Thanksgivukah or Thanksgivukkah? Overplayed?

Heeb is already post-Thanksgivukah and senses it is overplayed. Other media are using the coincidental dates to generate interest and revenue. And most readers are not paying attention. But for those who care, and want to celebrate two holidays, here is a quick primer and some ideas.

In the United States, Thanksgiving Day is an annual holiday that pays homage to the Puritans and Calvinists of the 17th Century Massachusetts Bay Colony who had Days of Thanksgiving and also a memorable meal between the English colonists and the aboriginal native residents of their region. In 1863, it was made a national holiday with a set date across all states – both Union and Confederate – by President Abraham Lincoln. If Puritans and Indians could get along in national myth, couldn’t the North and South? Presently, the late November holiday is marked by family gatherings, a meal, customary foods, sporting events, and late night holiday shopping. The reformist Christians of Massachusetts, who arrived in the colonies to pursue religious freedom, used the holiday to celebrate the final harvest or other provident events.

In the United States, Jewish families presently celebrate Hanukkah – a celebration of Hasmoneanism, national liberation, religious freedom, and a miracle – by reciting special prayers, kindling a hanukkiah, exchanging gifts, and having at least one family gathering with special holiday foods.

Both holidays also have their dark sides: how colonists later treated their native american neighbors, and how Hasmoneans treated their Jewish neighbors who enjoyed Hellenism. Like I mentioned above, if in myth the Pilgrims and tribes were friends, and North and South, could religious and secular, and Maccabees and Hellenists break challah together?

The last time both holidays coincided was 1888, the same year Manischewitz Inc. was founded. Manischewitz the largest kosher food company in the United States, will reportedly spend over $2.5 million on its “ThanksgivuKah” campaign. They can’t call it ThanksgivuKKah, because according to some, Dana Gitell, a resident of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, trademarked the double “KK” spelling of the word in 2012.

Avital Pessar, brand manager at Manischewitz, said their NJ-based firm is asking its fans to celebrate “Thanksgivukah” using a website, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Thanksgivukah dreidels, e-cards, a free app, Twitter, and a $1000 recipe contest. They are promoting Manischewitz broth – and its newly launched turkey broth – as “the official broth of Thanksgivukah.”

Recipe and recipe ideas for the mashed-up holiday include:
Turkey Latkas
Cranberry Orange Ruggelach
Deep Fried Turkey Meatballs
Pumpkin Latkes
Cranberry Donut Muffins
Pumpkin or Cranberry filled Hanukkah Donuts / Sufganiyot
Butternut Squash Soup with Horseradish Cream
Winter Squash Casserole with Matzo Meal Topping
Baked Turkey Meatloaf with Latkes
Latke stuffed Turkey
Latkes with Cranberry Sauce
Apple Cranberry Stuffing
Two Tone Stuffed Potato Latke Pie
Falafel Crusted Chicken
Rum Raisin Cranberry Kugel

In this video, a turkey and a dredel battle it out:

Rabbi Anchelle Perl of Chabad of Mineola, Long Island, NY has granted a pardon to a kosher turkey, just as the U.S. President does.

Jamie Geller’s Joy of Kosher recommends sweet potato latkes.

The New York Times asked a Jewish couple, one of Midwestern-BBQ heritage and one of Sicilian and Italian parentage to discuss their fusion. David Firestone and Susan Brenna come up with recipes – with the help of Melissa Clark – for sweet and sour braised brisket with cranberries and pomegranate, served with latkes topped with Portuguese pumpkin preserves; and Horseradish matzo ball soup. They considered a Plymouth Rock-Maccabee combo of pumpkin filled Hanukkah sufganiyot, but Melissa convinced them to use the pumpkin preserves on the latkes.

TheShiksa.com uses Maischewitz matzo meal to make her curry vegetable latkes. Instead of potatoes, she used shredded zucchini and carrots. She added curry, allspice, cumin and cayenne with matzo meal and potato starch.

The CupcakeProject.com asked other food bloggers for their recipes, and they came up with:

Potato Latkes Topped with Turkey and Cranberry Chutney from The Girl In The Little Red Kitchen
Chocolate Cranberry Cake with Gelt Glaze from What Jew Wanna Eat
Candied Sweet Potato Latkes from Everyday Maven
Butternut Squash Puree with Honey and Smoked Paprika from The Lemon Bowl
Sweet Potato Noodle Kugel from Rhubarb and Honey
Pumpkin-glazed Cronuts from MotherWouldKnow
Flamingo’s Mulled Wine Cocktail – Hot & Cold from Flamingo Musings
Thanksgivukkah Decorating from Sucre Shop
Onion Bagel and Bacon Stuffing from Very Culinary
Sweet Potato Pie Doughnut Holes from Cooking for Luv
Challah Cranberry Doughnuts from Food is my Love Language
Challah Stuffing with Turkey Sausage, Leeks and Cherries from The Little Ferraro Kitchen
Pumpkin Cranberry Maple Kugel from Farm Fresh Feasts
Pumpkin Challah from Labna.it
Thanksgivukah Pumpkin Tsimmes from {fork & swoon}
Turkey and Sweet Potato Latkes from FoodieTots
Homemade Manischewitz wine-flavored Marshmallows from Cupcake Project

Gothamist has four recipes:
Sweet Potato Latkes
Challah based stuffing
Horseradish Mashed Potatoes
Butternut Squash Kugel

The Washington DC Jewish Week newspaper recommends the following wines:
kosher, Israeli, value-priced Dovev Cabernet Sauvignon 2011,
Kilchoman 100% Islay, 3rd Edition, whiskey

NoshOn.IT features:
Chestnut Hummus with Thanksgiving Pita Chips
Pumpkin Challah
Challah Stuffing with Turkey, Leeks and Cherries
Sweet Potato Noodle Kugel
Potato Latkes Topped with Turkey and Cranberry Chutney
and Chocolate Acorn Dreidels

Melissa Feit, a baker and co-owner of Zucker Bakery, located in Manhattan, has four versions of Thanksgivukkah doughnuts:
Spiced pumpkin doughnuts with turkey and gravy filling,
spiced pumpkin doughnuts with turkey and cranberry filling,
spiced pumpkin doughnuts with cranberry sauce filling, and
sweet potato doughnuts with toasted marshmallow cream filling.

Time Out Chicago is listed ten events to celebrate Thanksgivukah. One even serves kugel with turkey and BACON. Oh Joy! I thought that Mayor Ram Emanuel changed all that.

The Sun-Sentinel in Florida where many Jewish chefs reside, wins with several latke recipes: cranberry pineapple sufganiyot; Cranberry latkes; sage stuffing latkes, and Pumpkin fritters.

JewishBoston has made a video with the city’s mayor and created a website at for the sole purpose of celebrating Thanksgiving and Hanukkah. Their site includes FOUR QUESTIONS for a Jewish Pilgrim, or at least for Ms. Malka Benjamin, a Pilgrim re-enactor at Plimouth Plantation.

In Los Angeles, Deborah Gitell (sister of the Gitell trademarker mentioned above) of Hollywood and Craig Taubman of the Pico Union Project are teaming up to organize a Thanksgivukkah Festival on Nov. 29 at the The Pico Union Project. The event will celebrate the rare convergence of the Hebrew and Gregorian calendars resulting in the first day of Hanukkah falling on Thanksgiving Day. The event will include IKAR, Moshav Band, Ari Herstand, Aqua Marina Mariachi, Moose Band, the Keshet Chaim Dance Ensemble, the Beit T’Shuvah Choir, and Kosha Dillz.

The Orange County Jewish blog recommends the LA festival listed above, and borrows this recipe Smoked Salmon and Sweet Corn Beignets from The New Jewish Table cookbook.

So. celebrate while you have the chance. According to a calculation by physicist Jonathan Mizrahi, who works at Sandia National Laboratories in New Mexico, this intersection will not happen again for more than 77,000 years in 79811. However, an intersection of erev Hanukkah and Thanksgiving Day will be in 2070.