Page 32 - Jewish News_October-2020

32 October 2020 JEWISH INTEREST

Author of unique book featuring Jewish recipes and

food lore to speak at People of the Book event

Book review by Philip K. Jason, Special to The Jewish News
he alphabet never tasted so efficient without being overly formal. ments of matzo are manifold. One of
good. Measurements are given in the vernac- these is the Sephardic Mina de Matzo.
TA huge and dazzling array of ulars, so the reader will always know And you don’t want to miss trying Mu-
contributors brings to life what would such things as a half cup of sugar is 65 fleta, Persian rice and Ptcha – foods
seem to be an impossible task: a plausi- grams. Chocolate Babka immediately with various origins across the Jewish
ble gathering of what’s “most Jewish” caught my attention, but I plan to get world. Tsimmes, of course, is univer-
in the palates of Jews across time, space my babka by giving a copy of the book, sally familiar.
and memory. The properly bookmarked, to a good friend Well, the person who put all this
contributors are at who bakes. together, New Yorker Alana New-
once erudite and Okay, so you’d expect a section on house, is the editor-in-chief of Tablet,
down to earth. Au- bagels, but don’t tell me you anticipat- a daily online magazine with a huge
thor Alana New- ed Bazooka gum. Bialys are another following. Founded in 2009, it features
house gives them must, as are black-and-white cookies, Jewish news, ideas and culture. A grad-
brief but impres- blintzes and maybe bokser. And borscht uate of Barnard College and Colum-
sive identification is inevitable, with this section offering bia’s Graduate School of Journalism,
at the end of the a brief essay on “The Secrets of Soviet Newhouse has contributed to The New
book so that read- Cuisine.” The section on brisket is best York Times, The Washington Post, The
Phil Jason ers can connect read overnight. Boston Globe and Slate.
their perspectives to their credentials. “C” is for carciofi all giudia (ar- At the People of the Book virtu-
Readers will chuckle at the book’s tichoke Jewish-style). “C” is also for family gatherings, holidays and lifecy- al event on Wednesday, October 28
table of contents. It provides a delight- challah, charoset and cheesecake – cle events at which Jewish food is not at 7:00 p.m., Newhouse said she will
ful visual image as an identifier for AND chicken. Yes, there is a section the theme, but somehow the bonding “give people a behind-the-scenes look
each selection, in which these same on Chinese food that explains in de- agent. We can trace how a recipe was at some of the most heated and most
images reappear. They exist to make us tail “Why Jews Eat Chinese Food on introduced, passed along to others, fun controversies that came up in cre-
hungry. Christmas.” The mysteries of cholent sometimes modified, but always link- ating our list. It should be a lot of fun.”
The format is basically a mini-es- and chopped liver come next, laced ing the generations – just like Hebrew To register, and for information
say followed by a recipe. So, we trav- with both wisdom and humor. And school, but usually with greater impact. on all 25 events in the 2020-21 People
el and gorge from adafina (a Sabbath there is a lot more to the (pardon the These personal stories that link the of the Book series, go to jfedsrq.org/
stew) to Yemenite soup, with the ex- pun) c-section. food with the occasion and the family books. Complete information can also
pected and plenty of surprises along I have to speed up now: dates, are sometimes humorous, but always be found in the special People of the
the way. deli, dill; eggplant, Entenmann’s, eyer- moving and inviting. Book insert in this issue of The Jewish
Just where it needs to be is the ap- leckh; flanken; gefilte fish, goose and There is a surprising and welcome News.
ple, given a personality by Dan Barber, the wished-for gribenes; halva, haman- inclusiveness in the scope of the reci- Philip K. Jason is Professor Emeritus
who plays the part well, complaining taschen, haminados and Hebrew Na- pes. A favorite of Tunisian Jews, Pkai- of English from the United States Na-
about being blamed for Eve’s lack of tional hot dogs. la, is one of the surprises. Adafina is val Academy. He reviews regularly for
discipline, but then boasting about hav- Let me depart from the alphabet from the Iberian world, and Haminados the Washington Independent Review
ing flourished all over the world. The now and address some other charms of are among the Sephardic tastes readers of Books, Southern Literary Review,
apple’s journey is a guilt trip. Apple this “most Jewish” book. are lured to sample. Jews from the Re- other publications and the Jewish Book
cake becomes the choice for instruc- Many of the contributors are nota- public of Georgia indulged themselves Council. Please visit Phil’s website at
tion. ble writers, or at least darn good ones. with Labda, which also has a connec- www.philjason.wordpress.com.
The recipes share a professionally Often, they take the opportunity to per- tion with Persian cuisine. Jews in India
structured style that readers will find sonalize their entries with memories of enjoy Malida at the Seder table. Treat-

October Events

Wednesday, October 14 at 7:00pm

Opening Night:

PEOPLE OF THE BOOK

An evening with actor
Stephen Tobolowsky

This masterful storyteller will share a tale
Author Lecture Series from his book, My Adventures With God,
followed by what is sure to be

Featuring 25 a lively discussion.
virtual events from Wednesday, October 28 at 7:00pm

October 2020 – June 2021 Featured Event:

Events are $10 each per An evening with

household. Purchase a Alana Newhouse

Page Turner Pass to all Alana is the founder and editor-in-chief

25 events for just $108 of Tablet, a daily online magazine of
Jewish news, ideas and culture.
($97 through October 6). She will talk about the one unwavering
constant of Jewish life: Food!

For a complete schedule of events, admission information, author bios and

book synopses, see the eight-page insert in this issue or visit jfedsrq.org/books.