The original article is published at JPost.com

Much more than a cookbook, ‘Portico’ also offers rich photography, historical facts, and insight into aspects of Roman Jewish culture

When Leah Koenig was a 22-year-old college graduate in 2004, she traveled to Tuscany to spend a month at an organic winery, planning to learn about sustainable viticulture. On that trip, she visited Rome and fell in love with the Coliseum, the Sistine Chapel, “the labyrinth of tiny streets,” and the food. Her brief foray into the Jewish Ghetto whet her appetite for Italian Jewish history, culture, and food.

When she returned five years later on her honeymoon, she and her husband “wound our way up and down Via del Portico di Ottavia’s smooth cobblestones, eating our weight in fried artichokes.” She adds, “My connection to my Jewish heritage was more fully developed, and my interest in the link between food and Jewish history was in full bloom.” This love affair in Rome led to a professional career “studying and sharing Jewish cuisines from around the world.”

Koenig’s latest cookbook, her seventh, is Portico: Cooking and Feasting in Rome’s Jewish Kitchen, named after the remains of the ancient structure in Rome known as Portico d’Ottavia (Ottavia’s Porch), built in the 1st century BCE by emperor Augustus in honor of his sister. Over time, it has served as a Roman temple, library, open-air art museum, and public square. 

In the 12th century, it became the home of a fish market, which operated until 1871. Koenig notes that this market was “a major source of nutrition for Rome’s Jews during the Ghetto period.” She describes the portico as “the most iconic structure in the Jewish Ghetto neighborhood” and knew from the earliest stages of researching the book that “portico” would appear in the title.

Koenig has wisely included photographer Kristin Teig in Portico; her exquisite photographs of food markets, streets scenes, shops, people, and dishes appear throughout the book. Photos and recipes are interspersed with historical facts, as well as informative descriptions of Rome’s past and present Jewish culinary scene.

FEAST TABLESCAPE. (credit: Courtesy Leah Koenig)

The history of the Jews in Rome

KOENIG BEGINS by chronicling Rome’s Jewish history, including the arrival of Jews in four distinct periods. The first wave of Jews arrived to Rome in the 2nd century BCE as diplomatic envoys of Judah Maccabee. The Italkim (Italians) came next, after Hadrian destroyed the Second Temple in 70 CE. Jews from Spain, Portugal, and southern Italy fled to northern Italian cities in 1492 during the Spanish Inquisition. 

Nearly 500 years later, in 1967, Jews from Libya settled in Rome, as conditions for Jews in Arab countries became difficult in the wake of the Six Day War. Each of these historic events influenced Roman Jewish cuisine, and Koenig places each of her recipes into historical and cultural context.

That third group of Jews faced difficult times as “papal attitudes toward the Jews tended to oscillate between tolerance and distaste.” Things got even worse in 1555 when Pope Paul IV created the Roman Ghetto, an enclosed “four-block wide gated slum in one of the city’s most undesirable, and virtually uninhabitable, locations” where the Jews were forced to live. The ghetto was kept locked from dusk until dawn each day; men were forced to wear yellow hats, and women yellow kerchiefs.

This fascinating and not always glorious history is significant, as it impacted on food selection and preparation. For example, by papal decree, Jews were not permitted to purchase larger species of fish. As a result, Jewish families were forced to live on fish scraps (heads and spines) and on smaller fish like mackerel, sardines, and anchovies. As a result, the community became creative in preparing foods like endive and anchovy pies and anchovy stews. 

In addition, the cheaper “throwaway” parts of animals were utilized and “simmered into enticing dishes,” sometimes with ingredients such as sautéed onions, artichokes, and lamb entrails. A wide range of dishes were also created from the abundance of locally produced olive oil.

Today, there are an estimated 16,000 Jews in Rome. Fortunately, fish, meat, and produce are in abundance, and culinary choices are essentially limitless.

KOENIG LISTS 20 staples for a Roman pantry, which includes anchovies, olive oil, and ricotta cheese, as well as baccala (salt cod), carne secca (cured meats), casalino tomatoes, cicora (similar to dandelion greens), and sour cherry jam. The recipes in Portico include substitutions for ingredients that are hard to find or out of season.

Of course, no Roman kitchen is complete without artichokes, especially the regionally grown purple and green variety. Koenig devotes eight pages to every facet of artichokes, including how to clean them, and a fascinating kosher controversy that arose around the beloved Roman Jewish staple food.

Portico is divided into six sections: Vegetables; Soups; Fritters; Pasta and Rice; Main Dishes; and Sweets. We challenged ourselves with preparing a multi-course Roman Jewish Shabbat dinner which included appetizers, sides, a main dish, and dessert. The recipes proved straightforward and relatively easy to follow.

We made concia (Silky Marinated Zucchini), which involved slicing zucchini into long strips, frying them in olive oil (a bit messy), marinating in vinegar (we used less than directed due to personal preference), and tossing with garlic and whatever fresh herbs we had on hand. The result was a deeply flavorful, deceptively simple dish that was a delicious appetizer at dinner – and even more tasty served the next day on the Roman flatbread we prepared from a foolproof, easy-to handle dough.

We used plum instead of casalin tomatoes for the pomodori a mezza (Roasted Tomato Halves) and were mesmerized by the caramelized flavor of the slow-baked tomato and garlic dish. We were able to source cipollini onions for the Cipollini al Forno – another dish that emphasized the sweetness of a slow-roasted vegetables prepared in a simple and elegant way.

We roasted a mixture of seasonal vegetables such as eggplant, zucchini, and potatoes for the Verdure al Forno, a colorful side dish that turned out perfectly cooked. The Pollo con Peperoni (Chicken with Peppers) had just a few ingredients but yielded a bright, tasty main dish with a delicious sauce.

WE ALSO had the opportunity to prepare the Malignane Scinicate (Stewed Eggplant and Onions), which Koenig modernized from a traditional Roman Ghetto dish by adding tomato, vinegar, and herbs. The dish was easy to prepare and was a flavorful addition to our lunch, served alongside the zucchini with the Roman flatbread. 

We also enjoyed Cershi Bel Hal (Garlicky Pumpkin Spread). We substituted butternut squash, and found the spicy and sweet dish to be a truly unique way to prepare this humble vegetable. It is one of the recipes in Portico derived from the Libyan-Jewish community of Rome.

We prepared three types of cookies for dessert: the Roman classics Pizza Ebraica (Dried Fruit and Nut Bar Cookies); Amaretti (Chewy Almond Cookies); and the Chocolate Orange Cookies inspired by a contemporary Roman kosher bakery. The instructions for these were clear and easy to follow, and yielded sweet accompaniments to hot mint tea. We didn’t have a chance to try the cakes (almond, semolina) and pies (sour cherry, chocolate ricotta), but they look tempting.

We’d love to try some of the soups, meat, fish and dairy dishes in the very near future when we use Portico again. Pasta squares and spinach in broth (with clear instructions for rolling out and cutting the pasta into squares), beef brisket stracotto, whole roasted fish with raisins and pine nuts, and, of course, eggplant Parmesan are high up on the list.

Portico is a delightful addition to any cookbook shelf, offering clear directions for preparing unique, flavorful dishes from relatively simple ingredients. But it is much more than a cookbook – it also a coffee-table book offering rich photography, historical facts, insight into aspects of Jewish culture not well known outside of Rome, and inspiration for your next trip. Be prepared to buy two copies: one for the kitchen likely to get food stained from overuse, and one for the coffee table to show friends. 

  • PORTICO: COOKING AND FEASTING IN ROME’S JEWISH KITCHEN
  • By Leah Koenig
  • W. W. Norton & Company
  • 336 pages; $29

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The original article is published at JPost.com

Blue-and-white baseball and softball players wear their support on their hands.

When Cincinnati Reds assistant pitching coach and former Team Israel Olympian Alon Leichman unveils his special Independence Day baseball glove next week, he will have a special group of unlikely supporters to thank.

Leichman, 34, the only native-born Israeli coaching in Major League Baseball, spent time in Israel from October 18, 2023 to February 1, 2024, where he picked oranges and avocados with Team Israel teammates, and received a great deal of support from the Reds and former teams and players, and contemplated ways he could continue to be supportive to his homeland.

When Leichman returned to the United States for Reds Spring Training, a picture on social media of a unique baseball glove caught his attention – and it would send him down the road to producing two unique mitts of his own which would contain powerful messages in support of Israel.

Leichman initially saw a photo of a two-toned blue softball glove, shared by Team Israel softball player Maddy Lewis. Her glove contained the word “Hazakim B’yachad” (“stronger together”). Her own glove story would inspire Leichman.

Lewis, 26, had a distinguished college softball career at the University of California San Diego, where she also worked in the athletics communication department. Lewis was longing to stay connected to softball after graduation. She tried out and made Israel’s national team and became an Israeli citizen in July 2023. Lewis is currently the social media and community manager for Blast Motion, a company that created a device that attaches to the knob of a baseball bat to monitor bat speed and rotation. To stay in shape for softball, she often trains on her own.

BASEBALL GLOVE designer Jake Hale (right) has been working with Cincinnati Reds assistant pitching coach Alon Leichman (left) and other Israeli athletes to create unique Israel-themed mitts (inset) in the aftermath of October 7 and the ensuing war. (credit: Jake Hale/Courtesy)

“I was running bases, hitting off a tee, and throwing against a wall at a park in San Diego when a friendly guy came up to me,” she told The Jerusalem Post.

The friendly man was Jake Hale, a self-described “old country boy from Ohio” who played minor league baseball for ten years without seeing a single day in the majors. Hale started a company called JH Performance, which includes a division that sells baseball equipment and accessories.

“I saw a girl there all the time working out,” noted Hale. “I spoke to her, and she told me she plays for Team Israel.”

Showing support through sports

Hale was trying to get into the softball glove market and offered to create a customized glove for Lewis, who immediately knew the color scheme she wanted but asked a friend to help her find a slogan to put on the glove to help remind her of the purpose and values after all that happened on October 7.

Lewis appreciated how careful Hale was in getting the Hebrew just right.

“Hebrew is right to left, which is confusing. He wanted it to be perfect!”

Fellow Team Israel softball player, Ruby Salzman, who played at West Texas A&M University, reports, was also inspired by Lewis.

“I asked, ‘what is one thing that means a lot?” recounted the self-reported “committed Jew.”

“It was cool having a glove with the Israel flag on it.”

She added the flag and the Star of David to the Hebrew word “Linshom,” (“breathe”) to her specially designed glove.

Hale is pleased with the way news of his gloves – and their messages – are spreading.

“I got Maddy her glove, she made a post, and Alon saw it.”

“When I saw it, I thought ‘maybe I should get a glove too’” said  Leichman, who decided to design his own red and black glove which he notes are “the colors of Bring Them Home.”

Leichman also regularly sports a “Bring Them Home” shirt on the field while practicing with his Cincinnati teammates.

Leichman proudly noted that he has “two more gloves coming – a blue-and-white for Remembrance Day and Independence Day and a catcher’s glove.”

Hale proudly delivered the blue and white glove to Leichman when the Reds were in San Diego recently to play against the Padres.

As excited as he is about the initiative, Leichman added with concern and optimism: “I am hoping things get better back home and [wearing special gloves] won’t be a thing anymore.”

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The original article is published at chabad.org

Amid rising antisemitism on American college campuses, Swidler brothers unite in their faith

For Nathan and Asher Swidler, two brothers on the Brown University heavyweight rowing crew team, their strong and always evolving relationship with Chabad-Lubavitch began with the installation of a mezuzah on a cold day in Providence, R.I., in the middle of the pandemic.

Nathan (“Nate”), 23, and Asher (“Ash”), 22, are just 14 months apart in age and grew up in London to American parents. Having been raised with a strong sense of Jewish identity, upon completing high school, both boys spent a gap year in Israel.

Nate has been rowing since the age of 15, when he picked up the sport during his school days at Eton, a prestigious boarding school in England. When choosing which college to attend, he decided on Brown, as it is one of the top rowing teams in the country, while also being well known for its rigorous Ivy League education. Ash was a rare “walk on” to the crew team, which he joined during his junior year.

And Nate’s not just another rower. His memorable rowing moments include winning the Henley Royal Regatta in 2019, beating Harvard last year in the dual race and rowing in the pair competition with his brother.

Their family’s connection to Chabad goes back generations. The boys’ father, Josh, recalls his mother teaching in the Chabad yeshivah day school in Worcester, Mass., which was led for more than seven decades by Rabbi Hershel Fogelman. Though at the time the family identified as Reform, this connection eventually led them to keeping a kosher home.

Another link in the chain was added when the Swidler boys arrived on Brown’s campus in January 2021.

“We both knew we wanted mezuzahs on our doorpost,” Ash told Chabad.org.

Nate told a friend from London who was active in Chabad at Columbia University, who in turn reached out to Rabbi Mendel and Chana Laufer, co-directors of the Rohr Chabad House serving Brown University, Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) and Johnson & Wales University, all of them in Providence.

In 2021, the day after their mandatory “two-week quarantine” arrival period ended, the rabbi greeted the boys outside the dormitories with a warm smile and open arms. Credit: Chabad of College Hill

The First of Many Meetings

This was back in the Covid days, and the day after their mandatory “two-week quarantine” arrival period ended, the rabbi greeted the boys outside the dormitories with a warm smile and open arms—at the time, he was not allowed inside due to pandemic regulations—and handed them each a mezuzah, a homemade challah and cards with the Shema prayer.

The relationship between the two British expats and the Laufers grew as the weeks went on.

“Nate’s and my initial interaction with the rabbi swiftly led to weekly meetings,” Ash said. “We would sit outside in the freezing cold January winter for hours. For me, Rabbi Mendel’s conversations evoked an element of authenticity that I found to be lacking in conversations with hundreds of fellow students.”

Ash, who is the current student president of Chabad at Brown, proudly chronicles its growth since he started there.

“Today we have over a hundred students coming on a regular Friday night,” he said.

There is a kosher kitchen in the largest dining hall at Brown, and this year dozens of students affixed a mezuzah to their doorposts courtesy of Chabad.

Eventually, the boys committed to putting on tefillin regularly. Rabbi Laufer, sensing the opportunity for a meaningful birthday gift, reached out to Ash’s father, Josh, to organize Ash to receive his own pair for his 22nd birthday.

“Following the passing of my wife, Ash found significant meaning and comfort in Torah study, something I am both proud of and encouraged with my whole heart,” Josh Swidler explained. “If I can play even the smallest part in enhancing Jewish identity and meaning for my children, I will do it.”

Nate participates in weekly Sinai Scholars classes and has managed to attend Shabbat dinners nearly every week of his senior year. The Swidlers devotion to Chabad and Jewish life on campus is even more noteworthy considering the demands made on college athletes.

After resolving to put on tefillin regularly, Ash received a pair of his own from Rabbi Mendel Laufer for his 22nd birthday. Credit: Swidler family

Standing up for Israel at an Ivy League

In the wake of the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks and what they describe as the “worryingly hostile climate for Jews” across college campuses, the brothers knew they had to do something.

“We felt desperate to champion the cause in a way we knew how, to spread positivity both on and off the water,” said Nate. So they came up with an idea that would literally make the Jewish people’s connection to their ancient homeland “in fashion” on and around campus—and on the water.

Nate and Ash designed a unisuit with the Star of David on the front and “Am Yisrael Chai” written on the back. The outfit made it easy for fellow rowers and classmates to see their support for the Land of Israel and its people.

They assumed that the project would receive mixed support from the rowing team, so they polled each member individually to see if they would consider wearing the uni. “Thirty of fifty said they wanted one—it warmed our hearts!,” said Ash.

Brooke Verschleiser, a student at Brown, is proud of the Swidlers and their enthusiasm to wear their Jewish identity on their sleeves.

“Seeing Ash and Nate stand up for Israel in the midst of adversity on campus is truly inspiring,” she said. “Their fortitude in defending Israel … is a powerful example for other students to advocate for the truth and stand up for what they believe in.”

Ash credits a fair share of their initiative to Rabbi Laufer.

“Rabbi Laufer is the smartest guy I know,” he said. “He is a source of support and a builder, creating a home where even the university president feels comfortable and welcome.”

Ash and other students appreciate Brown President Christina Paxson’s support for Chabad, where she is a familiar face. Laufer notes that she was sharing Shabbat dinner at Chabad on the same day other Ivy League college presidents were testifying about antisemitism on campus in Washington, D.C.

Chabad at Brown likewise receives the highest compliments of Joshua Bolton, the executive director of Brown/RISD Hillel.

“There really is no example like Brown, where Hillel and Chabad are working as closely together on behalf of the Jewish future,” he said. “There’s a story I’ve heard about the Rebbe [Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, of righteous memory] hopping a fence. Mendel and Chani are the ultimate fence-hoppers. Nothing stands in their way. Nothing can prevent their holy work.”

The Swidlers devotion to Chabad and Jewish life on campus is even more noteworthy considering the demands made on college athletes. Credit: Chabad of College Hill

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