Soy? Oy!

Copyright: HealthyJewishCooking.Com
By Chaya Rivka Zwolinski

How should I prepare tofu? That’s the question I probably hear the most often from you.

The answer? Don’t!

Well, unless you have specific nutrition needs. Then you can make it sometimes for a treat. Like steak.

Soy beans are one of the most difficult beans to digest and they contain powerful nutrients that may or may not be good for us. The truth is, no one is sure. But we do know that eating soy affects hormone production. We (meaning Western scientists) just don’t know if this is a good thing.

Another problem with soy is that it is highly allergenic. In fact, it is one of the most common allergies, especially in children. Corn, wheat, citrus, strawberries, dairy products, fish and of course peanuts and tree nuts are some other common allergenic foods. Because people don’t realize that the symptoms of allergies might actually be mild, they are often overlooked. A food allergy or intolerance with mild flare-ups may not discourage children (or even adults) from eating the offending food because the link goes unnoticed.
Read more Soy? Oy!

Social Kosher Cookery

One of the best kosher cooking sites we’ve seen is Culinary Kosher. It’s a social recipe site with lots of sharing.

A recent post aggregated 19 Purim Seudah Appetizers Choices.

Here’s the blurb:

With Purim (See our Purim Recipes & More page) right around the corner everybody has Purim Seudah on their mind. A great appetizer makes a big impression, especially on the men who often don’t even know what they are eating by time main dish rolls around. The good news is that below you will find a list of Purim Seudah appetizers that you will surely meet your criteria. The problem is to choose only one. Good Luck and Happy Purim!

Take a look before you choose your Purim menu.

Easy TuBishvat Combo–Almond-Silan Baked Apples for TuBishvat

By Tzirel Chana at Kosher Home Cooking.

TuBishvat isn’t some kind of trivial pursuit question (remember that 80s game in which players showed off their command of arcane and irrelevant information)

TuBishvat is mentioned in the Babylonian Talmud’s list of New Years (Any cheder boy will tell you that there are four the best known being Rosh Hashana) and TuBishvat is the day when G-d allocates strength to the soil which is a huge deal because here in water deprived Israel .

Though TuBishvat hasn’t got special prayers or rituals–though it is a good time to daven for a good Etrog, Sephardic Jews, like to eat 15 15 different kinds of fruit. That is because TuBishvat is celebrated on the 15th of the Hebrew month of Shvuat the word Tu being a Hebrew abbreviation for 15. Hebrew letters are also numbers. Tet is nine and vuv (the ooo sound) is six which adds up to 15, (you could also combine yud which is 10 and hey which is 5 but we skip that because it forms one of G-d’s ineffable names).

When you consider that nuts are fruits—they grow on trees, fifteen fruits aren’t that hard to come by. Most years I serve all fifteen but recently I found a recipe that a recipe that combines fruits up in one easy dish.. And since two of the fruits involved, date and almond from the Shivat Haminim, the seven species native ito the land of Israel , that makes it even better.

The third fruit is apple which is actually symbol of G-d Himself. You can find the tetragramaton, the four letter name of G-d with a numerical equivalent of 26 right in the fruit. (one for the stalk, 10 seeds inside, 10 points in the star light formation enclosing the seeds and 5 ridges= 26

Isn’t that cool? ..

Silan Baked apples

Silan is honey extracted from dates part of the seven species—as are almonds

Here’s how

Core an apple about two thirds of the way down—you don’t want to create a tunnel, just a hole for the filling to sit in

Pour inside the silan and add slivered almonds (figure on a tablespoon of silan and three or four almond slivers per apple) Silan is available in gourmet shops and specialized groceries.

Bake for an hour or until soft. I personally like them baked until they are smooth and fluffy but you can leave for less time for a firmer apple. Eat , Delicous healthy and fat free.