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| Recipes
Happy New Year... yeah, right!
Happy "September holiday where praying and eating are high priorities".
I grew up with the ball-dropping thing every December 31 at midnight. So I feel kind of gypped every time someone calls Rosh Hashana the Jewish New Year.
The secular New Year is all part of this huge worldwide party where they give out party hats, streamers, champagne, and that nice little custom of kissing someone at midnight.
I'm all for the pot calling the kettle black, so I would like to consider changing the name Jewish New Year to "the holiday that usually happens in September, where praying and eating are high priorities, and has nothing to do with balls dropping in Times Square."
IF someone who didn't know anything about Judaism were to step into my home for one Rosh Hashana, they would automatically assume that I'd gone insane. First, the days spent cooking four huge meals for countless people. Then there is perhaps eternal damnation to look forward to, but it is pleasantly balanced with honey cake. And let us not forget the highlight of dipping the apple in honey. Of course, the best part of all; even though we didn't party, we get to clean up.
THE whole point of celebrating the end of the old year and the beginning of this coming year is quite obvious. Goodbye to the old and hello to the new.
And that is why I would like to share with you some of the worldwide New Year's customs - all about good-byes, and mostly about hellos.
IN Brazil, as many people as possible walk out on to the beach, all dressed in white, and throw red roses into the surf. The natives say that if your rose returns, you can expect more of the same as last year; if your rose floats out into the ocean, then things are looking bright for your future. Now the best part of this custom is that it is all up to the tide, and you absolutely never know which rose is yours.
In Alabama and Louisiana, as well as in many Sephardic Jewish sects, black-eyed beans are eaten. The Southerners believe that they are great for keeping away all evil, while we Jews believe that they have the power to increase our merits. Either way, it's a guaranteed winner. The Chinese New Year is always an amazing celebration with lots of people dancing underneath a dragon. It is all about hiding from the gods while they are up there deciding on your fate. Not a bad idea considering what I've been up to all year.
AND ever wonder how the kissing on the stroke of midnight has been accepted as a worldwide custom? The Ancient Greeks believed that, on the stroke of midnight, Cupid would send arrows flying out and would only hit couples who were kissing. So a word to the wise: beware of whom you're kissing at midnight.
BUT, without a doubt, some of my favorite New Year's customs are the Jewish ones. Maybe because I grew up with them or maybe because they are a little bit ceremonial, and I'm all for ceremony.
As a kid, I loved Rosh Hashana. I always could look forward to a new dress (amazing custom, no matter how old you are).
And then there is a custom that Sephardim as well as Old Jerusalemite Jewish sects have, and over the years I have seen so many houses adopt, it's amazing. We make mini wishes on the most eccentric array of food. Dates - so that our enemies should perish; Pomegranates - so that our good deeds increase. Gourd - so that God will tear up our express mail package to eternal damnation. Leek - so that our enemies will get their heads cut off. Lettuce - so that our persecutors be expediently removed. Fish - so that we poor women should help populate the earth. Head of a lamb (or fish - after all a head is a head!) - so that the Jewish People will be likened to the head and not like a tail. And, of course, last but never least - apple dipped in honey so that our New Year be sweet.
All of these prayers make a lot more sense in Hebrew since each one is a play on words with the name of the fruit being very similar to the respective action. But when my husband joined my family and saw what was going on, he promptly ran into the kitchen, and prepared his own merit dish, of raisins and celery, so that in the coming year we should all be blessed with a "raisin celery" ("raise in salary" for the witless).
BUT no matter what your Rosh Hashana customs are, I think it has been accepted as a worldwide Jewish tradition to have Honey Cake.
In the Lubavitch community, honey cake is such a big deal that the Rebbe himself would hand out individual pieces of honey cake to his followers on Rosh Hashana - definitely more edible than the usual one dollar bills.
If you would like that recipe, it is easily found in the Lubavitch Spice and Spirit cookbook. I have heard from a reliable source that it tastes just as good, but perhaps a little short of the Rebbe's blessing.
My honey cake is an Angel Food cake spiked with honey, which is all I can actually manage after all the above blessings, plus a five-course meal.
HONEY ANGEL FOOD CAKE
Kitchen notes: This cake may seem like a pain in the neck to make. The first time it may be, but after that it is a walk in the park. And no walk in the park ever tasted this good. It is unfortunately vital in this recipe that the right pan is used, a 10-inch tube pan is a prerequisite for this Angel Food cake.
10 to 12 egg whites 11/2 cups total)
A few tips for working with egg whites: the eggs should be at room temperature. The reason most people shy away from egg whites is that they have a tendency to flop.
The key is to keep a grease-free environment, and anything other than pure egg white is considered grease. Break each egg into a cup, thus avoiding getting even a single drop of yolk in the bowl in the ninth inning.
All utensils have to be super clean for this to work, so wash your mixing bowl and beaters immediately before using them. If you really want to get them clean, rub a half-lemon over the inside of the bowl, rinse and dry with a clean towel.
Pre-heat oven to 350 F. | |||
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