shabbat questions for beginners, round two - music, candles, menu - Page 2

[SaraFR]

Originally Posted by smeisnotapirate

I don't have a white tablecloth either!

We use white but we use a cover over it.

[doubledutch]

i did end up with a couple pale blue-grey stains which i think will sun out - not when it's hanging in the basement because it's 7 degrees outside, but eventually. the tablecloth, and the little piece of embroidery i used as a challah cover (over a pair of sad dinner rolls), belonged to my grandmother. i've never used them. it was nice to have a good reason to pull them out.

i also never use her china, now have a reason to, but also a reason not to - because i read that "valuable" china may sometimes be kashered by dipping three times in boiling water, if it hasn't been used for at least a year, so i feel like i should wait to use it in case i decide to kasher my kitchen. and why wouldn't i? but i don't know if sentimental value counts - i doubt her dishes would be considered valuable in any other sense.

rambling.

[Faliciagayle]

7 degrees? You must be my neighbor We use a couple white tablecloths - whichever one is the least stained that week! My favorite one was our chuppah, which is currently soaking (still) as I try to get a giant curry stain out of it. sigh.

I don't know about the china. Our set (from our wedding) has always been used for meat. I am inheriting 3 sets (great gradmas, grandmas, and my moms) and I have no idea how to kasher them... but I don't want to give them away. My Ggrandmas and grandmas were probably kosher till my mom got a hold of them

[doubledutch]

northeast wisconsin? we *are* practically neighbors! couple hours away here in duluth.

having a kosher kitchen would be easy for me, as a vegetarian. it would almost be too easy! the hard part is what to do when i'm not home. mom's house, dad's house, brother's house . . . restaurants? sigh.

i'm getting ahead of myself. for now, i just need to get over my shyness or whatever it is that keeps me from going to services. i keep thinking i need to learn more and be more prepared, which i know is silly, but i can't help it. who would want to walk into any situation without know what she's supposed to do or say? it's so much less scary to practice at home - and in the car! singing along with the cd i burned off itunes is helpful. i'm getting more comfortable going 'ch'.

[Anna06]

subbing............

I know so little, this has been very helpful. Thanks

[Faliciagayle]

Originally Posted by doubledutch

northeast wisconsin? we *are* practically neighbors! couple hours away here in duluth.

having a kosher kitchen would be easy for me, as a vegetarian. it would almost be too easy! the hard part is what to do when i'm not home. mom's house, dad's house, brother's house . . . restaurants? sigh.

It's supposed to get REALLY cold again this week. ::

This doesn't work for everyone, but I am personally fine with eating vegetarian and fish meals outside of my home. I began keeping kosher when I was also vegetarian, and it does make the initial transition much easier. I've reintroduced meat into my diet (::: ahem, sorry ) though I won't eat meat at a (non kosher) restaurant or non kosher meat at a friends/relatives house.

We are lucky that both sets of parents are understanding about our requirements and have done their best to furnish us with plates/utensils/etc to use when we visit. At Thanksgiving whomever is hosting goes to the extra expense to buy a kosher bird and DH, DD, and I avoid the dairy side dishes. Super strictly kosher? No. But okay for us now where we are.

Our daughter's name has the Hebrew Kh/Ch sound. At Chanukkah we said "Chappy Chanukah Ch***!!!" It was amusing.

[StarJune]

Originally Posted by doubledutch

thanks for being so helpful with all my questions - here are my boys being as patient as humanly possible at our first (quite humble with the jam jars for glasses) shabbat table:

http://i43.tinypic.com/24b9jt1.jpg

I love your shabbat table. I took a pic of my first one too.

[imbarefoot]

http://www.biblicalholidays.com/Sabb...in_sabbath.htm
http://www.biblicalholidays.com/Sabb...sh_customs.htm

Those would be a couple places I would check out first, on what exactly to do. We tend to throw something in the crock pot on Friday and eat that for dinner Friday night and Saturday night, after we get home from Shabbat. We eat Challah Fri night, Sat morning, and Sat night.

I'm a vegetarian too, but the good news is most congregations will not serve shellfish or pork. I always bring a vegetarian or vegan dish to Oneg and there are usually many options for me to eat still. During Biblical Holidays, I always google "Passover Vegetarian meals" or "Hannakuh Vegan meals" and you get many options.

I hope that helps and good luck on your journey!

[imbarefoot]

A few more links...this is the Shema http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Scr...the_shema.html

I also like Paul Wilbur http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ra4HWj1jrJA

Here's some links for Shabbat candles, etc http://www.menorah.com/catalog2/shop...20&cat=Shabbat http://www.judaism.com/giftware/shabbat.asp

[doubledutch]

this week we did a grey table cloth with purple flowers to go with the lavender candles ds1 (3.5 years and in love with pink, purple, butterflies, flowers and rainbows) picked out. it's so nice! it's the only meal in the week (so far) when we all sit down with total quiet (usually have music on), with a tablecloth, and with nothing to hurry and do "next".

[Magelet]

I had a most unusual and wonderful shabbat last week(this week). I was at a conference and wasn't sure how I'd celebrate at all, but when I mentioned this to a young woman I was hanging out with, she said she had had the same fear, so we decided to celebrate shabbat together. When it came time to light the candles, it was a messianic jew, the israeli daughter of an orthodox rabbi and a secular woman, a sort of messianic jew, a woman who wanted to know what it was like, and me, in my jewish without much knowledge self. The israeli woman sang the blessing over the candles in the most beautiful way.

Then hours later, when we went to bless the bread and juice (it was funny, when Jessica and I said we had juice, the older woman there was like "why juice, why not wine". We were like "ummm because we're both underage and can't legally buy wine?" lol), it was me, two young (aka 19-early 20s) messianic jews one of whom had been there before, the sort of messianic jew, and several non-jewish women who wanted to see the ritual. also, we were doing it in their hotel room at 1 am. one of the messianic women "led" it.

It was interesting doing shabbat with people with such varied backgrounds, traditions and beliefs, and interesting seeing how other people do shabbat. I LOVED the way Marva did the blessing, I want to learn to sing the blessings like that. And I liked the way Amanda talked about the symbolism of having two candles, even if it was all symbolism I agree with. Some of it was. And it was wonderful sharing shabbat with these wonderful women, who are so very different from me, a reminder that we really are all the same, and no matter what we call Him/Her/it/Them, the divine is all the same. (I'm sure many people disagree, that's my belief.)

[AngelBee]

:

[~Boudicca~]

Originally Posted by zinemama

I always bake my challah on Friday. I make the dough in the morning before taking the kids to school so it has plenty of time to rise twice. I experimented with a lot of challah recipes before deciding this one was the best:

1/2 + 1/3 cup warm water
2 tsp yeast
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup oil
2 tsp. salt
3 eggs, beaten
4 and 1/2 cups (approx!) flour
poppy or sesame seeds

Mix yeast and sugar into warm water. (In the bowl of a kitchenaid mixer if you have one).
Add oil, salt and eggs (reserve about a tablespoon of beaten egg for brushing loaves).
Add one cup of the flour.
Let all this sit for 10 minutes. (I know, it seems counterintuitive to mix all this up without letting the yeast foam first, but trust me).

Put dough hook on the mixer. Add 3 cups of flour and start mixing. Add as much more flour as you need until a ball of dough forms that isn't sticky.

Coat with oil and let rise till doubled. (Time depends on warmth of your house)
Divide dough in half. Divide each half in thirds and braid. Place on baking sheet.
Let braided loaves rise again till puffy.
Brush with egg and sprinkle with seeds.
Bake at 350 for 15 minutes, then check. Turn and bake for 5 more minutes.

Do not overbake! Not overbaking is the secret to moist, rich, yummy challah!

I'm not Jewish but I have always wanted to make Challah so I used your recipe and it rocks!

[zinemama]

Why, thank you! I'm so glad it worked out for you.

[flminivanmama]

zinemama - I just wanted to post that yours is now the challah recipe we use... thanks!!!

[zinemama]

Thanks for letting me know, Andrea! I'm so glad it's working out for folks.

(I'm actually making naan tonight instead.)