Beyond the North Wind

Starred review from December 1, 2019
Flavors waft from the pages of the latest cookbook by food scholar Goldstein (Fire + Ice, 2015). Her informative sidebars, covering such subjects as "At the dacha [country home]" and the August 14 honey festival, envelop and elevate the book's 100 recipes in uncommon ways. Infused vodka, for instance. How many non-Russians would imagine that an alcoholic beverage fashioned from stale black bread and a few other ingredients could reach the culinary heights Goldstein describes, right along with infusions of pepper or cherry or tarragon? Readers will find lots to learn, including lessons on Peter the Great in the kitchen, blini made from buckwheat, and the art of zakuski (savory hors d'oeuvres). Not all these dishes are easy to cook, some require special ingredients, and several?hot cranberry sauce (over turkey, for instance), little fish pies, pickled smelts, braised duck with turnips, black currant cheesecake?are far from bland.. Photographs tell a story, as well, of a cold climate warmed by the skills of contemporary Russian chefs and ever-open hospitality. Cheers to that.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)