The Food Prophetess: Susie Fishbein

Do you worship at the church of Susie Fishbein? Have you known the food prowess and skill of her gloriousness, Susie Fishbein?

If not, boy oh boy, you can't move to Teaneck, New Jersey. I have yet to go to a home that doesn't worship at the church of Mrs. Fishbein, and I drank the Kool-Aid. I took the plunge. I bought the cookbooks, I bought the ingredients, I made the recipes (well, three of them anyway), and I'm pleased. I feel, well, the way someone probably does when they've been food-saved.

I typically get my recipes online. I think about what I want to make, and I find something online that resembles my cravings, schlep my laptop into the kitchen (which, as it turns out, isn't such a good idea), and cook. Now, I've got three versions of the "Kosher by Design" series: Lightens Up, Short on Time, and the original version. I flipped through them really quickly last Shabbos and marked dozens of recipes I'm jonesing to make, and this week I opted to rock three of them for our Saturday lunch alone.

1) A turkey, hoison-glazed thing that I had to substitute the hoison because every version I found was full of wheat;

2) Some jazzed-up vegetables with a red wine vinegar-drizzled sauce;

3) Sweet and Spicy potatoes, which I'd never make for normal guests because it's crazy spicy!

Overall, I'm very pleased. Susie knows what she's doing, and obviously the lovely residents of these apartments know what's going on, too. I'm glad I drank the Kool-Aid. Now, if Susie could just put out a yummy Gluten Free version of her series ... kosher cooks everywhere would be more easy-going about having Gluten Free consumers at their Shabbos tables, and Gluten Free guests would feel more comfortable attending (I'd be happy to lend my Kosher by Design: Gluten Free out to anyone and everyone!).