Why is this blog different from all over blogs?

Jews have been in the South for a long time -- a fact that seems to have escaped many New Yorkers who express shock when anyone Jewish speaks with a Southern accent. Indeed, the first Jews settled in south Georgia, where I grew up, in the 1730s. My family was not among them, of course. We made our way down the Eastern Seaboard in the early 20th century on my mother's side and my father joined the group after World War II.

So what does this have to do with lox and biscuits? Southern Jewish cuisine is unique, influenced by traditional Eastern European and Sephardic cooking, African cuisine brought by former slaves and the English, Scottish and Irish food traditions from the groups that primarily settled the area.

At my family's home in a small town in Southeast Georgia, Sunday night supper often consisted of "traditional" Jewish food such as lox, whitefish and herring, boiled potatoes and sour cream accompanied by a pan of buttermilk biscuits, baked by our beloved housekeeper. And, of yes, all of it was accompanied by achingly sweet tea served from a giant metal pitcher.

In this blog, I'm going to write about this food tradition, sharing memories and recipes. If you are interested in Southern Jewish food, please join the discussion.

BTW, Sweet Potato was my nickname from my father when I was very small. My Bubbie and others called me Shana Mammalah. Can you get much more Southern and Jewish than that?

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Believe it or not, black-eyed peas for the New Year is a Jewish custom

In a tradition that is becoming quite common among Orthodox and Traditional Jews, many families have a seder-like ceremony on the first night of Rosh Hashanah. The food traditions go far beyond dipping a Granny Smith in honey or eating round challah. Favorable blessings are tied to the Hebrew names of certain food. So, if you eat black-eyed peas, sans the hog jowls of course, the blessing would be: May it be Your will that our merits increase. The word for legumes, rubia, .resembles the word for increase, yirbu.
The blessings also give you a good excuse for making squash casserole, that ubiquitous Southern side.
My husband and I keep kosher, so we can't very well do the old-fashioned cheddar cheese/sour cream version with a meal that will include balsamic vinegar/honey chicken. The challenge is to make a non-dairy version that tastes as good as the old favorite.
Over the years, I've come with a method that works very well. Here it is without exact portions:
Put 4-5 cups of yellow squash, cut into rounds, with a large Vidalia onion and some pareve (neither meat nor dairy) powdered chicken stock, available in most kosher sections of supermarkets, into a largish stock pot. (I rarely use my own homemade chicken stock which is more valuable than rubies.) Fill with water to just cover the squash and onions and simmer until the squash is cooked through but not too mushy.
Drain the vegetables and mash with a potato masher. Add one cup of ground Toastettes Rounds Crouton, parmesan cheese and garllic. (Believe or not, these are pareve and usually available in your supermarket near the salad dressings. Kroger often sells them.) Add one-half cup of light, canola-oil mayonnaise and a slightly beaten egg, or two if they are really small. Season with Lawry's seasoned salt -- use a light touch because you cooked the squash in broth -- and ground black pepper. Bake in a 350 degree oven for about one-half hour. This should make around 8-10 servings, unless you are having teenaged boys as guests -- which I am.
The blessing for gourds, k'ra, is: May it be Your will to tear away all evil decrees against us, as our merits are proclaimed before you. (K'ra resembles the words for "tear" and "proclaimed.")
Other traditional foods with accompanying blessings are pomegranates, beets, leeks and dates. All of them fit well into the Southern Jewish menu I'm planning.
Posted by at
Labels:

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)