A Recipe with a Memory
HONORING THEIR MEMORY BY CELEBRATING THE LIVES OF FIVE FALLEN ISRAELIS
HONORING THEIR MEMORY BY CELEBRATING THE LIVES OF FIVE FALLEN ISRAELIS
A Recipe with a Memory is a unique initiative that commemorates fallen Israeli Defense Forces soldiers and Israeli victims of terror by cooking their favorite recipes and telling their life stories.
The centerpiece of this project is cooking sessions where participants gather to cook a favorite dish of a fallen soldier or terror victim—people who could not come back home to enjoy it themselves. In addition to cooking, participants learn about the person and family behind the dish through pictures, stories, videos, and anecdotes shared by the families to keep their memories alive.
For the crust and crumble:
200 grams butter
Half a cup of sugar
2 cups flour
Teaspoon baking powder
Vanilla sugar packet
3 egg yolks
For the cheesecake layer:
500 ml heavy cream
1 cup sour cream
500 grams 5% cottage cheese
2/3 cup sugar
1 packet instant vanilla pudding mix
Instructions:
Crust:
1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
2. In a food processor, process all the crust ingredients except the eggs until crumbly, then add the eggs and process briefly until a uniform dough is formed.
3. Divide the dough into 2 parts.
4. Press one part onto the bottom of the baking pan, and spread the other part on parchment paper in a separate pan (the shape doesn’t matter; it will be crumbled anyway).
5. Bake for 20 minutes until golden brown, then cool.
Cheesecake layer:
1. In a mixer, whip the heavy cream, instant pudding, and sugar until stiff peaks form, then add the cottage
cheese and sour cream and whip briefly on low speed to combine.
Assembly:
1. Spread the cheesecake mixture over the crust in the baking pan.
2. Crumble the remaining crust dough by hand and sprinkle it over the cheesecake.
3. Refrigerate the cake for 6 hours before serving.
Optional no-bake option:
- 200 grams butter
- Two packets of graham crackers
Preparation:
1. Crush the crackers into almost powder.
2. Melt the butter in the microwave and pour it over the crumbs.
3. Mix together, place half at the bottom of the pan, and press to form the base.
4. Keep the other half for the crumbles on top of the cake.
5. Nitzan loved big and indulgent pieces for everyone.
“Nitzan grew up in Kfar Aza, where his father, Ofir Libstein, served as the head of the city council. As a child, Nitzan played alone on the football field while rockets and mortars would fire. It was a tough experience that greatly influenced Nitzan’s mental health throughout his childhood. Nitzan decided he needed rehabilitation, so he reached out to the Nirim Youth Village program in northern Israel. Nitzan worked hard to get admitted into Nirim and worked hard to change their admissions policies. After finishing high school, Nitzan was accepted into the Upper Galilee Preparatory Program, spent a year there, and then went on to serve in the IDF. Nitzan was murdered on October 7th in his home in Kfar Aza after his father was killed defending the kibbutz.”
- Vered Libstein, Nitzan’s mother.
“Nitzan was a student at the Upper Galilee pre-army program called Mechina last year when I was the program director. I remember a happy and funny guy, sarcastic and full of determination. When Nitzan set a goal for himself, he always worked hard until he achieved it. As the director, I approved requests for students to take days off, and Nitzan submitted a request every time there was an important game for Hapoel Tel Aviv basketball or soccer. Despite the large number of requests, I almost always approved them; his writing style and great love for Hapoel Tel Aviv inspired me.”
- Lior, RootOne Shicha in Atlanta1 package margarine
1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2.5 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch of salt
1 bag chocolate chips
Instructions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. Cream together the margarine and sugars until smooth and uniform.
3. Add the eggs one at a time, continuing to beat.
4. Mix in the vanilla extract until the mixture becomes airy.
5. Gradually add the flour, salt, and baking soda, and continue mixing until you get a uniform mixture.
6. Add the chocolate chips.
7. Using two spoons, create dough balls and place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
8. Bake for 10 minutes
Dekel was born in Moshav Bar Giyora to Moshe and Gila and was the youngest child in the Swissa family. He had three siblings: Lital, Eden, and Noi. At 15, he enrolled in the Preparatory Academy in Haifa. After graduating high school, he volunteered for a year in Atlanta through the Jewish Agency in hopes of sharing Israeli culture and bringing the Atlanta Jewish community closer to the Jewish homeland. Dekel participated in a pre-army program, Mechina, and later joined the Special Forces Maglan Unit. After commanding a unit in Maglan, he completed an officer’s course and served in the Golani Brigade, Battalion 13, where he was in charge of new recruits. Tragically, at 23 years old, Dekel lost his life in combat on October 7, 2023. Fondly remembered, he would bring chocolate chip cookies to the base every Sunday, sharing them with his fellow soldiers during coffee breaks.
For 1 kilogram of chicken schnitzel:
3 eggs
1 tablespoon of mustard
1 teaspoon of salt
1 bag of golden breadcrumbs
1 bag of sesame seeds
Canola oil for frying
For the mashed potatoes:
10 potatoes
4 tablespoons of olive oil
1 tablespoon of salt
Instructions:
Schnitzel:
1. Break 3 eggs into a bowl and add mustard and salt, mix well, and place the chicken breast in it.
2. In a separate bowl, mix breadcrumbs and sesame seeds.
3. Take each schnitzel out of the egg and coat it with breadcrumbs. (Note: In the video, I show that with my left hand, I touch the egg and with my right hand, I coat it with breadcrumbs, ensuring that the strong hand remains dry.)
4. After coating all the schnitzels, place them on a tray and cut them into strips.
5. Coat all the schnitzels with breadcrumbs, making sure everything receives a stable coating.
6. Fry in deep oil until golden brown.
Mashed potatoes:
1. In a mixer, whip the heavy cream, instant pudding, Boil 10 white potatoes in water (I like those from Grandpa Moshe) for about 40 minutes until soft.
2. Drain and mash them.
3. Add half a cup of cooking water, a tablespoon of salt, and 4 tablespoons of olive oil, and mix with a masher. You can add water until you get the desired texture.
4. Serve with ketchup and mayonnaise.
Ran was born on March 22, 1969, to Yaakov Z’L and Atara. He grew up in Moshav Beit Hanania and was actively involved in Tnuat Hamoshavim (youth movement). His presence always made people feel happy and calm and he was very loved by his friends. Ran was selected for a pilot course which he had wanted to do since he was in high school. During his military service as a pilot, he met his wife, Galit.
After completing his service in the IDF at the rank of Major, he began two university degrees simultaneously (architecture at the Technion in Haifa and law at Tel Aviv University). While completing his studies, he opened an architecture firm where he designed many houses and developed meaningful relationships with his customers.
Ran and Galit had three children: Ziv, Itai, and Yuval. They lived in Moshav Herut. On July 20, 2006, at the age of 37, Ran was killed in a helicopter accident that occurred during operational activity on the Lebanon border.
Two helicopters heading to help the military forces operating in the Avivim area collided midair and crashed near Junction 28, south of Kiryat Shmona. Ran was killed on the spot and three crew members were injured. Galit, his wife, describes him as someone who loved to live life to its fullest and enjoyed traveling and exploring Israel, diving, skiing, cooking, and woodworking. He was a dedicated family man known for his kindness and sense of humor. Ran also had an eye for aesthetics; when he cooked for guests, he would set and decorate the table with flowers, arranging everything perfectly.
“Yuval, Ran’s daughter, is a close friend of mine. When we were in first grade, Yuval’s grandmother came to our class with Ran’s helmet to tell us about him. Over the years, I saw how their family dealt with the loss and how she coped with the absence of her father whom she never got to know. Yuval and her siblings were raised not to remember Ran as a hero or a distant figure, but rather as the man that he was: someone who loved to experience everything, who was wise, kind, and loving, sometimes hasty, and someone who could wake up in the morning and decide to go hiking even if there is work or other things that needed to be done.”
- Hadar, Shinshinit at the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta600 grams (4 cups + 1/3) all-purpose flour
300 ml (1 and 1/4 cups) water
1 teaspoon dry yeast
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
Nutella or Lotus spread for spreading
Instructions:
1. Break 3 eggs into a bowl and add mustard and salt, mix well, and place the chicken breast in it.
2. In a stand mixer with a dough hook, mix the flour, water, and yeast on low speed until a smooth dough forms.
3. Gradually add the olive oil and mix for about 5 minutes.
4. Add the salt and increase the speed to high, mixing for another 5 minutes until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl and is smooth and slightly sticky.
5. Cover the bowl with a large plastic wrap and let the dough rise until it doubles in size (about an hour).
6. Remove the dough from the bowl and deflate it by folding it over itself.
7. Divide the dough into 4 equal portions and let them rest on a floured surface for a second rise (about 20 minutes).
8. Roll out each portion of dough into a thin sheet using a rolling pin on a floured surface.
9. Spread a thin layer of Nutella or Lotus spread over each sheet of dough.
10. Roll up each sheet into a log and cut into rolls about 2 cm wide.
11. Preheat the oven to 250°C (480°F).
12. Place the rugelach rolls on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
13. Bake for 7-10 minutes or until golden brown. Note: This is a quick bake at high heat.
14. Remove from the oven, sprinkle generously with powdered sugar, and serve warm.
Rose did everything in the arts: dancing, acting, improv, hair and makeup, fashion, singing, and writing were some of her favorites. She was a protector of the weak and stood up for Jewish values her entire life. Rose carried people and inspired many to do more than they thought they could do themselves. She left no one behind. She pushed herself to her limits. Rose lived a full life in a short time in pursuit of and doing great things while helping those around her. Rose smiled and truly loved life. She worked hard and was also very naturally talented; she had so much fun and at the same time was deep, strong, sensitive, and kind.
She was spontaneous and also planned out her life. She had many opposing characteristics but blended them beautifully. Rose counted her macros and planned and prepared her meals for the week on Sundays.
Things that make my knees weak:
• There is nothing that makes my heart ache more than a Mensch, their Pride through the Kepah on their head and Tzi Tzit hanging round their waist
• My attention is easily drawn to a guy who lifts with veins prominence on the surface of his arms
She also wrote:
• I was born in Atlanta, Georgia
• This means I have an accent, grew up in a large Jewish community, my family loves to barbecue. I have cowboy boots and a gun. I go hiking a lot. I go to
school with a variety of people
• I am both religious and accepting of others, strong sense of identity, very loving to people, close relationship to my family, strong/strict morals, struggling to fit in
• I was taught to believe in G-D, live my life according to the Torah and I have always connected to it and prioritized it
• Jewish
• Female
• Confident, because I think it. I feel it, which makes me sure of myself
• Social media, TV, Netflix, and smart phones are bad from personal experience
She also wrote:
“Every moment is a gift, every day is an opportunity, every person is a lesson and most of”
My portrait is painted not of eye alone, for this body is only a fraction of my being. I exist because of two nights and a princess without them, it must be someone else.
We will not sit still for this affair, the colors should produce blurred forms little distraction between hand and foot so as to capture our aura, unattainable force.
1 cup milk
¼ cup vegetable oil
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups self-raising flour
½ cup sugar
½ teaspoon baking powder
¾ cup Nutella
Instructions:
1. Preheat your oven to 200ºC (370 F). Grease and line a loaf pan.
2. In a large bowl, combine the egg, milk, vanilla and oil. Beat until well mixed.
3. In another separate bowl, sift the flour, baking powder and sugar.
4. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Fold gently with a wooden or rubber spoon until just combined. Mix only until a smooth batter forms (a couple of lumps are OK).
5. Spoon one third of the cake batter into the bottom of the loaf pan. With a spoon, add three parallel lines of Nutella along the length of the pan - start with one line in the center of the pan, and then one along each side of that center line. Drag a skewer across the three tracks of Nutella (see photo).
6. Spoon half of the remaining cake batter ontop of the first layer in the pan. Again, with a spoon, add three parallel lines of Nutella as before and drag a skewer across the three tracks of Nutella.
7. Repeat with remaining batter and Nutella.
8. Bake for approx 40 mins. Perform a skewer test. Remember, you are testing to see whether the cake itself is cooked - the Nutella will remain molten while warm. Look for white cake crumbs to test the “doneness” of the cake.
9. Allow to cool for 10 minutes and remove from pan.
“She was born on a farm in Moshav Me’ash. She used to ride horses and loved being in nature. She took pride in it. She told me, “‘Dad, I’m a child of the fields, not of the mall”. She wanted to be a lookout and protector of those around her. She encouraged others and loved the toughness of the role. She wanted to do something meaningful. She wanted to be a commander. She was a very interesting human. What were her dreams? She was a charming child, gifted in studies. She had a sewing machine and she used to sew clothes; her dream was to be a fashion designer. That’s not going to happen anymore.”
- Yam’s Father“Yam and I met in the Scouts. I remember that when we worked together in the Scouts, I would often stay late, and she would always make sure to bring me couscous from her mom even if I wasn’t hungry. She was a girl with a heart of gold who always cared for others before herself. I can’t count the number of times she was there for me or helped me even when I didn’t ask. She always told the truth to my face (every time I dressed poorly for school), something only a true friend would do. I wish people would look at who she was and learn from it. She demonstrated how to behave with compassion and love towards every person. Yam was and will always be one of a kind. I learned a lot from her, and I hope others will learn from her too — to hold their head up high, look at others, and do everything with all their heart.”
- Matan, Shinshin at the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta