Items

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  2020-04

  How Stuffed Peppers Kept Me From Killing My Roommates

  In March of 2020, I had just turned 22. I was prepping to graduate from Loyola University Chicago and searching for a job in journalism — a notoriously tough field to start out in, pandemic or not. The virus started spreading, and the jobs started disappearing. Chicago, my once-vibrant home where people scattered like ants as the CTA trains screeched into the station, was deserted. It was eerie. The internet was swarming with newly viral recipes: banana bread, sourdough starters, homemade pizzas. I wasn't interested in those, they didn't strike my fancy. In a time of severe isolation for most, I was stuck with roommates. Don't get me wrong, we had our issues. The dishes were almost never done, and we disagreed on whose responsibility they were. But in my boredom, I took up cooking, and for once I didn't mind cooking for them as well. I was one of many COVID-induced chefs who began as amateurs and blossomed into connoisseurs that rivaled the best of takeout menus. The only problem was, I'm a vegetarian, and my roommates are born-and-bred Midwesterners, set in their ways of eating and enjoying meat at nearly every meal. But by April, I had sprung head-first into a phase of cooking stuffed peppers several times a week, and they had followed me down the rabbit hole. There were no disagreements about whether to put meat in the filling or not — we didn't need it, there was enough flavor and protein regardless. And the dishes were always done, somehow without a single argument or passive-aggressive slam of a door. The peppers were fun and colorful, Instagram-worthy in a time that lacked almost anything visually intriguing. They became a source of collaboration instead of the division that had seeped in through our 100-year-old Chicago apartment's walls, a result of being trapped with no one but each other for weeks on end. It's superstitious, maybe, but I think these peppers may have saved us from severing our relationship forever. We mended our fracturing friendships and became a family once again, eating dinner together and making sure the kitchen was clean.
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  2020-09-10

  Jewish Melbourne: Sholem Aleichem ‘Gast Oyf Shabes’ - cooking from Fania Lewando's cookbook

  "Last Friday, the Grade 6s welcomed vegan chef Michal Dawid Lachur all the way from Warsaw, Poland as their latest ‘Gast Oyf Shabes’. Michal taught the Grade 6s about vegetarian chef, Fania Lewando (1887-1941). Lewando ran a vegetarian restaurant in pre-WWII Vilna. The restaurant attracted figures such as Marc Chagall and Itzik Manger. She also had a cookery school, where she taught about vegetarian nutrition. Fania Lewando published the Vilna Vegetarian Cookbook (Vegetarish-Dietisher Kokhbukh) in 1938 in Yiddish. Many years later, it was translated into English and is available online. Michal led our students in a cooking workshop, where they learned to make a rice kugl and a prune tsimes. The students had a great time cooking with Michal and enjoyed learning to make Lewando’s take on these traditional dishes. A sheynem dank to Michal for joining us in the early hours of the morning to work with our students."
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  2020-05-31

  Picking Up Brunch

  COVID has really made me re-evaluate my eating habits. I've seen so many amazing restaurants and bars close during the pandemic, and it has made me hyper aware of the need to shop local. Due to the economic impacts of the virus, I've stopped ordering from chain restaurants, and I find myself only ordering from local vegetarian and vegan restaurants who I want to see stay in business. Beyond worrying about the economic stress placed on local restaurants, current events have been eye opening regarding the values of certain businesses. There have been restaurants and bars in both Phoenix and Tempe that are reporting several COVID-19 cases among staff but have refused to close. One such example of this has been Zipps Sports Grill, where the manager waited nearly a week before disclosing a series of COVID cases among staff. In other places, such as Mill Avenue in Tempe or Old Town Scottsdale, photos have emerged of patrons packed together at bars without any masks at all. It is unconscionable to watch these businesses-- some of which are legitimately at the center of public health outbreaks-- refuse to close, placing business interests above human lives. Beyond these public health concerns, some restaurants have outwardly supported police or penalized employees for supporting protesters following the murder of George Floyd. The popular chain Starbucks, for example, initially banned the wearing of "#BlackLivesMatter" pins until public outcry forced them to update their policy. While a lot of restaurants and bars have been terrible, there have been other restaurants which have adapted in really awesome ways. The photos attached here capture my experiences picking up brunch at one of my favorite restaurants in Phoenix, The Coronado, a self described "{Woman + POC + LGBTQ Owned}" vegetarian spot in Phoenix. Early on in the pandemic, the restaurant made adjustments to ensure pick-up would be safe. As you can see in these photographs, the line is clearly marked with red tape so patrons always stay six feet apart, there is never more than one guest in the restaurant at a time, and masks are required. Although not pictured here, inside the restaurant, a plexiglass barrier has been set up to ensure there is a shield between the employees and the patrons, and payment is contact-less so no cash or checks are allowed to reduce contact spread. The Coronado has also been fairly active in Phoenix, using their platforms to highlight the needs and successes of local organizations. It's also possible that they have THE BEST french fries in all of Arizona. This pandemic has forced me to re-evaluate my values as a consumer. I don't want to give my money to irresponsible, uncaring, super chains who are more concerned with profits than ethics. Luckily, there are a lot of awesome restaurants in Phoenix that have great safety measures and great community engagement. I hope when this pandemic ends people will remember which businesses put profits over people and will continue to shop critically. I know I will.