Local planters show the way ‘Back to the Garden’

For the last two years, three Aberdeen houses of worship have watched their interfaith garden grow. Members of Temple Shalom, Temple Beth Ahm, and the Matawan United Methodist Church plant and reap at Gan Tikvah Garden of Hope, located on Temple Shalom’s property. All the harvested vegetables are donated to the community food pantry located at the church, which supports families who are in need of healthy fresh produce, servicing about 1,800 people a month.

Now the social action committee of Temple Shalom has gathered recipes from the community members who mulch, plant, and harvest to create Back to the Garden: A Mostly Vegetarian Cookbook, which contains 70 “tried-and-true and delicious” vegetarian or dairy recipes — many with a Jewish flavor.

The proceeds from the sale of the cookbook will be used for supplies and equipment needed for the upkeep of the garden.

Committee chair Lenore Robinson originated the idea of the garden, and one of Temple Shalom’s gardeners, Ilana Feitlowitz, oversaw the production of the 42-page cookbook, whose cover was designed by another Temple Shalom member, Lonnie Pinkowitz.

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Last spring Gan Tikvah was recognized by the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism with an Irving J. Fain Social Action honorable mention for active commitment to social justice.