ICYMI alert—Buzzfeed released this cute video last week of a posse of hipsters sampling Jewish (read: Ashkenazi) food for the first time, and their reactions are pretty hilarious. They’re probably hamming it up for the camera (is “Manischewitz” really that obscure or hard to pronounce?), but still, it’s cute.

On kugel: “I feel like it wants to be macaroni and cheese, and it also wants to be a cake, it just doesn’t know which one it is yet.” (Truth!)

On Manischewitz: “I can get wasted off this.”

On chopped liver: “This is poop. This has to be poop.” (It’s actually brown, fatty gold, but I guess it’s an acquired taste.)

Also, the observations vis-à-vis food density (specifically with regard to matzah balls, gefilte fish, and kugel) are spot on. Jews do have a high caloric content per square inch of food.

Our verdict? A “WIN” for internet’s best/worst purveyor of viral content.

(Image: YouTube)

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BuzzFeed, the internet’s maligned and beloved list distributor, has given us something we can’t complain about. In the spirit of the Jewish New Year, we embrace this new list with open arms. “27 Sweetest Treats for Rosh Hashanah,” is a fantastic compilation of inventive ideas for High Holiday dining.

Apples emptied and turned into honey cups. Fontina, walnut, apple, and honey grilled cheese sandwiches. Honey-glazed carrots. The list just gets better and better until it’s Manischewitz Ice Cream.

Shana tova and thank you, BuzzFeed.

27 Sweetest Treats For Rosh Hashanah [BuzzFeed]

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While many feel restricted during the leaven-free days of Passover, those of us on gluten-free diets find the holiday culinarily liberating. In fact, Passover is the Jewish holiday that keeps on gluten-free giving now that many companies have naturally gluten-free products or developed a gluten-free line alongside their traditional Passover line. Thanks to these products, we can fulfill the mitzvahs of the holiday while adhering to our dietary restriction—and making sure our palettes are satisfied.

Here are a few of my favorite kosher for Passover gluten-free things (to be sung to “My Favorite Things” from The Sound of Music, naturally). I hope you find as much joy in them as I do. I also hope you have better self-control than I do with some of these products (see: macaroons).

Matzoh for the Seder Table: Traditional matzoh is off limits since it has gluten. To fulfill the mitzvah of saying the blessing and eating matzoh, those of us who are on gluten-free diets can turn to oat matzoh. Lakewood Matzoh Bakery offers wonderful gluten-free oat matzohs available in Oat Machine Square and Traditional Shmurah, which I found at Fairway. Challah was taken on the matzohs that are made with certified gluten-free oats—oats must be certified gluten-free—and have Gluten-Intolerance Group’s certification seal.

Matzoh for the Breakfast Table: For the breakfast, lunch, dinner, and the ‘I need a snack’ kind of matzoh, I like Yehuda’s Gluten-Free Matzoh-Style Squares. The Squares are not intended for use during a seder, but are perfect with a shmear of cream cheese or for matzoh pizza.

I also recommend the newest gluten-free matzoh on the block: Manischewitz’s Gluten Free Matzo-Style Squares. I almost couldn’t believe this product was real when I saw it on the shelf. Then again, the words gluten-free on a Manischewitz box just seem so perfect.

When it comes to matzoh in cracker form, both Yehuda and Manischewitz crackers do the job. If you are like my sister, you might like them with cream cheese and a half sour pick on top.

Gluten-Free Matzoh Balls—Need I Say More? Your soup will thank you (and then your gluten-free guests will also) for using Yehuda’s Gluten-Free Matzoh Meal for the matzoh balls. In other words, if you plan on having chicken soup like I do at seder, make sure to pick up a box or two or even three.

Chicken Cutlet Time: Gluten-free chicken cutlets are just a coating away thanks to Jeff Nathan Creations’ Gluten Free Panko Flakes. The flakes are brand new and are available in plain or seasoned. Any chicken cutlet lucky enough to be made with these flakes is going to be a hit, which mean my chicken cutlets are going to be quite popular this week.

Passover Pasta: Whether you need gluten-free noodles for your kugel or are looking for a bowl of pasta, Manischewitz and Gefen have you covered. I like Manischewitz Gluten-Free Fine Yolk Free Noodles for my kugel and enjoy their spiral and shell-shaped noodles for everyday pasta fun. For a wider noodle, I recommend Gefen’s Gluten Free Egg Free Wide, which are perfect in soup.

Dessert: I love Manischewitz Gluten Free Chocolate and Yellow Cake Mixes. They are a great gluten-free cake and the fact that they are kosher for Passover is just the cherry on top. But my favorite part of the Manischewitz cakes might just be that the pan is included.

Macaroons: Passover hasn’t even started and I have already gone through two containers of Streit’s chocolate chip macaroons. There is just something about these moist treats, whether coconut, chocolate, chocolate chip or toffee crunch. If you’re a red velvet lover like I am, Manischewitz Red Velvet Macaroons are a must, as is the Chocolate Macaroon Dough. I repeat: Chocolate Macaroon Dough. This dough is the mother of all Passover products. Pure genius. It comes in a tub—how fun—and makes 44 macaroons.

And what would Passover be without candy fruit slices? Original Sweet Shoppe offers gluten-free raspberry, orange & lemon fruit slices that are the perfect treat at your seder.

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Two weeks ago, somewhere in our nation’s capital, seven young Jewish men and seven young Jewish women got together for a Shabbat dinner. But it wasn’t just any dinner—it was the now infamous Craigslist Shabbat dinner, organized by seven very confident young Jews who took to the ultimate online personals section to find their besherts. We spoke with Elissa*, one of the seven lucky “chosen” female attendees, about her experience.

So, you’re a chosen ‘chosen one’—mazel tov. How did you find the Craigslist ad? And why did you decide to apply?

I honestly thought the entire thing was a joke. I’m fairly incompetent using the Internet (I just found out that there were articles written about this before it happened), and when my former college roommate posted this on my Facebook wall, I thought, ‘How ridiculous.’ He (ah, liberal arts education) and I decided to apply purely out of curiosity and because we thought it would be hilarious. Never did I ever think this would actually take place, that I would be invited to join, or that I would go. I’ve never met anybody on the Internet (I meet enough creeps in real life), I’ve never been on a blind date, and I’ve never dated an American Jew. So this was way out of my comfort zone.

How long did you spend on your application? Did you take it seriously or just fire something off?

It probably took me longer to read the posting than to write a response. My ‘application’ began with “Dear circumcised gentlemen” and ended with “Pick me and make my bubbe kvell.” I used Maimonides and Zach Braff in the same sentence and told them they better not be schmucks. They asked for a picture so I sent one of me at a prayerbook vending machine in Jerusalem. 

How did you find out you were selected?

A few days later, I got the ‘acceptance’ email:

Following strip bingo night with the local Hadassah chapter, we carefully reviewed your application, engaged in Talmudic discussion over the merits of your presence at our Shabbat dinner table, and Googled the hell out of you.

On behalf of Seven White Single Jewish Males, I’d like to stomp on a glass and wish you a Mazel Tov! You are officially one of the seven chosen people.

The challah is practically in the oven, the gefilte fish are swimming about, the Manischewitz is on ice, and you’ll want to give up your birthright for this lentil soup. We just need to know by noon tomorrow, how much herring to cover in wine sauce.

Also, if you have any food allergies or dietary restrictions, please let us know too. For the sake of inclusion, all food will be kosher.

We also trust that you will use your discretion, and keep this in the family (of 14).

This invitation is non-transferrable, unless you are transferring it to Bar Refaeli or Elena Kagan.

David Ben Gurion

Clearly, I’m not keeping this in ‘the family’ (that’s how Jewish genetic diseases started, after all), but this whole experience was too absurd not to share.

So how did the actual event go down?

I love a good story and routinely get myself into strange predicaments, but I truly didn’t know how to handle this and was debating whether or not I should go. It started to get even more surreal as the plans were being made. The guys were extremely vague and secretive in their communication with us. They continued using the alias David Ben Gurion and waited until the last minute to provide us with an address (they were contacted by several media sources and were understandably worried about guests showing up to the dinner unwelcome), and I started to get freaked out.
 
I demanded that they meet me in a public place first (it turned out that I was the only one with this requirement), and established a “safe word” with a friend who, if I called or texted, would either come to my rescue or notify the authorities. Not to be outdone, the father of one of the chosen Jewesses even hired a bodyguard to be on call a few blocks from our location. I was still extremely anxious (it’s part of my heritage, okay?), although the guys did their best to quell my fears before the event. Their mothers clearly raised them right.
 
The dinner took place at a very nice apartment, and at first we just sat around having drinks and discussing the absurdity of the situation. Our hosts admitted they sifted through hundreds of responses to the ad—one enthusiastic woman offered to fly in from the Midwest and a group of “Protestant Princesses” even reached out to them. It was kind of a hilarious ego boost, except that I learned just how much they gleaned from a simple Google search of my name. Excuse me while I reconsider my relationship with the Internet.

According to the ad, the group of male hosts included five good-looking guys and two ugly guys. Was that true?

Well, disappointingly, there were only five guys there—two of them ended up not being able to make it—and six of us Jewesses (one bailed at the last minute). We joked that it was the ugly guys who had dropped out. One particular guy and I had our differences: he made a joke early on about it being good that we had all met on “Craigslist and not Schindler’s list,” to which I responded, “Too soon.” From that moment on, he seemed to openly dislike me. Oh well.
 
The quality of the company overall ended up being quite enjoyable, though, and I think that’s what counts the most. No one was remarkably schlubby or nebbishy, though the fresh babka was the biggest turn-on for me. Yum.
 
Tell us a little about the dinner. How was the food? How were the other chosen ladies?
 
The dinner itself was surprisingly comfortable. The guys cooked and served a delightful multi-course meal, the wine was flowing, and the people were funny and interesting. I was honestly shocked. I don’t have many Jewish friends and am not yet part of a Jewish community here in D.C., so it was refreshing to be around people with shared backgrounds and experiences.
 
And the other girls were lovely. We all engaged each other and it never felt like one of those catty reality shows where the women are competing for the men or vice-versa. Having gone into this half-expecting to be murdered by a serial killer (and yet I went, sigh) or be so bored that I’d try to gouge my eyeballs out with a Shabbat candle, I was pleasantly surprised. It’s not often that a bunch of guys cook, clean, and entertain a group of ladies completely of their own accord. Note to gentlemen everywhere: this should be done more often.
 
The evening was so “normal” in fact, that during dessert we joked that we needed to do something to spice it up, like perform an impromptu brit milah at the dinner table.

So, did you hit it off with any of the guys? Was your beshert at the dinner?

The dinner ended up lasting more than five hours, at which point us Jewesses all left together (we’re all still in touch and actually got another dinner party invitation—so, to be continued!). Interestingly, no phone numbers were exchanged across the genders at the actual event, though three of the girls were later contacted by three guys and are seeing each other again. Yentl the matchmaker would be so proud!
 
Personally, I did not find my beshert that night (and later met up with a French goy I’ve been casually dating…oops. My mother would be so disappointed). While I met some great people, my first foray into Jewish dating didn’t end up successful in the traditional sense. I guess it’s back to the land of the uncircumcised for me for now. Oy.
 
That weekend (after Shabbos ended, of course), I sent the guys an email thanking them for not being serial killers and for hosting a lovely evening, and they sent the chosen few a “shaynem dank” email:

Thank you for indulging our Shabbat fantasies. It was the ultimate double mitzvah. We had a great time hosting you, and may these experiences be fruitful and multiply. Never forget.

*Last name omitted so her mother never finds out.

(image via Shutterstock)

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This Sunday night, the 64th annual Emmy Awards will honor the best in television. Each year a handful of episodes from each of the nominated series are selected to showcase a show’s best work. Since we’re in the business of honoring the best in Jewish television, we present the top five Jewish moments from this year’s Emmy-nominated shows, from Palestinian chicken and Camp Ramah to terrorists and concentration camps.

1. Curb Your Enthusiasm (Season 8: “Palestinian Chicken”)

Larry (Larry David) and Jeff (Jeff Garlin) try a new popular Palestinian chicken place and deem it the perfect place for Jewish men to bring their mistresses since no Jews would ever eat there. (Alan Dershowitz even sent Bibi a copy!)

Air Date: July 24, 2011
Choice Line: “We’re probably the only Jews that have ever walked in here.”

2. Homeland (Season 1: “The Weekend”)

Saul Berenson (Mandy Patinkin) opens up about his lonely Jewish upbringing to his terrorist suspect passenger while driving back to CIA headquarters, creating an unexpected parallel between their situations.

Air Date: Nov. 13, 2011
Choice Line: “I’d gladly say their prayers, sing the songs. I just wanted to not be alone.”

Unfortunately a YouTube clip doesn’t exist (let us know in the comments if you find one!), but the entire episode is available on iTunes—the scene starts at the 37-minute mark.

3. Boardwalk Empire (Season 2: “To The Lost”)

Butcher Manny Horvitz hides out in the basement of a synagogue as he nostalgically remembers his Ukrainian past and plots out his future.

Air Date: Dec. 11, 2012
Choice Line: “I wake up sometimes and think I’m still there [Odessa], 12 years old, my whole life ahead of me, but then I realize I’m in America. That world is gone.”

4. Mad Men (Season 5: “Far Away Places”)

Copywriter Michael Ginsberg (Ben Feldman), explicitly hired to appease Jewish client Manischewitz, reveals that he was born in a concentration camp, turning a punch line about the token Jew into a far more serious self-reflective matter that haunts the office.

Air Date: April 22, 2012
Choice Line: “Are there others like you?” / “I don’t know, I haven’t been able to find any.”

Again, there’s no YouTube clip available, but the entire episode is on iTunes—the scene starts at the 12 minute mark.

5. Girls (Season 1: “Hannah’s Diary”)

The excitable Shoshanna runs into an old friend who remembers her best from a raid she led during their days together at Camp Ramah.

Air Date: May 6, 2012
Choice Line: “You led the most intense kitchen raid I ever saw in my time as a junior counselor.”

Have another favorite Jewish scene from this year? Let us know in the comments!

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• WQXR has great High Holiday programming running this weekend, including a never-before-heard recording of Itzhak Perlman playing Kol Nidre. Also check out host Naomi Lewin’s recipe for Apple Schalet.

• An ode to Manischewitz, by Daphne Merkin.

• Just what will Monica Lewinsky’s new book reveal? No one has any idea.

• The debate surrounding Jerusalem’s new national parks.

• Mandy Patinkin agrees that Criminal Minds is the creepiest show ever. Or as he calls it, “destructive to my soul.”

• It’s here: watch the trailer of Steven Spielberg’s Lincoln, starring Daniel Day Lewis:

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