. But a miracle occurred, and one day’s supply lasted for eight days. Since this eight-day holiday revolves around a miracle of the oil, many recipes that contain oil have become significant in celebrating Hanukkah — such as latkes, which are sometimes called potato pancakes. Brisket just seems to be the meat of choice, so it wasn’t a surprise to find those very dishes being prepared at Lisa and Ralph Katsman’s home.

Lisa Katsman comes from the south, but when her family moved to Minnesota they incorporated some new to traditions in their community.

“My mother used to go to the elementary school and speak to the children about Hanukkah,” Katsman said. “She gave every child a dreidel, a spinning top with Hebrew letters on it. They would taste potato pancakes called latkes and learn a Hanukkah song or two.” This inspired Katsman to continue in her footsteps. “My thought is that if I could at least educate one child with a little history, then understanding helps people to get along,” she said.

Katsman related to me that she received a call from a parent from the classroom that she spoke to a few years ago. The mother told her that the family was watching “Who Wants to be a Millionaire” on TV, when a question came out about Hanukkah. It was their 6-year-old who knew the answer!

Decorations at the Katsman home range from children’s artwork to lovely menorahs and candles along the window sill.

“I love putting out Hanukkah decorations, using my collection of menorahs and dreidels and latke plates. Especially wonderful are the decorations that my children made for me from the Stroum Jewish Community Center. Although they have begun to look a worn, I don’t care. They were made by the girls and I love them.”

Katsman told me of a Hanukkah tradition that started when she was a child. Everyone picks a number for the order in which the family members sit in the Hanukkah chair and open presents.

“This way you get to be seated in the ‘royal chair’ — though any chair will do — and open your Hanukkah gifts while everyone watches,” she related. “The kids love it! It’s especially nice for those who have never sat in a Hanukkah chair.” I loved her idea so much that I think I will do it with my family this year. Lisa has since introduced the Hanukkah chair to her husband’s family as well.

Another tradition is to play the dreidel game with pennies. Everyone puts in pennies and depending on the where the spin lands, you either get nothing, everything, half the pot of pennies or you have to add in a penny. Her grandfather always sent a roll of pennies, though many kids today play with candy. She still likes to carry on this tradition and use pennies.

Hanukkah begins this year on Shabbat, so Lisa is making her mother’s recipe for beef brisket and her grandmother’s recipe challah, egg bread. “The game is to try and finish the entire challah before the night is over, or Shabbat is over, and dip the challah in the brisket gravy,” said Lisa.

This year, the Katsman family has a Jewish exchange student, 17-year-old Luca Bamberg, visiting with them from Brazil and attending Mercer Island High School. Sweets aren’t part of his customs, so this was his first try at decorating Hanukkah cookies with Lisa and Ralph’s daughters, Marisa, 11, and Danielle, 9. He will participate in many of Lisa’s Hanukkah traditions and sit in the Hanukkah chair too. He will eat latkes and play dreidel. But he will also learn of their gift giving, which includes presents for families in need and food bank donations. But most of all, he will feel the warmth and amazing generosity of this very active and loving family.

IDA RAYE’S NEVER-FAIL BRISKET

Lisa Katsman says that her father is in the beef business and she gets many of her briskets from him. She looks for the largest Kosher brisket that she can get. Briskets always shrink during the cooking process, but a lower heat helps prevent that. This is her mother’s perfected brisket recipe.

1 whole brisket — 5 to 6 lbs. (Albertson’s carries Kosher ones)

2 large onions, sliced

1 can of beer (any brand)

1 bottle Heinz chili sauce

1 bottle of water (use the chili sauce bottle)

garlic powder, freshly grated pepper

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Place the some of the onions on the bottom of the roasting pan. Place in the brisket and add the rest of the onions, along with the other ingredients. Place a lid or foil over the brisket and cook for 4 to 5 hours. Do not open oven to check or lift the lid! Take the brisket out of the oven and let it cool overnight in the pan with its own juices. The next day, skim off any rising fat and slice the meat thin. Reheat in the juices until ready to serve.

LISA KATSMAN’S FRIED POTATO LATKES

Katsman usually triples the recipe when she makes latkes. She fries them up just until golden brown, freezes the latkes on a cookie sheet and then puts them into freezer containers. When the latkes are re-warmed in the oven, they will crisp up again and get darker. Lisa suggests that you could purchase the pre-shredded bag of potatoes and use them for the sake of convenience. I watched Lisa mix vegetable oil with olive oil to fry the latkes up. She kept them warm in a 200 degree oven. Lisa put her grated potatoes in a glass bowl and then spooned them into the fry pan, never crowding them. This recipe makes about 16.

3 lbs. Idaho russet potatoes (keep in cold water until ready to grate)

1/2 cup flour

4 eggs, slightly beaten

salt and freshly ground pepper

vegetable and olive oil for frying

applesauce

Fit work bowl of food processor with grating disk. Cut the potatoes to fit the feed tube and grate using medium pressure. Remove to colander, wash grated potatoes in cold water and then squeeze dry. In a glass mixing bowl, add in flour, then eggs and stir to combine. Add salt and pepper. Mixture should be firm but moist.

Heat 2 frying pans over medium-high heat with 1/4 inch of vegetable oil, mixed with a tablespoon of olive oil. Drop by large spoonfuls into the hot oil, about 4 to a pan. Press down to spread a little in the pan. Cook as many that you can fit without touching in the pan. When latkes are golden on the bottom, turn them over and brown the other side. Remove to paper towels and then keep warm on a cookie sheet in a 200 degree oven while you cook the rest. Serve hot with applesauce.

SHEILA KATSMAN’S BAKED POTATO KUGEL

This recipe is a Katsman family favorite. This is a one-dish method, but they can also be made in the shape of pancakes and fried. Lisa’s mother-in-law, Sheila Katsman, told me that she learned it from her mother. “My mother didn’t measure anything, she just put it together,” she said. A hint that really made a difference is to keep the peeled potatoes in cold water until ready to grate. Then after grating, wash all the starch and squeeze out the excess water. This she said, “should keep them light and white!”

6 medium-size russet potatoes peeled and grated or shredded in a food processor. You can use a box grater too, but be careful of your knuckles! Keep in cold water.

2 eggs

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1 1/2 tsp. salt or less if you desire

pinch of pepper

1 small onion,

1/4 cup (approximately) of oil for each dish

Oil for frying

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Sift together the flour, baking powder, salt and pepper. Grate potatoes quickly so that they will not discolor. Wash in cold water in a colander, and then squeeze out all the excess water. Put into a glass bowl. Add eggs and mix well. Add in sifted dry ingredients. Saut/ the onion in some of the oil until lightly browned, then add to the batter. Put the oil into a glass dish or pie plates, covering the bottom with oil. Place in the oven and allow oil to get very hot. Pull out the plates and test to see if a piece of the kugel mixture sizzles when dropped into the hot oil. If the potato piece sizzles, then carefully put the rest of the potato mixture into the pan. Return to the oven and lower the temperature to 350 degrees. Cook until the top of the potatoes become very crispy, approximately 40 minutes or longer.

JEANETTE RABHAN’S CHALLAH

Lisa Katsman said that her grandmother made the “best challah in the world.” She says this dough is also great for pull-apart bread, yeast dough hamantashen and sweet rolls.

2 packages dry yeast

2 cups warm water

1/2 cup sugar

6-7 cups flour

1 egg for glaze

3 tsp. salt

1/2 cup salad oil

3 eggs, room temperature, slightly beaten

Soften yeast in water and half of the sugar. Add the rest of ingredients except the flour. Mix well. Add 4 cups of the flour, mix. Add more flour until it is a workable dough. Knead until smooth and elastic.

Turn into a lightly oiled bowl and cover with either plastic wrap or dish towel. Let rise until doubled in size. Remove dough from the bowl and punch down. Divide the dough into three pieces. Shape the dough by making 3 long even ropes and then braiding together starting from pinching the 3 ropes together at the top. Put onto a greased large loaf pan or sheet pan. Let it rise until doubled. Brush top with beaten egg and sprinkle with poppy seeds or sesame seeds. Bake in a preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes.

Christmas at Sandee Harvey’s home is all about tradition, from the Christmas Eve family dinner, to the handmade needlepoint Christmas stockings, to the personally decorated wreaths that hang on the front door. This talented Islander adds her special touches to make the holidays special every year for her family.

Harvey works as an administrative assistant to Gerry Kingen, owner of Happy Guests International, Inc. — Salty’s Seafood Grills. She has so many ongoing projects that organization is key to getting everything done. So it’s no surprise to me that she starts early in her Christmas preparations. She told me that the first thing she does is decorate Christmas wreaths.

“It has been a tradition for approximately 20 years to start decorating right after Thanksgiving,” Harvey said. “I decorate 10 wreaths for my home, for some of our family members and for some friends. For the last couple of years, my two daughters and now my daughter-in-law join me to make wreaths for their families and friends. This has made it a wonderful event for me, and one that I treasure deeply.” After seeing the wreaths, I told her that she ought to go into the business!

I noticed a shelf running the length of the room, filled with hanging needlepoint stockings.

“My mother-in-law, Laura Harvey, started this tradition and made stockings for all her grandchildren,” she explained. Sandee Harvey loved the idea and has continued it for all new members of the family.

Celebrating Christmas started out as a formal dinner on Christmas night at the Harveys’ home. But it has now changed.

“When my three children were young, formal dinners weren’t easy on the kids,” she said. “I wanted them dressed in their holiday finery, but all they wanted to do is play with the presents. So I switched it to Christmas Eve dinner and bribed them for wearing their best clothes by letting them open one present early. It worked and has now become a tradition.”

Harvey told me that she now has a casual Christmas Eve dinner with both sides of her family gathered together. They exchange a few gifts and finish the day with big bowls of clam chowder and turkey sandwiches.

When it came to kitchen duties, Harvey told me that it was always shared with her mother-in-law. One year at her home, the next year at “Mother Harvey’s.”

“It will be a sad, bittersweet event without her smiling face,” she said. “But my son-in-law is a professional chef and I can always count on him to help me out.”

Harvey didn’t need much help when I came into her kitchen to see what she was making. She chose a menu that she felt wasn’t stressful and presented it to us with such flair. I can’t wait to try her crown roast of lamb and marinade. I have included other recipes and each should add cheer to your holidays.

SANDEE HARVEY’S CROWN ROAST LAMB DINNER

I checked with Albertson’s and they order a large supply for the holiday. “It’s one of my favorite roasts that I buy for my family,” said John Gillespie, store director. If John buys it, you know it’s good!

Crown roast of lamb – allow 2 chops per person

Chicken or beef broth to line the bottom of the roasting pan

Spinach - enough to cover the serving plate

Filling – for interior of roast, includes either bread stuffing, rice or vegetables

MARINADE

1/2 cup Worcestershire sauce

1/3 cup red wine vinegar

extra virgin olive oil — enough to bind, about 2 TBS.

1 to 2 tsp. dill weed

1 to 2 TBS. Herbs de Provence

1/2 cup French Dijon mustard, enough to make the marinade thick

garlic powder, generous sprinkling

ground pepper, generous sprinkling

Mix all marinade ingredients together. Hint: Can put the roast into this marinade and freeze, then defrost when you are ready to roast. Harvey uses this marinade with all her lamb dishes and chops. She swears by it! She does buy her Herbs de Provence and French Dijon mustard in France, but they are available at many upscale stores here.

Have the butcher prepare the crown roast from 2 to 3 racks of loin lamb chops and tie it together in a circle.

Sprinkle roast with garlic and pepper, and pour the marinade over the top of the roast, making sure that some of the marinade gets on the sides and inside of the roast. Let it sit at room temperature for at least an hour before roasting, or refrigerate it for 3 to 4 hours and then bring it back up to room temperature before roasting.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Put roast into a shallow roasting pan. Cover tops of the roast with foil to prevent burning. Harvey suggests putting a loose ball of foil in the inside of the roast so it holds its shape while cooking. Add some chicken or beef broth to the bottom of the pan, enough to cover the bottom. Roast for 55 minutes for medium rare. Remove from the oven and test for doneness. It will continue to cook while it is resting. Let it rest for at least 5 to 10 minutes.

BROCCOLINI

Harvey likes to prepare the broccolini by trimming the stems so that it’s about 4 inches long. She steams it, but you can also blanch it in boiling salted water and then chill to keep its color. It is also delicious saut/ed in garlic and a little clarified butter. Season to taste.

PLATE THE DISH

Spread a generous amount of raw, washed spinach leaves on a large platter. Place roast in the middle and fill up of the roast with your choice of filling.

“I found the Near East whole grains blend rice mix with roasted garlic works wonderfully with this lamb,” said Harvey, who prepares the rice with chicken broth instead of water and follows the directions on the box.

For vegetables, Harvey uses Brussels sprouts, broccolini, chunky carrots or any combination thereof. She suggests working with color for variety. Her choice of garnish is tomatoes around the outside of the roast. They can be cherry tomatoes, Roma tomatoes or tomato slices. Or, cut the tomatoes in half and broil them or roast them. Then add a bit of seasoning to the tomatoes. Rosemary sprigs are another beautiful garnish choice.

GRANDMA LAURA HARVEY’S MUFFINS

Laura Harvey passed away earlier in the year, so Sandee Harvey will make them to remind everyone of her sweet mother-in-law. The outside is wonderfully crisp and the inside moist.

2 cups Kellogg’s All Bran Cereal

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp. baking soda

2 cups sugar

2 cups buttermilk or 3 TBS. white vinegar with plain milk

6 TBS. butter, melted

2 TBS. molasses

1 cup raisins

Mix all ingredients together in a mixer or by hand. Pour into muffin tins (makes about 18) and bake at 350 degrees in a preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes.

PUMPKIN CHEESECAKE

Executive chef Nick Musser has makes this pumpkin cheesecake for the holiday desserts at Icon Grill. He included it in his updated and new, Aroused Americana Cookbook that you can purchase either online or at the restaurant in downtown Seattle or at Zephyr Grill at Kent station. Check out www.icongrill.net for more information. It looks great on any buffet table.

CHEESECAKE BATTER

1 pound cream cheese

1 16-oz. can pumpkin puree

4 eggs

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/8 tsp. ground clove

1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/3 cup heavy cream

Beat cream cheese in an electric mixer until fluffy, scraping the sides of the bowl to ensure even whipping. Add sugars and beat until smooth. Scrape the bowl and add eggs one at a time, mix before adding the sugars. Scrape the bowl again. Add all the remaining ingredients and mix until smooth. Scrape the bowl again and mix for 10 more minutes in the electric mixture.

CRUST

1 1/2 cups ground gingersnap cookies

3 TBS. unsalted butter, melted

To grind the cookies, use a food processor and chop until the consistency is that of cracker crumbs. Mix the ground cookies and butter in a small bowl until blended together. Assemble a 9-inch springform pan. Butter the bottom only.

PECAN CRUNCH TOPPING

1 cup chopped pecans

4 TBS. unsalted butter

1/2 cup brown sugar

Beat butter and sugar together in an electric mixer until soft. Add chopped pecans and mix only until incorporated. (Do not over-mix).

ASSEMBLE

Pour batter over crust mixture and spread evenly with a rubber spatula. Place the springform pan into a large roasting pan. Start preparing for a water bath method to bake the cheesecake. Carefully pour boiling water around the springform pan in the roasting pan, bringing the water level halfway up the side of the springform pan. Carefully place the roasting pan into a preheated 350 degree oven and bake for 60 minutes or until the batter has set.

Pull the oven rack out, leaving the roasting pan on the rack. Don’t take out just yet, but instead crumble the pecan mixture randomly over the top of the cake without pressing down. See if you can manage to get pecans all around so that when sliced everyone will taste the nuts. The pecans will slowly drop farther into the cheesecake. Carefully push the rack back into the oven for 20 more minutes of baking.

Ovens are all different, so time may vary. To check for doneness of the cake, insert a thin knife into the center and remove. If the knife is clean and there is no uncooked cake batter, then the cake is done. Cool completely before serving. Can serve with either whipping cream on the side or a caramel sauce of your choice.

CRANBERRY NUT BARS

This recipe came from Angela Niles of Bellevue. She said it’s her cousin’s version of the bars that were from Larry’s Markets. Have them ready when guests come to visit. Makes 12 bars.

3 eggs

3/4 cup sugar

1 cup flour

1/3 cup butter, melted

3/4 cup dried cranberries

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Beat eggs in a medium bowl until thick. Gradually add sugar, beating until thoroughly blended. Stir in flour and melted butter; blend well. Add cranberries and walnuts, mixing gently until combined.

Spread evenly in an 8-inch-square baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 to 45 minutes or until golden brown and toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely before cutting into bars.