Cooking the books: Six exciting new Jewish foodie reads

Good Food by Sina Mizrahi

Recipe writer and photographer of the blog Gather A Table, Sina Mizrahi shares more than 160 recipes inspired by her Middle Eastern roots and the places she has called home.

The flavours are fresh and bold and the recipes include dishes for casual and holiday meals, home-made spice blends, Instant Pot directions and tips to increase your confidence in the kitchen.

Artscroll/Mesorah £31.40

Sephardi by Hélène Jawhara Piñer

Hélène Jawhara Piñer, who has a PhD in history, medieval history and the history of food, has meticulously researched the history of the Sephardic Jews.

Using sources from the 13th century onwards, such as medieval cookbooks, Inquisition trials and poems, she has recreated recipes (adapted for modern cooks) and created new ones to ‘bear witness to the culinary richness of the Sephardim, conversos, who were able to bring their cuisines to life wherever they went’. A feast for the senses as well as the memory.

Academic Studies Press £29.50

52 Shabbat by Faith Kramer

Food writer and recipe developer
Faith Kramer shares recipes and flavours from around the world to help you spice up your Friday night meal.

Recipes are divided into chapters based on the seasons, along with sections on side dishes and accompaniments, desserts and fundamentals.

Recipe pairings are suggested, incorporating easy substitutions to make Shabbat meals accessible for any lifestyle.

The Collective Book Studio £29.99

Vegan, at Times by Jessica Seinfeld

If you’re a meat-eater, fear not, as Jessica (the wife of the also-famous Jerry) won’t try to convince you to become vegan or shame you for eating meat (she and her family aren’t vegans either).

Instead, she wants to show you how easy it is to be a vegan at times, by cooking flavoursome, affordable and robust plant-based meals whenever you want – be that every day, once a week, or just once in a while.

Gallery Books £22.23

Freekeh, Wild Wheat and Ancient Grains by Ruth Nieman

Ruth Nieman combines the ancient history of the Israelites with new ways to cook and enjoy grains from which our modern way of life has distanced us. She shares recipes using freekeh, once collected by Ruth in Boaz’s wheat fields in Bethlehem, as well as ‘wild wheats’ including emmer, spelt and Khorasan and ancient grains such as barley, sorghum and teff.

She also tells the stories of the people who grow and harvest the grains, smoke the fields and hull the husks.

Prospect Books £20

Cannelle et Vanille Bakes Simple by Aran Goyoaga

While this is not a Jewish cookbook, Aran Goyoaga – founder of the blog Cannelle et Vanille – who comes from the Basque region, northern Spain, has included some heimishe recipes suitable for the coeliacs or gluten intolerant among us, including challah (one of her most-requested recipes) and babka. The recipes, all of which offer dairy-free subsititutions or are naturally vegan, include breads, cakes, pies, tarts, biscuits and cookies. Sasquatch Books £25.95