about sacred chow's purim party:
i was reading about the sheer number of feasts that king ahashuerus and queen esther gave during the course of the story of purim. it is truly astounding! but it is for this very reason that the holiday of purim is very much connected with feasting, food & wine--to pay homage to the feasts of the king and queen. food and wine that speak to a persian influence, in honor of the late, great queen esther, will be the focus of chow's purim menu. let's give a big cheer 4 queen esther! when queen esther was hiding the fact she was a jew, while she was living in the king's court, i was wondering if she kept kosher? i think she may actually have been the first vegan queen. research shows many of the foods of the purim feast were vegetarian, yeah a bit of lamb, chicken or fish were thrown in here and there, but by and large, vegetables and fruits and lots of wine were the rule. her fight was to assure freedom for the jews, so maybe she was also pushing freedom for her fellow animals as well. i never thought about that b-4, but it makes a lot of sense, doesn't it? i think she was also a gay rights activist 2. research can be construed to read that a few of her friends were friends of dorothy's. freedom 4 all!
okay here's chow's purim party menu specials:
pomegranate sangria
spicy eggplant braise w/ fresh greens & persimmons
crispy cinnamon chickpeas & apricot millet pilaf
oyster mushroom-barley stew
slow roasted hamentashen seitan
halva mohn tarts w/ sour cherry glaze
of course we'll have the graggers, see, פורים - come crank the gragger! and reb zev, chelsea's own rabbi, see also, jewish halloween, will be here doing the megillah gorilla.
zev suggested that every one in costume will get a sangria on chow.
get into your costume and come to sacred chow's purim party!
date:3/10/09
time: 7:00pm
1 comment:
Hi Sacred Chow,
I appreciate your hosting this wonderful Purim party in NYC! I am on a vacation in the holy city of Jerusalem, otherwise I would be very
excited to enjoy your wonderful cuisine.
I saw that you were wondering about what Queen Esther ate while in the palace. Good question! According to my religious textbooks, Queen Esther ate a raw vegan diet while in the palace. Because no one knew where she was from, it wasn't considered so strange that she had an unusual diet. It was considered to be part of her mysterious beauty.
The prophet Daniel also ate only vegetables while in Persia/Babylonia.
It is said that part of the blessing that Esther received on behalf of the Jewish people was because she was strict in her religious observances, including her kosher observances, while in the palace.
I think the essence of Purim food is the concept of hidden-ness.
Kreplach, hamentaschen all have the prized food hidden inside the
white flour outside (noodle, cookie crust.) I am experimenting this Purim meal with raviolis, which i feel also express the essence of Purim food - sweet vegetables and cheese hidden inside a ravioli pasta
crust.
I regret that I will miss the crispy cinnamon chickpeas & apricot
pilaf and the halva tart. I hope your guests have a terrific meal!
Thank you,
Elissa Beth
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