attended our holiday soirees, but there was very little
religious ceremony. There was Joyce, the numerologist,
who would tell all of us at the party, including me, our
destiny for the year to come. (She did this by totaling
the numbers in our names.) Tandy, the psychic, would
channel spirits and would often bring a Ouija board
in case there were loved ones who had passed during
the year with whom we wanted to make peace. Michael,
a member of the Actors Studio, would give historical
speeches on the Old Testament, even though he was
not Jewish. And, of course, there was my little sister
April and me. I would proudly serve my homemade
creations, and April would play the piano while every-
one would sit cross-legged on my parents’ Persian rug
blurting out original lyrics to her rhythms.

It was only when I was invited to spend a holiday
weekend with my best 5th grade friend that I realized
how unusual my family’s holidays really were. During
dinner, classical music played softly in the background,
and the table was set with fine linen and gold-rimmed
plates. Before we ate, we held hands and my friend’s
dad made a prayer in Hebrew over the wine and challah
bread. I loved how her father spoke, as he explained
the meaning of each ritual. The blowing of the shofar,
the throwing of bread in the water, the dipping of the
apples in the honey, and the reason we would soon be
fasting for Yom Kippur.

When I told my mom about my wonderful week-
end, she said it reminded her of her own holidays grow-
ing up. She remembered how my grandmother Beauty
would iron the tablecloth, polish the silverware, grate
the potatoes for the latkes by hand, and debate for
weeks whether to make a sweet kugel with raisins or a
savory kugel with broccoli.

She remembered how Beauty would hold her hand
as they stirred and tested the chicken soup with her
big wooden spoon that hung over the stove, and how
my grandfather Papa would get so excited when he
walked in the door and smelled all of the food. My
mom’s face softened as she spoke, and I began to cry.

I was not sure why I cried. I am not sure if I cried
because my mother seemed so different at that mo-
ment, or if I cried because I wanted her to hold my
hand and love cooking with me as much as my grand-
mother did with her. I wanted my mom to understand
the things that were so important to me, and I wanted
her to nurture me in a way that maybe she couldn’t.

But it was the beginning of a the Jewish New Year;
so instead of wanting my mom to be someone other
than who she was, I passed her one of Beauty’s recipe
cards before we both recited in unison her famous
words, “ You know you can find your heritage in a bowl
of chicken soup! ”
The following is reprinted from My Fat Dad: A
Memoir of Food, Love, and Family, with Recipes, from
Berkeley Books.

GRANDMA BEAUTY’S
CHICKEN SOUP WITH A KICK
Yield: 12 servings
Chicken soup, known as “Jewish penicillin,” is an es-
sential recipe for all grandmothers and mothers to have
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in their bag of tricks. It’s delicious, and bone broth is
touted for its restorative powers. I used to look forward
to preparing this sweet soup with my grandmother
Beauty as a kid, and now as a mom I love preparing
this memorable dish for my kids.

Instructing my 11-year-old daughter Sofia to throw
in a bissel of this and a bissel of that, she blurted out,
“When we cook from Beauty’s recipe cards, it is like
she is here with us.” Smelling the simmering soup, I
knew what she said to be true.

Ingredients 1
(3 ½-pound) chicken, cut into 8 pieces,
most of the skin removed
4 medium carrots, peeled and cut into
¼-inch pieces
4 ribs celery, cut into ¼-inch pieces
2 medium parsnips, peeled and cut into
¼-inch pieces
1 large sweet potato, peeled and diced
1 medium yellow onion, quartered
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 (1-inch) piece fresh ginger, finely grated
A handful of fresh dill, chopped
2 teaspoons ground turmeric
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Garlic powder
Directions 1. Add 4 cups of cold water to an 8-quart stockpot; set
over high heat and bring to a boil. Add the chicken and
cook until foam comes to the top. Spoon off the foam,
reduce the heat to medium-low, and add the carrots,
celery, parsnips, sweet potato, onion, garlic, ginger and
dill. Simmer the soup for 2 hours and add 8 cups of
cold water, 1 cup at a time, as needed. As the soup
cooks, the liquid will evaporate and the soup will thick-
en. Check the soup every 30 minutes to remove any
film that rises to the top.

2. Stir in the turmeric, salt, pepper and garlic pow-
der to taste, and remove the pot from the heat.

3. Remove the chicken and the vegetables from the
soup, and pull the chicken meat off the bones. Ladle
the broth into bowls and add the desired amount of
chicken and vegetables to each. ■
Dawn Lerman is a nutritionist, founder of Magnificent
Mommies, and bestselling author of “My Fat Dad:
A Memoir of Food, Love and Family, With Recipes.”
R e ign e r S Sumague
Reigner um a gu e a and
nd J Jill i illl Ritter,
Ritt R
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e h a b iliit a t i on th
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pinerun.org Thousands of
everyday Kosher items available
throughout our stores.

Visit wegmans.com for store locations,
and wegmans.com/parties for kosher entertaining help
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27