A new cookbook in the mail is some of the best kind of mail out there. I was very excited when the Starters & Sides Cookbook showed up in my mailbox recently. This cookbook, by Leah Schapira and Victoria Dwek of Ami Magazine and CookKosher.com fame, is just as beautiful and just as well laid out as their Passover Made Easy cookbook that I featured this past Spring.
This cookbook features pages and pages of easy to follow recipes for tasty and innovate side dishes, appetizers and salads. This cookbook is totally made for me. I love side dishes! I could make a dinner out of the appetizer menu!
When this cookbook showed up, I quickly ripped it out of the packaging to page through the book. Like the Passover cookbook, the book features some fantastic tips and ideas. The recipes are simple, without complicated ingredients. Every recipe features a full-color photo, which is always helpful.
I especially liked that there were many recipes in the cookbook that were vegetarian and most of the recipes didn’t use processed products. I tried to stick to whole foods as much as possible.
A recipe that caught my eye, that I thought would be perfect for an upcoming dinner I was hosting, were the kishka and zucchini towers. Homemade kishka is a fantastic treat once in a while. This vegetarian appetizer is perfect for shabbat or any other dinner when entertaining. Sharing the recipe with you today.
In addition to the cookbook that the publisher sent me, they have also graciously offered one cookbook for one of my lucky readers. Don’t forget to enter the giveaway below! Good luck! Hope you enjoy the cookbook as much as I did!
- 3 large zucchini, cut into ½-inch slices
- ¼ cup olive oil
- salt to taste
- coarse black pepper to taste
- 2 cups flour
- ½ cup breadcrumbs
- ¼cup brown sugar
- 1 Tbsp paprika
- 2 tsp salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
- ⅔ cup cold water
- ⅔ cup oil
- Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Prepare the kishka: In a small bowl, combine flour, breadcrumbs, brown sugar, paprika, salt, and pepper.
- Stir in water and oil. Mold the mixture into a log that is the same width as your zucchinis. Freeze log for at least 15 minutes.
- Place zucchini rounds on one prepared baking sheet. Remove kishka from freezer and slice into ½-inch rounds. Place kishka rounds on second prepared baking sheet.
- Brush zucchini and kishka rounds with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Bake for 45-50 minutes until zucchini is tender and kishka and zucchini are golden on the edges.
- Remove from oven. Create towers by topping a kishka round with a zucchini round, another kishka round, and a second zucchini round.
About Hindy Garfinkel
I love sweet and white potatoes with olive oil, fresh onions and mushrooms. 🙂
I love a salad or in the fall something with carbs
love this tomato salad recipe with garlic and scallions
Looks like a great cookbook! I love my teriyaki chicken salad, Simple but so good.
My go-to side dish is Potato Kugel – quick, easy, always well received
Squash kugel
green beans with sesame seeds &soy sauce
Roasted veg are always my go to in a pinch!
Roasted asparagus with olive oil and sea salt is definitely my go to side dish!
breaded cauliflower
Purple cabbage salad
roasted veggies, rice palif
almost any vegetable, drizzled with olive oil and kosher salt and roasted at 375
I so want to try this cookbook!
One of my favorite side dishes is a simple broccoli salad.
Potatoes cooked with spices
I would so love to try a new cookbook for side dishes. that’s always the toughest part of my menu planning
Roasted root veggies with rosemary.
BTW, what do you think is the sauce in the picture? Honey Mustard?
roasted veggies
roasted veggies. also, this recipe is such a simple delicious sounding and fancy idea!
orzo with roasted veggies or salad w strawberries,mango,craisins and candied pecans! this looks great, thanks for the chance!
My go-to salad is terra chip/turkey salad!
i love a simple hasselbeck youkon potato with onion soup mix and olive oil. YUm always a hit and simple simple
I need new ideas for side dishes. This book sounds awesome. I usually do something simple like steamed veggies or rice.
citrus salad with poppy seed dressing
spring rolls with dipping sauce
israeli couscous!
Ceased salad!
Avocado and hearts of palm salad!
Gosh I have so many goto sides… right now my best one is a quinoa salad with peppers, onions, chickpeas and more! YUMMY!
I love the avocado/tomato/hearts of palm salad!!
Definitely the hearts of palm/tomato/avocado, or a simple Israeli salad.
So pretty!
Quinoa salad with persian cucmbers and tomatos
That recipe looks delish! Have you made it yet?
My go to side dish is challah kugel
Apple-walnut salad and popcorn cauliflower are two of my main defaults.
my go to side roasted veggies with salt pepper and EVOO
Israeli salad!
Broccoli kugel
Pasta salad of any kind!
sweet potatoe pie is my go to side dish!
I have a great quinoa salad with a tumeric curry dressing. I have the quinoa made before Shabbos and can then quickly throw all the ingredients and dressing together right before the meal.
beautiful pic and creative use of kishka!
I love making roasted green beans- so easy and yummy!
Fresh salads, with homemade dressings, of course! 🙂
Great review Hindy. I especially like that you mentioned that the recipes don’t have many processed ingredients.
Would be great to win!
Apple kugel is my standby.
potatoes! all different types!
Looks like another awesome title from this pair.
Everyone needs more recipes for starters and sides, so this is a terrific idea for a cookbook. And I haven’t has kishke is years and years! I remember loving it.
As in Hip Kosher Ronnie Fein? Most awesome cookbook! Wish it had pictures though.
Sounds like the perfect cookbook for me.
Love popcorn cauliflower!
The one cookbook I really need!!! Love the kishke / zucchini stacks!
looks like a great cookbook!!
The kishke towers look really impressive
I would love to add it to my cookbook collection. Recipe above looks great!
these are so pretty—i’m sure they’re delicious, too!
I would love to own this cookbook, its a great idea!
I would never have thought to put kishka and zucchini together like that!