mikeitz
parasha Mikeitz, Genesis chapters 41—44
and thoughts…
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mikeitz
at the end
In which Pharaoh dreams two prophetic dreams that his magicians can’t decipher.
And then there’s Joseph, languishing in prison, sent there undeservedly by a vindictive woman scorned.
Pharaoh is told that there’s a Hebrew in prison who interprets dreams. He sends for Joseph, who lives up to his reputation and ultimately saves Egypt from the coming famine by alerting Pharaoh to the impending doom. More importantly, he tells him how to avert it. He takes no credit however, and attributes the prophesy as coming, not from himself, but from God.
Pharaoh is duly grateful. He sees in Joseph a man of integrity, intelligence, and wisdom—filled with the “spirit of God” as no other—and in his own wisdom elevates Joseph to the highest position in the land, second only to Pharaoh himself. Joseph is given an Egyptian name and an Egyptian wife, Asenat, a woman of high status. She bears two sons, whom he names Manasseh and Ephraim.
With a fashionable haircut and some fancy new clothes, Joseph looks like a proper Egyptian elite as he takes his place among the ruling class.
The scene is now set. All the pieces of the puzzle are in place. Are we “at the end?” We are at the beginning, the beginning of the realization of God’s promise to Abraham. His grandchild and his great-grandchildren are about to descend into Egypt, where they will, in time, be enslaved and then redeemed by God, Who will lead them to freedom and give them the gift of Torah.
In the Covenant Between The Pieces, God tells Abraham, “You shall surely know that your seed will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, and they will enslave them and oppress them, for four hundred years.
And also the nation that they will serve will I judge, and afterwards they will go forth with great possessions. (Beresheet ch. 15)
Every end is a beginning, and every beginning an end.
The famine came, as predicted. It was widespread throughout the region. Back in Canaan, Jacob learns that there is food in Egypt. He sends his sons to go there to buy food. Joseph’s ten brothers (the eleventh, Benjamin, stays behind) arrive and are taken before their brother, the brother they sold into slavery so long ago. With his Egyptian appearance and mannerisms, they don’t recognize him. But he recognizes them immediately. He puts them through a series of tests to see if they’ve changed at all, or if they’re still the same bums.
This Shabbat is more than the one where we read parasha Mikeitz. Tonight is also the third night of Chanukah. It’s got me thinking about the Seleucids and their conquering of Judea, of their desecration of the Temple, their ultimate goal being the elimination of the Jewish people. I’m thinking of the Maccabees and how their guerrilla tactics enabled them to drive out the Seleucids and re-dedicate the Temple, only to turn on their own people and slaughter those who they deemed “not Jewish enough.”
In this season, where many cultures find cause for celebration, and where we find ourselves submerged in a culture that is not our own, let’s not judge one another on “how Jewish” we think our neighbor may be. Joseph may have appeared to be an Egyptian on the outside, but he knew who he was, and he was never as much as a step away from his own heritage. The success he was able to achieve, the success that ultimately led to the survival of his family and our own existence as a people, came through working within the system. It was God who was always in charge. Happy Chanukah!
So what shall we eat?
Potato latkes. What else? Of course there will be potato latkes. Now we just need to build a meal around them. (No, we can’t just eat latkes. We need protein. We need vegetables.)
Many years ago, my uncle Manny and Aunt Edna were in my neck of the woods during Chanukah. I invited them to dinner and made latkes. I stood at the stove frying latkes while Manny ate. And I fried. And he ate. At one point he did come up for air, just long enough to remark that they were exactly like his mother’s.“Of course they’re like your mother’s,” I replied. “Who do you think taught me to make them?” And I kept frying, and he kept eating. After an hour and a half, I said, “enough!”
When you look at Grandma’s latkes, and at her recipe, you’ll notice quite a difference from all the others out there. First, there’s the texture. Grandma grated them by hand, on the small holes of the grater. I’ve found that the way to replicate that with a food processor is to first push the potatoes through the shredding disc, then switch to the “S” blade and pulse the strands, to briefly chop them. Or use the kugel disk that comes with the Braun food processor.
You’ll also notice that I don’t tell you to squeeze the liquid out of the potatoes. That’s not an omission, not a mistake. Grandma never squeezed the potatoes. The batter is somewhat loose. When a scoop of batter hits the hot oil, it spatters and creates a lacy pattern at the edges. They come out crispy and altogether delicious.
I know that some families eat latkes with sour cream. For us, they always were part of a meat-based dinner, so we had them with applesauce. That’s the way I like them. The stuff in a jar is absolutely fine, but I just happen to have a large bagful of apples in the fridge, so the applesauce will be homemade. I add just a touch of brown sugar and cinnamon, and cook the apples until they’re slightly caramelized. It’s amazing.
We usually had some potted meat, such as a brisket or pot roast. You could also do beef short ribs. A roasted chicken (or turkey if you’re feeding a crowd) works, too. Basically, if it’s something you’d pair with potatoes, it will work with latkes. But tonight, it will be just my husband and me, with all my vegetarian kids. We’re going to have a sliceable loaf, made from assorted mushrooms, three kinds of nuts, brown rice, and cheese. It’s nutritious, easy to make in advance, and very tasty.
Of course, there will be a soup. I’m going with one of Grandma’s standards (and my mother’s favorite), split pea. The veg will be a super-simple, clean-out-the-fridge affair. I’m going to cut carrots and parsnips into batons, and cut asparagus spears in half to about the same length. They’ll be quickly steamed with a bit of water in the microwave. Then, I’ll toss them in melted butter, spread them out on a pan, and set them under a hot broiler until they pick up just a touch of char.
Dessert will be sufganyot. Jelly donuts. From Donut King. It’s ok if sometimes you don’t make everything yourself!