No comments about Cooking from Memory: A Journey Through Jewish Food.

1 comments about Kosher for Everybody: The Complete Guide to Understanding, Shopping, Cooking, and Eating the Kosher Way (Arthur Kurzweil Book).

1. I am researching becoming kosher at home, and have bought several books from Amazon. This one is not very useful for either a beginner or someone who wants a refresher course.
   There is a bit of history of Jews in America, a description of kosher slaughtering procedures and koshering meat at home, but not step-by-step for the latter. The book is padded with a LOT of detail (pages and pages) concerning restaurants and food companies and whether or not some of their individual products are kosher. This information becomes out of date almost immediately, and simple referral to companies' websites or other online kosher resources would be much more current and practical. There is little information on how to modify or renew one's kitchen, utensils, or dining supplies. There is little discussion of differences among Orthodox, Conservative, or Reform Judaism on this topic. There is proportionally a lot of discussion of health benefits to keeping kosher, and a bit on vegetarianism, but little encouragement for the faith-based or cultural incentives to keeping kosher. There are next to no suggestions on grocery shopping,food storage, or menu planning. There is a nice little recipe section in the back and I tore out two or three of them before I disposed of the book, but there are many kosher cookbooks out there that are more comprehensive and helpful, and for 3 recipes (none of which are unique) this book isn't worth the time, or home bookshelf space.

No comments about The Classic Dolci of the Italian Jews, A World of Jewish Desserts.

1 comments about The Jewish-Sicilian Cookbook.

1. I couldn't find a -5 stars. The lowest I could find was 1 Star. Read on....
   
   This is not a Jewish-Sicilian cook book. It is a combination of boring stories and Italian recipes. It is a Jewish as "Rosy O'Grady's Passover Specialties." Would any Jew buy such a piece of work? Jewish comedians excluded. They need this material more than the kitchen.
   
   Here is an example from one of the recipies entitled "....Signature Spaghetti". 1/2 Beef bouillon cube with Parmigiano-Reggiano? What Kibbutz did this author live in? And all the other Sicilians are saying rosaries over the use of "beef bouillon cube".
   
   The author does a disservice to both the Jewish and Sicilian community by trying to parade her writings under this title.
   
   Don't waste your money. The book is a sham.

4 comments about The Complete Passover Cookbook.

1. This book could be subtitled "The Joy of Passover Cooking" because it does for Passover what the "Joy of Cooking" did for food in general. An incredible variety of recipes, suitable for both gebrochts and non-gebrochts (in 10 years I haven't yet tried them all), with conversion tables and recommendations for substitutions if you live, as I do, in a place where the choice of kosher-for-passover ingredients is limited. My family tells me that each Passover gets more scrumptious than the last, and my husband, who always regarded Pesach as something of a trial because of the restrictions, now eagerly anticipates the Pesach rolls and other delicacies I whip up. No Passover-observing kitchen should be without this book!



2. Every year I spend Pesach/Passover at someone else's house. This year I made my very first Pesach/Passover. We had people coming for both Sederim and during the week as well. I was petrified. Then I bought and read this book. It was the best Pesach/Passover I have ever had and I received outstanding compliments on the food. All the meals all week were from this book. It was clear, concise, easy and most of all reassured me that I wasn't going to kill anyone with my cooking. Thank you, Frances Avrutick, where ever you are!



3. This book is full of creative recipes that taste delicious. I used at least one recipe from each chapter this Passover. Especially helpful were the conversion and substitution charts in the back of the book. The Seder menus were helpful too. This book is a must if you have a lot of cooking to do for Passover.



4. This book was a lifesaver for me this Passover. Every year it's usually the same bland food, so hard to get creative - especially when I'm the one cooking, but not the one who's been Jewish my whole life! Keeping Kosher when you're not strict year round is challenging and frustrating, but there were so many fabulous, delicious, and flavorful recipes. And the charts and tables in the back for substitutions, measurements, and categorized alternatives for dishes was so helpful. My husband's family has many food sensitivities, and this book allowed me to make a feast that everyone could share in. I got compliments that they had never had a Passover like this before and I was never allowed to give it up as hostess. I even got a standing ovation (which was a little weird, but my husband and in-laws insisted it was well-deserved.)
   
   I would recommend this book to any,any,anyone wanting to knock the socks off their Passover guests.

4 comments about The Lowfat Jewish Vegetarian Cookbook: Healthy Traditions from Around the World.

1. Some of the recipes presented here are quite tasty...but I found that many of them were thoroughly unworkable, as if they'd been translated into "vegetarian" without much thought. Matzoh balls are fussy enough with eggs -- with nothing to hold them together but potatoes, they're nearly impossible! Other recipes lacked flavor. In short, simply removing meat, dairy, and eggs does not necessarily make a good vegetarian recipe; something else needs to be provided to supply flavor and structure.



2. Considering the challenging subject matter, I have to appreciate this book even though it does not contain as much material nor is as professionally presented as many cookbooks. There are not as many Passover recipes as I'd hoped; but ANY source of non-dairy vegetarian Passover recipes is helpful to me, as I need to prepare dishes to bring to a meat-centric Passover seder where vegetarians will be in attendance. I have also just purchased the booklet Vegan Passover Recipes by Nancy Berkoff, which is brief but helpful as well.

   I have not tried every recipe in Lowfat Vegetarian (I can't comment, for example, on the matzoh ball recipe another review complained about). One non-Passover dish that I particularly enjoy is the Romanian Paprikash (made of mushrooms, potatoes, paprika and other seasonings, and elbow macaroni). Many recipes involve legumes (beans, chick peas, etc.) and various grains. I think the recipes for foods that are originally low in fat probably come out better than the adaptations of traditional fat-ful Jewish food.




3. This cookbook will be easy to follow and give more alternatives to eating a sound diet.



4. I normally love the cookbook offerings from the Vegetarian Resource Group and anxiously awaited the arrival of this one. However, many of the recipes are somewhat bland--I've remedied that by adding more flavorings as appropriate to the recipe. They are easy to make with clear instructions, but the flavor is somewhat lacking. (One example was the low-fat 'mock chopped liver,' which I made for my family and was roundly booed. Try the VRG regular high-fat version which uses walnuts--much better unless you are looking to cut fat!) But if you are looking for lowfat recipies, these are OK.

3 comments about The Jewish Heritage Cookbook.

1. This book has changed the way I think about Jewish cooking. Instead of the heavy, starch-and-fat dishes I know, Spieler's recipes include a lot of vegetarian dishes and mediterranean flavors. The recipes are easy to make, unlike many ethnic cookbooks. I made the tomato and Israeli couscous soup last night and it tasted as good as the picture looked. I got this book as a gift from my mom, and she done good on this one. You won't regret buying this.



2. What a beautiful book both visually and for the taste of the recipes! Marlena provides a context for these recipes by writing a lovely history of the jewish people as it relates to their disbursement throughout the world and their use of the local foodstuffs. Great for jews and gentiles alike!



3. by Judy Bart Kancigor, author of Cooking Jewish: 532 Great Recipes from the Rabinowitz Family
   
   from the Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles
   May 17, 2002
   
   Once in a great while, a cookbook comes along so utterly gorgeous it practically springs from my kitchen shelf and hurls itself upon my coffee table.
   
   Marlena Spieler's latest, "The Jewish Heritage Cookbook" (Lorenz Books), subtitled "a fascinating journey through the rich and diverse history of the Jewish cuisine" is so leap-off-the-page lusciously photographed you can practically taste the food. But lest you think this book is just another pretty face, Spieler, author of over 30 cookbooks, includes informative chapters on the history of Jewish cuisine, the holidays and kashrut as well as general guides to the preparation of all foods Jewish, everything from grilling mamaliga to pounding hawaij and berbere (spice mixtures).
   
   "This is my first Jewish cookbook," said the California native on a recent visit to San Francisco from her home in London. "I've done theme books, like Mediterranean and olive oil and mushrooms, but I've always had a Jewish touch somewhere, including dishes either from Israel or my travels or my Jewish family and friends."
   
   Spieler fondly remembers Sundays in her grandmother's kitchen, her early inspiration. "My grandmother ran a law firm and worked until a few days before she died at 93. Well, she had to cut back a little -- she only worked from 9 to 5 then. But on Sunday morning, people would start coming, and she would start cooking. I couldn't say they'd come for breakfast, lunch or dinner, because it was all one meal.
   
   "We would smell the chicken soup as we went off to synagogue school, and by the time we got home she'd have matzah brei and kasha varnishkes and meat patties with onions. This went on until late evening. Bachi really gave me the love of cooking."
   
   Spieler traveled widely as a young adult, even lived in Israel for a year, and was working as an artist in Greece when she started including recipes with her drawings of food. A publisher offered to publish the recipes (minus the drawings) launching her career as a food writer, broadcaster and columnist.
   
   These days, Spieler divides her time between San Francisco and London, where she is a frequent guest on the BBC. Her column "The Roving Feast" is carried by the New York Times Syndicate and the San Francisco Chronicle.
   
   "The Jewish Heritage Cookbook" is a truly international celebration of Spieler's curiosity about Jewish people and Jewish food. "I love meeting Jews from different cultures, because they have different dishes on the table," she said. "I love to cook and hear their stories and find it really exciting that people with such different cultures share the same heritage and holidays."
   
   The book's section on the festival of Shavuot (literally "weeks," because it occurs seven weeks after Pesach) is accompanied by a magnificent illustration from a 13th century manuscript of the Book of Ruth, the portion read on this holiday.
   
   Shavuot, which began at sundown on Thursday, May 16, commemorates the giving of the Torah as well as the offering of the first fruits of the season. Spieler notes that although Shavuot meals are based on dairy products, "there are no rules that say this must be done."
   
   Why dairy? Scholars differ, she says. Perhaps the tradition evolved because spring grazing produces more milk at this time. Also, in "Song of Songs," the Torah is associated with milk and honey. Some suggest that while the Israelites were receiving the Ten Commandments, they were gone so long their milk turned to cheese; others contend that upon their return they were too hungry for anything but milk to sustain them.
   
   Whatever the explanation, for Ashkenazim it's bring on the blintzes, while Sephardim enjoy cheese filled borekas.
   
   A typical Shavuot starter in central Europe is Hungarian cherry soup perfumed with cinnamon and almond flavor. "The nice thing about this soup," Spieler noted, "is at Shavuot the days are beginning to get warm, and it is really refreshing. I eat it as often as a dessert as with a meal."
   
   Summer squash and baby new potatoes in warm dill sour cream is a festive Israeli celebration of spring and perfect for Shavuot with its fragrant dill and sour cream or yogurt topping.
   
   While cheesecake is traditional fare for Shavuot, we opted for cheese-filled Jerusalem kodafa drenched with syrup, an unusual dessert popular throughout the Middle East, where it is commonly made with a shredded wheat-like ingredient called kadaif. Spieler substitutes couscous as it is prepared in Jerusalem.
   
   "In the Old City, when things were good and people were more friendly, they would make it in these big metal trays that they'd carry on their heads," she noted. "I've had it in the Lebanese community of London as well, but in Jerusalem, all the little tea and coffee shops serve it."

No comments about Jewish Baker's Pastry Secrets: The Art of Baking Your Own Babka, Danish, Sticky Buns, Strudels and More.

3 comments about A Taste of the Past: The Daily Life and Cooking of a Nineteenth-Century Hungarian-Jewish Homemaker.

1. The book really brings to life a community that was wiped out by the Holocaust. The description of life in the small city in Hungary is vivid and the amazing illustrations are a great complement. The easy-to-follow recipes round out the experience.



2. This lovely book brings a slice of Hungarian Jewish culture to life in a uniquely three-dimensional way - the sights, the tastes, the details of everyday life. I found the recipes easy to follow and the pictures charming. The author's great-grandmother whom he profiles here is a refreshingly complex character - her views about such things as religion and national identity change over time, along with historical changes, and some of these shifts are even reflected in her food! For example, this is one Hungarian cookbook that is light on the paprika - apparently ginger was the spice of choice in the 19th century. Who knew?



3. This lovely book brings a slice of Hungarian Jewish culture to life in a uniquely three-dimensional way - the sights, the tastes, the details of everyday life. I found the recipes easy to follow and the pictures charming. The author's great-grandmother whom he profiles here is a refreshingly complex character - her views about such things as religion and national identity change over time, along with historical changes, and some of these shifts are even reflected in her food! For example, this is one Hungarian cookbook that is light on the paprika - apparently ginger was the spice of choice in the 19th century. Who knew?

5 comments about Kosher Billionaire's Secret Recipe.

1. This book is a great coffee table book! The colors in the book are so dynamic that you can't help being drawn to it. The Kosher Billionaire gives great tips to live a fun, healthy life with some great recipes too. Who knew Kosher could be so easy, enjoyable and glamorous.



2. Regardless of what comments say, the bottom line is that Stacy Cohen has elevated the stodgy, starchy, fattening, generally revolting excuse for edible that kosher food can often be, and has instead created something that every person---Jew and non-Jew alike--can serve to loved ones, guests, and at every sort of event imaginable. Sure, some of this book is pure inspiration/aspiration, but that's okay: at a time like this, we need escapism now more than ever. Remember: this is why the glitzy movies of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers were so popular during the Depression----viewers needed them, and we still watch them today. Regardless of what anyone says, Mrs. Cohen has created a wonderful, usable piece of escapism---but has grounded it in delicious KOSHER recipes and menus. And no other book that I know of does that. L'CHAIM!



3. I am a dog lover and a vegeterian and my wife likes meat so this book came very helpful to us that we can now have better and healthier meals in our lives. I gave this book to my wife as a gift and she said: no way, you know I love to have my meat and so I thought well it was worth a try. But one evening I caught her reading it in the living and she seemed to be so into it that she wouldn't bother with the phone ringing. She was amazed with the way Stacy Cohen was adding a vegeterian dish next to every meat option. My wife is making the Holiday dinner with the Tofu Ragu with Eggplant Timbale with fresh Pea Puree and the Braised Beef Cheeks with Salsa Verde, Horseradish and mixed Baby Greens with Crema Cantalana (with soy) for dessert. I mean it's good. Also being a dog lover and all, the values of Kosher are more compassionate to the animal so it doesn't have fear or produce adrenaline when its soul passes to the next life. Therefore carnivores are eating in a more compassionate mindful way. Thank you Stacy!



4. The thing I like the most about this book is that it exemplifies a kosher lifestyle that is abundant with compassion.
   
   When we live under G-d's laws of kosher we are mindful of what we eat, how we live, what we think and ultimately what we say.
   
   We hold ourselves to a higher standard of living and are humbled by answering to a higher authority.
   
   We are living in a more thoughtful, compassionate manner in which we are living responsibly and kindly.
   
   
   While living the kosher lifestyle we are holding ourselves responsible to doing the right thing, offering ourselves to do good works of philanthropy and reaching outside of oneself.
   
   I love the fact that Stacy Cohen spends her time helping with numerous charities. Anyone who touches the lives of Cancer children, helps children stricken by the tsunami, helps with the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Africa is a person who lives in a respectable manner and is truly a loving soul that we can take inspiration from.
   
   We can all strive to accomplish the inner peace that Stacy embodies. Thank you Stacy for all that you do to make this world a better place.



5. Holiday after High Holiday I'm left with the same dilemma: my desire to keep kosher Sunday-Thursday conflicts with my stomach. My beliefs -kosher. My diet, uh, not so much. When I'm not walking through Robertson Blvd on a pristine Saturday afternoon my thoughts drift between my abhorrence of dietary restrictions and the guilt of not practicing my faith in full. Keeping kosher sometimes felt like being on restriction --forever! You see, food is what I love best about life. It is a small indulgence I make 3xs a day. I love to watch spices and colors blend into irresistible aromas -flavors I believed could not be replicated in a kosher kitchen. I thought I was in a no-win situation until a married couple gave me a copy of this book for encouragement. Plenty of people will get me when I say, Mrs. Cohen has given me the inspiration to see beyond the kugel...