The New Yiddish Kitchen

March 14, 2016
Miller (The Zenbelly Cookbook), the founder and owner of Paleo-focused catering company Zenbelly, and Robbins (Down South Paleo) join forces to offer a collection of Jewish dishes that's a little heavy on the schmaltz but still full of gluten-free and Paleo-friendly riffs on favorites. Some dishes don't require any additional effort or steps to be Paleo-friendlyâreaders will instantly recognize the chopped liver, pastrami, balsamic-braised short ribs, and sweet and sour cabbage soupâbut others, such as challah and bagels, require some work and ingenuity. Cassava flour, for example, is used as a stand-in for matzo meal in matzo balls and for wheat flour in kreplach blintzes and knishes. But once readers have made a few adjustments, they're free to dig into Reubens with abandon, and the authors pack in plenty of other grain-free and gluten-free dishes (pan-roasted chicken with figs and olives, savory lamb goulash, Israeli salad). Ingredients and steps are fairly straightforward, and the authors do their best to avoid arcane or hard-to-source ingredients. Even if readers loathe the faux commentary from Jewish grandmothers that accompany each recipe, they'll appreciate the chance to eat their kreplach and haveit too.