An Enticing Podcast Celebrating Jewish Arts, Culture & History!
Our Latest Episode
Loaves of Torah: Exploring the Jewish Year through Challah
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...
Beth Schenker, Host & Executive Producer
The Big Schmear conversations are with prominent chefs, musicians, authors, visual artists and more talking about their passion for Jewish life.
Subscribe on Apple Podcast, Android, Google Play, Stitcher, Spotify or listen live here below!
Reach out anytime with comments, feedback and special requests to beth@thebigschmear.com.
Happy Listening!
Our Episodes
Jewhungry
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...
Will You Bee Ready for Apples and Honey?
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...
A New Year, a New Beginning
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...
Think Pastrami on Rye, It’s National Deli Month!
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...
The Great Big Jewish Food Fest!
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...
How Does a Nice Jewish Girl Become a Mixologist?
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...
Savage Feast
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,...
Pilot Light -Shining a Light on Food Education
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...
Our Latest Recipes
Mixed Green Olive-Cannabis Schmear
3 cups Green Olives (Such as Castelvano olives & Cerignola pitted)3 Anchovy filets6 Garlic cloves (crushed)1 tbsp Cannabis infused olive oil *1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil1 Zest of lemon3 tbsp Freshly squeezed lemon juicepinch Crushed red chilies3 tbsp...
Chicken Soup with Potza Balls
Chicken Soup with Potza Balls 4 lbs chicken bones (wings, carcasses, necks, etc.)12 cups water (aprox)1 large spanish onion (chopped)3 large carrots (chopped)3 celery ribs (chopped)5 Parsley sprigs3 fresh thyme sprigs1 bay leaf1 whole clove1 tsp whole black...
Kasha Varnishkes-A Modernized Classic
Kasha Varnishkes-A Modernized Classic 2 cups bowtie pasta 1/2 oz dry porcini mushrooms (Don't skip this ingredient) 1/2 cup schmaltz or extra virgin olive oil (divided) 1 large yellow onion (diced) 1 large leek (sliced thinly) 1/2 lb cremini or button mushrooms...
M’sabacha (no-blend warm hummus)
M'sabacha (No-blend warm hummus) 1 cup dried chickpeas 1/4 tsp baking soda 1 garlic clove (optional) 1/4 cup lemon juice 1 tsp kosher salt 1/2 tsp cumin 1/2 cup tahini Olive Oil (to serve) chilies, pine nuts, cumin, paprika, sumac, cilantro (optional toppings) Tahini...
Salted Caramel Flan Cheesecake
Salted Caramel Flan Cheesecake 1 cup whole skinned almonds (toasted) 2 tbsp granulated sugar 1/2 tsp salt 1 tbsp unsalted butter (melted) Flan Batter 3 8-oz packages cream cheese (room temperature) 14 oz sweetened condensed milk (divided) 1 large egg (room...
Extra Crispy Passover Chicken Cutlets
Extra Crispy Passover Chicken Cutlets 2 lbs skinless chicken breasts (cut into strips) 1 cup potato starch (aprox) 3 cups matzo meal 1 tbsp salt 1 tsp black pepper 1 tbsp garlic powder 1 tsp onion powder 4 eggs vegetable oil for frying salt and pepper (to dust...
Mamaleh’s Chopped Liver
Mamaleh's Chopped Liver 1 lb chicken livers1/3 lb carmelized onions (a little burnt is OK!)3 hard boiled eggs2.5 oz Hellman's Mayonnaisesalt & pepper (to taste) Clean livers, always making sure to keep them cold. Toss with schmaltz (or canola oil) and salt &...
The Original Vegan Challah – Challah Hub Style
The Original Vegan Challah 1 cup warm water 1 pkt rapid rise yeast 3-4 cups flour 1/2 cup sugar 1 1/2 tsp salt 2 tbsp vegetable or coconut oil flour (extra flour for kneading and braiding) Egg Replacement Mixture 2 tsp baking powder 3 tbsp warm water 3 tbsp vegetable...