Ordinary to Extraordinary Lives: Charles Goldstein

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Charles Goldstein, a high-stakes New York real estate lawyer who transformed himself into a tenacious advocate for recovering art stolen from Holocaust victims, died on July 30, 2015 in Manhattan, New York. He was 78. Goldstein was counsel to the Commission for Art Recovery, which estimates it has recovered or helped recover more than $160 million worth of stolen art since its establishment in 1997. The commission’s goal is to compel European governments to identify and return art that the Nazis looted from public and private collections or that the owners were forced to sell. That includes spoils of war confiscated from the Nazis by the victors, including the Soviet Union.

Charles Arthur Goldstein was born on Nov. 20, 1936, in Perth Amboy, N.J. His father, Murray, was in the retail clothing business. His mother was the former Evelyn Bier. He graduated from Columbia College in 1958 and Harvard Law School in 1961, and clerked for the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. In the 1980s, he headed what he described as the largest real estate department of any major law firm in the city, comprising 34 lawyers in a firm of 250. Mr. Goldstein joined the art recovery commission by happenstance, his law partner Harvey Feuerstein recalled. In the early 1990s, Mr. Lauder was flying home on the Concorde from Europe when he posed a challenging real estate question to a friend. The friend noticed Mr. Goldstein a few rows back and introduced him. Mr. Lauder was so impressed, he hired Mr. Goldstein full time and, when he formed the commission, named him counsel.

Ordinary to Extraordinary Lives: Sir Nicholas Winton

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Sir Nicholas Winton, hailed as a hero of the Holocaust, died at the age of 106 on July 1, 2015. During the first nine months of 1938, he oversaw the Czech Kindertransport, transporting Jewish children from German-occupied Czechoslovakia to safety in the U.K. He worked tirelessly to ensure money was raised and homes were found for the young refugees. It was 50 years before the story of his heroic efforts became public knowledge.

Winton was born on 19 May 1909 in the well-heeled Hampstead district of north London. His Jewish parents had moved from Germany to London in 1907 and changed the family name from Wertheim to Winton. They also converted to Christianity. Winton became one of the first pupils at the newly opened Stowe School in Buckinghamshire. Although he left without finishing, he had developed a love of mathematics. He continued his studies at evening classes before moving to Germany, where he worked in banks in Hamburg and Berlin.  Just two years before Hitler became German chancellor, he moved to work in Paris before returning to London. His mother’s family remained in Germany and that, coupled with the stories of Jewish refugees fleeing, made him all too aware of the persecution of the Jews by the Nazis.

In December 1938, Winton was due to go on skiing in Switzerland when he suddenly decided to travel to Prague, where a friend was helping Jewish refugees. There he visited several refugee camps. Winton had an idea was to rescue children by locating families in the U.K. who could give them a home. A 1938 Act of Parliament permitting the entry of refugee children under the age of 17, help spur his efforts. Winton set up an office in a hotel in Prague, where he was quickly besieged by families desperate to get their children out before Germany invaded Czechoslovakia. He later returned to London, where he worked with relief organizations to set up the Czech Kindertransport, just one of a number of initiatives attempting to rescue Jewish children from Germany and the Nazi-occupied territories. In the first eight months of 1939, eight trains left Prague taking 669 children to safety. A further 15 were flown out via Sweden. A ninth train was scheduled to leave Prague on 1 September 1939, the day Germany invaded Poland. “Within hours of the announcement, the train disappeared,” Winton later recalled. “None of the 250 children on board was seen again. “

Winton told no-one about his pre-war efforts and it was not until 1988 that his wife discovered a scrapbook containing a series of documents with the names of the rescued children. In July of that year, Winton appeared on an edition of the BBC program, That’s Life, and some of the people he had rescued were invited to attend. Until they arrived in the studio, they had no idea that Winton was the man who had saved them. In 2003, Winton was knighted in recognition of his efforts on the Kindertransport. In 2007, he received the Czech Republic’s highest military decoration, the Cross of the 1st Class, and was nominated by the Czech government for the 2008 Nobel Peace Prize. A train dubbed “The Winton Train” left Prague station on 1 September 2009, exactly 70 years after the last Kindertransport had been due to depart from the Czech capital.

In October 2014, at the age of 105, he travelled to Prague to receive the Czech Republic’s highest honour, the Order of the White Lion. In his acceptance speech, he was typically modest: “In a way, I shouldn’t have lived so long to give everyone the opportunity to exaggerate things the way they are doing today.” It was another Nobel Peace Prize recipient, Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel, who summed up the vital role of those who, like Winton, tried to save Europe’s Jewish children from the Nazis: “In those times there was darkness everywhere. In Heaven and on Earth, all the gates of compassion seemed to have been closed. The killer killed and the Jews died and the outside world adopted an attitude either of complicity or of indifference. Only a few had the courage to care.”

For more information, watch Sir Nicholas Winton as well as the 60 Minutes piece,  “Saving the Children.”

Ordinary to Extraordinary Lives: Roddie Edmonds

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In January 1945, in a German POW camp, U.S. soldier Roddie Edmonds defied the threat of death to protect Jewish troops under his command. Seventy years later, he was recognized for his valor, becoming the first U.S. soldier named Righteous Among the Nations an  —honor for non-Jews who risked their lives to save Jews during the Holocaust.

Master Sgt. Roddie Edmonds of Knoxville, Tenn., was a non-commissioned officer who participated in the landing of U.S. forces in Europe. He was captured in the Battle of the Bulge and was held at a Nazi POW camp near Ziegenhain, Germany, where he was the highest-ranking American soldier. When the Germans demanded that all the Jewish POWs in the camp identify themselves, Edmonds ordered all the U.S. soldiers to step forward — hundreds of them. When the German camp commander saw all the inmates reporting, he said, “They cannot all be Jews!” “We are all Jews,” Edmonds replied. He cited the Geneva Conventions and refused to identify any prisoners by religion.

His son, Chris Edmonds, told NPR’s Emily Harris that the Nazi officer became enraged. “He turned blood-red, pulled his Luger out, pressed it into the forehead of my dad, and said, ‘I’ll give you one more chance. Have the Jewish men step forward or I will shoot you on the spot,’“ Edmonds said. “They said my dad paused, and said, ‘If you shoot, you’ll have to shoot us all.'” The officer backed down. Edmonds died in 1985. Chris Edmonds says he learned about what happened from survivors after his father died. He’s one of only five Americans to have received the honor, and the first U.S. soldier.

Myra Yellin Goldfarb Outwater’s 15 Minutes of Fame

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VALLEY WRITER FONDLY RECALLS ON-AIR EXCHANGE WITH HOWARD STERN

By MYRA YELLIN  GOLDFARB OUTWATER

(First Published in The Morning Call. March 2, 1997)

Andy Warhol once allowed that in the future everyone will have 15 minutes of fame.

Howard Stern gave me quite a bit more.

Four years ago, I was on the Howard Stern morning radio show for 38-1/2 minutes. My celebrity lingered on. In its aftermath, I received fan letters from Stern listeners in Baltimore, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles and New York City. I received two marriage proposals and two requests for dates. Oh, and a cab driver saved me five minutes in traffic “out of respect.”

Perhaps most important, I became a legend with my sons’ friends, who wished that they had a mother that “hip.”

Ironically, four years to the day that I was a phone guest on his show, I met Stern in person during an interview in New York City for his new movie “Private Parts.”

Did he remember me?

“Of course I remember you,” said Stern.

Before 1993, I had never heard of Stern, let alone listened to him. And the first time I did, at the urging of my youngest son, I turned him off, disgusted by his crude language.

My dialogue on Stern’s show came about unexpectedly. I had written a review of a Regis Philbin show at the State Theatre in Easton for The Morning Call. A few days later, my phone rang. It was 8:15 a.m. “Turn on Howard Stern. He’s talking about you,” gasped a friend from his car phone.

I ran to my radio and flipped through the dials with one hand while reaching for the telephone with the other. “You’re on Howard Stern,” screamed another friend just as I heard Stern talking about “Goldfarb from Allentown.” Goldfarb was my name from a previous marriage.

For the next hour I sat and answered my phone, amazed at how many of my friends listened to Stern’s show. Everywhere I went, people had heard the show. Husbands called wives at home to tell them. The wives called me.

My male friends and my sons’ friends thought that Stern reading my Philbin review from The Call on the air was a wonderful joke. The review was not favorable. But Stern dislikes Philbin, so he relished it (a fan had faxed him the review). My women friends were incensed at Stern’s cracks demeaning my sex and my religion.

“Another suburban housewife who thinks she can write,” said Stern. “Another Jewish lady with a hobby,” joked Robin Quivers, his on-air sidekick.

When I stopped at The Morning Call’s main office in Allentown that afternoon, I found out that Stern’s staffers had called and wanted me to call Stern on-air the next morning.

Friends of mine who listened to Stern had advised that I take the offensive early, to not back off and to tell him, when the moment arose, that I had “a really great bod.”

The next morning, I called Stern on the dot at 7 a.m. and found myself on his nationally syndicated show. Initially, Stern asked me to read my review, but I reminded him that I was paying for the phone call and didn’t need to pay for the privilege of reading my review to him.

“Get her number and we’ll call her back,” said Stern. Seconds later, I was back on the air — and Stern was paying for it.

Howard, Robin and I verbally sparred for the next 37 minutes, discussing everything from Philbin to Rex Harrison to the philosophy of theater criticism. When the moment of truth came and Stern asked about my breasts and my physique, I was ready. My answer, “Fabulous,” startled Stern, who followed up with, “Are you really fabulous?” and I answered, “I can tell you anything. This is radio.”

As soon as I hung up, the phone began ringing. Everyone was happy. Those at The Morning Call seemed pleased because I had gotten in a plug for newspaper. My sons were pleased because I had mentioned their names. My good friends who had coached me got their moment on the air.

What amazed me the most was that this was not to be a one-day or a one-week deal. My instant celebrity lasted for more than a year, picking up new momentum when my segment was chosen for ‘The Best of Howard Stern’ the following year.

Nearly two years later, while doing an interview in New York at the Bottom Line club, I mentioned to a young jazz artist that I was from Allentown. “There was a nutty lady from Allentown on Howard Stern,” he said. I sat there and beamed.

During a cab ride in New York traffic, the driver announced that he was a Howard Stern fan. My friend asked him what was his favorite show?

“Well, once there was a ditzy woman from Allentown,” he answered.

Well, fame does have its price. And, I guess, everyone’s a critic.

Listen to MYRA YELLIN  GOLDFARB OUTWATER’s call with Howard Stern.

Fun Torah Test 1 – Fast & Fun

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Which character in the Bible does the Torah tell us MOST about his or her emotional state?

 

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Answer: Pharaoh. There are 17 references to his emotional state. The Torah references Pharaoh’s “lev,” his heart.

Why? The Israelites escaping from slavery in Egypt, to wandering in the Wilderness, and reaching freedom in the Promised Land. This was a happy story for the Israelites.

But who was not happy? The Pharaoh! The Pharaoh had a successful slave-based economy. He was about to lose all of his slaves! This would ruin his economy and his life!

Pharaoh struggled 17 times in the Torah to deal with the reality of losing his slaves. God gave many signs and sent the 10 plagues to Egypt. But Pharaoh could not accept a future without his slaves. Pharaoh was a “slave” to his past. He was a slave to the concept that he would always have slaves, and unable to imagine that his life could change and his future would be different.

The Torah wants us to identify with Pharaoh because, like the Pharaoh, we are often reluctant to let go of our own past. In order to live unencumbered in the present, and to be ready for the future, we must leave the past behind.

Torah references for the Pharaoh

Exodus 4:21, p. 120 JPS

  • “I, however, will stiffen his heart so that he will not let the people go”

Exodus 7:3, p. 124 JPS

  • “I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, that I may multiply My signs and marvels in the land of Egypt”

Exodus 7:14, p. 125 JPS

  • “Yet Pharaoh’s heart stiffened and he did not heed them”

Exodus 7:22, p. 126 JPS

  • “Pharaoh’s heart stiffened and he did not heed them”

Exodus 8:11, p. 127 JPS

  • “But when Pharaoh saw that ere was relief, he became stubborn and would not heed them, as the Lord had spoken”

Exodus 8:15, p. 127-128 JPS

  • “But Pharaoh’s heart stiffened and he would not heed them, as the Lord had spoken”

Exodus 8:28, p. 129 JPS

  • “But Pharaoh became stubborn this time also, and would not let the people go”

Exodus 9:7, p. 129 JPS

  • “Yet Pharaoh remained stubborn, and he would not let the people go”

Exodus 9:12, p. 130 JPS

  • “But the Lord stiffened the heart of Pharaoh, and he would not heed them”

Exodus 9:34, p. 131 JPS

  • “But when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunder had ceased, he became stubborn and reverted to his guilty ways, as did his courtiers”

Exodus 9:35, p. 131 JPS

  • “So Pharaoh’s heart stiffened and he would not let the Israelites go”

Exodus 10:1, p. 131 JPS

  • “Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh. For I have hardened his heart”

Exodus 10:20, p. 133 JPS

  • “But the Lord stiffened Pharaoh’s heart, and he would not let the Israelites go”

Exodus 10:27, p. 134 JPS

  • “But the Lord stiffened Pharaoh’s heart and he would not agree to let them go”

Exodus 11:10, p. 135 JPS

  • “Moses and Aaron had performed all of these marvels before Pharaoh, but the Lord stiffened the heart of Pharaoh so that he would not let the Israelites go from his land.”

Exodus 14:4, p. 141 JPS

  • “Then I will stiffen Pharaoh’s heart”

Exodus 14:5, p. 141 JPS

  • “When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, Pharaoh and his courtiers had a change of heart about the people”

Fun Torah Test 2 – Kid Friendly

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What is the shape of Moses’ Basket? What similarities does it have with Noah’s Ark?

Answer: Noah’s Ark and Moses’ Basket were the EXACT same shape. They were both a rectangle. (Obviously different sizes). They are both called a “Teyvah” (Hebrew for Ark).

There are a lot of similarities between Noah’s Ark and Moses’ Basket (Ark):

  • Both the Ark and the Basket “delivered” the Israelites through the water
  • Noah’s Ark protected Noah’s family and the animals from the flood
  • Moses’ Basket delivered Moses (and later the Israelites) from the Egyptians through the Nile and Red Sea
  • Both Arks created a fresh beginning for the Israelites/World
  • Water destroyed the Earth in Noah’s flood and the Red Sea swallowed the Egyptians

And a little more:

  • Noah is the first reference in the Torah to a “Righteous Tzadik” person. Genesis 6:9, p. 11 JPS
  • Moses is referred to as the most “humble man” in the entire Torah. “Now Moses was a humble (anav) man, more so than any man on earth.” Numbers 12:3, p. 310 JPS
  • Neither the Ark, nor Moses’ basket was a traditional boat with a keel, easily steered or directed. Both vessels were subject to the ebb and flow of the tides and water, subject only to the will of the water, to fate, and perhaps God’s will.

Here is one take-away from the stories of Noah’s Ark and Moses’ Basket: Deliverance and liberation may mean accepting that there are forces that are beyond our control.

Torah References for the Ark/Basket

Noah’s Ark is a rectangle. Genesis 6:9, p. 11 JPS

  • “Make yourself an Ark (Teyvah in Hebrew) of gopher wood…the length of the ark should be 300 cubits, its width 50 cubits, and its height 30 cubits”
  • Noah is the first reference of a “Righteous Tzadik” person Genesis 6:9, p. 11 JPS

Moses’ Basket: Exodus 2:3, p. 114 JPS

  • “When she could hide him no longer, she got a wicker basket (Ark Teyvah)…she put the child into it and placed in among the reeds by the bank of the Nile”

 

Fun Torah Test 3 – Over the Top

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What does the Torah say about Food during the Story of Exodus?

Answer: The Torah describes the food of the Exodus as the Food of Slavery, and the Food of Wilderness, and the Food of Freedom in the Promised Land

The Food of Slavery

While in Egypt, the Hebrews ate the Food of Slavery, which was “leeks, onions, and garlic” which all came from the ground. Not the air or the sea. In many ways, you can think of the slaves as chained to the ground.

The Food of Wilderness: (Midbar)

When the Hebrews escaped from Slavery into the Wilderness, the Hebrews first ate “Manna” a food from God. This food came from above and from the sky. They also consumed “Shabbat” which was Food for the Soul. “Man does not live on bread alone, but that man may live on anything that the Lord decrees.”

Food of Freedom

The Land of Israel is called Eretz Zavat Chalav U’dvash, “The Land of Milk and Honey.” It’s clear that to the Torah, food really matters. The Promised Land is actually a place where food is delicious!

The Foods of Freedom are “Olives, Honey, Figs, and Pomegranates.” These foods are all in the air and all have seeds in order to regenerate generations of populations, just as the hope is that the Israelites would create a cycle of generations stretching far into the future in the Promised Land.

Torah References for Food in the Torah

Food of Slavery: “Mitzraim”; (Narrow Place) In Egypt, Hebrews ate the Food of Slavery. All of these food items came from the ground.
(Numbers 11:4-5, p. 307 JPS) “The riffraff in their midst felt a gluttonous craving…We remember the fish that we used to eat free in Egypt…the leeks, the onions, and the garlic.”

Food of Wilderness: “Midbar” (Wilderness) Israelites first ate “Mannah” food from God. Manna came from the sky and heaven.

(Exodus 16:15-16, p. 148 JPS). When the fall of dew lifted, over the surface of the wilderness, lay a fine and flaky substance, as fine as frost on the ground. When the Israelites saw it, they said to one another, “What is it?” for they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, “That is the Bread which the Lord has given you to eat…. The House of Israel names it Manna.”

Importance of Shabbat (Food for the Soul)

“Eat it today, for today is a Sabbath of the Lord, you will not find it today on the plain. Six days you shall gather it; on the seventh day, the Sabbath, there will be none.” Exodus 16:26, p. 149 JPS

“God has made you travel in the wilderness these past forty years. He subjected you to the hardship of hunger and then gave you Manna to eat, which neither you nor your fathers had ever known, in order to teach you that man does not live on bread alone, but that man may live on anything that the Lord decrees.” Deuteronomy 8:2-3, p. 393 JPS

Food of Freedom: Eretz Zavat Chalav U’dvash (Land of Milk and Honey) Israel, the Promised Land, is named for delicious and sweet food.

(Exodus 3:8, p. 116 JPS) God will “rescue the Hebrews from the Egyptians and bring them…to a land flowing with milk and honey.”

(Numbers 13:23, p. 312 JPS) The 12 spies went to the Promised Land and “reached the wadi Eschol, and there they cut down a branch with a single cluster of grapes…and some pomegranates and figs.”

(Deuteronomy 8:7, p. 393 JPS) “For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land, a land with streams and springs and fountains…a land of figs and pomegranates, a land of olive trees and honey; a land where you may eat food without stint, where you will lack nothing…when you have eaten your fill, give thanks to the lord your God for the good land which he has given to you.”

The Story of Charoset: The History of the Jewish Diaspora through Food

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As a community and culture, Jews are resilient. Time and again, the Jewish people were forced to leave their homes, beginning with the expulsion from Jerusalem, and continuing through our history.

Again and again, a challenge forced them to start anew. Another country, another culture, another threat. Yet despite each threat and challenge, the community came together quickly and began to write another chapter in a new place. One theory is that Jewish resilience is explained by the ability to travel with the teachings of the Torah, to always be “at home” even when separated by geography from each other and the Land of Israel.

Interestingly, there is no “Israeli” recipe for Charoset. Perhaps that is because Charoset is a food of slavery, and in returning to Israel Jews are free. After all, we end every Seder: “Next year in Jerusalem.”

Charoset is always made as a sweet dish. But it is a conundrum. If Charoset is a food of slavery, representing the mortar for the bricks made by the slaves, why is it sweet? One thought is that slavery can be “sweet” because it is safe and familiar.

My goal is to celebrate the Jewish Diaspora. I want all six varieties of Charoset to represent a universal message that all the people of the world, despite different flavors, share the common quest to escape from modern day slavery and return to our Promised Land. We have been inspired and educated by the work of authors and researchers like Claudia Roden, who have studied Jewish food traditions from around the world.

Charoset tells the tale of the Jewish Diaspora. Wherever Jews landed they made the traditional Seder dish with whatever foodstuffs were local. The recipe changed but the tradition of representing the bricks and mortar of the Israelite enslavement in Egypt did not.

1. Ashkenazi Charoset

This is the most traditional Charoset. Its signature ingredients are apples, walnuts, cinnamon, honey and Sweet Manischewitz Wine. This is the most simple and kid friendly recipe. We make this Charoset with the young kids during our cocktail hour before we start our Seder. The young kids love getting involved.

2. The Classic Spanish Sephardic Charoset

As with all our other recipes, this Charoset relies on the local bounty of the Iberian Peninsula. Pears, pistachios, figs and hazelnuts highlight this tapas style Charoset. Vivid red and yellow linens and olive wood serving vessels transport you straight to Barcelona. We especially love the introduction of hazelnuts, pistachios, and figs into this dish.

3. Italian Charoset

Pine nuts, pears and almonds evoke the flavors and textures of Italian sweet and savory food. If a Jewish family, living in the Piedmont, were making a locally based Charoset, they would find all the ingredients here. It’s a beautiful dish, and like many, my family loves Italian cooking. This is my wife’s favorite Charoset recipe.

History:
The history of the Jews in Italy spans more than two thousand years. The Jewish presence in Italy dates to the pre-Christian Roman period. Despite periods of extreme persecutions and expulsions from parts from time to time, the Italian Jewish community has always been resilient and plays an important role in Italian culture. As of 2007, the estimated core Jewish population in Italy numbers around 45,000

The first documented Jews in Italy were the ambassadors sent to Rome by Judah Maccabee in 161 BCE. When the Jews were expelled from Spain in 1492, many of them found refuge in Italy, where they were given protection by King Ferdinand I of Naples.

The Venetian Ghetto was the area of Venice in which Jews were compelled to live under the Venetian Republic. It is from its name in Italian (“ghetto”), that the English word “ghetto” is derived: in the Venetian language it was named “ghèto.” The Venetian Ghetto (incidentally, the first Ghetto) was instituted in 1516.

4. Piedmontese Charoset

The Northern region of Italy, the Piedmont, is surrounded on three sides by the Alps. This region is dotted with nut trees, especially chestnuts. This recipe from Piedmont for Charoset, rich with chestnuts and other nuts, brings to mind “chestnuts roasting on an open fire” whenever we think about Piedmont. Local nuts are integral ingredients in this Charoset. In our recipe, we first boil and blend the chestnuts to give a rich flavor and smooth texture.

History:
The main Jewish settlements in Piedmont began in the 15th century and consisted of Jews who escaped persecution in Eastern France. These Jews escaped a few decades after the Spanish persecutions, when in 1492 the Catholic King and Queen of Spain Ferdinand and Isabella forced all Jewish and Arab subjects to convert, flee or die on the stake.

Many Jewish families were forced to leave their homes between 1941 and 1943, and lived in the country or in the mountains until the Liberation of the North of Italy in late April 1945. They were concealed by Italian families or by groups of partisans who took the life-threatening risk of hiding Jews. Despite this, all the Piedmontese Jewish Communities lost a very high number of members in the Nazi-fascist persecutions and deportations. Some of the smaller communities never recovered and closed their Synagogues after the War. This recipe is our attempt to honor their spirit.

5. Moroccan Charoset

Dates, walnuts and cloves give this Charoset its deep color and thick consistency.
We love the delicious tangy flavor and smooth texture. It is so rich with flavor of the dates and cloves. This may be my favorite Charoset. Make extra for leftovers after the Seder!

History:
Moroccan Jews are the descendants of an ancient Jewish community. Jews in Morocco date back from well before the Diaspora and the Spanish Inquisition. Just before the founding of Israel in 1948, there were about 250,000 to 350,000 Jews in Morocco, then the largest Jewish community in the Muslim world. Fewer than 2,500 Jews remain today.

6. Chinese Charoset

Common ingredients in Chinese cuisine are highlighted in this version of Charoset: soy sauce, pine nuts and honey. This is a slightly savory Charoset in contrast with the other sweet options.

I used to live in Japan and work for Kikkoman Soy Sauce. I also traveled in China and studied the Fugu Plan, a Japanese rescue plan to save Jews from the Nazis by settling them in Shanghai during World War II. This Charoset recipe creates a connection between the wandering Jews of China and the Passover story.

7. Iraqi Charoset

A simple Iraqi Charoset – just pure date syrup and chopped almonds.

History:
Jews arrived in Iraq, then known as Mesopotamia, as slaves beginning in 721 BC, the first of three exiles of Jews from Jerusalem. When the kingdom was conquered by the Achaemenid Persians in 539 BC, they gave Jewish people the choice to return to Judea. However, many decided to stay. Thus, the origin of Babylonian Jews.

8. Yemenite Charoset

Given my extensive travel in the Middle East, I thought that including a Charoset from Yemen to highlight the Jewish experience beyond Israel was important and interesting. We hope you will savor the combination of flavors with the dates, raisins, sesame seeds, and aromatic spices.

History:
The traditions of the Yemenite Jews are strong, dating back over 2,000 years. Some say the history of Jews in Yemen dates as far back as the time of King Solomon, while others say they arrived at the request of Bilqis, Queen of Sheba. Evidence proves that Jews were in Yemen as far back as the third century, and historians say that it was most likely trade that brought them there. In any case, Yemenite Jews formed a large community on the Arabian Peninsula.

9. Indian Charoset

I wanted to highlight the flavors of the Jewish Experience in India. The combination of Indian flavors and Jewish Tradition creates such a delicious and unique recipe. We hope that you will love the combination of flavors of the mango, papaya and cashews along with aromatic Indian Spices.

History:
Did you know that Jews have lived in India for over 2,500 years and were the first foreign religious group to enter the country? Of all the Diaspora communities, the Jews of India are among the least known but perhaps among the most interesting. There are three major historical Jewish communities in India: Bene Israel, a 2800 year old community settled mainly in and around Mumbai; Cochin Jews, an ancient 2000 year old community whose members have mostly emigrated to Israel; and Baghdadi Jews, a 300 year old community based in Calcutta that originated from Jewish business people who came from Baghdad beginning in the 17th century.

10. Curaçao Charoset

I had the opportunity to visit the amazing Mikve Israel Emanuel Synagogue there which is the oldest continuing operating synagogue in America. While visiting, I learned about a unique type of Charoset that’s in little ball shapes and I was inspired to create a version for Breaking Matzo. As a tribute to Curaçao, we’ve added orange-flavored Curaçao liqueur to the recipe as well as coconut, a popular ingredient there. We hope you enjoy the recipe.

History:
Did you know that the oldest Jewish community in the Western Hemisphere is in Curaçao, an island north of the Venezuelan coast? Jews have been living on this island since the 1600s. While their numbers are dwindling, there is still an active Jewish community on the island today. It is also the site of the Mikve Israel-Emanuel Synagogue, the oldest continually active synagogue in the Americas.