“Tunisian Jews never had milk or dairy products,” explains Chen Cohen, the Messalems’ granddaughter (Tunisian Jews say they do not eat “the white”). For American Jews, most of whom are Ashkenazi, the tradition of serving dairy dishes for Shavuot has always been seen as a given. Credit: Mosa'ab Elshamy / APA Jewish superhero: Yoav Son-of-MilkThere were also other, less traditional reasons for turning Shavuot into the official dairy holiday of the Jewish people. For Libyan Jews, it wouldn’t be Shavuot without a large farina dumpling called bazeen, which represents Mount Sinai itself. As the Talmud says, “There is no joy without meat and wine” – and that’s true even on dairy-dominated Shavuot.

Source: The North Africa Journal May 24, 2023 17:52 UTC