Bursting with pride

Jerusalem pastry chef creates IDF-inspired Hanukkah doughnuts

Landmark Kadosh bakery honors troops during 2023 Israel-Hamas war with ‘sufganiya’ collection named for army units

Jessica Steinberg, The Times of Israel's culture and lifestyles editor, covers the Sabra scene from south to north and back to the center

  • A patriotic churros created for Hanukkah 2023 by Jerusalem's Kadosh bakery (Courtesy)
    A patriotic churros created for Hanukkah 2023 by Jerusalem's Kadosh bakery (Courtesy)

Pastry chef Keren Kadosh had wanted to start planning her sufganiyot fillings for Hanukkah on October 8, after the Sukkot holiday.

The co-owner of Jerusalem’s Kadosh bakery, with her husband and fellow baker Isack Kadosh, calls Hanukkah her favorite holiday and usually spends a few weeks each year designing cream fillings and sugary confections to top the traditional doughnuts.

But with the Hamas October 7 massacres that killed more than 1,200, hundreds abducted to Gaza and the outbreak of a war, Kadosh wasn’t in the mood to think about Hanukkah, much less fanciful fillings for sufganiyot.

“Because doughnuts are associated with joy for us, it was difficult for us to start making them,” said Kadosh.

A few weeks later, however, Kadosh was asked to make doughnuts for wounded Golani soldiers, which gave her the chance to pivot toward the holiday that begins Thursday night.

Kadosh started by making a doughnut named for Golani — her eldest son is serving in the 13th battalion of the Golani Brigade — filled with coffee chocolate cream and topped with a caramel confection.

A doughnut created by Jerusalem’s Kadosh bakery for Hanukkah 2023, this one named for the Golani Brigade (Courtesy)

“We received a wave of inquiries to name other sufganiyot after other units,” said Kadosh, “so we decided to create a whole collection.”

This year’s celebrated Kadosh sufganiyot mark the various IDF army units with a veritable regiment of doughnuts, with the cream filling of some matching the color of the beret worn by the unit.

The Intelligence Corps doughnut is filled with pineapple cream, Givati’s purple beret is represented by violet-toned cream of cassis, while the surveillance sufganiyot are stuffed with lemon cream and the Nachal doughnuts have pistachio filling to match their green berets.

Pastry chef Keren Kadosh is honoring IDF army units with Hanukkah doughnuts in December 2023 (Courtesy)

The Egoz Patrol doughnuts are filled with egoz or hazelnut cream, the Air Force ones are packed with pecan filling, and the Armor Corps have Oreo cream to match their black berets.

There’s pavlova in the paratroopers’ pastries and a pink doughnut filled with raspberry cream is named for IDF spokesman Brigadier General Daniel Hagari.

“Thanks to the dear warriors of ours who are watching over us,” said Kadosh.

Kadosh also offered a recipe for Hanukkah hot chocolate made with almond-flavored amaretto liqueur:
Serves 2

1 cup of milk
3/4 cup sweet cream
2 tablespoons high-quality cocoa powder
3 tablespoons sugar
30 grams (1 oz) milk chocolate
30 grams (1 oz) dark chocolate
One spoonful whipped cream
150 ml (5 oz) amaretto
Doughnuts

Pour milk, sweet cream, sugar and cocoa powder into a pot over medium heat, mix well and bring to a boil.
Remove from heat, add dark chocolate and milk chocolate.
Mix well and add amaretto.
Pour the hot chocolate and top with whipped cream. Put a straw through a doughnut, and place on top of the hot chocolate.

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