Special thanks to Faith Kramer and J. The Jewish News of Northern California for the clever Shavuot inspiration for this recipe.

Some will call it “Whipped coffee.” Others say it’s “Dalgona” and it originated in South Korea. But the Greeks will tell you that it’s actually “Frappe” and it was created in the late 1950’s by a coffee salesman by the name of Dimitris Vakondios. Today it’s been renamed “Quarantine Coffee.” Why? People are spending more time at home in quarantine and with local coffee shops closed, we’ve been forced to make our own coffee at home using ingredients hiding in our pantries.

Although there are many disputes of where and when whipped coffee was invented, I remember my Ukrainian dad showing me how to make this cold, sweet treat when I was just a kid, so let’s just say that this drink has been around…for a while. I forgot all about it until one day I was scrolling through TikTok and whipped coffee posts were popping up everywhere! The next morning, I woke up and drove to the nearest store, praying they still had instant coffee and milk (pantry items and toilet paper were flying off the shelves during that time) and thankfully they did. There are no words to describe what taking that first sip was like after many years. With that being said, I’m including a simple recipe with step by step instructions. Try it out and let us know what you think!

Side note: I can’t stress enough how important it is to use exact measurements here. There’s some science behind using equal parts of each ingredient and why you need to use instant coffee (not regular coffee grounds) You can read all about it here: https://medium.com/@jpakman/dalgona-coffee-science-of-the-foam-3c2575821d49

Whipped Coffee Recipe

Makes 1 serving

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons instant coffee
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons hot water
• 2-3 Ice cubes
• Milk (I used whole milk)

Tools:

• Hand mixer or Whisk
• Bowl
• Coffee mug

Step 1:

Combine instant coffee, sugar and hot water into a bowl.

Step 2:

Whisk. Whisk. Whisk.

If you are using a regular whisk, this part can take about 6-8 minutes. At first, it’ll look like a dark syrup. Keep whisking until it turns into a caramel color.

Step 3:

Once your coffee looks like this, you are ready to assemble! Grab your mug, fill it with ice and milk and scoop the whipped coffee on top.

Step 4:

Don’t forget to snap a photo of your masterpiece and send it to all your friends. Stir, drink and enjoy!

It looks serene, but imagine the tunes bumping out of a stereo.

OFJCC Social Media Specialist Yana Z. does not do things halfway. When she went on a camping trip earlier this summer, she and her friends enjoyed a top-notch outdoorsy experience. Here, she shares with us five unexpected tips to win at camping all summer long.

I am what you’d call a “Professional Camper.” I’ve been doing it for years so I know a new camper when I see one. For example, if I see you at the campsite wearing a white shirt or pants: You’re doing it wrong! I am here to share some of my favorites that you wouldn’t know about unless someone told you, but once you know, you’ll thank me!

1. A Sleeping Pad

Leave that bulky, space-wasting air mattress at home and invest in a sleeping pad. Not only will this save space in your trunk and tent, it will give you the best sleep ever and your back will thank you in the morning. My favorite pick would have to be REI’s Exped MegaMat 10 Sleeping Pad. It’s a bit on the pricey side, but if you feel like this is out of your budget range, find a friend who will loan you one!

2. Glowsticks

No, these won’t help light your way to the bathroom at night but they will help you when you’re reaching into your cooler and you want to grab a beer instead of a soda. Crack a few glow sticks and toss them in your cooler so when you open it, you can find your choice of drink and you’ll spend less time searching in that icy sea and more time hanging out by the fire with your family and friends.

3. Two Towels

This one’s a no-brainer, but you’d be surprised how many people forget. It’s simple: one towel to take to the lake and one for the showers. If your campsite does not have showers, you’ll still want to bring one for the end of the day.

4. A Power Bank

Why should you bring a power bank when the whole point of camping is to spend less time on your phone? I’m glad you asked. It’s to charge the portable speakers. What’s camping without some good ol’ Dierks Bentley country tunes? This power bank lasted me for four full days and I was able to charge my speaker several times.

5. Portable Inflatable Floats/Rafts

Imagine having to put a huge ten-foot float back into its original box at the end of your trip. You don’t want to waste your time with that, especially because the smaller ones work great. My group of friends had more fun on the Explorer 200 than we did on a big floating island that cost more than $90. You’ll still have fun and won’t have to deal with the hassle or price tag of a larger one. Just don’t forget to bring the pump!

Don’t forget the essentials of course. You can’t go camping without a tent, food or comfortable shoes and expect to have a good time. What are some of your camping essentials? We’d love to hear what you can’t live without!

Getting healthy or losing weight are the two most common New Year’s resolutions that people make each year but research shows that only eight percent of people actually achieve their New Year’s goals. Why do so many people miss the mark? Master Trainer Jorge G. Contreras at the Goldman Sports & Wellness Complex explains, “First, figure out why losing weight or being healthier is important to you. Establish the ‘why,’ then work on how you’re going to keep yourself accountable.”

My story didn’t begin on January 1st like most people. I had no intention to start exercising or eat healthy after the holiday season because I had tried and failed so many times in the past. A few months prior to the New Year in 2017, my mom was diagnosed with Stage IV colon cancer. As I was leaving her bedside at the hospital, she told me “Yana, please start taking care of yourself or you’ll be laying on this same bed.” From that point, I knew I needed to make some serious changes in order to live a better, longer life.

It’s been officially one year since I started my journey and during this time I discovered five great tips that helped me stick to my New Year’s resolution:

1. “It Takes 30 Days to Form a Habit”

I didn’t put pressure on myself to go to the gym seven days a week. Instead, I went to the gym twice a week and then every few weeks I would add another day once I found myself getting stronger. This formed a habit and eventually I felt like my day wasn’t complete unless I had gone to the gym.

2. Clueless? Get a Trainer!

During the first month of exercising, I found myself getting bored on the elliptical machine but I was too scared to try anything else (free weights and other machines) and was afraid that I would end up injuring myself. I signed up for a fitness introductory session and was paired off with my trainer. As Jorge says, “Even the most motivated individual with a reasonable goal and timeframe is working against all odds without the support of a health coach or personal trainer. It would be like trying to build a supercomputer without any knowledge of computer science.”

3. Ditch the Scale (kinda)

In the past, I would be obsessed with the number on the scale and each time I would step on it, I would get discouraged. But just as the saying goes “If you can measure it, you can improve it,” I had to measure my success somehow in order to stay on track. But you don’t have to be a slave to the scale. I started to notice that tight clothes were becoming looser. I also started taking weekly photos of myself and noticed my body changing. These methods became my new “scale.”

4. Not Losing Weight? Neither Was I

Let’s face it: perfection is unattainable. People often go in with an “all-or-nothing” mindset at the beginning of the year and the moment that they slip, they quit completely. There were weeks that I wouldn’t lose weight and even times that the weight started to creep back. I kept reminding myself that this New Year’s Resolution was a long-term goal, not a quick fix. I made the proper adjustments needed and I was back on track.

5. Treat yourself

I’m not talking about eating an entire box of pizza, cupcakes or ice cream just because you burned an extra 300 calories that day. Instead, I would “treat myself” to a new gym outfit or weekly massages. Not only was this a way to reward myself for working hard in the gym, but it also helped alleviate pain and prevent injuries.

Throughout the year, I had my ups and downs but with the right mindset, not only was I able to keep my New Year’s resolution and lose over 30 pounds, I was able to turn it into a lifestyle. When you start to feel discouraged and unmotivated after the New Year hype is over, just remember why you started in the first place.

In the spirit of Hanukkah, the Jewish celebration of historical miracles, OFJCC staffer Yana Z. describes the miracles of the time her father spent in the gulag.

“I am a prisoner of conscience and I don’t conform to the norms of others. I always thought in a different way and did things differently than others.” –Vasil Zavgorodniy

My father lived a simple life in Odessa, a city in southern Ukraine, with a simple job; working on the machines in an ice cream factory. Like all men living in the Soviet Union, he was required to enlist in the Soviet Armed Forces. After he completed six months of training in the mid 1970s, he had to swear the Oath of Allegiance to Soviet Navy. The oath required all men to “defend the Motherland by achieving complete victory over the enemy” which meant taking other peoples’ lives. My father refused to take this oath because it would go against his beliefs as a Christian to honor life and the Biblical commandment not to kill. As this belief was against the law in the Soviet Union, the commanders questioned my father’s religious views and on May 1st, 1975 he was sentenced to four years in prison.

My dad’s commanders sent him to an insane asylum. They believed that since he refused to take the oath and didn’t want to adopt their ideals, he must have been insane. Once patients were admitted to that particular center, they never saw the outside of their four walls and would eventually die there. The guards and doctors clearly could see that he was not mentally ill and by a miracle, decided to release him.

My father was sent off to a gulag—a labor camp where he worked in harsh conditions, slept on a cardboard “bed,” and was only fed a piece of bread for the entire day. For a year and six months, he was forced to carry and transport tons of water every day. There was one prison guard that watched him and waited for the day that he would either break down or die but every day my father got up and worked. The other prisoners and guards could not understand how such a grueling task would not break his spirit or the hope to live but by a miracle, he survived.

My father served out the last two years of his sentence at a construction site and on September 1, 1979, he became a free man. In 1994, my father graduated with a master’s degree in theology and was able to move his family to the United States the following year where he received his doctoral degree. He now travels to other countries, sharing his story of hope and miracles. In those four years, my father overcame hardships that could break anyone’s spirit but because he had hope and his faith, it taught me to hope for a better tomorrow and to stand my ground.

For the past eighteen years, school was all I knew. I realized that being a student had become my identity after someone asked me what I liked to do for fun, and I just stood there trying to come up with an answer.

During my time at San Jose State, I pulled all-nighters to cram for exams, drank amounts of coffee that would make a Starbucks barista worry about my caffeine consumption and accepted the fact that I had no social life—and I was completely okay with it, too.

As graduation approached, I realized that my greatest fear was not knowing how to live without school dominating my life! I assume that’s what they call “Post-Graduation Depression.” Once I walked across that stage to receive my diploma, I knew I needed to adjust my routine to prevent myself from falling into a rut. I discovered several things that helped me transition from being a college student to a young professional:

1. Nix Netflix

Ok, don’t get rid of it completely, but limit your time! The first week after school ended, I found myself re-watching an entire season of The Vampire Diaries. Binge watching shows only made me more upset since I felt like I was wasting valuable time. I could have finally cleaned out my car or the junk drawer in my kitchen.

Long story short: use your newfound free time to finally do the things you were telling yourself to do all semester long.

2. Create a Routine

This was probably the hardest but most necessary step I had to take. I work the typical 9 to 5 and used to sit in traffic for over an hour each way. By the time I got home, the day was gone and I had no motivation to do anything. I wasted time until I needed to get to bed. I recently started to wake up at 4:30 AM, go the gym and start work earlier. Now my days feel longer since I bypass the terrible traffic on the 101 and get home sooner.

Long story short: trick yourself into having a longer day by waking up earlier.

3. Work Hard, Play Harder

If you are one of the lucky few who was able to find a job after college, first, I applaud you. Second, it’s okay to finally have some fun! When I was in school, I didn’t allow myself to go out on the weekends and meet with friends. I felt guilty if I did that since that time could be dedicated to studying. I work Monday to Friday, but once 5:00 PM hits on Friday, I bolt out of the office for some well-deserved fun.

Long story short: Have fun, meet new people and go out because you no longer have exams to study for!

Classes started this week at San Jose State, but instead of feeling upset that I won’t be there, these three tips got me excited that I finally don’t have to spend a dime on a textbook I’ll never even open. With that said, welcome back to school, everyone!