menus and thoughts for friday nights

As we cycle through the parashot year after year, the readings remain ever fresh. I’m not the same as I was a year before, and as such a word or phrase or event will catch my attention in a new way. Insights emerge, details that I may have missed before, but now have something to say to me in this moment. I enjoy sharing those thoughts with you and I encourage your comments.

Eating our way through the Torah—

I’m also always on the lookout for something in the reading to inspire a menu. I try to have at least one dish that can steer the conversation at the dinner table towards even a short exploration of the sidra.

A beautiful meal that excites our senses can also feed our minds and spirits!

Come with me on my journey through the Torah. Together we’ll search, discover, think, imagine, and be inspired.

And we’ll eat.

IT ALL STARTS WITH CHALLAH

There’s always challah. Well, almost always.

What constitutes “Shabbat bread” varies from culture to culture, and from time to time we’ll explore some of those other traditional breads as well.

Cooking all day can be my idea of fun—when I have time and when I feel like doing it.

Some of my menus may require hours in the kitchen. Don’t be intimidated by them. Usually, there are steps that can be done in advance during the week and often there are possible shortcuts.

You’ll also find many other menus that can be whipped up, soup to dessert, in an hour, because that’s what my life, or my mood, demands at that moment.

My Shabbat dinners usually, but not always, consist of a soup, a main course, and a dessert. Sometimes, but not always, there are dips and/or a fish course. A menu may feature “Jewish” recipes that reflect my Ashkenazi roots, but it’s just as likely to be untraditional, borrowing from the cuisines of every culture. You’ll find menus for omnivores and menus for vegetarians, and you’ll see that many of my recipes can be made either way.