Who Ya Gonna Believe?

If celebrity endorsements count for anything, Chanuka is in good shape this year. After decades of listening to non-Orthodox rabbis voice their doubts about the miracle of the oil (after all, why should it differ from other events they reject, like the Exodus, or the giving of the Torah), their goose has been cooked by an unexpected source.

Wolfgang Puck, America�s chef extraordinaire declared in the Washington Times that the miracle really happened! Alas, he jumps from the frying pan into the fire, by substituting one heresy for another. Although he accepts Chanuka in its traditional understanding, he advocates � perish the thought! – making sufganiyot without oil. He proposes (and provides a recipe for) doughnuts that have gone the way of potato chips for the calorie-counters � baked, rather than fried.

He does not share with us the reaction of his two sons, who are being �raised Jewish� � which I suppose means their mother is a member of the tribe.

We can guess.