FOOD STYLING: GREG LUNA
A writer and lifestyle expert embraces her Japanese American heritage and
blended family by reimagining two Hanukkah favorites.
MOCHI LATKES
Mochi flour gives fried
potato fritters crisp
edges with a slightly
chewy interior. “I set
out a latke bar with an
array of toppings,” she
says. “Some options
are classic like lox and
créme fraîche. Others,
like matcha salt, have
a Japanese tilt.”
wholeheartedly
believe that
when we adapt
rituals to fit our
modern lifestyles, we
ensure they continue
for years to come,”
says Kristin Eriko
Posner, founder of
Nourish Co., a website
that helps ethnically
blended families
develop modern
traditions. When Kristin
converted to Judaism
before marrying
husband Bryan, she
wanted to find ways to
embrace and celebrate
both their cultural
backgrounds. “Too
often we think of rituals
in black-and-white. But
there’s beauty in the
shades between,” she
says. “If it helps you
connect, break the
rules.” For Kristin, that
means incorporating
Japanese ingredients in
Hanukkah dishes, like
adding mochi (sweet
rice) flour to latkes and
yuzu zest to doughnut
filling. “I want to help
give people permission
to play.”
I
BY MAGGIE GLISAN PHOTOS BLAINE MOATS
FOOD CELEBRATE
74 | December 2019
tradition redefined
