Majestically perched at the northwest tip of Africa, Morocco is blessed with more than 1,000 miles of sparkling coastline and an expansive desert interior. Its proximity to the Mediterranean Sea, the Atlantic Ocean and the Iberian Peninsula put it at the crossroads of ancient civilizations. The Berbers, Phoenicians, the Carthaginian state, the Romans, Muslims, Spanish,…
Christopher Columbus set sail in August 1492, three days after the deadline set by the Alhambra Decree for the expulsion or forced conversion of the Jews in Spain. This has fueled persistent, but unproven, rumors that Columbus was a Jew. However, there was one Jew who was instrumental among the crew: Luis de Torres, a…
Ambrosia is the food of the gods; we mere mortals are blessed with the sweet richness of baklava. The transcendent delights of a single bite include thin, flaky phyllo pastry layered with crushed almonds and walnuts delicately spiced with cinnamon and cardamom, doused in a rose water and lemon juice infused honey syrup. In the…
I was born in Casablanca, Morocco. Fearing rising anti-Semitism, my family moved to Los Angeles in 1973. I was 8 years old and I didn’t know any English; we spoke Spanish and French at home. I started school at Beverly Vista and graduated from Beverly Hills High School. My closest friends were a mini United…
Narrow streets choked with cars. Loud honking and thumping, exotic music. Littered sidewalks teeming with people of every age and ethnicity. Shady money-changing operations, Yemenite bakeries, tiny makolets with owners and friends sitting on cheap plastic chairs, barbershops with posters of Wella hair models on the walls, and little hole-in-the-wall stalls selling gold chains. And…
Nestled among rocky inlets on the French Riviera is a beach enclave with bright blue waters, white sand and 20 kosher restaurants and cafes. You’ve probably never heard of Juan les-Pins (pronounced Juwan le’Pan), a small town that boasts two synagogues, gourmet kosher markets and patisseries offering the finest French delicacies. Bordered by glitzy, ritzy…
The bright azure and gentle waves of the Mediterranean beckon from beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows but there is a more tempting challenge from where a visitor stands: to navigate the breakfast buffet of the Sheraton Tel Aviv. The gastronomic extravaganza is endless. Freshly baked loaves of bread with butter and preserves, flaky sweet pastries and…
It was a sacred tradition. We would load up our minivans with lots and lots of food and our kids and head to the desert to celebrate Z’man Matan Tora’teinu (the Time of the Giving of the Torah). We all looked forward to our annual Shavuot Palm Springs pilgrimage, a reunion of friends who had met as…
With its colorful array of brightly colored salads, savory dips, exotic finger foods and freshly baked breads, the mezze (or maza) is a feast for the senses. While this selection of small dishes serves as the appetizer course of the Sephardic Shabbat meal, the mezze is common to all the lands of the former Ottoman…
In Times of Uncertainty, Try Drinking Tea In this time of change and uncertainty, creating a tea ritual is the perfect way to enhance our physical and mental well-being. Americans are brewing tea. In this time of change and uncertainty, creating a tea ritual is the perfect way to enhance our physical and mental…
Galette Recipes We Got From Our Mamas Galettes are a French pastry that can be filled with any topping, sweet or savory. Someone wise once said, “Life doesn’t come with a manual, it comes with a mother.” Rachel’s turn: With time, I see how the lessons that I learned from my mother have influenced…
Am Yisrael Chai Falafel Fest Is any Israeli Independence Day celebration complete without falafel? Well, not for Israelis who celebrate with a “mangal,” a Middle Eastern-style outdoor grilling feast. But for us, no food is more Israeli than the golden falafel. During our last visit to Israel, the most memorable, most delicious, most reminisced-about meal…
The Mediterranean Sunshine in a Jar that Boosts Immune System Our group of young friends was enjoying Shabbat lunch alfresco. Rachel was a newlywed and already proving to be an amazing cook and hostess. I still remember taking a bite of her Israeli salad and thinking, “What is that incredible flavor?” The citrus tang was…
Sunny-Side Up: Egg Recipes Packed With Sephardic Flavor There’s nothing more delicious than eggs enhanced with sautéed onions, bright green herbs and fresh vegetables. Moroccan megina, Tunisian ma’akoud, Spanish tortilla, Persian ku’kuu, Iraqi aj’a, frittata. Whatever you call it, there’s nothing more delicious than eggs enhanced with sautéed onions, bright green herbs and fresh…
Mimouna is the joyous Moroccan celebration of springtime, friends, family and good fortune. Marking the end of Passover and the beginning of the agricultural season, the doors of people’s homes are thrown wide open and everyone is greeted with the Judeo-Arabic blessing “Tirbah u’tissad,” may you prosper and succeed. The mimouna table overflows with sweet…
Passover is one of the most cherished dates of the Jewish calendar. It is a celebration of our redemption from slavery in Egypt to freedom in the Promised Land. We are commanded to tell the story of the Exodus to our children. We read the haggadah, we sing, we drink four cups of wine. We point…
Cauliflower is having a moment. The cruciferous darling of the culinary scene is starring on restaurant menus all over the world — and Israeli chefs can take the credit. The craze started with celebrity chef Eyal Shani’s much-loved and lauded whole roasted cauliflower. Then mega-star chef Yotam Ottolenghi took it to the next level with…
Many years ago, there was an authentic Yemenite restaurant on Pico Boulevard. At the Magic Carpet, you could order the crispiest malawach, the freshest salads and the spiciest s’chug. Recently, we were reminiscing about the delicious Yemenite soup the restaurant served and how it was the thing we craved the most when we were pregnant…
If you’ve ever had the privilege of tasting Rachel’s Olive Chicken, you already know that it is lemony fresh and truly flavorful. Olive Chicken is a traditional Moroccan dish that is slowly simmered in a ceramic tagine. But since most of us don’t have tagines, Rachel has adapted the recipe with cooking techniques for the…
In the five years that SEC FOOD (a project of the Sephardic Educational Center) has been featured on Facebook, our posts on Moroccan Dafina (meaning “covered”) and Iraqi T’bit (meaning “of the house”) have elicited the most likes, comments and shares. There’s something about the smell and taste of these Shabbat hamins that evoke love, memory and sentiment. Sheff’s family…
For our grandmothers, Purim didn’t mean matching mishloach manot to the theme of the family Purim costumes. Or a basket filled with Israeli wafers, chocolates and candy, mini bottles of grape juice and the ubiquitous grogger all wrapped in cellophane and tied with a big, plastic bow. For our grandmothers, Purim meant baking recipes handed…
