Sfenj – Moroccan Hanukkah Donuts

Sfenj is a Moroccan fried donut. They have a beautiful golden crunchy exterior and light and fluffy interior.

Arab Origins

Sfenj comes from the Arabic word Safanj, meaning sponge. A perfect description of the airy interior. Sfenj is eaten plain, sprinkled with sugar, or soaked in honey. Sfenj is a well-known dish in the Maghreb (Northwest African) region. They are traditionally made and sold early in the morning for breakfast or in the late afternoon accompanied by mint tea.

Sfenj is eaten by Moroccan Jews and other Sephardim. The donuts are are fried in oil to commemorate the Hanukkah miracle.

The Greeks had made all the oil in the Temple impure. Miraculously, the Maccabees found one jar that had been overlooked. The jar only had enough oil for one day. The miracle was that the oil burned for eight days!

The holiday commemorates these miracles.  The holiday is celebrated for eight days.

Donuts Are Not All Created Equal

There are many doughnut recipes available. This recipe is over a century old, and comes from my Moroccan maternal grandfather’s family. We have shared this old family recipe for generations.

A word of caution. If you have ever made dough, this one will seem all wrong. The recipe calls for a full packet of yeast. The dough won’t seem to rise for the first hour. After the dough rises, it will seem too wet and sticky.

Fear not. The first time I made it, I had to call my mom to confirm I hadn’t messed up the recipes somehow. She assured me I was on the right path. I continued forging ahead.

She was on point. The dough will double in size and is extremely sticky. Just have faith and follow the directions, starting with wetting your hands. The next step is to remove an egg-sized morsel of dough. Shape it into a ball. Use your thumbs to poke a hole in the middle. Carefully stretch it out into the shape of a bracelet.

Frying the Sfenj

Place the rings of dough carefully into the hot oil. They almost immediately float and start turning golden brown and fluffy. It only takes 2-3 minutes per side to cook.

Remove them from the oil and place them on absorbent paper. This will remove any excess oil. Sprinkle sugar over the donuts while they are still warm.

“Spice it up” and sprinkle them with a sugar/cinnamon mixture. My favorite topping is warm honey drizzled over the top.

In Morocco, where there is an abundance of palm trees, it’s common to thread a frond through the sfenj donuts into a decorative ring. If you don’t have access to palm fronds, you can use ribbon. It’s sure to impress guests. And if that doesn’t do it, they will definitely enjoy the wonderfully light, crunchy and sweet treat. Don’t forget the Moroccan mint tea.

Recipe

Sfenj – Moroccan Hanukkah Donut (Amar family recipe)

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4.75 from 8 votes

Prep time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook time: 30 minutes minutes

Total time: 2 hours hours 45 minutes minutes

Servings: 12 donuts

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DESCRIPTION

Our original Amar family recipe is below: Before partaking of the fried pastry, it is traditional to bless the host saying “Lah iktehah hada” (“May the tradition not be severed”). Amen. Sfenj or sfinge (from the Arabic word “Safanja” which means sponge) is a Maghrebi doughnut, cooked in oil. Sfenj is eaten plain or sprinkled with sugar or soaked in honey. It is a well known dish in the Maghreb and is traditionally only made and sold early in the morning for breakfast or in the late afternoon accompanied by tea or coffee. It is also called Khfaf in Algeria and other parts of the Maghreb. – Wikipedia

INGREDIENTS

 

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• ▢ 1 cup white flour
• ▢ 2 ½ teaspoon yeast (1 packet)
• ▢ 1 pinch salt
• ▢ ⅔ cup water (warm tap water is fine)
• ▢ 3 tablespoon sugar
• ▢ oil (to fry )

INSTRUCTIONS

 

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• In a glass, add warm water and dissolve the packet of yeast. Set aside for 5-10 minutes.
• In mixing bowl, thoroughly combine flour, salt and sugar.  Then slowly pour in water with dissolved yeast, while mixing by hand. The dough will be very sticky.  Cover with plastic and let stand for 2-4 hours. It should double in volume.
  
• At medium to medium-low heat, add 2″ of oil in a frying pan.
• As the oil heats, fill a small bowl with water for dipping your hands (to prevent the dough from sticking while forming the donuts).
• Poke down the dough to remove some of the air.  It will still be very sticky and moist. Pull out a egg-sized round of dough. Using wet hands roll it into a ball and carefully place it in the hot oil for 2-3 minutes or until golden. Turn over and fry until the other side is evenly golden in color. Remove and place on absorbent paper.  Repeat the process until all the dough is used.
  
• Dust with sugar and cinnamon or drizzle with honey. Serve warm or at room temperature.

NUTRITION

Serving: 1gCalories: 58kcalCarbohydrates: 12gProtein: 2gFat: 1gSaturated Fat: 1gSodium: 5mgPotassium: 35mgFiber: 1gSugar: 3gVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 3mgIron: 1mg

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La recette traduite en français

Excusez-moi d’avance car j’ai utilisé Google pour traduire.

• 125 grams de farine blanche 
• un sachet levure (2.5 cuillère à café)   
• une pincée de sel
• 85 grams d’eau tiède (pas chaud)
• 3 cuillerée à soupe du sucre  
• huile de friture

1. Dans un verre, ajoutez de l’eau tiède et dissolvez le sachet de levure. Laisser reposer 5-10 minutes.

2. Dans un bol, mélanger la farine, le sel et le sucre. Versez ensuite lentement l’eau avec la levure dissoute, tout en mélangeant à la main. La pâte sera très collante. Couvrir de plastique et laisser reposer 2 à 4 heures. Il doit doubler de volume.

3. A feu moyen à moyen-doux, ajouter 5 centimètres d’huile dans une poêle.

4. Pendant que l’huile chauffe, remplissez un petit bol d’eau pour y tremper les mains (pour éviter que la pâte ne colle pendant la formation des beignets).

5. Piquez la pâte pour enlever un peu d’air. Il sera toujours très collant et humide. Sortez un rond de pâte de la taille d’un œuf. Avec les mains mouillées, roulez-le en boule et placez-le soigneusement dans l’huile chaude pendant 2-3 minutes ou jusqu’à ce qu’il soit doré. Retournez et faites frire jusqu’à ce que l’autre côté soit uniformément doré. Retirer et placer sur du papier absorbant. Répétez l’opération jusqu’à ce que toute la pâte soit utilisée.

6. Saupoudrer de sucre et de cannelle ou arroser de miel. Servez chaud ou à température ambiante.

Bon appétit!

Read more about the Hanukkah story here.

See more Kosher Cowboy Hanukkah recipes.