Tag Archives: Jewish Holidays

What to Wear: Fall Holidays

Posted on September 28, 2011 | Leave a comment

Today begins the holiday of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year.  It is a special time spent with family and friends, and is celebrated with sweet foods like apples and honey to indicate the hope for a sweet New Year.

It is also a time spent in synagogue and big dinners, and if you’re like me, in front of the closet trying to decide what to wear.  Don’t get me wrong, it’s not about fashion, but it’s always nice to start the year looking and feeling your best.

Since the Jewish New Year falls around the first week of fall it is a great time to introduce fall’s trends.  I have put together three different outfits that could accomodate a variety of styles and climates, in case you’re celebrating in the very un-fall like Ft. Lauderdale… 88 degrees!

Fall Holiday Collection

I would wear all of these looks, and luckily they are all so on trend that if you’re more puzzled with what to wear than how to make a brisket, you’d be able to replicate any of these looks in your local department store.

Shop 1:blouse, skirt, boots
Shop 2:sweater, skirt, heels
Shop 3:dress, heels
Accessories: earrings, bracelet, clutch

 

If you celebrate, may your New Year be healthy, happy and fabulous!

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Posted in Her Closet, Shopping

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Welcome Back!

Posted on April 27, 2011 | Leave a comment

Hopefully you’re still here, and haven’t wandered off.  The last time we spoke we were talking matzah, and soups, and brisket (and man, they were delicious!) and then Mark and I were jetting off to LAX for a week of fun and adventure.

Our Passover Table
We flew into LAX (Los Angeles) and over the course of a week we snaked up Highway 1 to San Francisco.  We stopped in 11 little towns, met up with old friends and made new friends and ate delicious food throughout.  We also took some time to enjoy the view.

Santa Barbara
I will regale you with a full review and recipes from our amazing trip, and share more daily posts on recipes, fashion, and life!

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Posted in Her Inspiration, Personal, travel

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Easy Passover Desserts

Posted on April 18, 2011 | Leave a comment

Oh, did you forget tonight was Passover?  You forgot you were supposed to bring a dessert to your friend’s/coworker’s/cousin’s/mother-in-law’s house?  Oh you’re supposed to bring a dessert and you don’t have like an extra 6,000 eggs lying around, and matzah cake meal?

Do not worry.  Walk away from the bakery counter.  Matzah Toffee to the rescue!

The ingredients are simple, and because its basically sugar, butter and chocolate (and your creativity) it is hard to go wrong.  And you can get ready at the same time!

Ingredients:
5 sheets of matzah
1/2 stick of butter
1 cup of brown sugar (light or dark)
1 cup of chocolate chips
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
pinch of salt

Cover a cookie sheet in tin foil, and lay out the matzah.  

In a medium size sauce pot, over low heat, melt the butter and then add the brown sugar.  While stirring constantly, watch for the sugar to melt into the butter.  When it starts to bubble remove from the heat.  Off the stove add the vanilla, or other extract that you might like – or none at all, and the salt, and continue to stir.

With a heat-proof spatula spread the toffee mixture on top of the matzah getting as close to all four corners as possible.  

Put the entire tray into a warm oven of 250 degrees for 10-15 minutes. (Take a shower).

Out of the oven, sprinkle chocolate chips onto the hot toffee’d matzah and then tent the entire tray with tin foil and let it sit for 15 minutes.  When tented the heat will melt the chocolate and you’re free to do other things.  (Go do your make up).
Come back to the matzah and spread the chocolate with a knife or spatula and then be creative, sprinkle with a little sea salt, some chopped pistachios or almonds, or candied ginger.

Put the tray in the refrigerator for 30 minutes, or longer.  (Dry your hair). When you’re ready to go, break into candy bar sized pieces.

Enjoy with family and friends – this sweet treat is perfect as a Passover dessert, hosting gift, or a quick snack.

Happy Passover!

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Posted in Easy Recipe, Jewish Holidays, Passover

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Menu Planning for Passover

Posted on April 15, 2011 | Leave a comment

On Monday night our family will come over for a Passover Seder.  I am excited to start cooking and have been assembling a menu for weeks.


If you were eating at my house, this is what you’d get!

Herbed Salad

Mark’s Perfect Hard Boiled Eggs
via The Daily Batch
Julie’s Charoset

Matzah Ball Soup
Homemade Matzah
via The Daily Batch

Smitten Kitchen’s Slow Cooked Brisket
via Smitten Kitchen

Herbed Potatoes

Roasted Asparagus
via Bon Appetit
Roasted Carrots

 Chocolate Mousse Pie in Coconut Macaroon Shell
Knowing myself I am sure there will be a few more items that sneak onto the table…  What are you favorite Passover foods?  If you’ve never celebrated is there anything you’re interested in trying?

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Posted in Her Kitchen, Jewish Holidays, Passover

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Everybody’s Favorite, with a Holiday Twist

Posted on September 13, 2010 | Leave a comment

And, I’m back!  Sorry for the absence of postings last week, Mark and I were India – more on that soon, with a travel journal and lots of pictures.  In the meantime, let’s get back into the swing of things with an easy, and perfectly delicious recipe.

Like apples and honey, pomegranate seeds are also a symbolic treat for the Jewish High Holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.  Tradition dictates that you try a new/exotic fruit, which for many a pomegranate qualifies, and also the abundance of tiny pomegranate seeds is symbolically linked to an abundance of goodness in the New Year.  
Image via Vos Iz Neias?
 While working on the whole wheat apple muffins, I thought this would be a fun way to incorporate some extra goodness into the holidays.

Pomegranate Cookies, adapted from Nestle Tollhouse

Ingredients 
1 and 1/8 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 stick butter, softened
3/8 cup granulated sugar
3/8 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg
1/2 cup of fresh Pomegranate Seeds
1/2 cup of Chocolate Covered Pomegranate Seeds
Set the oven to 350 degrees, and bake for about 8 minutes or until browned.

Just like you were making regular chocolate chip cookies, cream the butter and sugars, add the egg and vanilla.  Then add the dry ingredients of flour, baking soda and salt.  


Then add the fresh pomegranate seeds.  You could also you dried seeds, but I found the fresh ones kept the cookies unbelievably moist.  You could stop with the fresh seeds for a healthy, sweet treat, but come on, how could I resist not adding in dark chocolate covered seeds as well?  Dark chocolate is rich with antioxidants, so that counts too!

I found the fresh seeds and the chocolate covered seeds at Trader Joe’s, but if you’re not so lucky to have a Trader Joe’s nearby, you could just use regular chocolate chips and remove the seeds yourself.  To avoid a mess you can open up the pomegranate and pull out the seeds with your hands and the fruit submerged in a bowl of water.

For these cookies I used a teaspoon sized scoop.  The cookies came out to be size of an Entenmann’s cookie, which is pretty much the perfect 2-bite size. 

Eat and enjoy, and share with a friend.  Wishing you all great things for fall and the start of the New Year!

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Posted in Baking, Comfort Food, Dessert, fall, healthy, Her Kitchen, Holiday Food, Jewish Holidays, Rosh Hashanah/Yom Kippur, Seasonal

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