Cooking Course: A pair of brothers team up to teach college students the art of a good meal August 8, 2008
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Originally published in the Detroit Jewish News, August 8, 2008. Cooking Course A pair of brothers team up to teach college students the art of a good meal Written by Keri Guten Cohen Chefs Max and Eli Sussman are products of their environment - a home in Huntington Woods with no junk food, no bottled salad dressing and a mother who cooked inventive meals from scratch nearly every night. The brothers went from sous chefs in their mom’s kitchen to revolutionizing the “cuisine” at their childhood camp to professional cooks to published cookbook authors.
Freshman in the Kitchen: From Clueless Cook to Creative Chef (Huron River Press; $17.95), which hits bookstores this month, is a hip, thoughtful, good-humored primer for novice cooks - an idea that developed from Eli’s experience living at Michigan State University with roommates who had little clue how to cook while he whipped up accomplished meals with ease. Offering recipes ranging from BBQ chicken and Ultimate Chocolate Fudge Cake to sushi and tzatziki in a manner that takes the mystery out of home cooking, Max, 25, and Eli, 23, provide clear step-by-step instructions (boiling pasta), explanations about cooking tools (choosing the right knife) and techniques (how to clean leeks), time requirements, tips for buying locally produced food - and savvy, humorous, personable commentary. While writing the book, the brothers - who shopped their concept to only two publishers before landing a deal just a year ago - bounced e-mails and phone calls between Eli in Los Angeles, where he is a part-time chef for catering companies and a full-time assistant media buyer at advertising agency the Gary Group, and Max, a cook at Zingerman’s Delicatessen in Ann Arbor who spent five months of the year as a sous chef at a fly-fishing resort in Patagonia in southern Chile. Before that, he honed his skills at eve - the restaurant, also in Ann Arbor. “We both bring unique abilities to the table,” says Eli. “Max has a more high-end culinary background, where I have experience working in fast breakfast and lunch joints where speed is a necessity, but the quality is still high.” Working summers in the kitchen at > >Habonim Dror’s Camp Tavor in Three Rivers, Mich., was the beginning of the culinary teamwork. “I started to truly become passionate about cooking when we worked together at camp,” says Eli. “We would go through our meats and produce and then stand in the kitchen and brainstorm, bouncing ideas off each other and the rest of the staff. “Max was the brains behind the operation, and I was his sounding board. I would tell him what I thought we could accomplish in the time frame we had because Max always wanted to do something crazy like make a three-course Indian meal with only a few hours to spare before dinner.” With that same give-and-take relationship, the brothers targeted Freshman in the Kitchen to their contemporaries. “Most kids entering college are coming straight from living with their parents,” explains Eli. “If kids realized they could cook delicious food for themselves and not spend all their money eating in average restaurants, they’d probably start cooking more.” Adds Max, “I think people are becoming interested in knowing where their food comes from, who makes it and how to prepare it. The Postville incident [the Iowa kosher meatÐsupplier scandal] is a good example of this,” he says. “If we knew half the things that go on in large food processors like that, we’d want to meet the people who grow our food and buy directly from them at farmers’ markets as much as we could.”Ê The brothers are the sons of Lynne Avadenka, a book artist (who tested recipes for the book), and attorney Marc Sussman, well known in certain circles for his homemade challah and Passover lamb stew. The pair, who still live in Huntington Woods and are members of West Bloomfield’s Congregation B’nai Moshe, outlawed junk food at home while the boys were growing up - a serendipitous decision. “They were always adventurous eaters, willing to try what was put in front of them. That made it more fun for me,” says Avadenka. Adds Marc Sussman, “They wanted the book to look good and be functional; they thought about all that.” The best part? “We thought it was great they did this together, especially since Eli moved to L.A.,” says Avadenka. “It’s a way for them to stay close, and we’re happy to see it.” |
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Sesame Peanut Noodle July 31, 2008
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Some of you probably can’t wait to get your hands dirty cooking and eating some of the dishes in the book. So here’s one.
Sesame Peanut Noodle
This dish has developed a trendy following as of late, but my version was first. Okay, maybe not the very first, but it’s got a serious chance in a Sesame Peanut Noodle battle. It is best served cold with fresh chopped green onions sprinkled over the top. Try adding a chopped chicken breast or salmon filet.
Ingredients
1/2 pound dry spaghetti
3 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
1/4 cup crunchy peanut butter
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon seasoned rice vinegar
1 teaspoon chili sauce
3 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1 small clove minced garlic
1 tablespoon minced ginger
1 carrot, shredded
3 green onions, thinly sliced
1 cucumber, medium dice
1 tablespoon sesame seedsDirections
1. Cook spaghetti according to directions on box. Drain and rinse pasta, then toss with 2 tablespoons sesame oil.
2. Combine peanut butter, soy sauce, seasoned rice vinegar, chili sauce, water, brown sugar, garlic, ginger, and remaining tablespoon of sesame oil in a mixing bowl.
3. Toss the pasta with the peanut sauce mixture, 1/2 the carrot, 1/2 the green onion, and cucumber.
4. Transfer to a serving dish and garnish with sesame seeds, remaining carrot, and remaining green onion.
REALLY Big News! Freshman in the Kitchen Now Available for Pre-Order!!! June 29, 2008
Posted by Max in : Uncategorized , 2 commentsYes, you heard/read correctly! The book is available to buy right now! We know, this is garganteous.
Pre-orders will begin shipping August 23rd the moment the books touch down from the printers.
Remember when purchasing the book online that we will be having several book signings around Michigan so if you plan on attending one of those we will, of course, sign the cookbook for you (I mean we think that’s what happens at a book signing). We have been eagerly awaiting people to ask us to sign things and have been practicing our signatures for months now (and they look totally awesome). But if you won’t be able to make it to one of our events then please order a copy online.
So CLICK HERE to pre-order your copy now!
(Remember : Copies will ship on August 23 or later so expect your book mid-September).
Book Release Weekend August 22-24 June 15, 2008
Posted by Max in : Uncategorized , 1 comment so farOur book officially drops August 15!! In typical Sussman brothers fashion we are going to spend an entire weekend having events around the state so that everyone can come - No excuses! (unless you live in the UP - we understand - but even then, you could probably catch a boat down Lake Huron - seriously)
Here are the events:
Saturday August 23: Book Signing at Noble Lexington. Maybe you’re vacationing in beautiful Lexington, MI this weekend? If so, stop by Noble Lexington and say hi, we’ll be signing books and cooking up some delicious dishes from the cookbook!
Sunday August 24: Book Release Party at the Book Beat. We’re excited to be signing books and sharing some recipes at the Book Beat, the bookstore where Eli and I got some of our first books as kids and have been getting books ever since.
Monday August 25: Book Signing and Party at eve - the restaurant. This is it, folks. The Ann Arbor party to celebrate the release of Freshman in the Kitchen is going down at one of the town’s best restaurants. We’ll be providing some tastes of our favorite dishes from the book and eve’s well-stocked wine bar will be open throughout the evening. Books will be available for purchase, Eli and Max will be happy to sign, and there will be music and merriment all evening long.
Come stop by, grab some snacks and a signed copy of our new book! Feel free to RSVP by clicking the link for each event but it’s totally cool if you just show up!!
Also keep checking our calendar on the right side of this website for more events in Southeast Michigan, LA, and beyond throughout the year.
At the Printers! May 4, 2008
Posted by Max in : Updates , 3 commentsThe book is at the printers! Here’s a sneak peek at the cover:
MORE TO COME SO CHECK BACK SOON!!
Our New Website March 29, 2008
Posted by Max in : Updates , 1 comment so farHello everyone. Welcome to the official website of Freshman in the Kitchen: From Clueless Cook to Creative Chef, by Max and Eli Sussman and published by Huron River Press in Ann Arbor. We’re going to use this site to blog about what we’ve been cooking up in the kitchen and to keep you updated as we get closer to the release date. We’ll probably be throwing some huge parties with lots of food, bright lights, and famous people so if you want to get it on that, sign up for our mailing list.
Also, this site will be undergoing a lot of changes in the next few weeks as we work out the kinks. So keep checking for more info!
