Jewish Mothers Who Can Cook — in Six Words

Graphic by Angelie Zaslavsky
For many of us, Jewish mothers are synonymous with home cooking. In advance of Mother’s Day, we asked you, our readers, to describe your Jewish mothers in just six words. Not surprisingly, sprinkled throughout the submissions were many entries dedicated to moms as the ultimate cooks. Sure, there was the requisite Jewish mom joke: “Sad? Eat! Tired? Eat! Test? Eat!” but other entries surprised us with their creativity and proved just how tight the link between Jewish moms and food really is.
Below are some of our favorite entries dedicated to our moms who cooked for us, forced us to eat gefilte fish and proved that you can cook kugel and be a skilled lawmaker.
Balaboosta, The kitchen wizard and genie.
— Elliot Lewis, 34, Albuquerque, about Sonia Gottlieb
Makes best chopped liver; will travel.
— Bryna Siegel Finer, 36, Pittsburgh, about Marcia Siegel
Has more balls than matzoh balls.
— Lauren Rosen, 42, New York City, about Doris Rosen
Forced me to eat gefilte fish
— Lauren Rosen, 42, New York City, about Doris Rosen
Candidate Mom serves kugel creates laws
— Francine Graff, 49, Culver City, Calif., about Loretta Weinberg
Why I became the Forward’s editor-in-chief
You are surely a friend of the Forward if you’re reading this. And so it’s with excitement and awe — of all that the Forward is, was, and will be — that I introduce myself to you as the Forward’s newest editor-in-chief.
And what a time to step into the leadership of this storied Jewish institution! For 129 years, the Forward has shaped and told the American Jewish story. I’m stepping in at an intense time for Jews the world over. We urgently need the Forward’s courageous, unflinching journalism — not only as a source of reliable information, but to provide inspiration, healing and hope.
— Alyssa Katz, editor-in-chief
