{"product_id":"my-mother-s-spice-cupboard-elana-benjamin","title":"My Mother’s Spice Cupboard – Elana Benjamin","description":"\u003cp\u003eElanaHow can you preserve a rich and unusual family heritage while growing up in the wider community?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e‘Many powders, seeds and pods – cumin, coriander, garam masala, turmeric and paprika, chilli powder, cloves and cardamom pods – were stored in old peanut butter and jam jars. As a child, I couldn’t reach the spice cupboard without standing on a chair. I remember trying to work out a way of distinguishing chilli powder from paprika, which looked almost identical to my six-year-old eyes.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn 1917, fifteen year old Jacob Benjamin fled Baghdad for Bombay, disguised as an Arab. My Mother’s Spice Cupboard is the story of Jacob, his indomitable wife Hannah, and their nine children, set against the backdrop of the once thriving Baghdadi Jewish community of Bombay.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eElana Benjamin, one of Jacob and Hannah’s many grandchildren, has vividly brought to life a community which no longer exists. Tracing the changes through two families and four generations, Benjamin lovingly describes what it was like to leave the culture, language and cuisine of India and start a new life in Australia.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eUnderlying the story is the importance of food and cooking to the Baghdadi Jews, which goes beyond the mere provision of sustenance to express boundless warmth, love and hospitality.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHybrid Publishers 2012, paperback 229 pages\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Elana Benjamin","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44533461090373,"sku":"611","price":27.5,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0615\/9997\/3445\/files\/my-mothers-spice-cupboard-elana-benjamin-spicecupboard-7453892.jpg?v=1770294007","url":"https:\/\/shop.sydneyjewishmuseum.com.au\/products\/my-mother-s-spice-cupboard-elana-benjamin","provider":"Sydney Jewish Museum Shop","version":"1.0","type":"link"}