Developing a phone app for Kosher.com was our dream from day one. It was always part of the greater plan and future vision for the site. When I see Kosher.com recipe printouts all over your house, or you send me links to recipes that you plan on making for Shabbat, Yom Tov, or a simcha, or I hear about how you spent the afternoon on Kosher.com planning your entire eight-day Passover menu, I’m truly humbled.
But we desperately wanted to take it a step further.
While we have gotten countless requests over the years for an app, we wanted to wait until we could make it everything we wanted it to be for you! Of course, the app is another layer of convenience—especially for those of you who don’t have a browser on your phone. But we wanted to be able to help you in a way that wasn’t already possible. That became our driving force in developing this app.
Over a year ago, in one of our initial conversations about the app, Leah Gottheim and I furiously searched the internet for software that would lift handwritten text off of a scribbled-down recipe so they could all be kept in one neat place. We even tracked down a startup tech company in Israel (shocker!) that was doing this, but in short, it’s not as simple as it sounds. It did, however, get the ball rolling for the part of this app that’s most dear to our heart: sharing.
I’ve always believed that food is for sharing, recipes are for sharing, and menus are for sharing. I’m never one to hold back, and when a good idea or a great recipe hits me in the face, I need everyone I love to benefit from my find.
I’m lucky to be able to use my platform on my editorial page in Family Table by Mishpacha to share what’s going on in my kitchen, but now you can all have a platform of your own right here on this app. Don’t be intimidated; you don’t have to get set up with mics and lights or anything, but now you can share more easily.
Take advantage of the recipe boxes and sharing features we set up for you. Next time you get a recipe from a friend, upload it to one of your boxes so you don’t end up searching Whatsapp for helpful keywords like “Kugel” or trying to find the envelope you wrote it on.
If playing around in the kitchen and creating original recipes is your thing, you will now have the opportunity to share them with the rest of Kosher.com, and we all get to benefit from your brilliance.
And that’s only one part of it!
Two more of my favorites (because it’s just too good not to share the excitement): KIDS. We know how much your kids love Kosher.com. We know how much kids love to cook and bake and do all kinds of things in your (just cleaned) kitchen. So kids, we see you. There’s an entire section on this app that’s just for you. Have fun! (Psst, maybe clean something up here or there, okay?)
Last but not least, our video section. I remember walking into my grandmother’s kitchen on erev Yom Tov, and she would be cooking along with a cooking show. She wasn’t making what was on the screen, but she was cooking, and cooking was the vibe. Cooking shows are a great form of entertainment, especially these days when cooking is a sport unto itself. You are going to absolutely love the fact that you can watch our videos so easily (or put them on for your kids so easily, we know, we know).
We can’t wait for you to try the app for yourself. It’s so gratifying to watch the comments and feedback pour in. Please don’t forget to leave a review, show some love, and of course, share, share, and share the love.