The Jewish Cookbook

How do you define Jewish food? As Leah Koenig says, "It depends on who you ask." And she has clearly asked a great many people for this extensive survey of recipes from the Ashkenazic, Sephardic, and Mizrahic communities.

Among them are internationally famous chefs such as Yotam Ottolenghi, thoughtful innovators like a Brooklyn couple who merge Jewish and Japanese traditions from their respective backgrounds, upholders of displaced traditions like a woman running a bagel shop in Berlin, or a chef serving updated Middle Eastern food in Melbourne, Australia.

So many of these recipes whet our appetites and excite our curiosity, and for every head note and sidebar on a particular cook or community, we wish there were more (or even whole books!)

But Koenig's reach with her selection clearly demonstrates a grasp of both tradition and the current ever-evolving state of Jewish food. Among the surprises we found: an egg and avocado dip that has spread from Australian shabbat tables to American homes; chicken, scallion, and ginger fritters from Calcutta; chicken and chestnut omelet from Azerbaijan. A lovely and intricate survey.

Hardcover. Color throughout.

But worth noting: type size is small, particularly in the index. If you're contemplating this as a gift for Great Aunt Miriam, it might pair well with some reading glasses.