A Food Lover’s Farewell To the Forward
Graphic by Angelie Zaslavsky
Martyna Starosta
Shabbat dinner was a staple of my childhood — complete with sweet kiddush wine, freshly baked challah and friends around the table. But instead of the traditional chicken, kugel and tzimmes, our dinner menu was grilled fish, roasted vegetables and melon. Classic Ashkenazi or “bubbe fare” rarely graced our table. Brisket was reserved for holidays and my grandmother’s ever so light gefilte fish was prepared once a year — on Passover.
I came to Jewish food through the Forward. For the past three plus years I have edited nearly every piece of food content that we have published. I learned how to make gefilte fish from the Gefilteria, the trade secrets of New York’s best matzo ball soups and how to fry a perfect Israeli-style schnitzel. Through our Shabbat Meals series, I was able to pull up a chair to countless Shabbat dinners hosted by our writers around the world, hear about their customs and learn their family recipes. I watched modern Jewish food flourish and Israeli food really start to come into its own. While I have loved many of the food articles in the Forward, below is a list of my all time favorites.
This week is my last at the Forward before I join Eater NY as the associate editor. It has been a delicious honor to work as the Forward’s food editor and one that surely would not have been possible without my exceptional colleagues and a passionate and talented team of freelancers. I hope you will stay in touch and send me your holiday cooking questions at @devraferst.
Berlin’s Jewish Comeback
By Leah Koenig
Jewish Food Goes from Haimish to Haute
By Adeena Sussman
Shabbat Meals: ‘Comfort Food’ — Chicken Tagine and Curried Couscous
By Sam Freedman
New York Pop-Ups Deliver the Country’s Most Exciting Jewish Fare
By Devra Ferst
What Is Israeli Cuisine? A Conversation with Janna Gur and Michael Solomonov
Anthony Bourdain’s Big Israeli Disappointment
By Devra Ferst
Rosemary Ricotta Blintzes with Strawberry Rhubarb Sauce
By Molly Yeh
The Great Bagel Peace Treaty of 2014
By Devra Ferst and Anne Cohen
The Great American Deli Rescue
Debating the Deli from Jewish Daily Forward on Vimeo.
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