88 Friday, July 5, 1985

THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS

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The Sephardic Kosher Kitchen

BY GLORIA RAWER GREENE

Special to The Jewish News

I am always on the lookout for
interesting Jewish cookbooks,
y those that teach me
more about the types of Jewish
cuisine with which I am less

familiar, Thus, I was quite

pleased to discover The Sephar-
dic Kosher Kitchen by Suzy
David, a hardcover book re-

cently published in the U,S, by

Jonathan David Publishers
(08-22 Eliot Avenue, Middle

Village, NY 11379; 814,95),
Mrs, David was born and
raised in Bulgaria, where she
lived in a large house with
several members of her extend-
ed family and enjoyed marve-
lous Sephardic prepared
primarily by her grandmother,
In 1943, Mrs, David left
Bulgaria and traveled to Cyprus
en route to her ultimate destina-
tion, Israel, There she eventual-
ly became one of the first five
ground hostesses at Lod Air-
port, She made her permanent
home in Israel, and now lives in
Tel Aviv,
As an adult in Israel, Mrs,
David began to take an active
interest in cooking, and wanted
"to return to the flavors of my
youth, which evoke for me the
harmonious tenor of a lost
lifestyle,"
She Interviewed many rela-
tives and even strangers from
her birthplace, and tested and
tasted several of their recipes,
She collected the best results,
and first published them in 1980
in a cookbook called Ha4fitbah
Ha-Sephardi, The success of
the original Hebrew version
prompted publication of this
new .English edition,

• The Sephardic Kosher Kitchen

is a beautifully designed book,

The dust jacket is bedecked In
tiny pink and green flowers, and
the pattern is repeated on the
41018,1 cover of the book, Each
of the approximaWly 1139 recipe
is self-contained 9n a single
with its title (in both
nglish andJudco,Spenieh) and
E
Bnslish
list of ingredients *sepia print,
contrasting to the black print of
the comments and test, addi,
almost 411417 4Juipt*r head,
ins is highlighted with Atm ,
aye sepia line drawings Py the
authors husband, Jean Mold,
who is a noted Israeli artist,
Each recipe isprscoded by kr
Wresting notes about* olace
Sephorilic cuisine (par t larly
AO enjoyed bythe author
her youth), explanations of the
ingredWite,
or detwiptions
of the look
lc,
Thop who w ip
the cuisine of r3
4ic Jews, or
W4PW lid to try hs

of their ancestors
joy this goo492k ,
*Wig

variety
)ns

ghievo:
4#40',00
and

Dis
eta

and Pastas; Salads and Pickles;
and Sweets.
According to Mrs. David, the
book emphasizes Sephardic
daily fare, However, to most
Ashkenazic Jews, a majority of
the dishes may seem rather ex-
otic, though nonetheless very
appealing and a nice addition to
one's repertoire,
A few of the ingredients may
also seem strange, or possibly
may be difficult to obtain, One
that is used extensively — in-
deed in almost every cheese dish
— is katchkeval cheese, Though
relatively commonplace in • Is-
rael, it is only available here in
specialty shops, and is more
likely to be called "kaalikaval,"
Similar cheeses are "casioca-
vello" and "kasseri," In the in-
troduction to the chapter on
"Egg and Cheese Dishes," the
author suggests substituting
Parmesan or Cheddar for katch-

Those who thought Jewish

cooking meant only Ashkenazic

cuisine will find that The
Sephardic Kosher Kitchen can
provide inspiration for many
delicious dishes of a totally dif-
ferent style. A few recipes
reprinted from the book follow
below. The comments included
with each recipe are the
author's.

BEEF AND EGGPLANT
STEW (Kvartikos di
Mirindgena con Karne)
"The subtle taste of the egg-
plant, bolstered by pepper and

tomato define this beef stew as

unmistakably Sephardic. It is
lightly spiced, with only salt,
sugar, and a small amount of
parsley, but as the beef and

vegetables cook slowly over a

low heat their flavors join in a
blend of tastes."
keval, but she conclude, that masterly
1 E
impl
o
:oilIg beef
"personal taste will have to • • 2
eggplant., unpeeled, cubed
guide you," This may be a bit • 2
vegetable oil
darkly chopped
difficult for those cooks who • •1 1 met ad
have no idea how an unfamiliar ARP* pepper, needed and
dish should taste,
• 1 lop lip tomato, peeled,
ay*
Also, the book occasionally •1 mebt
Wow tisk
suffers from strange trawls, • 1ap
tions that make otherwise in, 1 Ovate
alli hima poky
terestitsupioers sound some,
some- 1=Zr
what , Por lastyme, Cube the stewing beef into
leas le
le egg-lemon sauce
a Alellte

vow
Is translated
As "Boiled Meyonnalse,"
In a few places, British**
tonsistione may be a bit con,
k,
fu sing to som e
r*

tubes,
coarse salt over the
away Ale s malt lt and
or
ed
potthe
, the
with the

away a