History of Golden Valley

The Village of Golden Valley was incorporated Dec 16, 1886. During its early years, Golden Valley was an agricultural community of only a few hundred residents, full of farms, mills, and dairies. Residential development began after the Electric Luce Line Railroad was cut through the village in 1912.

Between 1910 and 1940, Golden Valley's population increased from 692 to 2,040. More residential development followed industry's discovery of Golden Valley after World War II, and the village continued to grow. It became a city in 1972.

A video history of Golden Valley ("Celebrate Golden Valley"), produced in 2003 by Curtis Laine of Studio 23, is available for purchase through the Golden Valley Historical Society.

Was it daffodils or wheat? The story of how Golden Valley got its name has several variations; however, references to grain outnumber those to wildflowers.

The most recent explanation, published in 1986, cites daffodils as the inspiration. According to Golden Valley: A History of a Minnesota City, 1886-1986, the city was named by William Varner, one of the area's first settlers. Upon arriving at St Anthony Falls in 1854, Varner headed west to find a home site and eventually came upon "a hill so high that he thought it was a mountain. He climbed the hill and looking down he could see the whole valley lush and green dotted with golden daffodils. In the distance he could see a lake shining in the sunlight and he said, 'This is my valley, my Golden Valley.' " That hill, now much eroded by nature and humans, is currently home to the Golden Valley Country Club.

Backtrack to May 29, 1958. An unattributed article in the Suburban Press claimed the name Golden Valley "came about because of the yellow of the cowslips, goldenrod, and sunflowers which covered the hills in 1852 when the first pioneers settled in the valley." As soon as he read that article, 75-year-old Robert Moser, lifelong resident and son of early homesteader Carl Moser, called the paper to set the record straight. He said "it was wheat, acres of it glimmering in a summer sun, that put the word 'golden' in Golden Valley."

Read More: http://www.goldenvalleymn.gov/about/history.php

Mazel Tov to Muhammad Ali's Grandson on His Bar Mitzvah

By Jeffrey GoldbergJun 6 2012, 8:32 AM ET

This is pretty awesome. From the Philadelphia Daily News (h/t Jack Shafer):

Muhammad Ali was in town last November for the funeral of Smokin' Joe Frazier, but it turns out the boxing legend was back in the area on April 28 for the bar mitzvah of his grandson Jacob Wertheimer at Rodeph Shalom on North Broad Street.

Khaliah Ali-Wertheimer, Jacob's mother, told Ali biographer Thomas Hauser that though her father raised his children Muslim, he was "supportive in every way. He followed everything and looked at the Torah very closely."

"It meant a lot to Jacob that he was there," she told Hauser, who reported on the bar mitzvah at TheSweetScience.com.

"I was born and raised as a Muslim," Khaliah said, "but I'm not into organized religion. I'm more spiritual than religious. My husband is Jewish. No one put any pressure on Jacob to believe one way or another. He chose this on his own because he felt a kinship with Judaism and Jewish culture." Her husband is attorney Spencer Wertheimer.

UPDATE: In true passive-aggressive Jewish tradition, stalwart Goldblog reader Marc Syken writes in to say: "My son was also bar mitzvahed at Rodeph Shalom, yet no mention in your blog - what am I, the invisible man or something?"

So: a belated Mazel Tov to Nate Syken, on his Bar Mitzvah at Rodeph Shalom.

Copyright: http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2012/06/mazel-tov-to-muhammad-alis-grandson-on-his-bar-mitzvah/258155/

Golden Valley's 125th Anniversary

Golden Valley was incorporated as village Dec 16, 1886. The community celebrated its 125th anniversary in 2011 with a series of events planned and implemented by citizen volunteers, and many existing community activities were embellished to include an anniversary component.

Planning began in September 2010 with a Bridge Builder’s group that met to discuss possibilities. From there the 125th Anniversary Planning Team was formed to plan events and activities for the year, ending Dec 2, 2011 with a 125th Anniversary Commemorative Luncheon at the Golden Valley Golf and Country Club.

The commemorative luncheon program included recognition of Golden Valley Hall of Fame nominees, display of time capsule contents, a celebration of the year's activities, and more. Emcee was Rena Sarigianopoulous, KARE 11 TV. Keynote speaker was Minnesota State Demographer Tom Gillaspy, who presented "The Future of Golden Valley."

More than 300 people attended the event, which was hosted by the Golden Valley Rotary, Golden Valley 125th Anniversary Team, and Golden Valley Golf & Country Club.

Copyright: http://www.goldenvalleymn.gov/events/125/index.php

May 12, 2011 | By Melissa Jordan-Reilly

Health Benefits of Borscht — Photo Credit Ablestock.com/AbleStock.com/Getty Images

Like many so-called peasant foods, borscht bursts with nutrients yet costs pennies per serving. The beet soup hails from Eastern Europe and is at least 500 years old. At its simplest, borscht is little more than grated beets cooked with water and seasonings and served chilled. But recipe variations are endless. Because all versions rely on beets as their main ingredient, the red vegetable guarantees plenty of vitamins and minerals, whether you make hot or cold borscht.

Vitamins

A 1/2-cup serving of borscht offers 8 percent of the recommended daily allowance, or RDA, of vitamin C, according to the American Diabetes Association. It also contributes 2 percent of your RDA for vitamin A. Vitamins A and C are both crucial antioxidant vitamins, which helps you fend off illness and the affects of pollution and aging. Borscht also gives you 6 percent of the folate you need for the day and 1 percent RDA for vitamin B-12. Folate, a B vitamin, is crucial to fetal development, and pregnant women are encouraged to increase their intake of the vitamin. Both folate and B-12 help your body turn food into fuel and support red blood cell production, which bolsters your energy and mood.

Minerals

Borscht contributes 4 percent of your RDA for potassium. The colorful soup also provides 3 percent of your RDA for phosphorus and 2 percent RDA for iron, calcium and magnesium. Potassium and magnesium support proper muscle and nerve production, which helps stave off cramping and weakness. Iron prevents anemia and overall fatigue and weakness. Calcium is crucial to bone and dental health.

Fat, Calories and Carbohydrates

Serve borscht as a way of packing a colorful, antioxidant-rich dish into your meal without undermining your health goals. Borscht contains only 39 calories and 1.2 g saturated fat per serving. The beet soup also is low in carbohydrates, at 4 g per serving. Borscht counts as one starchy vegetable serving for those who need to watch their starches and carbs.

Method

Recipes for borscht vary, but the classic summer soup method involves boiling grated or julienned beets in water or stock until they are tender, then chilling the soup. Some winter recipes for warm borscht call for potatoes, beef or dried fruit. Avoid these versions if you are on a low-carbohydrate or low-fat diet.

Tips

Keep the sugar to a minimum when making borscht. Use low-sodium chicken stock or water, rather than high-sodium prepared stocks. While regular sour cream is a classic borscht garnish, make your meal healthier by replacing it with plain yogurt or nonfat sour cream. Add flavor and nutrients by topping the soup with traditional chopped pickles, dill, scallions or celery. If you're not watching your starches, bolster the soup's nutritional content by adding a traditional boiled potato to the soup.

References

Knish

A classic potato knish

A knish (

/ˈknɪʃ/) or knysh is an Eastern European,^[1] and Jewish snack food made popular in America by Jewish immigrants, eaten widely by Jewish and non-Jewish people.^{[citation needed]}

History

Jewish immigrants who arrived from Ukraine sometime around 1900 brought knishes to America.^[2] Knish is a Yiddish word that was derived from the Ukrainian "knysh",^[3]^[4] meaning "a kind of bun." It is a baked or fried dumpling made of flaky dough with filling. The first knish bakery was founded in New York in 1910."^[5]

A knish consists of a filling covered with dough that is either baked, grilled, or deep fried. Knishes can be purchased from street vendors in urban areas with a large Jewish population, sometimes at a hot dog stand, or from a nearby butcher shop.

In the most traditional versions, the filling is made entirely of mashed potato, ground meat, sauerkraut, onions, kasha (buckwheat groats) or cheese. Other varieties of fillings feature sweet potatoes, black beans, fruit, broccoli, tofu or spinach.

Many cultures have variations on baked, grilled, or fried dough-covered snacks similar to the knish: the Cornish pasty, the Scottish Bridie, the Jamaican patty, the Spanish and Latin American empanada, the Portuguese rissole, the Italian calzone, the South Asian samosa, the Polish pierogi, the Russian Pirozhki, the Ukrainian Pyrizhky and the Middle Eastern fatayer.

Knishes may be round, rectangular or square. They may be entirely covered in dough or some of the filling may peek out of the top. Sizes range from those that can be eaten in a single bite hors d'oeuvre to sandwich-sized.

Copyright: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knish