Appled to a Crisp

Oh, Pesach.....I actually love it. Why? Well, aside from getting to spend time with my family over the course of many days of yuntif (and many many many meals) and getting almost 2 weeks off from work (this is THE reason I work in Jewish education....just kidding), I get to really put my chef's hat on and challenge myself to create food that tastes really good - that you may actually want to eat when it's NOT Pesach, too! My Quinoa and Cheese from a couple days ago is one of those recipes that I can already see myself making throughout the year, when I need a good side dish to bring to a milchig Shabbos meal (or, hello, Shavuos coming up!).

For the final days of Pesach, you still need something a little bit sweet....but after almost a week of matzah and butter (preferably Breakstones) with salt, matzah and cream cheese, matzah and jelly, matzah pizza, matzah lasagna, etc. we all wanted something a little bit lighter. When I think "light," I think fruit. You all know that lemon is my #1 favorite flavor, but cinnamon is a close second, and apple-cinnamon is a winning combo in my book. My mom started to briefly mention something that one of our neighbors made, where she baked apples that had been sprinkled with chopped nuts and had a cinnamon stick somewhere in there....and then inspiration struck (cue the gospel choir): why not make individual apple crisps....like, actually take a whole apple, coat it with a crisp topping, and bake it like I do with a normal baked apple? I did just that: made a really simple crisp topping, packed it around apples that I had peeled and cored, and then filled the apples with raisins, brown sugar, and cinnamon. The apples got soft on the inside, the outside got crispy, and the gooey caramel filling was perfect. Try this one - just substitute flour during the year for the cake meal. Trust me on this one!

Crisped Apples

4 apples
1 stick margarine, divided
2/3 cup cake meal
1 cup ground almonds
1 cup brown sugar, divided
2 tsp. cinnamon, divided
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup water

1. Peel the apples. Cut the tops and bottoms off of each apple, so that they are flat on top and can stand sturdily. Using a paring knife and/or a spoon, remove the cores from each apple so that there is a clean "tunnel".
2. In a small microwaveable bowl, melt 4 tbsp. of margarine. Add the cake meal, ground almonds, 2/3 cup of brown sugar, and 1 tsp. of cinnamon and mix to make a semi-wet and crumbly mixture.
3. Pack about a quarter of the mixture onto each apple, coating the apples evenly, but not too thickly with the crumb topping so that they apples are completely covered. Place the apples standing up in an 8x8 inch greased dish.
4. Place a spoonful of raisins inside each apple "tunnel," as well as a generous sprinkle of brown sugar and cinnamon. Put the remaining raisins, brown sugar, and cinnamon in the dish in the middle of all the apples. 
 5. Cut the remaining 4 tbsp. of margarine into small pieces and put one piece in the middle of each apple. Place the other pieces along the dish on top of any sugar or raisins that you sprinkled in. (Top the apples with any remaining crumb mixture.)
6. Pour the water along the base of the dish and bake the apples at 425 degrees for 45 minutes, or until the apples are soft and the crumb topping gets crispy. Check the apples after 30 minutes to see if they are done or to check if you need to add additional water, so that the caramel doesn't burn.

Don't Pass-over Quinoa and Cheese!

Okay, I admit, I've been pretty terrible about updating this blog in the last few weeks. But, in my defense, the last few weeks have been a little bit insane for me. First, I had the Manischewitz cook-off in NYC (which I didn't win...more on that in a minute). Then, unfortunately, my grandmother passed away, so I was home for a while with my family. Then, less than a week after shiva ended, Pesach came. And, in the middle of all this craziness, I made the decision to leave Baltimore and I applied to, interviewed for, was offered, and accepted a new job in New York City, which I will be starting in less than 2 months. It's been a whirlwind!

So, about the cook-off - I had a blast. I really did. I went in with no expectation of winning, which really allowed me to relax and enjoy myself and just have fun with it. I loved pretending like I was on the Food Network, and having all the cameras and interviewers in my face was really exhilarating! I think I may need to make the winning dish for myself....because I was so busy that whole day that I didn't even get to try any of the other contestants' dishes!!

Anyway, back to Pesach. So I love experimenting with Pesach food and making it...well...edible :-) Desserts are my thing, in particular, and this year I made tiramisu, chocolate trifle, key lime pie, peach-blueberry cobbler, mandel bread, and chocolate chunk cookies. All were delish, thankyouverymuch :-) But i wanted to experiment with something savory. I decided to go to my old stand-by - mac and cheese. Of course, I can't do macaroni noodles (and I refuse to go anywhere near Pesadik pasta...ick), but I do love to try new recipes with quinoa.....and then it came to me: Quinoa and Cheese! Made a little quinoa, sauteed some veggies, made a quick little cheese sauce (using potato starch instead of flour in the roux) and voila - I think it came out pretty good! You be the judge.....

Quinoa and Cheese

1 1/2 cups quinoa
3 cups water
4 tbsp. margarine, divided
1 red pepper, finely diced
1/2 white onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup chopped button mushrooms
2 tbsp. potato starch
2 cups skim milk
8 slices American cheese (or  6 oz. any shredded cheese, like cheddar)
salt, pepper
3/4 cup matzo meal

1. Put quinoa and water in a pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer, cover, and cook 10-15 minutes, or until quinoa is fluffed and all water is absorbed. Transfer cooked quinoa into a mixing bowl.
2. Melt 2 tsbp. of margarine in the same pot. Add veggies and sautee until soft and translucent, about 8 minutes.
3. Add potato starch to veggies and stir until absorbed.
4. Add milk slowly, whisking as you pour. Increase heat to medium-high and bring the milk to a bubble. Let it simmer for a few minutes, until it thickens.
5. Turn heat off. Add cheese to cream sauce and stir to melt. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
6. Pour cheese sauce over cooked quinoa and mix thoroughly. Taste and season as needed.
7. Pour mixture into a greased 8x8 inch baking dish.
8. Melt remaining 2 tbsp. of margarine in a small bowl in the microwave until melted. Add matzo meal and toss to coat. Sprinkle the crumbs on top of the quinoa and cheese.
9. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. Increase oven heat to broil, and broil for 5 minutes or until the top gets browned and the cheese begins to bubble.

Who knew??

Well, I'll admit it: I've been a little slow lately with updating recipes. But, forgive me. I was in Europe for almost two weeks with my roommate (London, Paris, and Amsterdam were amazing....oui oui!) and it's just been a slow cooking month for me. BUT, I have some big news (if you haven't already heard)....

I'm going to be in a cook-off! That's right! I submitted the very first recipe that I blogged about, my Shallot Smothered Chicken, to the 5th Annual Man-O-Manischewitz Cook-off...and I'm one of the 5 finalists! I actually got word of this while I was in Paris...I turned on my phone after Shabbos, and I had a message from Manischewitz telling me the good news! I kind of freaked out, haha. I called my parents' house - knowing that it was still Shabbos back home - and left them a message, hoping that they were home to hear it!

I still laugh every time I think about it, but the truth is - I'm a little nervous! Jacques Pepin is one of the judges - and he's legendary! That's kind of scary!

Also scary....I hadn't cooked the dish a single time between the time I made it up and blogged about it and the time that I learned I'd be in the cook-off! Don't worry, I've been practicing in the last few weeks :-)

Anyway, the cook-off is on March 31 in New York City....please come and cheer me on if you're in the area! More information is available on the Manischewitz website. I'll keep you posted on how I do. Until  then....wish me luck!!

Gratin Greatness

My father likes to joke that a meal with my mom's family is never complete without at least four starches on the table. He's kinda right....between the challah, some sort of matzah ball/kreplach in the soup, rice (usually to go with meatballs), a potato dish of some sort, and maybe even a pasta salad or noodle dish, we pretty much have the starch food group covered.

I love carbs.....might even consider myself an addict. Give me a box of pasta and I'm a happy girl. I'm totally trying to curb this starch love of mine, but once in a while, you just need a good bowl of mac-and-cheese. Or creamy risotto (which I've been making from scratch for 2 weeks now....yum!). Or anything with bread. Dr. Atkins and I would have never gotten along. But what can I say? For me, comfort food = starch. Starch = comfort food. I think there's a mathematical property that that follows.

Last week was one of those weeks when I just needed something creamy and carb-y. When my friend invited me for Shabbos lunch and asked for a side dish, I had potatoes on the brain. This particular friend happens to make a great Potato Gratin, but his is a milchig dish. So, I decided to make a pareve version to bring to his house for my contribution. And what can I say? Carbs haven't failed me yet!

(Cook's note: I decided to make this dish with pareve chicken soup in a carton because I thought that there would be vegetarians at this meal - it's actually called "No-Chicken Soup" from the Imagine soup brand. But if you're only serving carnivores, go ahead and use real chicken broth. I also didn't peel the potatoes out of sheer laziness....full discretion here, friends. Also, I had a lot of time when I got home from work, so I actually slow-cooked the onions on a very low heat for an hour till they were golden and caramelized - I just stirred them every 5-10 minutes. But if you're more pressed for time, just cook them over medium or medium-high heat, but be sure to watch them carefully.)

Potato and Caramelized Onion Gratin

2 tbsp. vegetable oil
2 large yellow onions, thinly sliced
1 stick of margarine, divided
1/4 cup flour
2 cups pareve chicken broth
2 cups pareve coffee creamer
1 spring rosemary
3 sprigs thyme
salt
pepper
1/8 tsp. nutmeg
3 1/2 lbs. of yukon gold potatoes, thinly sliced
1 cup flavored breadcrumbs

1. In a large pan, heat the oil over low heat. Add the onions and cook for 1 hour, or until caramelized, stirring every 5-10 minutes. (See Cook's Note above for alternative method)
2. In a small pot, melt 1/2 stick (4 tbsp.) of margarine over medium-high heat. Add the flour and whisk to combine. Cook for 1 minute. Add chicken stock and creamer and bring mixture to a simmer.
3. Add the rosemary and thyme and continue to simmer for 15 minutes, until mixture thickens slightly. Season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg.
4. In a greased 9x13 inch baking dish, layer 1/3 of the potatoes in a flat, even layer. Spread half of the caramelized onions on top. Add another 1/3 of the potatoes, followed by the remaining onions. Top with a flat layer of the remaining potatoes.
5. Remove the thyme and rosemary sprigs from the chicken stock/creamer mixture. Ladle it over the potatoes, pressing down to make sure it reaches all the way to the bottom. (Allow it to sit for 5 minutes to make sure it gets to the bottom, if possible. It will look soup-y; this is a good thing. The potatoes will absorb most of the liquid.)
6. In a small bowl, melt the remaining 1/2 stick of margarine. Toss the bread crumbs with the margarine and sprinkle liberally over the potatoes. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are fork-tender and the dish is bubbling.

Cinnamon Bin "Cin"-fulness

There is no time that I exercise self control more than when I walk by the Cinnabon stand in the mall and do not buy something cinnamony and gooey and ridiculously bad for you. I will actually admit something that I am very proud of - I have never bought one. Something in me can't justify eating an 880 calorie, 36 gram-of-fat snack. (Yup, those are actual figures; I just checked them out on their website.) But they do a good job of making my mouth water!

A couple years ago, my roommate and I were walking through Trader Joe's while we were in college and prepping for a Shabbos meal, and we stumbled across fresh pizza dough. They sold three varieties - plain, whole wheat, and herb - and we bought a couple bags of the plain variety and went to town with a couple experiments. The one the stuck and the one that we have made many times over the years is cinnamon buns. We rolled it out, buttered the dough, added brown sugar, cinnamon, and raisins, rolled it up, sliced and baked it. They came out really well and were always a crowd-pleaser. But I always had 2 problems with the dough: it got a little hard when it cooled down (think about what pizza dough does in general), and it didn't rise or expand too much (again, think about pizza dough). But the really fluffy, really doughy dough is part of what makes a great cinnamon bun!

In looking at cinnamon bun recipes online, they all end up being made with an egg-y dough, similar to a brioche. Well, we're all familiar with egg-y bread dough - hello, challah! So, I decided to use a Kineret challah as the base of my cinnamon buns. (You know what I'm talking about - the kind that you find in the freezer section, that you allow to rise for a couple hours and bake off. It tastes as close to homemade as store-bought will ever taste.) This dough is meant to rise, which means that you end up with a light-as-air dough. When I tell you that they were perfect, it's an understatement. They were so soft, so sticky, so yummy-smelling, and even I was pleasantly surprised with the results! And, come on, can you beat a 5-ingredient recipe? I don't think so.

(P.S. I am going to be perfecting this recipe over the next few weeks. I want to try to come up with a gooey sauce for the bottom of the pan so that, when you invert them, the sauce spills over the sides. Or maybe an icing.....check back soon for an update :-) Also, the photo below shows what they look like in the pan. When I served it, since they were inverted on a plate, they were covered in liquid sugar, which made them shine. Oh so good!)

Super Easy Cinnamon Buns

1 box of frozen Kineret Challah dough
6 tbsp. margarine
1 cup brown sugar
2 tbsp. cinnamon
1/4 cup raisins

1. Remove the challah from the box and defrost it until just defrosted. Do NOT allow it to rise.
2. Knead the dough into a ball with your hands.
3. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough out into a 12 inch x 8 inch rectangle, with the long side facing you. (You may need a little flour so that the dough does not stick. It makes it very easy to do this on a cutting board.)
4. Microwave 4 tbsp. of the margarine for 10 seconds, to make it very soft. Spread the margarine all over the dough.
5. Sprinkle 1/2 cup of the brown sugar, the cinnamon, and the raisins all over the margarine.
6. Starting with the long side closest to you, roll the dough up into a long snake.
7. Cut the dough into 11 slices, a little over an inch thick.
8. Spray a 9-inch round cake pan with non-stick spray. Sprinkle 1/4 cup of the remaining brown sugar all over the bottom. Place 8 of the cinnamon buns inside the pan, cut side up, leaving space in between.
9. Cover the pan with a damp towel and allow to rise 4 hours to overnight.
10. When you are ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Remove the towel; the buns will have risen and just about doubled in size. Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup of brown sugar on top. Slice the remaining 2 tsbp. of margarine into paper-thin slices and scatter all over.
11. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the dough is cooked and the sugar is bubbling (but not burning).
12. To serve, invert the cinnamon buns onto a large plate. Pull apart and enjoy!

Mind your P's

Well, it's still fall, which means pumpkins are still all over the place, which means I'm a happy girl :-) I've talked about pumpkins before have even come up with a really delicious pumpkin bread pudding back around Sukkos. But this past weekend, I was with my family and we had this outrageously good pumpkin ravioli. I knew I had to do something to replicate this recipe.

When I say that this pumpkin dish was awesome, that's an understatement. It was fresh pasta, stuffed with a velvety smooth pumpkin filling, tossed in a brown butter and sage sauce. It was so good and so perfectly seasoned....but I've never made fresh pasta before, and ravioli is a bit heavy for a weeknight meal. So I decided to borrow all those flavors - the brown butter, the sage, the pumpkin - and combine them into a much simpler, much quicker, and equally delicious dish. It worked out great and it ended up being a perfect single-serving meal. Since I only used about a third of the canned pumpkin, guess what I'll be making again this week for dinner....:-)

Pumpkin Pasta
(serves one)

4oz. (1/4) of penne
1 tbsp. margarine or butter
1/2 cup canned pumpkin puree
2/3 cup fat free half-and-half
1/2 tsp. ground sage or poultry seasoning
1/2 tsp. onion powder
1 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
parmesan cheese

1. Cook pasta according to package directions.
2. While pasta is cooking, melt butter or margarine in a large skillet. Cook for 3 minutes over medium-high heat, or until it begins to brown.
3. Add pumpkin to browned butter and turn heat down to medium. Add half-and-half and whisk to incorporate. (The mixture should be thick, but if it seems especially lumpy, add more half-and-half.)
4. Season with sage or poultry seasoning, onion powder, sugar, salt, and pepper and allow to cook for 5 minutes.
5. When pasta is finished cooking, reserve 3/4 cup of the cooking liquid. Drain pasta and toss it with the pumpkin mixture, adding the reserved pasta cooking liquid to thin out the sauce.
6. Serve pasta with a liberal sprinkle of parmesan cheese.

Soup-er Dinner

It's finally late fall/early winter, so you know what that means: I finally switched over my closet and now I get to wear all my boots and scarves and coats and fun wintery clothes! It also means that a thick hearty bowl of soup classifies as the perfect meal. There is nothing better than coming home on a cold, wet, almost-winter day, changing into sweats and cuddling up in bed with a bowl of soup. It's the best way to unwind. And today, when it was one of those cold, wet, almost-winter days, I was looking forward to the sweats-and-soup combo since the minute I walked outside this morning.

Broth-y soups don't do it for me on a day like today. I needed something thick with a lot of texture and great flavor. I decided on a corn chowder that I've been throwing together for years. The chunky vegetables make you feel healthy, but the creamy soup is perfect for these cold nights. And did I mention that this is quick? It literally comes together in 20 minutes. All things considered, this isn't a horribly unhealthy soup either - pair it with a salad or a piece of crusty bread, and I'm telling you - it's perfect. This soup can also easily be adapted for a fleishig meal - use real chicken broth and pareve creamer, and it can go both ways! Now, all I want to wash it down is a steaming mug of hot cocoa....mmmm.....

Creamy Corn Chowder


4 tbsp. margarine
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup chopped carrot
1 bay leaf
1 15-oz. can of corn, drained
1/2 cup flour
4 cups pareve "chicken" broth
2 15-oz. cans of cream-style corn
1 cup fat-free half-and-half
salt and pepper to taste

1. In a large pot, melt the margarine. Add the onion, celery, carrots, bay leaf, and corn and sautee on medium heat for 8-10 minutes, until the vegetables soften.
2. Whisk in the flour and allow to cook for 1 minute.
3. Slowly add the broth, whisking to combine with the vegetables and remove any lumps. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low.
4. Add the creamed corn and allow to simmer, uncovered, for 5 minutes to allow all the flavors to combine.
5. Whisk in the half-and-half. Season to taste. Remove bay leaf before serving.