Talking to Einat Admony, you get the impression she’s a riot to hang out with – if you can keep up with her, that is.
The New York chef/restaurateur and author of Balaboosta: Bold Mediterranean Recipes to Feed the People You Love (Artisan) is exuberant, full of stories, and unflinchingly honest.
The word balaboosta is Yiddish for “perfect housewife” but Admony, who deftly balances motherhood with running three Manhattan restaurants, looking effortlessly cool throughout as she whizzes about town on her bubblegum pink Vespa, redefines the term.
“It’s two different things, actually, what it is and what it means to me,” the Israeli-born Admony tells Cityline.ca on a phone call from New York to talk about her debut cookbook. “Balaboosta is something we use to describe the mama, the best cook of the family, taking care of everything, the perfect housewife. For me, balaboosta is juggling all of that [motherhood and a career] and still doing it right.”
It’s not uncommon to read a restaurant cookbook and feel disconnected from the chef whose name is on the cover. Not the case with Admony’s book. Beautifully-photographed and scrumptious-looking recipes are interspersed with life stories, described in vivid detail. Admony doesn’t hold back, talking about her childhood, having her heart broken, her two marriages and her kids.
The recipes themselves are grouped not by course, but by theme. A section titled ‘The First Cut is the Deepest’ begins with a break-up story, then offers up a slew of comfort food recipes, such as My Mom’s Rice Stew and Creamy, Cheesy Potatoes. Elsewhere, a chapter called ‘Hurry, Hurry, Hurry’ contains quick-to-put-together meals such as Shakshuka and Linguine with Roasted Peppers and Kalamata Olives.
“I didn’t want another book that would go by ‘Appetizers’, ‘Soups’, ‘Main Courses’, ‘Dessert’ – it’s boring. I wanted to have varied occasions – to go by mood, or necessity. For example, ‘I’m going to cook a dinner for my kids, what am I going to cook for them?” she says. “It’s also about how I grew up — fighting with my sister, the dynamic in my house. Then it’s my first boyfriend, then my first husband, then the real husband, and then the struggle after the kids, gaining thirty, forty pounds. I think it was very honest, which is hard to do, but it was so natural. It’s not a chef book.”
Admony and her family live in a 2,000-square-foot loft in Brooklyn, a space she says is ideal for hosting family and friends.
“My door is always open. I never tell my friends, ‘Oh no, you can’t bring friends,’” Admony says, adding that she typically has people over to her place two to three times a week. “Sometimes it’s a little bit tricky because last year at Passover I had 43 people in my apartment. I have a nice loft, it’s pretty big, but it looked like a wedding hall.”
Her strategy for avoiding stress on the day-of? Preparing as much food in advance as possible.
“If I’m having a few people for dinner — eight people is a few for me — what I will often do is cook short ribs [the day before], braise them for a few hours, so that they’re ready for [the next day.] Sometimes I’ll get things from the freezer, like meatballs, that can be put in the oven. If I have a few hours in the day, I will cook and prepare things for later.”
Admony said it was important for her that the recipes in Balaboosta be ones other modern-day balaboostas would want to serve their families and friends.
“This is a balaboosta cookbook. Recipes are something that are always shared. There are a lot of recipes [in the book] that are from friends, or friends of friends,” she notes.
“I work in a high-end restaurant in New York, but I think I’m a simple person. All I wanted to do is have something for people to cook from.”
Balaboosta: Bold Mediterranean Recipes to Feed the People You Love is now available.
Our friends at Thomas Allen & Son have generously provided three copies of Balaboosta: Bold Mediterranean Recipes to Feed the People You Love to give away (retail value $37.95). For your chance to win, tell us in the comments below your favourite dish to cook for loved ones. Be sure to submit your comment by Friday, October 18, 5pm. Good luck!