Cheesecake Heaven

So I never met a piece of cheesecake that I didn't like. 

This was an awesome display of the varieties of it at the Cheesecake Factory.

I remember my mom used to make a pretty darn great cheesecake (and a lot of other good food)!

I still can see the graham cracker crust with the sweet hot creamy cheese filling coming out of the oven. 

Unfortunately one of the conundrum of life is that all the good tasting things are so darn fattening and bad for us. 

I think though if they can make fake burgers like Beyond that taste like the real thing, then surely at some point they will figure out how to make a skinny cheesecake that tastes good. 

There are still some mysteries left in this universe for us to unravel. ;-)

(Credit Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

Cheesecake Heaven

Making Chocolate

Making Chocolate

Sushi Night In

My son-in-law did such an awesome job making Sushi from scratch.

He took such painstaking care on the rice, the fillings, and rolling and serving them. 

Even the multitude of dips to choose from. 

It was an awesome treat. 

Worth the wait after Shabbat and then some.  

Thank you so much for inviting us.  ;-)

(Source Photo: Rebecca Blumenthal)

Sushi Night In

Preparing Simchat Torah Dinner

It was great going to Magen David Synagogue today to help prepare for the big Simchat Torah Dinner tomorrow night. 

First, we started with great ingredients.

Then all the prep.

The cleaning, slicing, dicing, mixing, laying it all out, and braising.

Then the cooking--stovetop, and oven.

And before you know, it comes out all done and ready for the scrumptious shul dinner to honor the Torahs.

I want to thank all the women and men that helped out today and many other times to prepare.

But especially, I want to call out Naomi Elimelech who coordinates everything and is the brains behind all the delicious and healthy food. 

She and her husband, Itzik, who is also the President of the synagogue, are truly wonderful, caring, and giving people and a role model for all of us--and it's not just the cooking!

B'tayavon everyone and Chag Sameach!  ;-)

(Source Photos: Andy Blumenthal)

Preparing Simchat Torah Dinner

Got Skills?

I thought this was a very telling sign right off the highway in Washington, D.C. 

"Does your child have life skills?"

And then it lists things like:

"Cooking, budgets, sewing, ironing, time managment, communication, and fun"

The classes are offered by ActualLifeSkills.com.

I took a look online at what a typical 6-week class offered on Sundays for 3-hours at a time and at a cost of $345. 

It even covered things like:

"Handshakes, eye contact, and conversation starters
Voice projection and confidence
Party/guest etiquette, gifts and thank you notes"

And of course, aside from the cooking and budgeting already mentioned, there were more of the foundations such as laundry, cleaning, and grocery shopping.

I would suggest adding things like computer basics, child rearing, human relations, home maintenance, car mechanics, hunting, fishing, gardening, first-aid, fitness, and even self-defense. 

Since, we spend so much time teaching book skills, I have often thought why we don't spend more time teaching these fundamental life skills. 

We are raising a generation of kids that can score 1500+ on the SATs, but they don't know sh*t about real life and couldn't survive a week without electricity, Internet, or mom and dad taking care of them. 

Back to basics. 

Back to life skills. 

Back to survival. 

Back to being self-sufficient. 

There is no reason that we can't add these items to our broken school curriculums. 

You shouldn't have to go to special classes to learn to live life. ;-)

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

Got Skills?

Pizza And Brew With Wonderful Friends

Yesterday, we had a beautiful little get together at our place. 

In the party room with pizza and brew and lots of nosh--almost reminded me of the "Chometz Party" we had a number of years ago in our old neighborhood (great way to clean out your kitchen pantry before Passover),

Many of our wonderful friends from Magen David Sephardic Synagogue came to visit with us and celebrate one year plus in our new home in Maryland. 

Truly some of the nicest and accepting people I've had a chance to come to know in quite some time. 

I want to thank our friends for coming and especially thank my dear wife, Dossy, who did all the heavy lifting to make the event so beautiful for everyone. 

One lesson was how to keep the pizza piping hot over many hours with people coming and going at different times--can anyone say melted cheese? 

Another was how to schedule anything this time of year with Mother's Day, Father's Day, Passover, Shavuot and Memorial Day holidays, Men's Club/Sisterhood/and other community events, baby showers, weddings, vacations, and more--gee, there almost wasn't a free Sunday on the calendar. 

Overall though, we had such a nice time with everyone, and Dossy is already asking about planning the next event and she says she is cooking, so watch out world! ;-)

(Source Photo: Dannielle Blumenthal)

Pizza And Brew With Wonderful Friends

That's Good Cookin'

This was a funny picture when we were out west. 

This guy is standing on the corner dancing around in his apron and chef's hat. 

He's also got a big fat fake mustache on top of his real one and big round glasses/googles on his face. 

He is working hard to attract people to come into his restaurant. 

This "chef" calls over to us jumping around--doing anything to get our attention. 

So we had already eaten lunch, but he did get us to stop and say hello--this picture captures the moment. ;-)

(Source Photo: Dannielle Blumenthal)

That's Good Cookin'

Turducken Is Real

So I thought Turducken was a joke (a fowl i.e. foul dish).

Everyone has regular turkey onThanksgiving, right--even if they don't like it!

Well maybe you get a pass if your vegetarian, vegan, or whatnot. 

But no, here a genuine advertisement at a lcoal eatery for--you got it--turducken.

Turkey, Duck, and Chicken--combined!

$130 bucks feeds 12...on second thought, I rather not. ;-)

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

Turducken Is Real

Happy Mother's Day To My Very Feminist Wife

Just want to wish my lovely wife a very happy Mother's Day. 

My wife is a big feminist!

She doesn't like to do too much cooking, cleaning, laundry etc. 

More for good 'ol hubby--me--to do.  

For example, today I am painting my daughter's room. 

I did the heavy lifting on this. 

Now my wife and daughter and doing the corners and touch up. 

Hey, it's all in a day's work for a modern-day husband. 

But I love my wife and family. 

Even if there's a little more for me to share in. ;-)

(Source Photo: Michelle Blumenthal)

Happy Mother's Day To My Very Feminist Wife

Tie Dye Cake

This is a fun cooking experience.

We're making tie dye cake.

It's not yet done--just went into the oven.

Frosting and sprinkles are also on the way. 

In 30 minutes we'll have a very colorful dessert. 

And yum!  ;-)

(Source Photos: Andy Blumenthal)

Tie Dye Cake

Life Is A Real Hoot

So a couple of funny things happened at the doctor lately...

My daughter had her molars removed and in the office they had an urn labeled "Ashes of Problem Patients."  

In the hospital, I saw someone coming in complaining of shortness of breath and on the computer monitor, they simply abbreviated it next to their name as "SOB".

On another note, had an awful experience trying to make some darn hotdogs tonight (I can't cook for beans!): I left the hot dogs out on the counter to thaw for longer than expected, threw them in oven which wasn't working, took them out and put them in a pot of boiling water, and finally fried them up with some Ah-So sauce--yes, they were absolutely disgusting.

Life is a real hoot, isn't it? ;-)

(Source Photo: Dannielle Blumenthal)

Life Is A Real Hoot