EXPLORING JEWISH FOOD AND CULTURE with GIL MARKS
Archive for October, 2010
FORWARD 50
0937 days
by gilmarks
in Uncategorized
What do I have in common with Eric Cantor (besides that we are both from Richmond, VA and his father and my father were once poker buddies), Michael Bloomberg (besides we both live in New York City), Elena Kagan (we went to the same shul on the Upper West Side), Sergey Brin (he founded Google and I rely on Google for my research), Jon Stewart (I enjoy the Daily Show), and 44 other noted individuals? Well, they and I are among the Forward 50 of 2010.
http://forward.com/articles/132617/#gmarks
http://www.forward.com/forward-50/
I am not often completely flabbergasted, but today I was upon being notified that I was included with 49 others in the Jewish Forward’s annual “list of the fifty most influential Jewish-Americans.” Wow! Me! The rankings are divided into different categories (activism, community, culture, demographics, economy, media, politics, religion, science, and, this year, food). It seems that my new Encyclopedia of Jewish Food is receiving unprecedented adulation. After all the hard work and research, it is gratifying. And I still find it hard to believe that my book is appreciated as much by others.
Gil
Food
Gil Marks
Two strains dominate Jewish customs throughout the world — Ashkenazic and Sephardic. But food traditions and recipes are much more localized than religious practices, and it is a rare cookbook or food book that provides an excellent representation of the culinary customs of various Jewish communities. Yet, Gil Marks — a historian, social worker, ordained rabbi, and James Beard Award-winning cookbook author — managed to encompass nearly the entirety of Jewish food around the globe in his “Encyclopedia of Jewish Food,” which came out in September.
The book, which Marks researched and wrote in a remarkably short three years, contains more than 650 entries about Jewish foods and culinary customs from communities as varied as Yemen, Italy, Latvia, China, France and Ethiopia.
Employing his rabbinic knowledge and diverse background, Marks, 58, skillfully traces the history of each food or culinary practice. He supplies the food’s name and its relationship to Jewish texts or holidays, and he situates it in the broader culinary traditions of the surrounding community. The author of four other cookbooks, Marks has also included 300 recipes in his encyclopedia. The first modern Jewish counterpart to “The Oxford Companion to Food” and France’s “Larousse Gastronomique,” Marks’s anthology is an indispensable guide to Jewish food.
NO QUINOA
0942 days
by gilmarks
in Uncategorized
My mother emailed me, “I just looked up quinoa in your encyclopedia, in your revised edition please include it.” Sorry mom, when hopefully someday I get to do a revised edition of the Encyclopedia, I will probably add some information on grasshoppers and hubeza, but there will definitely not be a quinoa entry. Although quinoa is a food Jews today may eat, many even on Passover, it is not a Jewish food. It is not connected to Jewish identity or culture.
More than 5,000 years ago, quinoa (pronounced keen-wah and called “mother grain” in Incan) was cultivated in the Andean highlands. Although treated like a grain, quinoa is technically the fruit of a leafy plant, not a seed of cereal grasses. It is a member of the Chenopodium (goosefoot) family, related to beets and spinach. The plant grows three to six feet high and the seeds sprout in large clusters at the end of the stalk. (The leaves can also be eaten.) The small seeds are shaped like a flatten disc with a band around the periphery and range in color from yellowish to red and purple.
Quinoa became of such importance to the Incas that they considered it sacred. Indeed, at the beginning of the growing season, the emperor himself would dig the first shovelful of earth with a golden spade and plant the first quinoa. The Spanish leader Francisco Pizarro, however, viewed this unfamiliar grain as a component of paganism and determined to exterminate its. Even the mere possession of this pre-Columbian grain was declared a crime. In place of quinoa, the Spanish planted the more familiar barley, in order to produce beer, and wheat. Only in the remote highlands far from the reach of the conquistadors did quinoa survive. Then in the 20th century, as botanists searched for specially nutritious grains to help feed the masses, quinoa was rediscovered by the world. In 1984, David Cusack of Colorado began to import quinoa from Colorado and soon Eden Foods began offering it commercially, sparking the quinoa renaissance.
This pre-Columbian pseudo-grain, there are actually more than 1,800 varieties (but three main varieties), has long been prized as a source of nutrition. Unlike the various grains, quinoa contains complete protein as well as a higher protein content (about 17 percent) than any grain. It is also high in thiamine, iron, phosphorus, lysine, and vitamin B-6. Among quinoa’s other attributes is that it flourishes in harsh environments and requires no insecticides since the grains are coated by saponins, which naturally repel birds and insects. Quinoa, however, should be well rinsed since the saponin is bitter. Some commercial quinoa has been processed to remove the bitter coating.
Because it is rich in oil, quinoa can spoil relatively quickly. So store it for no more than one month and keep it in the refrigerator.
The primary way to prepare quinoa is to simmer it in water. The germ, located on the outside of the grain, splits when cooked, but the grain retains a crunch. I like to add some to vegetable and beans soups. In South America, it is also ground and used to make tortillas.
So if you know of any info or dishes with a connection to Jewish culture and history that were omitted from the Encyclopedia, please let me know at gilmarks.com.
P.S. If you are planning on attending Kosherfest at New Jersey’s Meadowlands on Tuesday, October 26, I will be speaking in the conference room (Room C/D) at 1:00 pm on the Universe of Kosher (the history of kosher certification), from the very first kosher certified item in 1870 through the mainstreaming of kosher in the American market. Afterwards, I will do a book signing for my new Encyclopedia of Jewish Food. So please stop by and say hello.
Basic Quinoa
(6 to 8 servings/about 6 cups/1.5 liters)
Serve as a side dish, casserole, croquette, salad or add to soups.
2 cups (480 ml/12 ounces/340 grams) quinoa
4 cups (950 ml) water or broth
Pinch of salt
1. Cover the quinoa with cold water, swirl, and drain. Repeat until the water runs clear.
2. Bring the water to a boil, add the quinoa, return to a boil, cover, reduce the heat to low, and simmer until the liquid is absorbed (about 18 minutes). Remove from the heat and let stand, covered, for 10 minutes. Fluff with a fork.
Quinoa Pilaf
(6 to 8 servings/about 6 cups//1.5 liters)
2 cups (480 ml/12 ounces/340 grams) quinoa
3 tablespoons (45 ml) vegetable oil
1 large onion, chopped (1½ cups/360 ml/6 ounces/170 grams)
4 cups (950 ml) broth or water
Pinch of salt
¼ cup (60 ml) chopped parsley (optional)
1. Cover the quinoa with cold water, swirl, and drain.
2. Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté until soft (5 to 10 minutes). Add the quinoa and sauté until lightly colored (about 3 minutes).
3. Add the broth or water and salt. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce the heat to low, and simmer until the liquid is absorbed (about 15 minutes). Remove from the heat and let stand, covered, for 10 minutes. Fluff with a fork. If desired, stir in the parsley.
ALTERNATIVE – Toasted Quinoa: Omit the oil and onion; and shake the quinoa in a hot dry saucepan until lightly toasted.
VARIATIONS:
Quinoa Timbales: Divide the mixture between twelve ½-cup (120 ml) or eight ¾-cup (180 ml) timbale molds or custard cups and invert onto serving plates.
Middle Eastern-Style Quinoa Pilaf: Add to the sautéed onion 2 teaspoons (10 ml) ground cumin, 1 teaspoon (5 ml) ground cinnamon, and ½ teaspoon (2.5 ml) turmeric and sauté for 30 seconds. Add 2/3 cup (160 ml) dried currants or raisins with the water. If desired, add ½ cup (120 ml) pine nuts or pumpkin seeds with the onion.
Quinoa Pilaf with Tomatoes: Reduce the broth to 3 2/3 cups (880 ml) and add ½ cup (120 ml) peeled, seeded, and chopped tomatoes.
Tex-Mex Pilaf: Reduce the broth to 2 cups (480 ml). Add with the broth 2 cups (480 ml) drained canned plum tomatoes, 2 cups (480 ml) tomato juice drained from cans, and 1 to 2 seeded and minced jalapeno or serrano chilies. Substitute ¼ cup (60 ml) chopped cilantro for the parsley.
KOSHERFEST 2010
0948 days
by gilmarks
in Uncategorized
Kosherfest, the largest kosher food, beverage, wine, and spirits trade show for kosher retail professionals, will be held this year on October 26 and 27 at the Meadowlands Expo Center in Secaucus, NJ. I have attended almost all of the Kosherfests held over the past two decades, including the first one opening on March 6, 1987. I was then the editor of the recently-established Kosher Gourmet magazine and naturally had to observe the event. The original show was organized by Irving Silverman and marketed by Menachem Lubinsky, the latter still involved with Kosherfest today. More than 30,000 people converged on the Javits Center in Manhattan for the then unprecedented three-day event. I vividly remember the size and enthusiasm of the crowd. (Some were perhaps a little too enthusiastic, forgetting to say thank you to the people in the booths and a few even dumping entire trays of food into massive shopping bags.) Due to the numbers on the first night, too many for the fire marshals, thousands were turned away. Fortunately, I had a press pass and was able to be part of history. Subsequently, the kosher show was transformed from a public event to a private trade show.
Even back in 1987, as kosher entered the American mainstream, with an unprecedented 16,000 packaged items under kosher supervision, no one could have predicted just how widespread kosher would grow. The number of kosher products sold in the U.S. has topped 110,000, and, in the past decade, kosher sales have continued a double-digit growth, 10 percent to 15 percent, even in a shaky economy. Many of these new items as well as established products are featured at Kosherfest. Last year’s show attracted some 6,000 exhibitors and visitors from a record 28 nations, each item bearing a hechsher.
I did miss last year’s show, as I was in Israel at the time. This year, I not only plan on attending Kosherfest, but will be speaking at 1:00 pm and then signing copies of my new book, Encyclopedia of Jewish Food.
Here is an excerpt from Kosher Today:
Major Authors to Introduce New Kosher Cookbooks at Kosherfest
Secaucus, NJ…The popularity of kosher cookbooks is seen by experts as one of the major factors in the continued growth of kosher. At this year’s Kosherfest, which opens at the Meadowlands Exposition Center on October 26th for two days, at least five new important ko sher books on cooking kosher will be introduced and profiled. Noted author Gil Marks will introduce “The History of Jewish Food.” In a presentation at the show, Marks will cover some stories of the early days of kosher. Kosher supervision began in 1870 when, under the counsel of a Lithuanian rabbi, Israel Rokeach created kosher soap and later brought his soap to New York. In 1923 the H. J. Heinz Company began offering a kosher pickle, and by the 1980s manufacturers were using kosher tanker trucks to haul oils and corn syrup for prepared foods which meant that almost any product could be easily converted to kosher. After Entenmann’s placed its entire line of baked goods under kosher supervision, many other major American food manufacturers followed.
So if you are attending Kosherfest on Tuesday October 26, please stop by and say hello. I look forward to meeting (or remeeting) you and signing a book (or, even better, a couple of them).
NEW REVIEWS of ENCYCLOPEDIA OF JEWISH FOOD
0954 days
by gilmarks
in Uncategorized
Here are a few new articles about my new book, Encyclopedia of Jewish Food:
Jewish Forward:
“It’s hard not to be awed by the new “Encyclopedia of Jewish Food” by Gil Marks.”
Jewish Forward story on Encyclopedia of Jewish Food Part I:
http://blogs.forward.com/the-jew-and-the-carrot/132033/
Jewish Forward Part II:
http://blogs.forward.com/the-jew-and-the-carrot/132102/
Jewish Woman Magazine:
“you’ll find much to relish in this 2,500-year history of the Jewish people as revealed through its food… Thanks to his remarkable book, future generations will not only be able to prepare traditional recipes, but also to understand from whence they came.”
http://www.jwi.org/Page.aspx?pid=2052
Jewish Post & News:
“many of these “symbolic” Jewish foods have become global favorites , and now it is not just the Jews who crave our cuisine”
JWeekly.com:
“For anyone who wants to learn more about Jewish tradition and life, it is a valuable resource. And for those of us who enjoy exploring our own (and others’) Jewish food heritages, it is an invaluable one.”
http://www.jweekly.com/cook/full/59481/i-wish-you-wish-we-all-wish-for-a-delicious-knish/
New York Jewish Week:
“the book provides great insight into what many say is at the heart (or at least stomach) of Jewish culture: food.”
http://www.thejewishweek.com/features/new_york_minute/jewish_eats_asabia_zaban
Washington Jewish Week:
“the Encyclopedia of Jewish Food is an everything-we-wanted-to-know-about-Jewish-food book that exceeds our wildest imagination.”
Washington Jewish Week review: http://www.washingtonjewishweek.com/main.asp?SectionID=27&SubSectionID=25&ArticleID=13489&TM=66876
LA WEEKLY:
“But there are a handful, the just-released Encyclopedia of Jewish Food by Gil Marks now among them, that render you speechless.”
http://blogs.laweekly.com/squidink/book-reviews/encyclopedia-jewish-foods-rosh/
MAYBE GRASSHOPPERS
0955 days
by gilmarks
in Uncategorized
For the past twenty five years, I amassed in my computer every relevant recipe as well as every bit of food information coming my way. I used this data as the basis for my latest book, Encyclopedia of Jewish Food. This volume, however, is not the end of my work. No matter how vast my collection of information, there is still more out there. I’m still intrigued by the culture and cookery of the mosaic of Jewish communities that sprang up across the globe, and will continue collecting info.
My cousin, David, was recently at the house of a neighbor, a family of Yemenite background, for a Sabbath meal, and this friend mentioned that although many Yemenite dishes were indeed in the Encyclopedia, he could not find a particular green soup. David has been assigned to find out the name of this mysterious green soup.
There is one entry that I purposely omitted, but maybe should have included – grasshoppers. Yes, technically, grasshoppers are a Jewish food. At least some of them. The consumption of orthopterans has long been a common practice in the Middle East and they are also the only insects permitted for consumption by most Muslims.
Although the consumption of vermin and most invertebrates (sheretzim) are strictly forbidden under the Jewish dietary laws, the Bible (Leviticus 11:21-22) does permit four specific species (Maimonides and others say eight) of grasshoppers (chagavim), “all that have above their feet, jointed legs to leap with on the ground.” The Talmud (Chullin 59a, 65a-66a) explains “The grasshopper must have four walking and two jumping legs and four wings. The wings must cover the greater part of the body, lengthwise and widthwise.” The four biblical species are identified as: the desert locust (Schistocerca gregaria) also called red locust (arbeh in Hebrew; govei in Aramaic; al-grad in Arabic); yellow locust (salam in Hebrew, meaning “destroying”; rashon in Aramaic; al-daba in Arabic); spotted gray locust, also called the long-horned grasshopper (chargol in Hebrew; nippol in Aramaic; al-charguw’n in Arabic); and the smallest of the group, the white locust (chagav in Hebrew; gadayin in Aramaic; al-gundub in Arabic). All other grasshoppers and insects are not kosher for consumption. The acceptable species are pareve like fish and the Talmud (Keritot 21b) explains they do not require shechitah (ritual slaughter).
Most Jewish communities long ago lost the knowledge of which species are acceptable and no longer include grasshoppers on the menu. Some Yemenites and Moroccans, however, have a mesorah (continuing tradition) as to which species of grasshoppers are kosher, and continue to eat them. Grasshoppers were never considered a delicacy in Jewish gastronomy, but rather poverty food.
According to those in the know, grasshoppers taste better than other insects. Grasshoppers begin to turn bitter soon after death and, therefore, are commonly cooked while still alive. Roasting and frying are the favorite methods for preparing these creatures, producing a crispy texture and nutty flavor. The Midrash (Tanhuma Vayera 14; Exodus Rabbah 13:7) reveals that they were preserved in salt or vinegar for longer storage. Consequently, preserved grasshoppers proved an invaluable source of protein in times of famine and during the winter. I personally have never eaten a grasshopper (or, for that matter, knowingly any other insect) and, therefore cannot testify to a superiority in flavor or anything else. (I also have no grasshopper recipes in my repertoire.) Still, if the opportunity to sample kosher grasshoppers ever appears, I am a bit curious. But only a bit.
I still like to experiment and gather new information. So if you know of any info or dishes that were omitted from the Encyclopedia, please let me know at gilmarks.com.
NEW REVIEWS
0960 days
by gilmarks
in Uncategorized
Here are a few new articles about my new book, Encyclopedia of Jewish Food. My mother is so proud:
New York Jewish Week:
“the book provides great insight into what many say is at the heart (or at least stomach) of Jewish culture: food.”
http://www.thejewishweek.com/features/new_york_minute/jewish_eats_asabia_zaban
Washington Jewish Week:
“the Encyclopedia of Jewish Food is an everything-we-wanted-to-know-about-Jewish-food book that exceeds our wildest imagination.”
http://www.washingtonjewishweek.com/main.asp?SectionID=27&SubSectionID=25&ArticleID=13489&TM=66876
LA WEEKLY:
“But there are a handful, the just-released Encyclopedia of Jewish Food by Gil Marks now among them, that render you speechless.”
http://blogs.laweekly.com/squidink/book-reviews/encyclopedia-jewish-foods-rosh/
ISRAELI DELIGHT
2963 days
by gilmarks
in Uncategorized
This year, I spent Simchat Torah on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It was the first time in five years that I was not in Israel for the holiday. The experiences are quite different between countries. As my parents, who now live in Israel, noted, “It is strange to combine Simchat Torah, Shemini Atzeret, and Yizchor in the same day.” Besides the compact nature of the holidays in Israel, there are various cultural and even natural differences. It was hot and humid at the beginning of Sukkot and rain and chilly by the end. It was, alas, rather wet along the East Coast for much of Simchat Torah, while the rainy season does not start in Israel till after the holidays, so Sukkot weather is always dry and usually quite pleasant.
Some of the Simchat Torah foods popular in Israel are also common in Americas, such as stuffed cabbage, but in Israel, Turkish delight and candied apples have become popular treats. I think my favorite part of Simchat Torah in my parent’s community is the communal Kiddush held in the synagogue’s massive sukkah after morning synagogue services. (Remember, there’s no fear of being rained out.) Everyone in the community contributes their favorite homemade treats, pareve for the occasion, and everyone shows up to nosh and shmooze. There is kakosh and cinnamon roll and chocolate chip cookies and chocolate trile. This pot luck communal sharing is common for brits and baby-namings and other simchas (celebrations) as well. It is very reminiscent of the traditional way of celebrating once practiced before the advent of catering and food stores. For special occasions, both their own and their neighbors, Jewish housewives of eastern Europe would make lekach (honey cake), teiglach (little dough balls in honey), kichlach (egg cookies), reshinkes (decorative cookies), eingemachts (fruit and vegetable preserves), and other celebration favorites. The quality of the fare, of course, varies, but truly it’s the thought that counts. My mother likes to make mandelbrot and sometimes also yeast rugelach (or when I’m around, for me to make them for her) for these events.
My favorite aspect of the varied dishes in the Simchat Torah kiddush is warm Yerushami kugel, always served with a sour pickled slice. (I’m not that fond of the canned pickle though.) The tantalizing contrast of caramel and black pepper has become for me a symbol of the holiday, and I missed it this year, so I decided to make my own. (For for info on Yerushalmi kugel, check out my new book, Encyclopedia of Jewish Food.) The kugel was great, but I forgot to buy pickles. It is similar to maple syrup time in Vermont. How so, you may ask. During maple syrup-making season, the residents of Vermont use the fresh syrup to make various treats, notably maple doughnuts, which many people eat with sour pickles. It seems that the acidity of the pickles cuts the cloyingness of the maple doughnuts, allowing the consumption of much greater amounts of the sweet fried dough lumps. While Yerushalmi kugel is not that sweet, a bite of pickle clears the palate so that the subsequent bite of kugel comes through clear and flavorful. Still, it was a good kugel.
This year my special Simchat Torah treat was a carob spread (charuvit) that I had brought back from Israel. Although not per se a Simchat Torah food, it was intriguing – not either quite like chocolate or a nut butter. Israeli supermarkets carry three or more brands of carob spread, but I opted for a “sugar free” type sweetened maltitol, a sugar alcohol. Oy did it give me an upset stomach, about 2 hours after ingesting and for much of the day. I only later checked on the internet to find out that maltitol has that affect on many people. Many other sugar substitutes have also proven to upset the digestive system.
I like to bring exotic food products from Israel as gifts, so fortunately I didn’t give out any maltitol carob spread to anyone. But I will try again next time I visit Israel with a more user friendly carob product. In the future, I’m planning on sticking to sugar. The flavor is superior and its aftermath (ok, I could stand to lose a bit at the waist, which I will now that the holidays are over, I think a pot of vegetable-barley soup might be suited for this rainy evening) predictable.