(Japanese Charoset) Recipe and courtesy of Alana Chandler
Be’chol Lashon spoke with Alana Chandler, the founder of Tlaim: A Patchwork Cookbook, an innovation hub of Be’chol Lashon. Available later this year, the cookbook will feature over 80 recipes and stories from Jewish contributors of various racial, ethnic, and cultural backgrounds.
Growing up, Alana’s Jewish community was predominantly white, where they witnessed countless instances of racism and exclusion. As they grew older, Alana sought connection with other Jews of Color online, learning about the diversity and intersectionality within the Jewish community. After attending Kol Or’s Jews of Color Caucus virtual meetings during the pandemic, they were inspired by the caucus’s advocacy work and began collecting submissions for a community cookbook. This was the start of the Tlaim project, which they have passionately worked on throughout their time as a student and following graduation, alongside other enthusiastic volunteers.
The theme of community resilience in the face of marginalization made Passover an ideal holiday for a Tlaim zine. “One reason that Tlaim was created was to highlight discrimination that exists within the Jewish community,” Alana explained. “Not only to serve as a platform for people to honestly share about their challenges, but also for contributors to express their hopes and visions for how we can improve as a community, and the impactful work that they have already initiated, which will be highlighted in the upcoming final cookbook.”
(Messer Wot) Recipe and photo courtesy of Beejhy Barhany
Alana went on to elaborate on how the contributors’ experiences influenced the Tlaim Passover Zine explaining, “Many also shared how their difficult experiences served as points of empathic resonance that pulled them to support social justice causes broadly. Such is the spirit of Passover.”
While Tlaim cannot encompass the full complexity of the Jewish diaspora, it aims to capture both the challenges and joys in being a minority within a minority. “As a first step in creating a more equitable community, it is crucial to speak on what needs to be changed, as many contributors did with authenticity, vulnerability, and bravery. For their wisdom, I am indebted to them in gratitude,” Alana expressed. “At the same time, it is also important to celebrate the vibrant beauty and joy that each of us bring to the table, be it through our family dishes that survived persecution, new fusion recipes birthed through kitchen experimentation, or simply the precious gift of one’s presence.”
Alana referred to Passover as “storytelling through the senses,” a holiday full of ritual and symbolism through food. We taste salt and bitterness, touch our fingers into the wine, and sing prayers over our sustenance. The Tlaim Passover Zine was then an opportunity to continue the holiday’s storytelling by sharing, through food, lived experiences that have not always had a spotlight in collective images of Passover meals.
From Japanese charoset to matzo chilaquiles, the Tlaim Passover Zine brings both reflection and joy to your seders, while giving you a small preview of what to expect in the full cookbook.
Tlaim: A Patchwork Cookbook, and the Tlaim Passover Zine are both entirely volunteer led. Please consider donating to Tlaim as you download your zine. Your contribution will support the final production stages of the cookbook and make the final product accessible to an even wider range of people.
