The Second Avenue Deli Cookbook (49 page)

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Authors: Sharon Lebewohl

BOOK: The Second Avenue Deli Cookbook
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1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix peach slices and blueberries in a large bowl (stir in a little sugar if your fruit isn't sweet enough). Fill the bottom of a well-greased 2-quart baking dish with fruit mixture.
2. Blend brown sugar, 3 teaspoons of the flour, and cinnamon in a different bowl, and distribute mixture evenly over fruit.
3. In another bowl, sift 1 cup of the flour, granulated sugar, nutmeg, baking powder, and salt. Add egg, and beat with a fork to a crumbly texture, making sure all ingredients are well integrated. Distribute this mixture evenly on top of the brown sugar mix, and spoon melted butter evenly over it.
4. Bake 35 minutes or until top is lightly browned. Let cool on counter for 30 minutes before adding topping.
FOR THE TOPPING
The topping is optional. This dessert is also great with a scoop of vanilla ice cream accompanying each portion; for a pareve version, you can use nondairy topping.
1½ cups whipped cream cheese
3 tablespoons confectioners' sugar
1 teaspoon finely grated orange peel
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon peel
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed orange juice
1. In a large bowl, combine cream cheese and confectioners' sugar, beating with a fork until fluffy. Add other ingredients, and continue beating. Chill until ready to use. Serve dessert chilled, cutting squares from pan.

Mandelbrot
SERVES 12 TO
15
This easy-to-make breakfast bread (Yiddish for almond bread, but you can make it, as we do, with other nuts as well) tastes best toasted and buttered. A cross between a cake and a cookie, it's Eastern Europe's answer to Italian
biscotti.
Italians dunk it in espresso, Jews in a glass of tea.
2½ cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
⅛ teaspoon salt
3 eggs, beaten
¾ cup sugar
¾ cup (1½ sticks) softened margarine or butter
¾ cup chopped pecans or walnuts
½ cup raisins
1 teaspoon vanilla
⅛ teaspoon orange extract
Shortening for greasing pan
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Sift flour, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl. Add all other ingredients except for shortening and mix thoroughly.
2. Grease a 9- by 9-inch (or similar) baking pan, pour in batter, and bake for 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
Variation:
For a crisper version of mandelbrot, let cool, carefully cut into diagonal slices with a very sharp knife, and bake on a clean cookie sheet for 5 to 7 minutes on each side. Check after a few minutes to make sure the slices are browning evenly.

Citrus Cake
SERVES
10
4 tablespoons (½ stick) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 egg, beaten
2 cups flour
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1½ cups sour cream
2 teaspoons grated lemon rind
3 tablespoons grated orange rind
1 teaspoon vanilla
Shortening for greasing pan
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, use a fork to cream butter and sugar. Add egg and beat in.
2. Sift flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder in a separate bowl.
3. Alternately, about one-third at a time, add sour cream and flour mixture to butter-sugar mixture, and blend thoroughly. Stir in lemon rind, orange rind, and vanilla.
4. Grease and flour a 10-inch tube pan, spoon in batter, and bake for 35 minutes—or until top is a light golden brown and a baking pin inserted in the center comes out dry. Let cool before carefully loosening edges with a knife and removing from pan.
Note:
Your dough will look thick and scant, but it will rise and become a light, moist, and fluffy cake.
FOR THE ICING
3 ounces (¾ stick) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
1½ cups sifted confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 teaspoons very finely grated orange rind
2 teaspoons fresh-squeezed lemon juice
2 teaspoons fresh-squeezed lime juice
1. Place butter in a bowl, add confectioners' sugar, and mix thoroughly with a fork. Add all remaining ingredients, and continue to mix until icing consistency is smooth. Refrigerate for 15 minutes before spreading on thoroughly cooled cake after it has been removed from the pan. Your icing should be of a firm-enough consistency not to melt, but smooth enough to spread easily.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

M
ANY CONTRIBUTORS
added zest, spice, and flavor to
The Second Avenue Deli Cookbook.
We'd like to thank those who took time from their busy schedules to write personal reminiscences of Abe Lebewohl, most of whom also shared their favorite recipes with us: Bella Abzug, Tom Birchard, Wayne Harley Brachman, Roslyn Bresnick-Perry, Patrick Clark, Senator Al D'Amato, Art D'Lugoff, Mark Federman, Raoul Felder, Bobby Flay, Joe Franklin, Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani, Milton Glaser, Rozanne Gold, Al Goldstein, Dustin Hoffman, Grandpa Al Lewis, Drew Nieporent, Antonio Pagán, Alfred Portale, Helen Reiser, Paul Reiser, Morley Safer, Mimi Sheraton, Curtis Sliwa, Adam Tihany, José Torres, Tim and Nina Zagat.

We'd also like to thank these talented cooks and bakers for their valuable
contributions: Lucille Feenberg, Dottie Griss, John Holmes, Lynn Kutner, Eleanor Lebewohl, Ethel Lebewohl, Felicia Lebewohl Rosen, Jenny Lebewohl, Terry Lebewohl, Susan Leelike, Lisa Legarde, Esther Marcus, Everett McCourt, Judy Morris, Israel Moskowitz, Frieda Rockman, Sylvia Rudolph, Tzipora Said, Gili Tsabari.

Warmest thanks to: literary agent and cookbook maven Jane Dystel, whose enthusiasm and expertise have lovingly guided this project through the publishing process.

Our delightful and very talented editor, Mollie Doyle, for her brilliant creative input.

The grandchildren and nephews: Eli and Tzvi Barax for sharing in-depth interviews with Abe; Ayalah Barax for her help and encouragement in the kitchen; Evan and Eitan Rosen and Josh and Jeremy Lebewohl for their enthusiastic participation as food tasters. These seven children were responsible for the constant glimmer in Abe's eyes.

Arlene Bluth, whose extensive research into Second Avenue Deli history was invaluable.

And Pushpin people Seymour Chwast and Phyllis Rich Fader.

Finally, many, many thanks to the Deli kitchen staff, whose work we daily interrupted while creating this cookbook: “Doctor” Pou Chun Cheng, Michael Gladstone, “Captain” Sam Clayton, and Sylvester Mitchell. Ditto Deli managers Steve Cohen and Tony Sze; all the countermen; and Deli office staffers Karen Glasser and Pat Communiello.

The Deli's team.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Born with a soupspoon in her mouth, S
HARON
L
EBEWOHL
grew up in the deli business, working at the restaurant and learning her father's secret recipes firsthand. Since her father's death in 1996, Sharon has worked with Abe's brother, Jack, to oversee the Deli's daily operations and to ensure that Abe's spirit is kept alive. She remains deeply rooted in the Jewish community and is active in many Jewish women's groups. Sharon is also the mother of three teenagers.

R
ENA
B
ULKIN
began her career in Paris, writing about European hotels and restaurants for
The New York Times
International Edition. Returning to her native Manhattan after several years abroad, she worked, respectively, at
The New Yorker
and
New York
magazines. She has written fifteen Arthur Frommer travel guides, as well as numerous magazine articles on travel, food, and other subjects. A close friend of the late Abe Lebewohl, she has a long history with the Second Avenue Deli, where she has worked on many public-relations campaigns.

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