5 comments about The Foods of Israel Today.

1. When I came back from my first trip to Israel, I knew I had to have a cookbook that reflected all the smells and the tastes of Israel. I have always loved Joan Nathan's cookbooks. Her books are chockfull of great information and personal comments, not to mention incredibly delicious recipes! In The Foods of Israel there is a great assortment of recipes reflecting the different cultures that have influenced Israeli cuisine. There are recipes for such standard fare as hummus and fellafel and recipes that are pleasing to the palate using such herbs and spices as cumin, papkria, and cinnamin. Some of the recipes call for sumac, but since I have no idea what that is, I just left it out. Some of the ingredient lists are long, but most of the ingredients are easily obtainable, if one does not have them on hand. Some of the recipes are somewhat involved, but are well worth the effort. As with all recipes, it is important to read all the way through since some require marinating overnight. The writing of the recipes is simple and easy to follow. The table of contents and the index is helpful to the reader. I also loved the illustrations. By now you will have realized that I highly recommend this book!



2. I love Joan Nathan to begin with. Her recipes are always easy to follow and don't call for a million items that you have to search for in speciality stores. This book is like reading a novel. I have several of her books and love when she explains where and how the foods came into being. I would highly recommend it.



3. I have been to Israel in the past year and I came back enjoying the food. This is a great book and very authentic! If you have never been, this is about as close as you will get.



4. When I returned from a trip to Israel, I went looking for a cookbook that presented authentic Israeli recipes to duplicate the tastes I had found on my trip. This book fills the bill. Joan Nathan always does a wonderful job of presenting Jewish recipes and cooking history; she is an author one can trust for authenticity. "Foods of Israel" not only contains excellent, well-researched recipes, but Ms. Nathan's commentary on the food, its presentation, its history, etc. make for wonderful reading. I tend to use cookbooks as reading matter rather than simply as directions; this book fulfills both needs superbly.



5. Foods of Israel Today is a fantastic book. My husband and chef did not want to return the library's copy. I told him we could buy it from you. That was a wise decision. He has made the Israeli moussaca and the bosnian fish stew. I highly reccomend this book.

2 comments about The Mensch Chef: Or Why Delicious Jewish Food Isn't an Oxymoron.

1. I cannot be more enthusiastic about this book. If you want all the yiddish basics, thoughtfully brought together in one book... this is it! For me it is a dream come true... it is the research I would have loved to do, had I the time (well, he saved me the trouble!)
   In a time when all the classics are being jazzed up for a contemporary palette... to have these classics simple and unadulterated (possibilities of family variations aside) on record (right down to the shmaltz!) is a gift for all of us!
   You won't be dissapointed! mmmmmmmmmm!



2. This is a wonderful cookbook and easy too! I've made the brisket, chicken soup and some other recipes. Brings back memories of my time with my Bubbi!!

5 comments about The Bialy Eaters.

1. I grew up on Grand Street near Kossar's bialy bakery, and Ms. Sheraton comes close to making me taste those delicious breads once again. Her language is descriptive about food in much the same way that a good novelist makes you see something common differently through deft imagery. Unless you are a major nitpicker, you'll enjoy this gentle, respectful, and fun book. And if you haven't tasted a genuine bialy, on your next trip to NYC please do take a sidetrip to Grand and Essex and pick up a bag--onion, not garlic, for reasons the author addresses--fresh and warm out of the oven. In a world of mass-produced blandness, I can see why Ms. Sheraton wrote this book, seeking the secret behind something unique.



2. Sheraton comes out with two statements that are on the surface contradictory: the best bialys (and the customs used to eat them) were from Bialystok, but the bialys she most enjoys are from the places she is most familiar (ie, Kossar's). For instance, even though every Bialystoker she encounters states that you absolutely do not split the roll open, she states that she still continues to do this because she finds it awkward not to. Fair enough. However, other variations of the bialy, such as the amount of onion used and the generosity of poppy seeds on top, she seems to feel are intolerable. And that's fine, too, because what she is really saying- and what just about everyone she interviews is saying- is that the bialy you love best is the bialy you grew up with. When all is said and done, it isn't about the specific recipe or food as much as it is about the past. The food you grew up with is one of the strongest links to your past. This is what Sheraton is really writing about; when the Bialystokers talk about how much they miss the bialy they grew up with and how inferior the modern versions are, what they are really mourning is the loss of the home they lived in. That the exact method of producing the bialy has been lost is just one more testament to the world that was destroyed in the Holocaust.

   My mother went to visit my sister in New York recently, and I asked her to bring back some bialys. Surely the bialys in New York would be better than the bialys I eat here in Boston. Not even close. My bialy has definite merits over its New York counterpart (abundant onions and poppyseeds, huge and fat, not flat), but it wasn't simply that. My bialys are the ones I've grown accustomed to eating and remind me of the neighborhood I buy them in and the people I eat them with. I cannot imagine losing all of that, and every passage of this book that spoke about those losses brought tears to my eyes.

   Read this book and fall in love with an old bread and a lost world.




3. Mimi Sheraton's work about a special bread and the people who made it echoes her subject matter. The Bialy eaters is itself moist, crusty, sensual, and characterized by a depressed hole in its centers. The hole is not due to any shoddiness in Ms. Sheraton's craft; it is the loss of some 60,000 beautiful soles and their rich culture that is the underpainting of her fine portrait of a special bread.

   Her doomed but dogged pilgrimage back to Bialystok, the source of the Bialy, is commendable for its integrity. Reading true, it involves a tale sadly too familiar for many of her readers, myself included. But it was her descriptions of bialies and pletzels, which I remember from my childhood in Baltimore, still warm from the baker's oven, that were the source of my lost night's sleep. I salivated and ruminated over the tastes and smells of my past. Sheraton shows shows how food is more than calories and carbs and taste and smell; it is also culture and history, art and, at its very best, a poetic expression of love. I can't wait to try the recipe.




4. There were a few things I really enjoyed about this book, as I found it both educational and enlightening when it discussed the various Jewish communities around the world, particularly in France and Argentina, as well as how completely devoid of Jews Bialystok has become. Her discussions about food and how they can trigger such powerful childhood memories were also insightful and thought provoking. However, the real jewels of this book were the conversations and letters with ex-Bialystokers, some of which could bring you to tears. Their memories of what once was bring home just how much was lost by the destruction of Jewish Eastern Europe by the Nazis and completed by the Communists, on a very personal, individual basis.
   
   Now for the problems. As someone else mentioned, Sheraton did not visit any overseas locations until an expenses paid business trip provided her with the opportunity. I didn't find this so unusual, as traveling the world can be quite expensive. However, I found her not traveling to Australia since no one would pay for it to be more than a little strange, considering she was doing research for a book like this. However, it made for a better read in the end, as she spared us what I found were her often times tedious descriptions and asides of the places she visited and people she met. There were also paragraphs where she would be talking about one thing one minute, such as quoting one of her respondents and then abruptly change the subject, which oftentimes made for a jarring read. While her style of writing may work in magazine articles, it often failed to keep my attention and it was often marred by some awkward sentence structure, especially in her attempts at flowery prose.
   
   Lastly, since the decision was made to include pictures in the book, I could have done with less description and more visuals, especially when it came to taking pictures of modern day Bialystok, as well as other cities and people she met and visited. And the pictures she did take, such as that of Bialys, were poorly taken, with no actual close-ups of the food itself, which there really should have been more of.
   
   So while The Bialy Eaters may be an interesting and often educational personal exploration of a wonderful food (I'm particularly obsessed with Kossars' bialys) and a world that no longer exists, I expected so much more. But what is there is certainly worth reading, especially if you've ever eaten and loved a bialy.



5. We purchased this book because my daughter is doing a history project about bialys. This is a well-written book on a unique subject--a resource I certainly did not expect to find when we started searching for information. I enjoyed Sheraton's journey in search of the history of the bialy, as well as the "perfect" bialy.

3 comments about Sephardic Israeli Cuisine: A Mediterranean Mosaic.

1. Over a hundred kosher recipes celebrate Israeli cuisine, using typical Sephardic/Mid East ingredients from cinnamon to orange flower water and adding spice to favorites such as Crescent Olive Puffs and Libyan Mafrum, a meat and potatoes spicy dish. No photos, but most of these delicious dishes simply don't need illustration.



2. If you've been cooking Mama's Eastern-European recipes long enough, and you want your meals to turn over a new, more Sephardic leaf, in step with Israeli-style cooking, Sheilah Kaufman's cookbook Sephardic Israeli Cuisine: A Mediterranean Mosaic is for you.
   
   Start changing your cooking by changing your ingredients. Put aside the potatoes and the cabbage in favor of eggplant and artichokes. Forget the wheat and barley and go for rice and couscous. Leave the apples and pears on the shelf and choose the melons and apricots. Now that you have a lot of ingredients that you have no idea what to do with, reach for Sephardic Israeli Cuisine: A Mediterranean Mosaic .
   
   To follow these authentic recipes you will have to stock up on some new-to-the-Polish-palate, spices. The section on Condiments and Spices will guide you right through the Middle Eastern spice market. I doubt that any of us will actually bother to make the spices when they are so readily availalbe in any Israeli market. But in this section you will learn what Zatar and Zhoug (and many other spices) are really made of.
   
   In my eternal search for easy-to-make appetizers that taste good even when prepared several days before serving, this cookbook offers Leah Spiegel's recipe for Walnut Dip. Combine all the easy to find ingredients into a food processor, zumm, and store it in the frig. Alas! My kind of recipe.
   
   Here are the recipes for the well known but Gd-know-what's-in -`em dishes like Mafrum. This exotic sounding Lybian dish turns out to be beef stew. What's special about Morroccan Cholent? In addition to all the unique spicing that Bubi never dreamed of, Moroccans make their Cholent with honey. Yes, honey.
   
   We all know about the eggs that brown in the Cholent over night. Huevos Haminados is another Shabbat dish that Sephardi Yerushalmim and Turkish Jews make, that gives you the brown eggs but without the Cholent.
   
   Your Polish taste buds may be adjusting to Sephardic and Middle Eastern foods slowly, but everybody loves those great Sephardic and Middle Eastern desserts. No matter where you are from, you will delight in those bite-size syrupy sweet and often crunchy specialties like Baklava. Kaufman offers a recipe for preparing Baklava by the sheet that you later cut into individual pieces. I was more intrigued by the recipe from Lybia for sweet roses called Debla, which is popular on Purim. These beautiful individual edible rose-shaped sweets are made of dough that is wound around into a rose-like shape and covered in sugar syrup. They look just like flowers covered in morning dew, and must be gorgeous in mishloach manot.
   
   This cookbook has an excellent section on Sephardic Passover recipes. This Pesach, in addition to your traditional haroset you can prepare the Haroset from Turkey - also made with apples, nuts and wine, but with the addition of dates and raisins. Or you can make the Abravanel family haroset recipe originating in Portugal. In addition to the nuts and the wine, this recipe has - you won't believe it - orange juice and cherry jam. I liked the Passover recipe for sponge cake, which has a lot of eggs but no oil, so much for kitniyot issues.
   
   The cookbook ends with a small section on Ashkenazi foods. I am not sure why this was necessary. From my point of view the book held its own with just the Sephardic recipes.
   
   In addition to all the great recipes the cookbook has a section on the history of Sephardic Jews and an essay on the foods traditionally eaten on the Jewish holidays.
   
   The books opens with a translation of the Bendigamos, the Grace After Meals according to the tradition of the Spanish Portuguese Jews. It would have been nice had the Ladino text appeared alongside the English translation.
   
   Sephardic Israeli Cuisine: A Mediterranean Mosaic is a fine addition to your cookbook collection. You'll enjoy preparing these unique recipes and incorporating them into your standard repertoire.



3. Slightly exotic while at the same time being good for you. Easy to prepare with simple to understand directions. And most of all, delicious! What more could you ask? Take it from a mensch who likes to eat; this is a terrific cookbook with some wonderful recipes and excellent ideas!

4 comments about The Jewish Holiday Kitchen: 250 Recipes from Around the World to Make Your Celebrations Special.

1. This is a great cookbook, save for one detail. On the front cover is a photograph of a Shabbat table. Several items are readily identifiable, and the book contains recipes for them: a challah, a fish, hamentashen. However, there is one unidentifiable item - a "loaf" of yellow and white matter contained within some sort of green wrapping which looks more like a banana leaf than anything else, topped with three spears of asparagas. This is the mystery loaf - what is it? My friends and I began by looking up recipes with every possible ingredient, and eventually read through THE ENTIRE BOOK in a fruitless search for this unidentified food item. What is it? Please help!!!



2. I now own several of Ms Nathan's cookbooks, and I absolutely recommend them to all my friends and give them to family as gifts.!. All the recipes bring back so many good childhood memories. The recipes are easy to use, easy to read, and I love searching for old recipes and finding them in her book!!! thank you Ms Nathan.



3. In this book, Joan Nathan manages to combine history, culture, and very good recipes. More than cooking book, Ms. Nathan offers menus for the same holidays from different Jewish backgrounds. Each recipe is complete, fully annotated and easy to follow. For cooks and/or readers looking to enlarge their knowledge of various Jewish food traditions, The Jewish Holiday Kitchen is a wonderful place to start.



4. Wonderful recipes, new versions of family favorites without the schmaltz.

   I am sending it to my mother for Hannukah!

4 comments about Sephardic Flavors: Jewish Cooking of the Mediterranean.

1. Chef, author, restaurateur, and Mediterranean cooking specialist Joyce Goldstein follows her acclaimed Cucina Ebraica: Flavors of the Italian Jewish Kitchen with a study of Mediterranean Jewish cooking. While researching Cucina Ebraica, she immersed herself in Sephardic History. She wondered how the Jews evolved their cuisine, what influences they took from the Moors, the Portuguese, Andalusians, Valencians, Balearic Islanders, Greeks, Ottomans, and Balkans. What were the harmonizations to other communities and the contrasts to the Italian Jewish cuisine she was researching? She answers these questions and more in the book's opening collection of essays (about 22 pages). This is followed by several pages of sample full menus for Shabbat and Jewish holidays and commemorations. For example, there are Leek Fritters for Hanukkah, Mijavyani (a vegetable soup with plums) for Tu B'Shevat, Lentil Soup for Tisha B'Av, or Moussaka di Pesce and Macaroni and Cheese-Thrace Style (using feta and non-elbow Ziti) for Shavuot. If you are wondering how her book compares to DRIZZLE OF HONEY by David Gitlitz and Linda Kay Davidson, it is her feeling that while DRIZZLE is filled with fascintaing stories and history, her cookbook adds more culinary skills to the execution of recipes. The chapters include ones for Salads and Appetizers; Savory Pastries; Soups; Vegetables and Grains; Fish; Poultry and Meat; and Desserts. In the chapter for Salads and Appetizers, Goldstein writes, that Sephardic cuisine inverts the oil to vinegar ratio (3:1) with which most North Americans are familiar. Sephardic cooking is more tart, so the vinegar ratio is much higher (1:3). My favorite recipes were the Tarator (a cousin to Tzatziki) and Huevos HAMINados, or onion skin eggs, or Jewish eggs (Yahudi Yamurta). The chapter on savory pastries, which are also known as borekas, inchusa, tapada, rondanches, boyos, and filas (to name just a few), includes recipes for Izmir-style Handrajos, or Eggplant and Squash filled borekas. In her chapter on soups, Goldstein tells the reader that it is not a coincidence that the Spanish word for Jewess is the same for bean (judia). She provides recipes for several soups and adafina, or what some Jews may call cholent. My favorites included meatball soup, and a white bean soup. There are 24 recipes in the Vegetables and Grains chapter. Standouts are Turlu, a Turkish Ratatouille; a squash omelet fritada; and pumpkin and prunes, which resembles a Moroccan Jewish style Hilou. The tomato bread pudding was also very unique. A fish dish that is very interesting for the period between Simhat Torah and Hanukkah is Peshkado Avramila, or fish with sour plums or prunes. Goldstein writes that it recalls Abraham's self-circumcision, since Sephardic folklore says that Avraham sat under a plum tree after the procedure. The 22 meat and poultry recipes includes one for Gayna al Orno, a roast chicken with apples and pomegranates; and one for Keftas de Gayna, chicken meatballs with egg and lemons (two of them). The standout is the Rollo me HAMINados is a meatloaf with sweet and sour tomato sauce (uses honey and wine) baked with eggs in the center. The book closes, as do meals, with desserts that include Hanukkah Fritters in a honey lemon glaze; Baklava, Tispishti, Sutlatch, and Zerda ( a rice pudding).



2. Joyce Goldstein author and chef also understands the relationship between culture and food. Her book on Jewish Italian cooking should be read by anyone who likes to read cook books.

   In this book, Goldstein explores Sephardic food, the culinary heritage of Jews of the Middle East. She does not disapoint. The recipes are easy to follow and very tasty. The presentation is excellent and will make your mouth water. What is wonderful about all of Goldstein's work is you can see how Jews have, for centuries, absorbed the recipes of the culture in which they live, adapting them for their own tastes and dietery requirements. My wife and I have had a wonderful time cooking out of this book. The only problem is deciding what to make first.

   A great work.




3. We usually think one excellent dish is worth the price of a cookbook (think of the price you'd pay to eat an excellent dish at a restaurant), and we've made at least 3 or 4 out of this one already. Joyce Goldstein has also really sought out a nice variety of Sephardic cuisines. And the photographs are gorgeous.



4. I bought this as a Christmas present for my wife on a whim as I was browsing the cookbooks. So far she has enjoyed it and even made the meatloaf recipe successfully (with hard-boiled eggs inside) withing the first week of having it. The recipes inside tend to lean more toward the Mediterranean than the Jewish but they are thoughtful and interesting without being too unusual. I'd reccommend it for anyone who want an "off the beaten track" cookbook, and it's cheap, too!

5 comments about A Taste of Challah.

1. While this book might be less intimidating for beginngers than Maggie Glezer's Blessing of Bread, in most respects it is far inferior to Glezer's work. There are few recipes for Challah (as a previous review noted the one for plain Challah does not contain eggs) and the recipes for the other breads are lackluster. If you want a book that examines Jewish baking through the ages and across many different regions, Glezer's book is definitely the better choice. If your goal is a basic overview of Challah and a few basic recipes, Ansh's book will suffice.



2. this beautifully written book has changed my sabbath table forever. I tried the recipe and tips this week and got amazing results. My challas looked absolutely stunning, nicer than the bakery and my family tells me they were delicious!!! I have until now made tasty but funny looking challa but this easy to read and implement guide has transformed my challa baking both spiritually and physically. its a must have!



3. A Taste of Challah: A Comprehensive Guide to Challah and Bread Baking by Tamar Ansh is truly one of the most comprehensive books, complete with clear and detailed instructions and over 350 beautiful full-color step-by-step photographs
   
   It is more than just another bread-making recipe book. I am an experienced bread maker and have taught classes in breadmaking for many years. Nevertheless, I learned so much from Tamar's book. Whether you're a novice to challah/bread-baking or an old hand at it, this is a book you'll definitely want to own.
   
   In addition to recipes and instructions for everything you ever wanted to know about making and braiding challah, there are wonderful chapters on large challah shapes, small challah shapes, health challah and breads, specialty breads, Middle Eastern breads and accompaniments, and fun and different ideas. Recipes include, in addition to the traditional challahs, Zatar challah, Pecan challah, Yemenite Saluf, flower-shaped challah rolls, kubana, onion croissants and dessert breads and rolls.



4. instructions, which can be followed with ease, great results, that's exactely what I expect.
   How to braid the dough, however, is not as clearcut as how to prepare and bake it.
   If you want to bake great tasting challah or other breads like sourdough (the pizza dough is really tasty too) this is the book of your choice!



5. This is an unusual book. It is, as other reviews have noted, far more a book about challah--spiritual components, religious components--than it is a cookbook. The title is thus a tad misleading. It also, as has also been noted, lacks a basic recipe for challah with eggs, which is like doing a French bread cookbook without a baguette recipe.
   
   However, I have to admit that the recipes themselves are excellent. I've made the za'atar bread twice, and it disappears rapidly because it is so tasty. The basic no-egg challah recipe is fine, and all of the others I've tried are also very good.
   
   The book is expensive, and unless you're really excited about the non-recipe content or, like me, you collect bread cookbooks, I am not sure that I'd recommend it, but there are certainly some useful things here.

5 comments about Healthy Helpings: 800 Fast and Fabulous Recipes for the Kosher (or Not) Cook.

1. I bought this cookbook after reading the reviews below and it was worth every penny! It has great, healthy recipes and great information on nutrition.
   What I love most is that when you choose an entree, like fish, to cook, it gives you what you should pair with it, be it steamed broccoli and a salad or another recipe for veggies/side dish.
   If you are looking for a recipe book that has great tasting food that is good for you, you have to get this book. It was worth it!



2. Recipe
   
   
   If you invest in one cookbook in your lifetime, this should be it. Healthy Helpings is the most extensive cookbook I have ever owned. This book includes so many appealing recipes that I have trouble deciding what to make!
   
   In addition to the recipes themselves, Norene Gilletz explains the history of her recipes, how to work with different ingredients, what food goes well together, how to present the dishes you prepare and how to vary her recipes. She also includes many health and nutrition tips and the nutritional information for each entry! There is so much extra, interesting information that I sometimes sit and read my cookbook before bed - the way most people would read a fiction book.
   
   With the number of choices and variations offered, it would be easy as a reader to miss some of Ms. Gilletz's good ideas. However, the extensive index makes sure that you can find exactly what you're looking for. I will often choose an ingredient from my fridge and the Healthy Helpings index points me to all the recipes that include that ingredient (even if it was mentioned as a variation and not included in the basic recipe). I have a great time clearing food out my fridge this way!
   
   The recipes in this book are easy to follow, tasty and are great for both family meals and for entertaining. This book provides healthy, creative ideas that I can serve at anytime - without anyone even having to know that they are helping themselves to healthy foods!



3. I'm excited about receiving this addition to my cookbooks by Norene Gilletz. Her recipes always result in delicious dishes that please all palates. Choose any recipe - all are easy-to-follow and easy-to-prepare. You're sure to have success on the first try. Many of Gilletz's recipes are my family's and dinner guest's favorites. Recipes in THIS book are low-fat and often low calorie. Nutritional information at the bottom of each recipe helps fit a recipe into any dietary plan. I'm certain that any cook, new or seasoned, will enjoy using this book.



4. This has become a standard in my household. Norene Gilletz has taken her knack for great tasting and easy to make recipes up to the next level. These dishes are healthy and she is always cognizant of good nutrition and great presentations. I've never made a recipe from this book that has disappointed.
   
   I highly recommend this, and all her cookbooks. She makes cooking fun.



5. Norene is already a household name in every Jewish home in Montreal and Toronto and beyond - but her recipes extend well beyond kosher. Her books are great for anyone interested in healthy, delicious foods! She has written several cookbooks, each one better than the last. This book is my bible. Her recipes use basic household ingredients and they are healthy and delicious each and every time. I cannot recommend her cookbooks highly enough!

3 comments about Jewish Cooking for Dummies.

1. From Faye Levy, internationally renowned cooking authority and author of over 20 cookbooks, comes "Jewish Cooking for Dummies" (IDG Books Worldwide, $19.99), everything you ever wanted to know about Jewish cooking, complete with cartoons, from the holidays to kashrut (kosher laws), with tips from her toolbelt on everything from peeling a tomato to quartering a whole chicken. Her motto: "Have fun and be confident." "Lots of people want to celebrate with Jewish food but don't know how," says Levy, "converts, nonJews married to Jews, even those who grew up Jewish but never had the traditional foods." The Passover section (subtitle: "What Happened When the Bread Didn't Rise") demystifies the complexity of preparing for the seder, offering such must-try recipes as Garlic Roast Lamb, Asparagus and Carrots with a tangy Lemon Dressing and her luscious Passover Pecan Chocolate Cake...Levy stresses that Jewish cuisine does not have to be high in fat and calories. "Check any health food catalogue and you'll notice how many of the foods are labeled organic and kosher."



2. If you've never had to make homemade Challah before (or you don�t even know what that is) and always wanted to learn how, this the book for you. Jewish Cooking for Dummies is the perfect book for the novice Jewish chef. It has recipes for every major holiday, and some not so major ones, with recipes for every day of the week. Faye Levy, who has previously written other books on Jewish cooking, delivers again with a well thought out book. There are tips for keeping kosher, for substitutions, for making things faster. It's everything you need if you�re just starting out in the Jewish kitchen or in a kitchen in general. The only real complaint I have is that the recipes are very basic and that there aren't enough to go around. Also, many to the recipes take longer to make than listed in the book, especially when you first start making them. You gradually improve, but plan a little bit of a cushion into your work time.



3. A complete waste of $$$, very few recipes. The only knish recipe is for spinich. Talks about A meat blintz but no recipe.Only good if you want to learn how to keep A kosher kitchen.

5 comments about How to Keep Kosher: A Comprehensive Guide to Understanding Jewish Dietary Laws.

1. I am finding How to Keep Kosher a valuable tool to explain and de-mystify the how tos and whys of keeping kosher. This book is a must read for a Jew by choice, or a Jew wanting to live a more kosher life.
   Lise Stern explains the process of kashering a kitchen, something which may seem very over whelming. I appreciate that she acknowledges how work intensive the kashering process can be, but as she explains the reasons for keeping kosher, it becomes more achieveable and worthwhile.



2. This is an excellent work on the Kashrut or the rules of how to eat. The basic rules require that no forbidden meat, fowl or fish be consumed. Milk and meat may not be consumed together and no
   non-Kosher meat may be consumed. Major Kosher organizations are
   Star K, Kashrus Labs, The Orthodox Union and K of K Supervision.
   Orthodox Jews eat only in Kosher restaurants or homes. The Talmud guards against forbidden fat (cheleu) or blood of mammals or birds.
   Sample Kosher foods are pasta, salsa, jam, cakes, cereal,
   cheese of France/Israel, Kiddush wines and fair Merlot. The
   Integrated Marketing Communications tracks Kosher foods.
   Orthodox Jews have debated the acceptability of microwave ovens
   for use in food preparation. A plethora of meal plans is provided for ease of reference. The work is well worth the money for
   food enthusiasts-all over the world. Every fine restaurant should be cognizant of the details of the Stern work.



3. A useful introduction to keeping kosher, and to the differences not only between Orthodox Jews and more liberal denominations, but even between stricter and more lenient Orthodox views- although as the author repeatedly points out, there is no substitute for consulting the rabbi of your choice on details.



4. This book is a clear, informative, comprehensive, and flexible guide for creating a kosher life. With this in hand, you can make decisions that fit your own inclinations toward keeping kosher, to whatever extent you might wish to. The book explains all the basic elements and offers a comparison among several branches of Judaism. It is not a rabbinic text, but a practical and useful one which also recommends consultation with one's rabbi of choice. It also provides some information on the food rituals of Succot, Passover, Chanukah, Shabbat, and High Holy Days.
   
   In the back of the book is a helpful glossary, a selection of recipes, some tied to holidays, and a number of very useful web resources. Depending on your interest and commitment, this may not be the only book on the subject you will ever want, but it's a great introduction or refresher course, and will come in very handy.



5. Great book. Till now I never got a proper explanation about what is kosher and what is not. Easy to understand and helped me a lot to understand its principles.