The Book of New Israeli Food
by Janna Gur; Photography by Eilon Paz
Published by Schocken Books
Click on book
cover to order
at Amazon.com
Reviewed by Jan Warren
This is a large 9” X 12”, 304-page cookbook with stunning color photographs and a variety of kosher recipes from Israel.
I’m someone who doesn’t enjoy the hassles of traveling, however, cookbooks from far and near are something I do enjoy. Perhaps it satisfies my latent sense of adventure without the need to leave home. I live near a large city and have access to a variety of exotic ingredients, but I found many of the recipes in The Book of New Israeli Food required very little extra purchases to complete.
I love to make desserts so, of course, my first pick was the “Citrus Semolina Cake” on page 208. Semolina flour–more familiarly used in pasta, fresh orange juice, ground coconut and a small amount of sugar listed in the recipe sounded like the perfect choice. It actually turned out just like the glossy color photo. A picture may be worth a thousand words but with recipes it’s the taste. Mild citrus flavor enhanced the cake, which was lighter than a pound cake but heavier than a typical one made with cake flour.
The Book of New Israeli Food not only contains recipes for desserts, but salads, yummy breads and hearty entrées. A bit of history of the area and the customs, which made these recipes popular in this region, accompanies the color photos. There is a section called “special ingredients” that gives added information about those less familiar spices, etc.
This would make a beautiful addition to most home cookbook collections. Then you too can enjoy a bit of Israel without leaving home. I give The Book of New Israeli Food 5 stars.
Armchair Interviews agrees