Sep

25 2016

Breathing New Life into Ashkenazi Cuisine

10:00AM - 11:00AM  

Arnold Hall 96 Wentworth Street

Contact Mark Swick
swickmn@cofc.edu

From holiday meals to Jewish delis, the foods of Eastern European Jews tell a beautiful story of American Jewish life. And yet for Liz Alpern and Jeffrey Yoskowitz, young entrepreneurs in Brooklyn, something was off. The foods they grew up loving were being forgotten by members of their generation. They penned a manifesto and the duo spent five years researching and cooking together, looking back to Eastern Europe and to the Lower East Side to glean kitchen wisdom from generations past.

In their book, The Gefilte Manifesto: New Recipes for Old World Jewish Foods, the two reclaim time-honored techniques and ingredients to produce dishes that will make you rethink everything you thought you knew about Jewish food. By sharing the stories and culinary wisdom behind many of their recipes, Liz and Jeffrey will paint a picture of the past, present and future of Ashkenazi Jewish cuisine. Questions and discussion will be encouraged! Books will be available for sale.

Alpern and Yoskowitz will also be leading a demonstration on the basics of Jewish pickling on Monday evening, September 26th. Young professionals and recent alumni are our targeted audience, and an RSVP is required.

Liz Alpern and Jeffrey Yoskowitz are the co-owners of The Gefilteria, a culinary venture that reimagines Ashkenazi Jewish cuisine, and co-authors of The Gefilte Manifesto: New Recipes for Old World Jewish Foods (Flatiron 2016). Alpern’s career in food is driven by her passion for bringing people together. She now works in Brooklyn and around the globe as a cook, recipe tester, educator and entrepreneur. Alpern holds an MBA from Baruch College and has been featured in Forbes’ 30 Under 30 list for food and wine, as well as The New Yorker and Saveur. Jeffrey Yoskowitz fell in love with the art of lacto-fermentation while training as a pickler on an organic farm. He has since worked in the food world as an entrepreneur, consultant, cook, public speaker, and a writer for The New York Times, The Atlantic, Slate, and Gastronomica. He was also featured in the Forbes’ 30 Under 30.