While this parsha is chock-full of memorable stories, not all of them are ones I want to honor with food, so I got creative. The first idea came to me quickly and is based on the commentary regarding the word וַׄיִּׄשָּׁׄקֵ֑ׄהׄוּׄ. The simple meaning is "he (Esau) kissed him (Jacob)," but the dots written over this word in the Torah invite commentary. One explanation comes from Bereshit Rabbah 78 "If so, why is it dotted over it? Rather, it teaches that he did not come to kiss him, but
rather to bite him, and Jacob’s neck was transformed into marble and the teeth of that wicked one were blunted." This famous commentary about Esau's teeth made me think of garlic. Why garlic? Well, when we hosted some Tzofim many years ago, one "Thank you" present was a recipe for Shakshuka and from there I learned that in Hebrew each segment of garlic is a "tooth" of garlic. So, this week's Shabbat main meal will be 40 Garlic "Tooth" Chicken.
For dessert, my 15 year old and I both thought of the same concept - to represent Jacob separating his family into two camps before meeting with Esau by having a food with two visually distinct looks. At first I was aiming for black and white cookies, but I really only wanted it if we could get those big deli ones from NYC and those aren't pareve. So, instead I am going to make two batches of cookies and plate them side by side. One "camp" is regular chocolate chip cookies and the other "camp" is double chocolate chip cookies!
A little warning - it's a long walk from the parsha to the last food on the list for this week's side dish, but it's a fun one. So, the whole last chapter of this parsha is the genealogy of Esau. It's 43 lines, which sure seems like a lot of space given to this section (considering how succinct other parts of the Torah are.) As Midrash Tanhuma says "Didn’t the Al-mighty have anything else to write?!" So, of course, the commentaries and midrash find ways to make it meaningful such as the explanation of the lines "Timna was a concubine of Esau’s son Eliphaz; she bore Amalek to Eliphaz." (Shemot 36:9-12) The Talmud says that she wanted to join Avraham, Isaac, and Jacob, but they rejected her and Amalek, the nation that afflicted Israel, descends from her. Many commentators note how the repercussions of dismissing or not accepting a person can play out for generations. There's other interpretations too and I love how involved this becomes and helps bring to a life a section that can seem sort of boring. So, I as I thought about the character of Timna it made me think of Timna Park in Israel, which made me think of one of it's most famous rock formations, which looks like a mushroom and the whole feel of the place with reddish brown rocks, so...I'm making mini-taco sliders with refried beans (reddish brown) and roasted mushrooms. Phew!
Shabbat Shalom and B'Tayavon!
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