Sephardic Bumuelos~a Chanukah treat

Bumuelos are a tradition that escaped with my ancestors exiled from Spain in 1492, traveled through Italy and on to Turkey, to settle firmly into our family holiday recipe repertoire.

When Chanukah rolled around, Grandma felt she had license to pour enough cups of oil to clog even our youthful arteries into one of my mother's heavy pots. Then she magically extracted the most heavenly clouds of puffed dough that she drizzled with warm honey sauce

• 1 package (2 1/4 teaspoons) yeast
• 1 cup very warm water
• 3 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg, well beaten
• oil for frying
• cinnamon

• 2 cups sugar
• 1 cup honey
• 1 cup water

In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water and allow to stand for 10 to 15 minutes, until bubbly.

In a large bowl, combine flour and salt. Make a well in the center and pour in yeast mixture and egg. Using a large spoon, mix gently, slowly adding warm water if needed, until a soft, sticky dough is formed. Cover dough and set aside for 30 minutes to or until doubled in size. (can set aside for up to 2 hours until ready to fry)

Meanwhile, in a saucepan over high heat, bring sugar, honey and water to a boil for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and keep warm.

Heat oil in deep fryer to 325 degrees or set a large heavy pot with 3" of oil over medium high heat. The oil is hot enough when a light sprinkle of flour over the oil bubbles immediately. Gently drop 2" balls of the batter into hot oil, being careful not to spatter hot oil. For best results, do not crowd burmuelos. Fry for 3 to 5 minutes, flipping once, until burmuelos float and are golden and puffy. With a slotted spoon, remove to a serving dish.

Pour syrup over hot bumuelos and sprinkle with cinnamon. Serve immediately.