I (Jane Mark Moritz) want to extend my warmest thanks to all of you who have so kindly sent their condolences regarding the death of my Dad, Julian S. Mark. My father was truly an amazing man. Here is his complete obituary:

Commando, Captain, Football Player, Dentist And One Great Poppi
Dr. Julian S. Mark died on August 6, 2010 in Stamford, CT. He was 87 years old and died of natural causes.

Born on July 31, 1923 in New York City, the son of the late Harry and Pauline Mark, he received his B.S. from Tufts University in 1945. He served in the U.S. Navy during World War II as a Naval Scout Officer—the forerunner of the Navy Seals—completing a reconnaissance mission of an amphibious landing area on an island off the coast of Okinawa, ten days prior to the U.S. landing.
Stabbed in his proverbial “stern” during one night time pre-landing patrol, he was unaware of his wound until he was making a verbal report to the beach commander back at his ship.

Later, as commander of a Navy landing ship off-loading supplies and men in Vietnam following the end of the Pacific War, he and a fellow officer on shore leave were surrounded by Vietnamese guerillas who mistook them for French Naval Officers. Ironically they avoided death by shouting “American, American.”

After the war, he played football for the NFL’s Chicago Cardinals (now the Arizona Cardinals) during the 1946 season. He earned $250 per game, money he put towards Dental School. Mark left the team when a spot opened up for him at Georgetown University School of Dentistry, where he was also a part-time assistant foot ball coach.

Although he had an imposing 6’7’’ athletic frame, he was known as much for his engaging charm and warmth.
Dr. Mark came to Stamford with his wife, Rebecca Mark, in 1950 after graduating from Georgetown Dental School. He retired two years ago.

Once during the 1960’s, Stamford Democrats ran him for Congress against a strong incumbent Republican. As he called it, it was strictly a straw dog candidacy.

A man who strongly believed that every human being could make a difference, he devoted much of his time to education and social service. In addition to spending 34 years as an instructor and an assistant professor at the post graduate School of Dentistry at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, he was appointed by Governor John Dempsey to be the Dental Advisor to the Connecticut Commission of the Mentally Retarded from 1954-1956, campaign chairman of the Stamford Jewish Federation, a director of the Stamford Jewish Center, a director of Jewish Family Services and a director of the Aid for the Retarded. He was a volunteer dentist of the Catholic Medical Mission serving for one month at a time in Jamaica, Haiti, Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador and Nicaragua. He was also a volunteer dentist in Israel on two occasions and in Byblos, Lebanon served as the dental paleontologist with a distinguished group of archaeologists.

For the past 43 years he had also been an alumni interviewer for students applying to Georgetown University. At age 80, he began a new career as a hospice volunteer at the Visiting Nurses Association.

In addition to his wife to whom he was married for 62 years, he is survived by 5 children; 3 daughters, Susan Mark Hamlin of Los Gatos, California, Stephanie Mark of Stamford, Jane Mark Moritz of Westport, Connecticut and 2 sons, Andrew Mark of New York City and Joshua Mark of Jerusalem, Israel. He is survived by 13 grandchildren nobly named Amanda Brady, Nathaniel Hamlin, Kathy Hamlin, Rachel and David Mark, Sam, Harry and Michael Moritz, Orly, Talia, Aharoni and Aliza Mark and William Malkevich; daughter and son-in-laws Betsy Devine, Marina Malkevich, Chris Hamlin, and Joshua Moritz; nephew Martin Teicher and neice Carol Kupferman.

Funeral services were held on Sunday, August 8, 2010 at Agudath Shalom Synagogue chapel, 301 Strawberry Hill Ave. in Stamford at 2PM and burial was at the Agudath Shalom Cemetary on West Hill Road.

It all began last Monday at our Passover Seder. Among the 18 people was Elaine, George and their daughter Alanna—our close friends who are Russian Orthodox (George) and Italian/Polish/Catholic (Elaine). We have developed a tradition of sharing each others holidays because it seems that our love of great food transcends all.

For our seder, my mother was cooking all of the main courses, including Elaine’s favorite dish: my mom’s brisket. Before Monday, Elaine was asking me questions like “how many pounds is she making?” and “would anyone notice if I gorged myself on it and then snuck a Tupperware filled with it?” I wasn’t watching closely, but I think she did pretty well that night.

This past Saturday, husband Josh, 14 year old Mike and I, left our house at 11pm to celebrate Russian Easter with George, Elaine and the rest of their family. The evening began with church, followed by vodka shots and a feast starting around 1:30 am. Lots of fun and great eating ensued and all the while me thinking: “not sure how many more days my body can sustain this eating….”

Yesterday, after a great hike with my soon-to-be-high-school-graduate Harry, I was lying on the couch reading a book when Elaine called:
-”want to walk the dogs?”
-”no, already hiked 2 hours and have to finish this book”
-”You know, oh-brisket-lover, I heard about a really easy brisket recipe that I am planning to use for my upcoming “Jewish Meal for 50 Frat Boys.” All you do is spread ketchup all over the top of the brisket, sprinkle it with Lipton Onion soup mix, add enough water to fill the baking dish halfway up the brisket, tent foil over it and bake at 350 for 3-4 hours. Slice at the end.”
-”Perfect”, Elaine replied. “Easy and quick. Would you buy me a brisket when you buy yours this week?”
-”Sure.”
-”You sure you don’t want to walk?”
-”No but I’ll make you a deal: bring me some of the kulich and paskha from last night along with a piece of the pistachio cake you made for the seder and I’ll give you the VERY LAST piece of brisket I have.”
-Deal.

15 minutes later: Nosh on wheels arrived and I scored pistachio cake (which was better today, after having been frozen for 5 days) along with kulich and paskha. I left shortly after for my parents, to return the borrowed soup bowls and other cooking paraphernalia. I brought them kulich and paska, which they had never had before but like me, loved. It’s the Cross Cultural Nosh on Wheels!

RECIPES: All of these are DELICIOUS!!
Paskha, From Whats4Eats.com: Paskha is a pyramid-shaped confection that is served for Easter in the Eastern Orthodox homes of Russia, Belarus and Ukraine and also in Poland and Lithuania. Similar in taste to a cheesecake without the crust, paskha is traditionally spread on slices of kulich, a sweet Easter bread.

6 to 8 servings
• Farmer’s cheese (see variations) — 2 pounds
• Unsalted butter, room temperature — 1/2 pound (2 sticks)
• Sugar — 1 1/2 cups
• Egg yolks, hard-cooked — 6
• Heavy cream — 1 cup
• Blanched almonds, finely ground — 1/2 cup
• Lemon zest, finely chopped — 2 tablespoons
• Vanilla — 1 1/2 teaspoons
• Raisins — 1/4 cup

Method
1. Drain farmer’s cheese overnight in a fined-meshed sieve or through several layers of cheesecloth. After the cheese has drained, press it through a medium-meshed sieve once or twice to break up the curds and make it light and fluffy. Set aside.
2. Add the butter and sugar to the bowl of a standing mixer and beat together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 4 to 5 minutes. Beat in the egg yolks one at a time.
3. Reduce speed to medium low and beat in the farmer’s cheese, heavy cream, almonds, lemon zest and vanilla.
4. Line a pashka mold or a clean terracotta flowerpot with cheesecloth that has been rinsed with water and squeezed dry. Fill the mold or pot with the cheese mixture. Place a lid or a small plate on top of the mold and set a weight on top. Place the mold in a bowl to catch any liquid and refrigerate for at least 12 hours.
5. Unmold the paskha onto a serving plate and use the raisins to decorate the sides.

Kulich, from whatsforeats.com Kulich is a tall, cylindrical sweet bread that is served for Easter in Russia, Ukraine and Belarus. It is traditionally paired with paskha, above. The two confections are taken to church on Easter Sunday to be blessed by the local priest. Then for the Easter meal, slices of kulich are spread with paskha and eaten. If you don’t have a kulich mold, you will need a 2-pound coffee can for this recipe.

6 to 8 servings
Dough:
• Milk — 1/2 cup
• Sugar — 1/2 cup
• Unsalted butter, room temperature — 8 tablespoons
• Salt — 1 teaspoon
• Lukewarm (110°F) water — 1/4 cup
• Active dry yeast — 1 (1/4-ounce) package
• Flour — 4 cups
• Eggs, beaten — 2
• Egg yolks, beaten — 2
• Cardamom — 2 teaspoons
• Vanilla — 1 teaspoon
• Golden raisins — 1/2 cup
• Raisins or chopped candied fruit — 1/4 cup
Glaze:
• Powdered (confectioner’s) sugar — 1 cup
• Heavy cream — 3 tablespoons
• Vanilla — 1/2 teaspoon
Method
1. Add the milk, sugar, butter and salt to a saucepan and heat, stirring until the butter is melted and the sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and set aside to cool to lukewarm.
2. Mix the 1/4 cup lukewarm water and yeast together in a small bowl and set aside for 5 to 10 minutes to activate the yeast.
3. Add 3 1/2 cups of the flour to large mixing bowl. Make a well in the center of the flour and add the yeast mixture, warm milk-butter-sugar mixture, the eggs, yolks, cardamom and vanilla. Stir with a wooden spoon to mix the ingredients and bring the dough together. Toss the golden raisins with a little flour and stir into the dough.
4. Remove the dough to a floured work surface and knead, adding extra flour as needed, until the dough is no longer sticking to your hands and is silky and elastic. Remove the dough to a large, lightly oiled bowl. Cover with a clean towel or plastic wrap and set in a warm corner until doubled in size, about 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
5. Preheat oven to 400°F. Grease a kulich pan or a 2-pound coffee can. Remove the dough to a lightly floured work surface and punch it down with your fists to deflate it. Place the dough in the prepared baking pan and cover with greased plastic wrap. Set aside to rise for another 30 to 45 minutes, or until the dough reaches the top of the pan.
6. Remove the plastic wrap and place the pan on a baking sheet. Put the baking sheet in the oven and bake for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 350°F and bake for another 35 to 40 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and the bread sounds hollow when tapped.
7. Let the kulich cool in its pan for 20 minutes, then carefully remove it from the pan. To glaze, mix the the powdered sugar, cream and vanilla together in a small bowl. Pour the glaze over the top of the kulich while it is still a little warm, letting it drizzle down the sides. Use the raisins or candied fruit to decorate the top with an Orthodox cross or with the Cyrillic letters XB, which stand for “Christ is risen.”
8. To serve your kulich, cut off the rounded crown and set it aside. Cut the loaf in half vertically, then set the halves on their sides and cut into half-moon slices. Replace the crown to keep any remaining bread moist.
Variations
• If you don’t have a 2-pound coffee can, you can use two smaller coffee or juice cans instead. The baking time will be reduced due to the smaller sizes.
• In addition to the golden raisins, chopped nuts or candied fruit can also be kneaded into the dough.

Almond Cake With Cardamom and Pistachio, from New York Times
1/2 cup vegetable oil, plus additional for pan
7 large eggs, separated
3 cups almonds
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon matzo meal
2 teaspoons ground cardamom
1 tablespoon almond extract
Confectioners’ sugar (kosher for Passover), for dusting
Finely chopped pistachio nuts, for garnish.
1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Oil a 9-inch bundt pan or a 9-inch square pan and set aside. Using a stand mixer, whisk egg whites until stiff but not dry, and set aside.
2. Using a large food processor, pulse almonds until very finely ground, stirring once or twice to prevent them from turning into a paste. In a medium bowl, combine egg yolks and sugar, and whisk to blend. Add ground almonds, matzo meal and cardamom. Add almond extract and 1/2 cup oil. Gently fold in egg whites.
3. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 50 minutes. Allow to cool for 10 minutes, then remove from pan and finish cooling on a rack. To decorate, dust with confectioners’ sugar and chopped pistachios.
Yield: One 9-inch cake (10 to 12 servings).

Unlike the other elements of the seder plate; roasted egg, bitter herbs, shank bone, parsley and matzo, charoset is the true stand-out. This is one dish where you can let your create juices and personal taste preferences really soar.

Most of us think of charoset, which symbolizes the brick and mortar made by Jews when they were slaves in Egypt, as a simple mixture of apples, walnuts and wine. This is indeed, the traditional Ashkenazi recipe. But given that I am half Sephardic, I have a special yearning for the recipes that include more exotic ingredients such as dates, nuts, ginger and more. In my opinion, these recipes represent a fun opportunity for some real gourmet flair on the seder plate and table.

What I truly appreciate about charoset is that this one small item can bring exciting new flavors as well as history and ethnicity to a meal that tends to be so traditional. Certainly it opens doors for other interesting recipes—and conversation!

Below are some recipes that I am considering for the first seder, this Monday. All are from the outstanding Hadassah Jewish Holiday Cookbook. I plan to make atleast 2 of them and will double or triple recipes so that we can enjoy these healthful holiday treats all week long!

Do you have any favorite charoset recipes? Please post them as a comment to this blog so everyone can share them.

Happy Passover and let’s always remember the sweetness of freedom. We can only hope that someday, everyone will be free.

FAVORITE CHAROSET RECIPES

Yemenite Haroset
10 pitted Dates, chopped
10 Figs, chopped
1 tablespoon sesame seeds
1 tsp ground ginger
Red Wine
Matzah Meal

Combine fruit, sesame seeds and ginger. Add red wine and matza meal to bring it to the consistency you want.

Makes about 2 ½ cups

Israeli Haroset

15 pitted dates, chopped
1 apple, peeled and chopped
3 bananas, mashed
Juice and grated zest of 1 orange
1 cup almonds, chopped
½ cup red wine
1 tsp ground cinnamon
Sugar or honey to taste
Matzah meal, if needed

Combine fruits, nuts, wine, cinnamon and sugar or honey. Add matzo meal to get the consistency you want.

Makes about 6 cups

North African Haroset

½ cup pine nuts, chopped
1 hard-cooked egg yolk, finely chopped
1 apple, peeled and grated
½ cup sugar
½ cup ground almonds
½ cup chopped walnuts
Zest and juice of 1 lemon
Ground cinnamon to taste
Ground ginger to taste
Red wine—add to your desired consistency

Mix all ingredients until mixture comes together. Refrigerate.

Makes about 2 cups

Haroset from Suriname
7 oz package unsweetened shredded coconut
2 cups chopped walnuts
1 ½ cups raisins
1 ½ cups dried apples
1 ½ cups prunes
1 ½ cups dried apricots
1 ½ cups dried pears
¼ cup sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
½ cup cherry jam
Sweet red wine

1. Combine in saucepan all ingredients except cherry jam and wine. Add enough cold water to just cover fruit. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer about 1 ½ hours, stirring occasionally, and adding more water if necessary.
2. Remove from heat; stir in cherry jam. Set aside to cool.
3. Add just enough sweet red wine to be absorbed by the fruit. Refrigerate until well chilled.

Makes about 9 cups

When my son Sam was born, we lived in New York City. I used to take him to the playgrounds in Central Park and it was only a matter of time before Sam would find another kid to build a sandcastle with or join in a game of tag. The great thing about those days was the variety of kids Sam played with, all reflecting the melting pot of New York City.

When Sam moved into a fraternity house this year, his sophomore year, it was like those playground days all over, with Sam becoming friends with a lot of peers from diverse backgrounds. Sam brought his own uniqueness to the mix as the only Jewish kid in his fraternity house.

I suppose it was the Jewish mother in me that relishs sending him packages of challah and holiday goodies to nourish not only his stomach but also his identity. For example, a couple of weeks ago, for Purim, I sent him a big package with one of our Purim Bakery Towers—6 lbs of Hamentashen, rugelach and mini black and whites, along with a Purim Candy Platter and challahs. And I dreaded the day when, in one of our weekly video chats, he’d say, “Mom, enough with Jewish treats!”

Imagine the thrill I got last night when he reported that he and his 14 house mates LOVED the stuff. Not only that, but Sam wants Josh and me to come to the fraternity’s family picnic in May. While visiting, he wants me to cook a “Jewish meal” for the house. He wants to help and thinks maybe some of the other guys will want to, too.

I’m fairly certain Sam has no idea how happy this invitation makes me. He’s an ambassador of Jewish culture by introducing Jewish food and traditions to his housemates. Some of them had never met a Jew before Sam, and now they are loving our culture and traditions (or just free food, and who wouldn’t?). Once again, in my Challah Connection journey, the universe has proven that no matter our religion or our background, no matter if we are from the Middle East, the Midwest, or the Upper West Side, we all come together over food.

Now I am planning what I’m going to cook and where I am going to shop in this small town in Western PA where the greatest shopping attraction is Walmart. So far I am thinking of challah, brisket, latkes, chicken soup, matzo ball soup, and noodle kugel. But first and foremost, I am planning a terrific Passover Gift to send to him—Passover Traditions in a Box–one of our kosher college care packages, along with a Decadent Dark Chocolate Covered Matzo Platter.

What are you sending your Sambassador? Email me and I’ll give you some recommendations.

Happy Jewish Mothering—whether you are a Mom or a Dad!

Jane

We’ve all been there, and it’s not a fun place to be. It’s that point of desperation on the telephone when you’ve tried—and failed—to navigate an online company phone tree. All you wanted was to order a new pair of sneakers for your child. Something went haywire—you pressed the wrong button?—and now you’re about to get a whole shipment of sneakers. You’re reduced to shouting “operator!” Trouble is, no one is listening.

We know how widespread this customer service crisis is—because you, our Challah Connection customers, thank us profusely for just doing our job. When I tell you that we get emails like this everyday, I am not exaggerating:

“I just want to thank you for your help during this difficult time for my friend and her family. I do a lot of online shopping and I have never had such courteous, thoughtful service. I am truly impressed and will definitely use your site in the future. I just pray that it is for a happy occasion. I hope I can rate your service on the web because it is outstanding.”

I really needed this gift fast ….. I appreciate your help in making it happen.”

I have to confess—we love doing our job! We love talking to you, 9 to 6, every day. But thank you for all the kudos! We’re glowing! Now with Valentine’s Day and Purim this month, I look forward to hearing from many of you as you shop for Shalah Manot and Purim gifts for friends, family, colleagues, college kids and more.

But this is what I don’t understand: How is it that our terrific service is so rare? Doesn’t it make good business sense to practice basic customer service skills such as answering the phone, or returning a call at the promised time, or shipping an order as the customer placed it? I know you’ll say that it’s the recession and that companies have cut back. My response is that we lived through the same recession and as a matter of fact our company grew significantly last year. Why? Because 1) we do what we promise 2) our customers come back to us because they know we will and 3) if we make a mistake (which we do as we are only human) we apologize and quickly make it right. Call me a romantic idealist, but I don’t get why every company doesn’t do as we do. It’s just good business.

Now that my rant is complete, let me remind you that we are here for you. No need to “press one” when you’re mourning a loss, rejoicing at the birth of a baby, honoring a colleague, or reminding your college student how much she is loved. We may never understand why the other online companies treat their customers so shabbily but rest assured, we will pick up the phone.

My son Harry is a high school senior and is applying to college. He specifically wants to go to art school. Unlike the rest of the family, he is an incredible artist. All but one of the schools he’s applying to require a portfolio of artwork. This one, Parsons School of Design in NY requires what they call, “The Parsons Challenge”. Basically, this exercise asks the applicant to observe some everyday aspect of their lives that has been overlooked and then to interpret it both visually and in written statements.

Well, it turns out that Harry is doing something that has to do with me, Challah Connection and baking—I guess. He hasn’t told me exactly what aspect of “me” he is focusing on but needless to say, I’m flattered that he feels I’m something of value that’s been unduly overlooked.

For the Challenge, he needs to take pictures of me baking challah. This past Saturday, was finally the day. However, instead of challah he approved a cinnamon bread recipe that we all really love and is much quicker then challah as it doesn’t require a sponge (45 minutes) or 2 risings and then a third after the braiding. It was a beautiful day and I wanted to go for a long walk in the frigid, but sunny weather. Being stuck in the kitchen all day hadn’t been my plan.

Well, I got the bread started and then my 2 others were beckoning me to make them French toast. It was a perfect moment to teach them how and to give them my favorite French toast recipe (key ingredients: challah, egg, milk, cinnamon, vanilla. Key cooking features: soak the challah REALLY well and saute in combination of butter and canola oil). They did a great job. Sam is now ready to go back to school and cook challah French toast for all of his housemates.

Then, the best laid plans: I took on 2 other cooking projects since I had the ingredients and wanted to use them before they went bad. Roasted root vegetables (just cut them up, place on cookie sheet, drizzle with olive oil, kosher salt & pepper. Roast till done.) and cabbage and noodles (in Arthur Schwartz’s Jewish Home Cooking) were next on my list. This was a great day of cooking, teaching my boys and a great walk with Sophie, the dog.

What wasn’t planned to be a cooking day turned out to be a great one!