Baked Churros with Dipping Jelly

Micah Siva

Easy

Difficulty

Hanukkah, or the “Festival of Lights,” celebrates a story when a miraculous small amount of oil burned for eight days. Hanukkah is traditionally marked by spinning dreidels and eating foods fried in oil, like potato latkes and sufganiyot, round jelly doughnuts. Making freshly fried doughnuts can be stressful, messy and time consuming—especially with kids. Instead, embrace Spanish culture with a fun spin on sufganiyot. Grab your kiddo and make a batch of family-friendly baked churros, and say goodbye to hot, oil-fried doughnuts. This recipe will be extra special if you have family members from places like Spain or Portugal where churros originated!

These churros are best served with a simple dip made of your favorite jelly or jam, and tossed with colorful decorative sugar. We’ve outlined sample tasks that children, aged 18 months to 9 years can help get involved with. We know every child is different, so feel free to do whatever works best for your family.

Ingredients for 18-20 churros

Churro

  • 1 cup water
  • 1 stick, (½ cup), butter, unsalted
  • 1 tbsp. brown sugar
  • ¼ tsp. salt
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1 cup white sugar or colorful sanding sugar

Jelly Dipping Sauce

  • ½ cup grape (or any kind of) jelly
  • 2 tbsp. water or apple juice

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a tray with 2 layers of parchment paper.

18 months and up: Line the tray with baking paper.

2. Combine water, brown sugar, butter and salt in a medium pot over medium heat until it starts to simmer.

18 months and up: Add all ingredients into the pot.

4 years and up: Measure and pour water, measure sugar and unwrap butter.

3. Once simmering, whisk in butter and flour until smooth and no lumps remain. It will form a dough ball.

6 years and up: With adult supervision, stir the flour into the butter mixture.

churro dough

4. In a small bowl, whisk eggs and vanilla.

4 years and up: Whisk eggs and add vanilla.

6 years and up: Crack and whisk eggs. Add vanilla.

5. Pour ¼ of the egg mixture into the pot, stirring quickly.

4 years and up: pour eggs into flour mixture.

6. Slowly add in the remaining egg mixture until smooth.

7. Transfer batter into a piping bag fitted with a star nozzle. Hint: Place in a cup to hold still when filling.

4 years and up: Help hold the piping bag open and hold cup while adult transfers batter.

8. Using gloves, pipe 18-20, 3-inch churros, 1-2 inches apart (you may need a second tray). The dough will be hot, so wear gloves!

4 years and up: Put on winter gloves and help squeeze the piping bag!

Churro piping

9. Bake for 18-22 minutes or until golden.

10. Turn off the oven, and let them sit for 15 minutes.

11. Add sugar to a large resealable bag.

12. Remove churros from the oven. Add churros to the bag of sugar, and shake to coat the churros.

18 months and up: Shake the bag.

13. Whisk together the jelly and apple juice until smooth. Transfer to a serving bowl.

18 months and up: Stir the jelly until smooth.

14. Serve churros with jelly sauce.

15. Enjoy! Happy Hanukkah!

Micah Siva

Micah Siva is a trained chef, Registered Dietitian, recipe writer, food photographer, and Jewish cook. Her love for food began in her grandmother’s kitchen, where she learned about the importance of food in celebrating holidays, bringing family together, and keeping traditions alive. She strives to modernize the foods she grew up on, adding her own unique spin on everything from matzah balls to latkes. Through her personal blog, (Nosh with Micah), she shares delicious, plant-forward recipes that are chef-created , dietitian approved, and guaranteed delicious.