Crumbs!

It's 10 of Tevet, a fast day for all us observant Yids, and I've got a serious craving for a Crumbs Devil's Food Cake cupcake. I have yet to find a decent cupcake shop in this entire Country (well, in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem) and it's really starting to hurt. I'm thinking of just baking cupcakes for myself, you know, to keep me nice and happy when I need a sugar rush. 

So, this morning I asked pidgeon why we're fasting today and he told me it's because we're commemorating the start of the Babylonian siege on Jerusalem. He then told me that the Rabbanut of Jerusalem also declared it the day to mourn those who perished in the Holocaust. This confused me because Yom Hashoah is right after Pesach, but he said that Yom Hashoah was created by the non-religious State of Israel and 10 of Tevet being a day of mourning to the Shoah victims was created by the Religious State of Israel. Sometimes I really wonder which "States" I'm living in.

I watch a lot of Food Network TV on Hot 32 and I have to say, when I watch the Israeli programs, I get really, really upset to see non kosher ingredients. Does that make me a hypocrite? I don't eat non kosher, keep a strictly kosher home, but have been known to "eat out" at non kosher restaurants while in the States or abroad. I'm careful with what I eat, trying to keep within the kosher parameters, and I absolutely love watching Chefs like Mario Battali, Rachael Ray, Bobby Flay, etc. working with exotic ingredients I won't ever be able to eat. So why does it bother me so much when an Israeli Chef from some hot restaurant in Tel Aviv is cooking duck with cheddar cheese or shrimp cocktail? I  guess I just have to put myself under the microscope :)

Yesterday was boring, which was why I didn't update the blog, nothing new to write about. I decided to make pidgeon a candlelit dinner - complete with whole wheat pasta and sauce, breaded chicken cutlets (low-fat!), sauteed string beans and onions and leftover cauliflower kugel. I figured the balance of protein and carbs would be a good idea for before the fast. Well, I don't know about pidgeon, but I woke up starving! Fortunately, only a few more hours to go until the fast is done.

I have to go to Bar Ilan tomorrow and I'm really not excited about it, especially since I have to be on campus bright and early to get everything done. I have to file a formal request to take a final I missed last year because, well, it was scheduled 4 days before our wedding. I'm bringing a copy of the invitation for proof, just in case they don't believe me! Pidgeon offered to drive me, which is great, because the weather is supposed to be absolutely lousy. Nothing like arriving on campus looking and feeling like a wet dog. Oh well, I just have to suck it up and take care of things. Hopefully it won't take us too long to do.

The countdown until my family comes to visit is upon us and in less than 7 days, my brother will be in town! The house is an absolute wreck, so I'm looking forward to the next fews day to take care of tidying up before he gets here. Hopefully, he'll have a good trip!

Well, I'm off to shower and get my day going. I figured lounging in bed until 11:00 a.m. was enough indulgence for one day. Hope everyone who is fasting is having an easy one!