A Mexican Flavored New Year

The Jewish New Year is  fast approaching .It begins this Monday with traditional foods celebrating the day, with recipes handed down from Eastern European ancestors. However the next generation adds their own spin, using the ingredients and flavors of their adopted country.

This was the subject of Priya Krishna's article about Mexican -Jewish cooking in today's New York Times Food section., She focused on Fany Gershon, the owner of La Newyorkina ,a sweet, shop, and Dough, a doughnut business. Her Mexican heritage shines through in her paleta's and doughnuts  ,redolent with Mexican cocoa, chipotle and cinnamon. It stands to reason that her family recipes also have these flavors as well.As Ms. Krishna points out Jewish and Mexican cuisine couldn't be further apart but as Ms. Gershon pointed out both are very tradition rooted , very proud and very family oriented.Of course the traditional Rosh Hashanah  platter includes apples and honey to insure a sweet new year., a round challah to symbolize the circle of life , pomegranates to signify abundance and fish heads for fresh starts at the head of the year.The Mexican influences is spice added to matzoh ball soup, apple cinnamon challah and a guajillo pepper gefilte fish.

However she still needed help, especially when she threw her first New Year's dinner in New York.Ms. Gershon had to enlist the help of the New York Times  food writer, Joan Nathan., She was excited to learn that Ms. Nathan's recipes and her grandmother's weren't all that different. Over the years the dishes were honed and polished. The first night will be spent with friends at home while the second night she'll cook a Rosh Hashannah meal at her  husband's ,Daniel Ortiz de Montellano at his restaurant , La Publica in the  Williamsburg section of Brooklyn. There will be homemade challah (which kind of is shaped like her cat Leonard.), rich with apples cooked in sugar and cinnamon.Her chicken broth for the matzoh ball soup will include garlic , cilantro and white onions. She uses white ones because they "taste" like Mexico to her. Extra chicken is added to the pot because the leftovers can be used to fill tacos and enchilada. Her store, La Newyorkina will be serving honey , chile infused ice cream instead of honey cake and rugelach that 's spiked with chipotle peppers.

Family recipes are gems to be passed down. Yet there are outside influences that creep in and make them better. It is true for Mexican-Jewish cooking, a marriage of ancient cuisines.

The Modern Jewish Table - Comfort Cooking With Glam

Jewish cuisine has always been considered more comforting and homey than glam or lux. However that's changing thanks to a new cookbook. It shows the cuisine in a new light as well as giving timeless recipes sparkle and color. This is not your bubby or granny's cookbook, that's for sure.

The Modern Jewish Table (Skyhorse Publishing Inc 2017) was written by self  proclaimed  Jewish princesses, Tracy Fine and Georgie Tarn. They're also British which gives lends itself to some cheeky descriptions and a more open cookbook that features a variety of world recipes. There are nods to Vietnam and Italy as well as to the American South. Of course Jewish dishes also are mentioned. There's borscht and latkes along with matzoh ball soup. These have been updated or given a Sephardic spin (the Sephardic Jews or Ladinos are from the Iberian Peninsula).The book isn't just cooking , it's also about table decorating too. Chefs Fine and Tarn , who are also celebrities with having appeared in the English press and television offer ideas on creating glam "princess perfect" tables.This has to be the British influence, since the Brits are obsessed with the overall picture and not just the food alone. There's advice on how to create a rustic bagel brunch to elegant dining complete with velvet tablecloths. There's even a small chapter dedicated to what gadgets should be in the kitchen , from the Nutribullet (!!!) to kitchen mixers and which ones are the best.Since this is a Jewish cookbook, Yiddish phrases and their definitions ate sprinkled all over the book.

What I like about The Modern Jewish Table is that anybody can use the recipes. I'm fascinated by the Yemeni Meat soup, along with Cannellini Bean Tomato Soup. The two cooks have divided the book into sections, from small plates or appetizers to even a chapter just devoted to all recipes chocolate.Fish gets its' own chapter and there is even a recipe for fish blintzes which are like haddock stuffed crepes with a cheese sauce. Yes, there is gefilte or stuffed fish but Chefs Fine and Tarn turn it into a kind of homage to their beloved battered fish from the local chippy.Matzo meal is the main ingredient in the batter. Another British classic, Toad in the Hole is also included  , in their Meat The Main Event chapter.Instead of pork sausage however, the chicken kind is used instead. There are some Italian recipes such as the yummy homemade pizza that uses a polenta crust, along with Middle Eastern and Indian recipes. Dessert lovers will go mad for the eggy zabaglione with ladyfingers  and the apple pear and honey pudding , perfect for the upcoming holidays along with the delicately scented lavander shortbreads. These princesses love all things chocolate so there are the richly decadent  pots du chocolat to the naughty peanut chocolate fudge brownies .

The Modern Jewish Table  is not your typical Jewish cookbook. It's a fun romp through a variety of different cuisines and traditional recipes. Get it for the upcoming holidays and for everyday dinners and desserts.