With candy stores across the country competing with each other to display the most wonderful array of Valentine’s Day Candy gift in their stores, you will have no problem in finding that perfect Candy gift for your loved one this Valentine’s Day. Valentine ’s Day with its theme of love and romance has the best quality of Valentine’s Day Candy gifts to be offered to ardent lovers and candy fans.
These novelty boxes of Valentine ’s Day candy are made with the discerning lover in mind and manufacturers spare no pains to make their confections to the highest quality standard and undergo thorough checks before being sent to the stores.
The celebration of Valentine’s Day is never complete without having given or received one of these intricately decorated Valentine’s Day candy gift boxes which is the epitome of a lover’s declaration of his feelings. The variety of such Valentine’s Day candy gifts are so amazing that one will find it hard to choose from the various selections displayed in the candy stores.
Same as in the past, it makes you tingle with excitement when you are given a gift of a gorgeous box of Valentine’s Day chocolates which comes in many different shapes and sizes. If you girlfriend loves chocolates, why not surprise and delight her with a gift of a big bouquet of Chocolate flowers instead of the traditional bouquet of flowers? I’m sure she will be thrilled with your innovativeness. You can find novel and very exciting Valentine’s Day Candy gifts not only in the shops but also online. You can get them in different types and categories to suit each person’s mentality not to mention affordability.
With you and everyone else under the sun buying Valentine’s Day Candy gifts for that special person in your life, how can you make your own gift more personal ?
A cardinal rule is to ensure that your partner is a chocolate lover and that he/she will really and truly appreciate your gift of Valentine’s Day Candy.
While some like dark or even bitter chocolate, there are others who prefer the lighter white chocolate or the sugarless ones, depending on their dietary requirements,
Did you know that a simple bar of “Mars” means “I love you”? Wouldn’t it be the sweetest way of saying the 3 words?
There are those who prefer nougat or caramel which also can be given as a Valentine’s Day candy gift.
You can also get personalized candy bars, pralines, jelly beans, chocolate covered nuts, baskets of chocolates or even luscious looking candy trees decorated with chocolate.
Another important point to keep in mind is that an overwhelming number of men are said to prefer receiving Valentine’s Day Candy gifts or Chocolate Roses over flowers. Therefore you must ensure that you give him/her what they prefer and not what you would like to have yourself.
So there you are, buy any one of the above mentioned Valentine’s Day Candy gifts for your loved one and you can be sure he/she will make you his one and only Valentine this year.
So when is Purim 2010 (Purim 5770).
This year Purim in 2010 will start on Sunday, the 28th of February (Saturday Night) and will continue for 2 days until Monday, the 1st of March.
As you may know that on the Jewish calendar, a holiday begins on the sunset of the previous day, so observing Jews will start celebrating Purim on the sunset of Saturday, the 27th of February.
So get ready for purim by shopping for your Purim needs
The most popular day of all for lovers being Valentine’s Day what better way to express your love than with Valentine’s Day Candy? It could be big chocolate heart or a scrumptious bag of red and blue jelly hearts or better still a glittery bag full of chocolate kisses, or how about some gooey, melt in the mouth chocolate roses that would make your lover swoon in your arms? It will be the ultimate expression of love and is bound to make your lover feel very special and cherished.
Valentine's Day Candy
Does anyone wonder how and when this custom began? One of the common beliefs is that during the 1800’s, lovelorn patients were told by their doctors to eat as much chocolate as possible to calm them and sooth their nerves. It is also thought that as far back as the era of the Aztec empire, chocolate was considered an aphrodisiac and was used to win love.
Although it is the heart shaped Valentine’s Day candy that is popular today, in days gone by, Valentine’s Day candy was made in the shape of watches, anchors, horseshoes, or even postcards with lengthy messages of love written on them. The messages found inside Valentine’s Day Candy hearts today, are much shorter and sweeter and in keeping with the “cool” talk of the modern generation.
Valentine's Day Candy
Close upon a century now makers of Valentine’s Day Candy have been coming up with unique and novel ways of saying “I love you”. Apparently, just one company produces more than 100,000 pounds of Valentine’s Day Candy chocolate hearts per day and it is said that approximately 8 billion lovers are presented with these delectable candy chocolates within a period of six weeks. Although the peak season for the sale of these Valentine’s Day Candy hearts is just one month, the candy hearts are produced round the year for 11 months.
With great competition among manufacturers of Valentine’s Day candy, to invent novel confections to Valentine’s Day Candy titillate the palate of lovers, they come up with yummy new fillings for chocolates while catchy and romantic messages are introduced every year. Some of the more popular recent ones included such messages as “Puppy Love”, “Melt my Heart”, “Cloud Nine” and even “Take a walk”!
What lover can resist a Valentine’s Day Candy Chocolate heart that says “Melt my Heart” or “Make me yours”? I bet you can’t and neither can I.
Rugelach (pronounced rug-a-la-kh) are pastry-like cookies that are typically enjoyed on the Jewish sabbath. However, they can be enjoyed all year round and on every day of the week. Rugelach is a Yiddish word meaning “little twists”. These pastries derive from Eastern Europe. They were traditionally made strictly with cheese, but today’s variations of rugelach can be found in many dairy-free versions.
You don’t need an excuse to enjoy some freshly baked rugelach. Especially with all the flavors to choose from, you can’t go wrong.
Chocolate Rugelach is a crowd favorite. You can get them dairy and fill your rugelach with milk chocolate. Or you can enjoy your rugelach after your Shabbos meal by adding pareve or dark chocolate and by substituting margarine for butter in your pastry.
Cinnamon Rugelach are also a favorite. These are especially mouthwatering to bake when the aromas from the cinnamon start to spread throughout your kitchen.
Apricot Rugelach are probably the most common fruit flavored rugelach pastries available. There is something about the sweetness of the dough with the tanginess of the apricot that makes it a delicious combination.
Raspberry Rugelach are a nice alternative to the common chocolate and cinnamon rugelach types. They go great with a cup of fruit flavored tea.
A rugelach platter is a great way to show somebody that you care. It can celebrate the birth of a baby, a recent marriage, or as a holiday gift.
It is pretty easy to make rugelach . There is no wrong way to eat Rugelach. Rugelach can be enjoyed straight from the oven or right out of the store. They can be crunchy or chewy, with nuts or without. The choice is yours
So now we are going to take it out of the refrigerator and roll it out and perform a what we call threefold. Now, it’s important that we work with the floured surface. Keep in mind that we need to keep a rectangular shape in order to perform threefold. Now, the filing that we used, even though we used chocolate, pecans and raspberry jam, use anything, from marzipan, to apricot jam, walnuts or just plain cinnamon sugar. The reasoning for performing the threefold is to make sure that all the butter and the cream cheese are incorporated into the layer of the dough. This is going to give us a final texture that’s flakey and a beautiful cookie. Now, if your dough cracks, just press it together lightly with your fingers. We are going to roll our dough well, just until it’s about little less than an inch thick. Now, I am going to take my and just straighten out the sides. As you can see, I am being careful to keep our rectangle shape. Now, to perform a threefold just think of how you fold a letter: one, two, three. On one side, and two. Straighten up the sides again. Now, we are going to wrap it out in plastic wrap and chill it again for another hour.
So, an hour has gone by. We have our chilled three-folded dough. Using our divide this into three potions. As you can see, we have our nice flakey layers. We have one, two, three. With the rolling pin, roll this out until it’s around a quarter inch thick. So once my dough’s about a quarter inch thick, I am going to take a ten inch room. If you don’t have one of these, just use a large mixing bowl. Brush off on flour, take our filling, putting about a quarter of it on to the surface of the dough. Mixing down lightly. Spread the mixture as thinly as you possibly can, leaving about an inch circumference around the edge with the dough. And you can also use your hands as well. We are going to take some cinnamon sugar and sprinkler it lightly on the surface. Divide our circle into either 12 or 16 triangles. The easiest way to do that is to start from the centre and divide our circle into four quarters. And it doesn’t have to be 16 triangles; it can be however big as you want it to be. For instance, we’ll take this slice and simply take the widest base and roll it forward, similar to how you shape . Now, Rugelach is a very simply cookie to make. Our dough has butter and pink cheese in it. So you need to take care in making sure that the dough is nicely chilled, otherwise your dough will become sticky and hard to shape. Once we’ve finished rolling out all of our Rugelach, we want to transfer them to a parchment lined baking sheet or lightly sprayed baking sheep , making sure that we have a good amount of space in between each cookie, to allow for even spread. Have a small amount of egg wash here, that we’re just going to top of each cookie. Now we egg wash the cookies because they are going to give us a nice brown color on the surface. After we egg wash our cookies, we are going to sprinkle small amount of cinnamon sugar on the surface and transfer them to a pre-heated oven to 375 degrees and bake them for about 25 to 30 minutes or until they are golden brown. After about 25 minutes, I am taking the last batch out of the oven. As you can see, they have a beautiful crescent shape and a nice golden color. A little bit of sheen, that’s from the cinnamon sugar. And it’s important to put this on wire rack. It helps to make sure that the bottoms of the cookies don’t get too soggy.
You can find this recipe and many others in CIA’s Baking at Home with the Culinary Institute of America,
Hanukkah has so many wonderful aspects, its no wonder why it is most people’s favorite holiday. With all the delicious Hanukkah foods, the exchanging of Hanukkah gifts, and all the fun Hanukkah parties, it’s a hard holiday to beat. To add to that list is the Hanukkah music and Hanukkah Gelt. One of the very best things about Hanukkah are the songs. We sing and dance to songs about dreidels, the Maccabees, and the Hanukkah food we eat. “Dreidel, dreidel, dreidel” is one of the most popular Hanukkah songs. It is catchy and is sung by children as well as adults! This song explains the game of dreidel the children play (and adults too!) The lyrics for this song are memorable and repetitive.
“Dreidel, dreidel, dreidel” lyrics:
I have a little dreidel
I made it out of clay
And when it's dry and ready
Oh dreidel I shall play!
chorus:
Oh - dreidel, dreidel, dreidel
I made it out of clay
And when it's dry and ready
Oh dreidel I shall play!
It has a lovely body
With legs so short and thin
And when my dreidel’s tired
It drops and then I win!
chorus
My dreidel’s always playful
It loves to dance and spin
Happy game of dreidel
Come play now, lets begin!
chorus
“Maoz Tzur” is another popular Hanukkah song that is traditionally sung after reciting the Hanukkah blessings over the menorah. It is also known as “Rock of Ages” and has ancient roots. This song reflects on the historical hardship the Jewish people endured in biblical times. It bridges between the suffering and the promise for redemption.
Another popular Hanukkah children’s song is “Oh Hanukkah, Oh Hanukkah.” It is also a popular children’s song and is catchy enough to be remembered all year long.
Hanukkah Oh Hanukkah
Come light the Menorah
Let’s have a party
We’ll all dance the Horah
Gather ‘round the table
We’ll give you a treat
Sevivon to play with
And latkes to eat
And while we are playing
The candles are burning bright
One for each night
We’ll spread a sweet light
To remind us of days long ago
Another song that is sung customarily after the lighting of the candles is “Hanerot Halalu”. This also has ancient roots and recalls all of the Hanukkah miracles. There are many different melodies to this song and is often sung slowly.
Children love to receive gifts on the holidays; here are a few Hanukkah gift ideas you can share with any Jewish family that has children.
On the first night of Hanukkah, it would be appropriate to give the gift of a menorah. Most children are especially drawn to the lighting of the candles. Menorahs are available in many different styles and sizes. They vary in price as much as they vary in design. I t should not be difficult to find a menorah suitable for children of any age.
A second choice for the beginning of the holiday would be that of a dreidel. A dreidel is a four-sided top with a Hebrew letter on each side. During Hanukkah, Jewish children play the dreidel game. You can get dreidels for each year, just like Christmas ornaments. If you give a dreidel as a gift, remember that a roll of pennies is also necessary to play the dreidel game.
It is good to come up with Hanukkah gift ideas that are more meaningful than just toys or chocolate coins. Hanukkah is a very fitting time to give a gift to a charity in the child’s name. Hanukkah is a blessed family time and most children are upset to learn that there are other children not fortunate enough to receive a gift, no matter how small, every nigh of Hanukkah. They will be pleased and excited to learn that something was given, in their name to a less fortunate child.
Board games are superb Hanukkah gifts, as it is a time of family and togetherness.
Giving a gift of skill or knowledge is proper at Hanukkah. Perhaps the child likes to build model airplanes or cars. Maybe she is gifted with making crafts or painting pictures. A subscription to a magazine is among some very thoughtful Hanukkah gift ideas.
Hanukkah is eight nights long and it can be tough to come up with the money for eight nights of gift giving, let alone ideas. This is one of the cost-free Hanukkah gift ideas. Make coupons for 3 hour of free service. This can include almost anything from washing the dishes to mowing the lawn. Be careful parents, the kids have been known to find some creative ways of cashing in coupons from you.
Hanukkah is a holy time and, as such, giving a gift that comforts is extremely appropriate. Perhaps it might be a stuffed animal or pajamas. Older children might appreciate a comforter or quilt. Anything that lures you to cuddle and makes you smile is a good gift at Hanukkah.
Remember that Hanukkah is a Jewish holiday, so give something Jewish. Traditional Jewish Hanukkah gift ideas that can be given are dreidels, which we have already mentioned, or gelt. Gelt is Yiddish for money. Hanukkah gelt is often given in the form of chocolate covered in foil to look like coins. Real spending money can also be given for Hanukkah gelt, but it is usually given in coin as opposed to paper currency.
It’s traditional to invite family members and friends over to celebrate in Hanukkah, the miracle of lights. Whether you are a throwing a Hanukkah party for the first time, or are already a seasoned professional, there are always traditional Hanukkah foods and activities you want to make sure you have.
People typically prefer to buy decorations for a Hanukkah Party. Many times you can just search for printable signs and pictures. If you opt for a fancier approach, you can go to a Judaica store in your neighborhood or any holiday gift shop, and purchase a few Hanukkah themed decorations. Whether it be dreidel-printed tablecloths, to a dangling menorah as ceiling décor, there are lots of options to choose from.
It is also important not to forget the Hanukkah music. The music that is played is essential to get the mood going at your Hanukkah party. You may be able to pick up a Hanukkah party mix at your local Judaica store, but buying it online is a great option too. Make sure the mix has the English Hanukkah Song favorite (Oh dreidel, dreidel) and the Hebrew ones as well (Al HaNisim and Ma Oz Tzur). Just be careful, your guests make break out dancing to these head bopping tunes, so make sure you are wearing your dancing shoes!
After your house is all set up with twinkling Hanukkah menorah lights with the Hanukkah music playing in the background, you are all set up to cook your famous Hanukkah latkes, and your other (just as famous) Hanukkah foods. If you are short on time, Hanukkah Party food sets are available for purchase . Make sure your list includes applesauce (to accompany those latkes), sufganiyot (jelly doughnuts), and Hanukkah gelt (chocolate money). It is also helpful to make extra helpings of these, because they will for sure be a hit!
Another very important aspect of a Hanukkah party is the activity that you provide for your guests. You may prefer to just have them for the kids, but adults love games too. Printable Hanukkah-themed bingo cards are available online . You can play for real money, or the edible chocolate version (Hanukkah gelt). Make sure to not forget to play the traditional game of Hanukkah dreidel. Dreidel is essential for any authentic Hanukkah party. It may be helpful to spread little dreidels on tables where your guests will be sitting. It is hard to resist the urge to spin one of those guys.
If you are having a close group of people as your guests, it may be fun to play Mystery Maccabi. This game entails you to have each of your guests pick a name from a hat. Each name they receive is the person they are entitled to shop for. This way each person gets a Hanukkah gift, there is an element of surprise, and it serves as a fun Hanukkah activity. Some people prefer to set limits of how much you should spend on a gift. You can decide what works best with your group.
After the candles from your Hanukkah menorah have extinguished and it is time to go home, make sure your guests aren’t leaving empty handed. Hanukkah gelt is a popular and inexpensive way to send your guests home happy. You can also give out a mini assortment of Hanukkah treats or some Hanukkah lollipops You can also purchase (or bake) Hanukkah-themed cookies , if you would like.
This is a sure way to make your Hanukkah party a hit. When your Hanukkah candles are burning softly in the background, and your house smells of sweet latkes and sufganiyot, there is no better time to get together with friends and family to celebrate.
But remember, if your party takes place before sundown make sure not to forget to light the Hanukkah candles together as the sun sets.
Hanukkah is one of the most anticipated holidays of the Jewish year. People look forward to the exchanging of Hanukkah gifts, spinning the dreidel, lighting the menorah, and eating some delicious Hanukkah food. Some people host Chanukah parties, while some prefer to stay at home. No matter which group you fall into, you can’t make it through the holiday without these essential Hanukkah food dishes:
Sufganiyot:
Also known as jelly doughnuts. These delicious lightweight doughnuts are often topped with powdered sugar or different flavor icings. If you are not a jelly person, there are also sufganiyot available that are filled with chocolate or nothing at all. It is a great treat for the kids!
Potato Latkes:
There is never a need for an excuse to enjoy some crunchy potato latkes, but Hanukkah serves as a great one! These are often served with yummy homemade applesauce to balance the salty and sweet flavors.
Who doesn’t love money? Gelt, which means money in Yiddish, are chocolate coins that often are bet in a game of dreidel. If you don’t know the rules to this game of chance, just look out for the Hebrew letter gimmel, and the whole pot becomes yours.
Applesauce:
This side dish complements your latkes and can double as a delicious and nutritious dessert. Applesauce can be enjoyed straight from the store bought bottle to the homemade version cooling in the pot.
Hanukkah is a Jewish holiday where it is encouraged to eat deep-fried and oily foods. Hanukkah only comes once a year (yes, it does last eight days), and it is okay to enjoy your favorite holiday foods while watching portion sizes and avoid going for thirds. Many people prefer the real stuff, but for those that don’t, there are many other healthy variations of your favorite Hannukah foods, such as the vegetable patty instead of the carb filled potato pancake.
We would love to hear from you. What is your favorite Hanukkah Food?.
Hanukkah is a Jewish holiday also known as the Festival of Lights that lasts for eight days and is usually celebrated by giving gifts. So what is a good Hanukkah gift? Traditionally a menorah or Hanukkah gelt would be a wonderful first Hanukkah gift. A menorah is a nine armed candlestick and one candle is lit each night until finally all eight candles are lit by the eighth night. The extra or ninth candle are a Shamash, which is "guard" in Hebrew. This candle is lit to light the other candles with.
Hanukkah gelt is the gift of some type of money for Hanukkah . This can be real money i.e., a savings bond, cash, check, or even pretend money like chocolate coins. What child do you know that doesn't like chocolate? Or better yet doesn't like money? Hanukkah gelt has been a traditional Hanukkah gift and is important to children in teaching the tradition of Hanukkah, which is to increase charity and good deeds, by giving.
It may seem a little like bribery to give Hanukkah gelt, but only because it is! Giving Hanukkah gelt as a Hanukkah gift is an important component of the process of educating. Until a child has reached a sufficient age and fully appreciates the Torah, then incentives such as Hanukkah gelt are typically used to gain attention. Once the true meaning is understood other items are typically given as gifts. This is a smart approach to obtain the attention from a child.
The giving of Hanukkah gifts is equally important and is typically a very well thought out an organized event. Hanukkah gifts are given each night over the eight days, and in some families, Hanukkah gelt is given each night too. However usually as Hanukkah gifts are given out on the fourth or fifth night, the monetary Hanukkah gifts are increased to larger amounts.
Other traditional Hanukkah gifts such as the dreidl are well known throughout the world. A dreidl is a four sided spinning top and has a letter from the Hebrew alphabet on each side. It is used for a gambling game called Teetotum, and each letter has a different meaning. Traditionally a dreidl is given with a roll of pennies for gambling with. The letters on the dreidl form an acronym, "Nes Gadol Haya Sham" which means "A great miracle happened here. The statement refers to the miracle that occurred in Israel. Another popular gift is a gift of generosity, where children are often taught to "give" themselves by taking gifts to homeless shelter or giving gifts to their family members.
As with any other holiday there are traditional and non traditional gifts, and Hanukkah gifts are no exception. Whether you give Chanukah gelt as a Hanukkah gift, or you give a sweater, there is no wrong Hanukkah gift to give, since it comes from the heart. When your gift is well thought out and given with genuine love, then the gift is always perfect.
Purim Baskets - Mishloach Manos
Hamantaschen- Purim Cookies
Shalach Manos for Kids
