Every holiday season we ask a few friends to join us here at The Kitchn for a series of guest posts. The topics range from favorite holiday recipes to family memories and traditions. Today's guest: Cheryl Sternman Rule of 5 Second Rule. I am a huge fan of Cheryl's writing and photography, not to mention her cooking.

At my college, the annual Latke-Hamantaschen debate drew standing-room only crowds. Each year, two popular philosophy professors held forth on the relative merits of these holiday foods so central to Jewish tradition.

At the time, I found the debate comical (it was intentionally lighthearted and funny), but mostly rhetorical. After all, it was obvious to me that hamantaschen were far superior. With tender, triangular pastry and sweet, peekaboo fillings, hamantaschen won my heart in a way greasy fried latkes never could. More

Every holiday season we ask a few friends to join us here at The Kitchn for a series of guest posts. The topics range from favorite holiday recipes to family memories and traditions. Today's guest: Jess Thomson of Hogwash. Jess is a friend and terrific writer and recipe developer. She recently published a book on doughnuts, and she brings us this recipe for sufganiyot, those fried, jelly-filled pastries so beloved at Hanukkah.

Consistency has never really been my strong point, so it's not surprising that when I think of December, I think of three very different things. I think of skiing on Christmas day, when the crowds are thin and Santa's finally been able to bag off work and take a few quick runs. I think of the menorah I must have forgotten to clean last year, like I always do, with a week's worth of wax crammed into the little candle holes, waiting patiently for an hour of my time and a Swiss Army knife. And I think of my freshman year in college, when my friend Abby gathered a bowl of little Satsuma oranges, studded them with whole cloves, and put them on top of her bureau. I thought she was Martha incarnate; I didn't grow up with décor. The sweet, spiced smell from that one bowl snuck under her dorm room door, and wafted down the hall, and planted itself deep within my psyche as the smell of Christmas. More

We just whipped up a batch of chai concentrate intended for holiday gifts. Only problem: the mix is so delectable that we want to devour it ourselves! Fortunately, it is very easy to make. More

For weeks now, we've been talking non-stop about Christmas cookies, special meals for Christmas and Hannukah, edible gifts, and setting a festive holiday table. And now the holidays are actually here! What do you have planned? More

It's no small feat to turn a kitchen kosher. To start, a very thorough cleaning (as in every surface and utensil) must be meticulously orchestrated. And undergoing this process in the White House kitchen requires the highest level of scrutiny. The New York Times followed the process - read on for how they did it. More

I've moved 9 times over the last decade and everywhere I've been I've made friends along the way. I make a great deal of the gifts for close friends and family, but when it comes to giving gifts to those who live far away I'm simply horrible about getting to the post office to mail things. Instead I turn to online ordering a few artisanal products and I'm wondering if you do the same and what your favorites are? More

There is something about Champagne and sparkling wine that seems to automatically kick off a celebration. With the holiday season in full swing and New Year's parties around the corner I thought I would share some thoughts on the the key sparkling wine regions of the world, and the many different styles to choose from More

It's beginning to look a lot like latke season! And if there's one thing I know inside and out, it's latkes. My Jewish father married a Christmas-loving Christian, so growing up my sisters and I celebrated both holidays. Although really, more and more Hanukkah started to be much less about religion and tradition and much more about lighting candles and eating latke after latke after latke. More

Judging by all the festivities I see happening around me, I reckon we are smack bang in the middle of the holiday season. Perhaps you are looking for a special wine to offer as a gift? Or, a simple easy-drinking wine to drink at a holiday party? To help navigate the myriad of wines on offer I've put together a tidy selection of wines that I tried over the past year, and found particularly tasty. More

It's the holiday season and while my household celebrates Christmas, we're also just as likely to attend holiday events that don't necessarily match its red and green theme. (Hanukkah, Solstice, Buddha's Enlightenment, etc.) I love to bring a plateful of cookies as a gift or put luck offering, so this year I gave my usual Christmas cookie recipe some new, more ecumenical party clothes. Read on for the transformation! More