Hi, I'm Helen. I share easy, nutritious, seasonal, flexitarian recipes, often with a British-Jewish twist. Expect a weekly dose of delicious dinner ideas, news and positivity!
Share
Let's celebrate Purim...
Published 5 months ago • 3 min read
Hello there my friend,
The joyful festival of Purim starts on Monday evening. One of the special mitzvot of Purim is giving mishloach manot - gifts of food and drink - to friends and family. Each person should give one or more gifts containing at least two ready-to-consume items. This means that there's plenty of scope around what to include and how many gifts to give.
Giving mishloach manot is probably my favourite Purim activity! Each year I choose a theme and create gift bags with an assortment of tasty treats. This year our theme is 'tea and biscuits' and each bag will include a mini bag of shortbread, a box of herbal teas, perhaps some honey for sweetening the tea, and of course a home-baked treat. I'll probably pop in a few extras too - maybe some dried fruits, nuts, or homemade granola. Plus a little note wishing the recipient a Happy Purim!
Below are some of my favourite easy-to-pack homemade goodies that are perfect for popping into a mishloach manot package. Also don't forget to give matanot le'evyonim - gifts to the poor. The easiest way to do this is by supporting a charity or food bank that will distribute items to the needy on your behalf, on the day of Purim.
There's no obligation to include homemade goodies in your mishloach manot, so if you're short on time, then anything goes! But if you do want to whip something up, why not try one of these?
Classic British hamantaschen buns Soft yeasted dough with a delicious poppy seed filling. Not too sweet, just a gorgeous mouthful of hamantaschen perfection!
Seed and nut brittle Crunchy, munchy, tasty and nutritious! Pack some chunks of this lovely brittle into a box or ribbon-tied bag for an easy treat.
Stuffed monkey kichels Stuffed foods are traditional on Purim, so how about this classic British-Jewish confection?
Hot magen david buns Sweet, fruity buns, embellished with joyful magen davids on their glossy golden tops! Fantastic split and toasted and slathered with butter.
Vegan chocolate fudge A super easy to make and delicious sweet treat, that comes together from just three simple ingredients.
One final thought about mishloach manot. As you know, I try to eat a healthy diet, choosing more nutritious options and nutrient dense wholefoods wherever possible. But of course on Purim friends and family will gift all sorts of items that I would never usually choose! I used to be torn between feeling guilty for not eating them, or eating them anyway and making myself feel 'bleh' as a result. So nowadays I take a different approach. I sort the contents into 'yes, no and maybe'. Yes includes things like fruits, nuts, herbal teas, etc that I will definitely enjoy. No is for things like gummy candy or sugary drinks - these get gifted on or taken by Kipper to share at school. And the maybes, such as cookies, hamantaschen and snack foods, get shared among the family to enjoy gradually over the next few days and weeks (before Pesach!)
I'm not saying this is the best or only way to deal with food gifts, but it works for me. You're just as welcome to eat everything you're given, or nothing at all! Whatever works for you and makes you feel good about yourself and what you're consuming, that's great!
Shabbat Shalom and Purim Sameach
Before Purim, Shabbat! A moment of calm before the storm of celebration - all the colour, noise, excitement and joyfulness that Purim brings. 🎭🎉
Wishing everyone blessings of peace, health and happiness, and a restful Shabbat, followed by a joyful, uplifting and heartfelt celebration of Purim.
Good Shabbos, Shabbat Shalom, Purim Sameach and Happy Purim! With much love, Helen x.
If you enjoy my emails, recipes, social media posts or comments, please consider leaving a tip, so I can continue to provide them freely for you and others.
Family, friends and food are three of life’s most important things. Let’s celebrate them!
Hi, I'm Helen. I share easy, nutritious, seasonal, flexitarian recipes, often with a British-Jewish twist. Expect a weekly dose of delicious dinner ideas, news and positivity!
Hello there my friend, I hope you've had a good week, and enjoyed the avocado, orange and watercress salad in last week's email. Here's this week's recommendation... Shabbat recipe of the week - strawberry banana bread You'll love this deliciously moist banana bread loaf, swirled with a layer of strawberry batter and topped with fresh strawberries. It's fruity, flavourful, and delicious as a dessert with ice-cream, or just sliced and served with a cup of tea. Make the most of abundant summer...
Hello again my friend! Holiday season is very nearly upon us, and I'm here to remind you that you don’t need travel plans to start eating like you’re on holiday. Below I've set out my top tips for holiday dining at home, but first... Shabbat recipe of the week - avocado, orange & watercress salad with olives This is absolutely one of my all-time favourite salads. It was one of my Mum's recipes, and it never fails to delight. The citrussy fruit is the perfect foil to the creamy avocado, and...
Hello my friend, and happy July! The summeriest of the summer months began yesterday, and there's a huge variety of fruits and vegetables in season. More on that below, but first... Shabbat recipe of the week - halva ice-cream pie! Since these Shabbat recipes have proved so popular they're getting moved up the running order! This week's delight is the amazing 10-minute halva ice-cream pie. With just three simple ingredients, you can make it dairy or parve, and this delicious frozen dessert...
