About

Hi, I’m Liz. I’m a newspaper editor by day (night, actually) and a home cook by night (er, day. When I’m not working). I live in a tiny apartment in the very center of Tel Aviv with my husband and baby son. I shop at the local markets and cook with what I find. Welcome to my kitchen.

There’s no physical restaurant named Cafe Liz — it’s just my blog. Thanks for asking, though.

Modern Israeli cuisine

The recipes include a mix of traditional dishes from the cultures that make up Israeli society as well as many creations that could probably be categorized as modern Israeli. Modern Israeli cuisine is still developing, and falls under what people consider Mediterranean cuisine — lots of fresh vegetables, and lots of olive oil. It’s based on fresh, local produce — Israel is an agricultural powerhouse — with a local twist based on traditional ingredients. It’s just beginning to receive international recognition, and you can read more about it at the Washington Post, The Atlantic, The New York Times and The Jewish Journal.

Find recipes that are vegan, parve, dairy and more

I’m not actually vegetarian, but my kitchen is. All recipes on my blog are kosher: Vegan, parve and dairy recipes are tagged accordingly. Posts with multiple recipes or variations may have more than one tag.

I’ve also tagged recipes that are kosher for Passover, Ashkenazi-style (kitniyot and chametz free) or Sephardi-style (chametz free). These categories do not include recipes that could be easily altered to suit Passover.

A quick explanatory note about kashrut: Kashrut, meaning kosherness, refers to specific preparation methods that observant Jews have practiced over the centuries. If you’re looking to cook for a friend who keeps kosher, a kosher recipe isn’t enough — your kitchen and ingredients have to be kosher, too. Best to coordinate with your friend.

What else can you find here?

You’ll also find Israeli food culture, market tours, Tel Aviv highlights and restaurants, as well as a bit of travel.

Press and featured posts

I’ve been interviewed by a handful of international publications in various languages (not all of which are available online), and Cafe Liz topped PresenTense Magazine’s list of the top 10 Jewish food blogs. Individual posts have also been featured on Tastespotting, Foodgawker and Saveur.

Thanks

Thanks to Tal for lending me server space, and Eitan for the technical support and the constant willingness to do the dishes.

And, of course, my mother, for inspiring many of my recipes, as she keeps noting in her comments.