cover image Fast & Festive Meals for the Jewish Holidays: Complete Menus, Rituals, and Party-Planning Ideas for Every Holiday of the Year

Fast & Festive Meals for the Jewish Holidays: Complete Menus, Rituals, and Party-Planning Ideas for Every Holiday of the Year

Marlene Sorosky. William Morrow Cookbooks, $29.95 (240pp) ISBN 978-0-688-14570-5

This good-natured volume from a veteran cookbook writer (Entertaining on the Run; Cooking for Entertaining, etc.) delivers just what its title promises: traditional Jewish dishes prepared for special occasions but created with a minimum of fuss. Sorosky offers relief from old favorites in the form of Salmon Gefilte Fish, Giant Potato-Carrot Pancake in place of latkes and Chocolate-Peanut Butter Hamantashen. She also excels at making expected-fare foods special with imaginative garnishes: plain Hummus is dressed up with a zucchini menorah featuring carrot candles and bell pepper flames, and a chocolate cake is decorated with a fringed marzipan tallit for a bar mitzvah dessert. Organized by holiday (including Israel Independence Day and Baby Namings), the book pays particular attention to kids and their holiday experience. Each chapter begins with a short description of the holiday, the rituals performed (prayers provided in English and transliterated Hebrew) and a section Sorosky calls ""Extra Points,"" which includes ideas for centerpieces, clever invitations and table settings, many of which can be created by children. The chapter on Sukkot, for example, includes instructions for creating a sukkah out of breadsticks, and the one on Tu B'Shevat recommends having each child plant a seed in a small plastic cup. (Sept.)