Shabbat Cookbook Celebrates Jewish Cultural Crossroads in Israel

In her new cookbook, Shabbat, Recipes and Rituals From My Table to Yours, Adeena Sussman celebrates her love of the Shabbat dishes she grew up with as well as the Shabbat foods specific to the international Jewish communities that have immigrated to Israel and become interwoven in her adopted country. The recipes span from traditional Eastern European classics with a twist that she grew up with in her mother’s NorCal kitchen to Libyan and Italian Jewish culture and even the Mexican influences that an Israeli couple brought from his Oaxacan home of origin and now feature in a popular Israeli taqueria. The recipes—and photos—are crave-worthy and perfect for an erev Shabbat dinner table and while relaxing with family and friends the next day. I’ve included three of Sussman’s recipes from Shabbat in my new story for The San Diego Union-Tribune’s Food section: Colorful Vegetable Kugel, Water Challah, and My Mother’s Shabbat Chicken—which features yummy caramelized onions. Dig in! Shabbat Shalom!