My dear friend, Robin Black, made the wise suggestion of having an election night dinner that was a tribute to immigrants. There are few few among us in America (Native Americans) who didn’t come from ‘somewhere’ –so, in effect:

Todos somos inmigrantes, Wǒmen dōu shì yímín, nahn jamieaan almuhajirin & waxaanu wada nahay waddanka u soo guurey

Among the many ways we can come together, what’s happier than food? I invite all to share their recipes–below in comments, on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and over your back fence. Here’s one from my grandmother collection:

When my mother married my stepfather, he came with plenty of plenty: I got stepsisters, a very large extended family, and . . . homemade knishes. For the non-Jewish population, knishes are in the peasant genus of something-soft-wrapped-in-dough. In New York City, they are all over—ranging from potato (yum!) and kasha (okay) to broccoli (just say no!).

So, at the tender age of thirteen, I had a new grandmother who made homemade knishes (in my memory, this was a twice-a-year occurrence) and then her children, grandchildren, and neighbors descended. A few of us lived on the same block, so it was a rush to the kitchen.

A few were wrapped up and sent to each family.

They were gold.

As I entered my stage of making everything from scratch (a short-lived decade)I asked my mother to get the recipe from her. I don’t think Grandma Bessie could write much English, so my mother wrote down her words. Thus, the measurements. I will admit that I never had as much luck as Grandma Bessie making these—but tasty they are. Better cooks than me (a huge group) will doubtless have far more luck.

KNISHES FROM GRANDMA BESSIE

Dough:
2 eggs
1/2 cup Wesson oil (does it matter if it’s Wesson? Surely not—but she said it)
1 glass warm water (nobody is certain of the size of the glass—I think about 8 ounces)
2 teaspoons regular baking powder
4 cups flour

Filling
5 lbs. potatoes
2 lbs. onions
2 heaping teaspoons Crisco
1 cup water, divided (add more as needed)

Crisco & Crisco can

Cover and simmer filling ingredients on low heat. Mash. (And season, right? She never said.)

Mix eggs, oil, 1/2 cup of water, 2 cups flour and the baking powder, then add 1 cup of flour and more water, then rest of water and flour. Divide into 6 parts and roll out. Use top of Crisco can to cut out dough and fill with potato mixture.

Put one dot of Crisco in each knish, seal and bake until golden brown.

Enjoy. Like all the immigrants who’ve come to our country, these are a wonder.