The Charlotte Jewish News - December 2010 - Page 2
JEWISH FEDERATION NEWS
A Taste of Israel
By Mor Green, Israeli Shlicha
Growing up in a home with a
Sephardic mom and an
Ashkenazi dad sometimes led to
arguments, especially around
food. I will never forget the time
that my dad asked my mom to
make gefilte fish for our family
Shabbat dinner. I don’t know
what went wrong in the process
but the fish turned up green for
some reason. That was only the
beginning of the story. However,
as the years past, my mother
decided that she was going to be
a master of Ashkenazi food and
she started learning everything
there is to leam about it.
Coming to Charlotte, the
thing I miss the most is my
mom’s cooking and of course
the delicious Israeli food. You
might ask yourself: what is
Israeli food? Well basically, one
can divide Israeli cuisine into
two: Ashkenazi and Sephardic.
Ashkenazi is related to Jewish
people from east and west
Europe like my dad’s family and
Sephardic relates to Jewish peo
ple from Middle East counfries
like my mom’s family.
Sephardic food is full of aromat
ic spices and herbs, spicier and
livelier in general than
Ashkenazi cooking which is
sweeter. Nowadays we have new
Israeli cuisine which combines
the two with modem cooking.
The special thing about Israeli
food is that it is comprised of
foods and cooking methods that
span three thousand years of his
tory. Over that time, these fradi-
tions have been shaped by influ
ences from Asia, Africa and
Europe, and religious and ethnic
influences have resulted in a
After reading so much about
Israeli Food, I have to share at
least one recipe with you all.
Shakshuka
Yield: 6 servings
2 lbs. fresh tomatoes, unpeeled
and cut in quarters, or one 28-
oz. can tomatoes
6 cloves garlic, roughly diced
2 t. salt, or to taste
2 t. sweet paprika
1 T. tomato paste
1/4 c. vegetable oil
6 Ig. eggs
Place the tomatoes, garlic,
salt, paprika, tomato paste, and
vegetable oil in a 12” frying
pan. Bring to a simmer and
cook, uncovered, over low heat
till thick, for about 30 min.,
stirring occasionally. You can
also add chopped fried onions
to the recipe and even red pep
pers; you can be as creative as
you want. Break the eggs over
the tomatoes in a circle. Cover
and continue to cook for about
3 to 4 min., till the eggs are set.
Bring the frying pan directly to
the table. Set it on a frivet and
spoon out the Shakshuka. The
best way to eat Shakshuka is
with fresh bread.
Shabbat Candle Lighting
FOR December 2010
(light 3rd candle of Chanukah on
December 3 before 4:53 PM)
Friday, December 3, 4:53 PM
(light 4th candle of Chanukah on
December 4 after 5:52 PM)
Friday, December 10, 4:53 PM
Friday, December 17, 4:55 PM
Friday, December 24, 4:58 PM
Friday, December 31, 5:03 PM
JEWISH^
FEDE^RATIONS
OF nSFATFH CHAHtOTTF
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culinary melting pot.
A few weeks ago, I was invit
ed to give a lecture about Israeli
food in Sun City Carolina Lakes
to the Shalom Club members.
Starting the lecture I immediate
ly told them the shocking fact
that there is no such thing as
Israeli food. As I wrote before,
Israeli cuisine is composed from
a mixture of different cuisines
from all around the world that
became part of the Israeli cui
sine by the Jewish people who
immigrated to Israel.
After discovering the truth
about Israeli food, I want to tell
you about the wonderful food
that we have in Israel. Even if it
is not considered Israeli food,
we can still talk about falafel:
deep fried chickpea balls, often
served in pita bread. A common
theory is that the dish originated
in Egypt, possibly eaten by
Copts as a replacement for meat
during lent. I know that every
body thinks that it is Israeli food
and we even have the famous
Israeli song that says “and we
(Israelis) have the falafel...”
however, that is not Israeli food.
Another delicious dish is shak
shuka which is a dish that came
to Israel by Jews that emigrated
from the Maghreb, the North
African countries of Morocco,
Algeria, Libya and Tunisia.
Shakshuka is made with eggs
and tomatoes, and it is spicy. It’s
also common to include vegeta
bles such as onions, peppers or
potatoes in it as well.
There is one thing that I dis
covered that you can only find in
Israel and that is the “Israeli
Breakfast.” Enjoying an Israeli
breakfast is one of the great
pleasures of a visit to Israel.
Typically it includes the follow
ing: fresh juice, coffee or tea,
eggs of your choice, Israeli
salad, a range of cheeses (both
hard and soft), freshly baked
bread, olives, jam and butter.
Hotels, inns, restaurants and
small cafes all offer one version
Sharing Israeli food with friends at Sun City.
or another of this famous break
fast. So next time you are in
Israel don’t miss the delicious
Israeli breakfast.
I wish you all a peaceful
month and of course: enjoy your
food, bon appetit and shalom.^
Lunch with a Legend
On October 28, Ben-Gurion Society (BGS) members had the
opportunity to hear firsthand the inspirational story of Harvey B.
Gantt as part of BGS annual Lunch with a Legend. This members-
only appreciation event is an intimate gathering with one of
Charlotte’s most powerful and respected leaders. It is the
Federation s way of showing its appreciation to the Ben-Gurion
Society young philanthropists and leaders, contributing $1,000 or
more to Federation’s Annual Campaign.
In the picture - Harvey Gantt and Brian and Glenda Bernhardt,
new Ben-Gurion Society co-chairs.
CONTENTS
Federation News pp. 2-8
Synagogues and Congregation pp. 9-16
Community News pp. 17-19, 22-25
Jewish Community Center pp. 20, 21
Travel p. 26
Schools pp. 26, 27
Women’s Page pp. 27, 28
Youth p. 28
Jewish Family Services p. 29
Levine-Sklut Judaic Library p. 30
Dining Out pp. 31, 32
Mazel Tov p. 33
Chanukah pp. 33-35
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