Jewish Food

Over eighteen months in the making, the Bais Yaakov Cookbook features recipes from contributors representing over three hundred Bais Yaakovs worldwide.  It is as much a tribute to the Bais Yaakov movement as it is a cookbook.  Proceeds from the cookbook will benefit the Fund for Jewish Education, which benefits numerous charitable institutions and schools in the Unites States and Israel.

Apple Buns

The Bais Yaakov Cookbook combines over 200 recipes, gorgeous graphics and important Halacha and Hashkofoh.   The book begins with a pictoral history of Sara Schenirer and the Bais Yaakov Movement.  Bais Yaakov went from a small school in a one room apartment into the world famous Bais Yaakov Seminary of Krakow producing teachers who spread Torah education for women throughout Poland and beyond.

Shiitake Beef and Barley Soup

In 1937 Vichna Kaplan arrived in America with a dream to establish the Bais Yaakov Movement on this side of the Atlantic.  She worked tirelessly to convince American Jews that just as Jewish schools for boys were imperative to the survival of Judaism, Jewish schools for girls were equally critical.  In 1944, the first all day Bais Yaakov school opened.  Today there are hundreds of schools providing a Jewish education to thousands of girls, a true realization of a dream.

Roasted Vegetables and Pastrami Salad

The Bais Yaakov movement may have originated from Poland, but the recipes in this book are from all over the globe.  There is no cholent recipe, only three kugels and only one challah recipe at the beginning of the book that is more of a tribute to Rebbetzin Kanievsky.  The only gefilte fish is Hot Gefilte Fish with Tomato Sauce and Bell Peppers, not your Bubbe’s gefilte.  The recipes range from Grilled Beef Rolls with Scallion Dipping Sauce to Cigars, Kebabs, Potato Duo Soup and so on.  The recipes use easily found ingredients and are simple to prepare.

Cream Filed Cannoli

In addition to the 200+ recipes, there is a 25 page guideline of Halacha written by Rabbi Daniel Neustadt .  He covers most of the issues you will encounter in a contemporary kosher kitchen, from checking fruits and vegetables to how to use an oven for dairy and meat.  There is a guide for brachos and a comprehensive guide to shopping for meat, wine cookware etc.

As a Jewish woman, I am proud of the trailblazing efforts of such luminaries as Sara Schenirer  and Vichna Kaplan to fight for Torah education for girls.  It is an honor and privilege to remember their faith when preparing recipes from this delightful cookbook.

Shiitake, Beef and Barley Soup

Roasted Vegetables and Pastrami Salad

Apple buns

Crème Filled Cannoli

Jamie Geller and friends show you how to make Challah Kugel in this Quick & Kosher video. Find the recipe here.

Ever since I was young, I knew I wanted to be a baker. I always loved baking with my mother for Shabbos and Yom Tov. I remember helping my mom measure out the ingredients and mixing up the batter. The best part was always licking the bowl. I loved going with my mom to the local bakery to pick up fresh challah and desserts for Shabbos. I always got to pick a cookie from the case to eat right there in the store! When I got older, I got a job at a bakery and learned all the ins and outs of commercial baking and instantly fell deeper in love! In the bakery kitchen I feel like I am home. Well, home away from home, anyway. There is nothing more satisfying than perfectly measuring out ingredients, mixing up dough in just the right way, and baking up a perfect dessert every time. I love braiding hundreds of challahs, or piping out tray after tray of lace cookies. I know that this may sound crazy to some, but this is all truly relaxing to me.

When I worked at a bakery my main job was cake decorating. Whenever I finished my work early, I would help out my fellow bakers. My favorite thing to help out with was rolling up rugelach. I love the challenge of making each one look exactly like the last. When they are all rolled up, they look like cute little croissants.

Lemon Rugelach

My all-time, absolute, hands down favorite rugelach flavor is definitely vanilla. It needs to be made from yeast raised dough, though. Don’t give me any of those cookie rugelach or the ones made from flaky pastry dough. And nothing with nuts or raisins either. I love a classic sweet vanilla rugelach. Some people may think that vanilla is just a plain flavor, but to me vanilla is perfection. It’s like the little black dress of dessert flavors. It is perfect on its own, but pairs well with almost any other flavor. The secret to vanilla rugelach is filling the dough with a mixture of sugar and vanilla sugar. As soon as they come out of the oven, I brush them with a vanilla sugar syrup. Trust me, one taste and you will be hooked. Baking a batch of vanilla rugelach at home fills the whole house with the sweet smell of Shabbos. Too bad that most of the little fresh pastries don’t even make it until Friday night, they need to pass my family’s “quality control”.

Vanilla rugelach are pretty fantastic but I also enjoy putting a modern twist to a classic dessert. I have never heard of one before but I didn’t see why I couldn’t create a lemon rugelach. I tweaked my vanilla dough recipe and added fresh lemon zest and nutmeg. I let the dough rise, rolled it out into a circle and drizzled on freshly squeezed lemon juice. I then sprinkled on sugar that was mixed with lemon zest, nutmeg and ginger. I cut the dough (like a pizza pie) into 16 sections. Then I rolled up each triangle starting from the wide end. After the shaped rugelach are left to rest for 20 minutes, I baked them for 20 minutes. As soon as they came out of the oven, I brushed them with a sugar-lemon syrup and allowed them to cool. Once cool, I mixed up a quick confectioners sugar icing and drizzled that on top. I am so happy with the results! They are soft, gooey, sweet, fresh and tart. Bake these today!

OMG I am rolling. I just made 20 pounds of challah. DID YOU READ THAT?! TWENTY!!!! POUNDS. Testing sweet and savory “challah” and “challah-esque” recipes for my new book. I am swearing off carbs for a year, or, well, at least a week, for sure until the end of today. One of my many goals in life is to see how many different things I can make out of my challah dough.

Here’s a recap of what I’ve done with it to date — plus a special PB&J challah somethin’ from Hadassah.

Recipes:

Challah Dough
Onion Pockets
Garlic Knots
Cinnamon Buns
Onion and Thyme Challah Rolls
Individual Apple Stuffed Challah
PB&J Babka Buns

Videos:

The Best Challah Dough
How to Make a Crown Shaped  Challah
How to Make a Six Braid Challah – Part One, Part Two
How to Make Onion Pockets
How to Make Garlic Knots
How to Make Cinnamon Buns

What do you do with your challah dough? I would love to pull together 101 ideas for the site. Help us get there. Leave a comment below and submit your actual recipe here. Here’s to washing and bentching!

My grandparents, both sets, made the best chicken soup. Same like yours, I imagine. My father’s side of the family made a deep dark richly flavored broth with spaghetti noodles. My mother’s parents a light bright broth with square luckshen (noodles) and alphabets for us kids in the later years.

Yes, it’s Jewish penicilin.

Yes, it’s been known to heal a broken heart or two.

Yes, it’s pretty much one of the best foods on this planet.

There is something intuitive and all too personal about making a chicken soup. Like cholent, no two are alike. Quite like a fingerprint each chef whether following a recipe with exacting accuracy or adding a little of this and a little of that still imparts their chicken soup with something special. That something is called “love”. I am not some over the top touchy-feely mood effects your food type – but chicken soup is one of those add a little love recipes and it becomes your own. Something your kids will beg you for, something your husband will request every Friday night, something you end up making 30 quarts of at a time because it’s that popular. OK that last part is probably just me — I get crazy with bulk cooking sometimes, I can’t help it.

I am using my chicken soup recipe and a few variations on the comfort classic to kick off our month of traditional Jewish foods. We all try to be such inventive creative kosher cooks that sometimes we forget about the building blocks of our culinary heritage. Let’s go old school, heimishe, back to the basics or whatever you call it, and pull out those family recipes that can only be salvaged if we salvage them. I missed getting my grandparents’ recipes but please join us this month in our effort to claim the classics and save them here on JoK.com. I’ll love you for it. You can submit your own recipes here.

Enjoy these chicken soup recipes:

Classic Chicken Soup
Chicken Gumbo Soup
Spiced Chicken and Lentil Soup
Curried Chicken and Rice Soup
Chicken and White Bean Soup
Thai Coconut Chicken Soup

Dear Jamie,

I was hoping that you might want to focus on Shabbat meals – specifically, those that can be prepared in advance and rapidly warmed for Shabbat. I plan for Shabbat from the beginning of the week, and don’t have time to prep on Fridays. (PS – I love the cookbooks.)

Thanks,
Michael

Hi Michael,

This is such a great question. Cooking for Shabbat is a challenge because you want your food to taste fresh, not be dried out or killed by the blech/hot plate/warming drawer/warm oven – whatever method you use. Even the best of the best recipes are not all suited for serving on Shabbat when you consider the need to cook in advance, throw it in the fridge, and then rewarm under unconventional circumstances.

Here are a few tips (my own, cherished, personal guidelines) that will help. Follow these, and you’ll be so proud of your Shabbat food.

(*Quick Note: there are many halachos involved with heating and reheating foods on Shabbat and differences between Shabbat Night (which enables you to place foods with liquids directly on a blech/hot plate or in a warming drawer prior to the onset of Shabbat) and Shabbat Day (which prohibits the rewarming of foods in liquids and in many cases requires the need for a 2nd tier/added layer between your food and heat source). For more detailed explanation of some of the basic laws please refer to this post from Rabbi Lawrence)

Beer Braised Brisket

1. Brisket: there are few cuts of meat that can handle the back and forth of oven, fridge (even freezer), hot plate. The brisket is one baby that not only can do it, but is better for it. It’s best to prepare it, refrigerate it overnight and slice it cold the next day. Submerge it in the gravy and re-warm; or return to the fridge or freezer until you are ready to re-warm and serve. Enjoy these Brisket recipes:

Beer Braised Brisket
Garlic Honey Brisket 
Pomegranate Braised Brisket
Brisket in Wine Sauce

For more brisket recipes click here.

Sweet and Sour Meatballs

2. Red Meat: Like the brisket, any cuts of meat that are completely submerged in liquid and that become softer the longer you cook them are great for Shabbat night. I have a great recipe for Asian Steak that uses 1-inch thick bone-in chuck steaks – not an expensive cut of meat by any means – and the longer they cook, the softer and more tender the meat becomes. It also freezes beautifully. Flanken and pot roast recipes are two more good examples of great make-ahead cuts. Meatballs (cocktail or entrée sized) are another wonderful prep-ahead & freeze choice. Make sure they’re completely submerged in their sauce and you’re good. But be sure to let them defrost (if frozen) before rewarming them in a heavy bottomed pan over the lowest heat, stirring occasionally to prevent burning. Here are some great prep-ahead red meat recipes:

Sweet and Sour Meatballs
Cocktail Meatballs
Coffee Glazed Pot Roast with Caramelized Onions 

For more Meatball recipes click here.
For more Pot Roast recipes click here.

Chicken Thighs with Roasted Winter Fruit

3. Chicken: two keys to making terrific chicken for Shabbat:
1) don’t overcook it. If it’s already dried out, you can’t save it. Most everyone overcooks chicken, especially the white meat.

So here’s the deal: a 3lb. chicken in 1/8ths should take about an hour to cook at 375 F uncovered. The white meat – anywhere from 45 minutes to an hour depending on the size; the dark meat pieces – about 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes tops. A few tricks here: place the white meat pieces in a different baking pan so you can remove them earlier. Cook them for the majority of the time upside down; turn them right side up for the last 10 to 15 minutes to evenly brown the skin.

2) When you rewarm the chicken: allow it to come to room temperature first, and then don’t over-dry it when rewarming. If you use a warming drawer, don’t put it in prematurely. If you use a blech/hot plate, place the chicken on a second tier (always on a 2nd tier Shabbat day) so it doesn’t burn or get too much heat. Remember, you’re just warming it, not cooking. If you’re too “chicken” to try this with white meat, you could use only dark meat chicken for Shabbat; it has an added layer of (fat) juicy protection. When working with cutlets, follow the same tips as above. You have the option of serving these at room temp, if you like. Sure-fire Shabbat chicken recipes you’ll enjoy (provided you follow the tips above!):

Chicken Thighs with Roasted Winter Fruit 
Chicken with Apples
Speedy Coq au Vin
Honey Chicken
Date Glazed Roast Chicken 

For more chicken recipes click here.

Asian Shiitake Mushroom Soup

4. Soups, Soups, & Soups – are a fantastic make-ahead course. I actually make soup only 3 to 4 times a year. I cook about 30 quarts of each of my family’s favorites and freeze them in individual 2-quart containers (and even a few 1-quart containers.) That way, I can take out whatever amount I need, depending on the amount of company I’m expecting. Also consider chilled soups for Shabbat day. They last nicely in the fridge and they’re ready to serve. Keep in mind that chilled soups are not only fruity and not just for the summer. Try these traditional and chilled soups:

Mango Strawberry Soup 
Classic Chicken Soup
Asian Shiitake Mushroom Soup 

For more soup recipes click here.

California Avocado Salad

5. Salads. I am always my own sous-chef – if I can’t commandeer Hubby. I wash, check, and cut my lettuce in advance and keep it in a salad spinner/crisper so it’s ready to go. In fact, I cut all my veggies and store them in the fridge in separate containers for easy salad assembly just before serving. (Hey, all the restaurant chefs have sous chefs. Why shouldn’t we?) And I usually double, triple (and even) quadruple my dressing recipes, so I have a big batch on hand for a few weeks’ time. I keep that in yet another container so I can assemble a fresh salad and dress it quickly just before serving. No soggy salads for us! Most leafy green salads are a one way ticket once dressed; you can’t go back. Check out these recipes:

Pomegranate, Orange, Papaya and Kiwi Green Salad 
Strawberry and Mango Salad with Citrus Vinaigrette 
Spinach Salad with Japanese Ginger Dressing 

Then there are those salads that just get better with age – the ones that benefit from marinating in their dressing to allow all the flavors to marry nicely. They can be made 1-2 days in advance. Just remember to slice in avocados if called for just before serving. One more hint: most salads are best served at room temperature, unless otherwise specified in the recipes. This allows all the flavors to emerge. Try these make-ahead winning salad recipes:

Israeli Cabbage Salad 
California Avocado Salad
Cucumber and Black Bean Salsa Salad

For more salad recipes click here.

Sweet Kugel

6. Sides: I find any potato sides are absolutely best made as close to serving as possible. They benefit from the crispy finish generated by oven cooking vs hot plate re-warming.

The exception is potato kugel, which can handle both prep ahead and fridge time. But I never, ever freeze a potato kugel (though I know people who vehemently insist that it’s ok. We’ve never gone to the mat over this one). If at all possible, allow roasted potato dishes to crisp up again in the oven before placing in a warming drawer or on a hot plate to keep warm. (Of course, this only works on Shabbat night and is the main reason I serve those types of dishes Shabbat night.) But even here watch that you’re potato dishes don’t dry out. I save the kugels for Shabbat day. Kugels are so popular because they re-warm very nicely – and aside from potato kugels (am I drilling in my POV here?) — freeze quite nicely as well. Noodle kugels, Challah kugels, and vegetable kugels (broc, spinach, zucchini, butternut squash, etc.) all fare well in both the fridge and freezer. Maybe that’s the reason kugel is such a Shabbat-y food – I mean, when’s the last time you made a kugel to serve on a Tuesday night? Try these make-ahead kugel recipes:

Salt and Pepper Kugel with Roasted Garlic 
Broccoli Kugel 
Sweet Kugel with Dried Fruit
Potato Kugel Cups 

For 67 more kugel recipes and ideas click here.

Baby French String Beans with Slivered Almonds

And when it comes to veggies, green beans are my fave Shabbat choice. They hold up best from fridge to blech. Again, just make sure not to overcook them initially. In fact, I usually prep them a drop under – until barely tender with still a bit of a crisp bite – and then rewarm them on the blech on a tier (whether serving them night or day). If you use a warming drawer, don’t put them in prematurely. Get ’em warm and keep ‘em green; not piping hot, soft and soggy. Try my favorite green bean recipes:

Green Beans with Three Onion Sauté
Baby French Green Beans with Slivered Almonds
Green Beans with Walnut and Green Olive Tapenade

For more green bean recipes click here.

Caramel Pear Lattice Pie

7. Desserts: the ultimate make-ahead dish. Of course, any freezer desserts are perfect to prep ahead, in fact, designed so. Cakes, muffins, cookies all do well in a cake plate or covered container for a few days, or even in the freezer and then defrosted. The trick is not to lock in moisture. So let any baked goods cool completely before covering or packaging and freezing. I use freezer bags, not foil. Another tip: when you pull it out of the freezer – if the bag has condensation inside, take the goods out of the bag and allow to defrost before placing in a new, clean, dry bag or covered cake plate. Try these great dessert recipes:

Caramel Pear Lattice Pie
Carrot Apple Mini Cupcakes with non-dairy Cream Cheese Icing
One Bowl Amazing Chocolate Cake
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Mousse Pie

For more dessert recipes click here.

So now you’re all set! With these recipes you should be able to start cooking for the next 10 (or at least 7) Shabbatot.

Here’s a very nice, simple way to make beautiful round braided challahs. It comes out much nicer than a simple ‘snail’ shape as so many do, and really takes only minutes to put together. Anyone who can braid three strands can make this challah easily. Plus it rises and bakes nicer than a simpler knot or twist does.  You can also watch Jamie’s video of the same technique.

Begin by taking three long strands and braiding them into a very long havdalah–candle-shaped log.

After this long ‘candle’ has been braided, carefully tie it up as if you are making one large knot out of it, and leave it to rise.

It will come out different than a simple round knot, and although not quite as extravagant as the woven round challah, it is still quite pretty.

To find out why we make round challahs this time of year read Rabbi Lawrence’s Ask the Rabbi here.

A very very frequent question I get goes something like this:

“I made a challah dough and it looked good. But after I’ve shaped it and it is on the baking tray, it seems to rise out instead of upwards and the end result is a flat, wide challah that, although it still tastes good, really doesn’t look that nice. What can I do to make them nicer, aside from using a loaf or oval shaped pan?”

There are lots of reasons a challah could spread out and flatten like that. I’ve been making challah “free form” for years already and I never use any fancy equipment — just a large cookie sheet or oven tray, lined with parchment paper. My challahs of course grow more in the oven, but they grow up, and only spread out minimally, thereby coming out high and beautiful.

A lot of it has to do with the way it’s shaped. A three strand challah will be more flat than a six strand. I spend an entire chapter in my book doing step by step photos and instructions on over 17 different ways to braid challahs, and what the results look like. It’s likewise demonstrated on my professional DVD. All can be seen and obtained on my website.

If they spread like that before baking, it’s often also the dough: is your dough very very soft to handle, almost like cotton? With no real form? Then you need to toughen it a bit more; use a bit less water and a bit more flour. Here’s a good recipe that should hold its form and also come out really good, Quick & Easy Egg Challahs.

Another reason it could be losing its shape, which is a very frequent cause I see people doing, is OVERRISING the challahs after they are shaped. If the challahs are left to rise for over an hour plus, then they will lose their shape or sometimes poof and fall flat during the baking process.

Another good tip is to sprinkle a very small, fine layer of flour over the strands of dough, directly before shaping them. I did it only after I connected the six strands at the top and made sure to leaves the ends of each strand unfloured. It seemed to help, although my usual challahs hold their shape pretty well even without this tip. Try it and see if it helps you, as it has helped many other women.

I just got another great tip from a friend I sat next to at a wedding the other night — if you’d like your egg glaze to look 100% clean without that “drip” look so many of us have, blend the eggs in your hand blender first, then smear them on. The egg wash will go on evenly that way and there are no drips. Next time I make challah I hope to try it out myself and see what happens.

Let me know if this helps you!

**Giveaway**

Win a copy of A Taste of Challah and learn all the challah baking tips and tricks for a perfect challah every time.  Here’s how to enter:

As much as I love Challah tips, I also love Household tips! It’s almost always one of the first things I will look over in any publication, newspaper or magazine and since I have such limited time for any kind of ‘free reading’, this already says a lot! I’ve gained countless little nuggets of information and useful, practical advice this way over the years and have always wanted to do something with it.

Here’s a cute example just in time for Rosh Hashana, our ‘honey holiday’ seasonal food…

Honey Measuring Tip:

When measuring out honey for a cake or cookie recipe (yes, we’re going to have them up on this site shortly), first measure the oil necessary for the recipe. Then, using the same measuring cup you used for the oil, pour in the amount of honey needed. Because the cup had oil in it first, your honey will just slide right out of the measuring cup, no scooping or sticky-finger trying necessary…

It occurred to me that just as I enjoy these precious little nuggets of information, I’m sure others probably do too – and I would love to be able to share this together!

I would like to compile as many tips as possible, so we can share then with each other. All household, organizational and cooking/baking tips are welcome.

Just post yours in the comments below and I will choose the best ones to put on my website.  And one will win the cookbook.

One winner will be chosen by online randomizer from qualified entries only. Must be US or Israel resident of at least 18 years of age. Contest ends September 20th 2011 at 2 pm EST.

Honey is the obvious go-to Rosh Hashanah condiment.  Who am I to buck tradition?  I work honey into my dressings, chicken glazes and desserts.  It goes on our challah, our apples and now… our brisket.

Worried about overkill? Listen, using honey in all these ways is fine if you use it in the right amounts and combine it with other ingredients to counter-balance it’s sweetness. Trust me, nobody will think you’re a one-flavor cook.

This Garlic Honey Brisket pops with the flavors of honey, mustard, GARLIC (double that garlic, if you’re like me), some citrus notes (from orange and lemon juices), a touch of thyme, plus a tiny bit more heat from red chili flakes.

That’s one thing you can say about brisket – almost any flavor combo works, and I’ve heard some of the craziest. (You should see the peanut butter & jelly version. No – maybe you shouldn’t.)  The trick is cooking it just right.  That begins with a good sear on both sides and then making sure it’s in the oven long enough. That’s what makes it soft and tender.  Ideally (like when you’ve got loads of time), you want to place it in the fridge overnight before slicing, rewarming and serving.  That’s the best way to get a tender brisket to slice nice and neatly.

Oh, for the love of brisket – do share your secrets, techniques and flavor combos: the floor is yours.

For more brisket recipe ideas click here.

Watch Jamie Geller make a crown challah – so easy you could do it too.

View and print this recipe here.

When the word kugel first appeared in Webster’s Dictionary in the early twentieth century, it was defined as “a suet pudding,” a characterization derived from similarities between kugel and British steamed puddings. Later, the Merriam-Webster Dictionary updated the definition to “a baked pudding.” Baking, however, was actually a late step in the kugel’s evolution. For the kugel’s (kuglen plural) origin lay not in a casserole, but rather as bread dumplings in a stew pot.

By the 12th century, the concept of dumplings spread from China along the Silk Road to Italy then Germany, around the same time that cholent reached Germany from Spain by way of France. Within a century or so, German cooks began dropping a bread batter containing a little egg as a binder into the center of the Sabbath stew, the dumpling developing a rich flavor and texture as it simmered overnight and, after morning services, served warm alongside the stew for lunch.

Then emulating an emerging German practice of steaming puddings in a clay pot instead of in a stew or in intestines, Jewish housewives began cooking the dumpling in a kugeltopf –kugel was the Middle High German for “ball” and topf meant “jar/pot”– a commonplace small rounded Teutonic earthenware jar. The kugeltopf was placed in the top of the stew, the steamy environment keeping the batter moist and preventing burning. This not only transformed the batter into a pudding with the potential for greater versatility, but also gave rise to a new name. In order to differentiate the pudding from the stew, people began calling it variously weckschalet (weck was German for “bread roll”), semmelkugel (semmel/zemmel was another Teutonic bread roll), and schaletkugel, a reference to the resulting round shape. In western Europe, these puddings are still called schalet, while in eastern Europe, kugel became the generic term for all these puddings. Whether pronounced kugel (by Poles and Lithuanians), koogle (by Germans), or keegal (by Galitzianers), this dish ranks high in the pantheon of Jewish foods.

As the kugel came out of the cholent, the rudimentary bread dumplings gradually evolved into an array of dishes. Onions, ubiquitous in Ashkenazic cookery, were sautéed and added for extra flavor. Gribenes, cracklings made while rendering schmaltz, provided another possible flavor element. The popularization of sugar in 17th century Europe led to sweet puddings.  The common denominators of all true kugels are a starch base, eggs (or egg substitute), and fat, without the addition of water or other liquids. If the dish lacks any of the basic ingredients, it is technically a casserole or cake, not a kugel.

Kugel achieved new gastronomic heights when cooks substituted farfel and noodles and, on Passover, matza for the bread batter. The Frankfort rabbi, Joseph Yuspa Hahn (1570-1637) in Yosif Ometz, a collection of local customs, mentioned three types of schalets: weck, vermicelles(Western Yiddish for “noodles”), and matza.  Hanh also instructs, “Do not forget to taste your schalet on Friday (before the onset of the Sabbath) to test whether it be properly cooked!” By the sixteenth century, rice kugels, typically reserved for special occasions, emerged in parts of eastern Europe, influenced by the Ottoman advances into Europe and their introduction of numerous Middle Eastern foods. Potatoes, after their popularization in the mid-19th century, provided an inexpensive and filling kugel, subsequently becoming the predominant type in the impoverished shtetls of eastern Europe. Whence the popular Yiddish folk song, “Sunday potatoes, Monday potatoes, Tuesday and Wednesday potatoes, Thursday and Friday potatoes, but Shabbos, for a change, a potato kugel.”

Beginning in the late 1700s, groups of Chasidim and students of the Vilna Gaon began moving to Israel, bringing with them the traditions of eastern Europe, including clothing and foods. In Jerusalem, they developed a distinctive noodle kugel, a hybrid of traditional salt-and-pepper noodle kugel and sweet noodle kugel, featuring a tantalizing contrast of ground black pepper and caramelized sugar, Yerushalmi kugel.

During the Middle Ages, only some wealthy families owned a home oven. Most foods were cooked on the hearth over an open fire, while baked foods had to be lugged to the town bakery or to the occasional private home oven, typically using the facilities for a fee. In addition, temperatures were difficult to regulate in those wood-burning brick or clay ovens and baked goods had to be carefully watched during the entire baking time. On the other hand, the temperature of stews or water in a pot could be reliably controlled. Consequently, for most of history, cooking was usually performed directly over a fire (roasting, braising, boiling, steaming, and poaching) and kugels were commonly steamed. In this vein, the first Jewish cookbook in English, The Jewish Manuel by Judith Montefiore(London, 1846), which contains the first record of the word kugel in English, offered a recipe for “Kugel and Commean,” (hamin) entailing a sweetened and spiced bread mixture in a covered “quart basin” steamed in a meat-and-bean stew.  Similarly, Esther Levy, of German roots, in the first American Jewish Cookbook, Jewish Cookery (Philadelphia, 1871), included a recipe for “Coogle, Or Pudding, and Peas and Beans,” consisting of a sweetened noodle mixture steamed in a covered basin set in a soupy cholent.

Technology played an essential role in creating the kugel’s predominant modern form, particularly in America.  With the popularization of the home oven in the mid-19^th century, kugels suddenly shifted from the stew pot to baking it in a separate shallow container. The kugel, as we now know it, a baked casserole pudding, had arrived. Baking the kugel in an oven had another consequence, changing it from being primarily a Sabbath lunch dish and accompaniment to the cholent to one also served as a side dish for Friday night dinner and even during the weekday.

Here are a few seasonal kugel recipes:

Baked Rice Pudding (Rice Kugel)

Carrot Pudding

Baked Apple Kugel

Watch Jamie Geller make a 6-braid challah – so easy you could do it too.

Part One

Part Two

View and print this recipe here.

Mitchell Davis is a cookbook author and food journalist with a Ph.D. in Food Studies from New York University. A graduate of Cornell University’s School of Hotel Administration, Davis majored in Food and Beverage Management and spent two years cooking and eating in France and Italy before settling in New York City to write about food. He joined the staff of the James Beard Foundation in 1993. Davis’s most recent cookbook is Kitchen Sense (Clarkson Potter, 2006), he is the author of two other cookbooks, Cook Something (Macmillan, 1997) and The Mensch Chef (Clarkson Potter, 2002), and is the co-author with Michael Ginor of Foie Gras…A Passion (Wiley, 2000).

Tell me about the James Beard Foundation?

The James Beard Foundation is a non-profit founded about 25 years ago.  James Beard was an American chef and food writer and hailed as America’s first foodie.  He wrote 26 cookbooks and helped inspire the food world we have in America today.   Shortly after Beard’s death a few of his friends decided to preserve his home  in New York City and that was how the foundation came about.  His home was always a place where people would gather, network and eat, so it was only natural to continue using it to showcase established and emerging chefs from all over the world.

The James Beard Foundation is most widely known for our awards.   They were started in 1991 and they are the standard set to shine a light on chefs.  We also provide scholarships to help students follow their passion and attend culinary school.   We recently started a series called Beard on Books, a series of intimate readings and discussions with acclaimed culinary authors.   And in 2007 we created the James Beard Foundation’s Taste America, a National Food Conference , celebrating the importance and breadth of American food.

What was it like cooking and eating in France and Italy?

Eating a meal is an educational experience.  I learned new ways to integrate food into my life.  I came home knowing that our foods can be better.  In France and Italy they are critical of their food and demand and expect a certain quality and that is part of developing a sophisticated food culture.   In Italy, whether you are a poor farmer or a wealthy business man you all eat the same food and it is all fresh and delicious.  You don’t see that in America.

You wrote a book in 2002, called The Mensch Chef – Why Delicious Jewish Food Isn’t an Oxymoron – why did you write this book?

I grew up with a lot of Jewish culture and Jewish food.  My mother cooked gefilte fish and matzo ball soup and borscht and I always loved it.  With my first book, Cook Something, I was addressing the Generation X crowd , my friends who loved to eat but didn’t know how to cook.  When I was deciding on what to write next, my editor asked me what did I really want to write about, and I realized I really wanted to write about Jewish food, I wanted to spend some quality time with my mom, learning and recording her recipes and show the world that Jewish food is delicious when cooked right.

I remember when I got the recipe for gefilte fish and I thought why does fish have to cook for 3 hours, it should be much faster, why can’t we cut it down to at least 45 minutes.  So I changed a few things but kept all the classics in there.

So, I wrote this book for anyone who wants to make the greatest hits of Jewish food.   I really wanted to call it “Jew Food”, but at that time they wouldn’t allow it.  It is really for someone who may not know how to make gefilte fish or chopped liver, who didn’t have their recipes passed down, but who wants to make traditional Jewish food.

What was your earliest memory of cooking?

I have always been into food. When I was about 6 or 7 I used to be an early riser. I would wake up around 5 and sneak downstairs and create crazy concoctions of eggs and flour and oil and bake them into cookies.  They were always terrible and I would hide them all over the house so I wouldn’t get caught.

Then when I was 11 I was given Julia Child’s book for Hanukkah and I went on to make every menu in that book over the next year.

What is it with you and Foie Gras?

Nothing really, that was just an accident.  The day after I got my first writing/editing job.  Michael picked me up at 6 am to take me to his Foie Gras farm he talked about his desire to write a book on Foie Gras and Foie Gras…A Passion was born.  Eighty five chefs collaborated on this book and it is really a great coffee table book.  We even discuss the Jewish roots of Foie Gras.  The Jews would grow the geese fatter to be used for schmaltz and there is a lot of historical evidence of the Jews making foie gras and even some recipes from them.

So, what is your favorite food?

I have to say good bread, whether it is challah or French bread, if there is a loaf of good bread and even better with a little butter, I just can’t control myself.

You were a judge on the Food Network show Best in Smoke – tell me about that experience?

It was a very grueling 8 days and I wasn’t even competing.  It was also eye opening to see how these television challenges work.  In a show like this, it is not really the person with the best barbecue who wins, but the person that can win the game.  It is very different from a regular BBQ competition.  It was a lot of fun and I would definitely do it again.

Please share with us some recipes for the classic High Holiday Meal that will prove to everyone why  Delicious Jewish Food isn’t an Oxymoron.

These recipes were originally printed in The Mensch Chef cookbook and are classic Jewish dishes, enjoy!

The Secret is Pears Brisket

Duck Prosciutto

Compote

Farfel with Mushrooms and Onions

Introducing the first video of our new series: Quick and Kosher “in the Raw”. In this new series you will learn how to make Jamie’s challah dough, how to braid it, how to form a crown challah, how to make onion pockets and garlic knots, cinnamon buns…. The list goes on! Look out for a new video every Monday!

Pull up a chair – and watch how easy it is to make challah – you’ll be a pro at it in no time!

Jamie’s Challah recipe can be found here. More information on separating the dough – “Hafrashat Challah” can be found here.

Nothing juicy about this confession.

Just an honest answer to a common question.

People come up to me and say, “Seen your posts, your books, your videos…” Then with a little wink, “…So what do you actually cook most of the time?”

So I’ll fess up. I go through stages and have my faves, stuff that I love to cook, stuff that I have ready Shabbos after Shabbos, no matter who comes a knockin’ on my door. I don’t care if our guest is the six-year-old from down the block or the Prime Minister of Israel – here’s what they’ll get at my house these days (in no particular order).

Sesame Cucumber Salad – I originally developed this as a side to the Teriyaki Beef Banh Mi. It’s simple, light, elegant. And now starring on my Shabbos table, solo. I play it up too, showcasing it in a pretty crystal serving dish. The cucumber ribbons garnished with black sesame seeds look divine.

California Avocado Salad – a real staple for eons! The avocado adds both a creaminess and gorgeous green pop of color. But a few Shabbosim ago Hubby searched high and low for me, going to store after store and guess what? Nary a ripe avocado in sight! So I stole a trick out of my neighbor Adina’s bag– in place of avocados she adds shelled edamame (from the freezer section – defrosted of course) for a punch of green color. But the real secret to this salad is the dressing. These “exotic” oils and vinegars are now staples in my pantry: toasted sesame oil, rice vinegar and ume plum vinegar (ume plum is a Japanese fruit). To know them is to love them.

Corn Flake Crusted Chicken – I came up with this for the kiddies, but it’s a total family and guest favorite – and perfect for Shabbos day. Okay, so in my second book, Quick & Kosher Meals in Minutes I say to bake ‘em, but lately I prefer them fried. And yes, I actually crush real corn flakes instead of using the ready-made corn flake crumbs from a canister. A nine-year-old Shabbos guest squealed with delight when she tasted this dish, “Oooh, Mommy, there’s cereal on this chicken – YAY!” Every grown-up at the table was thinking the same thing. Takes a kid to say it.

Mini Blueberry Lemon Tarts – no oven! And so cute – light, refreshing, slightly (and I mean slightly, not over the top sugary) sweet. Everyone asks for this recipe, and then they can’t believe how simple it is. Thank you, G-d, for creating mini tart shells!

Family Heirloom Chulent – Hubby’s specialty and it even made the New York Times. (Yet they gave me credit for the recipe!) We make this every Shabbos, even in the summer. It ain’t Shabbos without it.

Salmon Croquettes with Tropical Fruit Salsa – originally developed for Pesach, this is my year round staple now. The salmon croquettes are actually best served fresh, straight from the fry pan. So I prep them beforehand, keep them in the fridge as raw patties, and then fry them up just before Shabbos for the evening meal. I much prefer them on a yuntif, though, so I can serve them from the pan to the platter. For Shabbos day though I have taken to serving the tropical fruit salsa with my chilled salmon recipe from my first book Quick & Kosher Recipes From The Bride Who Knew Nothing. Chilled salmon fillets are the perfect swap out for Shabbos day meals or for when I’m feeling especially lazy and not in patty mode. My oldest daughter (who is only 6, mind you) was shocked, shocked by this substitution! “Mommy! How can you serve the tropical fruit salsa with chilled salmon? It’s supposed to go with the croquettes!” Never thought I’d have to answer to a kid food critic right in my own kitchen, but there it was.

Green Bean and 3-Onion Sauté– I love this hot or cold. The green beans have the perfect crunch, the onions and garlic are caramelized and sweet. Personally, I prefer to I omit the red pepper flakes and just go with a finish of kosher salt. Perfection on a platter

Sun-dried Tomato Caesar – I whip up a quadruple batch of my dressing and chop an entire jar of sun-dried tomatoes in oil so that I have this salad ready to go at a moment’s notice, weekday and Shabbos.

Challah Dough Cinnamon Buns have also been creeping in a bit too much for my waistline, but not too much for my taste buds.

Not a Shabbos passes without fresh challah loaded with everything topping. I even sometimes serve extra “everything topping” for dipping! And here’s a hot tip: try zaatar, kosher salt and olive oil as a dipping treat for your challah.

So these are my recent Shabbos faves — what are yours?