Chesnok

Chesnok: Recipes with Love from Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, and Beyond is Polina Chesnakova’s third cookbook, a love letter to the food of her childhood. Born in Ukraine to Russian and Armenian parents from Georgia, she grew up cooking and eating at the hip of her mother and aunts.  

Essays, stories, and profiles of the amazing cooks in her life are peppered amongst recipes as diverse as the communities from which they blossomed and the immigrant experience they were subsequently passed down in. From Georgian tkemali (sour plum sauce) and Armenian dolma (stuffed grape leaves) to Ukrainian varenyky (dumplings) and Russian okroshka (cold yogurt soup) and medovik (honey cake), Near Abroad showcases over 110 vibrant regional recipes. 

Chesnok paints a portrait of the Soviet diaspora through food, and is for the children of that diaspora, but it is also for anyone looking to expand their palate and pantry and learn the rich history of a people through their most cherished recipes and traditions. 

Author Biography

Polina Chesnakova was born in Ukraine to Russian and Armenian parents from the Republic of Georgia. She was raised in a tight-knit Rhode Island community of refugees from all over the former Soviet Union, and has cooked and baked in a handful of professional kitchens. She’s had her blog Chesnok since 2015, and her recipes have been published in Saveur, Epicurious, Salon, and Food 52. She has written two cookbooks: Hot Cheese and Everyday Cake. She also worked for Book Larder in Seattle and presided over the cooking class program as the Culinary Director from 2020-2024. She lives Rhode Island with her husband, Lee, and son, Anton.