Recipes

From “Golden Door Cooks at Home” by Dean Rucker

Grapeseed or canola oil spray
1 large onion, diced (1 1/2 cups)
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste
1 pound russet or Yukon Gold Potatoes, peeled and sliced
4 to 5 cups homemade chicken or vegetable stock or store-bought low sodium broth
1 1/2 cups corn kernels
2 poblano chiles, roasted, peeled, seeded and diced or 1 can (4 ounces) green chiles, drained and diced
1/2 cup light sour cream
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves

1. Spray a large saucepan; heat over medium-low heat. Add onion and
cook, stirring, until translucent but not brown, 4 to 5 minutes. Stir
in chili powder, cumin, oregano, and salt, and cook, stirring, for 20
seconds. Add potatoes and stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and
simmer, partially covered, until potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes.

2. Spray a medium skillet and heat over medium-high heat until hot
but not smoking. Add corn and cook, stirring occasionally, until
lightly browned, about 3 minutes.

3. Transfer potato mixture to blender and process until smooth, in
batches if necessary. Return soup to saucepan, stir in chiles and corn,
bring back to simmer, and remove pan from heat. Whisk in sour cream and
chopped cilantro. Serve hot. Serves 6

Join the discussion as I blog about Hanukkah on project foodie and Workman Publishing's website.

Source: "THE BOOK OF NEW ISRAELI FOOD" BY JANNA GUR
Yield:8 servings

5 large apples, peeled and cored
Juice of half a lemon
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch of salt
3 large eggs
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup vegetable oil
5 tablespoons brandy or calvados
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped
For dusting:
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Procedure:
1. Preheat oven to 350¢ªF.

2. Cut 3 apples into 1/2-inch dice. Slice remaining 2 apples into 8 wedges each, sprinkle with lemon juice and set aside.

3. Sift flour with cinnamon, baking soda and salt.

4. Using an electric mixer, beat eggs, sugar, brandy and vanilla extract until pale and thick, about 8 minutes.

5. Lower speed and gradually add oil and then flour mixture.

6. Fold in diced apples and chopped walnuts and pour batter into a well-greased 10-inch springform pan. Arrange apple wedges in center of cake in a flower pattern. Combine sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle on top.

7. Bake 60 to 70 minutes until cake is golden and a toothpick comes out dry with a few crumbs adhering.

8. Cool 10 minutes, release from pan and cool completely on a rack.

Yield: 4 to 6 servings

12 chicken drumsticks
6 whole small red onions, peeled
12 pieces (each 2 inches long) Jerusalem artichoke, peeled
9 ounces dried figs
7 ounces pitted prunes
7 ounces dried apricots
For the marinade:
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons sesame oil
2 tablespoons brown sugar
3 tablespoons honey
1/2 cup soy sauce
5 cloves garlic, chopped
3 sticks cinnamon
1 tablespoon coriander seeds
1 level teaspoon turmeric
1 tablespoon cumin seeds, crushed
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
2 cups dry red wine
To serve:
1 package (about 18 ounces) instant couscous
1/2 cup walnuts, toasted

1. Mix all ingredients for marinade.

2. Arrange chicken, onions, Jerusalem artichoke and dried fruit in a baking dish and pour over the marinade. Cover and refrigerate for 3 to 24 hours.

3. Preheat oven to 350˚F.

4. Bake uncovered for 40 minutes or until chicken turns shiny and brown. Baste chicken occasionally with liquid from bottom of pan. The dish up to this point may be prepared in advance and later heated in the oven.

5. Before serving, prepare instant couscous per the manufacturer's instructions.

6. Arrange chicken casserole and sauce over a mound of couscous, sprinkle walnuts on top and serve immediately.
Source: "The Book of New Israeli Food" by Janna Gur

"THE BOOK OF NEW ISRAELI FOOD" BY JANNA GUR
Yield:8 servings

4 hot red peppers, cut into strips
2 sweet red peppers, cut into strips
1 cup fresh parsley, coarsely chopped
1 cup fresh cilantro, coarsely chopped
1 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons good quality paprika
Salt
8 pieces (about 6 ounces each) grouper or other saltwater fish, cut into large chunks
20 cloves garlic, peeled

Procedure:
1. Line a wide saucepan with peppers, parsley and cilantro.

2. Combine oil, paprika and salt. Dip fish chunks in the oil mixture and arrange in saucepan. Mix remaining oil mixture with garlic and 3 to 4 cups water and pour over fish.

3. Cook 10 to 15 minutes (depending on size of fish chunks) over high heat. Lower heat, cover and continue cooking for another 15 minutes until sauce thickens.

Too Good to Call Passover Cake Bête Noire
(Flourless Chocolate Cake)

8 ounces unsweetened chocolate, very coarsely chopped
4 ounces semisweet chocolate, very coarsely chopped
1 1/3 cups sugar
1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature, cut into small pieces
5 extra-large eggs

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter a 9-inch round cake pan (not a springform), line it with a round of parchment paper, and butter the paper.

2. Place both chocolates in a food processor and process until chopped.

3. Combine the sugar and ½ cup water in a saucepan and bring to a rolling boil. Stir to dissolve the sugar.

4. With the processor on, add the boiling sugar syrup to the chocolate through the feed tube. Add the butter, piece by piece, followed by the eggs. Process only until very smooth.

5. Pour the mixture into the prepared cake pan. Set the pan in a larger baking pan, and fill the larger pan with warm water to reach halfway up the sides of the cake pan. Carefully transfer the pan to the oven, and bake on the center oven rack until a sharp knife inserted in the center comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Remove the cake pan from the larger pan and transfer it to a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes.

6. Run a sharp knife around the edges of the pan. Cover the pan with plastic wrap, and invert it onto a baking sheet. Lift off the pan and peel off the parchment paper. Then invert a cake plate over the cake, and invert the plate and baking sheet together, so the cake is now right side up. Remove the plastic wrap.

7. Serve the cake warm, cold, or at room temperature. It will keep, covered, in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

Serves 12 or more

Spicy Moroccan Lamb Shanks with Apricots

Grandma Sera Fritkin's Russian Brisket

Yemenite Haroset Trufles

My column at OU's ezine "Shabbat Shalom" features the following recipes from Jayne Cohen's "Jewish Holiday Cooking": Chickpeas with Garlic and Barbeque Spices, Poached Prune Kreplach with Honeyed Cream and Pecans, Mishmash Kreplach (Beef, Potato and Fried Onion Kreplach). You'll find them at the end of the story.

When Jayne Cohen and her sister returned home after their grandmother had passed away, they were determined to recreate the holiday dishes they had grown up on. But neither had ever attempted these traditional recipes. Those had been Grandma’s province. Read the entire story.

3 to 4 pounds beef brisket
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup mango chutney
1 envelope onion soup mix
12 ounces Coca-Cola
2 tablespoons olive oil

1. Place brisket in a non-reactive pan. Combine onion, chutney, soup mix, and coke. Pour over brisket and marinate overnight in the refrigerator.
2. The following day preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
3. Remove brisket from marinade mixture and set marinade aside. Heat oil in a large stove-proof roasting pan and brown brisket on both sides.
4. Place the brisket in a roasting pan and pour the reserved marinade over the meat.
5. Cover the pan with foil and cook until tender, 3 to 4 hours. Baste the meat with the pan juices every 45 minutes. Serves 6 to 8

My column at OU's Shabbat Shalom entitled A harvest of recipes for Sukkot 5768 features the following recipes: Spinach-Stuffed Acorn Squash, Stuffed Eggplant in Olive Oil with rice, pine nuts and currants, and Polish Apple Cake. Chag Sameach! And in keeping with the harvest season, here's my latest column in the Orange County Register:

Cooking at the farmers' market

The Orange County Register/Fullerton News Tribune
October 4, 2007

by Judy Bart Kancigor

Amelia Saltsman is on a mission. With a cooking demonstration and book signing a month away, she is trawling the farmers’ market, querying farmers as to availability. Will there be persimmons? How about pomegranates? I tag along for the ride.

“Because I work with seasonal ingredients, and we are now on the cusp of the change of seasons, I need to best guess with the farmers when things will become available,” explains Saltsman as we stroll down the aisles.

But there are frequent interruptions, because this is the Santa Monica Farmers’ Market and Saltsman – writer, cooking teacher, producer/host of her own TV show and author of “The Santa Monica Farmers’ Market Cookbook” – is the undisputed queen of this market and instantly recognized by shoppers and farmers alike.

Every grower greets Saltsman, who has immortalized them in her new cookbook, which is as much an homage to the farmers, their histories, and their commitment to excellence as it is a collection of fuss-less, original and artful recipes inspired by the amazing varieties they produce.