Salt of the Earth

I love salt. If you ask me what item I would totally be lost without in the kitchen, those little white granules are my number one power player.

Salt has an amazing history, as it often was used as a preservative and as a vital component to trading. There are a variety of salts around the world, ranging from Pink Himalayan to basic Kosher salt, which can be found at almost any market.

I found from an early age that it is salt that defines the flavors in a dish. Pepper can spice it up, but salt seems to blend in, find the good things in any dish and bring them forth on your palette. Sure, I may oversalt from time to time, but better to overdo it and get all the flavors than to have a bland plate of food (a salute to Tre from Top Chef Masters, one of my fave shows – Tom Colicchio may not have your back, but I do).

Sure, it’s gotten a bad reputation in the health world. But I don’t really care. I don’t mind hanging out with bad reputation people (or spices), when the truth is that it’s the heart of everything that matters.

There was another person in my life who liked salt just as much as I do. Regina Amira, my Nony, would make sure that everything was carefully salted. It seemed like everything she did tasted just right. And she loved salt with her foods.

There was a joke that her doctors were trying to get Nony away from salt due to her heart problems. They tried for years. Then, once she reached a certain age, my mother said, “Let her have what she wants. She wants salt? She can have it.” Nony probably would never have imagined the different types of salt that I use, but would have been extremely fascinated.

Nony was a “salt of the earth” person. Although I know that there is a reference to Christianity, from the “Salt and Light” sermon from the book of Matthew, there is debate about the original source of this phrase, including from the books of Prophets and even Exodus. But what I know about it is that the phrase means someone who is wise, humble, decent and not pretentious. It is the root of all that is good on this planet.

I thought of her as I was driving home the other day. I had heard people talking about how they are throwing their money around – on parties, trips across the world and whatnot – and thought about my life. I wondered if these people knew about suffering. Had they ever not had money, or someone to take care of them? As I recounted my younger years in Northern California, where my parents almost lost their home and were struggling to feed us, could they grasp what this meant?

Up until the age of 13, my parents fought to make ends meet. And there were Joe and Regina Amira, Papu and Nony, standing right behind them and helping in any way that they could. Kind, decent people who may not have had a lot of money in the lives, but knew in the end what counted. They fed us and nurtured us, doing their best to make sure that we would be like them – the salt of the earth, making the world better by being a source of goodness.

Salt means so much more than just for cooking. I know this because I have watched how, when we eat our bread on Friday nights, except for during the High Holy Days, we dip it in salt. It represents the tears we have shed, the humility to go with the pride of our puffed-up loaves. It’s something we seem not to remember as Jews, when we want to discuss our fancy new things, our richer-than-chocolate cake trips and ask people for money for “charitable causes.” We seem to pretend it doesn’t exist, or perhaps we forget.

Please do not forget where we came from. We should all aspire to be salt of the earth; do good and and be humble, quietly accenting the things around us.

So in honor of that sentiment, I am going to post a recipe that uses salt to bring out the sweet elements. In a way, this is a salt-of-the-earth recipe -- although I am now thinking about perfecting a salt-crusted fish.

ONION TART

3-4 yellow onions

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 garlic clove

2 tablespoons salt

1 pie crust

1 container semi-soft herbed cheese, like Alouette

1 small mozzarella cheese

Slice the onions into rings and mince the garlic clove. Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large skillet. Once heated, add the onions and garlic. Add the salt over, and mix slightly. Keep mixing as the onions begin to reduce. Just in case you don’t know, this is carmelizing your onions.

Once the onions are slightly reduced, cook the pie crust according to package directions. Once cooked, spread alouette on the bottom, allowing to melt slightly. Add the onions on top.

Slice the mozzarella cheese and place on top of the onion. Put the oven to broil and place the tart into the oven. Check to make sure the crust doesn’t burn and the cheese is melted after one minute. If not, check once a minute to make sure it doesn’t burn. Serve hot.

Islamophobia and the Jews

I have a friend Sunny, an Iranian Jew who could probably compete with me in the “most energy” department. She hosts a conversation café in Long Beach, where all faiths can represent and converse about important topics.

When I attended recently, I was sitting and talking to someone when a young man came up to me. He touched me slightly on the shoulder.

“Do you remember me?” he asked.

I paused. He looked familiar, but I couldn’t place him.

“From Cal State Fullerton…” he continued.

And then I remembered him. His name was Rashad, and he was a friend of my friend, Rudy. It was a flashback to the courtyard outside of the Humanities Building, sipping Italian sodas and talking about our lives.

“It’s so good to see you, Rashad!” I hugged him close. Sunny had no idea until afterwards that we had known each other, but I was so happy to be reunited from someone in my past who I shared wonderful conversations with – about our families, the foods that we ate and the life experiences we shared.

There was joy, but then I remembered the pain around the time that we met. A lot of the Jewish students that I was friends with couldn’t understand why I would be friends with the Muslims. I personally didn’t care. A friend was a friend, and I didn’t care who they were. After all, I came from Turkish descent – a place where, for centuries up until current times, Jews and Muslims lived side by side and worked together. In the end, it got me into a lot of trouble, to the point where certain people wouldn’t be friends with me.

It’s an unfortunate reality that we have to bring up in the Jewish community. I see it with my friends, and although I love them to pieces, I see that there is intolerance. I can’t mix my Muslim friends with my Jewish friends unless it’s people like Sunny – open, sincere and loving. It’s unfortunate that a people who faced so much discrimination over the centuries are more than willing to do it now in terms of Islamophobia.

I blame a lot of what’s going on in Israel for the fear. The situation is so sticky, and the Jews have so much pride in building a country from the bottom up which produces so much of the world’s technology, aids in the medical field and helps the desert bloom with agriculture. There are lots of people who feel that it has no right to exist, and should be blown to smithereens. It’s one of the many reasons why people there are so willing to discriminate, right down to the Rabbis who say that people shouldn’t rent apartments to Arabs. I guess the concept they have in mind is one of, “We should get them before they get us.”

But fortunately, we live in America. We are on the opposite hemisphere of these problems. We live in a country with the ability to discourse fully and practice our religions in peace. Although there are anti-Semetic bigots living in this country and people who aren’t willing to listen, there are more people who would love to get to know us, want to share a meal or a cup of coffee with us, want to know what Israel is like and what are the issues behind it. They also are respectful and allow us to agree to disagree.

This was why, when Cal State Fullerton became a war zone in my senior year, while other people were getting scared and trying to fight too much, I was drinking Italian sodas with Rashad and other Muslim kids, wanting to figure out a solution. We can waste all our time on hate, but it takes more effort to show love and embrace those around us.

I think that’s why I have been so drawn to food and cooking over the years. It’s something that we share, something that unites us. When I was in Washington, DC, the Muslims knew that I was kosher, so they would come to me and ask me where I was getting my food (as many Muslims will actually eat kosher meat, as it’s more stringent than Halal). The truth of the matter is that we may have our differences, but we all need to eat. I understand this, and I am willing to keep my kitchen table open for anyone who wants to share a meal with me.

Don’t get me wrong. I love Israel. I am not a self-hating Jew, and in fact am pretty proud of my identity. But being Jewish comes with a responsibility to those who came before me: to love and embrace those who are different than me, to be respectful and open, and of course to try to feed everyone. I do not believe in isolating myself. After all, I am a part of this world.

I applaud the efforts of anyone who is willing to make a difference – people like Sunny and my friend Lee Weissman, a wonderful man who started the blog Jihadi Jew (here’s the link: http://jihadiyehudi.blogspot.com). The Olive Tree Initiative at UCI, although controversial, has those same intentions.

I know I’m going to get comments such as how naïve I am and how I am grossly overestimating the good in people. However, I’m not willing to allow myself to fall into bigotry. It’s against everything that I believe in. After all, it was Abraham that fathered both Islam and Judaism. We are one people.

The Meat of the Issue: Kosher Meat Shopping

It’ll be time soon. I’ll be looking in my freezer, and my meat supply will be running low. Sooner or later, it’ll be time to head back up to Los Angeles with my cooler and stock up on kosher meat.

It’s a huge production number – wake up early on a Sunday morning and head either up to Fairfax to Western Kosher or go to mid-city to Kosher Club. Load up the cooler with meat and some ice and get it back down as quickly as possible to Long Beach, where I put each piece in freezer bags as to prevent freezer burn so I don’t waste money on meat. The result tends to be $200-$300 worth of meat that needs to last for the next three months.

Living in Long Beach, our only source for kosher meat is Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods (which costs an arm, leg and kidney for a chicken). The Albertson’s near me has phased out a lot of its kosher meat, and none of the other major markets stock it. And although we have a kosher market in Orange County, I find that it’s trickier to shop there. Not everything is available when you want it or even how you want it. I love them, but going up to LA is easier in many respects.

I’m not the only one who does this. My mother-in-law in San Diego does a meat shop a couple times a year. Her community gets together and creates a big order for someone to go get meat up in the San Fernando Valley at a place called Ventura Kosher, and they bring it down. It’s not as necessary anymore, as they have more kosher meat selection now thanks to new-and-improved La Jolla Ralphs (which has its own kosher butcher and everything). But the struggle for people to get kosher meat outside of a major city center is tricky.

With the Internet, there are some people who can order their meat online and have it delivered, although it’s almost exclusively for the New York area. A friend of mine, when she started keeping kosher, said that she discussed with her then-roommate about having meat delivered from the Big Apple. I scratched my head a little with that one – after all, we have kosher meat in the greater Los Angeles area. We don’t need to be dependent on New York for that one (although my cousin Jacob said that it has kosher kobe beef – and I want that).

It leads to the usual story of supply and demand in the kosher community, mainly in the fact that it doesn’t exist in a lot of places. Many companies and shops know of the demand, so they can get away with price gouging and lower quality meats as long as people can get it local. The demand won’t go away because of the religious obligation, and it makes me sad that just because there is a built-in contingency that it allows the supply to not be as good.

In Los Angeles and New York, people are fortunate enough that they have their choice of kosher markets (not to mention several mainstream markets that provide for the community), so the ones that do the best job are the ones that get to stay open. It’s the same with the restaurants that are in the area: Since there is competition, the best (or the one that the public deems the best) are the ones that survive. However, in other parts of the country, there are places that only seem to be open because they are the only kosher options in the area.

It’s a request I made last Passover, and I’m going to make it again for the days outside those eight: Kosher shops, restaurants, etc., please put some effort in providing us good quality meats. In the non-kosher world, if you don’t put out good quality meat, you get busted or you don’t succeed over the other people who are delivering it. I think the same should apply for the kosher world. Let laissez-faire rule the kosher world!

And as a side note, please don’t be afraid to bust out some gourmet items. I know that dry aged beef is starting to come out, and there are kosher turduckens available online. Give us the good stuff; we’ll come out for it.

So here is a long promised recipe for one of my most diligent fans, Lisa Plante. I said that I made the perfect burger, and this is it. I love lamb, but you can’t make a burger out of lamb alone, as the flavor can get super-gamey and too much for the taste buds. But this is the perfect balance, complete with Mediterranean flavors.

THE PERFECT BURGER

1 pound ground beef

1 pound ground lamb

2 tablespoons ground garlic

1 tablespoon dried chopped rosemary (see Quick Tip)

Salt & Pepper to taste

Mix beef, lamb, garlic, rosemary, salt and pepper to taste using your hands. Shape into burgers.

If pan-frying, heat a pan or griddle to medium-high. Cook the burgers for 4-5 minutes on each side. If using a George Forman grill, grill for 6-8 minutes at 350 degrees.

QUICK TIP: If you want your burgers to have more of an Indian feel instead of a Mediterranean one, substitute the rosemary for curry powder.

The War of Gefilte

People often ask me what I don’t like to eat, as I like almost everything. Typically, I only say bananas, as my sensitive palette doesn’t like the aftertaste of them and how they can overwhelm everything. I also dislike tomatoes, but it’s only a texture issue – I can eat ketchup and tomato sauce with no problems.

But there is another food that fills me with dread. It sends shivers up my spine just dwelling on the concept. I met it at a temple Passover seder at 11, when they put it on my plate. I asked what it was, and when I was told, I said, “I’m not touching that.”

It’s gefilte fish.

Mind you, I don’t get freaked out by all gefilte fish. My mother-in-law makes Susie Fishbein’s “Kosher By Design” three-layer gefilte fish pie for Shabbat sometimes, and that is delicious. Those are frozen loaves, and they aren’t too bad. The real fear comes in with the jar.

Ari’s cousin, Sabrina (who I adopted as my own because she’s so awesome) and I were going over it the other night. “I love that stuff!” she said. “I grew up on it. Your husband grew up on it. It’s good!”

But she could never convince me. As someone who knows and loves food, I know for certain that fish should a) never come in a jar, and b) never come with jelly. Doesn’t matter the flavor. Fish does not work with it, in my opinion.

Gefilte fish did not always inspire such “Psycho”-level shrieks of horror. There was a time where the Bubbes of Eastern Europe grinded their own whitefish, made it just so and without any icky stuff. There are still recipes of it, courtesy of that other Jewish-cooking wonder Joan Nathan. But it is gefilte that could possibly have been the downfall of the Jewish culinary tradition.

Think about what Jews have contributed to the world of food. In the Ashkenazi tradition, Jews gave the world the bagel and delicatessens filled with tasty meats like pastrami. In the Sephardic tradition, we taught the world that the Mediterranean diet was the healthiest way to live (one filled with fresh fish, fruits and vegetables and olive oil). And Israelis? Well, living in the Middle East allows them to perfect the art that is hummus. And not to mention that, for some odd reason, non-Jews seem drawn inexplicably to our creation known as matzah.

But just try showing someone gefilte fish without them freaking out, and wondering what the hell is up with the Jews that they would allow chewed-up-looking fish to be served out of a jar. It’s no wonder why people like Claudia Roden are shying away from it, favoring instead the Sephardic and Mizrahi communities for recipes, along with Indian and Chinese Jewish wonders.

I sometimes wonder if people relate kosher eating to the gefilte, as it’s probably the most traditional of Jewish dishes. It could be the reason why people are turned off by the concept of it. I mean, let’s face it – if faced with the chewed-up ickiness versus a piece of bacon, which one would you take? I’m kosher, but I know where I’d go first.

Which is why I am asking the nice Jewish people of the world to seek alternatives to the jar for your fish needs. I watched as my friend Merav stewed her fish on Friday nights in a spicy tomato mixture to serve as her fish course. It’s scrumptious, healthy and delightfully full of flavor. She stews it with beans along with delicious spices – what could be more delicious?

As for those who love gefilte, please introduce yourself to the loaf. It’s available in the frozen section of not only kosher markets, but also quite a few regular markets. It’s a lot nicer looking, and you can boil it and infuse it with flavor. And there isn’t a lick of jelly in sight.

So, in spite of the jar, I am going to give you a simple version of a fish that you can prepare at home. It’s pareve, so perfect for serving on Friday night, and it’s super-simple to bake up if you’re rushed for a meal. It’s also a special tribute to Merav and her courage to not grab the jar. P’tayavon!

CURRIED COCONUT FISH

1-2 lbs. mild white fish such as tilapia

1 can light coconut milk

3 tablespoons curry powder

Additional spices (see quick tip)

Salt and Pepper

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Prepare a large baking dish. Place fish in an even layer in the dish and season with salt and pepper.

In another bowl, mix coconut milk, curry powder and additional spices. Pour over the fish. Place in the over and cook for 20 minutes. Serve hot. If main course, serve over vegetables or barley (I think spinach would go really well with the curry flavors). If serving on Friday night, feel free to take a page our of Merav’s book and mix in a can of rinsed garbanzo beans with the coconut to pour over the fish and serve alongside it.

QUICK TIP: As each curry powder is unique and different, feel free to experiment with what spices you want to add to the curry. I recommend ground clove, cinnamon, nutmeg and my favorite, garlic.

A Salute to the Veggies

Being kosher can be a tremendous challenge. Since the majority of the world’s Jews no longer keep the practice, it’s not something that many people don’t understand. I have been questioned about it a thousand times, and I’m sure I will be questioned about it a thousand more.

At least I’m in good company. In the land of California, everyone is on a different diet that it is easy to camouflage yourself. There are the gluten-frees, the no-white-stuff peeps and the raw diet rabbits. Trust me, I tried a raw meal once, where I ate nut cheese. It’s not an experience I want to repeat.

But I am going to sing the praises of a certain group of specific diet people. Mainly, the vegetarians and vegans (sorry, my pescatarian friends, but you’re going to have to sit out this number. I still love you, though).

It’s a hard world out there for you guys. With very little protein available, you have to make things work in a very different way. I still hear people talk about “It’s not healthy” to be a vegetarian or vegan. I hear stories of former vegetarians and vegans talking about how unhealthy they were.

However, for those who keep up with the lifestyle, I give kudos. It’s a hard choice. As a kosher girl, I understand. I’m weaker, because I like chicken, beef and lamb, and refuse to give those up. There are very few options for kosher though, so I go into vegetarian and vegan restaurants with great joy in being able to order anything off the menu. Whether it’s for health, ethics or environmental reasons, I give kudos for not falling into the cheeseburger world and playing with your veggies (I find veggies often a lot more fun to work with than meat).

Vegetarians and vegans have been getting more cultural acceptance in the United States, although the majority of the acceptance is here in California. Five years ago, when I was in Washington D.C. and requested a vegetarian meal at a luncheon at the National Press Club, I got a plate of slop with microwavable peas and carrots in it. I watched as the other vegetarians in the room wrinkled their noses in contempt.

Five years later, I was a dinner here in California. As everyone else was served chicken, I requested a vegetarian meal. Out came a beautiful plate of pasta with bright vegetables, parmesan cheese and a balsamic reduction. The meat eaters at the table sat there with their chicken cordon bleu while I was happily eating up my pasta, leaving them all jealous.

What I learned from that experience is that when it comes to creating food for vegetarians and vegans, you have to be more creative. I watch as many vegetarian and vegan places come up with uses for seitan, tempeh and tofu, which are absolutely extraordinary and downright tasty. I have seen Café Jay Vegetarian in Mira Mesa serve soy shrimp (which is absolutely delish) and the perennial L.A. favorite Veggie Grill create a fried chick’n sandwich to delicious results. Yesterday, I ate delicious fakin’ bacon at Zephyr, a vegetarian restaurant right here in Long Beach. Yums.

I have also watched as restaurants have been more veggie and vegan friendly – like my friends at Open Sesame, who have taken the time to mark the vegetarian and vegan menu items, or at Burger Bar in Las Vegas, where their vegan “burger” is actually two of the most delicious portabella mushrooms as the buns, and delectable veggies in the middle. And since Burger Bar is owned by Hubert Keller, a top-notch chef (and is also home to the BEST MILKSHAKE EVER), it says something to the great chefs out there – vegetarians and vegans aren’t going anywhere, so either give them something good or they’ll go somewhere else to get it.

So here’s to you, my veggie and vegan friends. May we of the kosher world continue to grow with you and enjoy all your delicious offerings. In the meantime, we are going to replay a recipe, for tofu coconut curry. P’tayavon!

TOFU COCONUT CURRY

1 block extra-firm tofu

¼ cup hoisin sauce

8 shiitake mushrooms

3 small heads bok choy

2-3 large carrots

4 green onions

4 garlic cloves

2 tablespoons sesame oil

2 cans light coconut milk

2-3 tablespoons curry powder

Other curry spices (see QUICK TIP 2)

Drain the tofu and chop into cubes (see QUICK TIP 1). Marinate in hoisin sauce. Meanwhile, slice the shiitake mushrooms and chop the bok choy (discarding roots and ends) and carrots. Slice the green onions and mince the garlic.

In a soup pan, heat the oil and add the shiitakes and carrots. Season with salt and pepper. Add the garlic. Saute for three to four minutes, then add the tofu. Cook for another two minutes, constantly turning the pan.

Add the bok choy and green onions. Add the coconut milk, curry powder and other spices. Allow to simmer until the coconut milk begins to reduce and the mixture begins to thicken. Serve hot over rice.

QUICK TIP 1: Tofu, if not drained properly, will fall apart during cooking. If your tofu is packed in water, remove it from the package and wrap it in paper towels. Put it on a plate and place another one on top with a heavy object to weigh it down. You may have to replace the paper towels several times. However, if you can find your tofu vacuum-sealed instead of packed in water, it will take you a lot less time to drain it.

QUICK TIP 2: I personally like my curry powder and coconut milk for the mixture because it doesn’t overpower the subtle sweetness of the mixture. However, there are certain components of the curry powder spice mix you like best – like ginger, tumeric, coriander and cumin, or even cinnamon, clove, nutmeg and mustard powder – that you may want to accentuate. If so, feel free to add them to your curry.

All Apologies

It’s been a while since I have been back here. So it’s time to shake off some dust and stretch out my apologies to the people who love YBK.

The past few months have been the source of endless drama and difficulties. I traveled cross-country, something that I dreamed of doing almost my whole life. I was able to afford an anniversary trip with Ari. But even those great highs could not compete with the low of depression regarding the situation that my husband Ari and I faced.

No job and no prospects for months led to me to crying fits, random blow-ups at people and difficulties coming to terms when our financial situation went from bad to worse. Although things seem to be turning around now (with my husband finally getting a job after two stark years of unemployment), it’s hard to shake the fact that we are struggling and still have to face the affects that unemployment has had on our lives.

I felt the pressure to try to turn the blog into a money maker, to make it into something that it’s really not. I loved certain products and wanted to feature them. I thought that making it appeal to salespeople would make me more successful. But it made me more empty, and I began to drift again.

So why have I decided to come back? The answer really came from a woman named Sandra from Jacksonville, Florida. She left a comment on one of my earlier blogs, and this is what it said:

Dear Reina, I found your post after searching for information from others who are kosher & taking Coumadin. All I can say is Thank You for continuing this blog. You never know the impact you have on others unless they share. I recently had a DVT blast through my heart and the bi-lateral PE(s) looked more like a shotgun blast; too many to count on each side. I just wanted you to know that reading your post made me feel better; a little less alone. Tikkun Olam comes in many different and unexpected forms :)

I felt comforted by Sandra. And I realized something that was very important about YBK – it’s not about me. I thought no one was listening, and that there was no point to this blog. But when I founded this, I sought to make a community, one that was united by stories and food. I wanted to make it like a table of friends coming together from all different backgrounds to share and enjoy one another.

Now, things are taking an interesting turn, and YBK will be rising from the ashes spread across the Internet. Here are some of the more interesting developments that we will be doing:

· We have combined with our friends at PunkTorah.org to help launch their site, NewKosher.org. We will be posting there as well as here, although there we will be on a different schedule – stay tuned.

· After much procrastination, I will be launching video. So excited! It was one of the biggest projects that I wanted to take on for Young, Broke and Kosher, straight from the beginning. I hope to shoot this week in my own kitchen, and possibly work out a deal to make it more professional.

· I have every intention of also launching youngbrokeandkosher.com and keeping that as the home of the blog, as well as launching a forum and other various projects. However, we need some cheap hosting for it. If you know anywhere that YBK can find its hosting home, please let me know.

· Also, I want to encourage other people’s creativity in the kitchen by featuring YOUR recipes. If you want to have your tasty dishes featured on this site, please shoot me an e-mail at youngbrokekosher@gmail.com. If you have a photograph to go with your dish, it would be appreciated.

So, welcome home, loyal YBKers, and greetings to all the newer people. YBK is officially relauched!

YBK featured on Punktorah.org!

Hey everyone!

Product of the Week will be back next week, but this week we will be featuring Punktorah.org, where I have written a d'var of my favorite Torah portion. Enjoy!

http://punktorah.org/dvar-torah/lech-lecha-by-young-broke-kosher.htm

It Gets Better... Right?

This week, the Internet has been abuzz about the “It Gets Better” project launched by Dan Savage. Mind you, I think this project is important. Letting teenagers know that suicide is not the answer, that there is help out there and that things will get better for them is crucial for their survival. I really recommend looking at it.

Many celebrities are rallying for the cause, including some of my favorites (hello, Tim Gunn, whose picture needed to be in this blog!). But in the light of my own darkness, there is the question that I have to pose for celebrities as they are driving around in their nice cars to their big homes – well, except for the sacred Tim, who has admitted he still takes the subway in New York.

Depression is a huge problem not only for teens. For the millions of out-of-work people in the United States, it is an even bigger problem. Many of them, myself included, have lost a lot of hope, and seem to be unable to function and do what they normally do. Some have gone off the rails. I remember that, for a while, there were stories every day about how unemployed people were so desperate, they killed their families and then themselves to get rid of the misery of it all.

The August unemployment rate in the United States was 9.5 percent – almost one in ten Americans is unemployed. In California, it’s 12.8 percent. And there are more people telling me that I need to get off my ass and do X, Y and Z rather than, “Hold on. It will get better, and you will look back on this as simply a memory.”

I will admit, save for a few episodes of pure bliss, I have been incredibly depressed over the past few months. I have been unmotivated to do anything, including taking care of this blog or cooking. My reduction to crying fits poisoned me, and when it seemed like my friends disappeared from off the face of the earth, it became even worse.

I have been fortunate that my parents have been incredibly supportive and understanding, and that several friends have offered whatever they could to help us. However, it seems like many people want to retreat. It’s too close, to personal, especially because its from someone they know, and besides, what do they get out of it? It’s easier to back up then to reach out. It’s like elementary school: Everyone wants to be your friend if you’re giving out candy, but if you’re not, watch out.

My concern has been whether it gets better or not. A friend on Facebook has been posting quotes from Rabbi Nachman of Breslov, and while they have been comforting, they are not enough to wake me from the haze of depression and make me believe that things will change from this desperation.

I am not dumping on Dan Savage’s parade – his cause is important. But as a person who is unemployed and slumping, I think it would help if we had a YouTube campaign about current successes who were once down-and-out. Jewel, for example, was living in her car before she became successful. Eminem came from a trailer park. And, of course, J.K. Rowling was living off of welfare as a single mom with a baby, writing a fabulous tale of a boy wizard in coffee shops.

For the millions of Americans out there who are depressed from the economy and the state of the workplace, we need some reassurance. Sadly, since I am in the same state, I can’t give it to you. But I encourage those who have been through it to reassure us and care for us.

And as for those who have their jobs and think they know better than us? Shut your mouths, because you’re not helping. We have to get out of our funk to find jobs, and one of the main reasons you have a job is that you are fortunate enough to not have lost it in the downturn.

May G-d bless us with health, happiness and, of course, jobs!

Love, Rein

To Chalav or Not to Chalav? Milking the Debate

Being of Sephardi descent from the Mediterranean, dairy is an important part of my diet. I love good cheese, and since the Sephardi diet is mainly fish, we can eat cheese almost whenever we want.

But the subject of cheese and dairy often brings up a specific kashrut questions: chalav yisrael or no?

It’s not one of the more common kosher laws, and there are quite a few people who are kosher but don’t observe it. But what is chalav yisrael, you may ask?

It’s actually quite simple: Although milk that comes from a kosher animal is inherently kosher, the Shulchan Aruch ruled that Jews could only drink milk that was handled by Torah-observant Jews. That way, people wouldn’t be tricked into possibly drinking non-kosher milk. Unlike with kosher wine, where it undergoes a specific process due to its use in religious rituals, milk has no religious purposes in Judaism.

According to the site OK.org (the site for the O-K certification), the majority of farms do not produce milk from unkosher animals. While cow and goat milk are available on the market, you won’t find a lot of varieties In addition, the USDA prohibits production of these types of milk for commercial sale, and there are major consequences if you do try to sell it. So even though chefs are obsessed with pork, I doubt any of them are reaching for pig milk.

In addition, there are plenty of ways that we already observe that milk is kosher. If you have a product that is certified kosher, you have to have rabbinical supervision. If there is a milk product in it, it is usually identified as such with a D (the most famous, the Orthodox Union’s, or OU’s, D symbol can be found on a lot of common food products).

So, with the kashrut observation of many different rabbis and the fact that the USDA prohibits the sale of many unkosher milk products, should we really be concerned about chalav yisrael in America?

Personally, I am not chalav yisrael. It is a very difficult lifestyle to maintain, and as far as I’m concerned, if it’s good enough for OU-D, it’s good enough for me. I feel that, with the regulations our government has on food, that the law is antiquated. It comes from a time where you couldn’t trust your neighbors and there were no regulations like this.

My whole philosophy towards my religion (and my kashrut) is thinking of modern times: If it doesn’t have a part of the modern world, there is no reason for me to partake. I feel that being kosher has a place in the modern world, as being humane is a timeless value. But distrust of others is not, and I feel that that USDA is keeping my cheese unkosher-animal-free. So, bring on the cheese, people!

What is your take? Are you chalav or not?

Product of the Week: Takosher

This weekend, I headed out to Malibu to the Shalom Institute, where they were holding the Jewish County Fair. Although the event itself wasn’t as great as I thought it would be (although it provided some much-needed memory jogging of being at camp there), I finally got to the bottom of a mystery.

You see, I had been hearing rumors of a kosher taco truck by the name of Takosher that has been prowling the Los Angeles area. Food trucks have really become a trend in LA, so it was nice to be able to get a kosher one as well.

I had been reading about them, so I have wanted to find them. But where? Where? I don’t get up to LA as much as I used to, and it seems like these guys don’t get down to Long Beach or Orange County. Luckily, they visited the fair, and our paths finally crossed.

I told my friends that we had to get to the taco truck. There, I was able to purchase two very unique tacos: the Brisketaco and the Latketaco. The Brisketaco reminds me of a pulled pork variety taco that you would get from an unkosher truck, while the Latketaco was like nothing I had never seen – two spicy little potato fritters with an apple chutney on top. For $7, I got them with some chips and a Dr. Brown’s Black Cherry – a drink which, in itself, is heaven.

I first dug into the Latketaco, and I was amazed. It was like the best latke that you have ever had, but made better. The warm fritters we complemented by the chutney perfectly. I was brought back to Hanukah, eating latkes with apple sauce. But the thing that made it special was the kick – not overpowering, but enough to make my mouth tingle and crave some more.

Then it was time for the Brisketaco. The guys at the truck told us that this was the best taco that they had, and their most popular. I decided to take their word. When I bit into it, it was something quite special. The flavor was pure dynamite in my mouth. I did something I rarely do when I’m eating food that isn't mine – I rolled my eyes into the back of my head and savored the flavor. It was that good. The sweetness, the tang and then that hit of spice. It was my mother-in-law’s brisket, delicious as that may be, made better. Don’t tell Ima that. Although she may be reading this… hi Ima.

Mind you, there were some small flaws – I think the Brisketaco may have needed a little more sauce to make it moister, and I would love an extended menu incorporating some Sephardi flavors in tacos in addition to the traditional Ashkenazi fare. May I suggest a spicy Moroccan lamb taco with a sour cherry sauce? I’d get into that. Hell, if you’re reading this, Takosher, I’d help you make it.

Either way, if you’re walking along and you see the Takosher truck coming by, I suggest you take a look. They definitely are on the track to something delicious, and they need the love and support.

If you’re interested, follow them on Twitter @Takosher, find them on Facebook or visit their site, www.takosher.com.

Product of the Week: Osem Chicken Style Consomme

For my first product review, I wanted to pick one of my favorite kosher items to cook with. I find it to be a fabulous pantry staple full of flavor that you can use with anything, as it is pareve.

Osem's Chicken-Style Consomme Instant Soup and Seasoning Mix is special for me, because it allows me to adapt recipes that may not traditionally be kosher into something that tastes like the real thing. When other recipes call for chicken stock, I just pull out my container and measure out a teaspoon for every cup of hot water.

When I first moved in to our apartment with Ari, I got the vegetable, onion, beef and chicken mixes from Osem. Although I like some of the other kinds, the chicken is my go-to mix. Even though it's pareve, it has that distinct chicken flavor that can't be mistaken. I use it along with all my favorite spices.

One of the best parts about this is that it's not like a soup cube. I find that with soup cubes, they have only one purpose -- to be dissolved. It makes it such a hassle, because it's an assigned amount and sometimes you waste a whole cube on a recipe where you only need a little bit. But the loose powder of the Consomme allows me to put it on whatever I want, and I never waste it. One of the uses I love for it is to put it on top of frozen vegetables with a little bit of butter or margarine, depending on whether it's a meat or dairy meal. But don't put too much on -- otherwise, it might end up tasting like a salt lick.

Part of the reason why this is the Product of the Week is that I used it last week to create a delicious saffron and mushroom risotto. Risotto may take time and patience, but it is worth it because it's so creamy and mouth-watering. Think of it as our grown-up version of mac and cheese. The recipe is below

Luckily, you don't have to be close to a kosher market in order to pick this up. Most mainstream grocery stores have it in their kosher sections. Or you can purchase it at kosher.com by simply clicking here.

SAFFRON AND MUSHROOM RISOTTO (DAIRY)

1 cup dried mushroom medley

3 pinches saffron

8 cups water with Osem Chicken Consomme, divided use

3 tablespoons butter

1 onion

2 cloves garlic

1/2 cup dry wine, such as a savigno

1 pound Aborrio or long-grain rice

1 cup parmesan cheese, grated or shredded

1/4 cup parsley, chopped

Reconstitute the mushrooms with 1 cup hot water. Allow to sit for half hour. Once reconstituted, chop coarsely and place back in the steeping water.

Heat the water and consomme, allowing the powder to dissolve. Remove one cup and add the saffron, letting it sit for at least ten minutes.

Dice the onion and mince the garlic finely. Melt the butter in a large saucepan and add the onion and garlic. Season with salt and pepper. Allow onions to become translucent and add the rice. Mix continuously for five minutes and add the wine.

Once the wine is absorbed, add the cup of consomme infused with saffron. Stir and allow to absorb. Add three cups of the consomme, one cup at a time, continuously stirring to make sure that it evenly cooks. The mixture should start to get creamy from the starch from the rice.

Add the reconstituted mushrooms and liquid and stir. Continue adding consomme one cup at a time and stirring until the risotto is al dente and creamy. You may not necessarily need all of the consomme.

While hot, add the parmesan and parsley, allowing the parmesan to melt. Serve immediately.

QUICK TIP: When it comes to selecting a wine for this, pick one that you would actually like to drink. My favorites for this recipe are a Sauvignon Blanc or a Pinot Grigio.

A New Day -- Young, Broke and Kosher is reborn!

Hi Everyone!

It's been a long time, but I am back, and boy what an adventure I have had. From traveling cross-country to a bout with a staph infection over Rosh Hashana, I have certainly had an insane ride since I last posted.

I have rethought Young, Broke and Kosher, and thanks to the help of many people (and a guy named Dan from Webvisible at last night's networking event in LA), I have come up with a new approach to this blog. We are going to go beyond the stories. It's time to think more about your needs than mine.

The blogging schedule will look something like this:

Tuesdays: We are going to devote Tuesday's blog to a restaurant, product or item that is currently rocking my kosher world and that all of you should know about.

Wednesdays: To get over the hump, I'm providing you with my best tips regarding cooking, from kosher meat shopping (and how to get the best deals) to knife tips. It'll all be here!

Thursdays: As we approach Shabbat, this day is all about worldly wisdom and story time. So gather around as I share a piece of my mind!

So, p'tayavon, everyone, and keep tuned next week for the reboot!

Love, Reina

Revamp is coming...

Hi everyone,

It has been two weeks since I last blogged, and I will admit it. I lost steam. I lost faith. I lost so much. And I needed a break.

Luckily for me, I have had something of a reboot. And I am back and better than ever. I have rethought YBK recently, and we need something new. Something amazing. And I think I have it.

I will definitely keep you guys posted...

Talkin' 'Bout My Generation -- YBK Style

My generation is an odd one. I feel that we are misunderstood, often characterized as narcissistic and feeling that we deserve a lot more than we do. I’ve read books basically talking about how horrible my generation is (which begs the question: If we are that way, then what does that say about the people who raised us, who probably wrote some of these books?).

This comes up as I read an article on MSNBC.com recently, which said that unemployment rates for our generation are at their lowest in decades. On top of it, we can’t get work in the fields that we trained for because the older generation is still continuing to work and getting the jobs that used to be filled by us. It discussed how my generation is incredibly educated, but saddled with college loans and having to move back in with their parents in order to get by. In turn, we won’t make as much as our parents and will have a difficult time achieving what came so easily to them.

The way we have dealt with the recession has varied. I have watched as many people from my generation have gone back to school either in order to ride out the recession or to maybe get a better job. Quite a few of my friends applied to law school and are attending in the fall – some of them going to incredible schools. Same goes with MBA programs. On the opposite side, I have also seen members of my generation behave foolishly, taking trips they really can’t afford and spending money they don’t have. But it doesn’t answer the question – who are we, really?

We can’t seem to be explained in song like our parents, or even have a whole bunch of movies like Generation X did with John Hughes. Heck, we don’t even have a war to define us like the World War II generation. The culture of America can’t seem to touch us or put a finger on us, and G-d knows they have tried their best. They have appealed to our demographic in television, film and whatnot, but at the same time they haven’t captured our essence. In a sense, we are elusive – which results in many books trying to explore this question.

The truth is that we are still trying to learn who we are. We were raised by parents who either were so busy working they threw money at us or had their entire lives revolve around our different lessons and sports. They were successful, but we learned that success sometimes things would fall by the wayside. We also lived in a generation where our parents’ divorces or those of our friends’ parents became a natural part of our lives, so there was a degree of heartbreak as well.

The fact that the feminist and civil rights movements came before we were born has given us advantages that our mothers and sometimes fathers never had. It was a given that girls were going to go to college, and not just to find a husband. I feel like we have had a lot, and I have always appreciated what our parents have done in order to provide the lives they gave us.

But the truth is that maybe we don’t want the lives our parents had, no matter what they gave us. Perhaps we want to put more into our relationships than we do into our working lives. We may not work 16-hour days like our parents did, but we will be able to have fulfillment beyond just making a check. This doesn’t make us less ambitious – just more aware of what we can lose if we give everything to our work or to our kids.

All I really know is that members of my generation are in for the fight of their lives. Our parents were fortunate enough that when they were growing up, most of them never knew firsthand what our grandparents went through in the Great Depression. But the fact is that we are dealing now, and we will learn through experience what it takes to survive.

After all, who knows? We could become a greater generation.

Proposition 8 and Me

When I was in high school, I had a friend who figured out he was gay, and came out. He was a good friend, and what he did took a lot of guts: Admitting you’re gay in a high school that was insanely homophobic, right down to every person saying, “That’s so gay” whenever anything was wrong, was beyond courageous. I will always admire him for it, and never forget it.

Even before I knew that certain friends were gay (many of whom came out later), I knew that being homophobic was wrong. I knew it just as much as I knew that being racist or sexist was wrong.

The issue became personal later as I realized that someone very close to me who I love is gay. Growing up, I thought that my Uncle B living in West Hollywood, having a bunch of Disney stuff and an interior design business was normal. I wondered why he didn’t get married, because he was the best uncle that two little girls could ever ask for. I was beginning to sense that he was gay when my dad, his brother, had a conversation with him about my sister’s first boyfriend, and he was talking about the wedding.

“Now, now, she’s got a lot more boys’ hearts to break,” my father said.

“Well, so do I!” Uncle B replied.

The truth was that I found out later about how his sexual identity tortured him. My grandfather never really understood my uncle, and my grandmother never really accepted his sexual identity. It was during a complicated time where homosexuality wasn’t talked about openly. There have been so many generations where people were ruined by living in a world where there wasn’t acceptance of how they lived.

I love Uncle B very much, and think of him, and all my amazing gay friends of past, present and future, today as proposition 8 was overturned by a federal judge. Gay marriage, for me, is right for so many reasons, from helping increase our revenues from the increased marriage industry that California would have or simply because it’s better than the lame excuses that the other side gives (Protect marriage? From who? Is there an evil monster coming to destroy the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder’s office because of this?).

Yes, I do keep kosher and I am a conservative Jew, but the fact of the matter is that I am a fan of progress. I am not for tradition unless it means something at the end of the day, and not a fan of things being a certain way just because they always were that way. So in a world where straight people get divorced as quickly as they say, “I do,” I am a firm believer in giving marriage to people who still hold it as something sacred.

This does make me an odd anomaly in a world where I balance tradition and the modern world. I have detested the arguments where people say “Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve,” or that the bible said it. The truth is the bible also outlined how we sacrifice animals. And many of the who don’t want gay marriage and cite the bible for their reason I’m sure love their pork – and this kosher goddess may take away your pork and cheeseburgers in that case to prove your hypocrisy (Leviticus is where they first outline kashrut laws and where many cite the “homosexuality is an abomination” thing, FYI).

The truth of the matter? It’s not our business. I have come to the conclusion that I am the only one who can control my life, and I believe that everyone else should be given the same autonomy. The whole question of G-d is something that cannot be forced down our throats. When it comes down to it, my personal choices are between Hashem and me, and I will only answer to The Holy One at the end of the day. It should be the same for our gay friends.

I want to let my gay friends know that I will be a friend to them no matter what happens. It’s why the overturning of Proposition 8 is so important to me. I stand against inequality and always stand for love. When I see pictures of you looking so happy with your loved one as you are about to be married, I am joyous in the fact that there is more love in this universe than hate. And it gives me that much more of a chance to see a gay wedding. I definitely want to go to a gay wedding!

And on that note, here is a pizza that you could serve as an appetizer at your wedding. Here’s to all my gay friends and to my beloved uncle. I love you!

GOAT CHEESE PIZZA

1 ball pizza dough (see QUICK TIP 1)

Flour

¼ cup spaghetti or pizza sauce (see QUICK TIP 2)

1 8-ounce container of goat cheese

1 can sliced black olives

8-10 marinated artichoke hearts

3 tablespoons parmesan cheese

1 teaspoon oregano

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Knead and roll out your pizza dough on a biscuit tray, using flour in case it gets too sticky. Pour and spread out spaghetti sauce on top.

Slice the goat cheese and disperse evenly on top of the dough. Top with olives. Drain and pat the artichoke dry of any excess oil and top the pizza. Sprinkle parmesan and oregano.

Bake for 20 minutes, until the artichokes and cheese begin to slightly brown. Slice and serve.

QUICK TIP 1: I use store-bought dough, as it really is a lot easier for me to do on a night where I need a quick meal. However, if you want to make your own dough, I really like this recipepizza.com site for the variety, but this recipe from Giada DeLaurentiis looks fabulous .

QUICK TIP 2: I used store-bought for this, but I love making spaghetti sauce. If you’re adventurous, try this: Saute 3 cloves of garlic with 1 cup sliced Cremini mushrooms and one small diced onion seasoned with salt and pepper for 5 minutes. Add 2 28-ounce cans of diced tomatoes and about 1 teaspoon sugar, 1 tablespoon oregano, 1 tablespoon basil and salt and pepper to taste. Allow to simmer over the stovetop for 10 minutes

For the Dogs

During the last two weeks, I was house sitting and dog sitting for little white Bichon by the name of Rusty (whose cute face is at left). He belongs to my cousins, and they asked us to take care of him while they were on vacation. I’m a dog lover, so I agreed.

What I forgot, since it has been a long time since I have actually owned a dog, is how each one is different. There are certain aspects of their personalities that are funny, charming and unusual. For example, Rusty thinks I’m a sucker, so he decides to hide under my cousin’s bed in the hopes that he’ll get a treat. When I don’t respond, he finds me and looks at me as if to say, “What gives?” That, and he loved stealing clothes from my suitcase and taking them into my cousin’s room. Oh, and a tissue that I blew my nose in as well.

One thing is for sure: Dogs aren’t called man’s best friend for no reason. They are the ones who make us laugh and smile, and sometimes shake our heads in confusion. They’re there to comfort us when we cry. And they are the ones who hold a special place in our hearts, even as the years go by and they leave us.

Ari didn’t have dogs when he was growing up, but I sure did. When I was born, I had a protector by the name of Spirit. He was a mutt born on Halloween, and was six years old when I came into the world. He kept track of me like I was one of his puppies, and made sure to stand guard at my crib.

My sister had a protector, too – Spirit’s sister, Gobbie, or Goblin. They were mischievous and fun, and we were one of them. They enjoyed us and took care of us in their own special canine way for as long as they could. Goblin died when I was three, but Spirit lasted a long time, and died six years later. He was my first best friend – gentle, sweet and incredibly patient when I was putting different hats on him for fun.

I loved having dogs growing up. They had free spirits filled with complexity. They’re soulful, playful and sometimes rambunctious. Even Radar, my sister’s dog who came after Gobbie, had her own thing going on – right down to eating my chemistry homework in 10^th grade. But all they really want to do is be there for you. That, and in Radar’s case, eat anything that came in her general direction.

It even shows in years later, as my mother cares for the dog that I picked out, Lucy. This German Shepherd is a very funny dog indeed, whether she’s following mom like a shadow, running around after a ball (or a squirrel, if she can find one) or sticking her cold wet nose right where that tiny little bit of skin is showing between your shirt and your jeans so she can be pet. At one point, dad found her waiting for mom in a pile of clothes in the closet. Unusual beasts, indeed.

But the truth is that, no matter how much they get on our nerves or drive us crazy with their antics, a cute dog is a pretty hard thing to get over. One day on my walk, I was coming back to my car past the Belmont Shore dog beach, and then I saw it: A dog whose face was identical to my Spirit’s face. This dog happened to be a puppy, and was ready to give its owners a lifetime of fun and joy. It was a young couple, and I wondered if they would eventually have children who would enjoy having a dog, running around the backyard and the dog covering that child’s face with kisses.

Either way, when we came back to Long Beach from our little adventure with Rusty, I kept looking down towards the doorway to our bedroom. I could almost see him there, looking at me funny, waiting to run down the hall with me and pose himself conveniently next to the garage door, waiting for a treat. Or running around like a puppy waiting to go on his walk. For a dog who loved stealing my clothing, it turns out that he warmed my heart.

So, in honor of Rusty the clothes-stealer, I have a recipe. If there was one thing that Rusty really enjoyed, it was the smell of chopped garlic. When I was mincing it, it seemed to be Rusty’s cue to come visit me in the kitchen. I made this dish when I was house sitting, and it was too good not to share. This is a very basic recipe, and it’s good for when you’re starting out making curries. Serve with brown rice.

TOFU COCONUT CURRY

1 block extra-firm tofu

¼ cup hoisin sauce

8 shiitake mushrooms

3 small heads bok choy

2-3 large carrots

4 green onions

4 garlic cloves

2 tablespoons sesame oil

2 cans light coconut milk

2-3 tablespoons curry powder

Other curry spices (see QUICK TIP 2)

Drain the tofu and chop into cubes (see QUICK TIP 1). Marinate in hoisin sauce. Meanwhile, slice the shiitake mushrooms and chop the bok choy (discarding roots and ends) and carrots. Slice the green onions and mince the garlic.

In a soup pan, heat the oil and add the shiitakes and carrots. Season with salt and pepper. Add the garlic. Saute for three to four minutes, then add the tofu. Cook for another two minutes, constantly turning the pan.

Add the bok choy and green onions. Add the coconut milk, curry powder and other spices. Allow to simmer until the coconut milk begins to reduce and the mixture begins to thicken. Serve hot over rice.

QUICK TIP 1: Tofu, if not drained properly, will fall apart during cooking. If your tofu is packed in water, remove it from the package and wrap it in paper towels. Put it on a plate and place another one on top with a heavy object to weigh it down. You may have to replace the paper towels several times. However, if you can find your tofu vacuum-sealed instead of packed in water, it will take you a lot less time to drain it.

QUICK TIP 2: I personally like my curry powder and coconut milk for the mixture because it doesn’t overpower the subtle sweetness of the mixture. However, there are certain components of the curry powder spice mix you like best – like ginger, tumeric, coriander and cumin, or even cinnamon, clove, nutmeg and mustard powder – that you may want to accentuate. If so, feel free to add them to your curry.

Desperate Times, Not Desperate Measures

There is a woman I have known for quite a few years who owns her own business. It is a luxury business, so naturally she has been going under since the economy has fallen apart. She lost her home and the office that she had been doing business in. Naturally, she should be scared.

However, being scared in her case means throwing things out the window left, right and center. Her fear has overpowered her and caused her to make stupid decisions. She has put her faith in the wrong people and things, such as TV appearances (which, knowing the entertainment industry, I can tell you for a fact that Hollywood is not a miracle worker and does not solve problems). Meanwhile, she is tossing aside people who stood by her through the years through thick and thin -- myself included.

When we are on the verge of losing everything, it’s often easy to lose our heads. We put our faith in the wrong things, often losing ourselves to our imaginations of how our lives should be versus the way they are now. Trust me, I know – I struggle with it every day.

With all the free time that I have, it’s very tempting to shop, take vacations or act like I don’t have to find a job soon. Quite a few friends of mine have used their unemployment time to go to far-off lands or lounge around. Since I feel like I’m currently draining my savings, I’m trying my best not to ask my parents for help and I have a husband who’s also out of work, I don’t feel it’s wise of me to do the same thing. Although it would be nice to get away from the stress, it’s something out of the price range of a couple who is just squeaking by.

And it makes me wonder: Why do people do this? Why, in times where we need to be responsible and take care of things, do sabotage ourselves and invest ourselves in unrealistic things?

Pull yourselves together, people. Yes, we may not have jobs, and the future may be completely uncertain. But it doesn’t mean that we should throw everything away and become hedonists. We need to realize that after the vacation or shopping spree that we going to come back and still have to deal. The problems will still be there, no matter what how we distract ourselves.

We need to think about what we’re doing in a time of crisis. Just because the world is going insane doesn’t mean that we should, too. And, above all, we shouldn’t throw away the things that matter for impossible dreams and delusions. After all, when things get better and we pull ourselves out of our crises, we are going to find out we lost a lot more than just our money in that difficult period. We lose the people around us.

In the meantime, we need to cherish those who have stood by us through these difficult times and have loved us no matter how much money we have had in our pockets or how well-traveled we are (even though they may love us for our peach cobbler). So in honor of the people who I had the pleasure of having dinner with – Jeffrey, Sabrina, Tal, Merav, Josh, Drew and Elana, I post the peach cobbler that the majority of you enjoyed last night.

PEACH COBBLER

2 cups plus 1 tablespoon flour

1/3 c plus 1/2 c sugar

1/2 tsp salt

11/2 sticks butter, room temperature

1 egg, slightly beaten

4-7 fresh peaches

1/2 tsp cinnamon

½ tsp ground cloves

½ tsp nutmeg

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 tablespoon honey

Preheat oven 400 degrees..In a bowl, mix 2 cups flour, salt and 1/3 cup sugar. Using a pastry blender, cut in butter until the mixture is fine particles. (See QUCIK TIP) Mix in egg.

Press 3/4 of the dough in a greased pan and up edges. Slice peaches (do NOT peel) and mix with 1/2 cup sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves.

Pour on top of the dough in the pan. Drizzle with honey and lemon juice. Crumble remaining dough over top. Bake in oven on the shelf below the center rack 45 minutes to 1 hour.

QUICK TIP: Don’t worry, a pastry blender is not an expensive high-tech gizmo. It has a handle and three blades or wires attached to the handle. It is worth the investment for a job like this, because it’s just that much easier.

Let's Talk About Anti-Semitism

Since this is a blog with a Jewish theme (albeit a food-angled Jewish theme), it’s important to address issues going on in the Jewish community. And one of them is the rise of anti-Semitism.

Oh sure, I’ve heard in the past that Jews aren’t a minority, that we have nothing to fear, we are basically assimilated, etc. But then comes Oliver Stone.

Mind you, Oliver Stone is crazy. This is common knowledge, particularly because he has a history of conspiracy theories, practically making love to dictators and verbal diarrhea. This time, though, he claimed that the Jews control all the media and Washington, that the Holocaust was blown way out of proportion and Hitler was a scapegoat.

He quickly apologized, but I’m not as concerned about Oliver Stone. I know he’s looney tunes. I’m concerned about all the comments on the articles talking about this who claim that Oliver Stone’s quick apology was proof that the Jews control the media with everything else, listing companies that are run by Jewish people and saying how horrible we are and how we are going to dominate the world and the Holocaust wasn’t that bad.

The truth is the Jews can’t win. Whether it’s being blamed for the death of Jesus, blood libel or a little pamphlet called The Protocols of the Elders of Zion, we just can’t escape it. Sometimes, the anti-Semites create this for themselves – for example, in the late 19^th century and early 20^th century, Christians didn’t want to deal with money or entertainment. They thought of these as dirty. Jews never did, so they took on industry, film and the theater with no shame. So now it’s all about the money, and we have it – naturally, you get mad when people have something and you don’t.

What scares me is that people don’t want to see this. They want to believe that, in the 21^st century, that we are beyond hate. We really aren’t. I dealt with anti-Semitism as a child (at nine, I was told I couldn’t come over because, “My mommy doesn’t like Jews”), but it doesn’t even hold a candle to what some of my friends have gone through. Several were called kykes on almost a daily basis. One of my friends had the pleasure of going to class to find a swastika carved on her desk that told her, “Go home Jew.” Several of them were beat up continually.

The worst part? They are all around my age. We are not talking about the ‘40s. We are talking about my generation of young Jews. This has driven their passion to stay Jewish in a time where many are assimilating. It has led them to be proud and not self-hating Jews. But we shouldn’t need to face anti-Semitism to be proud of who we are.

I am constantly reminded of my economics professor from Georgetown, Thomas Rustici, as he roared through a class one night after he discussed how many governments are responsible for killing their own people and discussed the Holocaust. Several girls giggled, and fire seemed to rise to his eyes. I had never seen a man that angry. That night, a group of students stayed late to comfort him, many of them the students I made friends with, the majority of whom were black. He apologized to me, saying that he could never imagine how that could make me feel. My friends and I were talking, and they said, “We know. That’s how we feel when people talk about slavery.”

I would have never known that had we not experienced this moment together. I saw into their lives as black people struggling for their identity, and they saw into mine as a Jew who had to deal with the difficulties of the past. I will never forget what Felicia, E.R. A.J. and the gang taught me on that night – that hate in all forms is still hate, and we must fight together and start a new tradition.

So therefore, I want to reach out to all the people whose minds are still open to love and acceptance: Get to know your neighbors. Meet those unlike yourself. Get to know us as Jews, Latinos, African-Americans, Muslims, Asians, whatever. Introduce yourselves. Sit down and have dinner with us (I promise that if you come to my house, I will cook for you). Hate must be taken down in simple baby steps. Young, Broke and Kosher is not just a lifestyle – it’s a way of coming together.

So in honor of this, I'm going to post this recipe which I am making tomorrow night. Enjoy!

TORTELLINI IN INFUSED BROWN BUTTER SAUCE

1 bag tortellini

1 stick butter

3-4 cloves garlic

1 teaspoon lemon zest

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons parmesan cheese

Prepare the tortellini according to package directions. Meanwhile, melt the butter slowly in a small saucepan and remove any milk solids that float to the top. This is clarifying butter.

Smash the garlic (DO NOT MINCE) and add to the butter once melted. Add lemon zest and salt. Allow to cook slowly until the butter is browned.

While the tortellini is hot, add the brown butter mixture and toss gently. Sprinkle in parmesan cheese. Serve hot.