FROM JOANNA, THE GOOD WITCH

A million years ago in Park Slope, or perhaps it was two million, when I was still living in my beloved studio apartment above Melissa's bakery on 7th Avenue and had very few personal responsibilities beyond filing food articles on time for my job, a good friend (@helenbaldus) introduced me to another burgeoning food writer and recipe developer Leah Koenig.

We met over coffee to commiserate, share contacts, and career hopes for the future. I liked Leah immediately (who doesn't?) and it has been a true joy to watch her become the absolute cookbook legend that she has in the years since! From "The Jewish Cookbook" to "Portico" to"Modern Jewish Cooking" she is a font of creativity and culinary wisdom, and I am BEYOND thrilled to welcome her to the Witch this fall for an event to celebrate her latest release, "The Dessert Table: 100 Joyful Jewish Sweets".

Please join Picture Book and I on Sunday, Nov 29 at 10am for a Hanukkah Cookie Baking Demo and Cookbook Signing as Leah takes us through making Almond Croissant Rugelach! So delicious I could scream! There will be plenty for attendees to sample, as well as other treats from the book. How lucky are we?!? See you there!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Leah Koenig is an IACP Award-winning author of seven cookbooks including the acclaimed The Jewish Cookbook and PORTICO: Cooking and Feasting in Rome's Jewish Kitchen, which was the IACP 2024 International Cookbook winner, and a finalist in the National Jewish Book Awards. Her forthcoming cookbook The Dessert Table: 100 Joyful Jewish Sweets will be published by W.W. Norton September, 2026.

Leah's writing and recipes can be found in The New York Times, New York Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Food & Wine, Epicurious, and Food52, among other publications. She also writes a weekly newsletter, The Jewish Table, which shares recipes and stories from the world of Jewish food.

In addition to writing, Leah leads cooking demonstrations and workshops around the country and world. She lives in Brooklyn, New York with her husband and two children. 

ABOUT THE BOOK

The dessert table is the star of any Jewish gathering: sprinkle cookies and honey cake, airy meringues and flaky rugelach, sweets brimming with tender apples and bright pops of pomegranate. Eager to bring a little extra sweetness to all our tables, Leah Koenig takes us on a delightful tour through the 2,000-year-old tradition of Jewish sweets. She shares recipes and stories from historic Jewish communities in Venice, Syria, and Curaçao; home bakers from Hungary and Poland; and up-and-coming diaspora bakeries across the United States. Her 100 all-new recipes include creative takes on familiar favorites, like Chai-Spiced Cheesecake or Chocolate Turtle Babka, and bring lesser-known gems to the conversation, such as a lush Orange and Almond Cake and Fluffy Apricot Jam Doughnuts inspired by Hungarian fánk. Beloved for her well-researched storytelling and clear, encouraging directions born from her own kitchen, Koenig energizes the dessert canon as no one else can.

“The Dessert Table is like two books in one and both of them are great! One gives us fascinating stories about the culture, traditions, and sweets of the Jewish diaspora, and the other is chockablock with recipes we dessert lovers will want to make. It's a must-read and a must-bake.” —Dorie Greenspan, New York Times-best-selling author of Dorie's Anytime Cakes