Norwitz Notions

We belong to a Shabbus potluck group that meets every month or two.  Yesterday, it was at our home.  Although Miriam (and I) can’t have gluten, traces aren’t an issue.  Unfortunately, it’s not that way with egg.  Even a little crumb can give her symptoms.
Challah is a braided egg bread that plays an important role […]

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I’ve hosted a Passover seder at my home every year for the last 20 or so (except for the year my mother died the night before Passover 1996 and the following year, the first with Michael, when Michael and I both had the flu).  Each one has a different mix of people, cultures, familiarity with […]

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Success with horseradish has been extremely variable, both due to variation in the flavor of the unprocessed horseradish roots, and the fact that it is too strong to sniff or taste during preparation to make small modifications. The ones I made for Passover this year were pretty good.
I started with two horseradish roots. […]

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Passover 2008: the year of the gefilte fish disaster.
This is only the second time we’ve made gefilte (gelfilte, gelfelte, gefelte) fish. The stuff in jars is pretty good (some people hate it but I grew up on and adore the stuff) but every last brand has eggs in it. And pretty much all have gluten […]

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If you ask an Ashkenazi Jew (of Eastern/Central European origin, most American Jews) the recipe for charoset, you will generally get one answer: chopped apples, honey, wine, nuts (walnuts and pecans are popular), and (often) cinnamon. This version is so popular that many Haggadahs list it as such and I’ve had Jews tell me […]

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This year, I made my own Passover matzoh. Why on earth? Because Miriam and I don’t do well with gluten (we can cheat once in a while, but not two days in a row). So I wanted it to be gluten-free.

Matzoh (aka matzah, matza, matzo) used during a Passover seder must come […]

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Multiple chemical sensitivity is a lovely disease. With a lot of other disabilities, the issue of access is simply that: getting in. With MCS, it’s all about survival.
Like anyone else who doesn’t remain homebound, I get whammed once in a while. Depending on what the chemical is, I’m usually okay after a […]

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For dinner tonight I made a simple but elegant meal. Each item wasn’t hard to make, though having four of them took more time. The details make a difference too. Nicer plates, eating at the dining room table (something we should do every night, but don’t), using wine glasses.

Miriam and I went to Whole Foods […]

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So what’s wrong with cranberry sauce made with oranges, you ask? Nothing. It’s delicious. But the slightest trace of oranges make my daughter sick for hours. So I developed a version with lemons instead. I think it works better than oranges for cutting fatty foods and providing a clean crisp taste. You will need to […]

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I’ve filed this recipe under Thanksgiving because it’s now my standard offering for that holiday. I bring it every year to the Thanksgiving Potluck we go to and it’s a great dish for other events as well. To people eating turkey or other meat, it is a nice side dish. But for a vegetarian, […]

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This was a huge hit at the Thanksgiving potluck I went to last November. My pie (and all the cream) was devoured. The other pumpkin pie (homemade with traditional ingredients) still had half of it left.
Because I couldn’t find one perfect recipe, I used the crust from one and the filling from another. Actually, Michael […]

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Most of our Thanksgiving dinners are in the community room of Ecology House, an 11-unit government (HUD) complex for people disabled with chemical sensitivity. Every year, with the help of the Environmental Health Network, the residents there host a (supplemented) potluck dinner for the entire chemical sensitivity community. It’s great fun. I share the […]

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Why is this recipe listed under Chanukah? Because my daughter can’t have chocolate and I wanted an alternative for dreidle gelt. I promised her we’d made cookies for Chanukah (we eat very few traditional sweets). The cookies are gold like gelt with golden raisins and jeweled cranberries.
It was too messy to actually use cookies for […]

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Your traditional latkes are grated potato, diced onion, egg, matzoh meal, and seasoning all mixed together and fried in olive oil. But what do you do when all you can eat is fried salt and pepper? Well, alternative latkes have always been part of the tradition: despite what many think, it’s not just about potato […]

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