Since (a) Chanukkah is not a Yom Tov, and (b) there are already plenty of Chanukkah foods, I am just sharing some ideas for decorations and lunch items.

For lunch a few years ago, I made this:

This was during a period when I would often pack rice balls for my children (they were fond of them with pickled onions and avocado). This time, I made the top layer with a bit of winter squash. I cannot remember how well it was received, but I had fun.

On to tabletop decorations: One year I found a bunch of pumpkins someone had thrown out after Halloween. Perfectly good pumpkins, which, I might add, last a very long time without refrigeration. We ate lots of roasted pumpkin that fall, my favorite way to eat it. But I also got fancy and candied some, as an experiment. Seeing the result, I decided to use some to decorate my table!

I took 10 large plastic cups and 10 plates, and attached them with a nut and bolt and spray-painted them gold. I arranged them to make a chanukkiah, with one (for the shamash) placed one atop the other.

Then I found some paper cups, slightly smaller, to be used as “candles,” and made a slit in each.

These were our candles. This worked for the pumpkin flames….

… chocolate coins of various sizes (Trader Joe’s has GIANT chocolate coins this year)…

… those chocolate oranges they sell everywhere during December (put ON the “candle” cups, not in a slit)…

… even using pear “flames”!

One final craft: On year, I saw a wooden “advent” calendar advertised on Woodpeckers Crafts (they happen to be Jewish-owned). I have three children, and realized that with three rows of 8 drawers, it would be a fun way to give my children their Hanukkah Gelt! Each child was tasked with the job of painting 8 of the drawers, and he/she saw fit. Here was the end product!

The tiny Chanukkiah is from a doll set belonging to one of the children. We made it years ago, and still use it! The only down side is that the drawers are TINY, so very little fits, but it is still fun!