Comments on: If your great-grandmother wouldn’t recognize it… http://jcarrot.org/if-your-great-grandmother-wouldnt-recognize-it Jews, Food, and Contemporary Issues Mon, 21 May 2012 04:07:24 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Edith Stevenson http://jcarrot.org/if-your-great-grandmother-wouldnt-recognize-it/comment-page-1#comment-219 Edith Stevenson Mon, 12 Feb 2007 18:13:22 +0000 http://jcarrot.org/if-your-great-grandmother-wouldnt-recognize-it/#comment-219 I was confused at first also, wondering which bracha to say for a meal with a variety of items. I believe, as I came to understand it, that there is an order, or hierarchy, so to speak, of the various blessings, that usually takes care of the quandry: Bread (for which one washes) trumps all. If one says motzi, then all other produce, meats, and desserts are covered. Then it goes (if there is no official Bread) to ....bo-re minei m'zonot, then to bo-re p'ri ha-etz, bo-re p'ri ha-adamah, and lastly, if you are just having meat or fish (ie, no grains or produce, or a food which is a mixture of stuff, like a casserole, or a soup), then one says ....she-ha-kol niyeh bi-d'varo. If one waits a fair bit of time between courses, one might feel like starting over with the blessings, such as for the dessert eaten an hour later, but in general, this "order" of blessing foods works for me. Other words of appreciation, such as to the cook, or for the fabulous recipe, or the freshness and flavour of the in-season organic produce being enjoyed are also appropriate subsequent comments! I was confused at first also, wondering which bracha to say for a meal with a variety of items. I believe, as I came to understand it, that there is an order, or hierarchy, so to speak, of the various blessings, that usually takes care of the quandry: Bread (for which one washes) trumps all. If one says motzi, then all other produce, meats, and desserts are covered. Then it goes (if there is no official Bread) to ….bo-re minei m’zonot, then to bo-re p’ri ha-etz, bo-re p’ri ha-adamah, and lastly, if you are just having meat or fish (ie, no grains or produce, or a food which is a mixture of stuff, like a casserole, or a soup), then one says ….she-ha-kol niyeh bi-d’varo. If one waits a fair bit of time between courses, one might feel like starting over with the blessings, such as for the dessert eaten an hour later, but in general, this “order” of blessing foods works for me. Other words of appreciation, such as to the cook, or for the fabulous recipe, or the freshness and flavour of the in-season organic produce being enjoyed are also appropriate
subsequent comments!

]]> By: lauren ahkiam http://jcarrot.org/if-your-great-grandmother-wouldnt-recognize-it/comment-page-1#comment-208 lauren ahkiam Fri, 09 Feb 2007 18:06:48 +0000 http://jcarrot.org/if-your-great-grandmother-wouldnt-recognize-it/#comment-208 being a gentile, can't speak to the blessing question (protestant blessings for food are pretty broad, traditionally just "bless this to our bodies and us to your service", the better to make curious casseroles for potlucks, i think). but i appreciated pollan's outlines and their flexibility, that he laid out the "no more than 5 ingredients" and "not if it would freak out your ancestor" and specified that if had more than one of these, probably no good. but like the apple crisp, there will of course be outliers, like say a really well spiced sauce with 15 ingredients that are all recognizable. and one of the cooler food things about our time is that we have a more international palate than our great-grandma, so a thai curry paste or a chipotle marinade or some such would be ok too, whereas hot pocket, no sir. i appreciate that he gives us tools without being rigid. so the apple crisp getting two blessings (one for apple one for crisp) seems like a similarly good plan :) being a gentile, can’t speak to the blessing question (protestant blessings for food are pretty broad, traditionally just “bless this to our bodies and us to your service”, the better to make curious casseroles for potlucks, i think).

but i appreciated pollan’s outlines and their flexibility, that he laid out the “no more than 5 ingredients” and “not if it would freak out your ancestor” and specified that if had more than one of these, probably no good. but like the apple crisp, there will of course be outliers, like say a really well spiced sauce with 15 ingredients that are all recognizable. and one of the cooler food things about our time is that we have a more international palate than our great-grandma, so a thai curry paste or a chipotle marinade or some such would be ok too, whereas hot pocket, no sir. i appreciate that he gives us tools without being rigid.

so the apple crisp getting two blessings (one for apple one for crisp) seems like a similarly good plan :)

]]> By: Sarah Rose http://jcarrot.org/if-your-great-grandmother-wouldnt-recognize-it/comment-page-1#comment-201 Sarah Rose Fri, 09 Feb 2007 17:07:08 +0000 http://jcarrot.org/if-your-great-grandmother-wouldnt-recognize-it/#comment-201 This is fantastic. An excellent test. This is fantastic. An excellent test.

]]> By: Anna http://jcarrot.org/if-your-great-grandmother-wouldnt-recognize-it/comment-page-1#comment-196 Anna Fri, 09 Feb 2007 16:51:38 +0000 http://jcarrot.org/if-your-great-grandmother-wouldnt-recognize-it/#comment-196 Would "borei petrochemical byproducts" constitute <i>marat ayin</i>, you think? Would “borei petrochemical byproducts” constitute marat ayin, you think?

]]> By: Ben Murane http://jcarrot.org/if-your-great-grandmother-wouldnt-recognize-it/comment-page-1#comment-195 Ben Murane Fri, 09 Feb 2007 16:48:20 +0000 http://jcarrot.org/if-your-great-grandmother-wouldnt-recognize-it/#comment-195 But David, at least you COULD recognize the ingredients and pick which bracha. For a Twinkie...would on earth WOULD you say? "Baruch Atah Adonai...borei petrochemical byproducts"? But David, at least you COULD recognize the ingredients and pick which bracha. For a Twinkie…would on earth WOULD you say?

“Baruch Atah Adonai…borei petrochemical byproducts”?

]]> By: Another Boy http://jcarrot.org/if-your-great-grandmother-wouldnt-recognize-it/comment-page-1#comment-193 Another Boy Fri, 09 Feb 2007 16:24:47 +0000 http://jcarrot.org/if-your-great-grandmother-wouldnt-recognize-it/#comment-193 I love this. Absolutely love it. This should be the slogan for The New Jewish Food Movement: "If You Can't Figure Out What The Traditional Bracha Is, Don't Eat It!!" :-)) Another Boy xx I love this. Absolutely love it.

This should be the slogan for The New Jewish Food Movement:

“If You Can’t Figure Out What The Traditional Bracha Is, Don’t Eat It!!”

:-) )

Another Boy xx

]]> By: aliza http://jcarrot.org/if-your-great-grandmother-wouldnt-recognize-it/comment-page-1#comment-191 aliza Fri, 09 Feb 2007 05:01:55 +0000 http://jcarrot.org/if-your-great-grandmother-wouldnt-recognize-it/#comment-191 well, i think the general idea that can be extrapolated from the michael pollan rule or the general "no more than 5 ingredients" is to avoid eating a lot of she hakol foods that can't easily be classified and probably have lots of [processed] ingredients. well, i think the general idea that can be extrapolated from the michael pollan rule or the general “no more than 5 ingredients” is to avoid eating a lot of she hakol foods that can’t easily be classified and probably have lots of [processed] ingredients.

]]> By: Anna Stevenson http://jcarrot.org/if-your-great-grandmother-wouldnt-recognize-it/comment-page-1#comment-190 Anna Stevenson Fri, 09 Feb 2007 04:16:57 +0000 http://jcarrot.org/if-your-great-grandmother-wouldnt-recognize-it/#comment-190 well, as long as you covered all the bases.... ;0) i love jews! well, as long as you covered all the bases…. ;0) i love jews!

]]> By: Rendsburg http://jcarrot.org/if-your-great-grandmother-wouldnt-recognize-it/comment-page-1#comment-189 Rendsburg Fri, 09 Feb 2007 03:38:36 +0000 http://jcarrot.org/if-your-great-grandmother-wouldnt-recognize-it/#comment-189 Hate to tell you - but according to traditional halakha, even regular dishes can be issues. Take for instance Apple Crisp - its mainly apples, which is ha'etz, but there there is that nice crunchy stuff on top, which is made from flour (presumably) and mezonot. So, which do you say? Its pretty clearly recognizable food (and could all be organic for all I care!) but still, its an issue. No joke, the last meal I was at where this was served for dessert, there was also babka (clearly mezonot) and then, when the discussion came up, the host brought out apples - so that people could make a mezonot on the babka and ha'etz on the apples BEFORE eating the berakha-elusive apple crisp. Hate to tell you – but according to traditional halakha, even regular dishes can be issues. Take for instance Apple Crisp – its mainly apples, which is ha’etz, but there there is that nice crunchy stuff on top, which is made from flour (presumably) and mezonot. So, which do you say? Its pretty clearly recognizable food (and could all be organic for all I care!) but still, its an issue.

No joke, the last meal I was at where this was served for dessert, there was also babka (clearly mezonot) and then, when the discussion came up, the host brought out apples – so that people could make a mezonot on the babka and ha’etz on the apples BEFORE eating the berakha-elusive apple crisp.

]]> By: Anna Stevenson http://jcarrot.org/if-your-great-grandmother-wouldnt-recognize-it/comment-page-1#comment-188 Anna Stevenson Fri, 09 Feb 2007 02:12:55 +0000 http://jcarrot.org/if-your-great-grandmother-wouldnt-recognize-it/#comment-188 I did ;0) I meant "yay rabbis" in general, for this system of halacha which i have, up until now, found to be very ancient and archaic and limiting and limited, and am coming to realize more and more the wisdom and timelessness of it - this thing about brachot being yet another example... I did ;0)

I meant “yay rabbis” in general, for this system of halacha which i have, up until now, found to be very ancient and archaic and limiting and limited, and am coming to realize more and more the wisdom and timelessness of it – this thing about brachot being yet another example…

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