Storytellers (from left to right): Adam Richman, Liz Neumark, Josh Beckerman, Eden Grinshpan, Adeena Sussman and host Mitchell Davis. Photos by Amber Breitenberg.

We believe that Jewish recipes carry stories with them; stories of who we are as a cooks, as families, and as a people. Schmaltzy, our signature storytelling event, brings those stories to life. This past weekend, over 200 people gathered at our event at the New York City Wine & Food Festival for an evening of stories, Jewish comfort food — and our schmaltz-infused popcorn (check out the recipe below).

Many thanks to our emcee and host Mitchell Davis, live illustrator Flash Rosenberg, and caterer Great Performances for filling the evening with kreplach, bagels, blintzes, eggplant salad, and latkes with applesauce.

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Couldn’t make it to the event? You can hear all of the stories below.

Josh Beckerman, The Foodie Magician
For Josh, “magic’s been my guiding passion,” he said during his story. His first stage? His grandmother’s living room in Howard Beach, Queens. He would practice his tricks as she cooked chopped liver and kreplach — recipes passed down through the family from, as Josh says, “old Russia.”

Adeena Sussman, Author of Sababa.
Growing up in Palo Alto, California, Adeena was a typical kid (David Cassidy crush and all). But for one thing: She and her family were Orthodox. Longing for Kosher cheese in a Kosher desert, her parents launched a cheese business from their garage. From a young age, Adeena knew she wanted to explore the world “one bite at a time,” she said. Later in life, that meant leaving her Kosher traditions behind — and trying the melted cheese atop a Pizzeria Uno’s pizza. Fearful of telling her family, she was grateful when they accepted her. After all, she explained, her family was the one who taught her to be different in the first place.

Try Adeena’s family blintz recipe.

Liz Neumark, Owner of Great Performances.
Twenty years ago, Liz’s catering company was getting off the ground. She was also a mother to four children — all under the age of 10. One night, during bedtime, a storybook that features apple strudel, inspired her two youngest, Sam and Sylvia, 5 and 3, to plead with her to abandon bedtime and head to the kitchen and make applesauce and latkes. Liz couldn’t resist giving in to the unscheduled late night cooking session with her family. Four years later, Sylvia passed away suddenly. In her honor, Liz created a non-profit called the Sylvia Center and opened a farm. Each year, to raise funds, she hosts a latke competition. It reminds her of that night, as she said, where she could have said no, but instead said yes.

Try Liz’s latkes and applesauce recipes.

Eden Grinshpan, Top Chef Canada
After a rough patch in her 20s, Eden was set up with an Israeli guy, named Ido, who was living in New York City. The date went so well, both Ido and Eden texted their moms. “Such good Jewish kids we are,” Eden joked at Schmaltzy. Within a few weeks, Ido arrived at Eden’s apartment straight from the airport after a business trip to Israel, wanting to make her shakshuka. He asked her where she did her shopping. She said the Essex Street Market. When they arrived, he pressed her about which stall she shopped from. She pointed to a spot next to a pile of eggplant — a vegetable always on her family’s table. There, Ido dropped to one knee and proposed.

Adam Richman, Man Finds Food
From birth, Adam Richman was a Jewish kid from “Middle Brooklyn” as he called it. One of Adam’s first errands was fetching bagels on Coney Island Avenue. As he got into acting and music, he started to take on personas, traveling constantly. Somewhere, in the constant change of hotel rooms, he lost himself, he said. On a shoot in Amish country over Yom Kippur, he wanted to find his way back. He found a synagogue and went to services. After, when a friend picked him up, he insisted upon finding a bagel, explaining: “I’m looking for my way home.”

Schmaltzy Popcorn

Makes: About 8 cups of popcorn
Total Time: 10-15 minutes

Ingredients
3 tablespoons rendered schmaltz or oil
⅓ cup popcorn kernels
4 teaspoons kosher salt
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast

Preparation
1. Heat the schmaltz (or oil) over medium high heat in a medium saucepan (or stockpot) with a lid.

2. Place 5 of the corn kernels in the oil. Set out a large bowl for your finished popcorn.

3. As soon as the last of the 5 kernels have popped, add the remaining kernels and immediately take off the heat and cover.

4. Swirl the pot for 30 seconds.

5. Place the pot back on the heat with the lid slightly ajar and wait for the popping to begin.

6. Pay careful attention to the popcorn once the time in between the pops of kernels starts to slow down. When there are about 2-3 seconds in between pops, remove the pot from the heat, wait for a few final last pops and then immediately pour the popcorn into the bowl.

7. Toss with the salt and nutritional yeast immediately. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.