Purim 2012: A Good Story and a Great Feast
Of course, the actual story is more complex, but the simple fact is that for Jews who love to cook and eat, this holiday is a favorite.
In a little bigger nutshell, the tale behind Purim -- which is celebrated on Thursday -- involves a Persian king, his prime minister Haman (the bad guy), who had it out for the Jews, and a community leader named Mordecai. Basically, Mordecai and his stepdaughter Esther, who became the queen, save their people.
Then there's the food. The Book of Esther tells celebrants they should practice charity and goodwill (which in the story helped save the Jews from peril), by helping those who are less fortunate. Then, of course, there needs to be a feast to celebrate the victory.
There's even a proscription for adults to drink wine until they can't tell the difference between the names of the bad guys and good guy. So much for dull holidays.
For the big meal, known as the Feast of Esther, many foods are included, but often vegetarian dishes made with nuts, grains, seeds and legumes are eaten to pay tribute to the fact that Queen Esther avoided eating meat; the animals were not slaughtered according to kosher tradition at the palace.
These vegetarian Turkish red lentil balls are a delicious, healthy and easy way to include a taste of Persian cuisine in a Purim feast or any other.
http://www.freep.com/article/20120304/FEATURES02/203040317/Purim-A-good-story-and-a-great-feast