June 10, 2008

Jewish Princess Cookbook: humor and recipes celebrate the JP in everyone

If you ask almost any Jew "What does a Jewish Princess make for dinner?" the answer would probably be the punchline of an old joke: "reservations." Ask Georgie Tarn and Tracey Fine, however, and they'll respond with one of their unique recipes, such as Bloody Mary Borscht.

"We were tasting our borscht recipe and we thought, 'Why not jack it up a little bit?' So we gave it a kick," Tarn said.

That kick: tomato juice and vodka.

The U.K. duo of Tarn and Fine, lifelong friends and co-authors of "The Jewish Princess Cookbook: Having Your Cake and Eating It" (McBooks Press, $18.95), said they've written the book in the voice of a classic Jewish Princess, or JP, an illustrated character in the book whom the authors describe as their shared alter-ego.

According to the cookbook, which was first published across the pond in 2006, being a JP involves adhering to a princess pledge, like "buying lots of evening shoes and wearing them" and "embracing my mishegosses, because they make me who I am." Most importantly, the JP must always abide by the three Ps: staying positive, productive and princess-like in every way.

Tarn and Fine got the idea for their cookbook after a self-proclaimed midlife crisis. Both were successful in their careers (Tarn was an aerobics trainer, while Fine ran a giftware company), but they wanted to try something new. -- Molly Binenfeld, The Jewish Journal
(read the full interview)

Purchase The Jewish Princess Cookbook at McBooks.com