Well, this is a food column. So, I propose we take a page from the food traditions that shape our other new year meals at other times of the year. Sweet foods for a sweet new year. Round foods to highlight the cyclical nature of our lives. Fish, specifically the head of the fish, to symbolize the head of the year. New fruits and grains (and animals, if that’s your eating persuasion) of the season, followed with a shehecheyanu.

And to further compound the awesomeness, New Year’s Eve falls on a Friday this year – Shabbat. As if you needed another excuse to celebrate.

…Read more on TCJewfolk.

PHOTOS AND CAPTION BY SARA RICE

…See the photo slideshow at City Pages

A generation ago, the majority of our age group was married and having babies by the time they were 25. There wasn’t a need to “figure us out.” We were there, just like the generations before. Today, the average age we get married is our late-twenties, and we’re waiting even longer after that to have kids – if we have them at all. With many temples doing an exceptional job catering to families with young and teenage kids, it left a void for those of us not yet in that demographic. But Rabbi Kaufner puts it best: “The real crisis is one of meaning and engagement. For the first time in two centuries, two Jewish adults can marry each other and have Jewish children without any connection to Jewish history, wisdom, or tradition.”

…Read more at TCJewfolk.com

Cooking not your cup of tea? Get some takeout for Turkey Day (Credit: Kowalski's)

Turkey. Stuffing. Gravy. Sweet potatoes. Pumpkin pie. If the thought of making all your Thanksgiving favorites sends you into a quivering mass to match the canned cranberry sauce, don’t fret: You still have a few more days to order a meal for your whole family that leaves your hands free to hold a glass of wine (or a turkey drumstick) and enjoy the day outside the kitchen.

Here are five takeout options that will really give you something to be thankful for.

1. Brasa Rotisserie

Brasa is treating Thanksgiving with the same inspiration as its standard menu: locally sourced ingredients that warm your soul. The package comes with a Kadejan Farms turkey and a Heritage Berkshire ham–totaling a half a pound of meat per person, mashed potatoes and gravy, sage and onion dressing, candied yams, sweet corn pudding (an item you won’t find on any other Thanksgiving package in town), cranberry sauce, coleslaw, cornbread and potato rolls, cookies, and your choice of one or two pies (depending on the size of your order) from apple, pecan, and pumpkin. The price tag is a little steeper than others on our list at $95 for a meal for four, and $225 for a meal that serves 10, but we’re also willing to bet you’ll feel better about supporting local farmers. It’s what the pilgrims would have wanted.

Pick up is at the St. Paul location, 77 Grand Avenue Order at 612.245.1740.

2. Lucia’s
Lucia’s always-appreciated, high-quality deli items put on their holiday best, with seasonal items available by the pint or quart. Choose from squash soup, cornbread stuffing, wild rice, and squash salad with sage vinaigrette, among other Turkey Day favorites for the main meal ($5.95-$18/unit). And don’t forget about dessert! (How could you?) Grab the requisite pumpkin pie, or create a new tradition with bourbon pecan pie, sweet potato pecan pie, or local apple-sour cream pie ($21.95 each).

Order by 5 p.m. on Sunday.
1432 West 31st Street, Minneapolis, 612.825.9800

3. Whole Foods
Known for expansive deli cases and an impressive grab-n-go section, it comes as no surprise that Whole Foods is offering pre-made Thanksgiving meals. Its traditional meal feeds 6 to 8 ($99.99) and includes a whole roasted turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy, herb stuffing, green beans with shallots, and cranberry relish. If any of your guests are meat-averse, order a vegan holiday meal ($14.99 per person) with puff pastry-wrapped cranberry wild rice loaf, roasted cinnamon squash, and vegan mushroom gravy, with the non-meat sides that come with the traditional meal.

Order by Sunday.

Two metro locations: 30 South Fairview, St. Paul, 651.690.0197; 3060 Excelsior Boulevard, Minneapolis, 612.927.8141

4. Target
Dinner from the place you get cute tops, diapers, and paper towels? You’d be surprised. At the super-affordable price of $60 for dinner for eight, you get an Archer Farms cook-in-bag turkey or spiral-sliced honey ham, mashed potatoes, roasted turkey gravy, home-style stuffing, green bean casserole, cranberry and walnut relish, and dinner rolls–topped off with a pumpkin pie and coffee selection. It even comes in a reusable tote to carry home to your hungry family in.

Order in store or online at Target.com/grocery by Monday.

5. Kowalski’s
If the scent of Kowalski’s hot food case makes you salivate when you walk in, you’re not alone. What better excuse to take home its wares than Thanksgiving? With a 10-to-12-pound turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy, stuffing, sweet potatoes, green beans, and cranberry relish, as well as dinner rolls and a pumpkin pie, what more could you want? But if that’s not enough for the army you need to feed, all side dishes can be ordered a la carte through the deli department. A meal for 10 to 12 is $109.99, and a smaller version for 4-6 is $69.99.

Meals are available until they sell out; the sooner you order, the better.
Find locations at Kowalskis.com.

…Read more at TCJewfolk.com