Hamantashen are great way to get people into the kitchen. They are not too hard to make; every Sunday school class in the country makes them the week before Purim. If children can make them so can you! When I was in Sunday school I loved making Hamantashen and when we finished baking, I felt a sense of an accomplishment. Plus, I got to eat them.

Baking Hamantashen is fun for people of all ages. Like Avigail, I am getting together with friends tonight to bake! Your time in the kitchen doesn’t have to be overwhelming or stressful. Just start small; start with cookies and some day you can work your way up to a Passover Seder.

It’s that time again. With Purim around the corner, many people have been thinking about Hamentashen. I had some friends over last night to make tasty triangular treats. Our savory ‘tashen were inspired by this blog and Leah Koenig (see the archived post here) though mine were rosemary dough with sweet-potato goat cheese filling. My brother made home-made poppyseed filling like I did last year (see that archived post here).

Our friend Nancy Wolfson-Moche also sent along this link to her blog for her “pouch pastry recipe.” Thanks, Nancy, for sharing this photo of your delish hamentashen.

Check out this old post about seeds  from Nina, Mati’s mixed drink recipes, and be sure to check out Hazon’s Sustainable Purim Tips.

For those of you fasting today, have an easy fast – and Happy Purim!

Today was the first of the month of Adar. In Hebrew we sing “Mi SheNichnas Adar, Marbim b’Simcha” meaning – “whoever enters the month of Adar, will abound in happiness”. This is the month in which we are encouraged to play and be silly and joyful.

It seems that there is an idea in our consumer society that happiness is something that happens to us… usually later. It may coincide with acquiring new things, or with joyous events, or with some standards of success. It is time to put all thoughts of, or standards for, achieving happiness aside, and practice generating happiness in our bodies right now…and now…and now…

We have the power to create happiness (or any other mood) by declaring it to be so in our being. Practice by remembering a spontaneously happy moment. Where were you? Who was with you? What did it feel like in your body? Where did you feel it? Can you generate that same feeling by remembering that moment? Could you create those sensations in your body now?

The blessing in Adar is our ability to declare, create, and feel the happiness in each moment, to put aside our doubts, and to blur the distinctions between good and bad. Everything is a manifestation of oneness. How awesome! Melinda Ribner, in “Kabbalah Month by Month” says, “When we are privileged to recognize the awesomeness of life, not knowing is often a higher form of knowing” (p. 146-7).

On the 14th of Adar, we will celebrate Purim. It is said that when the Messiah comes, Purim will be the only remaining holiday. In the miraculous story, a Persian Queen, Esther, courageously revealed her Jewish identity to King Achashverosh in order to save the Jews from the decree of death orchestrated by the king’s wicked advisor, Haman. On this holiday we wear costumes and read the story aloud. Whenever the name of Haman is said, we shake our noisemakers and boo loudly to blot out his name.

It is said that Haman came from the line of Amalek- the tribe who is a long standing perpetrator against Jews. The numerical sum of Hebrew letters of this word adds up to the sum of the letters in the Hebrew word “safek”- doubt. So while we are booing Haman, and Amalek, on a deeper level we are also booing our doubts.

In “The Twelve Dimensions of Israel”, Nechama Nadborny tells us, “Today, Amalek is the psychic force which causes us to question our direction, doubt our purpose, to hesitate, to slip and fall. The more we are able to detail and identify our personal Amalek, the faster we can sharpen our flight instinct and free ourselves of those convoluted thoughts which prevent us from joyously running in tune with Divine Will” (p. 205).

One practice that you can try on Purim, is to think and feel your own doubts each time the name “Haman” is said and then use the noise to blot them out. The point of the exercise is to experience the physicality of our doubts. We often think of them as thoughts, and forget to feel them in our bodies. Once we have an embodied experience of our doubts, we can learn from them and choose to hold on, or to let them go.

Let us remember that some of these doubts are really quite valid and worthy. They can be wake up calls. And, we can feel comforted knowing that many of us have similar doubts. It is part of being human. I want to be clear that the point of this exercise is to help us lighten up a little, and to remove ourselves from the good/bad framework.

Ultimately, we want to be free from our suffering from doubt.

What do you feel in your body when you are caught in the grips of unknowing and indecision? As you shout and boo and make noise at your doubts, notice how this resonates in your body. Are there places that feel looser, or tighter? How does it feel when you are able to let go of these doubts? How does it feel in your body when you are resistant to letting go? Can you begin to develop in inner “boo” to change your attitude and your physicality when your thoughts no longer serve? Can you invite joy and levity into this process?

Our task this month is to ask for and receive guidance. The true tension lies in the moments of doubt and indecision. Perhaps we stay there for so long because we think there is a right and wrong decision, when in reality, we have many choices that will lead to more choices, and as we slowly enter spring, it’s time to keep on moving.

Good thing we have another tradition on Purim to help us get out of indecisive stuckness, which is to get drunk until we don’t know the difference between the wicked Haman and Mordechai- Esther’s righteous uncle.

The intention behind this tradition (whether you get drunk or not) is to be in the unknowing about what is good and bad… if there even are such things. It is all a manifestation of Divine will. And from this unknowing, we can ask for guidance and make a choice. Many of us have been exploring this ability to be in the unknowing with the snow accumulation this past month. This snow is our teacher. Other life circumstances can also be our teachers, if we choose to see them as such.

I would like to thank my teachers at Tai Sophia Institute for the healing arts. They have reminded me of the ancient wisdom that in making any choice, there are only two questions to ask: Will this honor the Ancestors- the parents, grandparents and great-grandparents? And, Will it serve the next generations- the children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren?

It is common to ask ourselves, “what do I want.” With this new perspective, perhaps we can have more clarity about “how will I be of service”. Blessings on this new month and the unfolding springtime! May we find it in our will to delve deeper into the projects we have already begun. And may we be thoughtful and trusting of our choices and learn to be in our being without thinking too much about doing.

If you’re reading the Jew And The Carrot, it’s highly likely that you’re interested in food and sustainability. So, when you’re making your mishloach manot you’re probably thinking about the health and quality of the food you’re giving your friends and making efforts to minimize waste as well. You may even be making hamantashen from scratch with homemade local jam canned from last spring’s berry harvest. (Kol HaKavod to Lisa Fine-decidedly impressive!)

But while we can make conscious choices about what we give, what we receive is a whole other megillah. I’m beyond being shocked by the amount of sheer junk we get on Purim. And yet each year, it seems to get more outrageous. I mean, some of the things barely qualify as food. Sugar, chemicals, colorings and more sugar. All wrapped up in colorful plastic. The kids know when the baskets arrive, I’m like a bouncer at a chi-chi nightclub-highly selective. What ever is edible goes into the cabinet to be doled out for later consumption; the other stuff goes into a bag which I….Well, here’s where I get tripped up. I certainly don’t want to eat it, and I don’t want my family to eat it either. And I don’t want to give it away, because I wouldn’t give that kind of food to anyone I care about. I don’t like to throw it away, because it’s essentially throwing someone’s hard earned money in the trash (though, truth be told, that’s usually what I end up doing).

So, I’m asking you: What’s your solution to this mishloach manot dilemma? Looking forward hearing your fresh ideas.

This post is the first in a new series, Edible Crafts. I will be exploring edible crafts and food as art throughout the year. Not only can food be made to look beautiful just as it can be made to taste delicious, but there are many ways to incorporate crafting into making food.

For a treat this year, I decided to try baking hamentashen with local, homemade jams that I made last summer. Using fruits from Berkshires farms and farm stands, I made four varieties: peach, pear, blackberry, and blueberry. I filled the hamentashen with blackberry, peach, and pear jams. The blackberry and peach ones are nice alternatives to raspberry and apricot flavored ones. The pear brings on an autumnal flavor. Try any fruit-flavored jam you like, as long as it has a thick consistency.

I used this hamentashen recipe, substituting rice milk for cow’s milk, half of the flour with whole wheat, and half of the sugar with raw sugar. You can also find recipes here and here.

After the baking was complete, I prepared a recycled shalach manot bag by covering a used one with recycled paper from magazines and wrapping paper. Since part of the mitzvah of giving these gifts is to include at least two different types of food, I included a jar of jam and some organic tea with the hamentaschen. Along with some scones or toast, the receiver has a lovely snack or meal ready to eat.

Purim Sameach!

Purim is a pretty strange holiday. The text we read, Megillat Esther, isn’t a typical biblical book; it makes no mention of the big guy upstairs. Its heroine, a nice Jewish girl bunking with her uncle, ends up in the arms of the non-Jewish king (oh gosh!), and exchanges certain things, namely her wedding vows, in order to save her people. The story ends with the Jews going out on a revenge spree, killing thousands. And how do we celebrate this event every year? By dressing up in costumes, making lots of noise, gorging on delicacies and getting drunk out of our minds ad d’lo yada. Pretty strange in comparison to, let’s say, Yom Kippur, where we don’t eat or drink, instead spending the day in deep and contemplative prayer. What’s even stranger is that we’re taught that Purim is an even “higher” holiday than Yom Kippur. In fact, the rabbis teach that during the Messianic Era, Purim will be the only festival that we observe.

So why the near-obsession with alcoholic beverages? We usher in our holiest days with a hefty cup of wine, and during Purim we are commanded to not only drink, not only to become inebriated, but to get smashed, utterly and completely wasted. What gives? How can a set of laws that call for the best behavior, and the pinnacle of ethical culture sanction getting drunk to the point that we cannot distinguish between “cursed be Haman” and “blessed be Mordechai”?  Generally, drinking to the point where one cannot know the difference between right and wrong is seen as a bad thing. The mystical depths of Hasidic thought bring new light to this issue, hopefully making you feel a little better about throwing away your inhibitions this coming Purim. Besides, your zaydie and bubbe did it well before you were born.

The Kabbalists (not of Yehuda Berg lore) came up with this pretty nice teaching that I alluded to before; Purim and Yom Kippur are very much connected. Kippur in Hebrew means “like Pur”, which our rabbis subsequently made to mean “like Purim.” How could Yom Kippur possibly be like Purim? Rather than spoil ourselves in food, drink, and dance like we do on Purim, we await all day for that glorious lox and shmeer platter. While on Yom Kippur we refrain from the physical pleasures and atone, on Purim we become almost gluttonous. It is precisely within this indulgence of the physical that Purim takes on its special significance.

I mentioned before that the rabbis of the Talmud inform us that during the Messianic Era Purim will be the only festival that we commemorate. They also tell us that during this era, G-dliness will fill the world and we will be connected with the divine every moment of every day. It is due to this teaching that the Hasidic masters suggest that Purim is in reality a higher day of atonement than Yom Kippur. Through our embracing of the physical world, specifically with the aid of drink, one can reach the innermost depths of the soul.  How often have you had a bit too much to drink and found yourself sobbing yourself to sleep, because you had suddenly had some kind of alcohol-induced epiphany? A few times I’m sure, it happens to the best of us, and with reason.

Hasidic thought teaches us that everything in this world falls into two categories; the holy and the not yet made holy. Everything that exists exists for the glory of G-d. It’s up to us to take everything and realize its purpose. Hasidic thought also teaches us that we don’t contain within ourselves one soul, but two; the G-dly soul and the animal soul. When we drink to excess and with no purpose, our animal souls get the best of us; in fact, we turn into animals! But when this drinking is done with a higher purpose, namely, in the service of our Creator, or in the process of finding ourselves in this universe and contemplating our true existence and our true selves, we are doing a great mitzvah. It’s within this idea that the rabbis teach us that only Purim will be celebrated in the Messianic Era and that Purim is a higher day than Yom Kippur. It’s easy to repent and become inward thinking while you can’t eat, while you are in denial of the physical. But precisely because Purim is a day of feasting, drinking, singing, and dancing, the power to repent becomes that much harder and therefore that much deeper. This is why our rabbis insist that Yom Kippur is “Ke-Pur,” like Purim.

Now I know what you’re thinking, this guy is just giving a standard “drink as much as you want because G-d says so” schpeel. Au contraire, to get drunk under the guise of religious obligation, without connecting to the purpose is no different than going out on a bender in Cabo. So this Purim when you’re drinking to your heart’s delight please keep these teachings in mind and the following cocktails in hand! Happy Purim!

Continental

This cocktail is easy, quick, refreshing, and requires minimal work (since you’ll probably be gone by the time you get around to it)

2 oz. White Rum

.5 oz. Crème de Menthe

Squirt of fresh lime juice

Twist of lemon

STIR

Baja Gold

For all you spring breakers and uni students at heart…

Pour the following into a cocktail shaker with a generous amount of ice and DRAIN into a cocktail glass

2 oz. Anejo (Dark) Tequila

.5 oz. Blanco (Light) Tequila

.5 oz. Triple Sec (I prefer Bol’s brand)

3 oz. pineapple juice

.5 oz. lime juice

Twist of lime

One custom I have always liked about Purim (aside from the drunken revelry, of course) is Mishloach Manot, those fun Jewish goodie-bags that people give to each other during this festive holiday.  It’s like Trick-Or-Treating in reverse:  the candy, wine, cookies, etc come to you -no need to go banging on any strangers’ doors.

Surfing Google, I came across a myriad of articles about what one should include in their Mishloach Manot baskets, including a rather heated discussion over “themed Mishloach Manot” on Hashkafah.com.  All these ideas got me thinking like a cunning marketer, and it occurred to me that there is an untapped market for “niche” Mishloach Manot.

So here are a few categories of potential Mishloach Manot ideas targeted to the interests of specific populations to help get this venture started.  (NOTE:  all items included result from intensive focus groups with members of each target audience.)

Feel free to use some of the items listed in your own Mishloach Manot baskets, and add your own suggestions in the comments!

1.  Altercockers (or “Geriatrics”)

One word:  prunes.

2.  College Students

Ramen Noodles (Gefen and Tradition sells kosher, Oriental Style versions)

Red Bull and/or Starbucks Frappuccino bottles

Organic cannabis

Prune-flavored condoms (to make them remember to call their grandparents — see previous category)

3.  Environmentalists

Compact fluorescent bulbs (someone actually posed the idea of “marzipan candy in the shape of compact fluorescent bulbs” in the Hashkafah.com forum linked above).

Worms for their compost bins

Sustainably-made Hamentaschen or other treats (see this post)

4. Israelis

Hummus-filled Hamentaschen

Noisemakers…err, then again, they probably are loud enough without them

5.  Non-Jews

Matzah (just tell them “Purim” is another word for “Passover”)

Might as well throw a Menorah in there, as well

A few plastic Easter eggs to show Jews can be supportive of their holidays, too

Even as an adult I get a thrill out of receiving mishloach manot. The moment when I return home and view my doorstep with lots of little packages is exhilarating. I like to see who they are from and what’s inside. I like to taste a few things and then panic when I’ve realized that I’ve forgotten someone. But I’ve also become more environmentally and socially conscious as I’ve aged and realized that there are obstacles cluttering the way to my total mishloach manot happiness buzz. I think to myself, why is there so much in each package? How are we going to consume it all before Passover which arrives in a month? Look at all the wrappers and plastic and candy and junk.

Over the past few years I’ve seen people do so some pretty original and creative things that appeal to my innate mishloach manot excitement and were eco-friendly too. One time I received a package that came in a small tera cotta pot with goodies and a package of seeds. Another time someone filled a reusable cup with treats and I used the cup for years afterward. Old cloth can be reborn as a pretty sachet filled with hamentashen or a new towel can act as a nice holder. Old newspapers, wrapping paper, and magazines can be shredded for decoration and popcorn can make good padding.

Quantity can also be swapped for quality with the addition of homemade goodies. As a child I remember looking forward not to the masses of candy but to the mini loaf cakes that came every year from one family. When baking at home one can also control the ingredients at play by choosing healthier ones and products that are fairly traded. I would always prefer fresh roasted nuts to jellybeans but that might just be me.

As anyone involved knows, being environmentally conscious takes being conscientious. It means remembering the reusable bags for the market, breaking down the boxes for recycling, and washing out the dirty mug for the trip to the coffee shop. But I believe that the values of sustainability and eco-friendliness are at the heart of Judaism. Most times when we are celebrating we are asked in the torah to think of those who are less fortunate then ourselves. Not only are we supposed to eat and drink and be merry on Purim, we are asked to deliver mishloach manot and to give gifts to the poor. Perhaps this year we can engage in all of these things while also producing less waste.

Why Poppyseed Hamentaschen Are The Only True Hamentaschen – I share this short formula from my father:

Mohn (poppy seed) + Taschen (pockets) = Mohntaschen (poppy seed pocket pastries)

+ Ha (Hebrew definite article) = Hamohntaschen (Haman’s Pockets) or Purim poppy seed pocket pastries

Now, I LOVE poppyseed filling Hamantashen. And seeds are a traditional food for Purim because Esther is supposed to have eaten nuts and seeds during her fast. But I don’t love all of those ingredients you find when you use a can of poppyseed filing, nor do many of my friends. So, what’s a girl to do? Clearly the answer is, make my own! So I did.

The general idea is to

1) soak the poppyseeds overnight – I used about 5 tablespoons
2) blend them with a couple teaspoons of honey (I used some I brought back with me from Israel last Purim). I used my immersion blender for this step.

then use them as you would any other hamentashen filling! Pretty simple, no? Enjoy, and think of Esther.