The Jewish kitchen - Clarissa Hyman

There is more to Jewish food than cooking and eating. Behind every recipe is a story of local traditions and daily life in far-off towns and villages. The recipes passed from one generation to another tell their own story of a family's past. An historically peripathetic people, Jewish communities can be found in every corner of the globe. Obliged by religion to adher to the dietry laws of kashrut, Jewish cooks have adapted local cuisines to reflect their culture. Similarly, when recreating an old recipe in a new land, they have worked with the available ingredients to produce dishes that unite religion with necessity, and past with present. Delicious hybrids, these dishes tell their own tale of Jewish families, their history and their culture.The laws of kashrut deal with what is permitted or kasher (kosher-fit) and what is terefah (forbidden); with the separation of meat from milk products. Accordingly, Jewish Kitchen is divided into three main chapters - Meat, Dairy and Pareve (neutral). With a diverse international flavour, the recipes include among others Moroccan yellow split pea soup; Spicy Latin brisket with citrus and rum; Lebanese lamb and chicken meatballs; North African chicken with lemon and olives; Kurdistan stuffed vegetables; Honey and spice cake; Passover raspberry sponge; Chocolate coconut macaroons; and the mouthwatering Sufganiot - Israeli jam doughnuts. Nine family stories appear scattered through the book. Each from a different country, the family histories are accompanied by recipes that recall memories and hold special personal significance today. The stories tell of travel across contents, family celebrations, war and peace.This personal and compelling collection of recipes and stories brings the different facets of jewish food and culture to life. Food for thought as well as for the table.

Clarissa Hyman is an award-winning food-travel writer and restaurant reviewer whose work has appeared in the Times, The Telegraph, Country Living, Food and Travel, Waitrose Food Illustrated, Manchester Evening News and Carlton Food Network's Simply Food. She has twice been nominated for the prestigious Travelex writing award and in 2002 was awarded the title Glenfiddich Food Writer of the Year. Clarissa began her media career as a producer for Granada Television and maintains a TV presence appearing as a food industry commentator on programmes such as BBC Watchdog. She is the author of Cucina Siciliana also by Conran Octopus. This is her second book.