Finally, fifty years after I started eating pastrami sandwiches
and knishes at Wilshire’s Deli in Cedarhurst, Long Island, Nick
Zukin and Michael C. Zusman have written a cookbook that allows
delicatessen enthusiasts to make their favorite deli dishes at home.
Making your own knishes? No problem. Rustle up your own pickles? Bring
it on. Michael and Nick manage to make deli food simultaneously
contemporary and timeless, which is no easy feat. If reading The
Artisan Jewish Deli at Home doesn’t make you hungry,
you’ve never rhapsodized over a pastrami sandwich or driven a
hundred miles for a transcendent plate of latkes. If my
grandmother, the greatest Jewish deli–style cook I’ve ever
known, were alive she’d be kvelling over this book.”
/>—Ed Levine, founder of Seriouseats.com

/>“Michael and Nick’s handsome book brings some of your
favorite deli recipes and memories into your home kitchen. Their
pickles, knishes, and pastrami are just like you remember, only
better!”
—Joan Nathan, author of Jewish
Cooking in America

“Before you open this book, be sure
to crack a window, because your house will soon reek of the glorious
funk of delicatessen. The mouthwatering scent of baking bagels, bubbling
soups, and steaming pickled meats will conquer every square inch of
available air, bathing it all in a rich, delicious patina of schmaltz.
Don’t be surprised if a sarcastic waiter named Abe appears in
your kitchen. The Artisan Jewish Deli at Home will turn any house
into a delicatessen worth its weight in knishes.”
/>—David Sax, author of Save the Deli
/>
If you don’t happen to live near one of the new wave of
artisan-style Jewish delis that have sprung up around North America over
the last few years, not to worry. With this book, the world of
Jewish deli, in all its unsubtle splendor—can be yours in the
comfort (and privacy) of your own kitchen. And it’s not that
hard. Really. On top of all the Jewish deli classics, The
Artisan Jewish Deli at Home offers updates and new angles on the
oldways that are bound to thrill the palates of a modern generation of
eaters focused on quality ingredients and a lighter-handed approach to a
traditionally heavy cuisine.
The chapters are organized
into:  Starters and Sides; Soups and Salads; Eggs, Fish, and Dairy;
Beef; Bagels, Bialys, and Breads; and Pastries, Desserts, and Drinks.
The range of favorite recipes include: Crispy Potato Latkes with Chunky
Ginger Applesauce; Summer Chicken Salad with Tomatoes, Cucumber and
Cracklings; Wise Sons’ Chocolate Babka French Toast; Home Oven
Pastrami; and Celery Soda.
Added cultural context comes from
quick-hitting interviews with Joan Nathan and other Jewish food
luminaries; histories of a few deli stalwarts such as bagels and
pastrami; and first-hand reports from within the walls of the
authors’ favorite temples of modern Jewish gastronomy located
across the country including: Mile End Delicatessen in New York City;
Wise Sons Delicatessen in San Francisco; Kenny & Zuke's Delicatessen
in Portland, OR; Stopsky's Delicatessan in Mercer Island, Washington;
and Caplansky's Delicatessen in Toronto.