New York – VIN Spotlight: Review of The Bais Yaakov Cookbook

New York – Calling the newly published Bais Yaakov Cookbook just a cookbook actually does a disservice.

The three hundred and eighty one page volume which in addition to containing two hundred recipes also boasts a fascinating history of the Bais Yaakov movement and its founder, the legendary Sara Schenirer, an in depth halachic guide to many issues that arise in the kitchen and an easily understandable primer on buying wine, meat, poultry, fish and produce. With so much useful information, this newest culinary offering from Feldheim is as much a kitchen companion as it is a cookbook and lives up to its full name “The Complete, Informative and Inspirational Bais Yaakov Cookbook”.

Over eighteen months in the making, the Bais Yaakov Cookbook features recipes from contributors representing over three hundred Bais Yaakovs worldwide and is as much a tribute to the Bais Yaakov system as it is a cookbook. Proceeds from the cookbook will benefit the Fund for Jewish Education, which benefits numerous charitable institutions and schools both in the Unites States and Israel.

“The idea of the cookbook was to be a unifying force to all Bais Yaakov type schools, no matter what they are called or where they may be located,” said Yisroel Gluck, founder and director of the Bais Yaakov High School in Chicago and head of the Fund for Jewish Education. “The cookbook seeks to elevate the concept, taking it to a higher level by including halacha, hashkafa and history. The response to the cookbook has, Baruch Hashem, been phenomenal. The first printing completely sold out in just a few weeks and we are in the process of printing a second run of cookbooks.”

While the Bais Yaakov Cookbook contains a wealth of information relevant to any Jewish household it is first and foremost a cookbook and a magnificent one at that. Full of tempting recipes and appealing full color photos, the Bais Yaakov Cookbook has the look and feel of an upscale, gourmet cookbook, but the recipes are reminiscent of a community cookbook, containing treasured favorites that are passed from neighbor to neighbor.

There are almost three hundred pages of gustatory goodness with recipes are divided into eleven sections: Appetizers, Soups, Salads, Meat, Poultry, Fish, Dairy, Side Dishes, Bread, Desserts and Cakes and Cookies, with each section more mouth watering than the next. Flipping through the pages it is hard not to be tempted by names like French Rice Soup, Champagne Apple Salad, Rolled Brisket with Spinach Stuffing, Maple Glazed Salmon, Deep Dish Spinach Pizza and Tiramisu. Accompanied by helpful cooking tips and enticing descriptions, there are creative and delicious selections here for just about any occasion.

The extra features in this cookbook are equally outstanding. A hand written bracha and challah recipe from Rebbetzin Kanievsky, z’l, written just weeks before her passing, are especially poignant and the Bais Yaakov Cookbook is dedicated in her memory.

A thirteen page retrospective of the Bais Yaakov movement describes the origins of Chinuch Habanos as Sara Schenirer not only petitioned leading rabbonim to create a proper educational system for Jewish girls after World War I, but also took up the charge herself and began teaching on her own.

Detailing the earliest Bais Yaakov uniform, Rebbetzin Vichna Kaplan’s first Bais Yaakov in America and photographs of Bais Yaakov students, both in pre-war Bais Yaakov girls in modern day Los Angeles, among many others, this fascinating trip through the history is a must read. Equally compelling is a twenty six page section written by Rabbi Daniel Neustadt, head of the Vaad Harobonim of Detroit which gives clear guidelines on many halachic issues, such as washing dishes and reheating cooked food on Shabbos and an illustrated fruit and vegetable inspection chart.

Rounding out the book is an informative guide offering tips on wine buying, selecting and cooking meat, poultry and fish and a full color fruit and vegetable guide including many useful tips and suggestions.

Online: http://baisyaakovcookbook.com/

Example of recipes in the book below: