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.
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Our Episodes
Is Tahini the New Peanut Butter in Your Kitchen Yet? (#50)
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...
A Tribute to the Queen of Kosher Cuisine, Norene Gilletz (#49)
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...
The 100 Most Jewish Foods (#48)
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...
Flavors of Havana (#47)
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...
Stirring the Pot (#46)
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...
Sephardic Journey (#45)
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...
Introducing the Aussie Gourmet (#44)
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...
Feasting and Fasting: The History and Ethics of Jewish Food (#43)
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...
Our Latest Recipes
Grandmother’s Zchug
Grandmother’s Zchug Wet Ingredients 1 bunch coriander leaves 20 green chili peppers 1 head of garlic Dry Ingredients 1 Tbs salt 1 Tbsp. ground black pepper 1 Tbsp. ground cumin 1 Tbsp. cardamom Peel garlic cloves. Discard stems of green peppers. Place both in a food...
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Muffins
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Muffins 1 cup unsweetened applesauce ¾ cup peanut butter powder ⅓ cup xylitol 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 2 eggs 1 teaspoon cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon baking soda ½ teaspoon baking powder 1 3/4 cups oats Sugar free chocolate...
Over the Top Sufganiyot
You could serve Classic Sufganiyot, or you could take your Chanukah OOT (over the top) with this doughnut. Tart lemon curd filling and sweet meringue topping make these doughnuts into mini pies. Over the Top Sufganiyot INGREDIENTS DOUGH: • 1¼ cups coconut milk...
POTATO PANCAKES RECIPE: EASY LATKES
Nothing like the way our bubbies made latkes in the old country! These latkes are not loaded with potato starch, flour, baking powder or other non-essential ingredients. Jamie's grandfather shared this recipe with her when she told him that she thought his were the...
Matzo Brei Anytime!
Stephanie and I talked about Matzo Brei when it was Passover time but what I already knew was that Matzo Brei is great any time of year! Matzo Brei Anytime! For Basic Matzo Brei1-2 sheets of Matzo1 egg per sheet of MatzoPinch of SaltFor Sweet Matzo BreiButter (or...
Sweet Blintzes
Liz Alpern and Jeffrey Yoskowitz from their book The Gefilte Manifesto. [amd-zlrecipe-recipe:2]
Joan Nathan’s Shtritzlach, Blueberry Buns
This recipe comes from King Solomon’s Table: a Culinary Exploration of Jewish Cooking from Around the World, a cookbook by the James Beard Award-winning, much-loved cookbook author and authority Joan Nathan. Shtritzlach, Blueberry Buns 2 3/4 cups all-purpose...
Remembering Rice Pudding
This is Ina Pinkney's recipe. Ina opened Ina's Kitchen in 1991, and it quickly became Chicago's premier breakfast restaurant. She was also the chef/owner of INA's restaurant and The Dessert Kitchen Ltd. catering company. She has appeared on the Food Network's Sweet...