Food Tourah – Tetzaveh

March 5, 2025 in Food Tourah

Because life so often happens around food, we’re spending the year exploring the weekly parshiot and finding connections to each week’s Shabbat menu.  Sarah, a seasoned Jewish educator, brings a wealth of knowledge to our discussions, while Alison, who loves creating

dishes that bring people together, are excited to explore the weekly portions in greater depth. Each week we will give a brief overview of the parsha and then suggest ways to incorporate its themes into your Shabbat menu. This is our version of Julie and Julia – the charming movie in which a blogger challenges herself to make all 524 recipes from Julia Child’s 1961 classic Mastering the Art of French Cooking in just one year.  Lucky for us, we only have to cover 54 parshiot –  34 more to go!

Tetzaveh opens as G-d instructs the Israelites to bring olive oil for “kindling lamps regularly” (Exodus 27:20), which is where the tradition of the Ner Tamid (eternal flame) originates.  Next, G-d commands Moses to appoint Aaron and his sons as priests.  The parsha goes into elaborate detail on how the priestly robes should be constructed and decorated, reflecting dignity and adornment. The robes are to be made of gold, blue, purple, and crimson yarns, along with fine linens. Aaron is to wear a breastpiece with twelve gemstones that signify the twelve tribes of Israel. This breastpiece, also known as the breastpiece of decision, included two objects – the Urim and the Thummim – used to seek divine guidance. The parsha also discusses how to sanctify the priests and offerings that include “unleavened bread, unleavened cakes with oil mixed in, and unleavened wafers spread with oil” (Exodus 29:2).  There are a lot more details about the sacrifices – but we won’t get into those!

Olives, often associated with peace and blessing, are mentioned a couple times in Tetzaveh.  For the first mention, we recommend this Olive Tapenade. If you like olives (not all of us do!), it will go great on crackers, crusty bread, and even challah. We loved reading about the “breastpiece of decision” – it sounds like something out of an Indiana Jones movie! To go along with the theme of making choices, how about a Fajita Bar for your menu this week? Start with this Chicken and Beef Marinade recipe and set out an array of veggies, sauces, and tortillas for your guests to choose from.  With so many colorful details in this parsha, we’ll make just two more suggestions.  First this recipe for  Roasted Purple Cauliflower left our mouths watering – and it beautifully mirrors the vibrant threads in the priestly robes.  And by now, you know it will be rare for us to leave out dessert. Our pick:  Gluten Free Olive Oil Cake, which parallels the unleavened cakes with oil mentioned in the parsha. Plus, it sounds absolutely delicious!  This week, we hope your menu decisions are as inspired as the Urim and Thummim—and maybe a little sweeter, too.

B’tayavon and Shabbat Shalom,
Alison (Baraf) & Sarah (Roark)

To read past installments of Food Tourah, click here. 

For a more in-depth look at this week’s parsha, visit Sefaria.com.