There is a great conversation going in the Healthy Cooking and Eating Message Board about cooking for large groups, like REALLY large groups like 100-300 people at one time.  It is a challenge for caterers to do this successfully, and it is an even more daunting task for a home cook.  Here’s the challenge.  Recipes need to be: easy healthy economical appealing to a wide group of people prepared in a small space completed with limited equipment (roasters and small ovens) The first idea that comes to mind is cooking...

Tags: Jill Bloomfield, cooking large groups, budget, economical, church dinner

I used to work at a large organization that had something called “Paychecks and Doughnuts” every other Friday.  The event brought people from all different departments together in a large room where coffee, doughnuts, and direct deposit slips or live pay checks were available.  In the middle of the room was a long, long, long conference table, literally covered with doughnuts—the most I had ever seen in one place.  People really looked forward to “Paychecks and Doughnuts," I think, because it simply offered something fun and sweet to look forward to, which I think we all need. One of my favorite blogs is called ...

Tags: cake, doughnuts, Jill Bloomfield, waffles, BettyCrocker.com, Pictures of Cake

There is a famous and often quoted line said by Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin, a famous French food expert from the 18th century that seems especially relevant during the holiday season: “Tell me what you eat and I'll tell you who you are.”  Traditional foods that are mainstays of family celebrations often tell us a lot about who we are and where we came from. What I find very interesting is the way that different cultures sometimes intersect and how the traditions of different groups can sometimes be very similar.  The holidays are a great time to share our traditions with other people.  I love that my sweet little niece learned about Hanukkah this week ...

Tags: doughnuts, hanukkah, jelly, Jill Bloomfield, pillsbury biscuit

If you have been in the holiday candy aisle of any store, you’ve probably seen chocolate gelt—chocolate disks wrapped in foil to look like coins, usually in a mesh bag.  These candies are a fun part of Hanukkah. The word gelt means “money” in the Yiddish language, and at Hanukkah, children traditionally received coins as a gift.  Coins are needed to play dreidel, a game traditionally associated with Hanukkah.  A dreidel is a top with four sides, and each side has a Hebrew letter on it.  Dreidel is a game of chance played with at least two people.  In addition to a dreidel, each player needs 15 coins (at my house we use Cheerios, but...

Tags: chocolate, Cookie, sugar cookie dough, bake, celebration, chanukkah, dreidel, gelt, hanukkah, Jill Bloomfield

Whether you spend your weeks clocking in long hours at work, schlepping the kids to and from soccer practice, or both, the days just seem to fly exhaustingly by.  Throw keeping the house clean and getting dinner on the table at a reasonable hour and one thing is certain—time is at a premium.  I am always looking for ways to make my life easier; I like to use that extra time I free up doing things I enjoy.  Sounds good, right? Having written a cookbook on Jewish foods and traditions, most people are surprised when I admit that I dread making latkes, the fancy ...

Tags: chanukkah, easy, fry, hanukkah, holidays, Jill Bloomfield, Julienne Potatoes, latkes, oil