My Shavuos Menu

Contrary to all other Jewish holidays, when we prepare festive meals that include both fish and meat, signifying rejoicing in His benevolence that grants us abundance, traditional Shavuos table is laden with dairy dishes, from blintzes to cheesecakes, and anything milky delicious you can think of.  One of the reasons for this unique menu is explained in…

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Festiv-e-teas

Originally posted on koolkosherkitchen:
In an old Japanese tale, a poor peasant catches a badger. He puts the badger into his bag and starts walking home, to bring food to his family. But when he comes home and opens his bag, instead of a badger, he finds a teapot! “What shall I do with it?…

Chicky Chaulent

On the seventh day of Creation, “G-d blessed the seventh day and He hallowed it, for thereon He abstained from all His work that G-d created to do” (Bereishit 2:3); therefore, He commanded us to “guard and remember” this day called Shabbat, or, in my Eastern European dialect, Shabbos. While most Jews in the “shtetlach”…

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Light the Bonfire of Love with Chocolate Logs (reiteration)!

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…

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The Little Island That Fought: Mangu

Originally posted on koolkosherkitchen:
This is the story of a proud little island that has been fighting invaders and enslavers for several centuries. We’ll go back to 1492, when Columbus, supposedly, discovered America. What he actually discovered was a tiny island in the Carribean called Ayiti by its native Taino people (you can read about…

Preserving Jews and All Sorts of Fish: Escabeche (reiteration)

An innovative and highly profitable method of borrowing money was practiced by King Edward I of England: you borrow from the Jews, as there is no one else to borrow from (usury was forbidden by the church), then, since legally all Jews are the King’s property, all debts payable to them instantly become payable to…

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Ponce de Leon, Diamond Lil, and the Secret of Eternal Youth

Originally posted on koolkosherkitchen:
There is a quaint little town on the East Coast of Florida called St Augustine. It is considered the oldest continuous European settlement in the continental United States. But that’s not what makes it famous. Tourists flock to St Augustine because they are dying to stay young forever. According to the…

The Clever Suitor and the Dietetic Hamentaschen

Originally posted on koolkosherkitchen:
You have already met the famous prankster and jester Hershele of Ostropol in some of my previous posts (https://koolkosherkitchen.wordpress.com/2016/09/28/yukh-a-one-eyed-soup, https://koolkosherkitchen.wordpress.com/2016/12/20/summer-latkes-in-december). He is not a fictional character; he actually existed and served as a Shamesh (synagogue attendant) for one of my illustrious ancestors, Rabbi Boruch of Medzhibozh who lived in the second…

Catherine the Great Needs a Diet (The Tsar Blini)

What would I do without dear Carol of Retired? No one told me! who is on top of every International Food Holiday! Since today is an International Pancakes Day, I am repeating this post about a great woman who loved her pancakes. Well, she loved Tsar Blini, but blini is but a Russian version of…

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Chocolate Roses for Valentine’s

I’ve been getting an impression that you, Beautiful People, like reading my historical improvisations more than my recipes. I am happy to accommodate. As we say in Odessa, “If it’s songs you want, I’ve got them for you.” This is Frida Kahlo, a great Mexican artist famous for her self-portraits and paintings of flowers. She…

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