By MARK KENNEDY

NEW YORK (AP) — As a child growing up in Italy, Lidia Bastianich recalls seeing one particular cookbook in just about everyone’s kitchen. It was called “The Talisman of Happiness” and it was often given as a wedding present to couples starting new lives together.

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“It has all the basic recipes. And it says the basic thing — that food is a connector, that food is happiness,” she says.

The book by Ada Boni — its Italian title is “Il Talismano della Felicita” — was first published in 1929, and became a go-to place to find the recipe for spaghetti carbonara or pork galantine. Its simplicity and accessibility got it compared to “The Joy of Cooking,” but it predated Irma S. Rombauer’s iconic work.

This fall, the first English edition of the complete work — with nearly 1,700 recipes — arrives on shelves, thanks to years of dogged pursuit by Voracious publisher Michael Szczerban.

The hunt is on

He first heard about it from Samin Nosrat, author of “Salt Fat Acid Heat,” and that, combined with his love of Italy, led him on a more than decade-long journey to get the rights to publish it in English. “Just the poetry of that name — ‘The Talisman of Happiness’ — it felt timeless and also like it was from so long ago,” Szczerban says.

Boni, who died in 1973, was one of Italy’s first food writers, and the seeds of “The Talisman of Happiness” grew from a magazine. She codified and tested dishes that have remained the backbone of Italian cooking and reflect regional differences. There are 10 gnocchi recipes, 12 minestrones and 20 risottos.

“This is a cookbook that’s really meant for cooking. It is a book for cooks. It’s a book that’s intended to be used, not just to sit on a coffee table or on a shelf, but to become yours,” says Szczerban.

There’s no frilly language or stories. Each entry includes ingredients, and the directions are usually just a few paragraphs, telling the home cook to look for the meat to be “done” and the vegetables to be seasoned “to taste.”

Unlike recipes from Milk Street, Bon Appetit or America’s Test Kitchen, Boni didn’t weigh things to the gram or even dictate oven degrees. Her Cod with White Wine only specifies “a few spoons” of wine. Elsewhere, she calls for a “finger of oil” or “a few leaves of rosemary.”

“I think that there was a very specific editorial vision for these recipes, which was to give you enough to make it, but not so much that you couldn’t make it your own,” Szczerban says.

A 12-year sleuthing adventure

The more Szczerban learned about “The Talisman of Happiness,” the more intrigued he became. What at first was an impulse to find a copy for himself grew into something larger.

“As I began to understand more of what it was — the place that it seemed to have had in Italian history and culture, and then the spread of Italian cooking throughout the world — I thought, ‘I don’t need just a copy of this. I need to be able to use my position as a publisher to bring this to the rest of the English-language world,’” he says.

The book had been updated regularly in Italy and there had been a few stabs at an English version, but the recipes were changed in order to tailor them to American tastes and heavily abridged. “Nobody had translated the full beast,” Szczerban says.

Szczerban started a sleuthing adventure that took some 12 years — calling random numbers at the Italian publisher with a script created from Google Translate, poring over bankruptcy reports to see who might have inherited the intellectual property rights, and talking to every Italian book figure and agent he could.

A breakthrough came when he contacted a book packager — like a movie producer, but for books — who knew somebody who knew someone else who maybe could locate a relative. A few months later, they found a great-nephew. “I think you needed somebody on the ground in Italy to unlock the relationship of trust,” says Szczerban.

He decided to use the 1959 Italian edition as the model, tapping eight translators. He removed only recipes that were completely unworkable and sections on Italian etiquette that were dated. The original edition was constantly consulted.

“We wanted it to be Ada’s book, still. We weren’t trying to modernize it. We were trying to preserve it and to keep it intact,” he says. “The word talisman, to me, has such power. I wanted it to be the talisman it was back when it was first published.”

Bastianich wrote a forward for the English edition and says it captures the culture, religion, topography and climate of Italy. “Italians really, really cherish their cultural heritage,” she says.

Szczerban has already seen it in effect. For an office potluck, a sales rep who liked the book decided to make Baked Wine Donuts — a sort of shortbread cookie with wine mixed into the flour.

“She’s not a baker. She’s never seen this thing before. But there was something intriguing about it that got her into the kitchen and, I’ll tell you, these were amazing,” he says.

“They turned out the first time, and going out a little bit beyond her comfort zone gave her the confidence to take on the next recipe and the next recipe. To me, that is kind of the magic of a book like this: It can seduce you in some way, but then it gives you something back.”

Baked Wine Donuts

Makes 36

Ingredients

3⅓ cups all-purpose flour

¾ cup olive oil

½ cup sugar

¾ cup wine

Oil for greasing

Directions

Put the flour in a heap and add the oil, sugar, and a glass of light wine, white or red, in the well in the middle. You need a paste that is neither too hard nor too soft. Make it into a ball, let it rest for a few minutes, and then divide it into 4 or 5 pieces.

Take one piece at a time and stretch it over a lightly floured board to make a roll the width of your thumb. Cut this into pieces of about 8 inches and make a donut out of each one, pressing the ends together so that they do not then open. Proceed in the same way until all are used up.

Line up the donuts on a lightly oiled baking sheet, sprinkle them with sugar, and bake them for about 20 minutes in a preheated oven at a good heat.

Excerpted from “The Talisman of Happiness” by Ada Boni. Copyright (copyright) 2025 by Elwin Street. Used with permission of Voracious, an imprint of Little, Brown and Company. New York, NY. All rights reserved.

Everyone loves Hanukkah — the colorful candles, the traditional songs, the gifts, and, of course, the potato latkes. Yet holiday cooking often means excess — all that frying, high carbs, and lots of sour cream.

Interestingly, the Hanukkah miracle highlights olive oil, which originated in the eastern Mediterranean, and not potatoes. They were unknown in the Holy Land until long after the discovery of the New World. Making potato latkes for Hanukkah became popular through the influence of European Jews.

Fortunately, we can create delicious, healthier Hanukkah celebrations by emphasizing Mediterranean specialties, such as stews featuring pulses and vegetables. Even potatoes can be enjoyed guilt-free when roasted or prepared as lighter latkes.

This Hanukkah, we plan to make potato and leek latkes with sun-dried tomato tapenade and harissa roasted potatoes. We will also prepare Southern Italian giambotta, a hearty vegetable medley with chickpeas and potatoes; and Sicilian caponata, a sweet-and-sour eggplant dish in an olive-caper sauce.

Vegan potato latkes are shown served with sauteed leeks. (Photo by Yakir Levy)

Vegan Potato Latkes with Leeks

These creamy-textured latkes are made from mashed potatoes with sauteed leeks and dill. Serve them with dill-flavored yogurt or a fruit puree.

Yield: 15 latkes

INGREDIENTS

Vegan Dill Yogurt Topping:

1 cup unsweetened plain plant-based yogurt
1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Latkes:

1 1/2 pounds yellow-fleshed potatoes, such as Yukon Gold (about 6 medium)
3/4 pound leeks, dark green tops discarded
5 tablespoons olive oil, more if needed (divided)
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
4 teaspoons chopped fresh dill
2 tablespoons plain dry breadcrumbs
Dill sprigs (optional garnish)

DIRECTIONS

1. Topping: Mix yogurt with dill, salt and pepper in a small bowl, Cover and refrigerate in a covered container for 1 hour to blend flavors, or until ready to serve.

2. In a saucepan, cover whole potatoes with water and add a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer over medium-low heat for 30 minutes, or until very tender when pierced with a fork. Drain; rinse briefly with cold water. Let stand until cool enough to handle.

3. Halve leeks lengthwise, rinse well and cut into 1/4-inch slices. Put sliced leeks in a bowl of cold water; rub to separate the layers. Soak them 3 minutes to remove any sand. Lift leeks into a colander, rinse and drain well.

4. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large heavy skillet, preferably nonstick, over medium heat. Add leeks; salt and pepper. Cook, stirring very often, 5 minutes. Cook, covered, over low heat 5 more minutes, or until soft but not brown. Cook uncovered over medium-high heat, stirring, to evaporate any liquid in pan.

5.Peel potatoes; transfer to a large bowl. Mash thoroughly with a potato masher (not in a food processor).

6. Add leeks to mashed potatoes. Add dill, salt, pepper and breadcrumbs; mix well. Taste; season well. Using a 1/4-cup measure for each latke, put some of mixture in your palm and flatten it to a 2 1/2-inch patty about 3/8 inch thick, patting it with both hands to make it smooth and compact. Set latkes on a plate.

7. Heat oven to 250 degrees (for keeping latkes warm).

8. Wipe skillet clean. Heat 3 tablespoons oil in skillet over medium heat. Add 4 latkes to pan, or enough to make one layer without crowding. Fry 3 minutes on each side, or until brown; turn carefully using 2 wide pancake turners. Keep warm on a baking sheet in oven while frying remaining pancakes. Add more oil to pan if it becomes dry.

9. Set latkes on a paper-towel-lined plate. Pat tops with the towels to remove excess oil. Serve hot, with topping. Garnish with dill sprigs.

Sun-dried tomato tapenade makes a tasty topping for latkes, other potato dishes and toast. (Photo by Yakir Levy)

Garlicky Sun-Dried Tomato Tapenade

This pungent condiment flavored with capers and olives, from “Cold Canning” by Bruce Weinstein and Mark Scarbrough, is delicious on latkes and on toast; pair with Greek yogurt if you like. Choose plump dried tomatoes to make it.

Yield: About 1 cup

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup olive oil
8 medium garlic cloves, peeled, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons drained capers
1/2 cup dry-packed sun-dried tomatoes, thinly sliced or snipped in strips with scissors
1 1/2 cups pitted black Kalamata olives
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon kosher salt

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat a small skillet over medium heat for 1 or 2 minutes. Swirl in the oil; add garlic and capers. Cook, stirring often, until garlic begins to brown at edges, about 2 minutes,

2. Remove from heat. Stir in dried tomato strips. Cool to room temperature, about 30 minutes.

3. Scrape contents of skillet into a food processor, Add olives, vinegar, oregano and salt. Cover and pulse repeatedly, uncovering and rearranging ingredients with a rubber spatula as necessary, until mixture has consistency of coarse, slushy relish.

4. Transfer to 2 clean half-pint jars, leaving about 1/2 inch headspace in each. Cover or seal; refrigerate or freeze. It keeps up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator.

Purees of fruit like blueberries, plums or nectarines are excellent on latkes, as well as on toast. (Photo by Yakir Levy)

Applesauce Alternatives

Like applesauce, purees made from other fruits go well with latkes. We like purees from plums, nectarines and blueberries but fruit purees can be combined for a different effect. Mary Shrader, author of “The Modern Pioneer Pantry,” recommends high-acid fruit for this recipe because she preserves the puree by canning it. For small amounts, we refrigerate or freeze it.

Yield: 3 to 4 half pints

INGREDIENTS

4 cups blueberries, peaches, nectarines or plums, peeled and trimmed, pits removed
1 cup water
Granulated sugar, to taste (optional)

DIRECTIONS

1. Combine fruit and water in a saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring. Reduce heat to low; simmer fruit until soft, stirring often to prevent sticking. Remove from heat.

2. Puree fruit in a food mill, fine-mesh strainer or food processor.

3. Rinse saucepan; add puree and sugar to taste. Bring to a boil, stirring, making sure sugar is completely dissolved. Cool and transfer to jars. Refrigerate or freeze.

Giambotta is a hearty southern Italian vegetable stew with beans. (Photo by Yakir Levy)

Calabrian Vegetable Stew — Giambotta

This satisfying, aromatic stew from “Vegana Italiana” by Tara Punzone with Gene Stone begins with a sauté of onions, carrots, celery, garlic and herbs, followed by the Mediterranean favorites of eggplant, zucchini, tomatoes, peppers, and chickpeas, as well as potatoes.

Yield: 6 to 8 servings

INGREDIENTS

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 cups diced onion
1 cup diced celery
1 cup diced carrots
2 tablespoon finely sliced garlic
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
1 tablespoon fresh tarragon leaves
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 cups medium-diced Yukon Gold potatoes
1 cup diced eggplant
1 cup diced red bell peppers
1 3/4 pounds thin skinned small tomatoes, diced, or a 28-oz can whole peeled tomatoes, mashed
2 bay leaves
1/4 cup chopped parsley, including stems
1 cup drained cooked chickpeas, or packaged or canned
1 cup diced zucchini
Salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup basil leaves, torn into small pieces

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat oil in a stew pan over medium heat. Add onion, celery, carrots, garlic, thyme, tarragon and pepper flakes. Sauté 8 minutes, or until onion is translucent.

2. Add potatoes; sauté 5 minutes. Add eggplant and peppers; sauté 3 minutes.

3. Add tomatoes, bay leaves and parsley; cook at a low boil 15 minutes.

4. Add chickpeas, zucchini, salt and pepper, Cook for 5 minutes; the vegetables should be firm, not mushy.

5. Remove from heat. Discard bay leaves, Add basil just before serving.

Harissa roasted potatoes are served with pistachio topping and yogurt. (Photo by Yakir Levy)

Harissa Roasted Potatoes

For this spicy dish from “Delicious Gatherings” by Tara Bench, the potatoes are roasted with harissa, then served with pistachios, herbs and yogurt.

Yield: 6 servings

INGREDIENTS

1½ pounds baby Yukon Gold or creamer potatoes
1 tablespoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons harissa
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon honey
2 garlic cloves, minced
1¼ cups plain whole milk yogurt or Greek yogurt

Pistachio Topping:

5 tablespoons finely chopped pistachios
2 tablespoons finely chopped red onion
3 tablespoons chopped parsley
1 tablespoon chopped oregano

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with nonstick foil.

2. In a medium saucepan, cover potatoes with water and add salt. Bring to a simmer. Cook until just tender when checked with a fork, 10 to 12 minutes. Drain; let cool enough to handle.

3. Harissa sauce: In a large bowl, whisk together harissa, oil, honey and garlic.

4. Cut cooled potatoes in half, or larger potatoes in 2-inch pieces. Toss with harissa mixture.

5. Put potatoes on prepared baking sheet. Roast until crisp and golden, 25 to 30 minutes, turning potatoes over halfway through cooking.

6. Topping: Combine pistachios, onion, parsley and oregano in a small bowl.

7. To serve, spoon yogurt onto a serving platter and top with potatoes. Sprinkle with topping.

Caponata is a Sicilian eggplant specialty enlivened by olives and capers. (Photo by Yakir Levy)

Eggplant Caponata

In their book, “Olive Oil for Dummies,” authors Amy Riolo and Simon Poole, MD, recommend serving this Sicilian specialty as an appetizer, salad, or accompaniment for grilled meat or fish. It’s perfect with potato latkes.

Yield: 8 servings

INGREDIENTS

3 small eggplants, cut in 1/4-inch cubes
2 tablespoon sea salt
2 tablespoon extra virgin oil, plus more for frying or roasting
1 celery stick, cubed
1 onion, diced
1/4 cup capers, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup pitted green olives, chopped
1/3 to 1/2 cup balsamic or red wine vinegar
1 to 2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1/4 cup finely chopped mint
1/4 cup finely chopped basil
1/4 cup raisins
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons toasted pine nuts

DIRECTIONS

1. Place eggplant cubes in a colander, sprinkle with sea salt and let stand 1 hour. Rinse well; pat dry.

2. Heat 2 inches of oil in a large, heavy skillet to 385 degrees. Fry eggplant in 3 batches, about 3 minutes for each. Drain on a paper-towel-lined baking sheet. Alternatively, roast eggplant with 3 tablespoons olive oil at 400 degrees in an air-fryer toaster/convection oven for 15 minutes or until tender.

3. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a very large, wide, deep skillet over medium heat. Add celery and onion. Sauté until golden and soft, about 7 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in capers, olives, vinegar, sugar and reserved eggplant.

4. Add tomato sauce, mint, basil, raisins and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until thickened, about 10 minutes.

5. Serve at room temperature, garnished with pine nuts.

Potato wedges are topped with vegan parmesan made of pine nuts. (Photo by Yakir Levy)

Garlic Potato Wedges with Pine Nut Parmesan

This dish is based on a recipe in “Vegana Italiana” by Tara Punzone with Gene Stone. You can make vegan Parmesan with macadamia nuts instead of pine nuts.

Yield: 6 to 8 servings

INGREDIENTS

3 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes
1/4 to 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 to 3 teaspoon sea salt
2 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary leaves
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon paprika
Chopped parsley (for sprinkling)

Vegan Parmesan:

1 cup pine nuts
3/4 to 1 cup nutritional yeast
1 teaspoon salt or to taste

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Cut potatoes in 3/4-inch wedges.

2. In a large bowl mix olive oil with garlic, salt, rosemary, pepper, onion powder and paprikas.

3. Add potatoes. Toss, coating each piece well.

4. Place potatoes on a baking sheet. Bake 25 minutes or until a fork inserted in thickest piece goes straight through.

5. Vegan Parmesan: Pulse nuts, yeast and salt in a high speed blender or food processor until mixture has consistency of a fine crumble. Do not overprocess into a paste. Store in a jar.

6. Serve potatoes sprinkled with parsley and pine nut Parmesan.

Faye Levy is the author of “1,000 Jewish Recipes” and “Feast from the Mideast.”

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By SUDHIN THANAWALA, Associated Press

The Trump administration must stop deploying the California National Guard in Los Angeles and return control of the troops to the state, a federal judge ruled Wednesday.

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U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer in San Francisco granted a preliminary injunction sought by California officials who opposed President Donald Trump’s extraordinary move to use state Guard troops without the governor’s approval to further his immigration enforcement efforts. But he also put the decision on hold until Monday.

California argued that conditions in Los Angeles had changed since Trump first took command of the troops and deployed them in June. The administration initially called up more than 4,000 California National Guard troops, but that number had dropped to several hundred by late October, with only a 100 or so troops remaining in the Los Angeles area.

But the Republican administration extended the deployment until February while also trying to use California Guard members in Portland, Oregon as part of its effort to send the military into Democratic-run cities despite fierce resistance from mayors and governors.

U.S. Justice Department lawyers said the administration still needed Guard members in the Los Angeles area to help protect federal personnel and property.

By STAN CHOE, Associated Press Business Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — The U.S. stock market remains largely quiet on Wednesday as Wall Street waits to hear what the Federal Reserve will say in the afternoon about where interest rates may be heading.

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US job openings barely budged in October, coming in just below 7.7 million

The S&P 500 slipped 0.2% in early trading and remains near its all-time high, which was set in October. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 88 points, or 0.2%, as of 9:35 a.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 0.5% lower.

Among the market’s few big movers was GE Vernova, which flew 15% higher after raising its forecast for revenue and other financial measures through 2028.

Cracker Barrel Old Country Store sank 2.1%. It reported better results for the latest quarter than analysts expected but also cut its forecast for revenue this fiscal year, as well as for an underlying measure of earnings.

In the bond market, Treasury yields largely held steady as the countdown ticks toward the Fed’s announcement at 2 p.m. Eastern time. The widespread expectation is that it will cut its main interest rate for a third time this year in hopes of bolstering the job market.

That expectation is so strong that U.S. stock prices have already run to the edge of their records because of it. The more important question for Wall Street will be what Fed officials will say about where they see interest rates potentially heading in 2026.

Wall Street has been bracing for Fed officials to imply fewer cuts to rates in 2026 than this year, and potentially fewer than the two that many traders are expecting now, even after they downgraded their forecasts.

While lower interest rates can boost the economy and send prices for investments higher, they can also worsen inflation.

With inflation remaining stubbornly above the Fed’s 2% target, Fed officials are notably split about whether high inflation or the slowing job market is the bigger threat to the economy.

In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury held at 4.18%, where it was late Tuesday. The two-year yield, which more closely tracks expectations for the Fed, held steady at 3.61%.

In stock markets abroad, indexes were mixed amid mostly modest movements across Europe and Asia.

AP Business Writers Yuri Kageyama and Matt Ott contributed.