Growing up I thought I knew the scoop on L’ag B’Omer . The story I was told was about Rabbi Akiva’s students who disrespected one another and then died in a plague. On L’ag B’Omer (the 33rd day of the Omer count which spans from Passover until Shavuot) they stopped dying and we celebrate. Now that I lived in Israel … Continue reading
Yes, it is time to bake a challah in the shape of a key . This is the way I did it-play doh style but remember this is an Ashkenazi minhag, a custom, not a halacha so you have more wiggle room. Any key will do- a skeleton key, a house key, a safe deposit … Continue reading
Believe it or not, the Talmud says that that garlic is an aphrodisiac. Yes, that is a fact. Here’s a quote from the Babylonian Talmud (from Gil Marks‘s Encyclopedia of Jewish Food) “Five things were said of garlic. It satiates, it warms the body, it brightens one’s face, it increases semen and it kills intestinal … Continue reading
Lamed is for Lukshen When I was a kid I loved to peer longingly into the window of the now defunct Meal Mart kosher takeaway store on Broadway and 77th Street. There were all kinds of intriguing things: roasted chickens, potato kugels, chopped liver but what caught my eye was the savory salt and pepper … Continue reading
Yes, I was a bit confused to learn that there is a recipe called Amalek Kugel. Amalek? Isn’t his evil tribe our greatest historical enemy? Wasn’t the wicked Haman his grandson? Aren’t Hitler, the Hamas terrorists, the Hizbollah, Ahamdinjead said to be his descendents? Naming a kugel after him sounded about as strange as naming … Continue reading
Here’s a cooking lesson cast in rhyme So your latkes can rock at Chanuka Time. Latkes are a part of our history I’m going to unlock the mystery Of how to make them crisp and light For your guests to fress on Chanuka night. Rule # 1 don’t skimp on oil ¼ inch in the … Continue reading
No, dear readers, I’m not eating my way through the book of Genesis, but during this holiday-less time, I look to the weekly Torah reading , Hayei Sarah for recipe ideas. It is well known that our matriarch Sarah was a master baker. The Midrash says that there was a blessing in her dough. Not … Continue reading
After my last post, I didn’t believe that I’d be making stuffed cabbage this Sukkos which made me maudlin. After all women in my family, probably in lots of families have been stuffing them for years, even centuries, I’m sure for a perfectly good reason, though no one seems to remember what that reason is. Ididn’t want to … Continue reading
When I sat down to write about stuffed cabbage I imagined the paean I’d compose to this East European Jewish classic. First I would explain the deep mystical meaning behind this delicacy alternatively known as holopches, galupches, tutued kaposta or kruv memuleh depending on where in the Ashkenazi Jewish world one traces one’s roots. After … Continue reading
More than the Jewish answer to wontons, kreplach are a kabalistic food, A krepl (singular for kreplach which is plural) is an edible soft sculpture expressing the nature of Divine judgment. The dough represents Divine mercy (Midas Harahamin) while the meat filling stands for Divine justice (Midas Hadin). Traditionally we float kreplach in the chicken … Continue reading
