Heartwarming heirloom recipes and stories from around the globe. Cooking From the Heart is a sumptuous celebration of cookery from around the world. This book reveals the stories and recipes of twenty-seven Jewish cooks and captures the importance and celebration of food in the Jewish home as a link to former homelands, their heritage, and a way to maintain the togetherness of family. We meet cooks from places as diverse as the Philippines, Morocco, Romania, and Ethiopia. They recount their sometimes tragic but always inspiring stories and detail their histories, the origins of recipes, and their experiences of food as they were growing up. From Georgia to Italy to Israel, Japan, and South Africa, the common thread is how food and flavors fill a Jewish home with love. Their unique journeys and reminiscences are accompanied by glorious color photographs and delicious recipes--from traditional dumplings, noodles, and soups to biscuits, pastries, and doughnuts. Some dishes are simple, made from the freshest ingredients, while others are complex and elaborate. There is the spicy fragrance of Indian curry contrasted with the indulgent Almond Custard Cake or Chocolate Ganache Cake and of course, legendary chicken soup, gefilte fish, and strudel. The variety of tastes and flavors is truly amazing.