From Publishers Weekly
Propelling Jewish cooking forever beyond brisket and the blintz, Marks continues the excellent work of his first cookbook, The World of Jewish Cooking (a James Beard Award finalist), with this innovative guide to celebrating Jewish holidays and occasions. The first of this book's many strengths is thoroughness. Marks, a rabbi, suggests menus for familiar Jewish holidays such as Hanukkah and Purim but also describes foods for Simchat Torah (Apple-Glazed Roast Turkey with Biblical Fruit Stuffing) and Lag b'Omer (Feather-Frosted Carob Brownies, because the holiday commemorates the death of Shimon ben Yochai, who was banished and is said to have survived on carob). Another strength is Marks's creativity: he bypasses more typical Sabbath dinner fare for an international dinner of Persian Meatball Soup and Indian Tomato Salad. A third strength is the recipes themselves. Cleverly, most of the recipes for large gatherings (a Pidyon Haben Luncheon featuring Barbecue Beef Brisket, for example) give measurements for both 10 servings and 80 servings. An extra section on baked goods is appropriate to any occasion, and a highly personal menu for a Southern Jewish family reunion successfully combines two seemingly disparate traditions in a menu that includes Lena's Matza-Breaded Fried Chicken with Honey-Pecan Sauce, Romanian Garlic Mashed Potatoes and Toni's Vegetable Slaw with horseradish. This most definitely is not your grandmother's cookbook.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
Dupree (Nathalie Dupree Cooks Quick Meals for Busy Days, LJ 2/15/96) has been the host of numerous television cooking shows; this book is the companion volume to a PBS series starting this fall. Her intent is to make entertaining unintimidating, and she includes lots of useful material on planning, budgeting, presentation, and more, along with often-amusing anecdotes and cautionary tales from her own experiences. Menus range from Three Simple Suppers to an Eye-Popping Menu for Eight to a Buffet for 12 to 50 in Four Hours; surprisingly, the recipes within a particular menu don't always "match" in terms of number of servings. The true novice may find Elaine Corn's Now You're Cooking for Company (LJ 9/15/96) more helpful, but Dupree's more ambitious menus and informative text should appeal to many readers-and her new series is sure to be popular. [Good Cook/BOMC selection.] Marks's The World of Jewish Cooking (LJ 9/15/96) was a wide-ranging exploration of Jewish food, culture, and culinary history; now he has written a guide to Jewish entertaining equally broad in scope. Marks includes religious holidays rarely mentioned in similar cookbooks, and his family celebrations range from A Middle Eastern Wedding Shower to A Southern Jewish Family Reunion. Marks, both a rabbi and former editor of Kosher Gourmet, provides a lot of information in a straightforward, readable style, starting with "A Guide for the Perplexed Host." Chapter introductions, headnotes, and boxes cover religious as well as culinary history and include many suggestions to make entertaining easier. Recommended.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
