Where We Shop
Trader Joe's comes to Michigan
with a great selection of kosher fbod.
ILLANA GREENBERG
Staff Writer
T
Cheesy Custom
Eating dairy dishes at Chanukah recalls how
biblical heroine Judith used cheese to her advantage.
ANNABEL COHEN
Special to the Jewish News
I
f you're reading this on Nov. 29,
then tonight is the start of
Chanukah, a more than 2,000-year-
old celebration.
We recall the miracle of the oil each
Chanukah sunset when we light oil or can-
dles in a Chanukiah (nine-branch
lamp). It's also customary to eat fried
treats like sufganiyot (jelly doughnuts)
and latkes.
On this Festival of Lights, we retell
stories of military miracles and the
rededication of the first temple. We also
spin dreidels and sing traditional tunes.
Another Chanukah story is about the
beautiful Judith. The biblical heroine
saved our people from Assyrian oppres-
sors during the time of the Maccabees
by deceiving a general bent on the Jews'
destruction.
Presumably, Judith was able to trick -
the general by feeding him salty cheese,
which made him thirsty. To alleviate
that thirst, Judith served the general
large amounts of wine. When he passed
out drunk, Judith beheaded him,
thwarting his plans for destruction.
This story explains why we eat cheese
dishes during Chanukah and the
Sephardic tradition of a special
women-only celebration on the sev-
enth night of the holiday.
The following recipes are perfect for
tonight or any night during Chanukah.
Made with cheese, they're perfect accom-
paniments for last week's latkes (see
"Chanukah Traditions," Nov. 22, page 87)
or anytime.
CHEESY on page 99
rader Joe's opened its first two stores in
Michigan recently with locations at
Woodward and Catalpa (11 1 /2 Mile) in Ro al
Oak and 14 Mile and Northwestern
Highway in Farmington Hills
The national chain originally was name in recogni
tion of its distinct buying process, in which they claim
to search the
world for grea
values and dis
tinctive rod-
acts:
Tra er ^ oe s
carries about
3;000 produc
and 90 percen
of them • have
the "Trader
Joe's" brand
Private label'
allows it to pur-
chase products
through manu-
facturers, not
distributors. It takes brand name products, omit the
preservatives and artificial colors, and put on the Trader
Joe's label.
The result is the ability to offer higher quality prod-
ucts at fair prices. All prices are "everyday" and there
are no sales, promotions or discount cards.
.
TRADER on page 98
Carryout latkes can save time and
mess this Chanukah.
ILLANA GREENBERG
StaffWriter
A
lthough I love our family Chanukah cele-
bration, I'm never thrilled with the
prospect of making the latkes. The starchy
counters to clean, disposing of the potato
peels and oil remaining from the pans, not to men-
tion the overwhelming smell of fried food that
lingers in my house for days — these are hardly
things to look forward to.
This year,
eci e to c ec out or eting carry-
out latkes. There were many places to choose from.
Some of the prepared latkes were pan fried, some
deep fried, but all were the large (three inches or
more), thicker type of pancakes. Unfortunately
CARRYOUT
on page 100
11/29
2002
97