The Big Schmear Podcast

The Big Schmear is back and I’m happy to have you all here!

I’ve had some time to think about the relevance of The Big Schmear while on a break and it’s pretty clear to me that Jewish food continues to be a great connector for us all. And I plan to continue conversations about Jewish food, but, at the same time I couldn’t help but wonder, why limit how we define Jewish culture? Why not expand our experience and explore additional topics like Jewish music, Jewish literature, Jewish dance, and everything in between?

So with that in mind, I invite you to list to our first Big Schmear 2.0 episode. I’m in conversation with good friend and colleague Cindy Stern, the Executive Director of the Chicago Israeli Film Festival. I will be talking with her about her festival, specifically touching on Israeli film & TV. Cindy will give us a taste of what goes into festival planning and how she finds those amazing films! Who’s ready for some popcorn?

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I’m on the campus of Hampshire College in Amherst, Massachusetts. Through my conversation with Lisa Newman and Seth Rogovoy you’ll learn about the Yiddish Book Center and Yidstock, The Festival of New Yiddish Music. I hope you enjoy this taste of Yiddish culture and contemplate a trip to The Book Center. It’s a beauitiful spot anytime of year but it’s spectacular in the fall!

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Need to spice up  your meals? Here’s an easy fix that can be used as your new basic ‘everything spice’ to change up, well everything: fish, chicken, french toast…it’s limitless and so easy. And we have some recipes to share too.

Let’s close out 2020 in the best way possible by continuing to share meals and the experience of cooking together in as many ways that we can – in person and via the internet. What matters is staying close.

Thank you for listening. Happy Eating and Best Wishes for a healthy and fun filled 2021

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If you are in the mood for fun this Hanukkah then you have to give this episode a listen. Helpful note: you may want to have your own cocktail at the ready. I’ve invited back mixologist Cheryl Rich Heisler to talk about cocktail ideas for Hanukkah and she did not disappoint! We’ve got lots of ideas for you from the ‘so simple’  to getting out your shaker for a bit of chocolate and whipped cream to touch off that special drink.

I wish  you all a very Happy Hanukkah and may you have all the fried foods  you desire.

Happy Eating!

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I decided to push the envelope a bit on this Thanksgiving holiday episode. I knew everyone would be stressed with holiday plans, menus and figuring out ways to celebrate the holiday despite all the compromises to put in place to be safe. I assumed the last thing you needed were more recipes to think about so…why not think about how Jewish America is connected to this holiday. I invited Professor Beth S. Wenger, an expert in the field of Jewish American history to talk with me about just that. I hope  you find our conversation interesting.

I wish you all a very happy Thanksgiving.

Happy Eating!

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Talking about kitchen safety isn’t the sexiest of topics but I thought it would be a great review for all of us as we embark on holiday cooking – whatever that’s going to look like this year. I always have fun chatting with Chef Laura who knows her way around the kitchen– so I thought it would be a good way to talk about the subject without getting too bogged down on boring details. Hope you find our conversation fun and helpful.

As always, wishing you Happy Eating!

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This episode is all about Shabbat. OneTable is an amazing organization that provides resources for everything it takes to prepare your meal. Their website includes so much valuable information; recipes, ideas for meal themes, cool ways to present your meal and everything in between. And there are videos too – and new programs being developed as I write this post. OneTable is here to help us all navigate Jewish food and the meaning it can bring to each of us during this stressful time. To find out more about OneTable go to: onetable.org.

Happy Eating!

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We are in the midst of fall and Jewish holidays; my favorite time of year. I loved having a conversation with Whitney Fisch – she’s all about Jewish food and family. Whitney has a great instagram account that you can follow, it always has lots of wonderful photos of her family and of course, lots of food pics. We talked about the holidays coming up and those just passed. She even provided me with a cheesy dinner recipe to share with all of you, called Skillet Pasta. Perfect for serving in the sukkah or anytime this fall. Total comfort food! You can find it on my site.

Wishing all of you a healthy and happy beginning to the New Year. And most of all, Happy Eating!

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I love learning about bees. I think bees are amazing and I find their life’s work nothing short of fascinating. With Rosh Hashanah coming up I finally had the perfect reason to get int touch with bee keeper, Ted Dennard from Savannah Bee Company. I had so much fun talking with Ted. He was so generous to share his bee expertise and so enthusiastic about every aspect of bees and honey that we touched on in our conversation. I hope you’ll have a chance to try some honey from Savannah Bee Company. Please do check out their website: https://savannahbee.com/rosh-hashanah/. I don’t have to tell you that honey goes well with challah, apples AND your favorite cup of tea. You might say we are going a bit overboard to experience a sweet New Year at my house this year. We decided to have a honey tasting and serve honey cake, baked and decorated by my daughter, Sara Robinson, at our Rosh Hashanah dinner.  Bee sure to check out Sara’s honey cake on instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/p/CEPFL4-nx0_/. 

Happy New Year!

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It was a treat to spend time with cookbook author Leah Koenig to talk about Rosh Hashanah meals and prep for this very different Rosh Hashana. Leah will even share a great roast chicken recipe with us. You can find out more about Leah @leahkoenig and Leahkoenig.com. Wishing all of you a very Healthy and Happy New Year. 

Happy Eating!

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