Adam L. Diament, the author of Kosher Patents: 101 Ingenious Inventions to Help Jews be Jewish, is a practicing patent attorney in Beverly Hills, California. He earned a B.A. in Religious Studies with an Emphasis in Judaism from the University of California, Berkeley in 1997 and a law degree from the University of San Diego School of Law in 2008.

He says of categorizing patents by religions:

At first I didn’t think there would be as many Christian-related patents as Jewish-related patents because Christianity wouldn’t have the same kind of need for technology for working within and around rules, such as for Shabbat (e.g. Sabbath elevators, Sabbath refrigerators, Sabbath light switch, etc.) and kashrut (e.g. kosher slaughtering machines). But I was wrong! There are many more Christian-related patents than Jewish-related patents. To name just a few categories, there fire resistant Christmas tree patents, Christmas tree watering apparatuses, ornament patents, church pew patents, Easter egg decoration patents, Christmas lights patents, toys, games, baptismal apparatuses, communion related patents, etc. So, I?m working on a similar book for Christian patents. I have a Christian friend who did some proofreading of my last book for me and I asked if she would be interested in doing a Christian patent book with me. She doesn’t have a patent background, and I don’t have much of a Christianity background, so together we make a good team. There were literally thousands of patents to go through and we just narrowed it down to about 100. We hope to release the book by Thanksgiving (before the Christmas gift buying season).

In the future, there probably will be a Muslim patent book. I’ve talked with a Muslim friend of mine about doing it and we have a large list of patents we’re going through. I’ll tackle that book once the Christian one is done. Islam has very strict rules about charging interest and Islamic banks cannot charge interest to its clients. So how does a bank make any money? There are literally hundreds of patents relating to how a bank can make money and still adhere to Islamic law. That will be a main section in the book, but like patents related to kashrut in Judaism, Islam has its own set of laws for slaughtering animals called Hallal and there are many other areas of Islam law where technology can help the observant Muslim practice in an easier way.

These next two books will likely keep me busy for the next year.

In his book, Adam begins by explaining what a patent is (briefly, the legal right for an inventor to keep someone else from making, using or selling an invention) and why we have the patent system (briefly, to increase the nation?s creativity!). Among the categories of Jewish patents Adam lists and describes is Food and Beverage Patents, many of them to do with bagels, a food that has entered the mainstream diet.

With the author?s permission, we are posting ?Chapter 5: Food and Beverage Patents? from Kosher Patents: 101 Ingenious Inventions to Help Jews be Jewish. My hope is that you enjoy reading about patents in this category (one of eight in Adam?s book) and start to think about how you might present information you are interested in sharing in a list book or article.

To the bagel!

Chapter 5: Food and Beverage Patents from Kosher Patents: 101 Ingenious Inventions to Help Jews be Jewish
by Adam Diament

In the Introduction, I discussed that for many people who identify as being Jewish, being Jewish is not about having a particular faith or practicing Jewish observance, but is cultural.

Jewish culture includes song, dance, celebrating holidays, having a Jewish social circle, participating in Jewish life cycle events, and of course, eating Jewish foods. Since Jews come from all over the world, there actually is no common Jewish cuisine. European Jews have a very different cuisine from Persian Jews, who have a very different cuisine from Indian Jews, who have a different cuisine from Ethiopian Jews. In America, most Jews come from an Ashkenazi background (Eastern European), and their cuisine comes from Eastern Europe, so if you ask someone in America what Jewish food is, that person will probably list some Ashkenazi Jewish foods.

Commonly associated foods with Ashkenazi Jews are: bagels, lox (smoked salmon), kreplach (dumplings), kneidlach (matzah balls), latkes (potato pancakes), herring, gefilte fish, pickles, borscht, kugel, cholent, knishes, kishkes, pierogis, chopped liver, stuffed cabbage, and tzimmes.

Sephardic Jews,²² Mizrahi Jews,²³ and Persian Jews have an entirely different cuisine. Their cuisines emphasize more salads, stuffed vegetables, lentils, dried fruits, lamb, ground beef, and include dishes called chreime, chamin, sambusak, falafel, and tabbouleh. The spices used in the various Jewish cuisines from around the world also differ dramatically depending on the local spices available.

Despite the different cuisines, there are a few common staples. All Jews will prepare a type of bread called challah for Shabbat, though how challah is made is different among the different Jewish communities. Jews will also all eat matzah on Passover. Most of the patent applications related to Jewish foods are directed toward challah, bagels, and matzah.

²² Jews whose ancestors came from Spain, but were scattered throughout Africa, the Mediterranean and the Middle East after their expulsion in 1492.

²³ Jews whose ancestors are from the Middle East are known as Mizrahi Jews. There is a fair amount of overlap of traditions between Sephardic Jews and Mizrahi Jews, so the terms are often conflated, though there are numerous differences between Mizrahi Jewish traditions and Sephardic Jewish traditions.

Bagel Slicers
U.S. Patent Number: 3,338,282
Inventor: Paul Blum
Date Issued: August 29, 1967

Problem: Bagels are difficult to slice down the middle because they don?t stand upright by themselves. Most people cut a bagel by holding it in one hand as they carefully slice the bagel with a knife held in the other hand. This practice is dangerous and has landed many people in the hospital. Bagel slicing is actually the fifth most dangerous activity in the American kitchen.²⁴ Many bagel-slicing devices have been patented; here is one of the first patented bagel slicers.

How the Problem is Solved: Clamping cups hold a bagel in place. A knife is attached to a vertical member and pivots down to cut the bagel between the clamps, as illustrated below.

²⁴ http://freakonomics.com/2009/11/30/bagel-danger/
Bagel Slicer
U.S. Patent Number: 3,347,296
Inventor: Alex Rothman
Date Issued: October 17, 1967

Problem: See previous item?of ?Bagel Slicers.?

How the Problem is Solved: In this early bagel slicing patent, the bagel is placed in the middle of two circular depressions. The bagel is held between two plates hinged together, but allows a knife to slice in-between the two plates. You hold the device by the handles and do not need to hold the bagel directly when you slice it.

Process for Making Frozen Bagel Shapes
U.S. Patent Number: 5,707,676
Inventor: Ronald Savelli
Date Issued: January 13, 1998

Problem: According to the inventor, using pre-frozen bagel dough is not as good as using fresh dough for making bagels. Frozen dough does not rise as well as fresh dough, and the crust of the bagel is too thin. Also, bagels made from frozen dough tend to become misshapen and form blisters when baked. Is there a way you can use frozen bagel dough while avoiding all these problems?

How the Problem is Solved: To solve these problems, the inventor bathes the bagel dough pieces ?in an aqueous food grade acidic solution warmed to a temperature up to about 190 degrees? before freezing the bagel. This purportedly solves the problems associated with using frozen bagel dough.

Filled Bagel Dough Product and Method
U.S. Patent Number: 5,236,724
Inventor: Alvin Burger
Date Issued: August 17, 1993

Problem: One of the most common things to eat with a bagel is cream cheese. But cream cheese can get messy when spread in the normal way on the flat side of a cut bagel. Is there a way to make and eat a bagel with cream cheese without causing a mess?

How the Problem is Solved: This invention is for a filled bagel dough product and a method of making the product. First, the dough is made into a hollow ball. Cream cheese is placed in the cavity of the ball. The dough is sealed around the cream cheese and then the product is steamed (rather than boiled) and then baked.

Dough Embossing Apparatus
U.S. Patent Number: 3,936,255
Inventor: Joseph Bellacicco
Date Issued: February 3, 1976

Problem: During the traditional Friday night Shabbat meal, several prayers are recited. One prayer thanks G-d for bringing forth bread from the earth (the prayer is called the motzi). The type of bread traditionally eaten on Shabbat is called challah, which is often braided and made from eggs, flour, water, sugar, yeast and salt. But what if you are horrible at braiding? How can you make a decent looking challah?

How the Problem is Solved: This invention is an embossing apparatus that presses dough into a particular shape so that the bread looks like it has been braided. The apparatus includes an endless belt that receives dough and transports the dough though an embossing wheel that creates a braided shape.

Method and Apparatus for Producing Braided Baked Products
U.S. Patent Number: 5,637,341
Inventor: Ram Rivlin
Date Issued: June 10, 1997

Problem: So far we?ve seen a way to make challah look like it has been braided, even when it hasn?t. But let?s say you actually want to braid challah but don?t know how, or you own challah-making factory and don?t have the personnel to braid all the challah. Braiding challah may not take a long time if you make just one, but if you need to make hundreds, it would take a long time. What can you do?

How the Problem is Solved: This invention is for a device and a method where you first insert dough through a hole in the device. The device has die members that rotate, so that it interweaves the strips of dough into a braid to make braided challah.

Frozen Challah Dough with Protrusion or Marking or Separated Piece for Observing the Mitzvah of Hafrashat Challah (Separating of Challah)
U.S. Patent Application Number: 13/919,023 (Patent Pending)
Inventor: Fischel Offman
Date Filed: June 17, 2013

Problem: The Torah says ?Of the first of your dough you shall lift up a cake as an offering…from the first of your dough you shall give to the Lord an offering throughout your generations.? (Numbers 15:20-21). From this verse, Jews in ancient times gave part of the challah dough to a priest (kohen). Today, since there is no Holy Temple from where the priests make sacrifices, it is common practice to burn the portion of bread that was traditionally given to the priest. But what if you don?t want to mess up your beautifully braided challah by tearing off a piece?

How the Problem is Solved: This invention is for a specially molded frozen challah where there is a protruding piece specifically created to enable you to perform the commandment of removing the challah piece for the priest. This way, the protruding piece can be removed, but your challah still looks like a fully formed challah.

Distributor for Alcoholic Beverages
U.S. Patent Number: 5,484,002
Inventor: Michael Kupietzky
Date Issued: January 16, 1996

Problem: One of the prayers recited before the Shabbat meal is the blessing over the wine (kiddush). If you are having many guests over for dinner, or have a large gathering with hundreds of people, you many need to fill many cups of wine quickly and evenly without spilling. Is there a device that can help you out?

How the Problem is Solved: In this invention, wine or other beverages can be poured into a receptacle on top, and the wine will be distributed to goblets located under spouts. There have been many types of beverage distributors like this, but in this system, the wine receptacle can be flipped over when not in use, and act as a dust cover.

Tool for Treatment of a Substance on a Surface
U.S. Patent Number: 8,024,835
Inventor: Ayelet Hellerman
Date Issued: September 27, 2011

Problem: During the holiday of Pesach (Passover), Jews are prohibited from eating bread. Instead, Jews eat matzah, which is a brittle cracker-like product. It is nearly impossible to put any type of pressure on a piece of matzah without it breaking. Is there a special kind of knife that can be used to spread butter or cream cheese on matzah where the matzah will not break?

How the Problem is Solved: This invention is for a matzah spreader. The blade is made from a soft and bendable material so that when a certain amount of force is applied, the blade deflects (bends) to limit the amount of force exerted on the matzah so it won?t break.

Weighing and Carton-Filling Device
U.S. Patent Number: 1,306,187
Inventor: Jacob Manischewitz
Date Issued: June 10, 1919

Problem: Matzah boxes are difficult to fill quickly due to its fragile nature. Is there a good way to quickly fill a box with matzah for transport?

How the Problem is Solved: Jacob Manischewitz (of the famous Manischewitz family) invented a three-sided container for matzahs. The heights of the sides of the container are shorter than the height of the matzah. The box is placed over the matzah and then flipped over. The three-sided container is then removed so that the matzah can now be placed in its filled shipping container. This device speeds up the entire matzah packaging process.

Method of Preparing an Edible Fish Product
U.S. Patent Number: 3,108,882
Inventor: Monroe Nash and Erich Freudenstein
Date Issued: October 29, 1963

Problem: Gefilte fish is a popular Jewish food, especially amongst Ashkenazi Jews. It is generally made from minced fish such as pike, whitefish and carp, and formed into a ball. Store-bought gefilte fish comes in a glass jar filled with many gefilte fish balls in a briny broth. It?s commonly eaten on Shabbat and on Pesach. Historically there have been problems with making and storing gefilte fish. The flavors can leech out of the fish and the fish ball often crumbles in the broth.

How the Problem is Solved: This invention is for a method of preparing gefilte fish that has the steps of cooking the fish in a brine solution, flavoring the fish, and preparing a broth that has water, flavoring, and an edible gel from red seaweed. When made in this manner, the gefilte fish is resistant to decomposition at sterilization temperatures above 240 degrees.