We haven’t sat down to Thanksgiving dinner yet and here it is, Hanukkah, less than three weeks away. I suppose that’s better than when Hanukkah actually fell on Thanksgiving five years ago, but still, Dec. 2 seems so early. 

Luckily, STL Hanukkah shoppers need not stress because I enlisted help from Hanukkah Harriett (a.k.a. editorial and development associate extraordinaire, Elise Krug) for the 2018 installment of Ellen’s Hanukkah Gift Guide. Together, we’ve scoured stores, big and small, pored over catalogues and websites and summoned our retail super powers to find gifts that are affordable, unique and connect to the St. Louis Jewish community and/or Israel, though not necessarily all at once. So without further ado, here are eight ideas for eight special nights:

1. Custom packaged chocolate

Former Jewish Light Unsung Hero Amy Fenster Brown, who personifies the very essence of “hostess with the mostess,” along with a friend Charmaine Thuston, have created the perfect gift for hostesses (and hosts), teachers, neighbors and anyone else you want to reward with a little sweetness this season. They have filled 16-ounce Mason jars with Hershey kisses, then decorated the jars with various holiday sayings, including “Gelt Complex,” “Happy Challah Days” and “Oy to the World,” among others. Each jar costs $15. To order,  call or text Amy at 314-369-6301. She will instruct you when and how to pick up your order in Creve Coeur or Chesterfield. In addition, St. Louisan Julie Lander offers a wide range of customized Hanukkah gifts on her Etsy website. From personalized gelt bags ($6) to Hanukkah beverage tubs adorned with a dreidel or menorah and your family surname ($32), Lander can “Hanukkah-ize” all sorts of gifts for the holiday.

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2. Jewish gingerbread house

Nothing quite says Hanukkah like a gingerbread house, right? Well the folks at Costco apparently think so because for $9.99, your pre-built “Hanukkah House Kit” comes with chocolate gelt coins, candy dreidels, blue and white icing and other confectionary treats to decorate a Jewish-themed gingerbread house. And while we may wonder why Costco thinks gingerbread houses have anything to do with Hanukkah (as opposed to, perhaps, a do-it-yourself chocolate menorah kit), I suppose we can take solace that this edible home is kosher, at least according to Jewish dietary laws.

3. A gift that make us all scream

After lighting the menorah, gather the family and head to Clementine’s Creamery for the gift of my husband’s two favorite words — ice cream. Clementine’s, with locations in Clayton and Lafayette Square, is launching (starting Nov. 20) two new flavors created in time for Hanukkah. The rugelach flavor is described as “tart apricot ice cream with hearty scratch-made pastry featuring English walnuts and raisins folded together with a cream cheese crust” while sufganiyot blends swirls of raspberry and doughnut chunks into a savory olive oil based ice cream. Nothing pint-size about these offerings, that’s for sure.

4. Israeli grapevines

Think outside the bottle this Hanukkah and purchase a grapevine to be planted in an Israeli winery of your choosing in the name of the gift recipient. The majority of this tax-deductible $18 purchase goes to an Israeli charity of your choice. Visit www.wineonthevine.org for details. 

Products from Israel 

On the subject of Israel, Matana, the Hebrew word for gift, delivers curated gift boxes with items made by artisans and artisan businesses in Israel, from kibbutzim to factories to family-run farms. Boxes include high-quality products that range from Shalva Tea, locally foraged teas packaged by adults with special needs; to Kuchinate baskets woven by African refugee women in south Tel Aviv; to Sindyanna olive oil, which is created by Jewish and Arab women working side-by-side. All products are 100 percent made in Israel, and all food products are all kosher certified. You can choose among monthly subscription packages, where recipients receive three to four items every few months, or a one-time gift box of three to five items, starting at $40. For details and more information, go to www.thematanashop.com.

6. Jewish-themed games

Recently, at the NCJW Couturier sale, I stumbled on an unopened box of the Jewish Old Maid card game for $3. Of course I had to buy it. As part of a game playing family — cards, board games, trivia, you name it — finding ones with a Jewish twist seem like a perfect Hanukkah gift. Etsy (www.etsy.com) has a downloadable Hanukkah bingo game ($3) while Urban Outfitters (at the Galleria) touts “The 8 Drinking Games of Chanukah” ($12), where a dreidel is passed among players while they sing an adult version of “I Have a Little Dreidel.” Whoever is holding the dreidel at the end of the song then stands up and takes a drink while spinning the dreidel. Amazon, too, offers plenty of options for all ages, including Hanukkah Mad Libs ($4.99); Kosherland ($21.85), a Jewish-themed Candy Land based on the laws of eating kosher; Monopoly Jerusalem ($58.65), in Hebrew and English; the Jewish edition of Sequence ($17.95), where players find symbols of Jewish culture pictured on the game board and playing cards; Shopping for Shabbos ($17.24), a memory game; Spot It Shalom ($11.69), a matching game, and much more. Jewish Old Maid is also there, though I’m afraid it will cost you $7.85. And whatever you do, don’t get stuck with the Yetzer Hora card!

7. Pet accessories

Let’s not forget our pets this Hanukkah season. Petco certainly hasn’t with its Hanukkah Gefilte Fish Flattie Toy ($7.99, good for both dogs and cats) from the Holiday Tails 2018 Hanukkah Collection. The folks at www.rover.com take it a step further with eight unique Hanukkah gifts sure to light up your dog’s life, including a yarmulke and tallis for your furry friend ($6.40, and I am not making this up), Star of David and menorah dog collar ($12.99) and a Hanukkah hoodie ($15.98) that promises to keep your pooch warm and cozy on chilly winter days.

8. Family illustration

Etsy artist Andrew from Cartoon Portrait can create a Hanukkah-themed, 16 x 20 custom cartoon family portrait working from high quality photos submitted to him via the website. The price starts at $69 for two people and goes up $15 for every person added. So if you’re a family of four, the cost would be $99. His cartoons are reminiscent of “The Simpsons,” and he also can do caricatures, if you prefer. For more details, go to http://bit.ly/Hanukkah-portrait.