Shopping for Passover at the shuk

My Pesach lists have taken on a life of their own… The funny thing is that I’m not a particularly organized person. But there’s a reason for all of the lists. Years ago, in one of my previous lives as an RN in a hospital in Boca Raton, Florida, I was working the night shift full time and Pesach – along with a pile of company – was rapidly approaching.

One night, at the hospital during my shift, there was a lull in the activity. Frantic about all that needed to be done, and unable to do much about it while sitting at the Pediatrics nurses’ station, I started to make a list. And then another. I made a menu, a shopping list based around the menu and to do lists. When I’d listed everything I could possibly think of, I started looking for recipes. I polled some of the Jewish doctors (oddly there were hardly any Jewish nurses…) and got some to even bring in cookbooks which I photocopied from. (One of our favorite Pesach breakfast items, which we erroneously called ‘Abuelos’ and have made every year since then, came from those photocopies…)

Naturally, the lists change from year to year. Depending upon how many people we are, how the yom tov/chol hamoed days are configured, they’ve certainly changed from the Florida lists to the current Israel lists. But the base remains the same. And I have to say that aside from the cleaning (which I am really lousy at!) Pesach is one of my favorite holidays!

Without further ado, here is my shopping list, based on my 2013 menu:

PANTRY ITEMS:
10 cans tomato sauce
Cranberry sauce
Oil x 3 bottles
Olive oil x 1
Lemon juice
Salt
pepper
Garlic
Paprika
Jelly
Mayonnaise (taaman is ok, agadah is gross!)
Tuna x 14 cans
Coffee – reg
Tea – decaf
Mandarin oranges
Honey
Canned salmon
Ketchup
Potato chips
Cereals (kitniyot for before Pesach & not kitniyot for during)

BAKING:
3 pkg chocolate pudding
6 pkg chocolate chips
Small treats for seder
Vanilla (the real stuff if you can find it!)
Baking powder
Baking soda
Sugar – 4 pkg
Cocoa – large
Cinnamon
Chopped nuts

MATZAH PRODUCTS:
Potato starch 1kilo (need 2c per/double recipe of brownies)
2 pkg matzah farfel
Cake meal – 4 pkg
Matzah meal – 2 pkg
1 case machine matzah + whl wheat
1 kilo whl wht shmura matzah

DAIRY:
Gush chalav cheese (a lot) – (similar to Muenster)
Butter – unsalted – 400 gm (2 big packs)
Gvina levana (I use this to make homemade cream cheese. The best!)
American cheese
String cheese (a lot)
Yogurt
Cottage cheese – 5 packages
Ice cream
Sherbert
Feta cheese
Sour cream (9% shamenet)
5 palettes of eggs

CHEAPERKOL – (if I can’t find the following items elsewhere they usually have them there)
Tomato sauce, mandarin oranges, farfel, cranberry sauce, raisins boxes, little applesauce, treats

BEEF:
Shankbone (can be a chicken wing or leg)
2 kilo boneless beef chuck
Chicken (for soup) x 2 soups
Turkey breast
Chulent meat
Hotdogs (3 pkg)
Shnitzel (12 portions, divided)
Gefilte fish (3 pkg)
Chopped meat
Deli
PAPER GOODS:
Plates, forks, knives, spoons, cups, bowls (reg & heavy duty )
Napkins
Tin foil – reg and heavy duty
Tin pans – especially for matzah parmigiana and brownies
Square pans
Baking parchment
Shabbos candles (not special for Pesach, I just need a lot for the whole holiday!)
Paper to line cabinets
Disposable containers
Muffin cups (foil)

PRODUCE:
Parsley
Garlic
Onions – tons!
Apples – lots
Pears – lots
Fresh fruit – strawberries, bananas, melon
Leeks
Potatoes
Sweet potatoes – a lot
Tomatoes
Lettuce
Peppers
Scallions
Cukes
Dried fruit

DRINKS:
Juices
Soda
Seltzer
Water

HOUSEHOLD:
Dishsoap x2
Toothpaste
Pledge
Oven cleaner

WINE/GRAPE JUICE
4 lg bottles grape juice
Wine

…And there you have it, folks! I hope it’s helpful! Happy to get your feedback…

Kosher for Passover items in the supermarket

Lots of people have been asking me for my ‘famous lists’ for Pesach. This year I was kind of hoping the lists would make Pesach for me… alas, this has not happened and finally, last night, I officially put together the lists for 2013… and made my first Pesach-oriented shopping trip. (To the local Gush Etzion Rami Levy… I’ll have none of that Jerusalem mad rush, thank you!)

Anyway, not my most exciting post, but you asked for it, you got it. The Pesach Menu for 2013. My 2013 shopping list can be found here.…

Erev Pesach (because we all need some nibbles on such a long day)

Cheese latkes

Seder night

• Potatoes
• Eggs
• Charoses
• Maror
• Shankbone
• Romaine lettuce
• Chicken soup
• Farfel
• Onion meat/sweet meat
• Vegetable
• Turkey
• Corned beef

Tues  lunch (Yom tov) 

• Matza parmigiana  - (Matza parmigiana is SO good that it makes an appearance TWICE in this menu…)
• Salads
• Tuna

Wed Cho”h dinner

• Leftovers from seder – (Hey, who says we have to cook EVERY day of Pesach? You KNOW that no one is going to eat this food AFTER Pesach…)
• Potato latkes

Thurs Cho”h dinner

• Hot dogs – (As I was saying… who says we have to cook EVERY day of Pesach?)
• French fries
• Pesach onion rolls

Shabbat dinner

• Chicken soup
• Turkey
• Cranberry sauce
• Sweet potatoes
• Broccoli
• Mashed potatoes

Shabbat lunch

• Yapchuk – (You never heard of it? Kills any Pesach chulent you can make…)
• Dinner leftovers

Sun night (Yom tov)

• Chicken soup
• Schnitzel
• Roasted potatoes
• Veggie
• leftovers

Mon lunch (Yom tov)

• Matzah parmigiana
• Salmon
• Broccoli quiche
• Tuna
• Egg salad
• Salads

Desserts

• Baked apples / Poached pears
• Fruit salad
• Matza toffee
• Chocolate chip cookies
• Brownies
• Apple cake

Extra food options

• Broccoli-cheese casserole
• Orange soup
• Potato kugel
• Veggie
• Matza dairy kugel
• Bimuelos

To do Erev Pesach:

• Empty vacuum
• Empty chametz from fridge
• DR/Kitchen table setup
• Empty all trash
• Mop all floors

Seder prep:

• Maror
• Charoset
• Eggs
• Potatoes
• Salt water

You have to make it dairy though, with the butter. No margarine for this recipe. As you can see, i crossed out the pecan pieces and almost forgot it was there in the first place, but certainly if your family likes nuts, by all means add them.

Oh, and definitely keep them in the freezer. Not only do they taste great frozen, but you may eat less of it that way. (Out of sight, out of mind…)

If I remember correctly, my mom discovered this recipe and added it to her Pesach repertoire sometime in the early 80s. It is absolutely excellent, and does not taste like a Pesach recipe.

It is ‘gebrokts’ (uses matzah products in the recipe) and is especially excellent hot out of the oven (what isn’t??)

Be sure to let me know if you make it and tell me how it is!

I AM A JEW.

I am a Jew.
I strictly follow every rule.
My life is guided by the rules.
I don’t even know the rules.
I rule myself.

I am a Jew.
I clothe myself in modest dress.
My skin is covered more or less.
I choose to clothe, or if to bare.
Who cares what I wear.

I am a Jew.
I strictly guard each bite I take.
I read each label, on food or plate.
I’m kosher at home; it’s enough for me.
I eat the food that I see.

I am a Jew.
I do what I do because I believe it.
It hurts to see others just take it or leave it.
Respect them I must, let them do what they do.
Because, I am a Jew.

© 2012 Laura Ben-David

]]> http://blog.aliyahbook.com/2012/01/29/i-am-a-jew/feed/ 1 http://blog.aliyahbook.com/2012/01/08/if-we-work-together-we-can-get-it-done/ http://blog.aliyahbook.com/2012/01/08/if-we-work-together-we-can-get-it-done/#comments Sun, 08 Jan 2012 08:00:52 +0000 Laura http://blog.aliyahbook.com/?p=511

Disagreements and even clashes over religion is nothing new in Israel. Despite a majority of the citizens being Jewish, the vast differences in observance, culture and even politics have created seemingly infinite subgroups and subcultures including a number of unfortunate societal rifts with religion at their root. Hot button topics vary widely from issues such as army service, women in the public sphere and the power of the Rabbinate, to name but a few.

Unlike Jewish life in the Diaspora, in Israel life IS Jewish. It’s incredible to be a Jew in the Jewish Homeland. But define ‘Jewish Homeland’. Ask five Jews, you’ll get six responses. At least. We’re a colorful lot, we Jews. You can find the color in our hair, our skin, our clothing and our yarmulkes. Often these colors say something about who we are, where in the Diaspora we came from, how we practice – or don’t practice – our religion. It doesn’t have to, but it does anyway. We can wear our colors with pride, shining forth with our heritage and our choices, while graciously welcoming those of our neighbors. We could. Often we do. But sometimes we don’t.

Jewish people are a stubborn lot. Our stubbornness has served us well over the millennia. Enabled us to stay together as a people; held us to our traditions; retained for us our customs; preserved for so many centuries our dream to someday return to our Land. Look where we are today. Whoever heard of such a concept of a nation of people, a religion, a society, dispersed for 2,000 years, then coming together to found a state in their historic Homeland? As if they were long lost family members. Well, they are. A big, spread-out family with a strong, stubborn streak.

All these stubborn Jews, with their different opinions, have come to the melting pot that is Israel. Except, let’s face it, it’s not really a melting pot at all. More like a chulent pot. Yet lately it’s been more like a tempest in a teapot. Instead of ‘live and let live,’ it’s ‘my way is the RIGHT way to live.’ The thing is they can be right. In fact, I’d go so far as to say they ARE right. With the exception of illegal, abusive or anti-social behaviors, how one chooses to express himself is right for him. Full stop. You want to be a secular Jew? Your Judaism is cultural. Or maybe not even. Perhaps you fast on Yom Kippur, maybe you don’t. That’s your choice. It doesn’t work for me, but I would never judge you.  You want to be haredi? Separate men and women to whatever degree you wish, dress extremely modestly even on the hottest days. I admire your total sense of commitment, but it doesn’t work for me. And I would never judge you.

Recently a number of particularly burning issues have percolated to the top. Some issues have to do with lifestyle choices amongst particular sectors of Judaism. Lifestyle choices. We must open our minds and make every effort to be sensitive to the sensitivities and sensibilities of our brethren. Other issues have to do with behavioral aberrations by fringe elements, disguised to blend in with their pious neighbors, whose actions are in the ‘illegal, abusive or anti-social’ category. Put simply, acts of criminals.

We must – MUST – condemn these thuggish actions in the strongest terms, and we must do it with one voice. We can. But we must be able to clearly differentiate between that which is wrong, and that which is simply not one’s cup of tea. Abusing or harassing women is criminal. Choosing to maintain separate spheres of life for men and women in one’s own domain is a lifestyle choice. You may not like either. You may even wish to protest all of it and try to impose your worldly life’s view on a society that is insular by choice. I will tell you, it’s a pointless venture to try and change people, but do it if you must. On a different day; in a different venue; in an entirely different way, than the full-force, no-holds-barred, utter rejection of the ‘illegal, abusive or anti-social’ malevolence that is currently threatening our children, our women, our society, even our standing in the world. Because we can only fight it if we are unified. And we can only be unified if we can accept each other’s differences like the brothers – and sisters – that we are. At least for a few hours.

Originally posted in The Jerusalem Post at Taming a tempest in a teapot

Much more important than size is the material the kippah is made of. After all, what better way to show your allegiance to G-d, than by wearing a kippah made of velvet? I mean of suede? Oops, I really meant of crocheted string.

Obviously these silly distinctions have no bearing on me. I have proudly taught my sons that they should wear the kippah that they like best – that day. And if the next day finds them in the mood for a huge, straight-sided, embroidered Bucharian kippah, so be it. Or if my girls have anything to say on a given day, the boys inevitably have on flat, crocheted discs, or neat, colored suede ones, carefully clipped to their hair.

It was thus to my complete astonishment that I experienced the phone call I had today. In a frantic attempt to find my son a high school, after the one we had planned for fell through, I got the number for a recommended place and called. I introduced myself, told them we live in Neve Daniel and are interested in their school for our son. The principal right away tried to explain to us that this may not be the school for us, and I was baffled as to, A.) Why he would even say this and B.) How could he possibly know anything about my son when all I had done was introduce myself?

Realizing that I wasn’t getting what he was getting at, he presented me with the bottom line: what kind of kippah does your son wear? After all, apparently if anything is telling about someone, it is certainly their kippah. Ah, but he does not know my son. What kind of kippah would you like him to wear? I innocently asked. He is flexible and would wear any kippah you like.

The man was beginning to get exasperated with me. I couldn’t understand why. I finally realized that I had actually called the wrong school. Then it hit me that, so what that I called the wrong school? Why can’t my son who lives in Neve Daniel stick on a big, black kippah, or whatever kind of kippah this school espoused, and be accepted like anyone else?

I hung up the phone feeling unjustly accused of, of what? I didn’t know. Of living in the wrong neighborhood? Of mixing with the wrong people? Of selecting the wrong way of life? No, that wasn’t it at all. I thought about it some more and realized that there was nothing more to it than that we wear the wrong kippahs – and everything that the wearing of wrong kippahs implies.

Upon further thought, I suppose it wasn’t unjust at all. I am guilty as charged. Guilty and proud. Proud that I feel no need to place myself or my family in a box, neither a ‘right’ box nor a ‘left’ box. Proud that while I am unshakably devoted to my religion, I encourage my children to find their comfort zone. And their comfortable kippah. After all, if the kippah fits, wear it.

(Originally published August 2008 in Arutz Sheva and Five Towns Jewish Times)

One morning, fully loaded with a computer bag on one shoulder, a purse on the other, and my variety of can’t-leave-home-without-’em gadgets in my hands, I was heading toward a Jerusalem bus stop for the last leg of my journey to work. I clipped my iPod onto one of my pockets, stuffed the earbuds into my ears, and sauntered up the street to Duran Duran, while browsing my Android phone for any emails that may have come in the past five minutes and that surely couldn’t wait the additional five minutes for me to get to the office.

Almost at my bus stop, I looked up from my phone surprised to see my bus pulling up to the stop just ahead. Never one to miss an opportunity to run like an idiot so that I don’t miss a bus, I dashed forward, clutching my bags close to me, Duran Duran cheering me on with their rousing 80s rhythm. As I pushed forward, almost there, I felt the plug of my earphones disconnect from my iPod. Simon LeBon was rudely silenced, but I was undeterred as I leaped onto the bus just before the mechanical doors pivoted closed behind me. I was thrilled! Another challenging race against a bus with me coming out the victor!

I rummaged through my purse for my bus ticket, presented it to the driver, and gathered up my things to find a place to sit for the short ride. As I began making my way to a seat, I noticed a very religious-looking man seeming to be approaching me with purpose from further back on the bus. If you don’t know Jerusalem well, you may not realize how unusual it is for a haredi man to be approaching a random woman – non-haredi, no less – on a public bus. He was holding something out to me, further perplexing me, as I vaguely wondered if he thought I was someone else. But no. He looked directly at me as he was getting closer and then deliberately handed me the object in his hand, telling me to keep it securely in my pocket. Thoroughly bewildered, I stared at the object in confusion until I realized it was my iPod! There was no doubt about it as I saw the display screen counting down the final seconds of ‘The Reflex,’ playing silently to no one.

How did he get my iPod? Briefly contemplating the ridiculous notion that this man was a magician performing a trick on a rush-hour traffic Jerusalem bus, I realized what must have happened. Since he was approaching me from the back of the bus, the only explanation was that when my iPod came unplugged from the headphones during my mad dash, it had actually come unclipped and fallen onto the sidewalk. This gentleman must have seen me from the bus window when I dropped it, made his own selfless mad dash off the bus to retrieve it, and jumped back on. It was returned to me before I’d even known it was lost. How many people would care so much to make all that effort for a random stranger? I’d like to think many.  In a society perceived to be so religiously polarized as Jerusalem, it is delightfully refreshing to be able to share a kindness that crosses several sectors of society. This is MY Jerusalem. Jerusalem (of the hearts) of gold.

Who says we don’t have seasons? They just follow a unique time-frame. In fact, Gush Etzion winter is so short that before the last leaves have fallen, the first buds of spring have already appeared. In December.

I’m not giving up my hope for snow this year though. Stranger things have happened…