Babka, Boulou & Blintzes is a fantastic book and I found it fascinating. I loved the pictures, stories history and recipes and I have wanted to try baking babka but felt intimidated ti try this book makes it feel doable. The recipes look easy to follow and I can’t wait to get started. Looking forward to trying these recipes. This is a lovely book and I highly recommend it!

A delightful collection of recipes and info. The recipes are well-written and they work, something that a lot of cookbooks cannot say.

Delicious recipes and wonderful tidbits make this cookbook the ideal gift for any chocolate lover, or food lover in general.

Everything about this cookbook is gorgeous. The photos, the stories, and the history all make for an entertaining read. Alas, between the time I received this arc and when I read it my health decided to make all things fun and tasty forbidden, so I can't speak for how good the treats are. Please let me know if any of you try them so I can live vicariously through your tastebuds. Highly recommended!

This is a very interesting book. I am a bread baker and have wanted to try baking babka. I will definitely be trying some of these recipes. They look very easy to follow. Looking forward to trying these recipes. This is a lovely book.

I am so excited to try allll of the recipes in this baking cookbook! Growing up one of my favorite weekend breakfast meals that my mother would make for me and my siblings were frozen blintzes from the freezer. And to stumble across this gem with a focal point on blintzes feels like a completed circle!

*I will continue to update this review as I make more of the cookbook’s recipes. Just know that this will be a labor of love, and my tastebuds the overall winner.

Babka, Boulou, Blintzes is a book about chocolate and how the Jews...specifically, how Sephardic Jews played the most important role in introducing chocolate to Europe and the United States by importing the raw cocoa beans and starting a chocolate craze in Spain and later France that eventually swept the world. There is a brief history at the beginning of the book that begins with chocolates origins and use in precolonial Americas and then how Jews of Spain got involved with chocolate. The rest of the book is comprised of recipes using chocolate provided by a bunch of people you can call "foodies." There bios are in the back of the book, which made lead the reader to further food writing of interest. Each recipe has a great photo of the finished product. Also, each recipe provides cooking instructions for both Europe and the United States for measurements and temperatures.

Anyone who loves chocolate will be absolutely blown away by Babka, Boulou, & Blintzes: Jewish Chocolate Recipes from around the World, a compilation of Jewish chocolate recipes gathered from famous cooks around the world by Michael Leventhal. This book is a cut above, and includes fantastic, mouthwatering recipes along with beautiful photographs. The recipes are, of course, kosher, but will be enjoyed by everyone, whether Jewish or not. Leventhal has included a good variety of Cookies, Bars, & Brownies, Cakes, Loaves, & Tarts, Hot & Cold Desserts, Bonbons, Bites & After-Dinner Delights, and even Savory Dishes & Drinks.

Not only are the recipes fabulous, they are written in a traditional form and are easy to follow. Anyone, whether a beginning or advanced cook, will be able to easily follow these recipes and turn out picture perfect dishes. The main difficulty will be for readers to find the perfect recipe to make at any given time. There are dozens of unique, traditional, and classic recipes, and, frankly there isn’t even one that doesn’t sound good. There is something for everyone here, and before preparing even one recipe, most will have a growing queue which will keep them cooking and baking for months.

This is definitely one of the best books for chocoholics everywhere. Anyone who is lucky enough to own it will use it often. The mouthwatering photographs will tempt even the most dedicated dieter. Unfortunately, this cookbook is way overpriced and some who want it won’t be able to afford it.

Special thanks to NetGalley for supplying a review copy of this book.

I learnt a lot from reading this book - my family love the homemade nutella and it is so much healthier. I havent tried every recipe but have a few favourites. I liked the way the author added background to the recipes.

I was given an advance copy by the publishers and netgalley but the review is entirely my own.

Jewish, chocolate, recipes, historical-places-events, historical-research, history-and-culture, international-competition, international-commerce, illustrated*****

What a terrible book to read if you're on a diet or crave chocolate! It begins with the earliest involvement in the development of edible chocolate, moves on to Jewish involvement in chocolate usage/chocolate trade, and then begins a beautiful but dangerous (to me, a chocolate addict) illustrated book of recipes. The photography is excellent and the recipes astounding. Best of all, the proceeds are being donated to Chai Cancer Care, so buy this book even if it makes you groan!
I requested and received a free temporary ebook copy from Pen & Sword, Green Bean Books via NetGalley. Thank you!

This is a history of food and a beautiful cookbook packaged into one. It is not only rich in the history but in the stories and recipes shared by all of the chefs. Everything is presented beautifully with plenty of tips to help the baker at any level.

I mean … how can you go wrong with a book that focuses on chocolate, and whose proceeds benefit charity?! I could stop there and call it good…but I’ll keep going. :)

The pictures alone would make the book worth publishing. They’re droolworthy and truly make me want to bake every recipe .. even the one using beetroot! And on that note, I love the innovative use of ingredients; these aren’t your everyday recipes, though the ingredient lists seem straightforward enough. They simply combine ingredients in ways I never would have thought to do! Like, rye starter–really! Fascinating. I’m more than willing to try that (where are my taste testers at?!).

Babka, Boulou, & Blintzes is more than a cookbook, too; it’s a history lesson just waiting to teach the next generation. Leventhal and co. do a fantastic job at researching and preserving Jewish chocolate history in this collection, linking it to global history and world events.

A quality resource that would fit right in on anyone’s culinary bookshelf. 5/5.

I received an eARC of the book from the publisher via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

A delightful collection of sweet and savory recipes utilizing chocolate.

Michael Leventhal starts the book off with a brief history of the relationship between chocolate and Jewish people and how they are integrally intertwined. We get an interesting picture of how chocolate facilitated relocation when necessary to flee, but also led to Jews getting pushed out of certain communities when they had success.

The remainder of the book follows the traditional cookbook format, with a variety of recipes using many different kinds of chocolate. The majority of the foods come from cultures of the Jewish diaspora, as well as recipes from Jewish chefs inspired by their local foods. There is something for everyone in this book! Many of the recipes are also pareve or even kosher for Passover, so you aren't limited to enjoying these foods at only certain times of the year.

I am so excited to try out many of these recipes. They all seem to be simple and easy to follow and definitely bring a taste of childhood while also being translated to a modern palate. For the most part, they also use ingredients that can be found at most supermarkets, or there are substitution suggestions for if you can't find something. I also will likely be adding this book to my list of gift ideas for some family and friends.

"But did you know that Jewish traders have played a key role in the chocolate industry for more than 500 years"

I'm so excited to have been granted my wish for this book!! Vegan Jewish chocolate recipes are literally my family's forte. The best bit? It's soooo much more than a recipe book. The intro covers the history of Jewish chocolate making internationally. So much of history is forgotten and this book makes efforts to address a long forgotten past of chocolate.

Equally, I really enjoyed the reflection about "what makes a Jewish recipe?", a question I have also often wondered. Much like myself, the book offers ideas but no concrete answers, which is fitting for such an unknown area of discussion. Last but not least - there are some extremely delicious recipes included!!! I definitely recommend.

Thank you NetGalley for the Arc!

Thank you netgalley for providing an ARC in exchange for a review

This book reminded me of so many recipes that my great grand mother used to make, and I was so happy to find them. The recipes are easy to follow and allowed me to make delicious food (even tho they don't exactly taste like the ones my family used to make, but I think that all grandma have a secret ingredient that no cookbook could reveal?)

What a lovely cookbook, and just in time for the High Holidays! Can’t wait to gift this to all my favorite baking friends and family. I enjoyed the history section, and the effort to cast a wide net for relevant recipes from around the world. Recipes read very clearly so I am feeling confident in executing them.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Great history introduction of chocolate in Jewish food, wonderful recipes, and great intros before recipes. Lovely pictures, and great gluten free options. Looking forward to trying some Vegan Nutty Chocolate Chip Cookies, Flourless Chocolate Cupcakes with Raspberry Frosting, just to name two.
Thank you to NetGalley and Pen & Sword, Green Bean Books, for letting me have an early glimpse of this book in exchange for my opinion

Thank you to Pen & Sword, Green Bean Books for the ARC to read and review.

Kudos to Michael Leventhal for this book.

Babka, Boulou, & Blintzes is a compilation of traditional Jewish recipes using chocolate. Desserts both small and large, drinks, and savories are included.

What is fascinating is the first few pages of history that outlines how the Jewish people have been integral in the trade and production of chocolate for centuries. More and more history is revealed about how the Jews persecuted in the time of the Inquisition were able to sustain themselves in their new countries.

These recipes are from The Who's who of modern Jewish cookery and we can see how the influence of the nations these Jews settled in reflects in the food.

All proceeds from this book will be given to the UK organization Chai Cancer Care.

A charming book for those who love chocolate. It starts with a history of chocolate, where it came from and how it spread. Then we move into different recipes beloved by Jews from different regions. I could have done with more context on each recipe and perhaps more personal stories.

Great book with a variety of chocolate recipes contributed by cooks, chefs, and writers from around the world. Many of the recipes do have Jewish ties or ingredients. The book starts with an intro on the history of chocolate and why it matters to the Jewish community. Recipe chapters are Cookies/Brownies/Bars, Cakes/Loaves/Tarts, Savoury Dishes & Drinks, Hot & Cold Desserts, and Bonbons/Bites/After-Dinner Delights. Because the book is first published in the UK, there is a helpful Glossary of US/UK Terms. I also liked that there was a section with info on the contributors. Almost all of the recipes had a full color photo.
I found this to be a unique take on a chocolate book, with lots of great sounding and varied recipes.