JEWISH WORLD

JEWISH WORLD • MARCH 19-25, 2021 27 • 7 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped • 1/2 cup coconut oil, margarine or butter • 2 Tbsp., plus 1 tsp., instant cof- fee granules • 2 tsp. pure vanilla extract • 1 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa • 2 large eggs, plus 2 yolks • 1/2 cup sugar • 1/3 cup potato starch • Spray oil • 1 cup, plus 2 Tbsp. water, divided You will need six 6-ounce ramekins. Place the chocolate and coconut oil into a heatproof bowl and microwave for 1 minute, stir and then melt for another 45 sec- onds, stir and then melt for 30 sec- onds, if needed. Add the instant cof- fee, vanilla and cocoa and whisk in. Place the eggs, egg yolks and sugar into a large mixing bowl. Use an electric mixer to mix at low speed to combine and then turn the speed up to high and beat for 3 min- utes. Add the potato starch and beat at low speed to just combine. Add the melted chocolate mixture and whisk gently until combined. Spray the ramekins with spray oil. Divide the batter among the pre- pared ramekins, a heaping half-cup for each mold. Place the water into the inner pot and insert the steam rack. Place three of the ramekins in a circle around the rack. Secure the lid, ensuring that the steam release handle is in the Sealing position. Press the Pressure Cook button and set the cooking time for seven minutes. When the cooking time is complete, press Cancel. Turn the steam release han- dle to the Venting position to quick- ly release the pressure. Carefully remove the ramekins from the pot. Add another two tablespoons of water to the pot and cook the remaining three cakes as you did the first batch. It will take about 2 minutes for the Instant Pot to return to pressure. Let the cakes cool for at least 30 minutes before unmolding. To unmold, run a thin knife or small metal spatula around the edge of the cake, place a plate on top and turn the cake onto the plate. Dust with confectioners’ sugar if desired and serve with fruit. Melting the chocolate: Place chocolate chopped into half-inch pieces into a microwave- safe bowl, such as a large glass bowl. Make sure you have discard- ed every tiny piece of foil that wrapped the chocolate. Heat for 1 minute at high power for 45 sec- onds to start if you have less than 10 ounces of chocolate. Remove the bowl from the microwave and stir well, mixing the melted pieces into the unmelted ones for about 30 seconds. Heat for another 45 or 30 seconds and stir again for about 1 minute. If the chocolate is not fully melted, heat for another 30 seconds and stir. Repeat for 15 seconds, if necessary. Be sure to use oven mitts to hold the bowl when you stir it. Marshall Weiss is the editor and publisher of The Dayton Jewish Observer. Sources for the above: Ukraine: Anne Applebaum, "Red Famine: Stalin's War on Ukraine." Romania: Eugen Magirescu, "The Devil's Mill: Memories of Pitesti Prison." (Cited in Paul Kengor's "The Devil and Karl Marx: Communism's Long March of Death, Deception, and Infilt- ration.") Vietnam: Max Hastings, "Vietnam: An Epic Tragedy, 1945- 1975." China: Jung Chang and Jon Hal- liday, "Mao: The Unknown Story." I return to the theme of the denial of evil. People associate evil with dark- ness. But that is not accurate: It is easy to look into the dark; it is very hard to stare into bright light. One should therefore associate evil with extreme brightness, given that peo- ple rarely look at real evil. And those who do not confront real evil often make up evils (such as "sys- temic racism," "toxic masculinity" and "heteronormativity" in 21st- century America) that are much easier to confront. The Book of Psalms states, "Those of you who love God — you are to hate evil." In other words, you can't love God if you don't hate evil. And if you don't believe in God, here's another way of putting it: "Those of you who love people — you are to hate evil." If you don't hate communism, you don't care about, much less love, people. Dennis Prager is a nationally syndicated radio talk-show host and columnist. He is the founder of Prager University and may be con- tacted at dennisprager.com. Evil continued from page 15 and her grandmother, who was an immigrant who had spent most of her life in Iran and cooked Persian dishes with skill and love.” Yet, it was seeing the nature of Rachel and Dhruv’s relationship –— the way they interacted — that inspired Swarti to leave her hus- band: She realized that not only doesn’t she love him, but she does- n’t feel anything for him. What the two women learn that they have in common is that they both want to be seen and heard for who they really are. Mother Land is a heartwarming, absorbing work that will leave you rooting for both characters, even as they alternately irritate each other — and the reader — in big and small ways. It’s perfect for book clubs that like to discuss cul- tural differences, although these are usually based on Rachel’s being an American, rather than the Judaism she notes she doesn’t practice. The novel’s ending was particularly satisfying, as Rachel and Swati learn that “getting used to it” and doing what is expected is not always the best way to live a life. Rabbi Rachel Esserman is the executive editor of The Reporter Group . India continued from page 24 Cookbook continued from page 23