Capital cake

By GREER FAY CASHMAN
The Israel Museum celebrates its 50th anniversary, May 11 (photo credit: Courtesy)
The Israel Museum celebrates its 50th anniversary, May 11
(photo credit: Courtesy)
JERUSALEM PASTRY chefs may not be too happy when they learn that when the Israel Museum, regarded as one of the capital’s greatest treasures, ordered a birthday cake large enough to serve 1,000 people for its 50th anniversary celebrations, it chose Cake Art, a Tel Aviv-based company, to do the honors.
In any case, the first slice went to former president Shimon Peres.
When Avi Levy – who baked the truly delicious chocolate confection – was asked for the recipe, the first question was, “How many eggs?” Levy couldn’t really say; he could only talk about weights and liquid measures.
There were 12 liters of egg yolks and 18 liters of egg whites, 24 kg. of flour and likewise 24 kg. of sugar, which seemed a bit much in proportion to the flour – but when questioned repeatedly, Levy stuck to his guns. Other ingredients included 12 liters of water; 4.8 kg. of cocoa; 800 grams of baking powder; oil, the quantity of which was not mentioned; and “lots of love.”
The cake was decorated with icons from the museum’s collections, and it looked truly impressive. On another table, there were colorful cupcakes for the hundreds of children who had been brought to the museum by their parents.
This past Monday, it truly seemed as if all roads led to the Israel Museum. People came by taxi, in private cars (some with white diplomatic plates), on bikes, on motorcycles and on foot, to mingle and to view the many exhibitions. It was a truly festive day, with dapper museum director James Snyder remaining gracious and smiling despite the many pressures of a jubilee celebration.
The occasion was also a marvelous opportunity to bump into people one hadn’t seen in a long time.
JUST LIKE the government is going through a series of changes, so is Israel Radio’s Reshet Bet, where beats are being juggled around like musical chairs. Shai Zylber, who has been working at the radio since 2008 – initially covering the Interior Ministry and the Jerusalem Municipality, and subsequently the Jerusalem police and so much more – has been transferred to the education beat.
Whether this will allow him more time for himself remains to be seen. Zylber often seemed to be working around the clock, covering events that were not necessarily police-related. Education is very wideranging, but does not always have the immediacy of Zylber’s previous beats, in which he was constantly running from one place to the next.
Still, considering that he has a master’s degree in philosophy from Tel Aviv University, education may suit him better than his previous beats.
THE JERUSALEM College of Technology has appointed Rabbi Yosef Zvi Rimon as its rabbinic head, and also as head of its batei midrash. The appointment officially takes effect on the first day of Elul.
Rimon, who is a prolific author of works that reflect his unique approach, taking the reader from the sources to the practical application of Halacha, is acknowledged as a halachic authority both in Israel and abroad. He is the founder and chairman of the Halacha Education Center, which develops innovative educational curricula for Jewish studies using state-of-the-art, cutting-edge technologies, in Israel and abroad; the center will be moving its activities to the Lev Campus.
Rimon is also the founder and chairman of JobKatif, which he launched shortly after the disengagement to help evacuees reintegrate into the workplace. In addition, he serves as community rabbi of Alon Shvut South in Gush Etzion and teaches at Yeshivat Har Etzion and Migdal Oz Girls Seminary. Rimon said it was a great privilege to teach in a place like JCT, and hoped to see many students who strive to combine the academic world with the world of Torah and Jewish law; he was confident that the Halacha Education Center’s activities will be enhanced through the cooperation with JCT.
FEARS THAT preoccupation with social media will stop people from reading books appear to be groundless. In just one example, Gefen Publishing has a book launch and signing event every few weeks.
Coming up at the Israel Center on Monday, May 18, is the third volume in the series The Lion Cub of Prague by Dr. Moshe Kuhr. The series is based on the life of Rabbi Judah Loew, the Maharal of Prague, sometimes known as Gur Aryeh, after his monumental work on Rashi’s commentary on the Five Books of Moses. Kuhr will speak on the fascination the subject of his books has for him, and the other speaker will be Rabbi Yitzhak Breitowitz of Ohr Somayach Yeshiva. The event begins at 7:45 p.m.


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