A Swiss Shomrei Shabbat

We didn’t have to ski in the Alps nor did we have to brave the cold to enjoy host Fern’s favorite Swiss food – raclette – for Shabbat dinner. Although this melted cheese dish, with roasted vegetables, boiled potatoes and gherkins may have originated in medieval convents in Switzerland and is enjoyed après ski in the Alps, it translated very well onto Fern’s beautiful Shabbat table. Continue reading

Shabbat Your Way Message From Rabbi Julie

Dear Shomrei Community,

You know the drill.  Have or Host Shabbat Your Way on March 22.  And make your rabbi really happy by telling us your Shabbat dinner story even if it doesn’t involve a ukelele or Antartica.

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Enjoy these highlights from February Shabbat Your Way:

Shabbat with Isaac and His Ukelele – Judy Wildman

We celebrated Shabbat in New Hampshire with our daughter Elana, son-in-law Allan, and grandchildren – Isaac age 4, Samuel age 2 and Ayla age two weeks. The lineup included Bim Bam, Shabbat Shalom, the dinosaur Shabbat song, candle lighting, Shalom Aleichem, Vayechulu, Kiddush [blessing over wine] and Motzi [blessing over bread]. Since they had to go to bed by seven, and we had a long playlist, we had to get there by 4:30pm. Samuel played the ukelele and Isaac was on the xylophone. It was quite a celebration — better than any we ever have in our house — and of course I was thrilled.

Shabbat at Sea – Sharon Hurwich

We were on a ship for 18 days as we cruised around Antarctica, South Georgia, and the Falkland Islands. The cruise line, Viking, provides kosher wine, challah, and sometimes prayer sheets every Friday in a very cozy area of the ship called The Hide. We missed the first Shabbat because I was really seasick, but we made it to the second two Friday evenings and met some very lovely people from Philadelphia, New Jersey, and Massachusetts. There were 10 of us in all. We tried to arrange a Shabbat dinner but the restaurant couldn’t do dinner for 10 on a Friday night, so we had a belated Shabbat dinner the following Monday in a lovely private dining room. It was very nice to make connections with fellow Jewish travelers so far from home.

Pre-Birthday Shabbat – Servanaz Zelkha SIngh

We had a pre-birthday Shabbat dinner for Brian’s 12th birthday. He decided to invite three non-Jewish friends and lead prayers. A nice way to start being 12!

Shabbat Dinner Selfie – Dale Russakoff
Taken at the home of Sarita Eisenberg and Lou Hammerman

Guess Who?

March is Women’s History Month. To expand your horizons beyond women named Ruth or Anne, here’s a match-up quiz of accomplished but lesser-known women.

The library is a resource for information about many of them, either through single biographies, collected biographies or reference works such as Jewish Women in America which are updated on the Jewish Women’s Archive website (jwa.org).

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Leftovers

Some people hate leftovers. What’s tasty about dried-out day-old meatloaf sitting in a pool of congealed gray gravy? Or is there anything worse than leftover pasta, turning brown at the edges?

On the other hand, that meatloaf can make a hearty sandwich or maybe even be mixed into that day-old pasta and both will have been given a second chance.

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MESH Report February 27, 2024

A most efficient crew prepared and packed Chef Sarita’s hearty, tasty and nutritious BBQ Chicken Feast for 50 in a repeat record time of 2 hours. The A+ Team included Captain Sarita Eisenberg, #1 First Mate Lou Hammerman, and First Class crew members Linda Ariel, Susan Rosenblatt and Lynne Kurzweil.

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