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   Friendships, we have come to conclude, are a lot like spices. They add flavor and enrich our lives in varying degrees, depending on the particular seasonings we choose and how much we sprinkle into the recipe.  There are the “go to” spices like salt and pepper that we might add into foods every day and even with every meal—atop our scrambled eggs in the morning, on our avocado toast at lunch and then into the stock for our roasted chicken in the evening. We also keep on hand essentials that might add more kick--cayenne, garlic, onion powder and paprika....

Last year, Thanksgiving went Topsyturkey. Will we return to our long-held traditions in 2021? Probably most of us will do so now that we have been vaccinated and are still wearing masks indoors and often outdoors. We want, in fact, we crave traditions as much as we desire carbs, chocolate and sugar and a return to normalcy (whatever that means). In 2020, the pandemic was raging, shutting down many of our in-person social gatherings. Thanksgiving took a huge hit. Nearly 70 percent of Americans celebrated the holiday differently to stay healthy and guard the health of their elderly relatives. In addition...

My mother loved the village and town in Westchester County, N.Y., where she and my father moved in 1953. He died in 1992, and she stayed until 1995 when she decided suburban life as a widow was too lonely for her. The village and town in Westchester County, N.Y Also, the challenge of putting on a new roof was too much, she said, so she picked up and moved to New York City—25 miles away. There she remained until she died a year ago at almost 101 years. However, those years in a bucolic suburb were among her happiest, along...

  I march down West End Avenue in New York City and swing right onto 72nd Street early on a Sunday morning. I am volunteering with what is called the National Council of Jewish Women’s “Back 2 School Store” on Manhattan's west side. I thought it would be a great opportunity to interact with young kids and their families and possibly meet some new people in my adopted city after moving from St. Louis two years ago. It is a glorious day. Cloudless and cool. The bright blue-sky glistens as I enter the four-story NCJW building on a busy street...

As my older daughter neared the end of her first pregnancy, I began to think about what I might cook to feed her and her husband when they brought the baby home—to nourish them and friends who would be visiting to greet their new arrival (vaccinated and masked, of course). Food plays a starring role at gatherings in both of their heritages—one Jewish and one Irish Catholic. And my daughter has become more sentimental about our family food traditions, even those she didn’t like as a child. But her taste buds and culinary standards have advanced beyond my kitchen. She...