Sephardic legacy

January – February

Tu Bishvat

In Israel the first shoots of vegetation begin to appear. People would therefore go out to plant trees — this is the celebration of Tu Bishvat, the New Year of the Trees. The Assure, or Noah's Pudding, is a very rich dessert eaten at the close of this festival; Spanish rice pudding shares the same base of cereal cooked in milk and sugar, though with a softer texture and without legumes. This custom was established by the Jewish mystics, or Kabbalists, to link the end of one season (winter) with the welcome of another (spring) — a new cycle of planting and growth in nature, in thanksgiving to God for the harvests to come.

February – March

Purim

At Purim it is customary for children — and even adults — to wear masks or costumes; the date is known as the Festival of Masks, since its central theme is concealment and disguise. This springs from the story of the Book of Esther, in which the Jewish people, living in hiding, survive an attempt to annihilate them under the rule of the Persian king Ahasuerus. To celebrate, people eat the so-called Haman's Ears or Fazuelos (forerunners of the pestiños), and the Sephardic boyikos, known in Spain as Ochíos — little bread balls with sugar or honey.

March – April

Pesach

A Jewish celebration that recalls the liberation of the Hebrew people from Egypt, as told in the book of Exodus. For the Hebrew people this event represents the founding moment of their identity as a nation. The festival lasts a week, during which it is forbidden to eat fermented foods made from grain. In their place Matzah is eaten — an unleavened bread, just like the regañás. People also eat the so-called Almendrados, made with almond flour, from which the Christian Nochebuena buns and marzipan derive.

May – June

Shavuot

The festival celebrates God's giving of the Torah to Moses on Mount Sinai. During Shavuot it is common to eat dairy foods, since the word “chalav” (milk) has the numerical value of 40, symbolising the 40 days Moses spent on Mount Sinai studying the Torah that would be given to the Jews at Shavuot. This tradition also explains the Sephardic custom of making and eating fresh cheese (Keso blanko), mentioned even by the Andalusi Jewish philosopher Moses Maimonides in one of his treatises.

June – August

Fast of Tammuz, Tisha B'Av

Historically, these days have been times of misfortune and calamity for the Jewish people. Among other tragedies, both the First and the Second Temple were destroyed during this period. The community observes various mourning practices, curbing joy and celebration: no weddings are held, no music is listened to, and shaving and the cutting of hair or beard are avoided.

On the 17th of Tammuz it is forbidden to eat or drink from dawn until dusk. On the eve of Tisha B'Av it is customary to hold the Seudat Hamafseket, a meal of bread, water and a hard-boiled egg as a symbol of mourning. This egg is often cooked in a slow stew for half a day, which gives it an ochre colour.

September

Rosh Hashanah

It marks the beginning of the Jewish new year. It is the day on which God judges each person individually according to their deeds, with no need of intermediaries to weigh their conduct, encourage repentance and make amends. The term “Rosh Hashanah” (beginning of the year) comes from the rabbinic tradition.

Among the principal customs of Rosh Hashanah is the mitzvah of sounding the shofar. It is usual to eat foods containing pomegranate, such as pomegranate wine. Challah is also eaten — a Shabbat bread from which the Ensaimada of Menorca derives. Another common food are the rosquillas, ring-shaped pastries that even appear in testimonies before the Inquisition.

September – October

Yom Kippur, Sukkot

Yom Kippur is the day of repentance in Judaism, held to be the most sacred and solemn day of the year. Its central focus is atonement and reconciliation, and so eating is forbidden. Sephardic Jews often call these festivals “the White Fast”. Sukkot, for its part, is a festival of biblical origin commemorating the hardships of the Jewish people on their journey through the desert and the precariousness of their material conditions. In the Sephardic tradition of Seville it was customary to bake olive-oil tortas during Sukkot. Today these tortas are common throughout the city, in a variety of flavours.

November – December

Hanukkah

The Hebrew word “Hanukkah” means “inauguration”. In the 2nd century BCE, in the days of the Second Temple, the Syrian-Greek regime of Antiochus tried to draw the Jews away from their faith and assimilate them into Greek culture. The Jewish warriors known as the Maccabees liberated Jerusalem, finding the temple in ruins and profaned with idols. They cleansed and rededicated it, but when they sought oil for the Menorah they found only one small vessel sealed by the High Priest. Though the oil was not enough, the Menorah stayed lit for eight days — time enough to produce more oil. Ever since, Jews have kept an eight-day festival in honour of this victory and the miracle of the oil, lighting the hanukkiah (the Hanukkah menorah) each night. It is usual to eat pickled fish, fried fish, and fritters with jam — dishes that are very much present in Andalusian cooking.