When we talk about the villain of the Purim story, Haman, we most often go to the origins of his ancestor, Amalek, noting how he (his nation) waged war on those of the children of Israel that were week and lingering at the end of the procession on their way out of Egypt: וַיָּבֹ֖א עֲמָלֵ֑ק…
Tag: family
Making Teiglach with my Mom
This Sunday, my mother turned 90! NINETY! Can you imagine? It’s hard for me to imagine since my mom is still the strongest person I know. I am so grateful for her continuous presence in my life. We actually have become closer to each other during the last 10 years than ever before, and it…
Rosh haShana Yearning for PEACE
This erev Rosh haShana as every year I find myself in the kitchen listening to Selichot at the Kotel making my babushka’s Lekach (honey cake) thinking about her life hoping to become one day as good a cook as she was.My grandmother’s life was not easy at all. She had to run from pogroms from…
Miracle of Miracles
The older I become the more I think about the meaning of life. Not an original thought, I know. How do we treat life in the course of it? I know I am guilty of mistreating it. Long ago time meant forever, every day was long, many of those to be forgotten or remembered in…
Everything is for the Best – הכל לטובה
So all the stress, all the packing, all the store hopping for my next kitchen has been in vain. Not every time things work out as you think they should. Sometimes, the Universe (Gd?) thinks otherwise and then it pushes you to look at the situation from all kinds of perspectives. So, today my perspectives…
Thoughts of the Day
What a strange day! 31 of December. A day that does not really have any significance for me anymore, and yet, I keep going back in my years to that day in the snowy, cold, and crisp native city of mine, where my sister, z’l and I would be waiting for the night that promised…
Anticipating
I am not sure when I am going to publish this. However, I am writing it almost three weeks to the date when my life will drastically change. Change for the best, please, Gd! It’s been ten months since הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא let a certain amazing man find me among all the other women in…
Sushi Salad
Lately, I’ve become obsessed with sushi salad. I’ve got the idea at one of my friends’ Shabbat tables, where three young daughters of the family made one and decided to create my own version. So far, I’ve tried it three times with slightly different ingredients, but it worked magically every time to the delight of…
All Things Pumpkin
Even though Thanksgiving feasts are behind us, I decided to post this article about pumpkin. I hope you enjoy it and use some of the recipes. I have baked some pumpkin challot and they came out very nice. I know I have not been posting as diligently as before, but so many…
Happy Birthday to a Special Person!
Today is the birthday of one woman whom I am blessed to call family, even though she is not a blood relation. I’ve met my (then future) sister-in-law almost 35 years ago, and since then through good times and bad, every day I realize more and more what an exceptional human being she is. She…
Cooking with Parshat
I have decided to start a new experiment. I will try making a specific dish for Shabbat having to do with the text of the Parshah. As of now, I have no idea how successful this project will be, but what have I got to lose, right? So, for Parshat Bo, which among other things…
Vayishlach וישלח
This Shabbat, again, I am bringing you two of the commentaries that I enjoy: “Jacob set up a monument over her grave; it is the monument of Rachel’s grave until today.” (Genesis 35:20) Parashat Vayishlach describes Jacob’s return home to Canaan and his encounter with his estranged brother, Esau, twenty years after their falling out. There’s…
Noshing Across the Nation 