Modern Jewish Comfort Food

May 2, 2022
“What is so enthralling about Jewish comfort food is that it’s not a monolith,” writes Sarna (The Modern Jewish Baker), founding editor of The Nosher, in her exceptional latest. Mixing hands-on visuals, savvy tips, and tasty morsels of historical context, she endeavors to broaden interpretations of Jewish comfort foods, offering recipes inspired by the global Jewish diaspora, as well as the flavors of her Italian and Polish forebears. While traditional fare appears—chicken soup, kugels, schnitzels, latkes—modern twists on classic dishes abound (mac and cheddar cheese kugel, anyone?), as do seamless mash-ups of ingredients associated with Jews of Ashkenazi and Sephardic descent, such as the savory Syrian pastries called sambusek, which are stuffed with German Muenster cheese. A section of shakshukas, meanwhile, puts an international spin on the basic tomato and pepper dish—notably in a smoky vegan version with crispy chickpeas, a Mexican-inspired take with avocado and jalapeño, and a shakshuka pizza. As a “baker with a serious sweet tooth,” Sarna doesn’t skimp on the carbs or sugar: in a substantial chapter of desserts, Mandel bread—aka Jewish biscotti—is given the funfetti treatment with sprinkles and white chocolate drizzle, while a bright-tasting mango cheesecake with a coconut-almond crust is gluten-free and Passover-friendly. This invigorating work takes Jewish cooking to a whole new level. Agent: Judy Linden, Stonesong.