Food - Jewish Specialties - Egg Cream to Karpas

An egg cream is a classic New York City beverage consisting of chocolate syrup, milk, and seltzer (soda water), probably dating from the late 19th century, and is especially associated with Brooklyn. It contains neither eggs nor cream. The name is probably derived from the white frothy head on the drink, which resembles whipped egg whites.

Though almost universally made with chocolate syrup, they were sometimes requested with other flavors, especially vanilla or strawberry.

The egg cream is almost exclusively a fountain drink; although there have been several attempts to bottle it none have been wholly successful, as its fresh taste and characterisic head requires mixing of the ingredients just before drinking. The drink could be described as a "poor-man's ice cream soda," as it has a similar overall flavor, but traditionally sold for only a slight premium over an ordinary fountain soda.

Farfel (from Middle High German varveln) means noodles, shaped like small grains, granules or pellets.

falafel and farafella have different origins.

Gefilte fish is a ground fish recipe, popular with people of Ashkenazi Jewish heritage. Formally, it is a type of quenelle, a delicately flavored patty made of lightly seasoned ground fish or white meat. Similar dishes exist in many cultures in local recipes bland or spicy, served plain or sauced, and cooked in simple broth or as part of an elaborate fish stew.

Goulash (Gulyás in Hungarian, which originates from the word "gulya" meaning herd of cattle; Croatian gulaš, German gulasch, Polish gulasz, Romanian: gulaş) is a food originated in Hungary. In some regions of the United States, the term goulash can be used interchangeably with hot dish and casserole.

Goulash is made of beef, onions, capsicum and paprika powder.

It is hard to find a good gulyás in Hungary, and it is close to impossible to get one outside Hungary - unless of course you are invited to a family's house who knows how to cook it properly. What people now - incorrectly - refer to as "original hungarian goulash" could be anything containing beef and various vegetables, sour cream or any kind of pasta. Naturally, these show no real similarities to Hungarian Gulyás. The Hungarian gulyás is most accurately defined as a soup and the food that most people outside of Hungary call goulash is really closer to the Hungarian Pörkölt (called stew in English).

Gulyás is much easier to cook and requires less attention, thus it fits occasions when there are many hungry people and a busy cook.

Basically, it is a paprika-powder soup or broth, flavoured with sliced onions and capsicum, with beef. Caraway seeds are also added for extra flavour, and is highly recommended by Hungarian cook-books. The onions and capsicum are first sautéd, then paprika-powder is added and fried for a short time along with the caraway seeds. Then water is added. Chopped beef - preferably rump-steak, but any kind is suitable - is then added to the cold-water mixture, and then the whole lot is gently raised the boil, and is then simmered for at least a few hours.

Occasionally, one might read a recipe book, or see a chef on television purporting to know how to cook real goulash. Often these "chefs" will be seen adding tomatoes to the mixture, browning the meat first, adding stock-cubes or even thickening the mixture with flour! All these methods however, are in-fact completely incorrect and are to be avoided.

Finally, it is also common, especially among German varieties of goulash, to add what are known as knoedeln. Essentially, these are what are known as dumplings in English recipes, but aren't as big and 'fluffy'. Where a mixture of flour, egg, salt and a tiny bit of milk are made into a paste, and in small amounts, spooned into the boiling goulash. One extra element may be added; that being potato, which still is sticking within the bounds of tradition.

Halva (modern English spelling), halava (Sanskrit transliteration), halvah (Hebrew transliteration), halawi (Arabic transliteration), helva (Turkish transliteration) or halwa (alternate Hindi transliteration) is a confection made from semolina. Originally from India, the recipe spread throughout West Asia, the Balkans and the Mediterranean, while being adjusted to the local taste of each region. Such is the variation, that the only ingredients common to all recipes are semolina, sugar and possibly cardamom. Most recipes include butter, though some substitute vegetable oil. Most South Asian recipes include pistachios; most Mediterranean varieties sesame instead. Raisins, dates or other dried fruits are common, though not essential.

In addition to cardamom, halava is often flavored with nutmeg, cinnamon, saffron and/or rosewater.

A hamantasch (also spelled hamentash, homentasch, homentash, pluralized with -en) is a cookie in Jewish cuisine recognizable for its 3-cornered shape. It is eaten during the Jewish holiday of Purim. Traditional fillings are poppy seeds (Yiddish mon) or prune, but they are made with many different flavors, including date or apricot. For children, parents sometimes make chocolate-filled hamantaschen.

Hamantaschen are generally made by rolling the dough thin, cutting it into circles (of various sizes), placing filling in the center, and folding in three sides. The dough is generally a cookie dough, usually made with non-dairy products, with orange juice and/or rind added. Sometimes a yeast dough is used instead.

The hamantasch symbolizes the three-cornered hat that Haman wore.

It is thought that they were originally called mon-taschen (Yiddish "poppy seed pockets") but modern legend has it that Haman, the villain of Purim, wore a triangular hat. In Israel, they are called Oznei Haman (Hebrew for "Haman's ears").

Charoset or charoses is a sweet, lumpy paste served during the Passover Seder. Known in Jewish cuisine, it is a favorite of children, some people believe it is the tastiest thing eaten during the holiday. The consistency is intended to remind those participating in the Seder of the bricks and mortar their ancestors made as slaves in Ancient Egypt.

There are as many recipes for charoset as there are Jewish families, but a typical recipe from the Eastern European (or Ashkenazi) tradition would include crushed nuts, apples, cinnamon, sweet wine, and honey. Recipes in the Sephardic tradition usually includes raisins and may also include ingredients native to the Middle East, such as figs, dates, and sesame.

Karpas is one of the traditional rituals in the Passover Seder. It refers to dipping a vegetable in some liquid and eating it. Vegetables used include potatoes, celery, parsley, radishes and others. The liquid may be any of the seven which make food capable of becoming ritually impure, although salt-water or vinegar are usually used.

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