The Real Treasure of the Caribbean: Haiti, Part 3. Liberty Soup.

The final and the most important installment of this set of recipes (for Part 1, click here; for Part 2, click here) is unique – where else do you see a dish that symbolizes liberty? On January 1st, Haitians celebrate not only the beginning of a new year, but first and foremost, the beginning of their country’s…

The Real Treasure of the Caribbean: Haiti, Part 2. Fried Accra.

Slavery started in Haiti with the arrival of Columbus. Met with friendliness, welcoming gifts, and delicious local fritters called Accra or Akra, he described the native Arawak Taino people as “tractable, and easily led; they could be made to grow crops and build cities” (Mellzer, Slavery: A World History, 1971). And the gentle, helpful natives were…

The Real Treasure of the Caribbean: Haiti, Part 1. Baked Fish.

May is the National Haitian Heritage Month. To honor my Haitian students, I am repeating this three-part series, culminating on May 18, the Haitian Flag Day. I love my Haitian students. Make no mistake – I love all my students, and I reveal in having “the United Nations” environment in my classroom. However, students who…

Light the Bonfire of Love with Chocolate Logs!

Happy Mother’s Day, Beautiful People! Our sages said, “Who is wise? One who learns from every person” (Ethics of Our Fathers, 4:1). The first person in our lives we have a chance to learn from is MOTHER. From her we learn kindness, caring, and most importantly, unconditional love. Sometimes, it’s not a biological mother who does…

Pesach on the Boat

Misconceptions abound regarding all Jewish holidays, yet none so widespread as those concerning Pesach (Passover). Some think that Pesach is a two-day holiday, while anyone who has been to Israel is certain that it is only one day. Others believe that it actually consists of two holidays, two days each, with a few days in…

Hello, Stranger, Have Some Soup!

Passover starts tomorrow night, and the most important part of the celebration is called a Seder which means order. The order is prescribed in a little book called Haggada that we read at the table. The most important part of that is called Maggid which is the actual story of redemption and exodus from Egypt.  And the most important part of…

Eggplant Caviar Odessa Style

In the midst of the war, despite the tragic events described in my post Hello, Ovid! Я вам не скажу про всю Одессу… (war edition), the inimitable quirky Odessa sense of humor keeps the spirit strong. The following photos were taken in Odessa a few days ago: “Tossing trash on the street, don’t forget to…

Hello, Ovid! Я вам не скажу про всю Одессу… (war edition)

I start this post with a very heavy heart. This is what my lovely Odessa, the Pearl by the Sea, looks like now: sandbags in front of the famous Opera House, considered the most beautiful opera house in Europe… …sandbags and barricades blocking splendid Deribassovskaya, the main thoroughfare, usually closed to cars and bursting with…

The New Boat and the Old Recipe

Our great adventure took a lot longer than intended; instead of a few days, we had spent almost two months driving to Key Largo and back, occasionally staying in hotels overnight, until we finally brought our new boat home. She is not brand new, but new for us, as our old boat had been gobbled…

Leonardo Was a Blog-aholic (Sweet Potato and Spinach Bisque)

No, not Leonardo di Caprio; the real Leonardo, born in the little Italian village Vinci, the Renaissance Man. Since Internet did not exist, and neither did the blogosphere, he wrote – a lot, and on a multitude of subjects, including food. Had he thought of inventing it, together with a bicycle and a helicopter, he…

Let Them Eat… Potatoes!

From the Inca Empire to Queen Marie Antoinette of France, to the Russian patissiers (pastry chefs), traveled a simple vegetable, to be transformed into a delectable pastry. Here is this civilization which, starting in the early 13th century, in three hundred years grew into an immense empire and, by the time it was conquered by the Spanish,…

Of Hats, Pockets, Ears, and Hidden Messages

Originally posted on koolkosherkitchen:
These pastries are called Hamantaschen. We can no more imagine the holiday of Purim without them than without the graggers – noisemakers gleefully shaken by children and adults alike to drown the name of the evil villain Haman. https://youtu.be/b74IcmDxGtY That’s the story of Purim in a nutshell. Once again, the Jewish people, marked for…