cakewalk

Yup, it's either meat or milk, not both. Going with the milk meal is safer and gives you more options IMO, but there are still some issues you should keep in mind. Do your guests eat any cheeses, or only kosher cheeses? (There's the rennet issue for the hard cheeses. Many people who are not religious but keep some level of kashrut will eat all cheeses, but there are those who don't, so you might want to check that one.) Also, if you make a custard type of dessert you'll want to watch out for the gelatin. I think fish is a great option (and you don't have to make it in wine sauce, although, as has been pointed out already, there are plenty of good kosher wines these days.) But again, it will depend on the level of your friends' kashrut observance. Do they eat fish bought anywhere, or just from fish places that sell kosher fish only? Yesh v'yesh. (There are those who do this, and there are those who do that.)

Actually, the standard operating procedure for asaparagus is just not to use the tips as the density of the buds makes it difficult to check them fully. It's easy to check the rest of the spear. ← But the same issue remains: standard operating procedure for whom? I know plenty of people who, unlike me, as for a rabbinical p'sak before doing things. And they eat asparagus. So I think that standard operating procedures are only standard within communities. They are not norms of Judaism altogether. ← Talk to mainstream orthodox mashgichim and they'll tell you just not to use the asparagus tips -- it's just too difficult to check them thoroughly. If you go into a restaurant or buy take-out from a place certified by one of the major kashruth agencies you'll never see the tips included in dishes that contain asparagus. ← But we are not talking only about "mainstream orthodox mashgichim" here. There are other possibilities, and they are valid whether or not they are "mainstream."

Actually, the standard operating procedure for asaparagus is just not to use the tips as the density of the buds makes it difficult to check them fully. It's easy to check the rest of the spear. ← But the same issue remains: standard operating procedure for whom? I know plenty of people who, unlike me, as for a rabbinical p'sak before doing things. And they eat asparagus. So I think that standard operating procedures are only standard within communities. They are not norms of Judaism altogether.

How can I forget to mention to two things that get everyone's heads shaking in disbelief? Pancakes and maple syrup. Together and/or separately. With pancakes it's a texture thing. I have tried again and again to like them, because I absolutely love the idea of pancakes. But it never works. I start to chew and I think, yuk, what is this stuff. And maple syrup, well, I just don't like the maple flavor. How unAmerican of me this whole thing sounds. And now that I look at that word, what would you capitalize in Unamerican? UnAmerican?

Part of the process of making meat kosher (after it is ritually slaughtered) is salting it heavily so that the salt will soak up any excess blood. The salt (and the blood it soaked up) is then rinsed off. Kosher salt received that name because it is used in this process, not because there is anything inherently "kosher" about the salt itself. Kosher salt refers to salt that comes in larger pieces than, say, table salt, so it can absorb more blood more quickly. The name "kosher salt" just seems to have stuck.

Mmmm. Ketchup. I don't like it quite as much as when I was a kid -- I no longer put ketchup on chicken or steak -- but I love it with French Fries or hash browns. I particularly hate it on eggs, I find the combination of red and yellow quite revolting, but I'll always put it on the potatoes near my eggs. I used to eat only Heinz, but then on Passover a few years ago I bought Gefen brand ketchup, which is made with sugar rather than corn syrup, and I loved it. The taste was completely different. It was a different type of sweetness, and I also think it had more vinegar so it was sharper. And ketchup is great, indispensable even, as an ingredient in a lot of other sauces.

I want to echo what the others have said: gus_tatory, I'm very impressed with your questions, and with the simple fact of you're asking them for the benefit of your friends and guests. You certainly are a mensch! I think one thing it is necessary to understand with the whole kashrut business is that a lot of people restrict themselves from eating and doing certain things, even though there is no prohibition against it. There are a lot of different rabbis, and they can have a lot of dissenting opinions. And then there are people like me, who don't listen to rabbis and make our own decisions regarding what we will or won't eat. I guess that's a key concept here: deciding what we will or won't eat is not necessarily indicative of whether or not it is kosher. It is indicative of what we will or won't eat. For example: asparagus. Oy. Don't get me started. But since you already have: asparagus is a vegetable. It is, ipso facto, kosher. Full stop. However, bugs (of any sort), are not kosher. So, there are some Jews who go through the following thought process: asparagus, because of how it grows and what it is, is very difficult, if not impossible, to clean of bugs. Bugs can get stuck in the tips, under the leaves, etc. I can never know if I have removed all the bugs. Therefore, I have decided I will not eat asparagus, because I might be eating bugs with it, and bugs are not kosher. That thought process has its own logic, but the important thing to remember is this: it does not mean that asparagus is not kosher. It means that some people, some groups, have decided not to eat it. This is really a crucial thought to remember when trying to figure out what is and isn't okay to serve to people. You really have to ask them. (I gobble asparagus like there's no tomorrow.) The picking a flower on Shabbat stuff: yes, that is one of the many things that is not permitted on Shabbat. The reasoning behind it is very complex, because it involves understanding a lot about the nature of Shabbat, what it is and what one is trying to achieve in "keeping" it. Very complex. But really, it is not food related. Except to say that if you're going to a religious person's home for a Shabbat meal, don't bring them anything you just picked off your trees or off your plants. And no flowers. (Putting them in water is also not allowed, but again, not related to food.) You can roast (and even eat!!) a chicken with a missing wing. Goodness, we buy chicken parts, don't we? Those parts are all missing other parts of their bodies!! I think this is a misinterpretation (to say the least) of something else. When preparing animals for sacrifice in the days of the Temple, the animals had to be perfect. No marks, no missing parts, no imperfections of any sort were allowed in the animals sacrificed at the Temple. Somhow it seems that this has (mistakenly) trickled down to saying that you can't eat a chicken that is missing a wing. (I have to admit I've never heard that one before, so my explanation of where I think it came from may be wrong; maybe we really can't eat chickens that are missing wings. But I don't think so.) The other place this might come from is a mistaken understanding of the laws concerning glatt kosher meat, which I am much too tired to get into now (and you're probably much too bored to read right now.) I hope that helps a little. And once again, thanks for the questions.

Olives.

Guavas. Vile and overpowering smell, never mind the awful taste and revolting texture.

I really loved the Kate Sullivan cake (orange background, light blue flowers), and the pink rose swag. For inventiveness I loved the suitcases, hatbox, etc. piled one on top of the other, with the taxi on top (and the sign saying "just married.") Very sweet.

I also just got back from Grand Central (so nice of them to name this whole thing after me ), and it is absolutely magnificent. The cakes are truly stunning. Thanks to chefpeon's earlier thread, "The Short Sweet Life of a Sculpted Cake" (I don't know how to do the linking stuff, if someone else can I'd appreciate it), I have at least an inkling of an idea of how much thought and planning and work goes into making such cakes. They are truly remarkable.

Very good. I bought them once, and that was enough. Cost a fortune and had no taste anyway. I stick with grape tomatoes in the off-season.

Cupcakes don't appeal to me at all (except I was a Hostess Cupcakes fan in my yoot), but I do love muffins. The other day I was in Whole Foods and bought some (I never bought their muffins before), and what a disappointment. I bought chocolate chip, blueberry, and blueberry corn. I had some of each and threw them all out (a very unusual thing for me to do.) Even coffee didn't help the dryness and tastelessness of these muffins. I tried the blueberry muffin first, and when that went in the trash I thought it must have been just an "off" muffin, but the other two were the same.

Yes, definitely. You can't just watch something like that happen. Those kids needed some serious teaching, and the parents weren't bothering with it. The food industry is so large that it is dizzying. I do not know very much about it, but I have no doubts that none of its slaughtering aspects are very pretty. Slaughter is slaughter, nothing will make it pretty, it isn't supposed to be pretty. I'm not sure what, if anything, can be done about it at this point. But this is no excuse for how I as an individual behave. Perhaps animals are treated inhumanely on an industrial level. This is irrelevant in terms of how I as an individual should treat animals. Drawing comparisons between the two things doesn't seem to have any basis in reality to me. I don't understand the argument of "animals are tortured all the time, why should this one incident bother you?"

So you think kashrut shouldn't be confusing? The fish/meat laws have nothing to do with the pareve issue. Fish can be eaten before, after, probably even during a meat meal, but it may not be eaten from the same plate. And it's not permissable for them to be cooked together. These rules came about much later than many other kashrut rules, and they are one of the few rules that actually are connected to the health issue. The fear was if fish was cooked together with meat, or eaten on the same plate, people would assume they were eating a meat meal and not pay too much attention to the small bones in the fish. If you're eating fish alone, you're apt to be more aware of the fact that you might choke to death on a bone. Hence the separation between the two. There was also the fear of getting salt from the fish on one's fingers (such dining etiquette!) and then inadvertently rubbing one's eyes with salted hands (which, I guess, could be pretty painful.) So that's the deal. Aren't you glad you asked?

Anchovies are kosher, but fish is not supposed to be eaten together with meat, so it can pose a problem depending on what you're making. The vegetarian "oyster" sauce sounds interesting.

This blog is wonderful, and I love the mint julep recipe. Thanks so much. I'm off to dinner at the home of some friends, and we'll be watching the Derby. Host has promised to make mint juleps! I'm very excited, as I've never tasted them before. But he said he has his own recipe and refuses to be swayed by anyone else's. I'll be watching closely to see how similar his recipe is to yours. I do especially like your method of topping off the drinks. May the best horse win!

Wow, I guess for you to do a blog the week of the Kentucky Derby is sort of like Pam doing a blog the week before Passover. Nuts. Both of you. But I've always appreciated the offbeat. Many thanks for doing this. Those dessert platters did indeed make me drool, especially as I'm sitting here with a cuppa, and no cake to wash it down. I'm also avidly awaiting the mint julep recipe. Perhaps a bit of its history, too? How did it achieve its exalted place? I'm (still) reading "Foul Matter" by Martha Grimes, and just the other day came across this: "The air was scented with mint, and they had attempted to track it to its source, but couldn't, until Ned, going up to the bar to get another drink, reported back that the bartender had a reputation for the best mint juleps just about anywhere, and customers from Kentucky, Georgia, and the Carolinas pronounced this to be true. Then they had all ordered mint juleps and had gone to the bar to sit on stools and watch them being made. It was a prodigious undertaking, and no wonder they cost more than twice as much as any other drink." I never knew it was "a prodigious undertaking" to make a mint julep. (Ignorant fool that I am, I always thought it was "just another drink.") So between the above paragraph and, especially, your blog, I can hardly wait to learn!

Yes indeed. Thanks very much.

I'm really enjoying this blog, thanks so much. I know zilch about Indian cooking, so this is a great learning experience. I'd like to place my vote for the Malaysian chicken curry please. (And a picture of the monkey.)

IMO, using carob for chocolate is the worst ever. Who thought of this? The only resemblance between carob and chocolate is the color. And yet people still insist that carob flavored things "taste just like chocolate." I like carob in and of itself, but it tastes nothing like chocolate.

Well I know we're supposed to be done with the cleaning already, but I just cleaned my keyboard and there was enough chametz in there to start a bakery! Cream puffs with strawberry filling, you say? For Pesach, no less? I would love to see a photo of those if you've got one. Chag sameach to you all.

Wow. 80 liters of chicken soup?!!? It sounds like a recipe to save the world! For the keichal (I've never heard them called "nothings" before, but that is really a perfect name since they are so light and airy and ... nothing-ish): can you give us a recipe with amounts? For a "regular" batch, that is. (I also love the way your recipe instructions are written.) Do you bake them after they're scooped onto the baking tray and they flatten out by themselves? Or do you shape them into the bowtie shapes? Thanks again for doing this blog when you are obviously so busy with other things!

I think it's important to distinguish between the observance of Passover, and the observance of the Seder of Passover (e.g., following the haggadah), which is what we do now, and was put together well after the destruction of the second temple (I think during medieval times). But it's worthwhile to remember that the Haggadah, as much as it stresses the importance of order, is not merely a "set piece." It's meant to be added to and expanded upon. The major difference between the days with and without the temple, of course, would be the sacrifice, which simply couldn't happen without the temple. Before the destruction, the Pesach sacrifice was really the whole thing, and was the reason everyone went to Jerusalem in the first place. It was the sacrifice that constituted the main part of the Passover meal. Without the temple, some sort of ritual had to be developed to take the place of the Passover sacrifice. It makes sense that some sort of ritual already existed, even in the days of the temple, because there would have to be a routine to follow in order to make the whole thing do-able. But I would guess (and it's only a guess) that this was a minor part of the service while the temple still existed. It all revolved around the sacrifice. One of the elements I've always loved is the idea of family being together. Even in the Bible's description of the Pesach sacrifice, it states that there should be one animal for each family (or unit), not one animal for each person. To this day it is common for extended families to get together for the Passover meal. I don't know if that is a direct carryover, of course, but part of me likes to think that it is.

Now, that raises a new question. What happens if you're an observing Jew and break kosher, even by accident? Is there some kind of penance you can do to erase the sin, or is that black mark with you forever? Or is it neither, just a slip you have to promise never to do again? ← You are doomed to clean for Passover all year long!! Oops. No. You just don't do it again. Judaism's concept of confession/forgiveness is very different than its Christian counterpart in many ways. While there is a daily confession (it's part of the morning prayer service), and of course there's the biggie once a year (Yom Kippur), in general two things are necessary if one transgresses, whether knowingly or not: recognition of the transgression, and an avowal (from the heart) not to do it again. The original post above reminds me of a story about my nephew. When he was in kindergarten, it turned out that another kid in his class had the same lunchbox he had. One day their lunchboxes got confused. When he went home that day, my sister took his lunchbox to clean it and noticed that nothing had been eaten. Then she unwrapped the sandwich and saw that it was ham and cheese. Poor kid. He had no idea what it was, so he just didn't eat lunch that day. (The other kid ate my nephew's tuna fish sandwich.) My sister unraveled the whole thing and called the other kids mom just to say hello and try to prevent it from happening in the future (they put the kids' names on the lunchboxes) -- no yelling and screaming necessary, even if my nephew had eaten the sandwich! Crazy parents up there!