Jewish food maven Joan Nathan returned to Ann Arbor, home of her alma mater the University of Michigan, for a special dinner at Zingerman’s Roadhouse on Aug. 28 to showcase her newest cookbook: King Solomon's Table: A Culinary Exploration of Jewish Cooking from Around the World. An international buffet showcasing the diaspora and using recipes from the book was served to approximately 100 guests, who had come to feast like the legendary king and hear a brief presentation from the beloved Jewish cooking maven.

One of the most popular dishes at the event was the Aharaimi: Arctic char served with a vibrantly spicy tomato compote. Many people were so enamored of it that they said they would be serving it at their celebratory dinners for Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish new year, which begins at sundown on Wednesday. (I happen to be one of those enthusiasts — the fish was phenomenal!)

RELATED: Nathan explores Jewish cooking with 'King Solomon's Table'

Of the three desserts served to each guest at the dinner — a stone fruit cobbler, a not-too-sweet tahini cookie, and a date-filled cake — the last of these was the star of the plate. Or, I should say, the glittering diamond: a parallelogram-shaped portion of King Solomon’s Cake, golden with saffron, sweetened with an infusion of honey syrup, and lightly dusted with a sprinkling of sesame seeds. It, too, would be an ideal dish to serve to loved ones at a holiday dinner, as it is traditional to serve sweet dishes in hopes of ushering in a happy year. And seeds are also a representative food, signifying wishes for an abundance of blessings.

The entire meal was extraordinary, full of color, spice, sweetness, flavor, and beautiful end-of-summer produce grown at Zingerman’s own Cornman Farms. And Ms. Nathan, as always, was a delight: informative about the history of Jewish food, passionate about her work, and gracious to everyone at the event as she chatted and signed copies of her book.

It was a perfect prelude to Rosh Hashanah.

To read more about the dinner at Zingerman’s Roadhouse, click here for the story that was featured on the religion page on Sept. 16.

Aharaimi (Arctic Char in a Spicy Tomato Sauce)

Joan Nathan writes that “Aharaimi is a traditional post-Columbian Exchange Libyan dish popular among the Mediterranean seafood restaurants, especially in Tripoli but also throughout the Maghreb. It is a kind of fish tagine or casserole (the sauce is always thick), fragrant, hot, and spicy. For the Jews of Libya, who are now mostly in Israel and Italy, aharaimi begins the Sabbath meal. The secret is the spice kick, called in Israel pilpel tsuma, a mixture of garlic and red pepper once ground by every Libyan home cook ....”

⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 small onion, diced

7 to 8 cloves garlic, diced

3 heaping tablespoons tomato paste

1 tablespoon diced small hot red pepper like habañero, Scotch bonnet, or cayenne

1½ cups water

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon ground caraway

1 teaspoon sea salt

Harissa (optional)

2 pounds Arctic char, salmon, grouper, tuna, whiting, yellowtail, or bonito, cut into 8 pieces

1 roasted red pepper, sliced into lengths, for garnish

2 tablespoons diced cilantro or parsley, for garnish

Juice of 1 lemon

Heat the olive oil in a heavy frying pan with a cover. Sauté the onion until golden, then add the garlic, tomato paste, and hot pepper and stir, sautéing for about a minute.

Add the water, stirring until the paste is dissolved. Then add the cumin, caraway, and salt. Simmer for several minutes, until the sauce is very thick. Taste and add a little harissa or more cayenne if not hot enough.

The traditional way to prepare this is to slip the fish pieces into the sauce and spoon the liquid over them, adding a little water if necessary to create more sauce. Simmer slowly, covered, until the fish is just cooked through, or for no more than 12 minutes. You can also transfer the sauce to a baking dish and put the fish on top of the sauce, skin side up, and bake in a 450F degree oven for 10 minutes and switch to a broiler for an additional 2 minutes.

Using two spatulas, gently transfer each piece of fish with the sauce to a serving platter. Adjust the seasonings to taste, lay the red pepper slices over the fish, sprinkle with cilantro or parsley, and sprinkle the lemon juice over all.

Serve either hot or at room temperature.

Yield: 4 main course servings

Source: Adapted from Joan Nathan, King Solomon’s Table

Libyan Saefra (King Solomon’s Cake)

“According to Claudia Roden, in her magnificent Book of Jewish Food, using oranges in cakes was a particularly Jewish practice” in Libya, writes Joan Nathan. King Solomon’s Cake, which features this ingredient, is “attributed to King Solomon himself, [and] is also called saefra (yellow) cake – the yellow comes from saffron.” It “was a must for the Sabbath and special occasions.”

Date filling:

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 pound pitted dates, chopped

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon ground cardamom

⅛ teaspoon ground cloves

Cake:

2 cups cream of wheat

1 cup coarse semolina

½ cup sugar

1½ teaspoons baking powder

1 cup vegetable oil

1 cup orange juice

Grated zest from 1 orange

½ cup blanched whole almonds, for garnish

1 tablespoon sesame seeds, for garnish

Syrup:

1½ cups sugar or ¾ cup sugar and ¾ cup honey

½ cup water

Juice of 1 lemon

¼ teaspoon saffron threads

Preheat the oven to 350F and grase a 9- or 10-inch springform pan.

To make the filling: Pulse the oil, dates, cinnamon, cardamom, and cloves in a food processor with a steel blade until a thick paste has formed.

To make the cake: In a medium bowl, mix together the cream of wheat, semolina, sugar, baking powder, vegetable oil, orange juice, and orange zest to create a thick batter.

Spread half the batter into the prepared pan, then top with the date filling, spreading the mixture with a spatula to the edges of the pan. Pour the remaining batter over the top, smooth the surface, and score the top of the cake into 2-inch diamond shapes. Gently push one whole almond vertically into the center of each diamond, then scatter the sesame seeds over all. Bake for 30 to 45 minutes, or until golden on the top.

To make the syrup: Fifteen minutes before the cake is done, make the syrup.

In a small saucepan, bring the sugar, honey (if using), water, and lemon juice to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Remove from the heat, add the saffron, and let steep for 5 minutes.

Pour the warm syrup over the cake when it is done. Let stand for at least 6 hours or more, so the cake completely absorbs the syrup.

Yield: 8 to 10 servings

Source: Adapted from Joan Nathan, King Solomon’s Table

Contact Mary Bilyeu at mbilyeu@theblade.com, and follow her at facebook.com/thebladefoodpage, bladefoodpage on Instagram, or @BladeFoodPage on Twitter.

First Published September 18, 2017, 11:30 a.m.