Talks & Entertainment

In The Gefilte Manifesto: New Recipes for Old World Jewish Foods, Gefilteria co-founders Jeffrey Yoskowitz and Liz Alpern are on a mission to reclaim and revolutionize Ashkenazi cuisine. They’ve set out to reimagine gefilte fish and other dishes by reviving techniques that were born of necessity but have been proven by time to yield nutritious, soulful, and delicious food.

Combining the inventive spirit of a new generation and respect for culinary tradition, Yoskowitz and Alpern present more than 100 recipes pulled deep from the kitchens of Eastern Europe and the diaspora of North America, then reinvented in their own Brooklyn kitchens. Their recipes tap into the enduring values of resourcefulness and seasonality in easy-to-follow methods.

Drawing inspiration from the sights and smells of local bakeries, neighborhood delis, traditional pickle shops, and their own childhood kitchens, Yoskowitz and Alpern rediscover classic variations on time-tested favorites while uncovering new approaches to everyday dishes, from Jewish Rye Bread to Chicken Soup with Rustic Matzo Balls to Sweet or Savory Blintzes.

Alpern, who has been featured in Forbes’ 30 Under 30 list for food and wine, got her start in the food world working with cookbook author Joan Nathan. She gives lectures and hands-on classes around the globe about food and culture.

Yoskowitz trained as a pickler at Adamah Farm where he fell in love with the art of lacto-fermentation. He has written on food and culture for the Atlantic, New York Times, Slate, and Gastronomica. In conversation with Jessica Sidman, the Food Editor at Washingtonian magazine.

Book signing to follow.