Inspiration Zone

Sharing our Stories Through Food: Sukkot Special

Here are a few special succot recipes to enhance your chag! These are perfect dishes to serve as fall starts to come in and we take advantage of the seasonal delicacies. Enjoy!

Sharing our Stories Through Food: Potato Leek Soup

As we finish Rosh Hashasha, I get to thinking about succos and one of my favorite things. I love sitting in the chill autumn air, with the family, in a beautifully decorated sukkah. Every year my mother would make this delicious potato leek soup and it was the perfect thing to warm us up on the chilly nights. I loved it so much that it was the soup I requested to have on my Bat Mitzvah. However, due to it being spring and us being inside, it was not the same. This soup will never taste as good as it does when we are all enjoying it together in the sukkah.

Sharing Our Stories Through Food: Greek Salad Dressing

I discovered this recipe about 13 years ago, labeled as a variation in the classic purple Spice and Spirit cookbook. I make it in bulk, without the pinch of sugar and keep it in the fridge. Spoiler: I use this on every kind of salad!!! Vegetables with green salad, cabbage salad, quinoa salad, you name it!

Sharing Our Stories Through Food: Chicken Soup

My husband teases me that I casually mentioned to him once while we were dating, “Oh, by the way. I
don’t know how to cook.” Being that my mother-in-law is a fantastic cook, he simply responded, “Oh.”
and politely tried to disguise his concern. 

Sharing our Stories Through Food: Tomato & Jalapeño Dip

When I was first married and went with my husband to his brother and sister in law for Shabbos, she made this delicious tomato dip to put on the challah, potato kugel and basically everything.  My husband asked me to please get the recipe and since then we have been eating tomato dip almost every Shabbos!

Sharing our Stories through Food: Roza’s Malai

I would like to share with you a traditional Romanian recipe from my mom Roza Bin that passed away 14 years ago, Of  Blessed Memory. It is especially traditional dairy dish for Shavuoth holiday. It is between a cake and a sweet dairy dinner meal. In my childhood, when I and my brothers were young, my mom used to do “Malai” for fun dinner whenever we asked.  Usually, it’s for Shavuot holyday!

Sharing Our Stories Through Food: Cheryl Mirrop’s Cheesecake

Many years ago when I was in college majoring in Chemistry, I got a wonderful lab partner to work with.  He had a great understanding of the actual chemistry behind the labs, and I was very strong in math.  So he helped me to understand the chemistry and I helped him with the math.  We worked together in the lab, and afterwards did the homework and documentation together. One evening we took a little break and he served me a piece of cheesecake that was amazing.

Sharing Our Stories Through Food: Meatball Minestrone

When my husband and I started becoming more observant and began keeping Shabbat, I barely knew how to cook. Fast forward almost 25 years and I’ve learned a thing or two along the way! Through the years we’ve hosted many Shabbat and Yom Tov meals, and have fortunately been invited to many as well. This is how I learned to cook. Lots of trial and error and many requests for recipes.

Sharing Our Stories Through Food: Nanny’s Sugar Cookies

My great-grandmother lived in Missouri, she was a true southern woman. Church on Sundays, a strong southern drawl and the ONLY ONE allowed in the kitchen. However, whenever we would go to visit, she would sneak me and my brother into the kitchen with her, not letting anyone else in. She would tie an apron around us and hand us supplies to put on the table to get baking.

Sharing Our Stories Through Food: Passover Brownies

This is my mother in laws- Cindy Wolfe’s- Recipe

I double this for each 9×13 pan and literally make at least 8 pans of this every year.  It’s the first cooking I do before Pesach every year is make a ton and fill the freezer.  This is a staple and my husband laughs at the idea of me making something different.  They are the best.