By Rosanne “Bubbio” Selfon
On Sunday evening June 30, my Lancaster kitchen found me preparing 10 recipes of Grandma Sara’s Chanukah cookie dough. I have to admit, I have never made as much sweet cookie dough as I made that evening. It was lovingly wrapped in plastic, refrigerated overnight, and ready for the trip to camp the next morning. I had also packed my Grandmother’s huge wooden mixing bowl, rolling pins and assorted cooking supplies I deemed ‘must-haves’ if I was going to share this legacy recipe with our Harlam campers.
By 7:30 am, I was on my way to Kunkletown. I was going to have the delight of baking with three bunks of campers in Bubbio’s Kitchen – our new teaching kitchen that was dedicated in honor of my 70th birthday last year. I told the kids – “ I am the BUBBIO!” I could hardly wait to get to camp and prepare the stations with dough, flour, cinnamon/sugar mixture, a rolling pin and lots of assorted sprinkles. Of course, I had schlepped along all of my Chanukah cookie cutters, too. These would be authentic Chanukah cookies regardless that it was almost July!
My able assistant Tanya and I set up the kitchen with 4 stations. The Arava boys came first. Every guy loved making the cookies. They had fun rolling and cutting, adding oodles of sprinkles. All they kept saying was, “when can we eat them?” Two jammed-filled bags were delivered to them at lunch – hundred of stars, dreidels, menorahs, etc.
Kineret and Sharon girls followed, enjoying their time as much as the guys did earlier. FYI – each group remembered their Chanukah facts –easily asked and answered during baking times! Sometimes, more flour ended on them and their Harlam aprons than on the tabletops. Some noses were even covered in flour! Kineret girls enjoyed my playlist, dancing a bit while the cookies were baking.
Sharing my Grandma Sara’s recipe along with its story, my love of baking and joy of being with the kids….what a perfect day. By the way, I think they loved their baking time as much as I did! Generations ‘doing together’ is simply fabulous.
See you again, Harlamites, one day soon in Bubbio’s Kitchen!
Rosnne Selfon is the past chair of the Camp Harlam Council and Harlam@60 chair. She is the proud mother of 2 camp alumnus and the grandmother of 2 campers.