Best of the Family Table Part 1

The Best of the Family Table is a compilation of recipes from Mishpacha's Family Table recipe insert. Many of the recipes featured in this book are also available on Kosherscoop.com. This cookbook is fairly new, maybe a few weeks old. I haven't tried many recipes from it yet. When I did try a recipe, it will be bolded in the review.

Contributors include:
Brynie Greisman- Many of the recipes I liked are from her. She's one of the main writers for the Family Table, I think. She lives in Yerushalayim and has a catering business. She tries to healthify recipes up, which I really like and many of her recipes aren't complicated- 2 points for Brynie!
Estee Kafra- There weren't many recipes from her in the book and the ones that were included were already printed in Cooking Inspired. I was disappointed to see that.
Chanie and Faigy- They were the editors of Dining In Again. A lot of their recipes had soup mix/mayo/lots of sugar, but they had nice ideas
Rivky Kleiman- Editor of the Bais Yaakov cookbook. I don't have the cookbook in front of me and don't remember off hand what her recipes were like.
Esther- She has an online craft store and blog. She lives in Lakewood.
Joy Devor- She was Jamie Geller's recipe tester for her first book. She has a private catering company. I found her recipe to be more interesting and not "heimish" at all.
Clara Fatal- She writes for the Israeli version of Mishpacha's Family Table (I think it's called Teimot or something I have to check...) Most of her recipes used Israeli ingredients (ex. 2.2 lb. of flour, Israeli soft white cheese etc.) There weren't a lot of recipes from her though. She seems to be the Efrat Libroind of the Mishpacha.
Tami Phillip and Sara Wasserman- Also from the Hebrew Mishpacha. I don't remember any of their recipe off the top of my head so there probably weren't that many from them.
Devoiry Ginsberg- She was co-editor of the Silver Spoon with Leah Schapira.
Sarah Faygie- She was originally a freelance writer about health and wellness until she was picked up by Mishpacha. She lives in Atlanta

At the end of every section theres 2-4 pieces of writing about food or cooking that sort of relates to that section (ex. the bread section has an article about Hafrashas Challah)  or just some useful kitchen info (how to tell when fruit is ripe, differences between cuts of meat etc.)
There is also a 2 page spread of menu suggestions for a chag/occasion at the end of every section.

Cookbook is divided into several sections
1.Meet the chef- I introduced them to you a little but the book has more info. The chefs are also asked a bunch of questions like what are their best kept kitchen secret, favorite/least favorite food etc.
2. Breads and Spreads
What I liked: Brynie has a great whole wheat challah recipe that uses enough flour for Hafrashas Challah and can be made 100% whole wheat. I really want to try it.
Hot Pretzel Rolls- They aren't really rolls, more like homemade hot pretzels. It looks yummy though. (Faigy and Chanie)
Check out the review for the recipe here.
What didn't interest me: The dips- I'm just not a big dipper and they just seem like unnecessary work for me.
Edible Canape Spoons- If you're the type that likes to patchke, you'll like this. This 'recipe' shows you how to make edible spoons from wonton wrappers. There are optional fillings and I feel the same way about fillings as I do about dips. (Devoiry)
3.Appetizers
What I liked: Savory Chicken Skewers with Berry Salad- This could probably be made into a full meal. You marinate cutlets and then skewer and grill them. You serve them on top of a salad with romaine, kiwi, pomegranate, craisins and oranges. The dressing calls berry flavored tea to bring out the berriness in the salad. Only issue I have with this recipe is that the dressing calls for 1/4 c, of sugar. It seems to serve a lot of people though. (Rivky)
What I didn't care for: Many of the recipe calls for puffed pastry/wonton wrappers that automatically rule out a recipe for me. I also didn't like that some recipe called for a lot of sugar- it's an appetizer not a dessert.
End of chapter includes menu suggestion for sheva brachos (from the whole cookbook not just appetizers)
4. Fish
I'm not a big fish eater but a lot of the recipes did look yummy. My main complaint was about all that added sugar (you will be hearing this from me again and again and again :) ) 
What I liked: Grilled salmon with Mango Avocado Salsa- Salmon is grilled with a mixture of olive oil and maple syrup,served with a mango avocado salsa and topped with an orange hollandaise sauce (Devoiry)
Teriyaki Salmon Chunks with Zesty Mushrooms- Salmon is marinated in a teriyaki marinade, skewered, grilled and served with mushrooms that were stir fried with onion/garlic/soy sauce. (Tami- one of the Israeli ladies)
Orange Fish Fillets- White fish baked in an orange flavored sauce. Looks easy and yummy. (Rivky)
End of chapter includes menu suggestion for Purim.
5. Salads- most of the dressings featured a lot of sugar or mayo- both ingredients that I try to avoid in salad
What I liked: Flatbread salad- salad with romaine/cherry tomatoes/cucumbers/flatbread crackers (which I personally would skip but wtvr)
Dressing is made from garlic/sugar (only a tablespoon though for 6-8 servings)/oil/mustard/soy sauce/vinegar. (Brynie) Includes suggestion on how to 'lighten' up the dressing.
Honeycomb Crunch Salad- Dressing made from lemon juice/honey/mustard. Salad made with romaine/pear/pomegranate seeds/orange slices/sugar snap peas. It's topped with the sugary crunch (literally it calls for sugar, honey AND corn syrup). If you want to cut the sugar, skip the crunch. (Faygie and Chanie)
Marinated Chickpea Salad- a very basic salad with basic vegetables and a basic dressing most people have on hand always. Can be thrown together in minutes. (Chanie)
London Broil Mushroom Salad- Salad is similar to the flatbread salad except that it contains mushroom and is topped with slices of grilled London broil. It also has no flat bread. (Chanie)
Rainbow Quinoa Salad- quinoa with colored peppers/pine nuts/ craisins/black beans/parsley. Dressing calls for vinegar/garlic/honey or sugar and some spices. Sounds basic and easy. (Sarah Faygie)
Blueberry Salad- One of those yummy salads that have fruit and nuts. The dressing is milchig and among other things calls for blueberries and vanilla yogurt (Shavuos maybe??) (Faygie and Chanie)
Soy Glazed Portobello Mushrooms- I love mushrooms and this is just a basic balsamic/soy sauce/sesame oil glaze (Rivky)
End of chapter includes suggestions for summer

To buy this cookbook on amazon click here.

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