This Purim comes to us at a very complicated (dare I say, unprecedented?) time.
The Jewish holiday, which celebrates Queen Esther’s triumph against the evil Haman in ancient Persia, comes two days after Israel and the U.S. started a war with Iran, taking out leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini along with other targets, as civilian casualties on both sides mount.
When things get scary, many of us turn to Jewish tradition, and that was clearly the case for Jewish “Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” and “Family Guy” star Alex Borstein, who is known for her sukkah decorating skills and her penchant for eating matzah ball soup on Jewish holidays and just for general comfort. (OK, she’s better known for her incredible TV roles, from MadTV to “Maisel” to her comedy specials.)
“In an effort to distract myself and my kids today, I made the very poor decision to bake,” Borstein captioned a video she posted this past Sunday, sharing that her thoughts are with everyone in Iran and the world.
“So it’s Purim, and I thought that I would bake the traditional cookies that we have during this holiday called hamantaschen,” Borstein explains to the camera.
“They’re little triangles to look like Haman’s three-cornered hat,” she explains, and then adds, humorously, “I don’t know, I don’t write the stories. I just bake the cookies!”
Apparently, Borstein doesn’t even usually bake the cookies. “I don’t really bake,” she announces to the camera, to the sound of mysterious background screams as a picture of a very judgmental-looking woman decorates the wall behind her.
I don’t judge anyone’s baking skills (even the ugliest exploded hamantaschen is beautiful in my eyes!). Yet, I can’t help but admire the end result of Borstein’s baking venture — especially considering the fact that she used homemade apricot jam (my favorite filling, but a very tricky one!).
She obviously took some advice from pros, and just like the expert bakers at Breads’ bakery, she used a hexagonal cookie cutter to make her cookies.
The results are truly impressive: mostly unexploded, and fairly triangular-looking cookies. Queen Esther would approve!
Happy Purim to Alex Borstein and everyone celebrating. We hope your holiday is full of delicious and comforting treats.
And I can’t help but think that both Lois Griffin and Susie Myerson make for great Purim costumes.
Keep Kveller Kvelling. Your support ensures that anyone seeking laughter, community and Jewish joy can find it here, without needing to cross the Red Sea (or a paywall).
