Happy New Year! I hope your New Year celebration was meaningful and joyous. I’m looking forward to all the audio adventures we will be on together in 5785. I already have great guests on-board with stories to share that I know you’ll enjoy. This brings me to our first episode of this New Year. We’ll be talking about the road to the rabbinate for my…

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…

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 i…

Guest: Chef Laura Frankel 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…

Guest: Cheryl Rich Heisler 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 si…

Guest: Dr. Beth S. Wenger 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 …

Guest: Chef Laura Frankel 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 t…

Guest: Aliza Kline, CEO OneTable 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 ne…

Guest: Whitney Fisch 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 t…

Guest: Ted Dennard Founder, president and head beekeeper of Savannah Bee Company 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 talk…

Guest: Leah Koenig 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 Eati…

Guest: Lara Rabinovitch It turns out August is National Deli month so …find your favorite local deli and treat yourself to a bagel and SCHMEAR while supporting a very important cultural institution. No deli nearby? Many delis now ship overnight to just about anywhere in the country. If all else fails you can make yourself a kugel to enjoy with a cu…

Guest: Lisa Colton, Co-Executive Producer The Great Big Jewish Food Fest It’s March, the start of the pandemic in the U.S. with lock-downs in most all major cities. Food and preparing meals for yourself, your family and those in your bubble become a monumental activity. You are nurturing your body and your soul. What could be better? Here’s an idea…

Guest: Cheryl Rich Heisler What better way to spend an interview than talking about cocktails? It was total fun talking with Cheryl about her path to becoming a mixologist and starting her company called Mixed metaPours. It turns out you can have your own personalized cocktail developed – now that sounds like a fun summer activity! All that said, C…

Guest: Boris Fishman Novelist, Memoirist, and Hard-working Home Cook Photo Credit: Stephanie Kaltsas Boris Fishman is a wonderful writer providing a unique immigrant perspective to his work. My new favorite book by Boris is: Three Generations, Two Continents, and a Dinner Table SAVAGE FEAST, A Memoir with Recipes. Even from the prologue you are dra…

Guests: Alexandra DeSorbo-Quinn & Caitlin Arens Alexandra DeSorbo-Quinn, Executive Director Caitlin Arens, Food Education Support Manager I had a great time talking with Alexandra and Caitlin of Pilot Light in Chicago. It’s an amazing food education organization founded by a team of chefs in Chicago. They share many food resources for families and …

Guest: Graphic Artist & Writer Ben Katchor Who knew there would be so much to say about the history of the dairy restaurant? Ben Katchor begins the story for us during biblical times in the Garden of Eden (the first restaurant) and takes us on an amazing world-wide ride through his new book, The Diary Restaurant. Our conversation is the perfect way…

Guest: Amanda Dell My guest on this episode is Amanda Dell, Program Director from The Jewish Food Society. The work they are doing to capture and archive Jewish family recipes and recipe stories from around the globe is critical to our understanding of our history. Amanda talks here about the many programs available through The Jewish Food Society …

Guest: Sonat Birnecker, President Koval Distillery Koval Distillery Founders: Dr. Sonat Birnecker & Dr. Robert Birnecker, Master Distiller & CEO I am talking with Sonat Birnecker from my favorite distillery, Koval. These days they aren’t just producing their excellent whiskeys – they’ve pivoted; big time. They are now in the new business of produci…

Guest: Gabrielle Leon Spatt As most of us continue with the stay-in-place orders I decided to invite Gabrielle Spatt of The Blue Dove Foundation to talk with me about Mental Health Awareness Month. The Blue Dove Foundation focuses its resources on the Jewish community to help us work through mental health and substance abuse issues. In this episode…

Guest: Carolyn Sherman Gutierrez I had great fun talking with Carolyn Sherman Gutierrez of ISH. Who knew horseradish could be so versatile? Or come in so many flavors? I’ve had fun experimenting at home (too much time) and even got my husband on-board! But that’s really only part of the story. What is so cool is that Carolyn took this hobby of her …

Guest: Liz Alpern & Jeffrey Yoskowitz Liz Alpern and Jeffrey Yoskowitz, co-founders of Gefilteria join me to talk about creative ways to think about Passover during this time of Covid-19. Passover will be a challenge for sure but maybe we can find a silver lining. The post A New Passover for 2020 with Gefilteria (#51) appeared first on The Big Schm…

Guest: Amy Zitelman Co-founder and CEO of Soom Meet Amy Zitleman, Co-Founder and CEO of Soom. Haven’t heard of them yet? Soom is a tahini manufacturer located in Philadelphia founded and owned by three sisters, Amy, Shelby and Jackie (she lives in Israel). In addition to the best tasting tahini ever, they also make Silan (date syrup) and Chocolate …

Guest: Nina Glick On this special episode we pay tribute to Canada’s Jewish Julia Child, Norene Gilletz who passed away last month. She leaves us with an amazing Jewish food legacy. She published 12 cookbooks, has a huge following on Nornene’s Kitchen (her facebook page) and she shares recipes and stories on her website. Please join me as I talk wi…

Guest: Alana Newhouse Photo Credit: MIchelle Ishay I love the book, and I think you will too. It’s full of history, stories and of course, recipes! Imagine deciding to compile a book of the 100 Most Jewish Foods! Where would you start? How would you decide what foods didn’t qualify? My guest for this episode is Alana Newhouse, editor of this book a…

Guest: Cindy White I loved talking with Cindy about this new Bed-and-Breakfast in Havana, Cuba featuring Kosher food. What a great way to encourage Jewish tourism. And Cindy’s company stateside will help plan your entire itinerary while in Cuba including a tour of Jewish Havana! Be sure to check out the family recipe she’s shared. If you can’t go t…

Guest: Chef Laura Frankel​ I couldn’t think of a better way to begin 2020 on The Big Schmear than with the topic of Marijuana and Jewish food. So many states have now legalized recreational pot that it seemed a timely topic. I went to my go-to expert on all things kosher in the kitchen, Chef Laura Frankel and she even provided two recipes for this …

Guests: Eugenia Moliner & Denis Azabagic I took a bit of a jaunt off topic to introduce you to the musicians of Cavatina Duo- the theme music for The Big Schmear. i think you’ll enjoy meeting them and hearing about their story behind the music. I hope you enjoy the episode. Happy Hanukkah and I’ll be back with some fun surprises in 2020! The post S…

Guest: Naomi Nachman There is this iconic cafe in Skokie, IL. It’s called Emma’s and it’s a favorite place for those wanting a great selection of Kosher food from bagels and lox to wraps and soups. And this is where I caught up with Naomi Nachman. Just off the plane from NY, she was in Chicago for a private food event she was heading up. Naomi has …

Guest: Dr. Aaron S. Gross I couldn’t resist searching out more information on this new book Feasting and Fasting! I hope you’ll find my conversation with Dr. Aaron S. Gross, co-editor as intriguing as I did. The book delves into Jewish food as a key component to exploring our history, culture, politics, and more. I know it’s going to be my next boo…

Guest: Maxim D. Shrayer Are you thinking about seasonal menus for fall? Don’t forget to include mushrooms on your search. After listening to my conversation with Maxim D. Shrayer you’ll find yourself hunting in your favorite grocery store for some not so common varieties to try. And do check out his new book: A Russian Immigrant: Three Novellas. Yo…

Guest: Chef Laura Frankel Chef Laura Frankel and I talk about holiday food prep and planning for Yom Kippur. She shares some great ideas that will be helpful for menu selection through break-the-fast. We even get a chance to talk about Chef’s favorite holiday, Sukkot. Recipe from this Episode The post Holiday Fast Food (#41) appeared first on The B…

Guest: Zenash and her granddaughter Nebbe I’m at Ras Dashen, a wonderful cozy Ethiopian restaurant in my own neighborhood in Chicago. I’m talking with owner and chef Zenash and her granddaughter Nebbe. She tells an amazing story of how she comes to Chicago and starts her own restaurant. She’s one of the most passionate food people I’ve ever met. To…

A brief word from Beth Hi Fellow Big Schmear listeners! I can’t believe the summer is coming to a close so soon and it’s already time to start thinking about the holidays. AND, I’ve been doing just that. I’ve got some interesting episodes planned that I think you are going to enjoy. I don’t want to spill the beans on all but I do give you a few min…

Guest: Rabbi Yisroel Finman While on a dream vacation in Greece I got a call about a Kosher food company focused on bringing kosher food from the Balkans to the US and Israel and around the world. What a crazy coincidence. Once back home I decided to follow up on that call and bring that information back to you. There’s nothing like olives and wine…

Guest: Moran Birman, Consul for Public Diplomacy, Consulate General of Israel to the Midwest On this episode you’ll meet Moran Birman, Consul for Public Diplomacy with the Consulate General of Israel to the Midwest. I met Moran a little over a year ago when he connected me with Gil Hovav, Israeli food critic and entrepreneur. This time I had the op…

Guest: Marc & Maureen Schulman I’ve heard about Eli’s Cheesecake for years, and not because I live in Chicago. When I knew Shavout was coming up I thought it would be the perfect time to see if I could get an interview with Marc Schulman, President of Eli’s Cheesecake. It turned into a great conversation with Marc, learning more about this company …

Guest: Marcy Goldman Passover is here and what better way to get into the season of matzo than time to talk with writer and cookbook author, chef and inventor of Matzo Crack, Marcy Goldman! Marcy is my first Big Schmear guest from Canada. We had a great time talking about Jewish food in Montreal and of course learning more about Marcy and her new c…

Guest: Alon Munzer, Co-Owner of Mamaleh’s Delicatessen & Restaurant Whenever I’m in the Boston area to visit with family one of my new favorite restaurant stops is Mamaleh’s Deli in Cambridge, Massachusetts. I made a promise to myself after my visit in December that whenever my next trip to Boston would take place I would find a way to be more than…

Guest: Sarah Klegman of Challah Hub I had a great time talking with Sarah Klegman, co-founder of Challah Hub. This is another virtual challah story taking place in Los Angeles. Sarah and I talked a lot about challah and about Sarah’s life outside of baking. At the very least you owe it to yourself to check out Challah Hub’s website for amazing phot…

Guests: Tamar Fasja Unikel & Elena Vazquez It’s all about a very cool virtual bakery in Chicago’s PIlson neighborhood. The story starts with two college friends from Mexico City that discover they both like to bake. Fast forward a few years and they find each other a few years later in Chicago, both still baking. They decide to do this for real and…

Guest: Dr. Beth Ricanati Who thought baking Challah could be so magical? Well, it is and especially as seen through the eyes of my guest this week Dr. Beth Ricanati. We talk about Challah and how it can connect with you, through Jewish history, as a way to think about your own well-being and of course all about baking Challah. I can guarantee you t…

Guest: Shannon Sarna Happy 2019 one and all! It’s been awhile since my last new episode. In the interim I decided to branch out a bit and take the opportunity to talk with many more guests located all over the country. There are so many people with a real passion for Jewish food and could be more fun than sharing their stories with you. In my first…

Guest: Chef Zachary Engel Chef Zach joins me in Part 2 to talk about his new restaurant endeavor in Chicago – building Galit, his first restaurant from the bottom up. The goal: to bring fine dining, as in Israeli Cuisine to Chicago. The post Chef Zachary Engel Part 2 (#29) appeared first on The Big Schmear Podcast.…

Guest: Chef Zachary Engel What’s it like to be a young Chef with a dream to open your own restaurant? I thought it would be interesting to get inside the process and to hear first hand about what it takes to find yourself in a new city about to open your own place. I talk with James Beard winner Chef Zach Engel about his path to Gailit, his new res…

Guest: Stacey Ballis ​I’m back with culinary writer Stacey Ballis. It’s time to talk about Jewish food and for Stacey that means Kugel. Now you can choose to make your favorite family recipe OR you can try Stacey’s favorite. She is kind enough to provide some essential kugel pointers too! Be sure to listen till the end of the episode when Stacey di…

Guest: Author, Stacey Ballis I’m in conversation with author Stacey Ballis of culinary literature fame. In this episode I learn about Stacey’s most important food mentor and how she managed to publish her first novel seemingly with little effort. Who does this? And she shares a great recipe for Tomato Pudding with me. All in all a fun conversation.…

Guest: Surprise Guests The Big Schmear turned 1 this month! I’m celebrating by sharing some great moments from a year’s worth of fun episodes. Join me for a trip down memory lane…and thank you all for listening. It’s been a great year. The post Happy Anniversary to The Big Schmear Part 2 (#25) appeared first on The Big Schmear Podcast.…

Guests: Be Surprised! August marks The Big Schmear’s 1 Year Anniversary. Why not celebrate by sharing some great moments from a year’s worth of fun episodes with all of you. Join me for a trip down memory lane…and thank you all for listening. I’ll have more to share later in the month too. It’s been a great year. The post Happy Anniversary to The B…

Guest: Emily Paster Emily has been such a fun guest. In this next episode she talks with me in more detail about making preserves and then she shares the story of her other food projects -the food swap and her very excellent food blog. The photos above are from a preserving class I attended with Emily as instructor. I got so excited about making pr…