Menus for the Month of Tishrei

"Menus for the Month of Tishrei" by Naomi Ben-Ami addresses the extensive culinary demands of the Tishrei holiday season, which includes Rosh Hashanah, the pre-Yom Kippur meal, break-the-fast, a full week of Sukkot, Shemini Atzeret, and Simchat Torah. The book presents ten comprehensive menus designed to manage ingredients and labor efficiently across this period, ensuring variety in celebration. Each menu is developed with a specific purpose, flavor profile, guest count, equipment requirements, and cultural context in mind.

This resource offers "pantry maps" that illustrate how prepared ingredients like stock, herbs, grains, fruit, or dough can be utilized across multiple meals. It integrates symbolic foods appropriately and provides distinct strategies for various scenarios such as outdoor Sukkot service, post-fast appetites, rain contingencies, and late Simchat Torah schedules. The book includes timelines for freezer preparation, fresh finishing, cooling, and managing leftovers. It also incorporates vegetarian and allergy-conscious options directly into the menu plans, rather than as separate notes, and suggests a "fatigue budget" to indicate when convenience should be prioritized. By approaching the entire month as a unified culinary season, the book aims to maintain diverse meal experiences while minimizing food waste and cook's exhaustion.