The Jewish calendar is filled with holidays that have colorful and well-recognized traditions. Passover, Rosh Hashanah, Sukkot, Hanukkah and Purim all offer activities for the kids and elaborate traditions. Some even have “Hollywood-style antagonist vs. protagonist stories” to narrate.
Shavuot, however, is an exception.
“There are two established customs on Shavuot: staying up all night to learn Torah and eating foods made with dairy,” Michael Tanenbaum, founder of the website Consciously Kosher, told the Journal. “The most common reason is that, since the Torah was given to us on Shabbat, we did not have the opportunity to slaughter animals. Therefore, we ate dairy.”
Foods enjoyed on Shavuot include cheese crepes, blintzes, quiches, casseroles, pizza and, of course, cheesecake.
Since eating dairy causes havoc for a growing number of people, Tanenbaum included, the Journal reached out for his recommendations on how people can enjoy the holiday without impacting their health. Consciously Kosher is dedicated to educating both the Jewish community and the general public on the overall health benefits of eating a kosher diet rich in nutritious, predominantly unprocessed whole foods.
When Tanenbaum was a kid, his mother always made cheese crepes from scratch on Shavuot. The filling had farmer’s cheese, cinnamon and raisins.
“This was always the culinary highlight of our Shavuot,” he said. “I can still remember the aroma of the fresh crepes wafting through the house before the sun set and the holiday began.”
Since Tanenbaum no longer consumes dairy products, he created a nondairy crepe alternative.
His recipe uses vegan ricotta cheese made from either cashews or almonds. Although similar in some ways to farmer’s cheese, ricotta is milder. (Tanenbaum likes to use Kite Hill’s ricotta cheese, which can be found at Whole Foods.)
Instead of making the crepes with modern wheat, Tanenbaum uses spelt.
“Spelt is an ancient variant of wheat that has not been hybridized,” he said. “It has a lower gluten content and a deeper, nuttier flavor than modern wheat.”
Einkorn flour is another flour alternative and, like spelt, it is much lower in gluten than modern wheat. There’s also almond flour, which is gluten-free.
And remember, Tanenbaum said, “Even pizza crust can be made out of cauliflower.”
People with dietary issues can still enjoy Shavuot’s food traditions with delicious, non-problematic alternatives.
People with dietary issues can still enjoy Shavuot’s food traditions with delicious, nonproblematic alternatives. There are nondairy variants of cheesecake, crepes and pizza, made with cashew cheese, almond cheese or blended nuts.
One more thing. Even if you can enjoy dairy, be careful not to overdo it on Shavuot.
“I recommend preslicing the cheesecake or the pizza so that you only eat a pre-apportioned amount,” Tanenbaum said.
Only one slice of cheesecake or pizza? For a healthier holiday, it’s worth a try!
NonDairy Cheese Crepes
Crepes
1¼ cup spelt flour
pinch of salt
3 eggs, beaten
1 ½ cups almond milk
2 Tbsp coconut oil (plus some more for
the outside of the finished crepes)
Filling
1 cup almond cheese
2 Tbsp raisins
¾ tsp Ceylon cinnamon
1 ½ Tbsp coconut sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
½ tsp grated lemon zest
½ tsp Himalayan salt
Crepes
1. Set your crepe maker to high and preheat for 10 minutes. You can also use a frying pan. Put it over high heat on the stove.
2. Combine all ingredients in a blender or mixer.
3. Pour the crepe mixture onto the crepe maker until it spreads out about 6 inches, then flatten with the pastry spreader.
4. Flip the crepes after about 45 seconds (or when they are browned on the bottom).
Filling
1. Combine all ingredients into a small bowl.
2. Fill each crepe with about 1 Tbsp of filling.
3. Brush with melted coconut oil.
4. Serve warm and enjoy!
Cashew Cheese Pizza with Almond Flour Crust
Simple Mills Almond Flour Pizza Dough Baking Mix (Another vegan and gluten-free crust option is Bob’s Red Mill Gluten-Free Pizza Crust Mix)
2 Tbsp organic apple cider vinegar
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup water
Toppings
1 Tbsp olive oil
1½ pounds roasted tomatoes
Freshly ground black pepper
8 ounces Miyoko’s Liquid Vegan Pizza Mozzarella cashew cheese (Sometimes labeled as Miyoko’s Pourable Mozzarella, it can be purchased at Whole Foods, Cooportunity, Target, Bristol Farms, Erewhon and Ralphs, among others.)
Chopped fresh basil
Roasted garlic, sliced
Crust
1. Heat oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Whisk apple cider vinegar, olive oil and water together in a large bowl.
3. Pour the pizza crust mix into the bowl and stir well until a dough forms.
4. Add up to 2 Tbsp of additional water if the dough crumbles too easily.
5. Shape dough into a square or circle with raised edges.
6. Bake the crust for 15 minutes until slightly golden.
Toppings
1. Toss tomatoes with olive oil, a pinch of salt and the ground pepper.
2. When crust is done, remove from the oven. Increase temp to 450°F.
3. Roast tomatoes in the oven for 10-12 minutes. When done, remove and lower temp to 350°F.
4. Spread cashew cheese and sliced garlic on the crust.
5. Add roasted tomatoes to the crust and bake for an additional 10-12 minutes.
6. Remove from the oven, sprinkle with torn basil leaves and drizzle with olive oil.
7. Serve immediately.
