Celebrating Modern Jewish Living Through Food, Tradition, and Family


The Backstory: When I think of kugel, I can’t help but think of my father doing his standard joke in a heavily accented Polish dialect, “Is it kugel or is it pujjink?” (meaning noodle pudding). You see, when it comes to kugel, mo[…]-READ-MORE>

The Backstory: I vividly remember my mother preparing Borscht. But instead of serving this as a soup, she served it to my dad in a glass. My mom did not make this from scratch. She usually had a cold bottle of store-brought b[…]-READ-MORE>

The Backstory: Whenever I make this side dish, I am reminded of the Jewish holidays. In the early years of my life, my mom always had sweet potatoes as a side dish for every special occasion. Truth be told, the sweet potatoes mo[…]-READ-MORE>

Our vegetable lasagna is the perfect, one-pan meal for weeknights, Shabbat, or feeding a crowd. Make a second pan to freeze for later on!
The Backstory: Pasta is one of those dishes that is loved by almost everyone I know. W[…]-READ-MORE>

Twice-baked potatoes are creamy and savory on the inside and cheesy and crusty on top of the potato skin. That’s our kind of potato heaven!
The Backstory: Twice-baked potatoes are comfort food and then some. These are the pota[…]-READ-MORE>

Dense, rich, nutty, and chewy are just a few words to describe our finger-licking date nut squares. They’re easy-to-make and bake in less than 30 minutes.
The Backstory: My friend Dini told me these date nut square are one of […]-READ-MORE>

It might not be Jewish food, but who doesn’t love this classic dish?
The Backstory: One of the first things I learned to cook after I was married was tomato sauce. I had never cooked Italian food so I had to get detailed infor[…]-READ-MORE>

The Backstory: I cannot remember a time when this velvety soup was not served for a holiday dinner. My mom never measured anything, and here I am trying to convert her favorite answer to my question, “how much of this or that” […]-READ-MORE>

Giant popovers deliver a true wow factor to a holiday table. They’re huge golden rolls that are flaky, light, and with a perfect touch of chewiness.
The Backstory: I can find no trace of anything whatsoever that links cultural […]-READ-MORE>

These are just about the best blueberry crumb muffins we’ve ever come across. The muffins are moist, sweet, and absolutely delicious. AND. OH. THAT. TOPPING. TO DIE FOR!
The Backstory: I am a lover of all baked goods (no surpr[…]-READ-MORE>

Our cabbage soup with flanken recipe turns out a classic, slow-simmering soup with tender beef that simply shreds in the tangy broth.
The Backstory: I well remember my mother making cabbage soup with flanken. Usually she use[…]-READ-MORE>

On Yom Kippur we gather together after our day of fasting and worship to share a meal, break the fast, and end the week-plus long prayer and introspection period that began on Rosh Hashanah. Since Yom Kippur is a fasting holiday a[…]-READ-MORE>