Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Sorted by date Results 26 - 38 of 38
(The Nosher via JTA)-Pomegranates, or rimonim in Hebrew, are one of the most recognizable and highly symbolic fruits in Jewish culture. Originating in Persia, these reddish, thick-skinned fruits (technically a berry) begin to appear in markets at the end of summer and are readily available for holiday cooking by Rosh Hashanah. According to Gil Marks in "The Encyclopedia of Jewish Food," the abundance of seeds, nestled into a white membrane and encased in a protective and leathery skin, is associ...
Laura Frankel, auther of “Jewish Slow Cooker Recipes,” suggests this Veal Ragout as the main course after services on the High Holidays. Each fall, when the first cold snap hits, I start looking for hearty dishes with big flavor like this homey bit of French peasant artistry, named with the French term ragouter, or “revive the taste.” The delicate veal is complemented by the flavorful herbs and cipollini onions. Recipes like this are perfect for the slow cooker—all the way through early spring. The longer the ingredients “hang out” together, th...
(The Nosher via JTA)—Like most Jewish holidays, Rosh Hashanah brings to mind certain traditional food customs, the most well-known being the dipping of apples in honey. And while a classic apple pie or cake is a lovely way to mark our hopes for a sweet new year, I thought it would be fun to change things up a bit. These apple and honey pie “pops” are a cinch to make—and even more fun to eat. They can be assembled (and frozen) in advance, and are especially nice to serve for a crowd. No cutting or forks needed! Even better, you only need a...
(JTA)—When some Reform synagogue-goers open up their prayer books this High Holiday season, they will be greeted with snippets of poems by the likes of Walt Whitman and Pablo Neruda. Feminist and LGBTQ-friendly terms and phrases will be subtly incorporated into the prayers; scattered among those prayers will be original woodcut prints inspired by the holidays. How can this be, you ask? The Central Conference of American Rabbis, the principal organization of North American Reform rabbis, has revamped its High Holidays prayer book for the f...
September The Jewish Federation of Greater Orlando in collaboration with community agencies and synagogues held three events fostering unity and support for Israel. In addition, the Federation launched an Israel Emergency Fund to raise cash for relief efforts. The Federation raised $65,000. Rabbi Rick Sherwin of Congregation Beth Am joined 300 pulpit rabbis from around the country for the American-Israel Public Affairs Committee’s third National Rabbinic Symposium. October The Jack & Lee Rosen Southwest Orlando campus was sold to the Rosen F...
NEW YORK (JTA)-As 5775 winds to a close, here's a look back on the highs and lows (and everything in between) of the year that was. September 2014 At the annual U.N. General Assembly, President Barack Obama focuses his speech on the ISIS, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu likens Iran to ISIS and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani blames the West's blunders for fomenting the terrorists of ISIS. Meanwhile, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas issues a scathing attack against Israel...
Before I get going with today’s column, I would like to wish all my readers a good and healthy CUCUMBER in which you are inscribed in the PICKLE of Life. What the--?? Rosh Hashanah is almost here—a time for solemn introspection. But that doesn’t mean you and your family can’t have some fun through holiday-related online games, puzzles and activities that will last you until Yom Kippur. Like the Torah Tots site where you can print out and then decorate holiday symbols such as the shofar and tashlich. There’s also an on-line jigsaw puzzle in...
(JTA)-Whether you love them or hate them-or your feelings are purely pareve-these 13 Jews repeatedly made the news in 5775. David Blatt American-Israeli coach David Blatt, in his first season as the Cleveland Cavaliers head coach, guided the club to the NBA Finals and put the Midwestern city on the radar of Israelis-Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu among them. Blatt, 56, had come to Cleveland after coaching Maccabi Tel Aviv to an unlikely Euroleague title. The Boston-area native had played...
NEW YORK (JTA)—You might not know it, but Shemini Atzeret is the pinnacle of the High Holidays season. Not Rosh Hashanah, when our fates for the year are traditionally written, nor Yom Kippur, when they are sealed. Shemini Atzeret, the oft-forgotten coda that comes at the end of the Sukkot festival, trumps them all. That’s not just my opinion. The rabbis and ancient Israelites knew it, too. According to the agrarian roots of the Jewish calendar, the date of Shemini Atzeret is timed to the start of the rainy season in Israel. In the holiday’s mu...
(JTA)-From Antarctica to Shanghai and farms to cities, this year's crop of High Holidays books for children offers a globe-trotting exploration. Friendship and family are the themes that run through five new titles that entertain and inform young ones and older readers. Turning the pages of a new book is the perfect way to usher in the holidays. Penguin Rosh Hashanah (CreateSpace Independent Publishing; ages 3-6) Jennifer Tzivia MacLeod Celebrating Rosh Hashanah can be tough for a young penguin...
(JTA)—Tired of hearing about Israel’s conflict with the Palestinians or the machinations of a certain Islamic Republic? There’s plenty of other news happening in Israel, from uproars over the country’s enormous natural gas reserves to a growing push to legalize marijuana. Here are eight newsy items you may have missed in 5775 — and stories you should watch out for as the new year begins. 1. Israel’s controversial gas drilling increases Since the discovery of two huge offshore fields of natural gas in the Mediterranean Sea, Israel has turned...
It is now clear that the Iranian nuclear deal will pass Congress. President Obama now has the 34 votes to override any Congressional objections, and is well on the way to being able to prevent any vote at all, if he can achieve the 41 votes needed for a filibuster. It would be logical that Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu would now give up his fight against the Iran deal. But at a toast at Israel’s Foreign Ministry for the upcoming Jewish New Year, Netanyahu said he intends to keep fighting against the Iran agreement. “Even in the fac...
WASHINGTON (JTA) – The moment the Iran nuclear deal becomes law, as seems increasingly likely given growing congressional support for the agreement, the focus of the U.S.-Israel conversation will shift to the question of what’s next. What more will Washington do to mitigate the Iranian threat and reassure Israel and other regional allies? For starters, President Barack Obama seems ready to offer an array of security enhancements. Among them are accelerating and increasing defense assistance to Israel over the next decade; increasing the U.S...
