Ricotta Latkes

Latkes is Yiddish for potato pancakes. Latkes are very popular and served year round with apple sauce or sour cream. Traditionally, they are eaten at Hanukkah, the Festival of Lights. Fried in oil, they remind Jews of the miracle of lights: after their victorious uprising against Antiochus IV in 165 BCE, the Maccabees rededicated the defiled Jewish Temple, which had served as a sanctuary to Zeus under Greek rule. However, when they wanted to light the menorah, they found only one jar of pure olive oil, enough for just one day. The oil miraculously lasted eight days, which was exactly how long they needed to produce new sacred oil.

Yiddish, everyday language of Eastern European Jews, with German, Hebrew and Slavic elements.

Maccabees, also Hasmoneans, a Jewish line of both high priests and, after 105 B.C.E., kings. The name is derived from the nickname of the leader Judah Maccabee ("The Hammer").

Menora, Hebrew for "lamp". The Menorah, a seven-armed candelabrum, is an important symbol of Judaism.