Passover: Jayne Cohen's Jewish Holiday Cooking

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Jayne Cohen approaches Jewish cooking much like Arthur Schwartz, updating classics while telling stories that bring the recipes alive. But her book,Jewish Holiday Cooking: A Food Lover's Treasury of Classics and Improvisations (Wiley 2008) is organized around the holidays with more instruction and help for those who need assistance. Every year since then, the special festival dishes have become more important to me. Cuisine connects us to our past, and encodes in our recipes are our family stories and history, a reminder of those whom we have lost and traditions that remain fragile. Rereading this book, I am struck by home many holiday foods are linked to family and friends now gone and how these recipes have kept them alive to me. (p. 3) This is both a personal book of Jayne's own family recipes, and a general guide to encourage readers to experiment, invent and make these recipes their own. The Passover chapter goes over the story of Exodus, the history of Seders, and the symbolism of foods incorporated in a Passover Seder. She covers what it means to be Kosher for Passover, Kitniyot and Gerbrochts. She provides a list of Passover Ingredients and a long list of Tips for Planning a Seder Menu (pp. 363-6): Think Green, Feast of Symbols, Hors D'Oeuvre, Passover and Other Restrictions and so on. The recipes include four variations on Haroset - fun variations on traditional dishes. Jayne has recipes for Chicken Soup with Asparagus and Shitakes, Served with Roasted Fennel Matzoh Balls (p. 389) and Celery Avgolemono (Greek Egg Lemon Soup) with Chicken Matzoh Balls (p. 395) There are plenty of vegan and vegetarian recipes. Jayne's recipes are inspired by flavors (and Jewish communities) around the world. There's Moroccan-Flavored Brisket with Dried Apricots and Prunes (p. 426) and Provencal Roasted Garlic-Braised Breast of Veal with Springtime Stuffing, plus an Ashkenazi Variation (p. 433) – the Ashkenazi version includes a mashed potato stuffing. These are recipes that could be enjoyed anytime – and by people of any faiths. Jayne includes essays about her discoveries in France, or how to make Matzoh Brie (p. 474). The only thing oddly lacking are photographs, except for the cover (artichokes, quince and fig) and the inside black and white photos of Jayne and her family. This is a rich book of well-written recipes and wonderful stories - which compliment Arthur Schwartz's book (see next review). Previous articles: Passover: Arthur Schwartz's Jewish Home Cooking Aromas of Aleppo: Michael J. Cohen Jewish Traditions Cookbook: Rosh Hashanah [Cookbook Reviews - complete] Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, blogging, food blogging --> back to Super Chef