"New York Times" Passover Cookbook [Hardcover]

The New York Times Passover Cookbook collects almost 50 years' worth of delicious Seder recipes from the Times and its contributors, from Florence Fabricant's Classic Gefilte Fish to Barry Wine's Tsimmes Terrine. With more than 200 recipes, the book travels around the world of Jewish cuisine, from Artichokes, Sephardic Style--a spicy, fried Egyptian dish--to Mississippi Praline Macaroons, a recipe that travelled with its originator from Vienna, Austria, to Natchez, Mississippi. Because the book includes recipes from both Ashkenazic and Sephardic traditions, editor Linda Amster notes that the ingredients in some recipes may not be acceptable to other communities (for example, the allspice in Claudia Roden's Matzoh-Meat Pie perfectly reflects its Arab-Jewish influences, but probably would be out of place on an Ashkenazic Passover menu).

Through the years at the Times, many Passover recipes have come from accomplished home cooks in the New York area (such as Florence Aaron's Salmon and Egg Salad). More recently, however, the paper has given some star chefs a turn at the traditional Seder dishes, so you'll also find such gourmet delights as Jean-Georges Vongerichten's Beet Tartare, Paul Prudhomme's Veal Roast with Mango Sauce, Charlie Trotter's Carrot Consommé and Maida Heatter's Chocolate Walnut Torte. In addition to the wealth of recipes, The New York Times Passover Cookbook features a thoughtful introduction on the meanings of the Passover ritual by Joan Nathan, author of the award-winning Jewish Cooking in America. Threaded through the book are four essays by Times critics and columnists Ruth Reichl, Mimi Sheraton, Molly O'Neill and Howard G. Goldberg. Goldberg's informative piece on Kosher wines may cause you to put the sweet Manischewitz aside for a dryer Israeli Cabernet or a Californian Semillon. Whether you're looking for a classic apple-nut Haroseth or a fusion-cuisine Southwestern Tsimmes Stuffed in Anaheim Chiles, The New York Times Passover Cookbookis an excellent, comprehensive sourcebook for the Passover meal. --Rebecca A. Staffel

"The New York Times Passover Cookbook is an excellent, comprehensive sourcebook for the Passover meal."--Rebecca A. Staffel, Amazon.com

This remarkable collection includes 175 Passover recipes and essays from top chefs and such food writers as Wolfgang Puck, Mark Strausman, Barbara Kafka, Molly O''Neill, Jean-Georges Vongerichten, Joyce Coldstein, and many more.'

Reviews from Publisher's Weekly and Library Journal
Thank you for considering The New York Times Passover Cookbook. For readers who may not have seen them, here are reviews of the book from Publisher's Weekly and from Library Journal. With all best wishes.

PUBLISHER'S WEEKLY: Passover is celebrated at the table with ritual words and food; this serious new collection does justice to both. And as Amster, a regular contributor to The New York Times food pages points out, there's another tradition associated with Passover. Every year, home cooks eagerly await recipes, conforming with the holiday's dietary restrictions, published in The Times. The 200 recipes reprinted from cookbooks by the paper's well-known food writers, as well as by celebrated chefs, range from the traditional to the innovative and are drawn from European, Mediterranean and Middle Eastern tradtitions. Anne Rosenzwieg offers a haroseth recipe that uses rhubarb. The section on gefilte fish includes Wolfgang Puck's variation, served in cabbage leaves, and Barbara Kafka's version, prepared in the microwave. In addition, Amster imparts seven ways to roast a chicken, including Chicken Breasts with Green Olives and Tomatoes. Paul Prudhomme serves up his Veal Roast with Mango Sauce, a dish he prepared in Jerusalem in honor of the city's 3,000th anniversary. Nathan's knowledgeable foreword describes dietary restrictions and offers definitions and explanations of the symbolism behind the food. Taken together, Amster has produced what may be the definitive work in Passover cookbooks, from recipes to the feelings evoked by sitting at a beautifully set, bountifully laden table.

LIBRARY JOURNAL: With more than eight recipes for haroseth alone, THE NEW YORK TIMES PASSOVER COOKBOOK will be invaluable for anyone who hosts a Passover seder --or even takes a dish to one. Amster has put together an impressive and delicious collection of recipes from the Times food section and from cookboooks by three of its well-known writers: Craig Claiborne, Mimi Sheraton and Molly O'Neill. Chapters are organized by course or special dish, and there are moving reminiscences of special Passover seders, as well as a good general introduction by Joan Nathan, an authroity on Jewish cooking. Recipes range from the traditional to the contemporary, with dishes from chefs such as Wolfgang Puck alongside family recipes passed down for generations. Highly recommended.