SECRETS OF A JEWISH BAKER
Recipes for 125 Breads from Around the World
by George Greenstein
Ten Speed Press
328 pp. $29.99

It has been my experience that many excellent cooks and bakers are intimated by the thought of making bread at home. Yet bread baking can be made simple to understand for the both the novice and the experienced baker.

—George Greenstein

Truer words were never said. And they are exactly the sentiments of Sam Heffernan, the member of this club who suggested we do a baking book. She wanted not only to share her love of bread, but also to encourage (more…)

I once dated a Palestinian man. He taught me how to make a proper plate of hummus, and he introduced me to za’atar, which turned into a life-long love affair.

Za’atar is a Middle Eastern spice blend made with the herb za’atar, sumac, sesame seeds, and salt (and sometimes (more…)

Introducing Guest Blogger Bhakti Ziek

I’m very happy to be introducing Bhakti Ziek to you. If you read my previous posting about Jewish Corn Bread, her name will be familiar to you.

Bhakti has her own blog (click here to go to it) where she writes about textiles, life, food, and more. More importantly, to this blog anyway, Bhakti is a member of the Dowdy Corners Cookbook Club. To accompany the authentic sour rye breads she planned to make for the latest DCCC potluck (for Secrets of a Jewish Baker), she honed and re-honed a delicious recipe for chopped liver. I asked if she’d be willing to share the recipe with DCCC readers. She said yes, and here it is. Thank you Bhakti. HJ

A Recipe for Chopped Liver

By Bhakti Ziek

We all have foods that we detested as children and love as adults—avocados top the list for me. For many people, liver fits the bill, though (more…)

Has a memory of a food ever made you crazy with longing for it? If yes, then you’re a living, breathing human. But what if a memory of a food, so real you can feel, taste, smell, and see it, cannot be substantiated on this planet Earth, making you feel like you might be crazy. Did you imagine that childhood food that no one other than your brothers and sisters, and I mean no one, has heard of? Did you dream it?

It took the current DCCC pick, Secrets of a Jewish Baker, to make Bhakti Ziek, a DCCC club member, realize that in fact her adolescent memory of an unusual rye bread known to her family as (more…)