"I burned my first Shabbat chicken. Then I wrote 200 recipes so you wouldn't have to."

— Rivka Goldstein, author of Simmer

Kosher Cookbook & Recipe Blog

Simmer

Ancient laws.
Tuesday-night dinner.

Recipes that honor kashrut without sacrificing the charred edges, the sticky glazes, and the finger-licking moments that make cooking worth the mess.

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★★★★★ 4,200+ home cooks
Golden braided challah loaves fresh from the oven on a wooden board

First successful challah. Cried a little.

Crispy roast chicken with golden skin on a cast iron pan surrounded by herbs

Shabbat chicken, attempt #14. Nailed it.

Sticky pomegranate glazed brisket sliced thick on a serving platter with fresh herbs

← add more garlic

Scroll
The Story Behind the Recipes

From burned chicken
to feeding the whole block

Scroll through the moments that became this cookbook — the failures, the lessons, and the golden-lit food that followed.

Year One

"The kugel stuck to the pan. All of it. I scraped it into the garbage before my mother-in-law arrived."

Golden braided challah on a wooden board with sesame seedsShabbat

Honey-Glazed Challah

Note to self: soaking time matters. Salt the meat for EXACTLY 60 minutes. Not 45. Not 90.

← learned this the hard way

Roasted chicken with crispy golden skin in a cast iron pan with lemon and herbsFriday Night

Shabbat Roast Chicken

200

recipes tested, failed, and perfected

Every recipe in this book has a burn mark in its history.

The Tiny Kitchen Years

"I kept kosher in a 400-square-foot apartment with one oven and no dishwasher. The counter was the size of a cutting board."

Thick sliced brisket in a dark pomegranate glaze with roasted vegetablesYom Tov

Pomegranate Brisket

Honey cake with powdered sugar on a linen cloth next to a jar of honey

First Rosh Hashana hosting. 14 people. One cake.

Community Kitchen

"The rabbi's wife told me my cholent needed more paprika. She was right. I've used twice as much ever since."

Shakshuka with bright red tomato sauce and poached eggs in a cast iron skilletWeeknight

Cast-Iron Shakshuka

200

people fed last Pesach

"I couldn't boil water. Now I host the whole family."

The secret to a clear chicken soup is patience. Three hours minimum. Four is better.

Bubbie Miriam's rule

Slow-cooked cholent with beans, barley, and flanken in an earthy brown stewShabbat

Three-Bean Cholent

Why This Book

"My daughter asked me to teach her to make kugel. The same kugel I threw away in year one. That's when I knew the book had to exist."

Ready to write your own kitchen story?

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From the Book

A taste of what's inside

Flip through the chapters. Every recipe has been made, ruined, and made right again.

Two golden braided challah loaves on a wooden board with sesame seeds scattered around
PareveShabbat

Honey-Glazed Challah

Six-strand braid with a honey-egg wash that caramelizes into a lacquer finish. The crumb is pillowy; the crust shatters.

← Add more garlic to the dipping oil

⏱ 3 hrs👥 Serves 2 loaves
See all 200+ recipes in the book →
Reader Stories

From burned kitchens
to family legends.

These are not polished marketing quotes. These are the messages that arrive on Friday afternoons, typed with flour-dusted fingers.

200+

Tested recipes

4,200+

Home cooks

★ 4.9

Average rating

3rd

Print run

Leah Bernstein smiling woman with dark hair

Leah Bernstein

Baalat teshuva, Chicago

★★★★★

I became frum two years ago and was terrified of Shabbat cooking. Rivka's book is the reason I can now host twelve people without a panic attack. The cholent recipe alone is worth every penny.the cholent recipe alone is worth every penny

Devorah Katz warm smiling woman with glasses

Devorah Katz

Mother of six, Brooklyn

★★★★★

"My bubbie's brisket was the gold standard. I never thought I'd make anything better. The pomegranate brisket in this book proved me wrong. I've made it four times since Rosh Hashana."

Miriam Schwartz older woman with kind eyes and silver hair

Miriam Schwartz

Grandmother, Five Towns

★★★★★

I bought this for my daughter when she got married. She called me crying — happy crying — after her first Shabbat dinner. Said it was the best gift I ever gave her.

As seen in

Mishpacha MagazineAmi LivingJoy of KosherThe NosherFleishigs
The Book

Simmer: 200 Kosher Recipes
Worth the Mess

Every recipe tested in a real kosher kitchen, every hechsher verified, every sticky glaze and charred edge intentional.

Simmer cookbook hardcover lying on a wooden table with fresh herbs and a linen cloth

Simmer

200 Kosher Recipes Worth the Mess

by Rivka Goldstein

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What's inside

  • ✦200 fully certified kosher recipes across 8 chapters
  • ✦A kashrut primer for beginners — no assumptions made
  • ✦Shabbat timeline guides for every recipe
  • ✦Make-ahead and freezer instructions throughout
  • ✦A chapter on baking with children (tested with toddlers)
  • ✦Foreword by Rebbetzin Leah Feldman of Bais Yaakov Chicago
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Honey challah recipe card — the Shabbat starter kit featured recipe

Honey-Glazed Challah

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