Hashem tells Avram to go from his father’s house to the place He will show him. Avram does so at the age of 75, with his extended family, including his nephew, Lot. But almost as soon as he gets there, there is a famine in the land, and he is forced to go down to Egypt to find food.   Avram hides his wife Sarai in a box to protect her from the Egyptians, but she is found and taken by the Egyptians. They are punished with leprosy for this. Lot becomes rich because of Avram, but then the two go separate ways because their shepherds quarrel. Avram goes to Hevron, and Hashem promises to give the entire land of Canaan to him and his descendants. There is a war of the four kings against the five kings. Hashem makes the Brit Bein HaBetarim with Avram, where he is told to cut animals, but not birds, and let fire pass through them. Avram and Sarai have had no children for the 10 years that they have been in Canaan, so Avram married Hagar. Yishmael is born. Hashem tells Avram to circumcise himself and all the members of his household, which he does. Hashem changes Avram’s name to Avraham, and Sarai’s name to Sarah. Hashem promises Avraham that Yizchak will be born.

From the Sources

In Lech Lecha, Avram has to do lots of traveling. From Haran to Caanan, down to Egypt and back again, and all around Eretz Yisrael in order to show that he owns it.

How to eat it

It could be fun to have specific travel food for nosh on Shabbat afternoon. Think trail mix, dried apricots, muesli bars, and so on.

Another interpretation could be to incorporate modern Israeli food into the menu, such as falafel or shwarma with humus, pita. Definitely an Israeli salad of tomato, cucumber, capsicum and green onions, with a dressing of garlic, mint, parsley, lemon juice salt and pepper. Or shashuka made by baking eggs in a sauce of tinned tomatoes, capsicum, onions and spices.

From the Sources

Avram went down to Egypt because of the famine in Eretz Yisrael. Sarai is taken away by the Egyptians and they and their houses are punished with tzaarat, leprosy.

How to eat it

Make gingerbread men and a gingerbread house. Decorate them with glace cherries to represent the boils of leprosy. Alternatively you could make 9 different gingerbread men and set them up as the four kings and the five kings.

From the Sources

In the Brit Bein Habetarim, the “Covenant Between the Parts”, Avram was told to take three calves, three goats three rams, a pigeon and a dove. Each animal is split in half, but the birds, which represent the Jewish people, are left whole. After dark, a fire passes through the animals and birds.

How to eat it

If you can find a kosher dove and pigeon, that would be terrific, but I think it is probably unlikely. So you could roast, or even better, barbeque two small chickens, or two spatchcock, to serve for Friday Night dinner.

From the Sources

When Hashem promises Avraham that he will have many children, he says that his descendants will be as numerous as the stars, if they are meritorious and, if not, they will still be as numerous as the grains of sand in the world. In fact there is a wonderfully exciting (especially for children) explanation which says that Hashem actually took Avraham into outer space in order to see the stars. This is because it says that Hashem took Avraham outside to see the stars, and that it only became dark only AFTER Avraham saw the stars. The idea is that he was taken into outer space so that he could see ALL of the stars whilst day was still day.

How to eat it

Okay so several options here. Make the “crumble” part of an apple crumble, and serve is with sliced star fruit. Or candy stars if you can find them. I think a lot of kids would also find it VERY exciting to make a spaceship cake.