A family that cooks together creates beautiful memories, while having fun.

Joan Nathan’s latest, “A Sweet Year: Jewish Celebrations and Festive Recipes for Kids and Their Families,” is designed to do just that.

“Kids love to [cook and bake] because it’s like magic,” Nathan told the Journal. “And then you get to talk with them; it’s a way of connecting with kids.”

Nathan is the author of 12 books, including “My Life in Recipes,” as well as “Jewish Cooking in America” and “The New American Cooking,” both of which won James Beard Awards and IACP Awards.

“A Sweet Year” is a new version of Nathan’s “The Children’s Jewish Holiday Kitchen,” which originally came out in 1987 and had been updated twice. WIth more than 50 new photographs of dishes and of Nathan in the kitchen with her family, “A Sweet Year” includes sample menus and holiday crafts, as well as specific instructions within the recipes for adults and kids. As an example, and delicious treat, Nathan’s recipe for Apple Cake Eden is below.

“It originally started as a cooking class in my house when … I had three young kids and they brought their friends,” Nathan said. “We did these recipes [together], and I just noticed what I could do and what they could do…. and it works.”

Updated for modern times, the book features family-friendly recipes from rainbow-colored challah and banana strawberry pancakes to fruit noodle kugel apple honey cupcakes. It underscores the importance of putting away electronic devices and enjoying quality time in the kitchen.

“Everything is so quick; [people] can get any recipe online … their phone is attached to them,” Nathan said.  “It’s really important to hold on to tradition, which you can through recipes.”.

The book is organized by holiday, and starts with the weekly celebration of shabbat, which Nathan called, “one of the beauties of the Jewish religion.” People who aren’t even Jewish are familiar with the Jewish sabbath; most are familiar with challah.

“There’s a joy in making challah; once you do it, it’s easier than going to a supermarket,” Nathan said. “And people love homemade challah, so I like to give it to people.”

For kids, making challah is a great exercise in imagination.

“I’ll have them mold it the way they want to,” she said. “And who cares if it’s not a three-braid challah – if it’s a Mario figure that they created – it doesn’t matter; the process is important.”

Creativity in the kitchen can also include designing a salad or even setting the table.

“I always try to let kids make place cards or set the table,” Nathan said. “They’re proud of themselves.”

Preparing food together is a beautiful bonding experience; the history of these recipes are priceless.

“The bible and the talmud are the base of Judaism, so we get all these old recipes from [them], even hummus is in the Bible,” Nathan said. “I think it’s fascinating that we have recipes that are so old, because they’ve been repeated for the sabbath and holidays for thousands of years.”

They might have become more sophisticated since the mid-1900s, when the steam engine came into being, she explained, but they weren’t so different for a long time. Nathan loves resurrecting old recipes.

“I don’t know about you, but I get a high every time I discover a new old recipe,” she said. “Believe me, all this is hard work, and I’m 81 years old, but I’m [thrilled when] people are excited about coming to my house for dinner.”

Cooking together is community, education and history.

“The Jewish holidays preserve the Jewish people,” she said.  “We have a tradition that goes back thousands of years; we’ve got to maintain it in a modern way.”

One of the best ways to do that is to cook with kids.

“A Sweet Year” was released on November 19.

Apple Cake Eden

This is a very simple and simply delicious cake, one of my favor-ites. I dubbed it Apple Cake Eden, but you can call it whatever you like. Just make sure that the children design an apple on top of the cake— or whatever they want! (They may have to change the name, however.)

Makes 1 cake, serving 6 to 8

INGREDIENTS

1¼ cups unbleached all-purpose flour

¼ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ cup unsalted butter, vegan spread, or coconut oil

Grated zest of 1 large lemon

1 large egg yolk

1 cup sugar

2 pounds (about 5) Granny Smith or other tart yet flavorful apples

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

EQUIPMENT

9-inch springform pan

Measuring cups

Measuring spoons

Mixing bowl

Spoon

Dough cutter

Grater or food processor

Apple corer

Vegetable peeler

Sieve

Spatula

Parchment paper

Dull knife

Baking sheet

Adult with Child: Preheat the oven to 425 degrees, and line a 9-inch springform pan with parchment paper.

Child with Adult: Using either a food processor, or a bowl and your hands, mix the flour, salt, baking powder, and butter, vegan spread, or coconut oil until crumbly. Then zest the lemon, and add the zest with the egg yolk and ¼ cup of the sugar. Mold it into a ball, and set it aside.

Adult with Child: Using a vegetable peeler and an apple corer, peel and core the apples. Then, using a grater or the food processor or a mixture of both, grate the apples, and mix them with the remaining ¾ cup of sugar and the cinnamon. Transfer this mixture to a sieve over a mixing bowl, and let it sit for 20 minutes.

Child with Adult: Cut the dough with a dough cutter into two pieces, three-quarters and one- quarter of the dough. Take the larger part and press into the top and sides of the springform pan.

Child: With a large spoon, move the drained apples to the dough in the pan, using a spatula to flatten the apples. Then roll or press out the leftover quarter of the dough, and cut

it with a dull knife to make a decorative apple or whatever design you want; place it in the center of the apple-strewn dough.

Adult: Bake in the middle of the oven, on top of a cookie sheet (for spills), for 15 minutes, then reduce the oven to 350 degrees for another 30 minutes, or until the crust is golden.

From A Sweet Year © 2024 by Joan Nathan. Excerpted by permission of Alfred A. Knopf, a division of Penguin Random House LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.