Miriam’s Kitchen, by Elizabeth Ehrlich, is a unique memoir in its format. Alternating between recipes, the past and the present, Ehrlich presents a strong message for the Jewish kitchen, memories and familial connections.

The book demonstrates how the kitchen symbolizes not only Miriam’s family life in Eastern Europe, and her assimilation in America, but also the importance of her Jewish heritage, and Jewish customs and cooking all within Miriam’s kosher kitchen. Each recipe is significant, and includes background and history from Miriam’s past. Elizabeth is given a look into her mother=in-law’s life through analogies to cooking and recipes.

Elizabeth, Miriam’s daughter-in-law, is a Jew, but one who is more of a hesitant one, than a fully practicing one. Through Miriam she begins to realize the lack of traditions and Jewish life being fostered within her own family. She is cognizant that her own children are lacking the foundations of Judaism. Miriam brings the past to the present for Elizabeth.

Through her amazing recipes that Elizabeth witnesses Miriam preparing, within the varied pots, pans, serving dishes, plates and silverware, from dairy to meat, Elizabeth begins a Jewish journey of spirituality and illumination. She realizes that the past is always a part of the present, and that our ancestral history needs to be remembered and handed down to future generations. Legacy becomes an important issue for not only Miriam, but Elizabeth, also.

For Miriam, the kitchen is her world, her hold on the past. Her recipes not only stir up the senses, but also are part and parcel of her ancestry. She wakes up at 5:30 a.m. in order to begin her cooking ritual, every cognizant of the necessity for her daily routine, and what it means to her and her family. Through her cooking, her ancestors are remembered and kept alive. Her recipes are the legacy she leaves her family, and each one holds its own story.

Oil and onions are staples in Miriam’s cooking. Within those staples a family tapestry is woven through recipes that don’t necessarily have precise measurements. Many are created through sight, through memory, much like her own mother and grandmother cooked.

From Holocaust survivor to kosher kitchen, Miriam’s stories are a plethora of familial history, including a wealth of memories, both poignant and filled with bits of humor. Yiddish is the word of the day, as Miriam recounts her life, one that is filled with hardships and loss. The recipes she prepares are almost a dedication to those family members who lost their lives during the Holocaust. The stories leave us to reflect on who we are, reflect on the past and how it relates to our present, and what we will send forth as memories and legacies in the future. The stories have given Elizabeth much to ponder, as far as whether she wants to have a kosher kitchen or not, and whether she wants to instill the traditions of the past within her own household.

The recipes in the book are quite detailed, from not only the cooking aspect, but the extensive preparation beforehand, that Miriam infuses into each one. Her kosher kitchen is more than that. It illuminates her life’s story, and without her ability and desire to continue her traditions, Miriam would not be the mentor she has become to Elizabeth.

Elizabeth has learned much from Miriam, and not only about cooking, but about her husband’s ancestry. The alternating format enhances Miriam’s Kitchen, and depicts Miriam’s life and also Elizabeth’s.

Elizabeth Ehrlich has brought us a unique look at Jewish life, Jewish customs and traditions, and Jewish culture and assimilation into American life within the pages of Miriam’s Kitchen. It is a book I recommend, for its look into Jewish culture and history, Jewish life and rituals, not to mention the amazing recipes included in the book.
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Monday August 3, 2009 – 13th of Av, 5769