October 6th, 2023

Hi friends,

As we wrap the last days of summer in Portland, we wrap the last of the high holidays. Enjoying an ambiguous, secular Sukkot, the Jewish autumnal harvest celebration, with time outside and an abundance of seasonal squash. Traditionally we build a covered, outdoor dining experience and enjoy all our meals for the week en plein air with close friends and family. A ritual I aspire to recreate in weekend picnic form.

I’m prepping for my inaugural Tzimmy pop-up launch and considering how these opportunities for community have shifted post covid. I’ve felt the disparate resonance of time apart. The sukkah structures of my youth filled easily with reverence and friends. Sorely missed moments reflected on in isolation. It was our time outside, however spent, that offered an anchor and opportunity for (distanced) connection. I’m grateful for those cautiously awkward pandemic moments as I set up my own communal table, in 2023, hoping to recreate the ease of the Sukkot scene, new autumnal rituals in mind.

There are just a few tickets left for the 10/14 PDX dinner! Snag one here.

And a favorite conversation on community building and baking inspiration with the talented bakers from Jewish Mexican bakery, Masa Madre, below. Scroll on.

Stay hungry,Hawnuh Lee | Founder, Closed Loop Cooking

The community table.

The dish >>

• October is national Farm to School month!

• Sourdough testing leads to lots of excess, stocking up on herby discard crackers in the meantime.

• My dream plein air picnic. (And tablecloths.)

• Listening in on these 8 climate solution podcasts.

• You don’t know me if you don’t know my non-grass lawn type.

• What is an etrog? The search for the perfect Sukkot citrus.

• Compostable kitchen liner hack.

• The most sustainable (crocheted) bouquet.

Cross-cultural bakes with Masa Madre.

interview by Hawnuh Lee

We're long time fans of Elena + Tamar, the women behind Masa Madre, making Jewish Mexican baked goods sustainable and accessible. From virtual class offerings to at-home-babka baking kits and now, in-person events they're creating memorable community connections through their work. We spoke more about shared Mexican heritage and favorite bakes.

Masa Madre grew from a shared love of baking–how has that practice evolved in the time you two have known each other?

Baking together and teaching each other our customs has been a big part of our story. We come from the same city but from very different family backgrounds. Elena’s family has a history of more Mexican and Western European baking, while Tamar’s family is influenced by Middle Eastern and Eastern European flavors. 

How has post-COVID shifted the brand? It looks like you’ve started in-person classes again.

The pandemic was a challenging yet interesting time for us. We opened the online bakery about a year before it hit and we were among the first businesses to offer the pre-order model with pick-ups and delivery. Once COVID hit, our sales increased substantially as we had our online selling platform already set up. We only had to switch our in-person classes to virtual, which was challenging at first, but we enjoyed doing it. We were excited to be a part of family, friends, and co-workers reunions as many people booked our classes to celebrate important moments. This experience helped us see the need for engaging experiences where people can connect with others.  As soon as everything opened up again, people started looking for more in-person experiences and moved past the online pre-orders and virtual classes. To adapt, we had to expand our offerings to wholesale and catering as well.Over the past 5 years, we've been able to tap into many different markets to make it work, but now, we're ready to focus on the ones we've enjoyed the most and that we think are best for the company.We decided to pause bakery operations about three months ago to work on the next steps for Masa Madre. Currently, we are teaching in-person classes at Gemma's, a local fresh pasta restaurant, where their chef, Tony, lends us his space on Thursday afternoons. And we're also offering virtual classes and bake-at-home kits.

Tamar, could you speak on your experience growing up Jewish in Mexico City?

Growing up Jewish in Mexico was a unique experience that I didn’t understand was unique until I got out of high school. The Jewish community in Mexico is very tight and super isolated. We have our own schools, temples, kosher stores, and community centers. We live surrounded by food and family gatherings, but we definitely miss out on the wider cultural happenings of Mexico City. 

How did this influence your baking?

Much of what I ate in Mexico was influenced both by our Jewish background and mixed with the ingredients found in Mexican land. We also always ate things specific to Mexican holidays and enjoyed the gastronomy of the city, and all of this heavily influenced my baking. 

Elena, how has living in Chicago influenced your Mexican baking?

Since I moved to Chicago I've been able to reconnect with my Mexican heritage. Having spent most of my life in Mexico, it wasn't until I started living abroad that I truly appreciated everything about my culture, especially its cuisine. With my family still back in Mexico, being away from them has made me value those moments where food played an important role even more. Memories of baking cakes with my mom, making fresh challah for my grandma's Christmas parties, and enjoying my grandmother's incredible food spreads on Sundays, are all very special to me. Living in Chicago has given me an opportunity to explore and recreate those flavors that I've been missing since being away from my family.

What would be a dream project for Masa Madre?

We have really enjoyed the connection we've made with our customers throughout the years because it has given us the opportunity to share our story and passion. Our goal for Masa Madre is to expand beyond just selling bread and into becoming a sustainable and community-driven company. We are currently exploring ways to make our bread more accessible to our customers, and one of our initiatives is to source local ingredients from organic or regenerative farms to produce our bread.We believe it is our responsibility to support those who respect the earth and its natural processes, and by sourcing locally, we can reduce our carbon footprint while also supporting our local communities.For the community-building aspect, we will continue to offer virtual and in-person classes to teach people the art of bread-making. We want to show everyone that baking is both fun and easy and that there is no greater reward than the satisfaction of making your own delicious bread.

Favorite recent bake?

Elena: My grandma's almond cake with orange zest and some sables cookies with edible flowers I made for Tamar's baby shower.Tamar: A strawberry and white chocolate pavlova for the summer!

Any tips for bakers getting started?

For those new to baking, my advice would be to have fun with the process and not take it too seriously. Baking can be tricky and unpredictable, even if you follow the same recipe every time. But that's what makes it exciting! You can discover new techniques and flavors that you haven't even thought about before.If you're interested in learning more about baking, we offer classes (in Chicago) that are fun for everyone. We promise you'll leave our classes with a successful bake. We also have a chocolate babka kit available on our website that includes all the dry ingredients and materials you need to bake at home. It has detailed instructions with illustrations that will guide you through every step of the process. And if you still feel unsure about it, you can book a virtual class with us, and we'll help you out! 

Thank you so much for sharing your stories MM!We can't wait to see what you two bake up next. Follow for more baking inspiration @hellomasamadre.

Why can’t I stop thinking about these frozen chilis?

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