Naomi Benhamou

I live in Montreal in a brick duplex with my husband and our two children, and every week of my life has been built around Friday. My family is Sephardi, from Morocco, and the food I grew up on is the food I still make: braided challah, a pot of something slow, jars of preserved lemons on the counter.

I am not a chef and I do not cook for anyone but my family and the odd guest. What I have is a routine that took me years to settle, and a list I write every Thursday so that Friday afternoon stays calm. I started sharing it because friends kept asking how I manage.

Once a week I post a short note on what is happening in my kitchen: a braid that worked, a stew, the children folding napkins, the candles at sunset. In winter that is a race against the dark, and I like that too.

If you would like a calmer Friday table, you are welcome here. Take what helps and leave the rest.