NEW YORK — Each year, Jews light Chanukah candles for eight evenings in a row, repeating the story of the Maccabees, the ancient guerrilla warriors who launched surprise attacks on the occupying armies of Syria.

Judah the Maccabee and his four brothers overthrew Syrian tyranny, restored the Temple in Jerusalem and witnessed a miracle when a one-day supply of olive oil burned for eight days until a new batch was produced.

That miracle and the Maccabees' daring eclipsed the tale of Judith, the beautiful widow who also met the enemy and triumphed.

During one of Judea's darkest hours, Holofernes, a general from Asia Minor, laid siege to the town of Bethulia. In no time its water supply dwindled to almost nothing and the town was close to surrender.

The Book of Judith, an apocryphal work that probably dates to the Second Temple period, relates how a young widow determined to save her people purposely beguiled the general, who unwittingly obliged by falling in love with her.

The widow and the general dined together often, until one night, when Judith served him salty cheese and plied him with wine to quench his thirst, making him tipsy. Holofernes fell into a stupor. Judith grabbed his sword and cut off his head, rescuing her town and thwarting the Syrians.

Although several versions of Judith's story circulate, none has been confirmed as true. Scholars who have studied and debated aspects of the tale for centuries have generally agreed that it is intended to teach us that the most powerful forces can, with the help of God, be defeated by those who may appear physically weak but are in fact spiritually strong.

In spite of its dubious veracity, Judith's legend has led to the custom among some Jews of eating cheese and other dairy foods at Chanukah. Think of latkes and sour cream. There is some evidence that partaking cheese may be as old as Chanukah itself. The salty cheese that Judith served Holofernes may have been in the form of fried cakes.

Recipes for ricotta pancakes in Italy and feta cheese pancakes in Greece may be modern versions of these ancient fried cakes.

Although foods fried in oil have been the heart of Chanukah cuisine for centuries, potato latkes were once considered newcomers. Carried aboard cargo ships from Bolivia and Peru, potatoes first arrived in Europe in the 16th century, precluding the possibility that they played a part in early Chanukah celebrations.

For the most part, serving cheese dishes at Chanukah is more popular in the Sephardi tradition. In Eastern Europe, oil was once a scarce commodity and Ashkenazi Jews turned to goose fat, rendering it into shmaltz, which was decadently rich and abundant all winter.

Paying homage to Judith's courage, in some Sephardi cultures women do not perform work during the first and last days of Chanukah. On the seventh night, women sing, dance, drink wine and eat foods made from cheese.

In deference to the one-day supply of oil that stretched for eight days, the shortening of choice in the recipes below is olive oil.

In the spirit of Judith's bravery, savor cheese dishes, let the wine flow and toast one of history's unsung legendary heroines.