On the Chocolate Trail: A Delicious Adventure Connecting Jews, Religions, History, Travel, Rituals and Recipes to the Magic of Cacao (2nd Edition)

Review Quotes:

"This engaging journey into the extraordinary past of a much loved product is packed with fascinating stories and thrilling bits of information."-Claudia Roden, food writer and author of almost twenty classic works on Middle Eastern and Mediterranean cookery; most recently, the award-winning The Book of Jewish Food

"Bravo! ... Takes us on a roller coaster roll through the history of chocolate, from the beginning when it was only used as a drink to the present day.... A great read."-Joan Nathan, award-winning cookbook author, Jewish Cooking in America; Quiches, Kugels, and Couscous: My Search for Jewish Cooking in France; and other books

"Meticulously researched and whimsically presented. Fascinating facts, amusing anecdotes and mouth-watering recipes.... An instant classic for chocolate devotees of all faiths!"-Francine Segan, food historian, chocolate expert and James Beard nominated cookbook author of Dolci: Italy's Sweets

"A joy for history and chocolate buffs.... Traces the exciting and curious aspects of the evolution of chocolate. The reader is rewarded with fascinating nuggets of chocolate lore, as well as several yummy chocolate recipes."-Carole Bloom, CCP, author, Intensely Chocolate and Truffles, Candies and Confections

"A treat! Part history, part travelogue, part cookbook, [it] ... will tantalize all readers and delight chocoholic ones."-Jonathan D. Sarna, Joseph H. & Belle R. Braun Professor of American Jewish History, Brandeis University

"A knowledgeable, surprising and, of course, delicious book. Chocolate lovers (and that includes just about everyone) and Jewish historians alike will be delighted."-Leah Koenig, author, The Hadassah Everyday Cookbook

"Fascinating and entertaining ... if you're interested in Jews or chocolate, you're gonna like this book. If you're interested in both, you're gonna love it: -). Like chocolate itself-wonderful as a gift, or you could just get one for you yourself."-Nigel Savage, founder, Hazon: Jewish Inspiration, Sustainable Communities

"Yes, separate milk from meat. And wool from linen. But do not separate Jews from chocolate. They shall be yoked together for all time. And now we have the definitive book on the topic, an eloquent and astutely researched history."-A.J. Jacobs, editor-at-large, Esquire magazine; author of the New York Times bestseller, The Year of Living Biblically: One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible, and other books

"A fascinating ramble through the history of chocolate and the roles-sometimes central, sometimes peripheral-that Jews have played in bringing it from the forests of Africa and Spanish America to your table. The recipes are a tasty bonus."-David M. Gitlitz and Linda Kay Davidson, authors, A Drizzle of Honey: The Lives and Recipes of Spain's Secret Jews

"Calling all chocoholics.... I devoured this book. Readers beware! Stash fine chocolate in your pack before setting off on this delicious journey across time and space."-Pamela S. Nadell, Patrick Clendenen Chair in Women's and Gender History, American University; author, Women Who Would be Rabbis: A History of Women's Ordination, 1889-1985

"A delightful, fascinating read full of history, religion, ethics, anecdotes and recipes that will make you hungry."-Paula Shoyer, author, The Kosher Baker: 160 Dairy-Free Desserts from Traditional to Trendy

"The second updated edition of On the Chocolate Trail: A Delicious Adventure Connecting Jews, Religions, History, Travel, Rituals and Recipes to the Magic of Cacao is not just for culinary fans; but for those who would appreciate an injection of religious history into the survey of chocolate's evolution and use around the world. If this sounds like an unusual perspective, be advised that this book is as much about Jewish history and traditions as it is abou

Take a delectable journey through the religious history of chocolate-a real treat!

In this new and updated second edition, explore the surprising Jewish and other religious connections to chocolate in this gastronomic and historical adventure through cultures, countries, centuries and convictions. Rabbi Deborah Prinz draws from her world travels on the trail of chocolate to enchant chocolate lovers of all backgrounds as she unravels religious connections in the early chocolate trade and shows how Jewish and other religious values infuse chocolate today.

With mouth-watering recipes, a glossary of chocolaty terms, tips for buying luscious, ethically produced chocolate, a list of sweet chocolate museums around the world and more, this book unwraps tasty facts such as:

• Some people-including French (Bayonne) chocolate makers-believe that Jews brought chocolate making to France.
• The bishop of Chiapas, Mexico, was poisoned because he prohibited local women from drinking chocolate during Mass.
• Although Quakers do not observe Easter, it was a Quaker-owned chocolate company-Fry's-that claimed to have created the first chocolate Easter egg in the United Kingdom.
• A born-again Christian businessman in the Midwest marketed his caramel chocolate bar as a "Noshie," after the Yiddish word for "snack."
• Chocolate Chanukah gelt may have developed from St. Nicholas customs.
• The Mayan "Book of Counsel" taught that gods created humans from chocolate and maize.

Contributor Bio:Prinz, Deborah
Rabbi Deborah R. Prinz lectures about chocolate and religions around the world. A regular contributor to the Huffington Post, the Daily Forward, and elsewhere on the topic of chocolate, she has presented in five countries at chocolate festivals, libraries, museums, culinary events, and congregations. She co-curates Jews on the Chocolate Trail, a traveling exhibit created for the Herbert and Eileen Bernard Museum of Temple Emanu-El, New York City, on display October 2017-February 2018. Also, she created the blog On the Chocolate Trail (visit www.onthechocolatetrail.org). Prinz received a Starkoff Fellowship and a Director's Fellowship from the American Jewish Archives as well as a Gilder Lehrman Fellowship from the Rockefeller Library to research On the Chocolate Trail. Rabbi Prinz is available to speak to your group or at your event. For more information, please contact her at onthechocolatetrail.org.