Hanukkah Desserts & Treats

These doughnuts, from Esther Sabach, Rachel Klein's boyfriend's mother, are a nod to Sephardic Jewish tradition.

This fast, genius dessert uses store-bought matzo as the instant base for homemade toffee.

Noodle kugel is a traditional Jewish recipe served for dessert or as a side dish. Although it's made with cottage cheese, it develops a custardy texture as it bakes slowly in a ceramic dish. Here, Grace Parisi uses corn flakes and pecans to make a crunchy topping.

These Turkish doughnuts have become a staple on the Arazis' Hanukkah table. The fried doughnuts, which are denser than traditional American doughnuts, are soaked in a sugar syrup for 6 hours, then sliced and filled with lightly sweetened whipped cream.

Using a family rugelach recipe, chef Jenn Louis combines tart raspberry jam and crunchy almonds in a rich, flaky cream cheese dough.

Dulce de leche, a sweet, caramelized milk, flavors both these gluten-free doughnuts and their glaze.

Blogger Molly Yeh fills this braided bread with a mix of halvah (the confection made with crushed sesame seeds and honey) and tahini. Yeh recommends using an extra-smooth, pourable tahini (Whole Foods' 365 brand is a good bet), but if your tahini is cakey and thick, she advises mi it with warm water until spreadable.

Baking the doughnuts and tossing them with a little butter, cinnamon and sugar makes them healthier than fried doughnuts. The sweet potato in the dough adds a lovely, earthy flavor. Instead of slowly baking the potato in the oven, microwave it for just 10 minutes.

These sweet and chewy two-bite macaroons have only five ingredients (not including the delicious bittersweet-chocolate drizzle). Baker Danny Cohen, a.k.a. Danny Macaroons, doesn't think all macaroons have to be round." Make whatever shape you want," he says. "There are no rules."

These luscious doughnuts are crispy on the outside and very fluffy and airy on the inside. They're usually served dipped in sugar or honey, but Leetal and Ron Arazi love to serve them with a saffron and cardamom syrup.

This amazing chocolate babka from pastry chef Melissa Weller at Sadelle's in New York City gets extra flavor in the swirl from chocolate cookie crumbs. As a bonus, the tender-crumbed babka is topped with a thick and luscious chocolate glaze.

Chef-owner Ginevra Iverson of Restaurant Eloise in Sonoma County, California, serves her light, crisp, sugared doughnut holes with sweet-tart raspberry jam. She won't send any imperfect doughnut holes into the dining room; misshapen ones, she says, become snacks for the kitchen crew: "They get slathered with jam and devoured by whomever gets to them first."

Because it's not overly sweet or rich, this dessert--a cross between a coarse-textured flourless nut cake and a carrot cake--would be perfect with a glass of sweet wine.