Use these 15 low-carb Hanukkah recipes to stay on your keto diet during eight nights of celebration.
Are you worried about kicking yourself out of ketosis to celebrate a traditional Hanukkah with your family?
The Festival of Lights is about celebrating religious freedom. It’s a time to gather with friends and family to light the menorah, share meals, and exchange gifts.
It’s not about high-carb foods.
That’s why you don’t have to abandon your keto diet and all your progress just to enjoy your Hanukkah celebrations.
These 15 Hanukkah recipes prove you can stay in ketosis without missing your favorite traditional dishes.
Stick to them and the following tips and you may even lose weight this holiday season instead of gaining it.
5 Tips for Navigating a Traditional Hanukkah Spread (and the Holidays)
Keeping a low-carb diet during the holidays can be a monumental challenge. So use these holiday tips to stay on track at all your parties.
These strategies will help you handle eight nights of high-carb traps like a pro:
#1. Just Say “No Thanks”
Your friends and family will have more questions and opinions about your keto diet than they do about your love life.
So don’t open Pandora’s box here. Shift the conversation away from your low-carb diet and back to the holiday (or someone else).
When your Bubbie begs you to try her apricot rugelach, you must be strong and politely decline (as often as it takes).
You don’t owe anyone an explanation for your dietary choices. And if you really want to share the wonderful health benefits of keto, do so at a different time.
#2. Be Mindful of Your Portions
You can’t mindlessly scarf the treats on this list just because they’re keto-friendly. Low-carb foods still rack up carbs and too many will push you out of ketosis if you’re not careful.
So while you’re enjoying these keto-friendly Hanukkah dishes, keep an eye on your portions and avoid overindulging just because “it’s the holidays.”
#3. Sit Down to Eat and Socialize
Sit down to enjoy your holiday meals, whether appetizers or entrees.
When you sit down to eat, you allow your senses to engage and become more mindful of your satiety cues. This may prevent overeating and holiday weight gain.
Standing up to eat often tempts people to race through a full plate so they can socialize. So see if you can pull the conversation around the table and have everyone chat between mindful bites.
Pausing between bites to give your full attention and asking thoughtful questions can help you create a deeper connection that doesn’t revolve around food.
Plus, being more present with everyone shifts your attention away from what you can’t eat.
#4. Limit Your Alcohol
There’s another holiday trap that can kick you out of ketosis just as fast as fried foods: alcohol.
A traditional eight-ounce glass of Manischewitz wine, a Jewish wine that’s commonly served during Hanukkah, clocks in at 6.4g of carbs[*].
You can cut this number in half when you go with a five-ounce pour of red wine or even many low-carb ketogenic beers.
Or you can eliminate the carbs altogether with a serving of either gin, vodka, or tequila. Keep your mixers to carb-free choices like seltzer or stevia-sweetened soda.
Drink no more than one or two alcoholic beverages, max. Alcohol pauses weight loss and ketone production so you don’t want this to last long.
#5. If You’re Not Hosting, Bring a Low-Carb Dish or Two
It’s always a smart idea to bring a keto-friendly dish to your holiday gatherings. This ensures you have something delicious to eat that won’t kick you out of ketosis.
Call your host ahead of time so you make something that complements their spread versus being redundant.
For more tips on how to avoid holiday weight gain, don’t forget to check out this guide after these recipes.
15 Low-Carb Hanukkah Recipes
These low-carb Hanukkah recipes are perfect whether you’re hosting one night of Hanukkah or celebrating as a guest for a few.
The recipes are arranged from appetizers and bread to entrees and desserts. You have options no matter which part of the meal you’re asked to bring.
Just two quick notes:
First, dairy is traditional during Hanukkah, but you can alter many of these recipes for dairy-free living.
Second, these recipes may not fall under strict Kosher guidelines. Read each recipe through to the end so you know how to adjust them.
Now it’s time to take your pick of these amazing low-carb Hanukkah recipes:
#1. Cauliflower Cheddar Fritters (No-Potato Pancakes or Low-Carb Latkes)
Avoid the potato latkes and sweet potato latkes your cousin “experimented” with. They’ll have way too many carbs for your macros.
But these cauliflower cheddar fritters make an excellent no-potato latke dupe.
Skip the applesauce and plop on a dollop of sour cream to savor your first low-carb latke and love it.
#2. Pesto Pull-Apart Low-Carb Bread
A slice of challah bread can have roughly 14g of carbs (13.5 net carbs)[*]. That’s easily worth over half your carbs for the entire day.
Fortunately, this pull-apart low-carb bread recipe is a savory stand-in. You’ll find the same pillowy soft texture of challah bread without the high carbs.
#3. Low-Carb Cloud Bread
Cloud bread is another low-carb bread alternative that works well for parties and weekday lunches alike.
As opposed to pull-apart bread, cloud bread makes single-serve portions ready to go. It’s easy for you to calculate servings and for your guests to grab and eat them.
#4. Garlic Keto Breadsticks
Fill a bread basket with cheesy garlic keto breadsticks and your guests may not even realize it’s low-carb bread.
#5. Baked Brie (Two Ways)
Eating dairy on Hanukkah is an homage to Judith, a legend who overcame the leader of an enemy camp that invaded her homeland[*].
Judith beheaded the leader after feeding him too much wine and cheese. This sent his army retreating while hers stormed in and took back control.
Want to honor this powerful woman’s legacy on Hanukkah?
Use this raspberry baked brie recipe (pictured). Or cook up winter vibes with this low-carb cranberry and walnut baked brie recipe.
#6. Keto Blinis with Smoked Salmon
If you’re missing blintzes, these smoked salmon and cream cheese blinis provide an ideal replacement. They’re a great low-carb Hanukkah appetizer anyone can enjoy, whether they’re following a ketogenic diet or not.
#7. The Best Keto Avocado Deviled Eggs
Deviled eggs are an easy and poppable appetizer fit for any night of Hanukkah.
This keto avocado deviled eggs recipe is unique and more filling than a traditional recipe thanks to the fat boost from avocado.
#8. No-Matzo Ball Soup
One matzo has over 23 grams of carbs[*]. To make matzo balls, you need matzo meal (i.e., a lot of crushed up matzos). And that’s definitely not keto.
But if you replace the matzo meal with coconut flour, you’ll keep the carbs down without sacrificing the texture or taste of your soup.
This no-matzo ball soup recipe is low-glycemic, keto-friendly, and delightful. Make it just once and you won’t make the high-carb version you used to enjoy (or feel the same bloat afterward).
#9. Miracle Noodle Keto Kugel
Your family’s noodle kugel recipe, a traditional Jewish casserole that’s often served during Hanukkah, is probably too high in carbs to keep you in ketosis.
But that doesn’t mean it’s completely off-limits.
This modern low-carb version uses shirataki noodles. These are known as “miracle noodles” because they’re a tasteless, carb-free pasta alternative.
So swap out your regular noodles for shirataki noodles and enjoy your kugel again.
#10. Keto Beef Brisket
Beef brisket is popular for Hanukkah dinner. This low-carb gluten-free recipe lets you keep the tradition alive, in a slightly different and less carby way.
#11. Herbed Butter Roasted Chicken
You’ll also find roasted chicken on many traditional Hanukkah celebration tables.
Follow this keto-friendly herbed butter roasted chicken recipe and you’ll have crispy skin on the outside and tender, juicy, flavor-packed meat below it.
A side dish of crunchy, low-carb vegetables, such as roasted broccoli or brussels sprouts, would fit right at home next to your chicken.
You can also roast chicken thighs during the week to have another easy go-to low-carb option.
#12. Herbed Stuffed Salmon with Bearnaise Sauce
You’ll need to stay away from the gefilte fish in keto because it has matzo meal.
But this low-carb herbed stuffed salmon recipe delivers when you want another option that’s not beef or chicken.
Despite looking like a Top Chef-worthy dish, the recipe is super simple and only takes 20 minutes of prep work and one hour to cook.
It also makes 10 servings, which is perfect if you’re hosting a small gathering at your place. You’ll impress your guests and their taste buds without much extra effort.
#13. Low-Carb Keto Chocolate Rugelach
Rugelach is one of the most popular desserts at Jewish holiday parties, including Hanukkah. The bad news is these tiny morsels of joy are usually high in both carbs and sugar.
But not these low-carb chocolate keto rugelach.
You’ll make the base with a mix of coconut flour and almond flour. Then you’ll use sugar-free chocolate for the filling. Roll these babies up, slice, and bake them for the best keto-friendly rugelach ever.
You can also switch up the filling for your tastes. Not a chocolate fan? Try pecan and cinnamon.
Plus, bite-sized rugelach work better for a crowd than a more traditional chocolate babka everyone needs to slice up themselves.
#14. Vegan Raspberry Baked Donuts
You can’t celebrate Hanukkah without sufganiyot, or traditional jelly doughnuts. Bad news? All that fried dough and sugary jam will certainly kick you out of ketosis.
So go for the same vibe with these keto baked raspberry donuts. Fresh raspberries sub for the jam. And you can skip the glaze and roll your donuts in granulated keto-friendly sweetener to mimic the real thing.
#15. Healthy, Low Carb Keto Chocolate Bars
Want to spin a dreidel for something healthier than traditional chocolate gelt?
Follow this recipe for low-carb, keto chocolate bars and say goodbye to those sugary coins. Look for round silicone molds and you’ll score a true gelt replica.
Ready for Eight Crazy Nights of Low-Carb Hanukkah Recipes?
See? You can totally celebrate the Hanukkah festivities while crushing it on your ketogenic diet.
Use these recipes to glow-up your traditional dishes. Or create new traditions with the low-carb versions of what you remembered having as a kid.
Either way, these options give you the ability to celebrate Hanukkah with your friends and family — without carbs or sugar.
Bookmark this page to plan your Hanukkah meal this year. And share it with your friends and family so everyone has more low-carb options on hand!