L’Shanah Tovah! It’s Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year and one of the holiest days of the Jewish calendar.
Judaism operates on the lunar calendar, so all our holidays begin at night. This is kind of an excellent advantage– you can spend the whole day cooking! Food is absolutely central to Jewish tradition, so the fact that we don’t have to wake up at a ridiculous hour (like on Thanksgiving) to cook is a gift.
As for my contribution, I made an apple and honey pie. Apples and honey are traditionally eaten on Rosh Hashanah to represent wishes of a sweet new year. This isn’t a typical snack– usually apples are eaten on their own, or with peanut butter– but in my opinion, apples and honey are an underrated combination. So, I substituted honey for sugar in this recipe, and also used honey to brush down the crust before and after baking. Here’s how it came out:
My neighbor Liraz and I spent a good amount of time at the store yesterday buying meat and chicken to grill, and of course, drinks. I wish I had a picture of all the food we made– it was quite a feast, and guess what, it was all delicious. We played music, danced, and hung out all together on our roof:
Of course, I miss my family back home, with whom I’d normally spend Rosh Hashanah. But, this was a completely new way to celebrate– it really was a New Year’s celebration. And I had a blast.
I am going to spend the weekend studying Hebrew and prepping for online teaching. More, soon.