I tell Joel, whose mother is Israeli, that so many people I know have non-Jewish partners. Some people, and their families, find it easier to accept than others.
How does she find it?
"I don't mind at all," she says. "No one in my family is religious," she says. "I only really celebrate Jewish holidays when I'm in Israel.
"It depends on the person, it's not about religion for me.
"Obviously in an ideal world it probably makes it easier, but I think it is different for a Jewish girl because of the children.
"If I did end up with someone who wasn't Jewish, I always said we would probably have a rabbi and priest together at the wedding. I know a lot of people who have done that.
"It's really bizarre but we live in a modern world and I think it's really nice to embrace other cultures and bring it together. It's, like, unity."
And she says Taylor loves her Israeli food, cooked from scratch "of course - I make schnitzel for Hugo all the time. He loves my schnitzel!"
Joel lived in Israel for four years until she turned 16. A fluent Hebrew speaker, she grew up in Herzliya, Tel Aviv and Ra'anana and attended an American school. She considers herself "Israeli-British".
And she's protective of the country, especially in the face of any anti-Israel media backlash. She explains: "It's very difficult. A lot of my friends in London aren't Jewish and are a bit ignorant - there's a lot of ignorance towards Israel. The news is very biased. I try to explain to my friends my side of the story, but it is very difficult, especially with the whole Gaza thing."
Before joining the show, Joel was an aspiring actress and graduate of the Howard Fine Acting Studio in Los Angeles.
After she met Taylor at a Chelsea party, she recalls: "Various producers asked me to go on the show but at first I was a bit hesitant. I wanted to act and I didn't know if being on a reality show would ruin it for me. Also I was really into Hugo and I didn't know if that would ruin our relationship.
"But it made us closer, it made us stronger. None of it is scripted, it's all real. Everyone on the show is going through their own drama in their life."
She says she was shy as a child and took up acting "to help me come out of my shell". One day she hopes to star in feature films - or join her family's property business.
But for now, the swimwear designer is cooing over her latest collection.
I have come to meet Joel in a Starbucks in Belsize Park, north-west London, a few minutes away from where she lives with her twin sister Karin. Fresh-faced and dressed in gym-wear after a body conditioning class, she is calm and sweet in her manner.
She launched Joel Swimwear last December, although she never anticipated a career in fashion. Inspired by the designs of an Israeli couturier, her brand's bikinis are hand-stitched with lace, made with delicate fabric and eco-friendly dye.
"I spend a lot of my life in bikinis," Joel says. "I found all the swimwear in England was over the top for me - too many patterns, too many prints. I like a simple, classic look."
By her own admission the pieces, which retail at an eye-popping £140 a set, look "just like lingerie for the beach".
But running a start-up is challenging. With a minimal budget and no staff, it's all down to her. She relies on social media and models the collection herself.
"It's still quite a small business," she says. "I studied business at Nottingham University, but I'm not going to say that it really helped me much. I launched the brand with £20,000. I was supposed to get £50,000 but my private investor had his own issues - so it hasn't been ideal. It's been tough, very tough. I regret not having a partner or people to work with, because you need people to motivate you.
"Right now, it is all trial and error. I have made a lot of mistakes on the way, but I'm also learning. I have learnt that you should not work alone and you should be prepared financially - budget is so important."
