I’ve only had my copy of Cooking Jewish: 532 Great Recipes from the Rabinowitz Family for a few weeks, and already the book is stained and a bit worn. I think that’s a good sign.

As the title might suggest, this book is a family affair. Author Judy Bart Kancigor beautifully describes how the book came into existence, stemming from a desire to pass on her family’s food traditions. As a result, almost every recipe has a story, which can be a bit overwhelming at times, but ultimately brings the recipes to life. It’s not just a cookbook; you feel invited in, as though you’re taking part in the Rabinowitz family tradition by making this food. And the pictures are great – a time-capsule of American Jewish life opened to reveal many embarrassing hairstyles and equally embarrassing bar mitzvah pictures.

More and recipes for banana bread and sesame crusted chicken below the jump.

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I never fancied myself a desert person - for most of my life, I’ve chosen the extra bowl of pasta over the ice cream. But after receiving an ice cream maker as a gift, I felt compelled to buy David Lebovitz’ beautiful book on ice creams, sorbets, granitas, and other sugary treats, Perfect Scoop. Owning this book might just turn me over to the sweet side.

Lebovitz’ recipe for Rice Gelato especially caught my eye. It’s rich and creamy but has a substantive texture lacking from most ice creams - think rice pudding or risotto. And while it’s not exactly healthy, it is a perfectly decadent treat for celebrating Purim.

Recipe below the jump

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As much as I love hosting Shabbat dinners, by Friday night, I am completely exhausted. I often pull together a quick meal, hoping that I have chicken soup and a homemade challah leftover in the freezer from a previous week. This upsets me, because I’d love to have the time to cook all day on Friday in preparation for Shabbat, but with my demanding job, it doesn’t happen all that often right now.

However, by Sunday, I am rearing to go, ready to make a great meal from scratch. I recently decided to have a dinner party, and to make everything, from bread to homemade ice cream. It was not difficult to invite friends to this meal. Luckily, living in Chicago, I have a large kitchen (probably the size of many NY studios), so it’s not a problem for me to cook all day and make a huge mess.

Mushroom Soup recipe below the jump.

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When winter hits full force in Chicago, I retreat to my kitchen. At this time of year, I crave warm, comforting food - and I often try and use up whatever I already have in my apartment so that I don’t have to head out in the snow and bitter cold to go to the store. 

Just the other day, I bought a bag of apples, quite a few of which had bruised spots. Did I throw them out? Of course not. My philosophy is: when life gives you bruised apples, you make applesauce.

Apples & Berry Sauce

The recipe below is inspired by the applesauce in Deborah Madison’s Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone - it’s one of my favorite everyday cookbooks.  Pick up a copy here.

I cut off the bruises and chopped up the apples into half inch pieces (roughly) with the skins on, threw them in a saucepot with a bit of sugar (about 2 tablespoons) and a splash of water (about an 1/8 of a cup). I then added a stick of cinnamon, a few grinds of fresh nutmeg and a shake of ground cinnamon and turned on the stove. As the apples started to simmer and permeate my kitchen with cinnamon-y goodness, I decided to slice a lemon into thin wedges, and added that as well. Then I remembered the half bag of frozen berries in my freezer. I threw these in at the last minute, and they brightened up the dish into the most beautiful ruby-red color. 

I tried this again yesterday, and added half a bag of cranberries to the apples. Just as delicious and just as beautiful.  Btai Avon!

I am not a professionally trained chef, but I love food. I love reading about it, cooking it, feeding myself, feeding others, talking about it, buying it, and growing it (presuming it’s not 6 degrees below zero in Chicago). 

One of my favorite cookbooks is Mark Bittman’s amazingly practical: How To Cook Everything: Simple Recipes for Great Food, which features straightforward techniques and an encyclopedic listing of all different types of food.  I’ve found that Bittman’s philosophy holds true to the way I like to cook; quick and satisfying - like his Noodles with Peanut Sauce.

This recipe works as well for a quick meal as it does for entertaining large groups.  I’ve found that the vegetarians at my Shabbat lunch table appreciate a hearty pile of saucy noodles just for them, especially when I add spicy baked tofu for an extra boost of protein.  And as long as I have all of the ingredients at home (most of which I like keeping around in my kitchen anyway), it takes only a few minutes to whip up.  The best part is, many of the items can be substituted or modified. Don’t have tofu? What about seitan or tempeh? Or chicken? Don’t have noodles? Try rice?  Served hot or cold, this dish is virtually impossible to mess up - even for novice cooks.  B’tai Avon!

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