Every year on the two day holiday of Shavuot (which means “weeks”), Jews renew and celebrate their acceptance of God’s ultimate gift to the Jewish people- the Torah. To symbolize the renewal of this spiritual covenant, people often attend synagogue on the first day of the holiday to hear a public recitation of the Ten Commandments.  It is also customary to stay up all night studying Torah and preparing spiritually to receive the Torah anew the next morning.  Some say that this tradition has its roots in the fact that the Jewish people did not get up early on the day that God gave them the Torah, and thus God himself had to awaken the unprepared Jewish people.  As compensation for this, Jews have taken it upon themselves to conduct this all-night vigil.

In many communities the Book of Ruth is read on the second day of Shavuot.  The story of Ruth is significant to Shavuot for several reasons.  This holiday is considered to be both the birth date and the yahrzeit (anniversary of death) of King David.  As Ruth and her husband Boaz were King David’s great-grandparents, the Book of Ruth records his ancestry.  The book of Ruth is also significant as it describes harvesting scenes which fit in with the theme of Shavuot (another name for Shavuot is the “Festival of Harvest”).  Lastly, just as all Jews are considered to be converts on Shavuot as it is the first time that they received the Torah, so too was Ruth a sincere convert who fully embraced Judaism and all of its commandments.

Goodbye brisket, hello blintzes!  Shavuot is unique in that it is the only holiday during which it is customary to eat dairy foods.   It is believed that as the Jews had just received the laws regarding kashrut (ritual food laws), their meat pots were not ready to be used and so they only consumed dairy products.  Another reason behind this custom is that the Torah is compared to nourishing milk, and so dairy products are eaten to remember how essential the Torah’s wisdom is to one’s life.  Observe the tradition is a delicious way with this easy, no bake cheese cake!

GRAHAM CRACKER CRUST

9 double graham crackers

1/4 cup margarine, softened

3 Tbsps. brown sugar

FILLING

1 cup cream cheese

1/2 cup farmer cheese

1 cup sour cream

1/2 cup honey

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 pint sliced strawberries

or whole blueberries

USE: 9 inch pie pan

YIELDS: 8 servings

Preheat oven to 375°.

GRAHAM CRACKER CRUST: Crush graham crackers in blender until finely ground. Place crumbs in a large bowl. Add margarine and sugar and combine well. Press firmly into pan on sides and bottom. Bake 10 minutes. Remove from oven and cool.

FILLING: In a large bowl combine cheese, sour cream honey and vanilla. Beat well. Pour filling into cooled crust. Freeze for 8 hours or overnight.

Thaw pie in refrigerator for 1 hour before serving. Garnish generously with fresh strawberries or blueberries.