Ultimate Vegan Hanukkah Recipe Roundup (2024)

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From latkes to gelt, it's every recipe you need for a gluten-free and vegan Festival of Lights! This Ultimate Vegan Hanukkah Recipe Roundup has all the delicious seasonal recipes you need to fill your home with good, nutritious holiday food.

Hanukkah, or the Festival of Lights, is a Jewish holiday celebrated every winter. The exact dates change since it's celebrated according to the Hebrew calendar, but it usually falls around November and December! As you may know, we are ALL about the food in the Jewish faith, so every holiday has lots of fun cooking and eating. Hanukkah is celebrated over eight days, so I get to fit in tons of my favorite traditional dishes! It's the best. If you're looking for the perfect homemade gift, check out my two-ingredient Easy Homemade Sugar Scrub. Everyone loves it! In this Vegan Hanukkah Recipe Roundup you'll find...

  • Latkes - Two versions, plus traditional toppings made vegan!
  • Main dishes - Savory, filling dishes, all perfect for winter.
  • Roasted veggies - I'm cooking in every color of the rainbow here.
  • Homemade Gelt - Plus gelt cookies, all made without dairy or gluten.
  • Sugar cookies - Gluten-free and perfect for cutting into seasonal shapes...plus frosting to top them off!

Star of David Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Be sure to also check out my Fun with Food: Hanukkah Snack Edition! These Hanukkah Snacks are made with some of our favorite foods and arranged into the best shapes of the season. Menorahs, dreidels, and the Star of David are all here and they’re so tasty! I've also got a really cute Star of David Grilled Cheese Sandwich made with vegan cheese. It's SO fun!

Crispy Vegan Hanukkah Latkes

One of the most popular Hanukkah foods is latkes. They're usually made with oil, which is a celebration of the ancient miracle when the Jewish Maccabees reclaimed their temple. They found the smallest amount of oil, barely enough to burn their lamps for one day. When the oil instead burned for eight days it was a Hanukkah miracle, which is why we celebrate with light and oil at this time every year! Most people put out both applesauce and sour cream for toppings, so I've got both in this Vegan Hanukkah Recipe Roundup. They both pair so well with crispy, piping hot latkes!

Spiralized Sweet Potato Latkes

Easy Instant Pot Homemade Applesauce

Easy Homemade Vegan Sour Cream

Main Dishes

Since I don't eat meat, you won't find a traditional brisket on my table...but I still have lots of filling, delicious, savory main dishes that I love to make during the eight days of Hanukkah! These warming dishes are perfect for staying cozy during the winter and celebrating the Festival of Lights with nutritious vegan food.

  • Cauliflower Steak Marbella with Roasted Chickpeas
  • Vegan Cauliflower Chickpea Shawarma Bowls
  • Moroccan Quinoa Salad
  • Mediterranean Vegan Quinoa Bowl, and don't forget my post on How to Make Perfectly Cooked Quinoa!
  • One-Skillet Baked Butternut Squash Pasta with Sage
  • Instant Pot Vegan Mushrooms Risotto
  • Best Creamy Roasted Butternut Squash Soup with Roasted Garlic...or you can make it in the Instant Pot with Instant Pot Vegan Butternut Squash Soup! I also have this new 30-minute version that is creamy, delicious and easy!

Roasted Veggies

Sides just might be the best part of any meal! I am always roasting veggies to serve with dinner, and then reheating the leftovers for lunch. These delicious roast veggies are the best sides for Hanukkah, and they're all made totally vegan, gluten-free, soy-free, and without any refined sugar. Serve them with Simplified Israeli-Style Hummus, Vegan Tzatziki Sauce, or Green Tahini Sauce for a flavorful dish!

  • Crispy Oven Roasted Cauliflower
  • Easy Maple Glazed Sautéed Carrots
  • Crispy Smashed Potatoes with my Creamy Roasted Garlic Dip
  • Walnut Crusted Roasted Delicata Squash
  • Restaurant-Style Sautéed Mushrooms
  • Herb Roasted Root Vegetables
  • Crispy Brussels Sprouts
  • Easy Whole Roasted Rainbow Carrots Over Hummus with Herb Tahini Sauce
  • Hemp Seed Crusted Whole Roasted Cauliflower with Green Tahini Sauce
  • Maple Roasted Butternut Squash

Vegan Gelt for Dreidel

Gelt are the little foil-wrapped chocolate coins that we use to play dreidel! You've probably seen the dreidel before; it's a spinning top with four sides, each with a different Hebrew letter on it. The letters represent parts of the phrase "A great miracle happened here," and depending on where the dreidel lands, the person spinning gives or takes gelt from the center "pot." It's over when one player wins all of the gelt! It's a really simple, fun game that even little ones can play and understand...plus there's chocolate involved, which is always a win!

Easy Homemade Hanukkah Gelt

Hanukkah Gelt Cookies

Homemade Vegan Chocolate

Gluten-Free Hanukkah Sugar Cookies

We also love to make sugar cookies for Hanukkah! We do different holiday-themed shapes, usually the Star of David, menorahs, or dreidels. I use this Gluten-Free Sugar Cut-Out Cookies for the base, then top them with Easy Vegan Vanilla Frosting or Easy Vegan Vanilla Blender Icing!

For me the holidays bring my two favorite things together: family and food! I hope this Vegan Hanukkah Recipe Roundup helps you menu plan for a stress-free Festival of Lights. Every single one of these recipes is vegan, gluten-free, peanut-free, corn-free, soy-free, and refined sugar-free. They're allergen-friendly dishes that everyone can enjoy! I hope you'll tag me on Instagram if you make these dishes so I can wish you a Hanukkah Sameach, and don't forget to drop a review below your favorite recipes.

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  • Hanukkah
  • Gluten-Free
  • Refined Sugar-Free
  • Vegan
  • Easy
  • Kid-Friendly
Ultimate Vegan Hanukkah Recipe Roundup (2024)

FAQs

What kind of junk food is commonly eaten during Hanukkah? ›

Fried foods, like potato pancakes and jelly doughnuts, are prepared and eaten throughout the holiday to celebrate the miracle of Hanukkah: oil that kept the menorah (an ancient lamp) lit for 8 days instead of the 1 day it was supposed to last.

What food is forbidden on Hanukkah? ›

Only certain types of mammals, birds and fish meeting specific criteria are kosher; the consumption of the flesh of any animals that do not meet these criteria, such as pork, frogs, and shellfish, is forbidden except for locusts, which are the only kosher invertebrate.

What foods Cannot be eaten during Hanukkah? ›

"Among other rules, eating certain animals, primarily pigs and shellfish, is forbidden; meat must be ritually and humanely slaughtered; and dairy and meat aren't to be eaten at the same meal." Fish and plant foods are "neutral" (parve) and can be eaten with either meat or dairy.

What to bring to a Hanukkah party food? ›

Spiced nuts make a delicious nibbler to enjoy while sipping co*cktails, or try whipped ricotta on toast for a more substantial app if you're not serving a sit-down dinner. And if you're still not sure what to bring to a Hanukkah potluck, you can't go wrong with an easy dip recipe (and lots of chips!).

Why do Jews eat fried foods during Hanukkah? ›

They found a jug of oil that only contained enough fuel to keep the Temple's lamps lit for one day. However, the oil lasted for eight whole days! This miracle is the reason we eat foods fried in oil to celebrate Hanukkah and remember the Maccabees.

Why do Jews eat oily food in Hanukkah? ›

Although there was barely enough oil for one day's light, it burned miraculously for eight, giving the soldiers time to rededicate the temple and give it back to the Jewish people. To pay homage to the oil, during Hanukkah, Jews eat fried foods.

Why are dairy foods eaten for Hanukkah? ›

A lesser-known Hanukkah custom is to eat dairy, to celebrate the heroism of Judith, slayer of the general Holofernes. Although Judith's defeat of Holofernes took place centuries before the Maccabees defeated the Romans, Jews in the medieval period began to associate Judith's bravery with the miracle of Hanukkah.

What are Chanukah donuts called? ›

Today, we're talking Hanukkah and jelly donuts. In Hebrew, they're called sufganiyot. Why do Jews eat them on Hanukkah?

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