Figgy pudding or gefilte fish?
Latkes or fruitcake?
Don't choose, says Bozeman writer Ron Gompertz, a New Yorker who married a Midwesterner and who's smooshed Hanukkah and Christmas into Chrismukkah.
Enjoy all of the secular traditions of each holiday by embracing both Santa and Harry Hanukkah, challah and sticky buns, matzoh ball snowmen and “Ho Ho Hummus.”
Gompertz figures about 10 million Americans are matrimonially mingled, with one a Christian who grew up with reindeer and candy canes, the other a Jew nibbling on chocolate gelt and lighting menorah candles.
Last year, he launched a line of humorous holiday cards that celebrate Chrismukkah, a fusion of Christmas and Hanukkah; this year he came out with “Chrismukkah: The Merry Mish-Mash Holiday Cookbook,” with more than 55 hybrid-holiday recipes.
“It's as if Martha Stewart married Jon Stewart, and together they wrote a cookbook,” he said.
Gompertz is working on a bigger book about the symbols and traditions of Christmas and Hanukkah, and the cookbook is one chapter of that project. He and his wife, Michelle, took family and traditional recipes, turned them over to a professional culinary teacher and chef in Bozeman - Kathy Stark, owner of Starky's Authentic, dubbed Montana's only real Jewish delicatessen - and the book was born.
It is a Montana product, from idea to photography to recipes to printing.
Gompertz said he nixed the temptation to include a recipe for gefilte ham; “It would have looked and tasted awful.” Three rules applied to the recipes:
They had to taste good.
They had to fuse elements from different cultures.
And they “shouldn't offend our grandparents.”
Chrismukkah, Gompertz explains in the book, is a “gumbo of cherished secular traditions. It's the good stuff we can all enjoy, no matter what our faith.” His family had a Hanukkah bush in his New York neighborhood, which was filled with Catholics and Protestants and other Jews.
His own daughter, Minna, is growing up in Bozeman, in a home that blends Christian and Jewish cultures and traditions, he said.
As clever as the idea of Chrismukkah is, Gompertz admits he's treading on some emotional terrain. Religious history can be dark and serious, and he said he doesn't want to offend. But he does want to celebrate all cultures, and seeks “to eliminate the friction, confusion, and awkwardness” of “the December dilemma.”
“Making a cohesive story and making it resonate emotionally is the challenge,” he said. “I'm trying to tie in some of the more serious themes of culturalism and tolerance in our world. I didn't want to write a book basically making fun of Jews and Christians, but I wanted to treat them with respect.”
But humor is important, and “The Merry Mish-Mash Holiday Cookbook” finds it in some fun props - Godzilla and reindeer menorahs, “Oy Rogers” on his favorite horse, Trigger - and clever rewrites of holiday songs (“T'was the night before Chrismukkah, and me, being Jewish / I was ‘on call' again, and feeling quite blueish”).
It includes a list of 34 celebrities who might celebrate Chrismukkah, including Kate Hudson (Italian father, Jewish mother) and Paula Abdul (Syrian father, French-Canadian-Jewish mother), and also some short histories of favorite holiday foods (“Latkes are not to be confused with anything the House of Pancakes would have on the menu.”)
But the recipes, designed, tested and tweaked by Stark, are the soul of the cookbook. Begin the planning with Noel Nosh appetizers such as Chutzpah Mix or Deck the Halls with Boughs of Challah. For brunch, consider Lotsa Latkes or Blitzen's Blintzes with Manny-Cranny Sauce.
After a Chrismukkah Smorgasbord that includes Mama Mia Matzah Pizza and Rabbi Reuben's Bread Pudding, choose from the chapter on Fancy-Schmancy Desserts (Kris Kringle Kugel or Gingerbread Mensch, for instance) followed by happy hour selections, including Hava Tequila Sunrise/Sunset or Clarence's Merryschewitz Mulled Wine, named after the angel from “It's a Wonderful Life,” who orders mulled wine during the “evil bar scene.”
Also in the cookbook: directions for making a Matzoh Bread House, a “soon-to-be-classic Chrismukkah project.”
So go ahead. Cook already!
But don't forget to say grace.
Chutzpah Mix
1 4-ounce package of hot wasabi-coated peas
1 cup chocolate chips
2 cups dried mango slices
2 cups salted cashews
Combine in bowl and eat.
“Our certified ‘Chex-free for Chrismukkah' alternative is a nervy mix that's sweet, salty, and butter-free.”
From “Chrismukkah: The Merry Mish-Mash Holiday Cookbook,” by Ron Gompertz and Kathy Stark, and photographs by Larry Stanley.
I'm Dreaming of a White Fudge Chrismukkah
2 1/4 cups sugar
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup milk
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon corn syrup
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 cup crushed Oreo cookies
1/4 cup of red, green and blue M&Ms
Line an 8-inch square pan with foil. In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar, sour cream, milk, butter, corn syrup and salt. Bring to a boil over medium heat and continue cooking until the temperature reaches 238 degrees Fahrenheit on a candy thermometer. Remove pan from heat and let stand until the mixture is lukewarm, about 1 hour. Add the vanilla and beat until the mixture loses its gloss. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan and let set until firm. Roll the fudge in crushed Oreo cookies, and press lightly to adhere. Sprinkle with red, green and blue M&Ms. Cut into squares and serve.
“Chocolate is common to both Christmas and Hanukkah. ... The red and green M&Ms represent Christmas, the blue ones Hanukkah.”
From “Chrismukkah: The Merry Mish-Mash Holiday Cookbook,” by Ron Gompertz and Kathy Stark, and photographs by Larry Stanley.
The Gwyneth Paltrow
2 tablespoons Absolut Raspberri vodka
1 cup water
1 cinnamon stick
1/4 cup fine sugar
4 pink grapefruit
1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen raspberries
Crushed ice
Put the cinnamon stick in a small pan with the sugar and water. Heat gently until the sugar has dissolved, then bring to a boil for 1 minute. Allow to cool.
Cut away the peel from the pink grapefruit and cut into sections. Using a juicer, juice the grapefruit and raspberries and pour into a small pitcher. (Alternately, you may substitute bottled grapefruit and raspberry juice.)
Remove the cinnamon from the syrup and add syrup and vodka to the pitcher of grapefruit/raspberry juice.
Half fill with the crushed ice. Pour over the pink fruit juice and serve immediately.
“There is an old tradition of honoring celebrities by naming cocktails after them. This drink is in honor of half-Jewish princess Gwyneth Paltrow, daughter of Brooklyn-born director Bruce Paltrow and Tony Award-winning actress Blythe Danner. The Patrowitch family tree goes back to 17th century Russia, with a whopping 33 rabbis among Gwyneth's ancestors.”
From “Chrismukkah: The Merry Mish-Mash Holiday Cookbook,” by Ron Gompertz and Kathy Stark, and photographs by Larry Stanley.
