The 2nd Edition of “On the Chocolate Trail” is out this week. Image by Courtesy of Jewish Lights Publishing

By Liza Schoenfein October 16, 2017

When one of my sons (I won’t say which, to protect his anonymity) was small, if asked what he wanted to be when he grew up, his answer was always the same: an astronaut, a chef and a daddy. I wonder how many people, asked that very question, would answer “a rabbi and a chocolate expert.” Deborah Prinz did — and that is indeed what she became.

A frequent Forward contributor, Prinz is the author of “On the Chocolate Trail: A Delicious Adventure Connecting Jews, Religions, History, Travel, Rituals and Recipes to the Magic of Cacao” (Jewish Lights Publishing, 2017). The 2nd edition of the book is being released this week, with updates including answers to the questions “What did Alexander Hamilton drink?” and whether deities formed out of chocolate are blasphemy or art.

The new version of the book includes 25 recipes (some contemporary; some historical), along with a section on the ethics of chocolate and how to make the best purchasing choices. There is also a current list of chocolate museums and festivals around the world.

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

“For me, the most exciting thing is that this brings sweetness to Jewish history,” Prinz said. “A lot of people view Jewish history as so sad and lachrymose, all tragedy and sadness. And I think this reminds us that our people are resilient and adaptable.”

The earliest contact Jews had with chocolate was through Sephardim, Prinz said. “Even after the expulsion from Spain — while we could focus just on the exile and Inquisition — here we have stories of people enjoying and adapting; taking advantage of opportunities that were available to them; being sustained by chocolate in all senses of the word. And it wasn’t just that they manufactured and traded it; they enjoyed it.”

During the Colonial period in America, she explained, the Sephardim who were in the chocolate trade (for example Aaron Lopez and the Gomez family), were also very involved philanthropically with their synagogues. “So they weren’t just benefiting, they were generous in support of their local Jewish communities,” Prinz said.

Prinz is Rabbi Emerita of Temple Adat Shalom in San Diego, California, where she was senior rabbi for nearly 20 years. Prior to that she was the rabbi of a synagogue in Bergen County, New Jersey, and assistant rabbi of Central Synagogue in Manhattan. She currently lectures about chocolate and religion around the world.

Prinz is co-curator of the exhibit “Semite in New York City (through February of 2018). Her blog is onthechocolatetrail.org.

Liza Schoenfein is the food editor of the Forward. Contact her at [email protected] or on Twitter, @LifeDeathDinner

The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. We’ve started our Passover Fundraising Drive, and we need 1,800 readers like you to step up to support the Forward by April 21. Members of the Forward board are even matching the first 1,000 gifts, up to $70,000.

This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism, because every dollar goes twice as far.

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

2X match on all Passover gifts!

$90 → $180 $180 → $360

$360 → $720

Other amount