Cookbook brings Jewish joy to vegetarian recipes

If you are craving a delicious meal or nosh, and you follow a plant-forward diet, then Micah Siva has a cookbook for you.

Siva, a registered dietitian, trained chef, recipe developer, photographer and food blogger, has taken Jewish favorites and reimagined them with some delicious, meat-free twists.

Think Tumeric Vegetable Matzo Ball Soup, a Celeriac “Pastrami” Sandwich and Savory Pulled Mushroom and Tofu “Brisket.” The photos alone will have your mouth watering.

Siva, who lives in northern California with her husband and baby, will be in Providence on March 24 as part of her book tour for “Nosh: Plant Forward Recipes Celebrating Modern Jewish Cuisine” (The Collective Book Studio), which is available March 5.

In a recent phone interview, Siva said the book is something she’s been wanting to create for 20 years.

She said she’s been a vegetarian since she was 12 or 13. Growing up in Calgary, Canada, she had a classic Jewish bubbe who taught her to cook.

Siva said her cookbook is suitable for anyone who wants good food.

“This is a book for the whole family. You don’t have to be vegetarian,” she said. “I just care that you have something that you love to eat. [And] I think it’s important to show that Jewish food isn’t just pastrami sandwiches and bagels.”

Siva is an Ashkenazi Jew and her husband is Sephardi. Together, she said, they are pescatarians, who eat fish once or twice a month.

Connection to food and family was a driver in putting together the book. And so was bringing Jewish joy to the food space.

After living in Canada and London, Siva and her husband moved to California in March 2020. She worked as a recipe developer and food photographer, and had a food blog on the side. But the work dried up during the pandemic, and she spent more time on the blog, where she enjoyed developing recipes that reminded her of home.

She’s worked on the cookbook little by little. She said there should be a little something for everyone, and noted that all the recipes are dairy-free.

The 256-page book includes more than 80 recipes divided into Breakfast & Brunch; Soups; Salads; Spreads & Sides; Mains; Baking & Desserts; Cocktails & Beverages. There’s a glossary of Jewish foods and a guide to plant-based substitutions for dairy items and eggs as well as sample menus and recipes for pantry staples.

“I hope everyone likes it,” Siva said of the cookbook. “It’s my firstborn.”

“I hope I can reach Jewish people. We are still here, and we can keep going! Food brings us together.”

On March 24 at 2 p.m., Micah Siva will sign copies of her new book at Maven’s deli, 727 East Ave., Pawtucket. Tickets are $35 and include a signed copy of the book, a special treat for Purim and a $5 gift certificate to Maven’s. Preregistration is required.

This event is brought to you by Reading with Robin’s Robin Kall. Books are provided by the Curiosity Store, in Jamestown. To register, go to https://www.curiosityand.company/store/p/micahsivamavens.

On March 24 at 11 a.m., Siva will will prepare recipes from "Nosh" at a private residence on the East Side of Providence and participate in a talk with Robin Kall. Tickets are $75 and include a personalized signed copy of the cookbook, author talk, food demonstration and tasting. A portion of the ticket sales goes to the Full Plate Kosher Food Pantry. Address will be provided at registration. To register, https://www.curiosityand.company/store/p/micahsivafooddemo

Two recipes from the book:

https://www.jewishrhody.com/stories/funfetti-hamantaschen,59325?

https://www.jewishrhody.com/stories/pomegranate-lentil-tabbouleh,59326?

FRAN OSTENDORF (fostendorf@jewishallianceri.org) is the editor of Jewish Rhode Island.