This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Business & Tech

Whole Foods Market Celebrates Hanukkah With Festive Foods and Crafts

A Kids Corner class featured dreidel decorating and traditional holiday fare.

(WFM) in Lake Grove will be hosting several holiday events and classes this month geared toward all ages.

On Friday evening, a fun-filled Kids Corner class was held in the center of WFM to celebrate Hanukkah. Families were invited to the free event which included getting the chance to eat healthy versions of traditional Hanukkah dishes.

Potato pancakes, known as latkes, that are synonymous with the holiday's feasts were served.  There were original potato pancakes, as well as sweet potato and garden vegetable varieties.  The crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, delectable morsels were paired with the customary apple sauce and sour cream for dipping.  However, WFM served a light alternative, dairy-free sour cream, made from soy and other vegetable proteins.

Interested in local real estate?Subscribe to Patch's new newsletter to be the first to know about open houses, new listings and more.

"It adds a twist to a traditional favorite," said Tim Williams, a WFM healthy eating specialist.  He served up the tasty treats which are available in the prepared food section of the store.

There were also gluten-free, nut-free and dairy-free jelly doughnuts offered, which are available in the frozen foods section and flash frozen so they taste just as flavorful when heated in the microwave or oven.

Interested in local real estate?Subscribe to Patch's new newsletter to be the first to know about open houses, new listings and more.

Jam-filled doughnuts, or sufganiyot, which are deep-fried in oil are associated with the holiday known as the "festival of lights."

The custom of eating foods fried or baked in oil (preferably olive oil), is an allusion to the original miracle of the Hanukkah menorah, or candelabra, which involved the discovery of a tiny flask of undiluted oil.  This small ration of oil was only enough to last one day, but illuminated for eight.

Children and their parents and grandparents all enjoyed these modern day takes on holiday favorites while spending quality time together.

"We try to involve everyone, the whole family comes, when parents see kids trying new things, seeing they'll eat them; it makes them want to try them at home," said Williams. "Parents are always looking for new foods to serve to kids, especially healthy ones."

Raina Rosenhagen from Selden was overheard exclaiming to her 5-year-old twins, Cayla and Iris, "Isn't that cool that sour cream was made without dairy."

The boys and girls were excited to also decorate their own holiday dreidel made out of recycled paper; utilizing markers, glitter and their imaginations.

The dreidel is a four-sided spinning top that children play with on Hanukkah.  Each side is imprinted with a Hebrew letter.  These letters are an acronym for the Hebrew words meaning "A great miracle happened there."  This references the miracle of the oil which burned for eight days, the span of time it took to press, prepare and consecrate fresh olive oil for the menorah that was to be lit everyday in the temple with purified oil.

Celestine from Coram brought her grandchildren to the activity, because she feels it is important to expose them to different foods to expand their horizons.

"Sometimes kids are averse to trying new things," said the delighted grandmother. "It's a great forum to try things they normally would not."

Rosenhagen and her daughters had a blast celebrating the special occasion before food shopping there.

"We come here to shop and they offer so many samples we don't need a meal after," she said. "We always joke, 'oh we shouldn't have eaten before we came.'"

Her daughter Cayla made one traditional dreidel, and one with a kitty cat theme for their rescue cat that narrowly escaped a fire, and was subsequently named Smokey.  Upon seeing her daughter's feline creation, Rosenhagen immediately began singing "Cat's in the Dreidel", an apt parody of the Harry Chapin song.

Her other daughter, Iris noted that the dreidels they had made were, "very unique because they're handmade from recycled paper."

Williams said WFM tries to offer events such as this that are reflective of all the different people they service. 

"These are foods that a lot of people eat anyway, but don't know about the tradition of different cultures," he said, "I think it adds to the enjoyment during the holidays, to learn about different people."

Here's what's on tap at Whole Foods:

  • Tuesday, Dec. 7: Dr. Matt's Wellness Tour, 6:30 p.m. 
  • Wednesday, Dec. 8: Emotional Eating is Hazardous, 7 p.m.
  • Saturday, Dec. 11: Help! Vegetarians Are Coming for the Holidays, 1 p.m.
  • Monday, Dec. 13: Make Your Own Raw Chocolate Truffles, 6 p.m.
  • Wednesday, Dec. 15: Farmer's Market 11 a.m.-5 p.m. 
  • Thursday, Dec. 16: Gluten Free Class and Tour, 6:00 p.m. 
  • Friday, Dec. 17: Acoustic Café: featuring Wavelength-Denise Romas & Ray Jenson, 7-9 p.m.
  • Monday, Dec. 20: What Will You Leave for Santa?, 5 p.m.
We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?