Sufganiyot with a Latin Twist

B”H

Today I’m sharing with you one of my two Hannukah food secrets: I do not like doughnuts (sufganiyot). So in years past I just stayed away from them, but then last year I had this idea which changed everything: Sufganiyot filled with Dulce de Leche!

Not only do I prefer them over jelly-filled sufganiyot, but the dough is less sweet (I do NOT like sweets! it’s odd I know) and it’s the simplest doughnut dough that you’ll ever make. That’s because, you’re not making it! It’s Rhodes Dough! Don’t worry, no one will ever know; and since they’ll see you relaxing by those candles they’ll think you’re just exhausted having “slaved” in the kitchen. Ha!

So here’s what you do to achieve these amazingly tasty sufganiyot that require almost no work on your part, and will have you coming out like the Queen of the Kitchen! And remember, you need easy recipes like this one, because as I told you here, you’re supposed to sit and relax once you light that menorah! Plus, dulce de leche is dairy and so not only will you be keeping the custom of eating fried foods (for the miracle of the oil burning eight days), but also the custom of eating dairy foods on Chanukah, to remember Yehudit’s courage when she served salty cheese to the enemy general, got him drunk, and then beheaded him in his sleep, leading to the ultimate victory of the Maccabees.

1- Get your wonderful friend to send you Dulce de Leche from Miami (two years in a row!) :-) (Don’t forget to thank her and tell her how much you love her!)

2- Go to your local grocery store and get a bag of Rhodes Dough from the freezer section. They are OU Parve.

3- Take out your wonderful balls of dough and place on a greased cookie sheet to rise. It takes about 30 min to an hour depending on your kitchen’s temperature. Don’t let them double in size or they will be too hard to handle and might loose their pretty round shape when you pick them up. They will inflate a bit when you’re deep frying them and come out big and puffy.

4- Heat a large pot full of vegetable oil, until it’s very hot.

5- Take your precious dough balls and dip them in the oil until they’re golden brown. Turn over once or twice to get it to cook all around.

6- Take them out of the oil and let them sit in a platter covered with paper towels.

7- Fill out a pastry bag with your dulce de leche and poke a small hole with your round tip and fill your sufganyiot (doughnut) with dulce de leche. (I think I would use a wider tip next time as it takes too long to fill each one with a #3 tip.)

8- Sprinkle with confectioners sugar and serve!

And there you have it, “Sufganyiot with a Latin Twist” and you, “Queen of the Kitchen” Ha, ha! Go play dreidel with your family while you enjoy them. It doesn’t get better than this! :-)

Thank you to Rivki from Rivki Makeup Artistry for the beautiful pictures!