Cranberries in the sufganiya, and other Thanksgivukkah activities

Hanukkah, and this year’s much-ballyhooed version, Thanksgivukkah, is around the corner with the myriad events, activities, performances, tours and treats that help make this holiday season sparkle. It’s just in time: It’s been nearly two months since the last batch of holidays, and one can only be expected to go so long without having something to celebrate. The festival’s eight days offer plenty of opportunity to have some fun, whether you’re looking for grownup activities or ways to celebrate with the younger set.

We’ve looked at a range of ideas related to food, film, culture and location. It’s the Hanukkah top five, a list of where to go and what to do during the festival of lights.

1) How many people will be eating turkey on the second night of Hanukkah in Israel? Chef Nir Zook gave it some thought this year. He’s hosting a traditional T-day dinner at Cordelia, his Jaffa restaurant, and serving pumpkin soup with shaved truffles, turkey and cranberry stuffing and pumpkin pie topped with spiced ice cream. No, Cordelia is not kosher. For reservations, call 03-518-4668 for the NIS 180 per person dinner, at Cordelia, 14 HaTzorfim, Jaffa.

If you’re Jerusalem-based, head to Zook’s Culinary Bazaar in the First Train Station, on November 21 and 22, where there will be an array of olive and olive oil-based products available for tasting and sale. Finally, for the real deal, with a pre-dinner Hanukkah candlelighting, chestnut-stuffed turkey and all the trimmings, including pumpkin, pecan and apple pies, the Inbal Hotel in Jerusalem is also hosting its annual Thanksgiving dinner, at NIS 295 per person. Call 02-675-6666 to make a reservation.

2) Fancy a film? The Jewish Film Festival at the Jerusalem Cinematheque, is an opportunity to screen some of the best, most original movies in the Jewish world. There’s the opening film, “Peace After Marriage,” about an American Palestinian who marries an Israeli woman in an effort to test his parents, from filmmaker Ghazi Albuliwi. Local violinist and singer Michel Greilsammer and his wife, Shimrit Greilsammer, will perform at the opening, November 30, 7 p.m. Other movies of interest — and there are many: “Make Me A Match,” a documentary about dating; “Jerusalem On A Plate,” with master chef Yotam Ottolenghi, who will participate in a conversation following the screening; “Scatter My Ashes At Bergdoff’s,” about the iconic New York City store; and the closing film, “Transit,” about the children of migrant Filipino workers.

There are also some films and events for kids, including “Free Birds,” a dubbed American film about two turkeys making a break for it, December 3, 11 a.m., and an amusing operatic production of “Hansel and Gretel, also geared for kids, on December 4, 11 a.m. The 15th Jewish Film Festival, November 30-December 6, Jerusalem Cinematheque, tickets and schedule available online.

3) Head down south for Arava Creates, the fourth year of this artistic endeavor, featuring the creative types of the southern region gathering together at Sapir, a community just off Route 90. This year, it’s being run in conjunction with students from the Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design in Jerusalem, with a full roster of exhibits, tours, discussions and workshops on drawing, sculpture, woodworking, silversmithing and other creative arts. November 29-30, Sapir, call 08-659-2260 for more information. Tickets are NIS 40 per person and NIS 120 per family.

4) Head north for additional artistic outlets. At the Tikoten Museum of Japanese Art in Haifa, kids can make traditional Japanese paper lanterns and visit “The Golden Land” exhibit. Appropriate for ages five and up, accompanied by an adult. Sunday, December 1, 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m., NIS 25 per child. Make stars at the Mané-Katz Museum overlooking Haifa Bay, also appropriate for ages 5 and up. NIS 30 per person, December 4, 11 a.m.

Also appropriate for kids, but on the more serious side, is “My Childhood Began Here,” the new exhibit at the Yad LaYeled museum at the Ghetto Fighters’ House Museum, telling stories about Jewish child survivors at the end of World War II. The stories are presented through photographs, testimonies, clippings from Israeli and European children’s newspapers, correspondence between children in Europe and pre-state Palestine, and an interactive exhibition space that enables visitors to carry out research and creative activities related to the exhibition. Yad LaYeled, appropriate for ages 9 and up, Ghetto Fighters’ House Museum, Kibbutz Lohamei Hagetaot, open Sunday – Thursday, 9 a.m. – 4 p.m., call 04-995-8044/6 for more information.

5) Finally, wrap it all up together and take a stab at making your own sufganiyot; you can even work in some Thanksgiving flavors. It was Rivka, the blogger behind Not Derby Pie, who gave me the idea to try making nutmeg doughnuts with cranberry curd filling, adapted from Saveur, touting the bright red but “oh-so-sour” filling that offsets the sweet casing. She’s also thinking about filling some of her doughnuts with pumpkin, an inspired thought, and has a host of Thanksgivukkah recipes as well. If you’re leery of frying doughnuts, I understand. In that case, you can just make the cranberry curd and serve it with latkes. No one will complain.