Month: April 2023

Touro Cuts Ribbon on 3 Times Square Campus

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On Monday, April 17th, Touro University celebrated the Official Opening of our brand new Cross River Campus, at 3 Times Square, in Midtown Manhattan, with a formal ribbon-cutting ceremony and reception. Several of our Library staff were on hand for the ceremony.

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Happy (Delicious) Passover!

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Photo by cottonbro studio on Pexels

This year, Passover begins at sundown on Wednesday, April 5, and ends on Thursday, April 13, in the United States.

We asked Touro Library staff what they love to eat on Passover. Read on for some of their favorites.

Photo by Pixabay

Toby Krausz, Judaica Librarian, Cross River Campus, shares her grandmother’s recipe for Chremselach:

I make cooked potato pancakes called chremselach (that’s multiple, one is a chremsle). My grandmother used to make them and eventually let me make them with her enough times that I now know the recipe and make them every year.

Recipe:

  • Boil potatoes (minimum 5, add more for a larger group)
  • Drain potatoes and put them in a separate bowl
  • Add eggs to potatoes depending on the size of the potatoes. One large potato=1 egg. 5 large potatoes=5 eggs. 5 small potatoes=4 eggs. If in doubt, add an extra egg.
  • Add salt, pepper, seasonings (I like onion powder) to taste
  • If desired, grate or chop in a small onion (make sure the pieces are small or your chremsle will fall apart!)
  • Mix batter together (we find it helpful to use a potato masher to get a smooth batter)
  • Fry generous spoonfuls in hot oil until golden brown.

Enjoy hot off the pan or in your chicken soup!

Gefilte fish and horseradish by Karen on Flickr. (CC BY-SA 2.0)

Marina Zilberman, Chief  Librarian, Cross River Campus’s favorite Passover dish is gefilte fish with beet horseradish and potato kugel.

Flourless Chocolate Cake by Kurman Communications on Flickr licensed under CC BY 2.0

Bashe Simon, Director of Touro Libraries, shares her Passover recipe for chocolate cake:

Chocolate cake

  • 6 eggs
  • 1 ½ cups sugar
  • 1 ½ cups oil
  • ¾ cup cocoa
  • ¾ cup potato starch 
  • 1 ½ tsp. baking powder

Mix well in mixer and bake at 350 degrees for about 1 hr.

Rita’s gefilte fish, courtesy of Rita Stravets

Rita Stravets, Librarian at the Graduate School of Education’s favorite Passover dish is gefilte fish which she cooks twice a year, using her grandmother’s recipe.

We wish everyone in the Touro University community and beyond a Happy Passover!