At a glance
Event Schedule
Tuesday, May 19
8 p.m. ET
The State of the Deli Hosted by David Sax
The small business entrepreneurs who run Jewish delis across America are facing an unprecedented challenge, fighting to keep their carving knives out and smokers on. Soul of an Entrepreneur and Save the Deli author David Sax discusses the business of delis with Gefilteria co-founder Jeffrey Yoskowitz. Then, join as David zooms cross country from the West Coast to the East, visiting with Kenny & Ziggy’s, Beetroot Market & Deli, Wise Sons, Manny’s Deli in Chicago, and (just recently added) the iconic appetizing shop, Russ & Daughters.
Co-Presented with JCC Manhattan.
Wednesday, May 20
1:00 p.m. ET
What We Talk About When We Study Jewish Food
Definitions of "Jewish food" have changed dramatically over time and around the world. Jewish cuisine has developed in times of scarcity as well as times of abundance, and the boundaries of Jewish food have highlighted issues of class, gender, and privilege. In this conversation, Dr. Rachel B. Gross and Dr. Jordan Rosenblum will discuss what "Jewish food" means in the age of social distancing, drawing on a wide range of primary sources, from rabbinic debates to manufacturers' advertisements.
5:30 p.m. ET
Virtual Book Talk: Soviet-Jewish Cuisine
If there's something that Soviet cuisine and the literature surrounding it has taught the world, it's how to celebrate in grand style in times of bleakness and uncertainty. Join food journalist Gabriella Gershenson in conversation with cookbook author Bonnie Morales, chef-owner of the restaurant Kachka in Portland, Oregon, and Boris Fishman, author of the lavishly food-focused memoir Savage Feast, for a discussion of vodka, salty snacks, and the Soviet Jewish appetite as a writer's muse. Co-Presented with the Jewish Book Council.
Thursday, May 21
12:00 p.m. ET
The Connection Between Food and Climate Change with Hazon, the Jewish Lab for Sustainability
Join Hazon staff Becky O’ Brien, director of Food and Climate, and Isaiah Rothstein, Rabbi-in-residence, for song, learning, self-reflection and dynamic discussion around Shmita, Shabbat, Kashrut, and the food choices we make as they relate to mitigating climate change in the 21st century. Leave with a deepened awareness of your individual power and clarity around the steps you can take to connect your heart to your plate. Co-Presented with Hazon.
1:00 p.m. ET
Millennials, Food, and Engagement: Implications and Opportunities from New Research
New research on Jewish millennial engagement shows the profound importance of food for nostalgia, social gathering and Jewish connection. This session is designed for Jewish professionals and leaders, but open to anyone who is interested in this research. Rella Kaplowitz, Senior Program Officer for Evaluation and Learning at the Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Foundation will share insights from the recently completed research on Jewish millennials, and the strong food-related themes that emerged. Panelists include Rabbi Ruth Abusch-Magder is the Director of Education for Be'chol Lashon, Aliza Kline, CEO of OneTable, and Naama Haviv, Director of Community Engagement for MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger.
5:30 p.m. ET
In the Kitchen: Shavuot in the Sephardic Kitchen - Bread of the Seven Heavens
Join chef and scholar Dr. Hélène Jawhara-Piñer, for a cooking demonstration of her own twist on Sephardic Shavuot bread with herbs and cheese. She will explore the Jewish symbolism imbued in the shape and flavors of the bread and their connection to the upcoming holiday. Co-Presented with The American Sephardi Federation. Recipes here.
8:00 p.m. ET
Food x Identity: Michael Twitty in Conversation
Join acclaimed author Michael Twitty (The Cooking Gene: A Journey Through African American Culinary History in the Old South) as he explores where food and identity intersect and diverge in their work and lives. Cookbook author and podcaster Julia Turshen (Now & Again: Go-To Recipes, Inspired Menus + Endless Ideas for Reinventing Leftovers) will be in conversation with him. Co-Presented with Museum of Food and Drink.
Friday, May 22
11:30 a.m. ET
Family Kitchen: Creating Your Own Crazy Challah Creations
Get ready to create the sweet or savory challah creations of your dreams. This class with Shannon Sarna, author of Modern Jewish Baker, will showcase how to shape challah different ways, stuff it with cheese, top it with sprinkles and just about everything in between. Prep your dough ahead of time and get ingredients ready to add to your challah. The sky is the limit. Open your pantry and get creative! Access recipes here.
1 p.m. ET
The Great Shabbat Cook-Along Hosted by Gail Simmons
Join celebrity chefs Michael Solomonov of Zahav, Einat Admony of Balaboosta, and hit cookbook author Adeena Sussman as they show you how how to prepare a special Shabbat dinner in their homes. Gather the ingredients and get your knives out, you’ll be cooking along with them. Check out the recipes.
3:00 p.m. ET
Jewish Learning: The Spirituality of Jewish Food with Rabbi Abigal Treu
Food is much more than a part of Jewish culture: it is also one of Judaism's most profound spiritual pathways. How do we turn the laws of Jewish food practices - keeping kosher, reciting blessings, washing hands - into something that touches our souls? Co-Presented with Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan
5:00 p.m. ET
In the Kitchen: Get Your Table Instagram-Ready with Jake Cohen
Join food writer and Shabbat host extraordinaire Jake Cohen in his home as he styles his Shabbat table for a virtual Great Big Food Fest Shabbat dinner. He'll provide tips and tricks for how to present dishes, prepare a killer cheeseboard, and bake sumac brownie cookies, all while creating a welcoming vibe. Co-Presented with OneTable. Recipes here.
6:00pm ET
ShirLaLa’s Shabbat Table: Soul-filled Play for Kids and Families from Candles to Kiddush
Join ShirLaLa and The Great Big Jewish Food Fest to set your table this Shabbat! All are invited for that special only-on-Shabbat feeling that comes from being together and sharing in this sweet tradition. Gather 'round for heart and soul-filled play from candles to kiddush.
Saturday, May 23
All Day
Family programs, activities, & amazing anytime content to explore
Check out our Anytime Content
9:00 p.m. ET
Unorthodox — Live Podcast Taping
Unorthodox is a smart, fresh, fun weekly take on Jewish news and culture hosted by Mark Oppenheimer, Stephanie Butnick, and Liel Leibovitz, and produced by Tablet. Join us for a live recording of the podcast.
10:15 p.m. ET
Jewish Ritual: A Spicy (East Coast) Havdalah
Join master spice blender Lior Lev Sercarz as he walks us through how to make our own special besamim blend (spices for Havdalah) from our pantries and talks about the Jewish connection to spices. The spice workshop will be followed by a special Havdalah celebration led by Jewish musician, Michelle Citrin.
11:30 p.m. ET
Jewish Ritual: A Spicy (West Coast) Havdalah
Join master spice blender Lior Lev Sercarz as he walks us through how to make our own special besamim blend (spices for Havdalah) from our pantries and talks about the Jewish connection to spices. The spice workshop will be followed by a special Havdalah celebration led by Rabbi Keilah Lebell of IKAR in Los Angeles.
Sunday, May 24
11 a.m. ET
The Table: Stripped Down. Lessons from our Tradition on the Practice of Hospitality
In Temple times, the Shulchan -- a special table for preparing, serving, and sharing meals with Gd -- was central to Jewish worship. Today, the Shulchan remains at the center of the Tradition. In this session with Chef, Shochet, and Rabbinical Student Jonathan Posner, we will explore the prominence of the table in Jewish thought, and what our legacy as hospitality practitioners is or ought to be.
12:30 p.m. ET
In the Kitchen: Mexican Brunch with Fany Gerson
Join beloved chef Fany Gerson as she teaches us all how to prepare a Mexican brunch of roasted tomato-harissa chilaquiles. She'll also talk about growing up in the Jewish community of Mexico City and how it informs the flavors of her cooking. Stay tuned for the recipe, so you can cook along with Fany. Recipes here.
4:00 p.m. ET
The Shtetl Pantry of Your Dreams with The Gefilteria, a Live Cooking Demo
No supermarket? No problem. Authors of The Gefilte Manifesto, Liz Alpern and Jeffrey Yoskowitz, will teach you to prepare your own Ashkenazi pantry staples from schmaltz to vinegar to farmers cheese. They'll also share some incredible and inspiring dishes you can make once your pantry is stocked. Bring your questions, comments and curiosity to this DIY deep dive. Co-presented with the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research. Recipes here.
5:30 p.m. ET
Great Big Film Series: Q&A with Creators of Abe
In the tween drama “Abe,” a 12-year-old boy (Noah Schnapp, from “Stranger Things”) tries to unite the Palestinian Muslim and Israeli Jewish sides of his family through fusion food. Released April, 2020. Join us for a discussion with the creators about the power of food, identity and more.
Co-Presented with Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan
Monday, May 25
11:00 a.m. ET
FOODLES! – (Food Doodles) for Kids and Families with author/cartoonist Alan Silberberg
Join author/cartoonist Alan Silberberg for a hands-on demo of how to turn your favorite Jewish nosh into fun food doodles. Latkes. Matzah. Hamentaschen. Grab some paper and your favorite drawing stuff and follow along while Alan shows you how to make a goofy gefilte fish...and more! Co-Presented with PJ Library
1:00 p.m. ET
Food Tech: Shaping The Future of Plant Based Cooking
In a first of its kind event facilitated by ACT Innovation Hub and connecting the culinary and foodtech worlds, renowned Chef Asaf Granit will meet with food tech founders for a talk technology challenges and vision, and then he'll cook with the new tech plant-based products on camera. Granit will meet with Redefine Meat, a developer of 3D printed Alternative Meat, and Green Onyx, the producers of the nutrient-rich Khai-Nam vegetable superfood. Granit will cook some of his best-known dishes that have become synonymous with modern Israeli fine dining, including deconstructed kabab and Persian greens beef stew. With roots in Jerusalem’s street food, cooked at Redefine Meat’s R&D-kitchen, join Chef Granit as he unravels a mix of experimentation, ideation, and vision for a healthy sustainable future of food with each bite. With thanks to The ACT Hub for hosting this session.
For The ACT Innovation Hub newsletter, sign up here.
3:00 p.m. ET
Tea Time: Celebrating Claudia Roden’s Culinary Legacy with Claudia Roden
Roden's work as an author, recipe developer, and vivid storyteller has shined a light on lesser known culinary corners, including with her watershed cookbook, The Book of Jewish Food. Her work celebrates the global nature of Jewish cuisine, setting the stage for the next generation of writers, chefs, and home cooks. Join Claudia and cookbook author Leah Koenig for an intimate teatime conversation that explores Claudia's incomparable influence on Jewish culinary scholarship and cooking today.
5:00 p.m. ET
Cocktails with a Conscience: Adapting Food Justice Work to a Pandemic Scale
The hunger epidemic has changed in the face of the current global pandemic and communities and organizations are being forced to adapt. Come with a cocktail of your choice as Repair the World moderates a conversation among leaders who are creatively adapting to meet the growing need.
8:30 P.M. ET
Restaurants and Chefs During COVID-19
The hospitality industry is reeling in the face of the pandemic, but chefs and restaurateurs have hardly been waiting things out quietly. Join us for a check-in with industry leaders as they share their journeys over the past few weeks of feeding the most needy, supporting their staffs, and knocking on the doors of Capitol Hill. Guests tuning in are requested (but not required) to make an $18 contribution to the James Beard Foundation Food and Beverage Industry Relief Fund, which offers micro-grants to independent restaurants and food businesses. Co-Presented with the James Beard Foundation
Tuesday, May 26
11:00 a.m. ET
Roundtable: Welcome to Foodish
Join this introduction to Beit Hatfutsot’s new program, Foodish, that tells the story of Global Jewish food, identity and Peoplehood through food. Moderated by Alana Newhouse.
2:00 p.m. ET
In the Kitchen: A Very Roman Holiday with Leah Koenig, Live Cooking Demo
Rome is home to one of Europe's oldest and most delicious Jewish cuisines. Shaped by centuries of hardship and tightly-bound community, la cucina Ebraica Romana (the Roman Jewish kitchen) is defined by its elegant approach to vegetables, saucy braised meats, love of small and briny fishes, and masterclass level of skill for frying foods in olive oil. Join celebrated cookbook author Leah Koenig for an online cooking class highlighting some of Rome's best dishes. Recipes will be available before the class (stay tuned), so students can pick up ingredients. Recipes here.
5:30 P.M. ET
Preserving Your Family’s Culinary Heritage with Jewish Food Society
Family recipes carry with them the marrow of who we are as individuals and as a people. They reveal where we’ve been, how we celebrate, mourn, endure, and love. Learn how to document your family’s treasured recipes and the history behind them in this workshop with the Jewish Food Society. The team behind this innovative archive will offer guidance on interviewing family members, how to translate recipes that say “a pinch of this, and a bissel of that” into a polished keepsake for generations to come, and discuss why family recipes matter more than ever right now.
Wednesday, May 27
11:00 a.m. ET
The Dairy Restaurant
In the new graphic novel The Dairy Restaurant, author and illustrator Ben Katchor retells the history of where we choose to eat—a history that starts with the first man who was allowed to enter a walled garden and encouraged by the garden’s owner to enjoy its fruits. Join us for a conversation with Ben Katchor and writer and specialist in food culture and immigrant history Lara Rabinovitch, led by Eddy Portnoy, YIVO’s Academic Advisor and Director of Exhibitions and author of Bad Rabbi and Other Strange but True Stories from the Yiddish Press. This is event is co-presented with the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research.
1:30 p.m. ET
Kashrut, Social Distancing and Its Discontents
The biblical command to "not cook a kid in its mother's milk" has, over the centuries, expanded into a complex system of Kashrut policies that have been described in countless ways, some good, some not-so-good. But what, in the end, is the purpose of Kashrut? Is it about Jews staying separate from the rest of the world? Is it about mindful food practice? As mealtime has become more physically isolated, might the realities of social distancing help us re-translate an ancient and complicated historical tradition into modern spiritual-social terms? All texts will be available in English, and beginners are welcome! With UJA-Federation NY scholar-in-Residence Rabbi Menachem Creditor
3:00 p.m. ET
Virtual Cookbook Tour: Perusing an Extraordinary Cookbook Collection
Join scholars Barbara Kirshenblatt-Gimblett and Darra Goldstein as they wax poetic about cookbook during a voyeuristic look at their prized cookbook collections. Barbara has been collecting out of print treasures and books from overseas for decades. The two will pore over a few choice selections from Barbara's impressive collection and Darra will share a few of her own favorites from her special collection, as well.
Co-Presented with The Jewish Book Council
8:30 P.M. ET
Jewish Cooking in America Past and Present with Joan Nathan and Ruth Reichl
More than 25 years after its release, Joan Nathan’s cookbook Jewish Cooking in America remains an icon and a foundation for many Jewish cooks and authors. Since its release, much in the Jewish kitchen has changed — but not everything. Join Joan and acclaimed author and former Gourmet editor Ruth Reichl for a lively discussion about Jewish cooking in America both yesterday and today.
This event is presented in partnership with JCCSF
Thursday, May 28
11 a.m. ET
Harvest Blessings: A Playful Storytime for Young Children with Amy Meltzer
Join author Amy Meltzer for an interactive storytime featuring her new PJ Library book, Harvest Blessings. We'll sing, we'll play, and we'll learn about how we can grow food in our homes and apartments. We'll end with a special Shavuot recipe and craft. Co-Presented with PJ LIbrary
1 p.m. ET
The Great Big Jewish Cooking Challenge With Molly Yeh
Join Food Network star Molly Yeh as she hosts a virtual cooking competition with a Jewish twist. Using pantry staples, three chefs will use their skill, creativity and resourcefulness to master the quarantine kitchen. Chefs Zoë Kanan, Zoe Komarin and Yos Schwartz will be asked to draw on their own Jewish heritages to create a dish that will wow Molly and her fellow judge, Natasha Feldman (Nosh with Tash).