Last year I mentioned that I make a roasted goose every Hanukkah (recipe and all). Well, yesterday I bought the bird and my goose will be cooked next weekend, for our traditional family Hanukkah dinner. This isn’t an old tradition in our family. It started with me, after I read that in German Jewish families goose is a traditional dinner on the Fifth night of Hanukkah.

Well, we all love goose so we can pretend to be German that night, just like on St. Patrick’s Day we eat Irish-style: corned beef and cabbage and Irish Soda Bread. 

Lo and behold! Our Hanukkah dinner this year falls on the fifth night of Hanukkah (December 24th). How nice!

In addition to the goose we’ll have roasted potatoes (using some of the goose fat that renders), a green vegetable and this Sweet and Sour Red Cabbage:

Sweet and Sour Red Cabbage

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 tablespoons margarine or butter

1 medium onion, chopped

2 medium tart apples, peeled, cored and chopped

1 medium head red cabbage, shredded

1 bay leaf

1/3 cup brown sugar

3 cups water

1/2 cup red wine vinegar

2 tablespoons lemon juice

4 whole cloves

salt to taste

Heat the vegetable oil and margarine in a large, deep saute pan over medium heat. Add the onion and apple and cook for 3-4 minutes or until softened. Add the cabbage, bay leaf, brown sugar, water, wine vinegar, lemon juice, cloves and salt and toss the ingredients until they are evenly distributed. Cover the pan. Simmer the ingredients, stirring occasionally, for one hour. Remove the bay leaf (cloves usually disintegrate). Makes 6-8 servings