Too Good To Passover: Sephardic & Judeo-Arabic Seder Menus and Memories from Africa, Asia and Europe

Last year we decided to expand our repertoire of Passover foods for the Seder. It's not that we disliked Aunt Rachel's chicken matzoh ball soup, but we wanted to add some more spice and excitement in the menu! Enter Jennifer Abadi's Too Good to Passover cookbook. I had taken a few classes from her in the past and knew that not only would the food be amazing, but also that the instructions would be super clear and the ingredients wouldn't be impossible crazy hard to find.I'll talk about the food in a bit, but I first want to explain why this cookbook is way MORE than just a bunch of recipes. It's filled with Sephardic and Judeo-Arabic history that I, as an Ashkenazi Jew, knew NOTHING about. There are over 20 chapters, each dedicated to a specific country or territory in Africa, Asia and Europe. Each chapter starts with a map and details about the area's culture and cuisine...and (this is one of my favorite parts) interviews with people from those regions. Some of them are older and lived through wars, such as Deanna from Greece, who talked wine being in the bathroom, and others are young, like Beejhy, who, as an Ethiopian Jew, who said that the actual slaugthering a lamb was an integral part of their Seder.So now, the food. There are lots of ways to find recipes. First, Each country/region has it’s own passover seder foods - even a speciic seder plate., many of which Jennifer illustrated herself. I love seeing how all the recipes contained local ingredients. For example, in Algeria the Haroset has bosc pears, in Iraq it has date syrup and pischios, and in Yemen it’s Pomegranite and toasted sesame seeds. You can find the recipes either by reading the regional chapter OR by alphabetical or categorical order. I tried so many things. My family’s fav was an Italian “lasgana” made of matzohs, a Ladino Egg-lemon soup, an Indian Cauliflower dish, a Greek Spanikoita (meat pie) to die for.I’m including photos from the book so you can see how the book is laid out and how interesting it is. This book brought new life to our Seder, as the food opened our eyes to our disasporic heritage. I can’t wait for Passover again this year!

I really wanted to like this book, and I love the recipes, but, the font(s) used in, for example, the "Notes and Observations" is too cutsey for easy reading, perhaps it is supposed to mimic handwriting but when combined with contrast that isn't the greatest it just makes for a tiring read.I'm hoping that this will come out on KINDLE with the normal options for font types and contrast, I'd buy it in a second. As it is, I, and my partner, are debating whether to return it .... partner thinks it's ridiculous to keep it, particularly as we already have her Fistful of Lentils, with similar problems, and it rarely gets used.

This cookbook is well organized and well thought out. I love how I can flip from chapter to chapter and easily learn about how each community celebrates Passover. It reads like a travel journal with notes and observations from the author about each community, as well as an illustrated seder plate opposite each seder menu. For my seder this year I will pass the book around for guest to read one of the many quotes or stories so that we can learn more about various customs and rituals.This is a book I will be referring to for years to come that will have a special place on the shelf with my other few but favorite cookbooks!

I absolutely loved this book and I am not a cook. I make Passover dinner once/year and love the holiday. The comprehensive descriptions of Jewish life in many different countries is a walk through history and Jewish genealogy. The recipes in this book, the personal interviews and the thought that went into this book are overwhelming. This book could easily cost much more than the listed price as it is a work of love. I will treasure it. Kudos to the author.

I loved the variety of the charoset recipes, especially, which makes this book ideal for anyone who likes to serve multiple kinds of charoset at Seder. I gave the book as a gift to my friend who invites me to Seder and she was thrilled. She couldn't wait to sit down and read the stories that accompany the fascinating collection of recipes. Kudos to Jennifer Abadi for capturing cultural memories and flavors from throughout the Jewish Diaspora.

Just received the book and immediately sat down and began looking through it. I cannot wait to begin cooking. Just skimming I can tell this is truly a labor of love. I am already thinking who I could buy copies for as gifts. There are no glossy photographs of food — it’s not that kind of book - but the stories and recipes are so descriptive, you don’t miss them. A remarkable compilation.

Too Good to Passover is the definitive Jewish resource for recipes and historical narratives on all things Passover (in the canon, as they say)! It represents not only an amazing labor of love but a fascinating comprehensive culinary work which will have resonating value for food enthusiasts and historians! Kudos on this stunning book!

Such a great cookbook. Well tested recipes and great stories too. It's not just for Passover either! This will definitely add some flair to your everyday cooking! I loved her last book and this one is amazing too!

This may be the only Passover cookbook you need. If you're from an Ashkenazi background, you probably already have a repertoire of recipes passed down by bubbe, and if you don't, there are several excellent cookbooks to help you out.But this book blows that brisket right out of the water (okay, okay, braising liquid). You don't do kitniyot? That's okay. This book will still offer you plenty of delicious options.Ours is an 'Ashephardic' household, so the rice dishes in particular were a revelation. Each section is meticulously researched, and there are more variations on charoset than you can shake a cinnamon stick at--when I brought the Yemeni version to our shul's young adults seder, I had nearly a dozen people lining up for the recipe afterwards.This book can really be used in two distinct ways: for the ever important meal planning during Pesach, and as an anthropological resource, because there really is so much depth in the research that has gone into this. As a cook who happens to adore all things academic, this was brilliant; the little family and minhag anecdotes offer little glimpses into the traditions of Jews across the diaspora.I can't imagine any Jewish cook, or indeed non-Jewish cook, who wouldn't appreciate this.And yes, all the recipes we tried were absolutely delicious: I used a smattering across various countries for 1st night seder, and everything was a hit. Of particular note is that the author also teaches cooking classes, so her instructions were immaculate and the timing offered was spot on--so rare! Normally recipes profess to take 20min and suck you in for the better part of an afternoon, but Ms Abadi is meticulous.I wish it did come in a hardback version; the binding on this very thick book is bound to get destroyed and I want this as a family heirloom.

I collect cookbooks about Jewish Food, and I would say this one is as important as Roden and Gil Marks. Amazing "folk" recipes and foodways of a lesser known realm in Jewish cooking. Loads of recipes with flour which I don't really understand.

Amazing recipes and anecdotes