Shavuot is a Jewish holiday that commemorates the gift of the Torah on Mount Sinai and helps us to follow the Torah's teachings and be influenced by the wisdom of Jewish history.

The Hebrew term for "weeks" is Shavuot, and Shavuot falls seven weeks after Passover. Shavuot, like many other Jewish holidays, started as a harvest festival marking the conclusion of the spring barley harvest and the start of the summer wheat harvest. In ancient Israel, Shavuot was an ancient pilgrimage festival during which Israelites took crop offerings to Jerusalem's Temple. It is now a festival of Torah, education, and the ability to actively participate in Jewish life.

Shavuot at Home

On Shavuot, we remember the spring harvest and the ancient practice of taking the first fruits to the Temple by decorating with greens and new flowers. The decorations also recall the legend that the Israelites discovered Mount Sinai blooming with flowers and greenery when they arrived.

On Shavuot, many Jews cook and enjoy dairy food, such as cheesecake or blintzes, as a reminder of the sweetness of Torah, as a reminder that the Torah refers to Israel as a land "flowing with milk and honey" (Exodus 3:8). On holidays, many families get together to celebrate a meal that includes certain dishes.

Preparing for the Holiday

The Israelites had three days to prepare to receive the Torah at Mount Sinai, according to the Bible.
They were told to wash their clothing and remain ritually pure in preparation for the momentous occasion.
Through remembering those three days, Jews today will use the three days leading up to Shavuot to plan individually, as a family, and as a group to relive this life-changing moment.

Recipe by Tina Wasserman

I've never been able to find mention of a blintz soufflé in cookbooks published prior to the 1970s. It is possible that the incorporation of the Golden Company in 1978 and the instant popularity of its line of blitzes had a lot to do with the timing of the birth of the blintz souffle. My version comes from one in my collection written in my mother’s handwriting in the late 1970s.

INGREDIENTS

1 stick unsalted butter

1 dozen cheese or fruit-filled blintzes (homemade or frozen)

4 eggs

1 1/2 cups sour cream or Greek yogurt

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 tablespoon orange juice

DIRECTIONS

•    Preheat oven to 350°F.

•    Microwave the butter directly in a 13x9-inch glass baking dish until melted. Place the blintzes over the butter in one layer.

•    Meanwhile, whisk the four eggs in a 2-quart mixing bowl. Add the remaining ingredients and blend well. Pour over the blintzes.

•    Bake for 35–45 minutes or until the top starts to brown. Cut along each blintz or into squares.

Additional Notes

    This recipe is delicious and easy to make with young children. However, after you melt the butter in the casserole, let the dish cool so that no little hands are burned.