Ben Siman-Tov, aka Israeli-American TikTok star BenGingi, could never have predicted how challenging it would be to publish an Israeli cookbook in a world transformed by Oct. 7.

“It is not what we anticipated and expected when we started the process,” Siman-Tov, 33, told the New York Jewish Week, noting that he and his co-author, his wife Zikki, 29, started on “Eat Small Plates: Vibrant, Shareable Dishes for Daily Joy” in 2022.

During a video interview from his home in Northern New Jersey, Siman-Tov expresses dismay that today words like “Israeli” or “Jewish” have become “triggering,” as he calls it. “I always looked at food as something that connects people, a good bridge between different opinions and cultures,” he said.

“Eat Small Plates” hits shelves on Sept. 9, though it’s already

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