As She Thinks....

Transform Your Life With Mussar

2010-09-16T09:33:00.000-07:00

If you are interested in working on your character traits check out the Riverton Mussar Program.

Riverton Mussar is going to launch it's year long mussar program October 3rd 2010.

Sign up now and you will receive:

A *free* Cheshbon HaNefesh by Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Satanov
Weekly - emailings to start your middah practice for the week
Access to the Connections part of the Riverton Mussar Website where you can listen to past and current podcasts on middot
Exclusive Mussar oriented chat/blog capability with other Riverton Mussar members
A journal for you to track your progress

The best way to emulate the ethical lifestyle that Mashiach spoke of is through Mussar. I encourage you to sign up and learn this jewish ethical practice that will truly transform your life, and encourage our messianic movement.

Visit rivertonmussar.org for more info!

Shakshuka in the Sukkah!

2010-09-16T08:50:00.000-07:00

Shakshuka is one of my favorite Israeli dishes, which consists of eggs poached in a spicy tomato sauce.
Shakshuka is a classic Israeli breakfast, but can be served as a main course any meal of the day!

Recipe from Saveur

Ingredients:

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

5 Anaheim chile's or 3 jalapenos, stemmed,
seeded, and finely chopped

1 small yellow onion, chopped

8 cloves garlic, crushed

1 tsp. ground cumin

1 tbsp. paprika

1 28-oz. can whole peeled tomatoes,
undrained

Kosher salt, to taste

8 eggs

1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese

1 tbsp. chopped flat-leaf parsley

Warm pita, for serving

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a 12" skillet over medium-high heat. Add chiles and onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and golden brown, about 6 minutes. Add garlic, cumin, and paprika, and cook, stirring frequently, until garlic is soft, about 2 more minutes.

2. Put tomatoes and their liquid into a medium bowl and crush with your hands. Add crushed tomatoes and their liquid to skillet along with 1/2 cup water, reduce heat to medium, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until thickened slightly, about 20 minutes. Season sauce with salt.

3. Crack eggs over sauce so that eggs are evenly distributed across sauce's surface. Cover skillet and cook until yolks are just set, about 5 minutes. Using a spoon, baste the whites of the eggs with tomato mixture, being careful not to disturb the yolk. Sprinkle shakshuka with feta and parsley and serve with pita, for dipping.

SERVES 4 – 6

Can I Care About the Earth and Still Eat My Lox, Bagels and Cream Cheese?

2010-09-10T12:24:00.000-07:00

I just read a fantastic article about Eco-Kosher by Terry Gips. It's titled Eco-Kosher: Can I Care About the Earth and Still Eat My Lox, Bagels and Cream Cheese?"
Gips states, "Eco-kosher has become a way of fusing many of Judaism's central concerns and roots into a symbiosis. It has become an exciting movement in Judaism that is attracting a great deal of interest among both practicing and alienated Jews, with the former seeing the opportunities for deepening their spiritual and environmental commitment and the latter seeing a more contemporary and progressive Judaism."

Read the entire article here

Eco-Kashrut: The Connection between Adam and Adamah

2010-09-03T13:02:00.000-07:00

Eco-kashrut is a fairly new movement in Jewish eating that combines the spiritual principles of kashrut with the ethical challenges that we face in our modern world. Eco-Kashrut makes the connection between adam, the human, and adamah, the earth.

In the beginning of the Torah, Adam is placed in the Garden of Eden to work and to look after it (Gen. 2:15). There is a powerful midrash that picks up on this theme:

"At the time that Hashem created Adam, G-d showed him all the trees of the Garden of Eden and said to him: See my works! How beautiful and praiseworthy they are? And everything that I created, I created for you. Take care that you should not destroy my world, for if you spoil it there is no one to repair it after you." (Midrash Kohelet Rabbah, 7:19)

There are important questions that most kashrut authorities do not even consider before they put a kashrut certification on a product. Is a product kosher if it has been grown in poisonous pesticides? Is it kosher to drink coffee that came from a plantation where the workers are not paid a minimum wage and have harsh working conditions? Is it kosher to eat an egg which was laid by a battery chicken fed on growth hormones and antibiotics and not given the chance to go outside it's entire life? Is it kosher to wrap a product in a container that is not recyclable?

Rabbis are currently investigating the possibilities of bringing in an eco-hechsher (certification stamp) that would take into account not only the kashrut of ingredients, but the entire supply chain that created the product. In the meantime it is up to us all to do the work ourselves, and to make the right choices about the food and products that we buy.

The Seven-Minute Orange: A Food Meditation

2010-08-24T14:47:00.000-07:00

Judaism teaches that every bite of food that we eat, should be slowed down and experienced with intense focus and appreciation.

My husband introduced me to a practice that he found in a great book called The Art Of Amazement by Rabbi Alexander Seinfeld. We tried this exercise together, and It really changed my prospective on how I experience not food, but the simpler things in life.

Excerpts from the book "The Art Of Amazement" (pg # 260-264)

The Seven-Minute Orange

"Give each person a whole Mandarin orange, one segment of a navel orange, knife, plate, and napkin.

To begin, please enjoy the single segment right now, but do not eat the entire orange!

(Read to group)

The art of eating an orange, according to Judaism, is really the art of orange appreciation...

Please hold up the whole orange and examine it. Notice its texture, how it looks and feels. Is it heavy or light?

(pause)

smell it.

(pause)

How does it smell? Have you ever noticed on an orange tree how these delightful globules stand out in contrast to the green leaves, just begging to be picked?

Please take your knife and cut the orange into quarters.

Does the smell change?

Hold up one quarter.

Imagine you were an alien from outer space and landed here on earth on a really hot day and you were quite thirsty, and someone said, "Have one of these."

would you know which part to bit into?

Isn't the inside so much more juicy and inviting then the rind?

smell it again.

What is this orange mostly made of?

Obviously it's water. Probably at least 90 percent water but why doesn't all the liquid fall out when we tip it over? After all, we've just cut it open!

Tip the orange so the flesh is facing down.

If you examine it closely, you'll notice that its actually made of tiny little sacks that hold the juice. It's amazing!

How did so much water get into this form? If I were to give you a bucket of water could you transform it into some of these?

What you have here is a direct chain of cause and effect from G-d to this orange in your hand! Are you starting to appreciate what an amazing gift this is? It's literally a gift!

If someone wanted you to fund the research to produce these things from scratch in the laboratory how much would we need to invest to make it happen?

Answer: Billions (or impossible). Yet you can buy them for literally pennies! And today you're eating it for free! What did you do to deserve such a wonderful gift?

Now, to eat your second piece of orange, please close your eyes, think of all the wonderful qualities of this orange, where it ultimately came from, how it is literally and figuratively a gift, and now bite into the orange, keep your eyes closed, and let it roll over your tongue, really taste it, and take your time to swallow.

How did the second bite compare?"

Update on BPA

2010-08-23T17:01:00.000-07:00

Bisphenol A, more commonly known as BPA, is a chemical that has been used for more than 40 years in the manufacture of many plastic food containers such as baby bottles and the lining of metal food and beverage cans. This year, the FDA is finally beginning to put time and money into researching the effects of BPA.

According to the FDA, they will be researching the potential links between PBA and cancer, diabetes, obesity, reproductive disorders, asthma, and heart disease.

The latest FDA advice is to take “reasonable” steps to avoid it. We need to all take responsibility of our own health, since the FDA is moving very slow with this issue. Maryland, Connecticut, Washington, Minnesota, and Wisconsin are paving the way by already restricting the sale of baby products made with BPA.

I encourage you to rummage through your cupboards and throw out any bottles and cups made with BPA (they will typically have a 7 on the bottom.) Many companies are now developing BPA- free products, so we should be supporting their effort to protect ourselves and our children!

Healthy Black Bean Chili Recipe

2010-08-23T16:08:00.000-07:00

I found this black bean chili recipe on http://www.whfoods.com/ and tried it out last night. This chili is healthy, absolutely delicious, and really easy to make!

The recipe calls for canned beans but if you want to use dried black beans just soak them the night before and then cook them in water for about an hour before you add them to the mix.

Prep and Cook Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

1 medium onion, chopped

1 medium green bell pepper, diced into 1/4-inch pieces

1 TBS + 1-1/2 cups vegetable broth

6 medium cloves garlic, chopped

2 15 oz cans black beans, drained

1 8 oz can tomato sauce

1 15 oz can diced tomatoes (do not drain)

2 TBS ground cumin

2 TBS red chili powder

2 TBS dried oregano

1 cup corn kernels, fresh or frozen

1/4 cup fresh chopped cilantro

salt and black pepper to taste

Directions:

Heat 1 TBS broth in a medium size soup pot. Healthy Sauté onion and bell pepper in broth over medium heat for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until translucent. Add garlic, cumin, and red chili powder and continue to sauté for another minute.

Add 1-1/2 cups broth and the rest of ingredients, except for the cilantro and corn. Simmer for another 20 minutes uncovered. Add corn and cook for another 2 minutes. Add chopped cilantro and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serves 4

Enjoy!

Two Year Anniversary!

2010-08-12T17:27:00.000-07:00

My husband and I are celebrating two years of marriage today! It never ceases to amaze me how fast time blows by, it seems like just yesterday we were getting ready to be married on a warm summer night it Nashville TN.
In preparation for our wedding, we read some fabulous books on marriage.

One of the books I highly recommend for couples that are getting ready to walk under the chuppah, or couples that have been married for years is The Committed Marriage: A Guide to Finding a Soul Mate and Building a Relationship Through Timeless Biblical Wisdom written by Rebbetzen Esther Jungreis.

It's hard to find sound advice based on biblical principals in this broken world that we live in, but Rebbetzen Jungreis does an amazing job to depict the problems people face and offer guidance for getting through them.
If this book is not on your bookshelf I highly recommend picking one up!

Sukkot: Fair Trade Month!

2010-08-10T15:56:00.000-07:00

Judaism has three major festivals throughout the year that all center on harvest seasons. One of those holidays is just around the corner, the holiday of Sukkot.
Sukkot is definitely one of my favorite Jewish holidays, and is commonly referred to as the Season of our Rejoicing!

Since Sukkot is centered around a harvest season, we are encouraged to take time to remember our agricultural history and connection to the land. I encourage you to also think about the farmers who are currently growing our food. Are we doing our part to support fair labor conditions, fair price for farmers, direct trade, and environmental sustainability?

TransFair USA has made the month of October "Fair Trade Month". This is the perfect time to become familiar with fair trade and to start supporting local farmers. As we celebrate this harvest festival of Sukkot, I encourage you to take the opportunity to learn about and support fair trade, that way we support those whom still depend on the cycle of the seasons.

FTM2010 Partner Program

View more presentations from Fair Trade Certified.

Calming Cramps

2010-07-21T20:58:00.000-07:00

I never had any problem refraining from using medicine until that time of the month came around!
In the midst of a throbbing headache or terrible cramps I had a hard time resisting that one bottle of aspirin hidden in my bottom shelf. The good news is that there are natural remedies that will work to calm pre-menstrual symptoms!

Clary Sage is one of the best essential oils to help ease the tension of those painful few days. You can add a few drops of oil to a simmer pot and place it by your bedside while you rest, or you can drop 10-20 drops in a warm bath and soak. Another great idea is to make a massage oil by adding 5 drops of Clary sage to 5 tablespoons of sweet almond oil and rub on your belly. Chamomile and Lavender are also wonderful essential oils to use.

Chamomile and Ginger teas do a great job at soothing an upset stomach. You can make your own chamomile tea by adding 2 teaspoons of dried Chamomile flowers to a cup of boiling water and let it steep for at least 5 minutes. There are also lots of teas to choose from at your nereast health food store.

These are just a few natural remedies to try when that time of the month comes around...
Do you have a natural remedy that works for you? Please leave a comment and share what you have found!

Sunny Days, Sunburned Nights!

2010-07-14T21:15:00.000-07:00

After the long stretch of rainy winter days here in Seattle, summer is finally here!
I could not resist laying outside Sunday afternoon to catch some rays and get caught up on some reading.
I had no idea how much sun I had gotten until I walked in the door and saw my husbands horrified look.
I was burnt...bad.

I ran to the store to find some aloe and could not find one brand that did not have harmful chemicals in it.
This is crazy I thought! The natural stores were already closed for the evening and I was stuck....
What I did find was aloe juice, and after some research I found that the juice works even better than the gels at the store.

Combine aloe juice with ½ the amount of vitamin E and dab on the sunburn, easy as that!
If you have an aloe plant you can use that as well. Take as many leaves as necessary and refrigerate; peel off top layer of leaves and apply the flesh of the leaf directly to the sunburn.

Other Natural Remedies for Sunburns:

Baths: Add 20 drops each of lavender and chamomile essential oils to a tubful of cool water and soak
Apple cider vinegar: Apply apple cider vinegar to the burn with a cotton ball, or make a cooling compress for a large area to relieve the pain
Lemon water: Mix the juice of three lemons into two cups of cold water and sponge on the sunburn. It will cool the burn, and will promote healing of the skin.
Tea Bags: Wet a tea bag and place it on the sunburned area, or fill a bathtub with cool water and place tea bags into it.
Baking Soda: Pour a cup of baking soda into a lukewarm bath, and soak!
Floral Waters Spray burn with floral waters. Lavender and chamomile are the floral waters I recommend

Moroccan-Style Vegetable Stew

2010-07-12T16:18:00.000-07:00

I found this recipe on http://www.simplyorganicfoods.com/ and it quickly became a staple in our home.
This stew is easy to make, and it is absolutely delicious!

Prep Time: 20 min
Cook Time: 60 min
Servings: 6

Ingredients:

1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil

2 large onions, chopped

2 medium potatoes, scrubbed and cut into 1/4-inch chunks

2 cups (heaping) sugar pumpkin or butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch chunks

2 large carrots, peeled and coarsely chopped

1 can (16-ounce) salt-free diced tomatoes, undrained

2 teaspoons ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon ground tumeric

1 can (16-ounce) chickpeas, drained and rinsed

salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

2 cups water

1 cup raw couscous, preferably whole grain

1/4 to 1/2 cup minced fresh parsley, to taste

Directions
Heat the oil in a soup pot. Add the onions and saute over medium heat until golden.

Add the potatoes, pumpkin or squash, carrots, tomatoes, cumin, and turmeric. Add enough water to cover all but about 1/2 inch of the vegetables. Bring to a rapid simmer, then lower the heat. Cover and simmer gently for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender.

Stir in the chickpeas, then season with salt and pepper. Simmer over very low heat for 10 to 15 minutes longer.

Meanwhile, bring the water to a boil in a small saucepan. Stir in the couscous, cover, and remove from the heat. Let stand for 10 minutes, then fluff with a fork.

To serve the stew, place a small amount of the couscous in each soup bowl, then ladle some stew over it and sprinkle with parsley. Serve at once.

Natural Bug Repellent?

2010-07-09T11:16:00.000-07:00

My husband and I thought it would be nice to take a walk by the lake last night since it was still hovering around 75 degrees at 9:00 pm! The night was beautiful, the sun was just starting to set....and then the bugs came out. I was trying to just ignore the lovely little pests but my husband was afraid that in the morning he would look like a hormonal teenager with big red spots all over his face (he has quiet the sense of humour)!
We ended up having to go home earlier then we anticipated.

I just refuse to buy the mosquito spray's that are on the market today... Many are made with DEET, which work to ward off pests but not something you want in your bloodstream, which is exactly where it ends up after you spray it on your skin.
I came by an article about natural bug spray made by using essential oils...

I was optimistic and eager to make and try my own bug spray, but my husband doubts that essential oils will work to ward off bugs.
So...I am going to use him as a test...since he is doubtful to begin with.

My Natural Bug Repellent:
25-30 drops (total) of essential oil
I am using a mixture of lemon balm (citronella), and lavender
1 cup of witch hazel

Place all ingredients into a spray bottle. Shake well.

I am taking my husband back to the park to check out my natural bug spray...Check back to see if it passed the test!

F.Y.I- If you don’t want to make your own, there are all kinds of natural insect repellents on the market. Burt’s Bees, and Kiss My Face are two companies that make herbal bug sprays that are DEET-free and safe for kids.

Watermelon, Feta and Black Olive Salad

2010-07-09T10:05:00.000-07:00

This salad is super easy to make, and very refreshing for summer! I have been meaning to make this salad for weeks now, and I finally tried it last night...the mixture of sweet watermelon, feta cheese, salty olives, and tangy lime is amazing...and it was a refreshing salad for a hot summer night!
Ingredients are below..I would just use your own judgment on the quantities, you can't really go wrong with this recipe...if you love olives add a few more olives, if you are a huge onion fan add more onions!

INGREDIENTS

1 small red onion cut into very fine half-moons
2 limes (just the juice)
Sweet watermelon, rind removed and cut into triangles
Feta cheese
Arugula
Handful of fresh mint, chopped
3–4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Pitted black olives
black pepper to taste

Soak the red onion in the lime juice and set aside. Combine the melon, feta, olives and mint.
Lay a bed of fresh arugula at the bottom of a large bowl and then add the onion with lime juice, and the combination of melon, feta olives and mint. Add 3-4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and then using your hands toss the salad very gently so that the feta and melon don’t lose their shape. Add fresh ground pepper and add another squeeze of lime if you desire!
Enjoy!

The Complexity of a Tomato

2010-07-09T09:34:00.000-07:00

Have you ever stopped to look at a vegetable or a piece of fruit and meditated on the fact that it is completely natural, unaltered, and extremely complex. A tomato for example contains thousands of different phytochemicals (plant-derived chemicals)!

It just boggles my mind when I see people taking supplements when they could be getting everything they need from increasing their fruit and vegetable intake. Don't get me wrong, supplements added to a healthy diet can be beneficial, but you just can not extract all the nutrients found in the natural food source. Eating a variety of plant foods is the only way to make sure we are getting all the nutrients that our body needs. Summer is the perfect time to increase our natural food intake..and try out some fresh summer recipes!

The Cove

2010-07-06T10:35:00.000-07:00

My husband and I just finished watching the award winning documentary The Cove. This documentary exposes the slaughter of more than 20,000 dolphins off the coast of Japan every year. The dolphin meat which contains toxic levels of mercury is being sold as food in Japan and other parts of Asia, often labeled as whale meat. Most of the world, and even the people living right in the town that this slaughter is taking place is not aware that this is happening.

I encourage you to see the film and take part in the Social Action Campaign for The Cove. You can visit their website at www.takepart.com/thecove. The goal is to create worldwide awareness of this annual practice as well as the dangers of eating seafood contaminated with mercury and to pressure those in power to put an end to the slaughter.

Truth About Oil

2010-07-05T12:30:00.000-07:00

There are so many different opinions about oil... don't put oil on your face, don't eat oily foods or your face will break out, don't heat olive oil, oil is fattening, oil is beneficial to your health....the list goes on and on. Where do we start with sorting through the web of information?

Lets start with discussing oil and skincare....

The confusion lies with what type of oil is beneficial to your skin. Natural oils that are not synthetic or chemically altered such as coconut, grape seed, avocado, and olive oil all have tremendous benefits to your skin. My personal favorite is coconut oil which not only softens the skin, but protects it against damage, promotes healing and repairing, and gives the skin a healthy glow! I make a cheap and easy moisturizer at home by just combining coconut oil and a few drops of lavender essential oil. It feels great on my skin, and it smells wonderful too!

Mineral oil is the type of oil used in most commercial skin care products. Mineral oil is produced as a byproduct of the distillation of gasoline from crude oil. Mineral oil may also go by the names liquid paraffin, paraffin wax, and petrolatum on the product label.

There are those who say that mineral oil applied to the skin is perfectly safe since the grade used in cosmetics and skin care products is distilled and refined, but the truth is that it is still a foreign coating on the human skin. This thin layer coats the skin like plastic and clogs your pores, interfering with the skins ability to eliminate toxins, which promotes acne and other skin disorders.

Why would companies use mineral oil when there are so many clear benefits to natural oils?
One reason....because Mineral oil is CHEAP.

Bottom line: Not all oils are equal. Stay away from synthetic products and check labels on all your skin care products...also spend time discovering all the natural oils, and make your own skin care products at home!

Wild About Indigo Wild!

2010-07-01T10:28:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to give a plug for one of my new favorite companies Indigo Wild.
They have a ton of all-natural products that include body lotions, lip balms, natural soups, soy candles, aromatherapy sprays, and more! Everything is all natural and smells so yummy!!
Personally my favorite scent is Frankincense & Myrrh...but check them out and pick a favorite scent for yourself!
http://www.indigowild.com/

FOOD, INC.

2010-03-19T14:47:00.000-07:00

Last night, My husband and I saw the new documentary Food Inc. This amazing documentary written by Robert Kenner exposes America's industrialized food system and its effect on our environment, health, economy and workers' rights. The documentary covers issues such as Genetic Engineering, Environmental Impact, Cloning, Food borne Illness, Factory Farming, Pesticides, and more. I highly recommend this documentary, it is a film that will radically change the way that you interact with food.

You can visit the official Food, Inc. site to find where it is playing near you, to read reviews, and to watch the trailer.

Fair Trade from a Jewish Perspective

2010-03-19T14:46:00.000-07:00

Thanks to companies like Starbucks, many people are catching on to the importance of supporting Fair Trade. Fair Trade is a growing movement that works with disadvantaged farmers in the developing world. Fair Trade includes:

A fair price for products

A fair wage for workers

Providing equal opportunities for all people, particularly the most disadvantaged

Building long-term trade relationships

Environmentally sustainable practices

Providing healthy and safe working conditions

Below is a great video outlining the basics of Fair Trade, and how it improves the lives of disadvantaged farmers:

The Fair Trade movement is quite modern, but the ethics and values behind it can be traced back to the Torah. Jewish values supporting the Fair Trade movement include:

Poverty

"Do not let him slip down until he falls completely, for then it will be difficult to raise him; rather strengthen him as he begins to fall. To what is this comparable? To a burden upon a donkey: while it is still on the donkey, one person can hold it and set it in place; if it falls to the earth, even five people cannot set it back" (Rashi’s commentary on Leviticus 25:35).

Treatment of Workers

“You shall not abuse a needy and destitute laborer, whether a fellow countryman or a stranger in one of the communities of your land. You must pay him his wages on the same day, before the sun sets, for he is needy and he risks his life for it.” (Deut. 24:14-15)

"In disputes between employees and workers, the rights of the worker were given preference over those of the employer." (Talmud, Baba Metzia 77a)

Communal Responsibility

"The stranger among you shall be equal unto you as the home born and you shall love him as yourself." (Leviticus 19:34)

“It is forbidden to cheat people in buying and selling, or to deceive them.” (Rabbi Moses ben Maimonides, Mishneh Torah, Hilchot Mechirah 18:1)

Sustainability

“The highest level of Tzedekah is when you support someone by giving him a gift, or loan, or entering into partnership with him, or creating a job for him so that he supports himself until he no longer needs to depend upon others.” (Rambam, Mishneh Torah Laws of Gifts to the Poor 10:7)

Below are some great resources about Fair Trade; I encourage you to do some research and support this movement!

A Jewish Guide to Fairtrade
Equal Exchange
TransFair USA
Global Exchange
Fair Trade Federation
Fairtrade Resource Networ k
Ten Thousand Villages

Challah Recipe

2010-03-19T14:45:00.001-07:00

There are so many delicious Challah recipes to try....
here is one that I recommend from Chabad.org

1 tbsp. sugar
½ cup warm water
1 ½ ounces fresh yeast
3 eggs
¾ cup sugar
¾ cup oil
¼ cup wheat germ
2 cups hot water
12 cups flour plus,
½ cup whole-wheat flour
1 tbsp. salt

GLAZE:
1 egg, beaten
Poppy seeds
In a large bowl, dissolve sugar in ½ cup warm water. Crumble yeast into sugar-water and let stand until it begins to foam. Add eggs and mix well. Add sugar, oil and wheat germ and mix again.
Slowly add hot water, flour and salt, alternating liquid and dry ingredients. When dough forms a single ball, place on floured board and knead until smooth.
Place in oiled bowl and turn so top is oiled. Cover with towel and let rise 30 to 45 minutes until doubled in bulk. Punch down. Let rise again until doubled.
Punch down. Separate Challah with a blessing. Divide dough into four parts and shape loaves. Place in greased pans and let rise 15 minutes.
Preheat oven to 400.
Brush loaves with beaten egg and sprinkle with poppy seeds. Bake at 400 for 5 to 10 minutes, then lower temperature to 300 degrees and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until brown. Remove from pans and cool on racks.
YIELDS: 4 loaves

Mitzvah of Taking Challah

2010-03-19T14:45:00.000-07:00

For most, the first thing that comes to mind after hearing the word challah is the sweet and delicious braided loaf eaten at Shabbat meals. The Halachic definition of challah involves setting aside a piece of the dough before baking for the Kohanim, this piece of dough is called "challah”. Any dough which is made from the five species of grain (wheat, barley, spelt, oat or rye) and then baked in an oven or pan, is required to have “challah” taken from it.

The Torah states: “And it will be when you eat of the bread of the land, you should bring an offering to G-d, The first of your kneading bowl you shall donate to G-d as an offering…” (Numbers 15:19, 20)

The mitzvah of baking challah is one of the three mitzvahs that are assigned primarily for women; the other two are candle lighting, and family purity. There are a number of reasons why we were given the mitzvah of taking challah. Like the Kohanim, we depend on Hashem for physical sustenance in order to perform work on His behalf. When we take challah we transform baking into a spiritual act, which is a way to connect Hashem to the mundane. The laws of challah instruct us that when beginning an activity, the first thing is to remember to acknowledge Hashem, and to acknowledge that our sustenance comes as a gift. by separating the piece of dough, consecrating it to Hashem every time we bake bread, we remember that whatever we are given is not for our use alone.

How to separate challah:
1. Some have the custom to give charity or wash hands (netilat yadayim) without a blessing before fulfilling this mitzvah.
2. Make dough for challah loaves
3. When the dough is ready to be shaped into loaves, place in a single pan or bowl and recite the following blessing:

"Baruch ata Hashem, Elokeinu melech ha-olam, asher kidishanu bimitzvotav, vitzivanu l'hafrish challah."

Blessed are You, L-rd our G-d, King of the universe, who has sanctified us with His commandments and commanded us to separate challah.

4. After saying the blessing, separate a piece of dough, approximately one ounce, and say "This is challah."
5. Wrap the separated piece of dough in foil and burn it in the oven, or by any other method. The separated piece of challah should be burned so that it is no longer usable.

Notes

Challah is taken from wheat, rye, barley, oat or spelt batches that use at least 59 ounces of flour. If you use less than this but more than 43 ounces, take challah, but don't recite the blessing.
The liquid you mix with the flour should be mostly water. If not, add a drop of water and then take challah without reciting a blessing.

Armenian Cucumber Salad

2010-03-17T10:40:00.000-07:00

This is a delicious cucumber salad that is cool and refreshing!

1 med. Cucumber
2/3 cup plain yogurt
1/2 lemon (just the juice)
1 clove of Garlic, finely minced
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh dill
if desired add parsley or mint

Peel and halve cucumber lenghtwise
scoop seeds out and slice thin
mix all ingredients
chill for one hour
serve and enjoy!

The Compassionate Diet

2010-03-17T10:33:00.000-07:00

One of the most effective ways to teach the lesson of reverence for life, is the proper observance of Kashrut. Since Judaism holds life to be sacred; it has developed a process of ritual slaughter that requires humane treatment for animals. The Shochet (one who slaughters animals) recites a b’rachah before the slaughtering process, demonstrating that Hashem only intends us to kill humanely and for the purpose of food. The separation of milk and meat teaches us reverence of life by symbolically recognizing the distinction between life and death; life is represented in milk and death in meat. Kashrut also involves removing all blood from meat, because the life of the animal is contained in the blood.

In this culture, our sense of reverence for life has been severely dulled. Destroying human life is unfortunately something that we witness everyday, for example children’s video games…seem harmless? Not when the object of the video game is to brutally kill the opponent. Movies and television programs prove to be no different when it comes to violence. Between the ages of 6 and 18, the average American youth will spend sixteen thousand hours in front of the T.V and will witness eighteen thousand on-screen murders. dramatized deaths are not the only thing that we need to be worried about... What about the documented 6 million abortions that take place each year in the United States? Abortion is clearly no longer primarily an act of desperation, but a form of birth control. Another form of death that has been plaguing the world is Genocide; from the Holocaust, to the Rwandan Genocide, to the on-going conflict in Darfur.

These are just a few of the many ongoing issues we face, and it does not seem like they will be changing any time soon. Has there ever been a time that we needed a lesson on the reverence of life then right now? There are many reasons that Hashem gave us the mitzvah of Kashrut; but one important reason that we all need at this time, is a daily and constant reminder to act with compassion, and live with a reverence for life

Natural Skin Care

2009-07-29T11:46:00.000-07:00

Many of us have jumped onto the organic food bandwagon and have drastically changed what we put into our bodies. What many of us don’t realize is the amount of harmful substances our bodies absorb because of the beauty products we use. There are unfortunately major loopholes in federal law, which make it possible for companies to use nearly any ingredient in cosmetics and personal care products – even chemicals that are known to harm our health and the environment. We should all consider switching to completely natural products, which perform to the same standard as their unhealthy counterparts.

Some natural skin care tips from Planet Green:

1.Simplify
Don't be fooled by cosmetic advertising: All you need is a basic cleanser, toner, moisturizer, and broad-spectrum sunscreen to keep your skin in tip-top shape.

2.Make Sure "Natural" Is Really Natural
Toxic synthetic chemicals are the biggest issue in the beauty industry today, so it pays to examine product labels. A great resource is the Environmental Working Group's Skin Deep Cosmetics Database site, which rates popular cosmetics depending on their toxicity.

3.Say No to Fragrance
Federal law doesn't require companies to declare any of the dozens of toxic chemicals that a single product's fragrance mixture could contain. Be mindful of the hidden dangers that "fragrance" or "parfum" listed on ingredients labels can pose, and always choose fragrance-free products.

4.Choose Organic Beauty Products
Organic ingredients are those grown without synthetic fertilizers or pesticides, which is healthier for the planet and healthier for our bodies.

5.Make your own beauty treatments at home
If you are interested in saving yourself some money you can always go into your kitchen and make some of your own beauty treatments!

6.Read Labels
The biggest and most complicated issues regarding the cosmetics we use are the unregulated chemicals that are used to make them. The best advice is to learn the main ones to avoid and then check the product ingredient label. You can also choose a cosmetics company that has signed the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics compact and uses certified organic and natural ingredients.

7.Choose petroleum-free products
There are a surprising number of petroleum derivatives to be found in not only our cosmetics but also in other personal care products. Mineral oil, paraffin, and propylene glycol can be found as basic ingredients in the majority of cosmetic products.

8.Use aluminum-free deodorant
Instead of using antiperspirant, try using natural deodorant brands that don't contain aluminum, or try the crystal stick which uses natural mineral salts.

9.Brush with natural toothpaste
Many major brands of toothpaste contain chemicals like parabens, titanium dioxide for whitening, and high levels of fluoride. There are many natural types of toothpaste on the market, and many people also find that just using a bit of baking soda will do the trick as well.

10.Healthy hair care
Hair, like the skin, is extremely absorbent and all those products can contain potentially harmful chemicals. Watch out for: shampoos and conditioners containing petroleum products; hair dyes with carcinogenic coal tar, hairsprays and hair gels containing petroleum derivatives, formaldehyde, phthalates, and synthetic fragrance. Try to find brands that make safe alternatives for all these products.

Majadra Recipe

2009-07-29T11:40:00.000-07:00

This is definitely one of my favorite Middle Eastern dishes, its easy to make and is great to make on Shabbat since it can be served hot or cold.

* 1 cup of whole rice (not white)
* 1 cup of green lentils
* 1 large onion, cut into thin slices or rings
* 1 teaspoon cumin
* 4 cloves of garlic, chopped
* 1/2 teaspoon black ground pepper
* 1/2 teaspoon of paprika (optional)
* 1/3 cup olive oil
* (salt to taste)

1. Cook rice (watch that it does not dry from over cooking)

2. Simmer the lentils in water until they are soft but not mushy, this might take 30-40 minutes. Drain excesses water and return to pot. Add salt to taste after the lentils are done.

3. Fry onions and garlic slowly with olive oil until brown.

4. In a large pan stir-fry the rice and lentils in olive oil for 2-3 min, then add the cumin, pepper and salt.

5. Serve the rice and lentils with the fried garlic and onion on top.

6. It is customary to serve this dish with plain yogurt.

Enjoy!

Eating Local

2009-06-28T10:53:00.000-07:00

Most of us do not question how it is possible that we have at our fingertips fresh broccoli any time of the year, fresh oranges in December, asparagus in January, or grapes in March. We don’t realize that the broccoli we just steamed traveled over 1,500 miles to get to our plates, or the asparagus we purchased traveled 2,000 miles to get to our local grocery store. If our produce came with a passport showing where it had traveled and what had been done to it to keep it fresh, I believe we would all be looking for local options.

The ironic thing about food transport, is that food is shipped to communities that grow the exact same food organically, and in abundance! Since local produce are not apart of the industrial food chain, they never make it into the door of the supermarkets, this has tragically led to a tragic loss of local small scale farmers.

Eating locally has many benefits, and many people are turning to this way of life to capture the sense of community that was lost when the corporations came in and took over the local food supply. When we eat locally we are supporting small-scale farmers, reducing pollution, and we are putting healthier food in our bodies.

Just making a small change in what we buy can make a big difference. We do not need to stop buying all food from other regions of the world, but starting to buy produce from a local farmer is one of the most effective contributions we can make to the earth. Farmers markets and food co-ops can be found in almost every city. Please click on the link below to find one near you!

Local Harvest