GOLDA gang,
Last week we brought you movies, this week we’re talking books. Writer, podcaster, and publisher Zibby Owens joins today’s episode of GOLDA Girls to share her picks for summer reads. We each added a few of our own, which means that below you’ll find more than enough great books to keep you entertained all summer long.
You can get the full commentary about each pick on the podcast. Stick around to the end of this newsletter for a special recipe from my summer pick, Leah Eskin’s Italian Jewish novel Like Wafers in Honey.
Zibby’s Picks:
Forty Love, by Jane Costello
The End of My Life Is Killing Me: The Unexpected Joys of a Cancer Slacker, by Annabelle Gurwitch
Enormous Wings, by Laurie Frankel
The Lost Mozart, by David K. Israel
With Friends Like You, by Amy Chozick
The Half Life, by Rachel Beanland
Breathing Under Water, by Jacqueline Friedland
GOLDA Girls’ Picks:
Like Wafers and Honey, by Leah Eskin (Stephanie’s pick)
Leah graciously shared one of the recipes from the book, check it out below.
Long Island Girls, by Gabrielle Korn (Esther’s pick)
I Feel Bad About My Neck, by Nora Ephron (Gabby’s pick)
The Book of Psalms (Diana’s pick)
Check out the Jewish Publication Society’s 2002 translation or scholar Robert Alter’s 2009 translation with commentary.
Jewish Book Council’s Pick:
We asked our friends at the Jewish Book Council what they were reading this summer.
The World Between, by Zeeva Buka
This summer, I'm reading The World Between, the new novel by National Jewish Book Award winner Zeeva Bukai. The book takes readers into the mind of an aging doyenne of the Yiddish theater who finds herself in a sanatorium in Jaffa after her marriage falls apart. I love Zeeva's gorgeous, lyrical writing, her complicated, dynamic characters, and her ability to tackle complex elements of Jewish history and experience.
—Kate Schmier, Director of Publishing Relations, Jewish Book Council
Good for the Jews: Tsion Cafe
Each week on GOLDA Girls we end the show by sharing something that’s good for the Jews. Co-host Esther Chehebar shouted out Tsion Cafe in Harlem, run by the amazing chef Beejhy Barhany, who I profiled last year in GOLDA. Check out their store and Beejhy’s cookbook GURSHA.
You can listen to the full episode of GOLDA Girls on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
A Roman Jewish Summer Recipe
Like Wafers in Honey is the debut novel from food writer and longtime Chicago Tribune columnist Leah Eskin. It tells the story of a Jewish family in Pitigliano, Italy—known as Little Jerusalem—in the 1940s, interspersed with the real-life story of Edda Servi Machlin, who wrote The Classic Cuisine of the Italian Jews in 1981. It’s a fascinating novel, and filled with the kind of delicious detail only a food writer could provide. I asked Leah if she would share a recipe from the book, and she graciously agreed. Here’s the Roman Jewish dish known as concia, or marinated zucchini.
Concia
Marinated Zucchini
Pareve
This free-form recipe requires no measuring and can be adjusted to your taste. As a rule of thumb, use about 1 clove fresh garlic and 1 handful of basil leaves per 2 pounds/908 grams of zucchini.
Ingredients:
Young green zucchini
Olive oil
Garlic
Basil leaves
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
White wine vinegar
Instructions:
1. Trim the ends off the zucchini, but don’t peel them. Slice them the long way into ¼- inch-thick planks. Let dry on a kitchen towel or paper towels, about 1 hour.
2. Line a sheet pan with paper towels. Pour olive oil into a wide, heavy skillet to a depth of about ¼ inch and set over medium-high heat. When hot, add 1 garlic clove and a few zucchini planks, without crowding. When garlic turns golden, use tongs to pull it out and set aside. Pan-fry the zucchini until beautifully brown, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Transfer to the prepared sheet pan, and repeat, working in batches, until all the zucchini is cooked.
3. Chop together the golden garlic clove, fresh garlic, basil, salt, and pepper.
4. Layer the zucchini into a snug-fitting glass or ceramic container, sprinkling each layer with the garlic-herb mixture and a splash of vinegar. Cover and let marinate in the refrigerator for at least several hours and up to several days. Serve cold or at room temperature.
Shabbat Shalom and stay GOLDA,
Stephanie