Deeply rooted in ancient rituals, the seasonal rhythms of the land of Israel, and biblical commandments, the Jewish holidays mark a time for Jews around the world to reconnect with their spiritual lives, celebrate their history, and enjoy tasty foods laden with symbolic meaning. With Phyllis and Miriyam Glazer's The Essential Book of Jewish Festival Cooking as your guide, you will gain a rich understanding of the Jewish calendar year and its profound link to the signs of nature and the produce of the earth in each season. This landmark volume addresses a central question often left unanswered: Why do we eat what we eat on these important days? Organized by season, the ten chapters cover the major holidays and feast days of the Jewish year, providing more than two hundred tempting recipes, plus menus and tips for creative and meaningful holiday entertaining. In-depth essays opening each chapter illuminate the origins, traditions, and seasonal and biblical significance of each holiday and its foods, making the book a valuable resource for Jewish festival observance. Inspired recipes add a fresh, contemporary twist as they capture the flavors of the seasonal foods enjoyed by our ancestors. For Passover, prepare such springtime delights as Roasted Salmon with Marinated Fennel and Thyme, alongside Braised "Bitter Herbs" with Pistachios. On Shavuot, characterized by the season's traditional bounty of milk and the wheat harvest, try fresh homemade cheeses; creamy, comforting Blintzes; or luscious Hot and Bubbling Semolina and Sage Gnocchi. At Purim, create a Persian feast fit for a king and learn new ideas for mishloah manot, the traditional gifts of food. The Essential Book of Jewish Festival Cooking offers accessible, healthful, and intensely flavorful recipes with a unique and tangible connection to the rhythms of the Jewish year. The Glazer sisters will deepen your understanding of time-honored traditions as they guide you toward more profound, and delicious, holiday experiences. Jewish holidays summon up memories of grandmothers preparing traditional, prescribed dishes for their broods. Sisters Phyllis Glazer and Miriyam Glazer, inspired by their grandmother, have devotedly produced The Essential Book of Jewish Festival Cooking . Filled with succulent recipes, this volume includes so much historical and religious data that it may serve as textbook as well as cookbook. Each successive holiday, beginning with the chief holiday, Passover, has its own series of traditional dishes although the authors are quick to acknowledge the range of traditions among the various branches of the Diaspora. Recipes are easy to follow and rarely require rare or hard-to-find ingredients. Everyone will be attracted to the little-known Tu b'av, a summer love festival. For it, the Glazers suggest a salad of goat cheese, arugula, and fresh figs--bound to be tasty whenever the ingredients are in season. Other recipes, for example, Purim's hamantaschen and Hanukkah's jelly doughnuts, vary the common ingredients with some original ideas. Mark Knoblauch Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved The Essential Book of Jewish Festival Cooking is that rare cookbook that is as thoughtful as it is enticing. - Bruce Feiler, Author of Walking the Bible Writing in a lively style, Phyllis and Miriyam Glazer relate the history behind such holiday foods as Hanukkah sufganiot, and the biblical background of key ingredients like date syrup, what the Bible meant by ‘honey.’ They convey the fun of traditional Jewish celebrations and even include information about Jewish aphrodisiacs! - Faye Levy, Author of 1,000 Jewish Recipes and Feast from the Mideast A wonderful book, and not only because of its extraordinary recipes. The Glazers have much to teach about the Jewish holidays, and their teachings will nourish the soul and body alike. - Rabbi Joseph Telushkin, Author of The Book of Jewish Values and Jewish Literacy Deeply rooted in ancient rituals, the seasonal rhythms of the land of Israel, and biblical commandments, the Jewish holidays mark a time for Jews around the world to reconnect with their spiritual lives, celebrate their history, and enjoy tasty foods laden with symbolic meaning. With Phyllis and Miriyam Glazer's The Essential Book of Jewish Festival Cooking as your guide, you will gain a rich understanding of the Jewish calendar year and its profound link to the signs of nature and the produce of the earth in each season. This landmark volume addresses a central question often left unanswered: Why do we eat what we eat on these important days? Organized by season, the ten chapters cover the major holidays and feast days of the Jewish year, providing more than two hundred tempting recipes, plus menus and tips for creative and meaningful holiday entertaining. In-depth essays opening each chapter illuminate the origins, traditions, and seasonal and biblical significance of each holiday and its foods, making th