Al Basha’s Grant Road grocery store is like a mom and pop corner shop. The neatly stacked shelves are brimming with a variety of global goodies, in these days when finding well-stocked market shelves is a challenge. And, there’s no price gouging here — the prices are extremely reasonable.… Read more »
Food
Meet the challah-tinkering yeast scientist who’s helping pandemic bread bakers get a good rise
(JTA) — Few people have any great solutions for this difficult moment in human history, but Sudeep Agarwala is one of them. As a yeast scientist, Agarwala spends much of his time thinking about the single-celled fungi that allow bread to rise. So when he learned that home bakers… Read more »
Jewish farms are booming. Now the farmers want to grow their community.
REISTERSTOWN, Md. (JTA) — When Sarah Julia Seldin arrived at the main national gathering of Jewish foodies in 2016, she was disappointed to find no programming aimed specifically at people like her. There were sessions on kosher cooking, Jewish food ethics and the realities of kosher animal slaughter. But… Read more »
Pick from a plethora of fun-filled community Purim festivities
A full array of Southern Arizona Purim parties will ensure that this most fun holiday of the Jewish calendar is action-packed. Take your pick from a string of family-friendly events, submitted by area synagogues and agencies. Friday, March 6 6 p.m.: Purim Shabbat Early Shabbat tot and child-friendly service;… Read more »
Bet Shalom’s midbar (desert) farm project goes to the chickens
Congregation Bet Shalom’s first Tu B’shevat Farm Festival brought about 80 community members of all ages together, including congregants, University of Arizona Hillel Foundation students, youngsters, and young adults connected to local farms and outdoor education programs. “The Midbar Project is a way for our people to connect with… Read more »
UArizona researchers join team studying viability of vertical farming
A rapidly growing global population, ecosystem degradation, changing climate conditions, and water and land scarcity all contribute to the need for integrated and innovative food production technologies. Researchers at the University of Arizona are testing a vertical farming approach. Fueled in part by a $2.7 million grant from the… Read more »
The Jewish history of America’s most famous ice cream
This story originally appeared on The Nosher. Chunky Monkey. Rum Tres Leches. Banana Nut Fudge. Who gave the world the gift of these delectable ice cream flavor inventions? While Italian immigrants are traditionally given credit for opening the first ice cream parlors in the United States in the early… Read more »
Russian comfort food is making a comeback in Israel
This story originally appeared on The Nosher. On a recent trip to Israel, my husband and I took a taxi to Bat Yam, a workingman’s town located a stone’s throw and a world away from the uber-cool city that is Tel Aviv. We went to eat Russian food in… Read more »
Chickpeas are set for world domination in 2020
This article originally appeared on The Nosher. The 2010s saw chickpeas rise to fame in the manner that God always intended. The king of chickpea dishes, hummus, turned from a hippy health food to a fridge staple. This was great in terms of accessibility, but not so great for… Read more »
Got a question about latkes? There’s a hotline for that.
(JTA) — Are you stressing out about burning your latkes? Now there’s a quick way to assuage your fears. On Tuesday, The Nosher Jewish food site launched a hotline where readers can get all their latkes-related questions answered by Jewish food expert Shannon Sarna. Readers use their cellphone number… Read more »
Joan Nathan dishes on her 15 favorite Jewish foods
If you’re part of a Jewish family in the U.S., there’s a decent chance you grew up in the vicinity of a Joan Nathan cookbook. Her many books, like “Jewish Cooking in America,” have been staples of the American Jewish experience for decades. Nathan, 76, was honored Dec. 2… Read more »
Lemon ricotta fritters: Easier and just as delicious as jelly doughnuts
I know that sufganiyot — jelly doughnuts — are traditional and beloved for Hanukkah. But I feel confident that once you try these easy and incredibly delicious ricotta fritters, you will be converted to these sweet fried treats. And if I’m making a confession, I have actually never loved… Read more »
Who by fire: 38,000 pounds of bagels burnt in truck days before Yom Kippur
(JTA) — Midwest Jews may need to find something else to eat when Yom Kippur ends — tons of their bagels are now toast. Some 38,000 pounds of frozen bagels met an unhappy fate on Sunday, just a couple of days ahead of the Jewish Day of Atonement, when… Read more »
This chef turned his popular falafel truck into a booming Israeli restaurant
This story originally appeared on The Nosher. For nearly a decade, chef Avi Shemtov has been a pioneer on Boston’s food scene. In 2010, he rolled out The Chubby Chickpea, one of the first food trucks in the city, serving up Israeli-style street food from falafel and chicken shwarma… Read more »
Annual Project Isaiah food drive to help the hungry
Project Isaiah, the Jewish community’s annual High Holidays food drive benefiting the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona, begins Sept. 15 and runs through Oct. 15. When asked why we fast on Yom Kippur, the prophet Isaiah responded, “Is it not to share your bread with the hungry?” (Isaiah… Read more »
Persian Upside-Down Cake with Dates and Cardamom: A sweet tribute to a Rosh Hashanah tradition
This recipe appeared originally on The Nosher. As a kid in Hebrew school, I learned that my classmates would have apples and honey and round challah at Rosh Hashanah to bring in the Jewish New Year, and that was pretty much it when it came to food traditions. But… Read more »
Five hacks for the best Rosh Hashanah celebrations with family, friends
I can’t help but wonder why Hallmark and the retail world at large haven’t co-opted the Jewish New Year. True, while there may “only” be some 5 million to 7 million Jews in the U.S. (depending on who’s counting), Rosh Hashanah is a particularly important holiday on the Jewish… Read more »
Classes offer free ‘Taste of Judaism’
The Union for Reform Judaism’s Taste of Judaism classes, taught by Temple Emanu-El’s Rabbi Batsheva Appel, will be offered at the Tucson Jewish Community Center on Sundays, Sept. 8, 15, and 22 from 2:30-4:30 p.m., and at Temple Emanu-El on Thursdays, Sept. 12, 19, and 26, from 6-8 p.m.… Read more »
Here are 6 favorite Jewish foods you should stop eating
With summer barbecue season finally here, Americans everywhere will be firing up their grills and feasting on their favorite foods. But many of our culinary indulgences come with a cost. We’re not just talking about foods that are overly salty, fatty and sugary. There are foods that actually raise… Read more »
Tucson natives, plus Italian chef, make Frost gelato a hit
It was a sunny afternoon this May with temps in the ’90s, a preview of this month’s triple digit coming attractions. After lunch at a local café, I craved a dessert that was at once scrumptious and refreshing and wouldn’t break the calorie bank. Light bulb moment! I hurried… Read more »