DESCRIPTION

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.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Leah Koenig is the author of seven previous cookbooks, including the IACP Award-winning Portico: Cooking and Feasting in Rome's Jewish Kitchen. Her writing and recipes have been published in Food & Wine, Bon Appétit, the New York Times, and more. She lives in Brooklyn, New York.

REVIEWS

“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

“I'm enamored with Jewish sweets because the flavors are so different from what I grew up with and I am always looking for ideas of desserts to bring to my Jewish friends' holiday dinners. Leah Koenig is the authority on Jewish food, and I always know I can trust her, so having a book full of desserts from her exacting mind is my dream come true.” —Ben Mims, author of Crumbs: Cookies and Sweets from Around the World