arts & entertainment >> food
Cookbook. -Corner
Recipes from traditional Ashkenazi Jewish comfort food
to more exotic Sephardi dishes honor Holocaust survivors.
Gail Zimmerman
Arts Editor
0
n May 1, just in time for
Yom Hashoah, or Holocaust
Remembrance Day, New York's
Museum of Jewish Heritage — A Living
Memorial to the Holocaust will publish
Recipes Remembered: A Celebration
of Survival (Ruder Finn Press; $36),
authored by June Feiss Hersh.
The "first professionally writ-
ten cookbook of its kind:' accord-
ing to the museum, includes 170
recipes from Holocaust survivors from
Poland, Austria, Germany, Hungary,
Czechoslovakia, Romania, Russia,
Ukraine and Greece — and more than
80 family stories of rescues, reunions,
resistance and love amid war.
The stories include those of a daugh-
ter who walked across the frozen
Danube to reunite with her mother; a
POLAND
Celia Kener's Holishkes —
Shortcut Un-Stuffed Cabbage
The distinctive flavors of
stuffed cabbage are a fine balance
between sweet and sour.
Yields: 4 to 6 servings as a main
course, 6 to 8 servings as a starter
Start to finish: under 21/2 hours
For the sauce:
1 large green cabbage (about
2 to 21/2 pounds), cored and
sliced
24 oz. ginger ale
2 Tbsp. brown sugar
4 Tbsp. honey
For the meatballs (makes about
30):
Ph lbs. ground beef
Ph tsp. kosher salt
3 Tbsp. ketchup
1 /4 cup seasoned breadcrumbs
1 egg
5 Tbsp. uncooked long-grain
rice
To prepare the sauce, in a large
Dutch oven, combine the cab-
bage, ginger ale, brown sugar and
honey (to help the honey ease off
the spoon, coat the spoon in a dab
of oil). Bring to a boil, cover and
reduce the heat to low.
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April 28 • 2011
refugee who made a new life among
welcoming strangers in the Dominican
Republic; newlyweds who met crossing
the Alps by foot; and valiant men and
women who fought with the partisans;
among many other unique, personal
histories.
Hersh personally interviewed every
contributor in addition to testing all of
the recipes — and contributed several
of her own.
She writes in the introduction to the
book, "I spent hundreds of hours lis-
tening, learning, laughing and crying.
I heard incredible stories of defiance,
resolve, bravery and luck. I came home
with recipes to test, savor, share and
enjoy. The survivor community has
so much to teach, and we still have so
much to learn?'
In many cases, it is the sons, daugh-
ters and grandchildren who honor their
family's history through retelling sto-
ries and sharing recipes. The book also
To make the meatballs, mix
together all the meatball ingredients
(nothing works better than your two
hands). Form the mixture into small
1-inch diameter meatballs, add-
ing more bread crumbs if the meat
does not hold together. Place the
meatballs in the pot of cabbage and
gently stir so they incorporate with
the sauce. Cover and cook on low
heat, for 2 hours, until the cabbage
is tender and the meatballs are firm
but cooked through.
includes restored family photographs
of the survivors and photos of food-
related artifacts from the museum's
collection.
For those survivors who could not
remember specific recipes, Hersh
brought in 26 celebrity chefs, cookbook
authors and restaurateurs — including
Daniel Boulud, Arthur Schwartz, Ina
Garten, Mark Bittman, Sara Moulton,
Jonathan Waxman, Michelle Bernstein
and Joan Nathan — to create a recipe
in the spirit of the memory that reflects
their region's cuisine.
The recipes run the gamut from tra-
ditional Ashkenazi Jewish comfort food
like potato dumplings, brisket, and
blintzes, to the more exotic Sephardic
dishes such as robust lentil soup, sweet
honey glazed donuts, semolina gnoc-
chi, fried plantains and Romanian
eggplant.
Regardless of the ingredients, the
recipes reflect Jewish life before the
HUNGARY AND
CZECHOSLOVAKIA
Lilly Kaplan's Chicken Paprikash
This authentic Hungarian specialty
features plenty of paprika, which lends a
rich red color and subtle spicy flavor to
this popular chicken dish.
Yields: 4 servings
Start to finish: under 2 hours
2 medium onions, sliced
4 garlic cloves, chopped
3 Tbsp. olive oil
4 lbs. chicken parts, on the bone,
skin removed
1 (14-oz.) can chopped tomatoes
1 cup chicken broth
1 /4 cup white wine
2 tsp. sweet paprika
kosher salt & pepper
1 green pepper, cored, seeded and
sliced
Heat the olive oil in a large saute pan,
then cook and stir the onions and garlic
over medium heat until lightly browned,
about 15 minutes. Remove with a slotted
spoon and reserve. In the same pan (add-
ing more oil if needed), brown the chicken
pieces in batches and set aside on a plate.
When all the chicken is browned, add the
chicken (not the juice that has collected),
onions and garlic back into the pan. Stir in
the tomatoes, chicken broth, white wine,
Recipes
Remembered
A Celebration of Survival
7I remetAab,t stwies and authentic
recipes of Hotocayst survivor;
war, the resilience of the Jewish people
during the war years and Jewish renew-
al in all the years following.
The book also features cooking and
baking tips, a Yiddish glossary and
hints for stocking a pantry.
All proceeds benefit the museum,
and copies can be ordered by calling
the Pickman Museum Shop at (646)
437-4213 or by visiting
www.mjhnyc.org/recipes.
Here, Hersh shares a mix of delicious
recipes from the book.
paprika, salt and pepper to taste. Top with
the green pepper slices.
Simmer covered for 45 to 60 minutes,
or until the chicken is tender and cooked
through. Remove the chicken to a serv-
ing platter and bring the sauce to a slow
boil. If the sauce is too thin, thicken it by
creating a roux. In a skillet, heat 2 tsp. of
oil and then blend in 2 tsp. of flour, stir-
ring constantly to avoid burning the roux.
You'll want it to be a light blonde color. Let
the roux cool a bit, and then stir it into
the sauce, cook for several minutes to let
it do its thing. If the sauce is still not thick
enough, repeat the above process. Pour
the sauce over the chicken and serve with
noodles or dumplings.