Ladder of Years
This week's parashah opens with the beautiful dream of a ladder covered by angels that Yaakov has on his departure from Be'er Sheva. that opening scene will be the basis of our shabbat dinner. Even the challot we use will allude to the story. When Yaakov goes to sleep, he arranges a series of rocks to use as a pillow, but when he awakes, the stones have melded into one large rock, because, according to the midrash, they were all vying for the privilege of supporting Yaakov's head. A simple pull apart challah is made by rolling a series of balls of challah dough and placing them in a pan together so they fuse as they bake, a perfect representation of the stones under Yaakov's head.
{For a different take on the stones, see the amazing looking recipe at this new parashah blog to which a friend directed me: Elisha's Double Portion.}
As for the meal, it will include artfully composed dishes that are reminiscent of ladders such as asparagus, string beans, strips of London broil, a salad built with large juliennes of jicama and avocado stacked to look like a ladder, and, if time permits, skewers of vegetables and chicken. To accompany our ladders, we will serve angel hair pasta and for dessert, angel food cake.
For shabbat lunch, dessert will be the parashah highlight. I am going to pull out my lamb shaped baking pan so we can make a chocolate chip cake in the form of a spotted and speckled sheep, just like the vast flock that Yaakov amasses through ingenious genetic planning--and a lot of help from Hashem. We will also serve jasmine tea and some figs, both foods identified by mefarshim (rabbinic commentaries) as possibilities for the mysterious (and aphrodisiac/fertility inducing) dudaim that Reuven collects and Rachel begs from Leah.
Have a shabbat shalom.
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