Leichtag Commons Hosts A “Culinary Residency” Bringing Old World Jewish Food To Encinitas
For Immediate Release:
ENCINITAS, CA – June 3, 2016 – The Jewish culinary world is having a renaissance, and for two weeks Encinitas will be a thriving center of this awakening.
Beginning on June 6th, Brooklyn-based duo Jeffrey Yoskowitz and Elizabeth Alpern will be leading programs for the North County San Diego community inspired by their upcoming book, The Gefilte Manifesto: New Recipes for Old World Cuisine (Flatiron Books 2016). The authors are co-founders of The Gefilteria, an artisanal gefilte fish company based in New York. It is the first “culinary residency” hosted at Leichtag Commons.
“Cultural creatives are bringing together the best of food, farming, arts and culture to create vibrant, integrated community,” said Jim Farley, CEO and President of the Leichtag Foundation. “We are proud to host the talented Gefilteria leaders at Leichtag Commons and can’t wait to see how their interface with the community creates exciting results and unusual connections.”
The programs open to the public include an “Ashkenazi Cooking Class” at The Spice Way (Encinitas) on June 6th, a “Creative Shabbat” dinner experience inspired by the Lower East Side at Leichtag Commons on June 10th, and a Happy Hour featuring an Ashkenazi-inspired cocktail and appetizers at Solace & the Moonlight Lounge on June 15th. Tickets are available for purchase at gefilteria.com/sandiego.
The residency is a unique collaboration the Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Foundation’s Grassroots Initiative, the Center for Jewish Culture at the Lawrence Family Jewish Community Center, the Leichtag Foundation, and Coastal Roots Farm. The “Creative Shabbat” experience is additionally supported by an online Shabbat planning platform OneTable, while the cooking class is supported by JDC Entwine, whose West Coast office is located at Leichtag Commons’ North County Hub collaborative workspace.
In addition, The Gefilteria will host private events, including a Belarussian-themed menu collaboration with Chef Matt Gordon, executive chef and owner of Solace & the Moonlight Lounge. The theme comes from Chef Matt Gordon’s Belarus ancestry. They will also host a cocktail making seminar for a Moishe House leadership retreat.
The “Creative Shabbat” is planned to coincide with the Jewish agricultural holiday Shavuot which is a celebration that celebrates the wheat harvest.
“Food can be a pathway to understanding and experiencing our history and the culture of our ancestry, and a farm can be a source of inspiration,” said Joshua Sherman, Communications & Creative Manager for Leichtag Foundation. “We see The Gefilteria’s culinary residency as a way to share with our broader community how a farm can be the center of a Jewish cultural renaissance.”
The Gefilteria will return to San Diego in November 2016 for the San Diego Jewish Book Fair to promote their upcoming book The Gefilte Manifesto: New Recipes for Old World Cuisine (Flatiron Books 2016).
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The Leichtag Foundation honors the legacy of Lee and Toni Leichtag through igniting and inspiring vibrant Jewish life, advancing self-sufficiency and stimulating social entrepreneurship in coastal North San Diego County and Jerusalem.
Contact: Joshua Sherman
Communications & Creative Manager
joshua [at] leichtag.org
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