Though a June 13 Boston Globe article on Rami’s makes no mention of any expansion plans, I heard a rumor on Sunday that Rami’s would be opening a new location in Newton Centre. Can anyone confirm?

I love making home-made pizza, and it’s especially fun serving it to guests. But for a party of about 20 people, I’m stumped over how to serve it without being chained in the kitchen preparing these things all night. Can I parbake my pizzas and keep them in the fridge, inconspicuously popping them in the oven throughout the evening? Can I roll out several pieces of dough, flour them well, and stack them up for later assembly? The appeal of crisp, hot homemade pizza is too good to pass up — anyone have experiences to share?

Though I arrived exhausted and nauseated after 12 hours of overnight flying sans sleep, Sarah insisted we inaugurate our arrival in Tel Aviv with a trip to nearby Shangrila, the kosher Thai restaurant located at the Astor Hotel on HaYarkon Street. Though the building is separated from the coast by an unappealing parking lot, the restaurant was tastefully decorated (a bit of window-washing and paint touch-ups may be in order).

We were only one of two parties seated at 7PM, which, we guessed, was early by local standards, and gave me second thoughts about the popularity and quality of the place. Of course, that was before we ordered. I apologize in advance for my total blanking on the authentic names of the dishes.

To start, we both had soups, which were creatively served atop a ceramic vessel containing a small flame. I ordered the Tom Yam Gai, a soup of chicken, coconut milk, lemongrass, mushrooms, and chili. Sarah’s was more tame — with chicken, bean sprouts, and cellophane noodles. I found the flavor of the Tom Yam Gai to be interesting but overwhelming, while Sarah’s was light and very easy to eat.

Next, we tried delicious chicken/vegetable-stuffed dumplings with a deep-fried corn-based dough. We would have loved more than just four dumplings, especially since the four sauces served alongside (ranging from spicy to sweet) deserved more attention.

Our entrees were chicken pad thai and beef satay. Sarah absolutely devoured the pad thai, which was very good and offered no surprises from what we expected of the Thai mainstay. The satay was also tasty, the beef slightly crisp on the outside and tender on the inside. I can’t speak to the authenticity of the thick, peanuty sauce, but I can say that I prefered the satay preparation discussed on the blog some months ago — more visible chunks of ingredients and a lighter, fresher flavor.

All in all, a great experience for our first restaurant trip. Quality food, good service, and convenient to the beachside hotels.

We’re back, we’re well-rested, and with any luck, we’ll post on our Israeli restaurant experiences late today.

I’m in the process compiling all the info we’ll need for our trip to Israel tomorrow, but I wanted to post a quick update about my cheese-related efforts to acquire raw milk (unpasteurized/unhomogenized) in the Boston area. Details are still being worked out, but a Metro-West drive share group (taking turns going to western MA each weekend to buy milk for the group) will be starting very soon. There seem to be around 11 people interested so far. When things firm up, I’ll post more details on how to get involved.

UPDATE 25-June-04: Dave Cushing is heading up the Metro-West drive share. The group will fetch milk biweekly, and each participant will drive less than once per quarter (at current group size). Pickup is in Waltham. Milk from Chase Hill Farm is $5/gallon. Contact dcushing84 at aol dot com for more information or to get involved.

The MetroWest Daily News reports that LeRoux Liqueur (produced by Jim Beam Brands, Co.) has expanded its kosher liqueur options with Sour Apple and Watermelon flavors, perfect for “martinis and tall drinks.” The article offers two recipes, the “LeRoux Appletini” and the “LeRoux Melontini.”

iGourmet now has its two Israeli cheeses back in stock. Though they’re not listed under “kosher,” the Barkanit sheep/goat cheeses are certified by the Israeli Rabbinate, Vaad of the Gilboa Valley.

Hebrew National has hit the news once again, with the Rabbinical Assembly officially approving its products for use by Conservative Jews:

The headline (by highlighting the negative “Not Kosher Enough For Some”) makes the issue seem more controversial than it really is. In fact, the headline is more controversial than the well-written article it accompanies. The fact of the matter, which has always been the case, is that HN’s beef isn’t glatt. What would have been nice is a categorical explanation why HN and Rabbi Tibor Stern’s oversight was problematic not just for the Orthodox but for the Conservative. What would be really controversial is an expos頯f the issues behind that handful of hekshers most people (and their rabbis) find “questionable” or “unacceptable.” Maybe a little to touchy even for the Forward.

But I digress. Something that never requires lung inspection to be kosher is poultry (despite the misuse of the word “glatt” on poultry products), and Hebrew National does that one right. Their roasted turkey breast is both cheaper than Empire’s and better suited to sandwich-making, given its thinner slices. For all you kosher Atkins dieters, this turkey is probably your wonder food - 50 calories in 2 oz., no fat, plenty of protein - and it won’t break the bank.

Sunday night
Went at it without much forethought. Made a mess, got frustrated. Spilled water all over my finished dough, got more frustrated. Ended up with adequate ravioli, and an irritated wife.

Monday night
Did everything more carefully. Kept my work areas tidy, measured everything in advance. Got the hang of making pasta dough in the food processor. Used a rolling pin to widen my dough to fit on the ravioli mold when necessary. Ended up with perfect ravioli. Reserved half to try cooking them when frozen.

Tuesday night
Took two risks: tried using store-bought egg-roll wrappers instead of homemade pasta dough, and used an avocado/ricotta filling instead of standard ricotta filling. Egg-roll wrappers were just too thin and all opened up in the boil. Wrappers ended up mushy and transparent when fully cooked. Uncooked raviolis’ wrappers got too soft to contain filling after time. Avocado filling (1 C ricotta, 1 avocado, 1/2 C shredded cheddar, salt, pepper) was way too overwhelming to eat when cooked.

Frozen ravioli from Monday, when boiled, cracked and released filling, probably because they weren’t put in a container soon enough to prevent dough from drying.

(Oh, and the Fresh Pond Whole Foods doesn’t carry kosher ricotta, plus their crusty italian bread isn’t so great.)

To do:
* Find more creative milchig ravioli fillings
* Develop sure-fire freezing procedure
* Assess market for kosher fresh-pasta products

A witty piece I heard on All Things Considered this evening by commentator Aaron Freeman. “It is a little appreciated fact that for Jews, to eat and drink and party every weekend is not just a good idea — it’s the law.”

The avocados at Shaw’s and Stop and Shop have been very ripe lately, so it’s a great opportunity to make guacamole. The recipe, which we used with success on Shavuot, couldn’t be simpler.

Cut two ripe avocados in half, around the pit. Remove the pit and scoop out flesh from the skin with a large spoon. If firm enough, dice with a knife; otherwise, coarsely mash with a fork. In a large bowl, mix avocado with two crushed cloves of garlic (that frozen Dorot garlic should do the trick), half a cup of finely chopped red onion, and the juice of a lime. Season with salt, pepper, and Tabasco to taste.

Itching to master ravioli-making, I set out a few months ago to acquire the appropriate tools for the job. I first purchased the ravioli maker attachment for my pasta machine. What a joke! It did not operate at all as easily as the marketing materials asserted; basically, it was impossible to get the filling to end up only in the center of the ravioli. As such, the ravioli would not seal correctly, and it made quite a mess.

I recently decided to find a low-tech ravioli press. Williams-Sonoma didn’t have any. Bed, Bath and Beyond didn’t have any. Kitchen, Etc. had one, but it looked too small.

I ended up at Sur La Table in the Chestnut Hill Mall. Having only seen it previously from the outside, I figured it was just a tableware place: dishes, napkins, silverware. I was wrong — to my surprise, it had quite the selection of professional-grade cooking equipment, including two different ravioli presses and a few other ravioli gadgets.

So, I bought the press, and I’m still trying to streamline the ravioli-making operation. But I highly recommend a visit to Sur La Table.

KosherToday’s latest issue includes a Category Focus article on cheese (included below for archival purposes) which thoroughly covers the major initiatives in the industry. The piece, by Lauren Kramer, pays particular interest to Anderson International, Atalanta, Ahava, and Cappiello.

What’s especially encouraging is Anderson International’s recognition of the changing tastes of the typical kosher consumer:

“I don?t think people in this country were brought up eating the quality and variety of cheese that people in Europe and Israel are exposed to,” says Anderson?s Mizrahi. ?For example, we?re selling a Danish bleu cheese of excellent quality. The younger generation is ready for a product like this, but the generation brought up on Muenster and mozzarella finds a good cheese too strong for them.”

Certainly, we ba’alei tshuva are doing our part to demand better cheeses from the kosher marketplace.
KOSHERTODAY: June 2004

Cheese
Kosher consumers are no longer limited to lackluster choices in this department

By Lauren Kramer

Wine is not the only kosher product to redefine itself in upscale terms. The cheese category has also been transformed with flavorful, high-quality kosher offerings. Judging by the increasingly varied assortment of kosher specialty cheeses in the marketplace today, the American Jew?s palate is becoming more sophisticated and demanding of finer flavors.

The trend toward more upscale food products is typical of a younger generation of Jews, says Brigitte Mizrahi, a principal at Anderson International Foods in Los Angeles. A private-label distributor and importer of kosher specialty cheese, Anderson has a repertoire of products that include retail and wholesale cheese under the brand names Les Petites Fermieres, Natural & Ko-sher (cholov Yisroel), La Ch趲e (cholov Yisroel) and Monsey Dairy, all OK Kosher certified.

In addition to staples like mozzarella, Muenster, cheddar, Monterey Jack and feta cheese, Anderson sells La Ch趲e Chilean goat cheese in flavors like red pepper, olive and fines herbes.

The newest products this year are a Canadian Brie and Camembert under the Les Petites Fermieres label, a French-made Emmenthaler, an American cheddar cheese under the Monsey Dairy label and Sol Danablu, an imported Danish bleu cheese. The Monsey Dairy line includes Gouda, smoked Gouda, Havarti and pepperjack cheese.

The major players in kosher specialty cheese are Brooklyn-based World Cheese, the market leader, whose lines include the popular Haolam and Miller?s brands; Ahava Foods; and Anderson International. Previously published figures from experts in the industry put 2000 U.S. sales for kosher cheese at just over $50 million, a number that?s still fairly accurate today, says Moshe Vogel, mashgiach at Anderson.

Founded by the Thurm family, Haolam is the trailblazer that introduced kosher consumers to the basic cheeses available in kosher supermarkets, including the best-selling American cheese. Though more companies are entering the kosher cheese market to please the changing palate of younger kosher consumers, Haolam remains the leader in both retail and foodservice sales.

?I don?t think people in this country were brought up eating the quality and variety of cheese that people in Europe and Israel are exposed to,? says Anderson?s Mizrahi. ?For example, we?re selling a Danish bleu cheese of excellent quality. The younger generation is ready for a product like this, but the generation brought up on Muenster and mozzarella finds a good cheese too strong for them.?

In Mizrahi?s experience, the diet of many American Orthodox Jews, the mainstay of the kosher cheese business, revolves around meat. As a result, ?they don?t know how to cook with cheese,? she says. ?We used to sell ricotta cheese in a 2-pound container, perfect for a lasagna, for example. But we found that an Orthodox American consumer didn?t know what to do with a 2-pound container.

?In Europe, by contrast, many meals are based on cheese, and in France, you have cheese as a course at the end of a meal.?

Anderson International uses the facilities of eight cheese plants that are willing to do kosher runs based on its flavor profiles and packaging requirements. The company?s most popular retail cheese is sliced yellow Muenster.

?It?s very creamy, and the slices are really good in sandwiches,? Mizrahi says. Vogel adds that the Danish bleu is the most popular specialty cheese right now.

?It?s been a big new thing, and none of our competition carries this kind of cheese,? he says.

Atalanta Corp., owned by George Gellert, is a multinational importer of cheeses, institutional groceries and specialty foods. The company began importing kosher specialty cheese in summer 2003.

The company is the exclusive distributor of Barkanit, a sheep-and-goat-milk cheese from Israel, and bleu cheese from Denmark (cholov Yisroel).

Other varieties imported by Atalanta are Swiss and Brie cheese from France and mascarpone from Canada.

?The reception has been really good, better than what I thought it would be,? says Carey Franco, who heads up the kosher cheese program at Atalanta. ?People see these cheeses and they want them, because what was once only in the non-kosher area is now kosher.?

Franco is hoping to import Gouda from Holland and more cheese from Israel. ?I think we haven?t even touched the tip of the iceberg with this product,? he says.

Ahava Foods is the only kosher cholov Yisroel company outside of Israel that owns its own plant and farms, according to Ahava spokesperson Rebecca Banayan. Located in Lowville, N.Y., and with a recently purchased plant in Ogdensburg, N,Y,, the company produces milk, cheese and yogurt.

?We purchased these plants because we wanted to be BST [bovine growth hormone]-free,? explains Banayan. ?Our cows don?t get hormone injections to make them deliver more milk. As a result, a lot of people who are health conscious buy our products.?

With a customer base that?s 15 percent non-Jewish, business has ?grown massively,? reports Banayan.

The Ogdensberg plant is a hard-cheese facility producing Monterey jack, Colby cheese, emek cheese, bulk shredded and sliced mozzarella, marble cheese, Parmesan, cheddar, sheep spread and other varieties for retailers and wholesalers.

Another company that produces kosher specialty cheese onsite is F. Cappiello Dairy Products of Schenectady, N.Y. The company?s line of cheeses, under OU supervision, includes ricotta and mozzarella, the latter available in plain, smoked and sundried tomato flavors; and scamorza and smoked scamorza. F. Cappiello supplies cheese to the foodservice and retail markets.

?We started producing a kosher-supervised line 30 years ago for one client and then turned our entire line kosher about 10 years ago,? says Julianne Cappiello-Miranda, co-owner of the company. ?Now we get unsolicited e-mails constantly from people who say they?ve seen the product and can?t believe there?s kosher mozzarella out there that tastes good and is affordable.

?I don?t believe we have much competition,? she adds. ?What distinguishes us from other companies selling kosher cheese is that we don?t have special kosher runs. All our products are made to order, so the product is always the freshest, using quality ingredients.?

The company?s most popular cheese is marinated, braided mozzarella.

Cappiello-Miranda has seen an increased demand for specialty cheese in the last few years, both kosher and non-kosher.

?People are tired of the same old products out there,? she says. ?We?re working on a few ideas for new flavors.?

Anderson?s Vogel agrees that the future for this category looks bright. He describes its growth potential as ?unbelievable.?

?It?s going to take a long time to educate people about what?s available in kosher specialty cheese, but there will be no limit to the growth,? he says.

?It?s going to be a long and steady process, but realistically there?s enough room for everyone to grow.?

Lauren Kramer is a freelance writer in British Columbia

KBlog enthusiast Shanna writes in with a tip for our local readers:

I was just at The Butcherie and saw that they had Chateau de Paraza Minervois (1997) on sale at two bottles for $10. The same wine, same vintage goes for $10.99 per bottle on kosherwine.com. This isn’t a spectacular wine, but it’s a better than decent dry red. It’s drinkable now and goes well with a wide variety of foods (basically, avoid pairing it with very heavy meat stews or light fish or cream dishes). It looks like they got an unexpected large shipment, or else like they are trying to clear out their stock to make room for other stuff (there were several cases stacked next to the wine racks).

And for us kid-stuff drinkers, they have something in the $5-range called “Royal 18″ from Bartenura… a light, refreshing white wine with the finest of screw-tops. Let’s see if it’s any different from the Moscato.

Relegating them to merely a “New York thing,” I never expected the breakaway/pull-apart-style challah to appear in Boston. So, naturally, I was surprised to see such a challah (in whole wheat even) from Rosenfeld’s Bakery at the Butcherie this afternoon. Bought the last one, we’ll try it tomorrow night!

Some time back, while shopping at Shaw’s, I discovered two ready-made pesto products in the produce section (near the basil and garlic), one pareve, one dairy. Intrigued that there was a kosher pesto with actual parmesan cheese in it, I bought the dairy variety, made by California’s Christopher Ranch.

It languished in my cupboard until yesterday, a long-overdue “pizza night.” In lieu of our traditional sauce-and-cheese, I spread several tablespoons of pesto on the dough, and topped with thinly sliced ripe tomato, freshly grated parmesan, and shredded mozzarella. Delicious — the pesto was very pleasant, no overwhelming attack from the basil.

“Manna, Challah, and the Meals of Shabbat”: A five-week course sponsored by the Adult Learning Collaborative (CJP/Hebrew College) at Temple Israel of Sharon with Dr. Isaac Ely Stillman. Can’t find any information online, so here’s what the flyer says:

Challah plays a central roll in our Sabbath ritual. What is special about this bread, and why must we have at least two? We will explore texts that illuminate challah’s origin in, and relationship to, the manna our ancestors ate in the desert, and the challah that was an integral part of the Temple service. Beginning with Bible and Talmud, and progressing through medieval, kabbalistic, and modern texts, we will explore the multiplicity of symbolism embedded in our challot, and we will gain a deeper understanding of Shabbat and the potential holiness of food. Most of our sources will be studied in the original; however, fluency in Hebrew and/or Aramaic is not at all required — the instructor will translate everything.

The course will take place over five Monday evenings (8PM-9:30PM): June 14, 21, 28; July 5, 12. Tuition is $75. Call 617-559-8709 to register (or for more information).

Isaac Ely Stillman, MD studied rabbinics and Jewish thought at Har Etzion (a Hesder Yeshiva located in Gush Etzion, Israel) and is a graduate of Yeshiva University. Dr. Stillman teaches Talmud and rabbinic thought throughout the Boston area. His approach reflects the multi-faceted potential of Torah study — the rational and the mystical, the fundamental principles and the esoteric concepts, the historical context and the truths that are beyond time and space. He is on staff at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center/Harvard Medical School where he practices surgical and renal pathology.

Inaugurating our new “Events” category, a Singles Wine Tasting will take place at the Young Israel of Brookline (62 Green St.) on Sunday, June 6th at 6pm. Cost is $20/person. For more information, call Gabe at the YIB office, 617-734-0276.

(If you know of any other kosher-related events, please contact submit@kosherblog.net.)

A few culinary-linguistic pet peeves for discussion’s sake:

“au jus”
Beef, when served alongside its natural pan drippings, is referred to as au jus — French for with the juice. Most commonly, the phrase is used in the names “roast beef au jus” and “french dip au jus“.

My peeve (and this guy’s) is when people use “au jus” as a noun. Restaurants will occasionally advertise beef dishes “served with au jus” or “with au jus sauce” … creating a perfectly redundant translation: “with with the juice.” (A “99 Restaurant” ad running on the radio is the latest offender).

“challah bread”
Area restauranteur Todd English has a recipe for white chocolate bread pudding, which was featured on one of his PBS cooking shows. It looked delicious, but he referred to the bread he used as “challah bread.” The “Va’ad Supervision” signs at Shaw’s use the same phrase. We don’t say “baguette bread” or “brioche bread” … so just “challah,” please.

“kosher”
This one probably bugs me the most, especially because it’s done by Kosher Today magazine. Time and again, I see “kosher” used as a noun:

While venerable brands … still play a significant role in the growth of kosher through product diversification and expanded distribution….

…many Jews who had either abandoned kashrus or ignored its significance are returning to the observance of kosher.

…it indicates a more grassroots acceptance of kosher.

Writers just seem lazy around writing “kashrut,” “kosher food,” “kosher industry,” “kosher market,” “kosher production.” It’s an adjective, let’s keep it that way.