By Rabbi Simcha Smolensky
As a traveling RFR (rabbinic field representative) for more years than I care to admit to, one quickly learns that regardless of how carefully we plan our days, flexibility is the key to success.
By Rabbi Chaim Loike
The mallard duck (Anas platyrhynchos) is one of the most colorful and common ducks in the United States, being found in wetlands as well as city ponds. Many of the ducks migrate across the United States, while others are supported year round by duck enthusiasts.
By Rabbi Chaim Goldberg
Why should I use OUDirect?
Loyal readers of these pages will not be shocked to learn that the Orthodox Union has invested large sums of money and some of its top talent in the OUdirect.org project. You know what OUdirect.org is: it's the portal which allows your company immediate and 24-hour access to major parts of your relationship with the OU.
By Rabbi Eliyahu Safran
The restaurant was bustling. Joyous noise and laughter filled the room as waiters and waitresses bustled to and fro, bringing trays of food or removing the empty plates of sated diners. The tables were filled with people enjoying their meals – extended families celebrating a birthday or graduation or promotion at some of the tables, small families sharing the evening together, friends crowding into a booth in the corner, laughing about something one of them had just said. There are couples, some older, some just married, sharing a quiet, intimate meal together at candle lit tables.
By Rabbi Yosef Goldberg
Company Overview: American families have been reserving a place at the table for Breakstone’s® Butter for more than five generations. The perfect butter for all types of breads and vegetables, Breakstone’s uses only the best kosher ingredients to assure the rich flavor and quality that complement any meal. Breakstone’s Butter is Grade AA, kosher certified by the Orthodox Union, and the only butter certified Kosher for Passover. Visit http://www.breakstonesbutter.com to locate retailers that carry Breakstone’s butter and to browse delicious recipes.
Melty rich and the secret to so many dishes, who doesn’t love butter? Certainly not the folks at Organic Valley, America’s largest cooperative of organic farmers and one of the nation’s leading organic brands. Organic Valley has several butter products under its umbrella of offerings, not the least of which is its award-winning and OU Kosher certified European Style Cultured Butter and Pasture Butter.
By Rabbi Aharon Brun-Kestler
Baby food is big business. Infant nutrition is a multi-billion dollar sector! There are several major players in the “jarred” or “ready” baby food market. Probably the two most familiar producers are Gerber (a division of Nestle´) and Beech-Nut Nutrition (a division of Hero). Other major players include Nature’s Goodness (a division of Bay Valley Foods) and Earth’s Best (a division of The Hain Celestial Group) – the largest manufacturer of organic baby foods.
By Rabbi Yisroel Hollander
Bordered by Georgia (the one Stalin came from, not the one Scarlett O’Hara came from), Azerbaijan, Turkey and Iran, and located between the Black and Caspian Seas, the former Soviet republic of Armenia, independent since 1991, has become the latest country to produce kosher products certified by the Orthodox Union.
On Friday October 16th the OU presented the first of a two-part webinar (Internet seminar) on dairy hashgacha. The second session took place one week later on Friday, October 23. Rabbi Yaakov Mendelson, Senior Dairy RC, moderated the sessions and presented e-mail questions sent in advance and on-the-spot by RFRs; Rabbi Avrohom Gordimer and Rabbi Avrohom Juravel responded verbally and live to the questions.
By Rabbi Dr. Eliyahu Safran
Judaism teaches that we are to enjoy the beauty, benefits, and bounty of creation. However, when it comes to overeating, Judaism is clear that too much of a good thing is a bad thing.
By Rabbi Eli Gersten
Leaf through any cookbook and you will be convinced that baker’s cheese is crucial for gourmet dining. I have heard it said that a cheesecake made with anything other than baker's cheese is just simply not worth the calories. With its soft, spongy consistency, baker’s cheese fills the gap between rennet cheeses (such as mozzarella and cheddar) and acid set cheeses (such as cottage cheese and cream cheese). As its name implies, it is often the baker’s cheese of choice for creating real cheese fillings for pies and cakes. Although fundamentally an acid set cheese, because baker’s cheese is made with a touch of rennet, it has the proper degree of firmness that gives cheese cake its proper texture. Baker’s cheese lies on the crossroads between acid cheese and rennet cheese, and as we will see, exactly how it is classified will have important ramifications on its kosher status.