own square. Onion Pletzl as a superannuated onion roll, a sandwich bread fit for Gulliver the Giant. Pletzl means square in Yiddish as in town square and this bread is square, albeit imperfectly so. Think of it as Sicilian pizza with the sauce and cheese replaced by raw onions. According to Arthur Schwartz, the author … Continue reading
Tu Bishvat which is on Shabbat is the time to pray for a good etrog. An etrog, the citron, the Biblical “fruit of the goodly tree” is one of the four species used during the holiday of Succoth and finding a good one is no simple matter. As there are an almost infinite variety … Continue reading
Offal is the British name for animal gut, what we Americans euphemistically call or organ or “variety meats.’ I prefer the British term because it sounds like “awful” which is the opinion most people have of this type of food. Because organ meats are high in fat and cholesterol lots of people won’t touch the … Continue reading
Many years ago a couple lived together in a small Polish shtetl . Though they were both basically good people, they had a disagreement they couldn’t resolve. In time their difference grew so severe that they were contemplating divorce. But before throwing in the towel they sought counsel from the local wise man who happened … Continue reading
I’m not a gefilte fish lover. I’ve been known to refuse the stuff even when it’s dressed up like a fishy petite four.But gefilte fish isn’t something to sneer at. It is actually a reflection of Jewish culinary genius.Since Shabbos means fish but the Sabbath laws forbid using a utensil to separate the bones from the flesh (you can … Continue reading
I don’t have an Aunt Lillian. My one and only aunt is called Ava . She sings, plays piano and tap dances but she doesn’t bake apple cakes.I love her anyway and I’m sure she’d love Aunt Lillian’s cake even as neither Aunt Ava or I have a clue as to who Aunt Lillian is .Well she’s someone’s Aunt and … 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
My mother always served Intagashlinganah Borsht at lunch on the second day of Pesach but I never knew why. It certainly wasn’t to please me. I mean which kid, especially a non Russian one likes borsht? Even my husband who is a blessedly non picky eater still complains about how his parents served it at his … 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
One of the nice things about doing this blog is that I get to learn so many new and wonderful things. Take this week, Shabbat Shira. I’m a day school grad-12 years, plus sem courses , plus hours and hours of listening to Torah lectures on CD and MP3. Never until this week did I … Continue reading
