Book Salon with Alana Newhouse!

Win the perfect experience for those who love Jewish books and food: a literary salon with the author of The 100 Most Jewish Foods: A Debatable List, Alana Newhouse!

The 100 Most Jewish Foods lists the most iconic (and surprising!) food and recipes that are significant to Jewish history, culture, and the endless holidays. Described as "an amusing, yet serious alphabetical rundown of Jewish foods" by The New York Times, this fascinating and fun dive into Jewish culinary touchstones have contributing writers and chefs like Ruth Reichl, Eric Ripert, Joan Nathan, Michael Solomonov, Dan Barber, Yotam Ottolenghi, Gail Simmons, and many more!

You and three of your friends can sit and nosh with Tablet Magazine's Editor in Chief Alana Newhouse, and have an intimate conversation about her new book. At the end of the evening, everyone gets to go home with a story to tell and their own copy of Alana's book!

*Location will either be held in Alana's Brooklyn home or the winner's home, depending upon dates*

This is a unique experience, not available for purchase.

Offered Dates: Mutually agreed upon date from June 2020-June 2021

BIO: Alana New­house is the editor in chief of Tablet, a daily online magazine of Jewish news ideas and culture, which she founded in 2009. A graduate of Barnard College and Columbia's Graduate School of Journalism, New­house has contributed to The New York Times, The Wash­ing­ton Post, The Boston Globe, and Slate. She lives in New York City.

Russian Jewish Food Tour with Boris Fishman!

Borscht, pielmeni, herring under a fur coat...Russian Jews have a delicious cuisine that can be pretty intimidating. National Jewish Book Award finalist Boris Fishman is here to guide you on a Russian culinary journey! Win a chance to learn about the ins and outs of Russian Jewish cuisine from the author of Savage Feast, a personal memoir about Soviet immigration and culture told through family recipes.

An expert on food and its generational impact on Russian Jewish families, Boris will take you and three of your friends on a Russian food adventure throughout Manhattan and Brooklyn. Win the chance to take three of your friends on a food tour with Boris, where he'll show you his favorite Russian culinary gems and must-try menu items in NYC!

This is a unique experience, not available for purchase.

Offered Dates: Mutually agreed upon date from June 2020-June 2021

BIO: Boris Fish­man was born in Min­sk, Belarus. He is the author of the novels A Replacement Life (winner of the VCU Cabell First Novelist Award and the American Library Association's Sophie Brody Medal) and Don't Let My Baby Do Rodeo. Both were New York Times Notable Books of the Year. Savage Feast, a family memoir told through recipes, will be out in paperback in early 2020. His journalism has appeared in The New York­er, The New York Times Magazine, and many other publications. He lives in New York and teaches creative writing at Princeton University.

Make Cocktails with Aaron Goldfarb!

Many of us leave fancy cocktails to the experts at expensive bars and cocktail lounges, and have something simple (and boring!) at home. Well, cocktail master Aaron Goldfarb is here to help you expand your mixology skills in your very own kitchen, and maybe even impress some dinner guests!

Aaron is the hottest name in all things booze, as a writer and journalist of drinking culture--writing for major publications such as Esquire, Food & Wine, VinePair, PUNCH, and others. He was recently written up in The New York Times in an article that featured his new cocktail book, Gather Around Cocktails, which lists forty-five recipes to make for holidays throughout the year, including ones for Hanukkah, Purim, and even a kosher-for-Passover cocktail you could serve at your seder.

Win a chance for you and up to seven of your friends to have Aaron give an exclusive cocktail-making class in your kitchen. You won't be just making any drinks though...in addition to a short menu of beverages, he will also create an original cocktail recipe named after you! Just tell him your favorite spirits and flavor palette, and Aaron will not only invent a unique cocktail for you, but will also teach you and your friends how to create it. It'll be the most original thing you serve at your next gathering--and you'll even get your own keepsake of the recipe to treasure in your home!

This is a unique experience, not available for purchase.

Offered Dates: Mutually agreed upon date in 2020

BIO: Aaron Goldfarb's most recent book is Gather Around Cocktails: Drinks to Celebrate Usual and Unusual Holidays. His 2018 book, Hacking Whiskey: Smoking, Blending, Fat-Washing, and Other Whiskey Experiments, was a Tales of the Cocktail Spirited Awards finalist. He has written three novels, a short story collection, and a book of essays. He lives in Brooklyn with his family, and writes for Esquire, PUNCH, VinePair, and Whisky Advocate among others.

Wine Tasting and Pairing with Adam Teeter of VinePair!

Wine is one of life's greatest pleasures, and it doesn't have to be intimidating! In fact, learning about wine can be extremely fun. Adam Teeter, Co-Founder and CEO of VinePair, the most popular wine, beer, and spirits publication in America, will lead you and seven of your closest friends through an interactive wine 101 tasting that will leave you feeling confident to navigate any wine list or shop.

Adam has traveled across the country teaching wine at festivals such as Charleston Wine & Food, Santa Monica Wine Festival, Atlanta Wine & Food, and Brooklyn Crush to thousands of people, and now you and your friends will have an exclusive opportunity to learn from him as well! Win the chance to bring your friends to the VinePair headquarters in Manhattan, where you can learn about the six noble grapes, and how red, white, rosé, and sparkling wine are made, all while pairing the wines in Adam's class with light bites, while enjoying gorgeous views of the Empire State Building. If you don't feel like traveling, Adam can take his wines and bites and come to you! Kosher options available, if desired.

This is a unique experience, not available for purchase.

Offering Dates: Mutually Agreed Upon Date from June 2020-June 2021

BIO: Adam founded VinePair with one simple goal: create a publication he actually wanted to read in a space he was extremely passionate about. Since founding the publication, Adam has become recognized as an authority on how to make the drink world accessible to everyone as well as on the ever-evolving media landscape. He is the winner of the Left Bank Bordeaux Cup American Wine-Tasting Championship and holds an MBA from NYU Stern.

Tickets to Israel and a Tel Aviv Market Tour with Adeena Sussman!

We all know that chef Adeena Sussman's new Israeli cookbook, Sababa, is the talk of the town. It was written up in The New York Times as one of the "13 Best Cookbooks of Fall 2019" and "The Cookbooks You Need for 2020, as Selected by Chefs" and listed as one of "The Best Fall Cookbooks of the Year" by Bon Appetit. Profiled in Epicurious, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post and others, Adeena, a National Jewish Book Award finalist, is under a culinary spotlight.

If you've read her introduction to Sababa, you'll know Adeena loves Tel Aviv's Carmel Market, and finds most of her ingredients and products there. And if you really want to get to know Adeena, it has to be on her turf.

Win a chance to not only receive two round-trip tickets to Israel via El Al airlines, but also to have Adeena give you and up to three of your friends a personal two-hour tour of her favorite market! The tour will include tastings of Adeena's market favorites, as well as a discussion about Israeli food over coffee. You will go home with an amazing and insightful experience to tell everyone about--plus a copy of Sababa from the author herself.

This is a unique experience, not available for purchase.

Offered Dates for Israel Tickets:

April 27-June 15, 2020

September 1-14, 2020

October 19-December 14, 2020

January 11-March 18, 2021

April 12-June 11, 2021

Offered Dates for tour: Mutually Agreed upon Date until Ma, 2021

BIO: In addition to Sababa, which was her first major solo cookbook release, Adeena Suss­man has co-authored eleven cookbooks, including The New York Times #1 bestseller Cravings and its bestselling follow-up Hungry for More with Chris­sy Teigen. She is also the author of Tahi­ni. She moved to Israel in 2015, and lives footsteps away from Carmel Market. She has written about Israeli food for Food & Wine, The Wall Street Journal, and many other publications.

Cook with Eden Grinshpan in Jane Weitzman's Home!

Celebrity chef Eden Grinshpan has done it all--currently hosting Top Chef Canada, launching her own food shows on Cooking Channel, she has traveled the world in pursuit of finding new cuisines, opened up her own Middle Eastern Restaurant in New York City. She runs a popular blog, EdenEats, and her first cookbook will be published in fall 2020.

What can't she do?

Written about in The New York Times, Eater Magazine, Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, and many other publications, Eden is an inspirational Israeli culinary figure.

Win the chance to have a personal cooking class for you and up to five of your friends with Eden in the beautiful Manhattan apartment of Jewish Book Council president Jane Weitzman! Don't miss your opportunity to wine, dine, and get a sneak peek of Eden's forthcoming cookbook--filled with Jewish, Israeli, and many more cuisines from around the globe--and even learn how to make some of the recipes! You'll go home with recipes for new dishes to whip up for your next meal, plus signed copies of the pre-published book.

This is a unique experience, not available for purchase.

Offered Dates: Mutually Agreed Upon Date from June 2020-June 2021

BIO: Eden Grinshpan is the host of Top Chef Canada.

A graduate from Le Cordon Bleu in London, Eden has a "Grande Diplome" in Pastry and Cuisine. After graduating, she took her love of cuisine and travel to India, Israel, and Southeast Asia to learn the culture and cuisines of the countries she explored.

While in India, Eden volunteered with an orphanage called Ramanas Garden, where she re-opened a café to raise money and awareness for the orphanage. After returning to NYC, Eden completed a management program at The Institute of Culinary Education.

Soon after, Eden met Samantha Schutz, and together they created Eden Eats, a Cooking Channel show that explored the global culinary food scene. A year later, Eden launched Log On & Eat with Eden Grinshpan on Cooking Channel, where she traveled the country in search of the most adventurous, well-known food bloggers and social media influencers.

In May 2018, Eden partnered with by Chloe Founder Samantha Wasser to open DEZ, a Middle Eastern fast casual restaurant in NYC that featured a menu inspired by Eden's Israeli heritage and travels.

Eden is working on her first cookbook with Clarkson Potter, which will come out in the fall of 2020.

Eden lives in Brooklyn with her husband, Ido, and her two-year-old daughter, Ayv.

Cooking Class with Jake Cohen!

Don't we all love a nice, Jewish boy? Well, look no further than chef Jake Cohen, who is as nice and Jewish as they come, with the addition of having incredible culinary talent. After studying at the Culinary Institute of America and working at NYC institutions like DANIEL and ABC Kitchen, Jake became a food critic for Time Out New York and recipe tester at Saveur Magazine. Now, he's the Editor/Test Kitchen Director at TheFeedFeed and is coming out with his first cookbook, JEW-ISH, in spring 2021. Not to mention that he's famous for hosting some of the most delicious Shabbat dinners you'll ever see--all documented on his mouth-watering Instagram feed.

Win an exclusive opportunity to cook any type of Jewish cuisine you want with culinary expert Jake Cohen! You can bring up to three of your friends to Jake's apartment in Long Island City to hang out and have a personal cooking class in the chef's own kitchen. Use all that you learn for your next dinner party or Shabbat!

This is a unique experience, not available for purchase.

Offered Dates: Mutually agreed upon date in 2020. Unavailable March 15-20, June 4-2, July 2-19

BIO: Jake Cohen is a food writer and recipe developer from NYC. After working at Daniel and ABC Kitchen, he transitioned into media, working in the test kitchen of Saveur Magazine before spending time as the Food Editor of Tasting Table and Restaurant Critic of Time Out New York. He currently spends his days as the Editorial and Test Kitchen Director of Feedfeed, while his nights are spent working on his first cookbook, JEW-ISH, which is to be published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt , Spring 2021. When he isn't cooking, he's constantly eating and documenting it on his Instagram, @jakecohen, where you can slide into his DM's.

Kosher Cooking Class with Naomi Nachman!

After moving from Sydney, Australia to Woodmere, NY, chef Naomi Nachman quickly established herself as the tristate area's sought-after kosher chef. Known for her personal chef and catering business, "The Aussie Gourmet," Naomi is also famous for her TV/media personality, food writing, and more. She does video cooking demos on her show Sunny Side Up on Kosher.com, and hosts her own show, "Table for Two with Naomi Nachman," on The Nachum Segal Network. Naomi also pioneered her own kosher Chopped-style competition.

Win the opportunity to have an exclusive kosher cooking class with Naomi in her kitchen located in Woodmere, NY! Bring up to three of your closest friends to learn how to cook any Jewish dishes you've always wanted to make, while getting to know the talented chef and cookbook author. Not only will you go home with recipes you'll use for many future Shabbats, Jewish holidays, and dinner parties, but you'll also get to keep personal copies of her most recent cookbook, Perfect Flavors. This is the perfect gift to give your family, friends, or loved ones. It's not only verified kosher, but also verified delicious.

Offered Dates: Mutually Agreed Upon Date from June 2020-February 2021

BIO: Naomi first started her own kosher personal chef business, The Aussie Gourmet, in 2004 to cater weekly and Shabbat/Yom Tov meals for families and individuals within The Five Towns and neighboring communities. Naomi has her own cooking show, Sunny Side Up, on the Kosher.com network and also hosts her own weekly show, "Table for Two with Naomi Nachman" on The Nachum Segal Network - in which discusses all food-related topics. Naomi writes a monthly column for the Mishpacha magazine covering food and travel, and is also a contributing editor to The Jewish Home newspaper for the last 10 years, distributed in many states across the country writing weekly recipes.

Naomi has also been a guest host on the QVC TV network and has made a variety of guest appearances on CBS TV (in both NY and Washington), NBC Morning News, Fox 5 New York, and the Hallmark Channel and has been quoted by The Wall Street Journal on Jewish food trends. Naomi has become known as a kosher food media influencer and has represented many brands on social media, including Gefen, Tropicana, Breakstone's, Ore-ida, Gourmet Glatt and Maxwell House-d .

In 2017, Naomi published her debut cookbook, Perfect for Pesach with Artscroll Publications; and in Naomi published her second cookbook, Perfect Flavors, in November 2018 (also with Artscroll Publications). She has sold more than 22,000 copies of her books.

Naomi is often sought after to do cooking demonstrations, book signings and to produce Kosher Chopped-style cooking competitions across the world, where she shares her immense enthusiasm for food.

Can't get enough of 2019 NJBA Food Writing & Cookbook awardees and panel judges? Win a chance to own their brilliant cookbooks (some of them signed) to keep in your kitchen!

The collection includes:

Jewish Cuisine in Hungary by András Koerner (signed)

Sababa by Adeena Sussman

Shuk by Einat Admony and Janna Gurr

Savage Feast by Boris Fishman

The Gefilte Manifesto by Jeffrey Yoskowitz (signed)

Beyond the North Wind by Darra Goldstein (signed)

Molly on the Range by Molly Yeh (signed)

The Seasonal Jewish Kitchen by Amelia Saltsman (signed)

There's no way to better celebrate this year's Jewish culinary standouts than to cook recipes straight from their books!

That's not all...

Joining the impressive cookbook collection is the most delicious (and beautiful!) assortment of three organic extra virgin olive oils and a bottle of apple cider vinegar from The Pineapple Collaborative, a food company run by two Jewish women, focused on obtaining high-quality products made by women. Not only a stylish display for your kitchen, this collection will also provide a delightful flavor to anything you cook!

Have you ever thought about buying a new Jewish cookbook, but are so daunted by all the amazing options that you can't choose? Well, now you don't have to limit yourself to just one...you can have twelve! Jewish Book Council has curated a collection of iconic, sought-after Jewish cookbooks, many of which are signed!

This collection includes:

Bringing It Home by Gail Simmons (signed)

Israeli Soul and Zahav by Michael Solomonov (signed)

Breaking Breads by Uri Scheft

Smitten Kitchen Cookbook by Deb Perelman (signed)

The 100 Most Jewish Foods by Alana Newhouse

Jack's Wife Freda by Maya and Dean Jankelowitz (signed)

Millennial Kosher by Chanie Apfelbaum (signed)

Braided by Beth Ricanati (signed)

Meal and a Spiel by Elana Horwich

The Jewish Food Hero Cookbook and Feeding Women of the Bible, Feeding Ourselves by Kenden Alfond

Also included is a $75 gift card to an NYC culinary institution: Jack's Wife Freda. Chic and quite Instagrammable, it famously serves delicious Israeli/South African/American cuisine. The restaurant was inspired by the owner's Jewish immigrant grandparents and their love of food and hospitality. Jack's Wife Freda has three locations in NYC: Soho, West Village, and Chelsea.

Whether this starter kit is all for you, your loved one, or gifts to split among friends, don't miss your chance to win this curated culinary collection!

Bagels & lox, caviar, herring, babka and rugelach?these Jewish classics are what the NYC-appetizing icon, Russ & Daughters, does best. For over 106 years, Russ & Daughters have been owned and run by four generations of the Russ family. Russ & Daughters has not only established itself as a quintessential Jewish culinary experience, but also an NYC touchstone.

Win an exclusive chance to have an interactive experience with both the famous institution and one of the current owners herself! Bring up to nine of your closest friends on a private tour of the "Russ & Daughters: An Appetizing History" at the American Jewish Historical Society (AJHS), guided by the fourth generation owner, Niki Russ Federman, and Executive Director of AJHS, Annie Polland. After the tour, you and your friends get to engage in conversation with Niki and Annie in AJHS's beautiful Emma Lazarus sitting room! Noshes by Russ & Daughters will be provided, and each guest goes home with a copy of the book Russ & Daughters: The House that Herring Built.

This is a unique experience, not available for purchase.

Offered Dates for Exhibit and Conversation in Emma Lazarus Parlor Room: Mutually agreed upon date until August 2020

Offered Dates for Conversation in Emma Lazarus Parlor Room: Mutually agreed upon date until March 18, 2021

Niki Russ Federman Bio: Niki Russ Federman was pretty much born in a herring barrel, with a sharp knife in her hand and a penchant for caviar. Educated at Amherst College, Niki worked in a variety of professions - from the art world to international development - before realizing that her appetite was fulfilled by continuing her family's 106-year-old culinary legacy at Russ & Daughters. Russ & Daughters is a New York culinary and cultural icon, known for the highest quality appetizing foods: smoked fish, caviar, bagels, bialys, babka, and other traditional baked goods. The home of bagels and lox since 1914, Russ & Daughters has been continuously owned and operated by four generations of the Russ family. Today, along with her cousin Josh Russ Tupper, she is the 4th generation to own and run Russ & Daughters, Russ & Daughters Cafe, Russ & Daughters at the Jewish Museum, and Russ & Daughters at the Brooklyn. Niki appears frequently in a variety of media, including The New York Times, NPR, Food Network, The New Yorker, Martha Stewart, Travel Channel, and Vogue.
She is also one of the subjects of The Sturgeon Queens, a PBS documentary about Russ & Daughters. Niki is a board member of the Lower East Side Partnership and Chair of the Friends of the Educational Alliance. She is fluent in several languages, but alas, Yiddish is not one of them. Niki was named one of Crain's New York Business' "40 Under 40" and Eater's "New Guard of Power in NYC Dining."

Annie Polland Bio: Dr. Annie Polland is a public historian, author and Executive Director of the American Jewish Historical Society. Previously, she served as the Vice President for Programs & Education at the Lower East Side Tenement Museum, where she oversaw exhibits and interpretation. She is the co-author, with Daniel Soyer, of Emerging Metropolis: New York Jews in the Age of Immigration, winner of the 2012 National Jewish Book Award. She received her Ph.D. in History from Columbia University, and served as Vice President of Education at the Museum at Eldridge Street, where she wrote Landmark of the Spirit (Yale University).

Birthright Israel Private Chef Cooks Dinner for Four!

Spice up your night with a private dinner cooked for you and your friends by Alexis Sicklick, Birthright Israel alumna and chef! Since the program's inception twenty years ago, over 750,000 young Jewish adults have experienced Israel's homeland, heritage, and flavors through this once-in-a-lifetime gift. You can experience the flavors of Israel firsthand and the impact Birthright Israel Foundation has had on an entire generation with an opportunity to have Alexis Sicklick take you on your own Israel journey through food.

Win the chance for Alex to come to your home and cook a meal for you and up to three of your friends! But they won't be just any dishes--Alex will cook only from National Jewish Book Award finalist, Sababa by Adeena Sussman. That's right, you and your friends will taste award-winning Israeli recipes made by the Jewish professional chef herself!

Offering Dates: Mutually Agreed Upon Date from June 2020-June 2021. Three weeks' notice must be given to schedule your private dinner.

Bio: Alexis Sicklick is a private chef in New York City. She went on Birthright Israel in summer 2019. She currently hosts sold-out Birthright Israel themed pop-up dinners around NYC.

Taste and Learn About Historical Jewish Food!

Many of us believe that we probably know all there is to know about Jewish cuisine -- well, Irene Kronhill Pletka, Vice Chair of the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research, is here to show you some Jewish dishes you've never heard of before...or even knew were Jewish!

Founder of the Kronhill Pletka Foundation, which supports Jewish culture, the Yiddish language, and Jewish communities in Europe, Irene is well versed in global Jewish history and cuisine. From one dish originating with Cosimi de Medici to another made by crypto-Jews to fool their neighbors into thinking that they were eating pork, you and three of your friends will not only get to try these mysterious dishes prepared by Irene herself, but also learn about their fascinating Jewish history.

Join Irene for an evening in her fabulous Upper West Side apartment with your friends, and go home with a story to tell, new recipes to make, and facts to impress your family and friends!

*Not kosher

This is a unique experience, not available for purchase.

Offered Dates: April 1, April 29, May 6, 12, 13, 27 or a mutually agreed upon date in 2020

Bio: Irene Kronhill Pletka was born in Shanghai, raised in Australia and has lived in many places around the world. She is a curious foodie, braving chefs and home cooks to find out what they do and why. She has been a psychologist, a real estate broker and had a long career as an artist and teacher. Nowadays she is an activist philanthropist, serving on many boards around the world, leading tours of Eastern Europe and happily cooking and eating on a global scale.