KADDISHEL
A Life Reborn
Jewish law prohibits cooking on Shabbat, so people did not cook on Saturday, even in our house. Every Friday, many people brought their pots of cholent over to the rebbitsin’s big oven. It was left in the hot oven overnight. Saturday morning at around 11:30, my sister Chava or I was sent with a towel to bring back the hot pot — and we had a hot meal without having to cook. At noon, when my father came home from shul, the cholent was our delicious lunch. The potatoes had turned soft and brown, and the long slow cooking gave the cholent a special taste. The whole town ate cholent on Shabbat. Often on Shabbat and holidays, Rabbi Akiva had a kiddush (a festive glass of wine and a meal) at his home in the afternoon af- ter shul, and the rebbitsin served cholent and cakes with wine. Everybody sang zmirot (Sabbath songs). Rabbi Akiva would take his portion first and then everyone else would fill their plates. The children often stood behind their fathers, who slipped them pieces of meat and chicken. Not everyone went to synagogue on Shabbat, but no one would dare profane the day. No one traveled, nor did they do anything offensive or improper in public on the Sabbath. On Shabbat after - noons, after the big family lunch together, fathers would often nap. In the spring, they would nap under the blossoming apple and pear trees. In the evening, people gathered to stroll through town from one bridge to the other. Most people, including my mother, would also prepare some- thing that could be eaten cold, like egg salad or borscht. Another dish we used to prepare that did not require cooking on the Sabbath was chalodetz, a stew made from the leg of a steer or a cow, eat- en hot or cold. Before cooking, the foot was singed, cleaned, and chopped. There was a lot of marrow in the big bones, and egg yolk, garlic, and other spices were added. You could dunk challah into the hot stew and eat the meat, or you could let it cool and gel into a solid. We called this cold-foot, and it is very delicious. I think you can still buy cold-foot in New York.
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