A Day with Gil Marks

By Michael Israel
Published on August 13, 2012

Food flight: Perusing American Jewry’s past and present

Published on March 31, 2011

Two relatively new books tell the story of American Jewry, weaving together its past and present by examining tradition and making it relevant to today’s reader. Where Sue Fishkoff’s "Kosher Nation: Why More and More of America’s Food Answers to a Higher Authority" (Schocken, 2010) is robust and detailed, Leah Koenig’s "The Hadassah Everyday Cookbook: Daily Meals for the Contemporary Jewish Kitchen" (Universe, 2011) is spacious and adaptable.

The Joan Nathan book party

By Rob Eshman
Published on December 22, 2010

The first time I ever spoke to Joan Nathan, it was by telephone, and I wrote out for myself what I wanted to say to her: “Hello, Ms. Nathan, this is Rob Eshman with The Jewish Journal in Los Angeles, and I want to speak with you about your new cookbook. I think you should know that ‘Jewish Holiday Kitchen’ is my Bible.”

Loving your veggies can lighten the seder

By Julie G Fax
Published on April 10, 2008

Faye Levy doesn't look like anyone who's ever had a problem with her weight. The prolific cookbook author stands at 4-foot-10, and weighs about 100 pounds.

But somewhere in the mid-1980s, just as she was working on "Chocolate Sensations" and "Dessert Sensations," she realized that testing those recipes, on top of six years at cooking school in Paris -- and following every enticing smell into street markets and cafes -- had added a lot of weight to her tiny frame.

‘Kitchen’ Lets Kid Chefs Cook Up Fun

By Julie G Fax
Published on February 9, 2006

In "Kids in the Kitchen," best-selling author Fishbein has translated into kids lingo her formula for great cook books: interesting recipes that tweak the traditional, with points for presentation and originality. The full-color photos and cutesy thematics in this book are as bright as her others (her "Kosher by Design Entertains" is known universally as "The Pink Book"), with a few more smiley faces.

A Jewish Spin On Gift-Giving

By Shoshana Lewin-Fischer
Published on December 15, 2005

Everyone has the same shopping countdown this year: Dec. 25th is also the first night of Chanukah. With holiday-season commercialism rising exponentially each year, the plethora of items for purchase can be blindingly confusing for even the savviest shopper.

Nathan Takes a Bite Out of Boring Fare

By Keren Engelberg
Published on December 8, 2005

"I never think of food as something that's stationary," Nathan said on a recent book tour stop in Los Angeles. "Things change, neighborhoods change, food changes, we get new ingredients, people get ideas. And when you come to a country you adapt what you knew to that country."

Shabbat - Prepare a Meal,  Preserve a Memory

By Beverly Levitt
Published on June 23, 2005

In our family, Shabbat is always a potluck.

Think Global, Cook Local

By Judy Bart Kancigor
Published on December 18, 2003

Clarissa Hyman's new cookbook, "The Jewish Kitchen," is alive with miracles -- stories of Jewish life and war-torn Jewish communities, bringing with them their glorious history, rich culture and a cuisine passed through the generations, itself a story of miraculous survival.

Think Global, Cook Local

By Judy Bart Kancigor
Published on December 4, 2003

"The Jewish Kitchen: Recipes and Stories from Around the World" by Clarissa Hyman (Interlink Books, $29.95)

Clarissa Hyman's new cookbook, "The Jewish Kitchen," is alive with miracles -- stories of Jewish life and war-torn Jewish communities, bringing with them their glorious history, rich culture and a cuisine passed through the generations, itself a story of miraculous survival.

This award-winning author crisscrossed the globe, visiting eight families in nine months, recording their stories and recipes.

Getting Stuffed on Sukkot

By Linda Morel
Published on October 9, 2003

"The most common Sukkot dishes are filled foods, particularly stuffed vegetables and pastries, symbolizing the bounty of the harvest," wrote chef Rabbi Gil Marks in his cookbook, "The World of Jewish Entertaining" (Simon & Schuster, 1998).

Over the centuries, Jewish cooks have gutted and chopped nearly every edible plant species, mixing the pulp with onions, breadcrumbs, matzah meal, meat, spices and assorted vegetables and fruit. They then stuffed these aromatic concoctions inside the vegetables' cavities, roasting them to create heavenly results.

During the weeklong celebration of Sukkot, people eat their meals in a sukkah, or temporary hut, and holiday recipes call for seasonal produce.

Cooking Middle Eastern Memories

By Judy Bart Kancigor
Published on September 25, 2003

Reading "A Fistful of Lentils" is like wandering through a family album. Instead of food photos you find dozens of family portraits, touching stories and the fascinating history of a rich and unique culture.

Different From All Other Pesach Books

By Sandee Brawarsky
Published on April 10, 2003

Passover is our holiday of words -- words to study and ponder, lines that evoke memories and also inspire hope of better times. Every year, publishers bring out a significant number of new books related to the holiday -- new editions of the haggadah, books of essays and commentary, children's books and cookbooks. This season, there's plenty to read geared to the weeks leading up to the holiday, throughout its duration and afterward. What's common among the new titles are stories, whether reminiscences about great scholars or accounts of unusual circumstances for seders. Here are stories that weave history and transcend it.

The Great Falafel Question

By Jodi Kantor
Published on July 18, 2002

The last time you bit into a falafel sandwich you were probably thinking about nothing more than the warm spice and crunch of the chickpea fritters and the way they played against the soft bread, crisp vegetables and nutty tahini sauce.

The Many Layers of ‘Cake’

By Judy Bart Kancigor
Published on May 23, 2002

Journalism 101, Rule No. 1: The interview is about the interviewee, not about you. Ask a question, then shut up and listen.

If Memory Serves…

By Rob Eshman
Published on April 22, 1999

Jewish-themed cookbooks appear in a frenzy about a month before Passover, then die off by May. Mainstream cookbooks also try to cash in on the warming weather's ability to make us imagine nectarine tarts and heirloom tomato salads, long before winter comes to the Chilean tomato export market.