“I am thrilled to be a part of the 4th Annual Manischewitz Cook-Off!” said Chef Pépin. “I always encourage people to experiment with new types of ethnic cuisine and products.”  As the Manischewitz Company announced the launch of the 4th Annual Man-O-Manischewitz Cook-Off, a cooking contest designed to encourage home cooks to challenge themselves in preparing a kosher meal using the new Manischewitz Broth. The contest encourages home chefs to experiment with different ethnic foods and to think of preparing a Kosher inspired meal as part of that experience, in the same way people enjoy preparing Japanese, Italian, Mexican, Chinese and other popular ethnic cuisine.

Entrants will compete for a chance to be crowned the “King or Queen of Kosher” and win the $25,000 grand prize package including GE Profile kitchen appliances, cash and more. Five finalists will win an all-expense paid trip to NYC to compete live on March 18th at the Jewish Community Center of Manhattan.  The contestants will be judged by an on-site cooking panel consisting of food media and other culinary experts.

On Friday, Sholom Rubashkin, the former owner of an Iowa kosher slaughterhouse, was convicted of 86 out of 91 fraud charges.  It has been over a year since the the Pottsville, Iowa slaughterhouse, Agriprocessors was raided by federal authorities arresting hundreds of workers.  Since the raid, vigorous debate has ensued regarding the treatment of the workers, the animals and even what it means to eat kosher meat.  The Jew and the Carrot hopes to continue this important debate.

Click here for the Jew and the Carrot’s coverage of the story including interviews, commentary and even a terrific video on the lives of the slaughterhouse workers.

It all started with an excessive amount of cabbage.  One of my housemates wanted to make a pretty and delicious green and purple cabbage salad for a dinner party she was attending.   “Why are your cabbages so big in this country?  In South Africa we have little cabbages!”  True, even after making her salad a few times we still had a lot of cabbage left over.

Then I got cabbage in my CSA share – two heads of it.  “How do you feel about sauerkraut?”  I suggested, thinking about my own German heritage.  “Or kimchi?” was her suggestion.  Now we started getting excited. She pulled out her Ball Blue Book Guide to Preserving, which was a rather comprehensive collection of pickles (although no kimchi).  So several kimchi recipes were consulted online and we got to work.

We all know the economy is pretty lousy right now and it can be pretty tough if you are looking for a job (like I am).  So if you are a foodie or want to work within the “sustainable food movement” where can you look?  The following is from an email I received the other day and thought I should share with the Jew and the Carrot community.

Sustainable Food Jobs is pleased to announce the launch of its new website!  Most Americans have never heard of the term “sustainable food.”  Tell someone its your career focus and be prepared to explain yourself.  Rest assured… this site understands what you mean with no elevator speech required!  As a recent graduate looking to branch into the world of sustainable food, I had a difficult time knowing where to look for the most up-to-date job opportunities available.  Typically, job listings are dispersed among environmental conservation and individual non-profit websites.  But what if job seekers new to this and aren’t familiar with all of the non-profits that specialize in sustainable food?  That is where this website comes in!  It will provide job seekers with the most up-to-date job opportunities available in the domestic sustainable food sector.

Check it out!

The 30th Anniversary Ecological Farming Conference will take place January 20-23, 2010 at the Asilomar Conference Center in Pacific Grove, California. (And now for a gratuitous plug – this is also the location of the Hazon Food Conference which is being held at the end of December.)

EcoFarm is the largest conference on sustainable and organic agriculture in the western United States, with more than 1,400 conference participants and over 60 workshops featuring prominent speakers on the latest advances in agricultural techniques, marketing strategies, research and other important food system issues, along with organic meals and live entertainment. This year’s conference theme “EcoFarm: Where the Future is planted,” will celebrate 30 years of advancing sustainable and organic agriculture through education, alliance building and advocacy.

The following article was written by Leah Koenig and published in the Jewish Daily Forward earlier this week.  Be sure to click on the link below to check out the comments.

On Tuesday November 3, His Royal Highness Prince Philip will host over 200 guests for lunch at Windsor Castle, the 900-year-old palace that serves as an official residence of his and Queen Elizabeth’s. But this lunch will be noticeably different from the roasted quail and crème fraîche typical of castle meals. Instead, the menu is entirely vegan and centered on seasonal, regionally sourced ingredients.

Do you have the next big idea for social change?
And do you have what it takes to start your own groundbreaking organization?

People who have great ideas should not fall through the cracks, and sometimes they need a boost to find their way to execution, and then – impact.

Echoing Green invests in and supports outstanding emerging social entrepreneurs to launch new organizations that deliver bold, high-impact solutions.  Through a two-year fellowship program, we help our network of visionaries develop new solutions to society’s most difficult problems.  These social entrepreneurs and their organizations work to solve deeply-rooted social, environmental, economic, and political inequities to ensure equal access and to help all individuals reach their potential.

The other day my boyfriend and I were enjoying a Sunday walk in Brooklyn when we ran into his friend Ana, her partner and their adorable new baby.  Among the introductions and pleasantries she mentioned that she was distributing her film FRESH.  “Here, tell me what you think of it,” she said handing me a copy, knowing I was a food writer.

So, one night a while later my boyfriend and I tucked into the sofa and watched FRESH, the new film by Ana Sofia Joanes.  As someone who has seen Food Inc and has read a lot of Michael Pollan, the material was not new to me, however I found the material’s presentation (forgive the pun) fresh.  I had found Food Inc to be a good film, but heavy on the propaganda.  I felt that FRESH got its message across in a far more even-handed way.  The film invoked a pretty good discussion, and I was happy to see on their website they had some additional educational materials and even a call for recipes.  But you don’t have to be a Jew and the Carrot writer or have chance encounters with the director to see this film.  If you live in the New York area there will be a screening this Tuesday.

Do you love your CSA (or Tuv Ha’Haretz) but also want sustainable products that are not found locally where you live?  Things like olive oil and dates are local to the Mediterranean Sea – not New England.  But for folks in the greater New York area committed to sustainable agriculture, some of our CSAs have recently partnered with a new company that supports small-scale farming and economic development in the Negev Region of Israel.

Negev Nectars, a new business that launched last week, will be bringing gourmet, sustainably produced foods to CSAs (and Tuv Ha’Haretz) to the United States.  Negev Nectars members will be sent olive oil, jams, chutneys, honey, dried herbs and other unique products (check them out here) three times a year just before Hanukkah, Passover and Rosh Hashanah.  Negev Nectars can be shipped all over the U.S., although your share can be picked up at participating sites.  Currently Negev Nectars can be picked up at the Tuv Ha’Haretz in White Plains, NY and Forest Hills, NY with additional sites coming soon in New York and New Jersey.

A couple of weeks ago my boyfriend and I enjoyed an amazing night out of some fun avant garde theater and some really yummy food at Conni’s Avant Garde Restaurant (which is having another performance this Monday at Joe’s Pub).  What was really quite enjoyable was that the menu was built into the script and each course came with a performance.  After drinks and mingling with the cast in the lobby the show started with music, introductions to the characters, rules for the evening (there was no ordering, there was plenty for seconds and this was not dinner theater).  We were moved into the dinning area with long communal tables, an open kitchen, a streak of gratuitous nudity and several performance spaces.

The opening number was in fact a performance based on the following recipe – reprinted here with permission.  The soup was served by the cast members and the rest of the evening essentially continued as such.  (For example the main course was a pulled pork sandwich  that was served after rock love ballad to eating pig.  The vegetarian option was a delicious marinated portobello mushroom sandwich, but that didn’t get a song.)  My boyfriend said he doesn’t normally like cold soups, but he went back for thirds that night.  So I had to ask for the recipe.  Although I didn’t reproduce the soup in quantities reprinted here, I did get a lovely smooth slightly savory but distinctly pear soup – really perfect for the fall.  Enjoy!

So, when I agreed to review Dr. David Kraemer’s book Jewish Eating and Identity Through the Ages, I had a job (thus a daily commute where I can read on the train) and wasn’t really planning on moving.  But subsequently I’ve been laid off and moved – all between Rosh Hashanah and Sukkot.  In other words, I haven’t had much time to sit down and read.

What does eating Jewishly mean to you?  What is Jewish food?  Does it reflect where you come from?  Where your family came from?  Dr. David Kraemer’s 2007 book Jewish Eating and Identity Through the Ages, recently published in paperback explores just those issues – and you can win a signed copy of his book!

Just leave us a comment on this post what is Jewish food for you and your name could be drawn to win a copy of his book.  Last day to leave a comment is Tuesday October 14 and the winner will be contacted the next day.

Maybe it is cliche but they say dinner and a show makes for a great date.   I’m hoping so because this weekend my boyfriend and I will be eating at Conni’s Avant Garde Resturant – which is both dinner and a show.  But this is not your average local dinner theatre. They are really serious about their local food.  I got the chance to talk with some of the folks working on the show about their menu and focus on local food.  Below the jump is a brief interview and information on how you can get your own tickets to this fun event.

Earlier this week, I was still recovering from the swine flu but dragged myself to my office only to find it had been cleaned out.  Feeling nauseous anyway, I sat down in my boss’ office and numbly listened to her words.  So sorry…it’s the economy…you did a great job…no funding for your position…blah blah blah.  Huh? did my job just dump me with the “it’s not you, it’s me” break-up speech?

So instead of a morning of dull research and nursing a cup of tea wondering if I was well enough to be in the office that day, I was packing a box of my personal items and officially joined the 9.6% of the New York City population counted as unemployed.  The rest of the day was kind-of a blur.  I recall a tremendous outpouring of support and suggestions.  Friends sent job postings and made suggestions for networking opportunities.  My boyfriend came home early from work to find me in his sunny kitchen hammering away on my laptop looking for job leads.