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On my recent visit to Israel, my cousin Mimi hosted a family reunion at her home on a tree-lined street, high on the hill in Haifa, above the Bahai Gardens. All my cousins came with their children and grandchildren and they each brought a dish. The table was bountiful with roasted salmon, Moroccan fish balls,…

Boyos (sometimes called bulemas) are an incredibly delicious spinach and cheese pastry that originated with the Sephardic Jews of the Ottoman Empire. To say that being in Israel for Yom Ha’Zikaron and Yom Ha’atzmaut was incredibly emotional would be an understatement. Neil and I were there as part of the Sephardic Educational Center mission “Giving…

This rice makes the perfect side dish for a Shabbat meal of fish, chicken or meat. But could also be perfect midweek with beans and a fresh Israeli salad.  While Neil and I can trace our roots back to Spain, the different journeys that our ancestors took after the Expulsion in 1492 meant that we…

The best thing about this recipe is the fresh herbs that are layered on top of the fish In the past, you may have read articles in which Sharon and I describe our friend group as The G-d Squad. While some of us have known each other since high school, our sisterhood solidified through our…

Confit, which derives from the French verb confire (to preserve), is a cooking method that originated in the Gascon region in the south of France. Friday night dinner is the quintessential Jewish experience. The ultimate reward for a long week of work and school. It’s the showcase for Jewish food, be it matzah ball soup…

Mimouna is the joyous North African party that marks the end of Passover and the beginning of the agricultural season. As the Sephardic Spice Girls, Sharon and I live our life on a calendar that is at least two weeks ahead of real time. We are always planning classes for the next holiday and cooking…

The burmuelos are served with lots of sour cream, honey and fruit jam, fresh berries and melon. Every year, before Passover, Rachel and I sit and discuss what recipes we will be making for the Jewish Journal. Every year, I drive Rachel crazy and I tell her that we have to make our recipes non-gebrokts,…

There is no time in the Jewish calendar that proves the unity of the Jewish people more than Passover. There is no time in the Jewish calendar that proves the unity of the Jewish people more than Passover. Every household undergoes a spring cleaning. Everyone has the opportunity to attend a seder, be they in…

this week, we share Sharon’s special recipe for chuck roast with a homemade Silan barbecue sauce.  As a Jew of Babylonian descent, for me Pesach is synonymous with Silan, a deliciously dark brown glistening date honey. This caramelized syrup is combined with crushed walnuts to use as charoset. (Charoset represents the mortar the Jews used…

Maman’s Moroccan Fish recipe steams the fish in a rich, hearty, spicy, tomatoey stew. My memories of Casablanca come in snapshots. Bright blue skies, tall palm trees, the boulevard outside the balcony of our apartment. My cousins and my brothers blaring pop music. My Maman and her sister, my aunt Clara, with their perfect bouffant…

If you grew up in a Moroccan household, you know that Shabbat lunch is dafina. Moroccan tradition dictates that the first daughter is named after her paternal grandmother. So when I was born in Casablanca, my name was no surprise. I was named Raquel after my father’s mother. In a sad twist of fate, my grandmother…

More than any other food, I feel that baba ta’mar are a tangible reminder of my Babylonian roots In 1942, my dashingly handsome grandfather Aba Naji arrived in Al Azair, a village in the south of Iraq, not far from Basra.  Located on the shores of the west bank of the sweeping Tigris River and…

This delicious Bak’lawa Cake is a perfect marriage of Middle East meets American pound cake.  My quintessential memory of my grandmother Nana Aziza is of sharing a cup of tea with her. Tea was a ritual for her and she always brewed a perfect cup. Of course, she called it “chai,” the Arabic word for…

T’bit is the Iraqi/Babylonian version of cholent, a wonderful slow cooked chicken and rice dish. There is nothing quite like watching a romance blossom. Last February, our friend Esther flew to Argentina with her daughter Miriam for the wedding of Miriam’s best friend, Raquel. Over the weeklong festivities, the groom’s close friend Oren spotted sweet Miriam…

The acidic pop of the cherry tomatoes contrasts deliciously with the herby umami of the almond basil pesto. Last Thursday morning, at Trader Joe’s on La Cienega, I was being my usual ridiculous self. I had two carts — one for Shabbat food for my home and one for a grazing table for the Sephardic…

My childhood memories are filled with cookies. Even more than they love cakes, Moroccans love their cookies. Ask an American child “What is your favorite cookie?” It’s most likely that they will answer, a chocolate chip cookie. But for me, the question of my favorite cookie is more complex. My childhood memories are filled with…

This week, Sharon and I share a a skillet chicken recipe that tastes like home. I am in possession of three passports. I was born in Petach Tikva, Israel. I grew up in Sydney, Australia. My family moved to Los Angeles when I was in high school. That’s a lot of moving around. And we…

The crown jewel of the Babylonian Jewish kitchen, kubbah are shells made from semolina stuffed with a mixture of ground beef, Italian parsley and onion. When Rachel and I started publicizing our latest Kubbah class, I was pleasantly surprised to hear from so many of my Ashkenazi friends that kubbah is one of their favorite…

A couple of Sundays ago, my family and I were blessed to celebrate the centennial birthday of my mother-in-law, Becky. A couple of Sundays ago, my family and I were blessed to celebrate the centennial birthday of my mother-in-law, Becky. Of course, turning 100 deserves a huge celebration. But over the last six months, she…

All of the seven species play a popular part in the cuisine of Sephardic Jews. But this week, Sharon and I wanted to highlight two particular ingredients — olives and nuts. When I met Alan 24 years ago, I told him that when my father takes him to his garden and shows him his plants…