I hope this isn't too stupid a question...

...but why are people here looking for/ baking parev "cheesecakes" and other milchig foods.

If you think of all the reasons for the minhag of eating milk/cheese on Shavuos, you don't fulfill any of them by eating parev foods.

Personally when we're fleishig I serve chocolate cake, cherry cake, apple cake, or any other cake that has pareve ingredients lechatchila. I serve cheesecake with milchigs - why would I do anything else? The only reason I can think of is for someone with an allergy or dietry restriction sitting at the milchig meal with everyone else who you want to feel got the same food.

I have never heard anyone talk about this in real life - only on imamother.

Hope I didn't offend anyone Hee hee

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I don't understand your question.
We have allergies in our family, and do not want our allegic child to feel left our when we eat our cheesecake.
She deserves to enjoy the spirit of Milchigs on Shavuos too.
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Think of the simanim on Rosh Hashana. I'm guessing that even symbolic dairy foods remind us of the reasons for it.
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Platinum Member Joined: May 07 2008 Posts: 8963

Ditto for people who bake latkes on Chanuka. They're just not thinking, most of them. Cheesecake on Shavuot and latkes on Chanuka are a knee-jerk response, and ppl know they "have" to have them but want to change the parameters. If they thought it out and understood that Shavuos is about milchik, not cheesecake per se, and Chanuka is about food cooked in oil, not panckaes per se, then they'd realize they coul;d be "yotze" by serving cheese, yogurt and cafe au lait or sauteed vegetables.

otoh some people may be cooking for those with dietary restrictions and want to prepare both the traditional dish and something similar for their lactose-intolerant/fat free or what have you friends so they shouldn't feel left out when everyone else is pigging out.

Diamond Member Joined: Feb 15 2007 Posts: 3241

I doubt if anyone thinks you can actually fulfill the minhag with parve imitations, but I never did a survey. Dairy allergies and intolerances are quite widespread and people want to give their allergic kids a taste of something that looks like what everyone else is having. Adults who are allergic and eat parve cheesecake or eat parve cheesecake as a dessert after a fleishik meal are presumably just interested in tasting a taste that they associate with Shavuos.

Noone in our family can really digest milchiks well, especially the kids. Now that my oldest is old enough that he is learning about eating milchiks on Shavuos in gan, and he is going to see the other kids get some that they'll make in gan, I told him that I would make him something that tastes like cheesecake but which isn't. Now that my local mister zol is out of toffuti cream cheese, I am starting to regret saying it. I am toying with the idea of using that pineapple recipe in other thread, but it just seems impossible that that could taste like cheesecake.

In fact, I am also thinking of having DS make paper flowers to decorate our apartment because he learned that we decorate the house and the shul with flowers, but I gave up on having flowers in the house years ago because we always have allergic reactions to the pollens.

My husband and I usually do eat through a large cheesecake together, possibly with some help from some early morning kiddush guests - we are rather partial to it and the one I make comes out delicious - but my husband needs to stick to a certain healthy diet that is dairy free and I am nursing a baby who is allergic to dairy but seems to be OKish when I eat it, and I am starting to think that dairy gives me problems as well, so I'm undecided at this point what to do this year.

People often have an attachment to tradition that goes beyond the logical reason for it.

It's a good thing in a lot of ways. It leads many people to keep tradition for tradition's sake, when they wouldn't keep it for any other reason.

Platinum Member Joined: Jan 01 2006 Posts: 48155

Posted: Thu, Jun 02 2011, 3:54 pm Post subject:

Perhaps people are serving a flieshig meal and want to bring in the yom tov spirit. I make is sometimes shabbos for dessert.
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is it just me, or does this unassuming thread belong in the controversial category?
why is it being taken it so personally and seriously? I would think we could let others do what suits them, as long as its within the confines of halacha...

Diamond Member Joined: Mar 17 2008 Posts: 3557

I make pareve cheesecake because:

*I don't have a milchig mixer and like someone else said I like the 'spirit' of having a 'cheesecake' as opposed to say a chocolate cake for the yom tov;
*on the years where Shavuot is Friday/shabbas, I can still enjoy 'cheesecake' with my fleishig shabbas meal; and
*it doesn't contain so much fat or cholesterol

Posted: Sat, Jun 04 2011, 2:50 pm Post subject:

I make pareve options because of a dairy allergic child and a lactose intolerant husband.
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Posted: Sat, Jun 04 2011, 3:05 pm Post subject:

I see no reason to have parve cheesecake if there are no allergy issues. If people are so concerned about fat & calories, eat fruit for dessert, not cheesecake parve or otherwise.

Senior Member Joined: Sep 13 2010 Posts: 163

I think to us women each chag is represented by what food we "get " to make. yummy things that we dont afford ourselves / cant afford to do all yr round. latkes, kreplach, hamantaschen, doughnuts, matzos brei etc. ( for those who do any of those).
for a lot of us that time of yr reminds us of that food. its not about a minhag perse. its originaly based on that and has now evolved to eating those things those times of yr----so if it tastes/reminds us of cheesecake, good enough!
I personally only eat fleishigs on shavous for the seudas but have a milchig kiddush in the morning, and truth be told I would make a cheesecake for the shabbosim around shavous too, its just the mood.
like in israel they sell sufganiot from rosh chodesh cheshvan....whats the minhag in that!
either way milchigs or pareve enjoy your cheesecakes