good chocolate
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More Good Chocolate, Mom, Please!

Good Chocolate or No Chocolate! Recently I mentioned to my daughter Bella I was going to Montreal soon for a demo, and she said with great urgency: "Mommy, whatever you do, make sure you go back to the store where we had those heavenly good…

Royally Annoying Review on Royal Challah Silicone Mold

The challah silicone mold It was created to obediently take on a beautiful braid's shape for dutiful but less-than-dexterous bakers. But it also elicited many comments, a few of them of a gastronomic nature, most of them of a reconstructive-surgery…
kosherfest 2011
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Kosherfest 2011! My Review

Kosherfest 2011: What fun! Would it make me sound like a dinosaur if I said I remember early Kosherfest shows taking place, ages ago, with flocks of young mothers pushing strollers and turning the show into a giant lunch break in an industrial…

Pardes Restaurant Tasting Menu: A Multi-Level Feast

Chef Moshe Wendel of Pardes Restaurant looks, sounds and cooks like a pure force of nature. I was there last Sunday with my friends Larisa and Gene, and their precious daughter Chasya, and rather than order specific dishes, we willingly submitted…

Nobo Teaneck Tasting Menu Do not Order: Trust Chef Josh!

Our last Nobo Teaneck Tasting Menu was amazing! Once in a while when I know the restaurant is great, and the chef perfectly knowledgeable and perfectly at home with his creations, I call the restaurant and tell the chef, make us what you like.…
Heimish Store

Have Fun Shopping in a Heimish Store

A trip to the suburbs always includes a trip to a Heimish Store. Make no mistake, some of those affectionately called Heimish store are the size of a small ball park. We New Yorkers shop mostly local, and sometime the bill kills. For the…
pardes restaurant

A Dinner to Remember at Pardes Restaurant

Still enjoying the glow of our dinner at Pardes Restaurant. For almost twenty years,  we at Levana Restaurant hosted, indeed pioneered, annual wine pairing dinners. Magnificent dishes, with wines to match them in full measure. The memory I…
cheese

Cheese Cheese Cheese. Natural and Kosher

I'm a cheese fiend, all resolutions for restraint notwithstanding. This morning I received a message from Chani Vogel, who with her husband Moshe manage Kosher and Natural Cheeses, requesting I sample some of  the cheese products from their…

Hannah Kaminsky: Vegan Desserts

You will all love Hannah Kaminsky's luscious new Vegan Dessert Book: The girl can not only bake, she can also take fabulous pix, as you can plainly see above. I had the pleasure of working with her when she did the food styling for the…
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Our Passover Vacation: Honeymoon at the Fairmont Scottsdale

 Lynda and I at a Wild West BBQ at the Fairmont In nearly thirty five years we have been married (that's right, my marriage predates my electronic Facebook marriage announcement by about thirty-three years, but thank you all anyway for your…
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Truffle Oil: The Dark Side of Labeling

This bottle of "Truffle Oil" was part of a gorgeous Mishloach Manot/birthday present basket I received from my daughter Bella. Reading the ingredient list created an uproar among my guests. Not a single drop of truffle oil. Intrigued, I looked…
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Levana Cooks with Osem’s Matzah Products