I am moving.  Have you heard?  I know it’s hard to ignore something I am shouting from every roof top but as usual I can’t help myself.  Well let me tell you as I have told anyone who will listen I have but a pot, a cutting board and a rusted bread knife plus a bunch of fancy once-a-year serving platters to my name in my NY kitchen.  So cooking has been a more difficult than usual challenge.  But surprisingly while not pretty to watch I can get a respectable slice and dice out of my overgrown serrated bread knife.  So in honor of my aliyah to the Holy Land I share my favorite Israeli Salatim (translate: salads) that I really should practice in anticipation of my arrival.  When I get there I bet my Israeli-Iraqi sis-in-law will surely tell me I am doing these all wrong, but until then they are authentic in my book.

Israeli Salad

Yup I needed a recipe for this when I first got married.  Look I wasn’t Israeli and wasn’t a cook.  Now I feel confident to use any veggies I have in the house and tear and toss in fresh parsley or cilantro or mint (for the sake of clarity either or, not altogether).  If going dairy I love to add crumbled feta.

Here you will see a video of me in the early stages of my career making this Trukish Salad.  Yup, it’s been a while.

Israeli Cabbage Salad

I never met a red cabbage before I met hubby.  Now that’s of course because I always knew it to be a purple cabbage.  But the recipe editors for my first book made sure to set me straight (uh I still think it looks purple).  This is a Chanie Geller classic (yes my sis and law and I do have the same Hebrew name, difference is she actually goes by hers).  She laughed when I wanted the recipe – mayo, squeeze of lemon, salt, sometimes pepper – not brain surgery she is right but lighter and much preferred to coleslaw.

Roasted Garlic Hummus with Oven Baked Pita

One of my favorite chummus recipes.  Loads of garlic for my Transylvanian ancestors (shout out mom and dad!).

Spicy Eggplant Salsa

Not Israeli per say but can certainly blend in at an Israeli salad course if you don’t feel like patchke-ing with babaganoush.

Charif

The salsa of middle eastern cuisine.  I personally like hot stuff and the fat burning benefits of spicy foods and my dad always called me paprikash which essentially means spicy in Hungarian but really refers to my hot tempered personality – could ya tell?

Which brings to my question:  What food or food adjective best describes your personality?

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I was fortunate enough to spend three weeks in Israel on a trip with the organization Aish Hatorah. Any time I had been to Israel before, it was a toss up between pizza, falafel, shwarma, or a salad from Sambooki. On this trip, however, I consumed fewer than three dairy meals, and my meat (fleishig) meals could only be described as “abundant.” We ate in a meat restaurant in Metula in the north, where waiters served us endless tabletop grills with chicken, beef kabobs, grilled vegetables, and steak. At the Dan Panorama, where we stayed for most nights, we were treated to buffets loaded with a variety of meat, chicken, and fish dishes, as well as a stocked salad bar (a la Israel), carving station, and a variety of soups and side dishes. And of course, our shnitzel lunches were always hot and crispy, topped with sesame seeds and served alongside hummus and what Israelis call “ketchup.”

On that note, here are some of my observations about the current state of food in Israel.

1. The meat is almost there. I distinctly remember my first memory of eating meat in Israel, and understanding why most people stick to chicken. My parents had always told me that Israelis served chicken instead of meat because red meat in Israel is so expensive. However, as my palate developed, I provided my own answer to this question: red meat is not worth the money. Of course, hamburgers and expensive entrecote steaks in restaurants are delicious, but in terms of home cooking, stick with chicken. You can’t go wrong with a fatty batch of pargiyot (boneless dark meat chicken). Nevertheless, the quality of the meat (amount of fat and silver skin, as well as overall flavor) has improved some, as long as you cook it right. And I can’t tell you what “right” is yet, because I only tasted it once or twice.

2. Condiments. Ketchup is still a thicker version of sweet tomato soup; avoid if you can. Mustard is alright. When eating in restaurants, you will most likely get either Thousand Island or Honey Mustard salad dressing, in which case I recommend going for plain olive oil and lemon juice. The oil and juice in Israel is fresher than in America, so take advantage. Additionally, when it comes to sandwiches/burgers/wraps/salads, pile on the garlic mayonnaise! I have no idea why America hasn’t stolen this genius concept yet, but it makes everything taste better. While you’re at it, throw on some sweet chili as well. It’s like BBQ sauce, ketchup, duck sauce, and hot sauce all in one perfectly balanced condiment. MMM! And for those who are curious, spots like Burgers Bar offer other condiments like pesto, chimichurri, hot sauce, tahini, and all of the aforementioned sauces and condiments.

3. Say Cheese! Of all types and all origins: cow, sheep, goat, lamb; brie, camembert, feta, Bulgarian, hard cheese, soft cheese, yellow cheese, salty cheese; smoked, cured, aged, fresh. On one Thursday afternoon, I spent an hour cheese shop-hopping in the Shuk (Machaneh Yehuda) by myself to find the best lamb’s milk feta cheese, and had the time of my life. Throw in a bottle of Reisling (which is Kosher nearly everywhere!), some Osem whole grain crackers, and fresh red grapes from the shuk, and you have a great Shavuot Kiddush (which I did).

4. Produce availability. Unfortunately, I was unable to get my hands on any pomelos or persimmons, which just proves the quality of the fruit in Israel. You won’t be able to find anything that is out of season; therefore, the fruits and vegetables that you can find in the Shuk are of the highest quality. Purchase according to season and you will not be disappointed!

Today we welcome a special Bread Blogger, Jennifer MacLeod, who got into bread making the lazy way (thank you no knead) and who aspires to make Aliyah one day soon just like Jamie. You can learn a lot about bread making here and comment below with any questions.  And make sure to head over to the Breadland blog for a chance to win a set of Kosher Kitchen Labels.

Tell us about your blog and how you got started:
I’ve been baking for years, but a couple of years ago, I realized that too much of my regular blog, Adventures in MamaLand was being taken up with my latest obsession, which – at the time – was no-knead breads. So I found a similar Blogger domain name and took it from there! I don’t post there quite as often, but I like to think I have a dedicated core of kosher-bread aficionados who read it regularly.

What is your earliest cooking memory?
Baking one-pan brownies with my little sister in my mother’s kitchen. I didn’t really learn to cook at home, because my mother is as tidy as I am NOT and it didn’t make for a very comfortable relationship in the kitchen. But one-pan brownies, we could usually manage without messing up too much. Later on, when I was going to school and living alone with my future mother-in-law (my future husband was in a different city), I was amazed at how mellow a person could be in the kitchen – she didn’t care where I put stuff in the dishwasher and loved coming home to fresh-cooked and -baked food. With that freedom, I started experimenting! I remember making a jelly roll, step by step – baking it flat, rolling it up in a towel to cool, gently unrolling and filling it -and being so proud of how perfectly it turned out. Even though, these days, I’m usually rushing to get family food on the table, it’s wonderful to sometimes find a stretch of leisure time to cook or bake.

What is your favorite kitchen implement / utensil / gadget?

Hands-down, my Danish dough whisk. Here it is on Amazon; it’s a beautifully simple gadget, made in Poland – they’re all made in Poland, apparently. Basically, a twisted coat-hanger on a wooden handle… but it WORKS. It’s great for no-knead doughs; literally, you just stir them together. But it’s also the best thing for muffins and anything that suffers from overmixing. And it’s super-easy to clean!

What’s your favorite kosher dish to cook?
Can’t every dish be a kosher dish if you fiddle with it enough? I didn’t grow up eating kosher, and I remember at one point missing dim sum terribly. Now, dim sum is practically the opposite of kosher – little dumpling pockets of shrimp, “mystery meat,” tripe, you name it (okay, the tripe never appealed). It’s all about presentation and little bursts of flavour. I didn’t mourn; I gathered ingredients, rounded up recipes, bought some bamboo steamers, and spent the better part of a day re-creating my favourite dim sum of all: “char siu bao,” the well-known “barbecue pork” buns… using kosher beef. They were utterly delicious, but it was a ton of work. I guess that’s a very long answer. In my work as a freelance writer, I interview a lot of caterers, who all claim that their food “doesn’t taste kosher.” I have no idea what this means, so my short answer is that my favourite dish to cook, period, is one we’ll share with friends and family. I love thinking about who’ll be eating it while I cook; it’s almost meditative.

Who is your cooking inspiration?
I don’t know if I have one. Honestly, any eishes chayil [woman of valour] who manages to cook a delightful meal for her family seven nights a week (or organize takeout or husband cookery for one or two of those evenings!), year in and year out, regardless of how she’s feeling and what else is going on, should be an inspiration to us all. In that sense, my mother was an inspiration – I guess everybody says their mother, but now, my jaw drops when I think about everything she accomplished. I have the same number of hours in the day… perhaps the difference is that she didn’t have the Internet and great sites like joyofkosher.com!

Please share a favorite cooking tip or trick with our readers:
MEASURE! Cooking is fun, an art, but baking is a science. Measure your ingredients properly. A normal cup of flour can weigh anywhere from 120 to 170 grams; we North American home bakers are terribly lazy, but you can find good recipes that give exact weights, and you may be amazed at how much more reliable your baking becomes! Also: measure the temperature of your finished bread – 185 to 195 is a good internal temperature. My digital thermometer cost under $10 and it’s saved so many loaves from over- and under-baking! Again, it’s one tip: MEASURE! Oh, and don’t “punch down” your bread, no matter how many times your Bubby’s challah recipe says you must.

Which recipes are you sharing with us today?
Two recipes – one is an easy and practical Pareve Hamburger Bun recipe, and one is a Blender Challah Recipe which is a little harder to work with but which should yield the softest, fluffiest challahs you’ve ever tasted.

Jennifer is a Jewish supermama of four and my family’s adventures in learning, eating, growing, and living according to Hashem’s plan.  Visit her on her bread blog, BreadLand or on MamaLand or AliyahLand.

Although called rice, wild rice isn’t rice at all. The black strands are actually a seed of a type of marsh grass. It is a hearty grain that takes about an hour to cook and has a slightly chewy texture and a nutty flavor. Often used as a mix in with other rice or grains, it is surprisingly good on its own.

Wild rice is a healthful alternative to regular rice and other grains. 1 cup of cooked wild rice has 165 calories, 6.5 g protein, 3 g fiber and good amounts of iron and copper. It is high in B vitamins as well as potassium and phosphorous — it is even considered a complete protein. It actually wins out over brown rice which in 1 cup has 216 calories, the same 3 grams of fiber and only 4 grams of protein.

The chewy texture provides versatility to use this grain in everything from salads, to side dishes and soups. It is also a helpful weight loss tool. Cook up a big batch of wild rice on Sunday and turn it into a new dish every night of the week that will be filling and nutritious.

Wild Rice with Carrots and Beets

I love Jamie’s Rosh Hashanah Simanim recipe for Wild Rice with Carrots and Beets. Clocking in at 200 calories a serving it is colorful, tasty and filling anytime of year.

Wild Rice with Dried Apricots & Pistachios

For a sweeter taste, try this Wild Rice Recipe with Apricots and Pistachios, it serves 6 with 178 calories each and 6 grams of protein.

Wild Rice and Mushroom Soup

If you like a rich, hearty soup, try this Mushroom Wild Rice Soup or just keep it simple add wild rice to any salad, I love to mix it in with my tomato basil salad this time of year.

More Wild Rice Recipes

Wild Rice Pancakes

Avocado Stuffed Salmon with Wild Rice

Wild Rice with Mushrooms and Chestnuts Stuffing

Bubble and squeak is a traditional English recipe made with the shallow-fried leftover vegetables from a roast dinner. The main ingredients are potato and cabbage, but carrots, peas, Brussels sprouts, and other vegetables are often added. The dish got its name from the bubbling and squeaking sounds during the cooking process.  Cold chopped vegetables mixed with meat and mashed potatoes are all fried together in a pan and it is often made with leftover meat and veggies, served alongside and pickles or brown sauce, another infamous British condiment.  This is one of those meals that take me back to the smells and tastes of childhood.

For many, rain is depressing, lonesome and brings down the mood – but when I think of Bubble and Sqeak, my memories are cast back to a happy childhood, and the comfort food we would enjoy when the rain came down.  You see, the heavens would open in all seasons when I was growing up, and rather than rain stopping play, we’d take our fun indoors and continue to enjoy the day.  Sometimes guests stayed longer to wait out the weather, other times our visits were extended so not to walk back in the rain.  It’s all about perspective – as is this dish.

Leftover mashed potato, yesterdays meat, might sound odd to you – especially if you’re not one to re-heat or re-purpose your food – then again, to me, chicken and waffles sounds like a corrupt take on dessert.

The British aren’t always thought of fondly for their food, but their comradery and “chin-up” mindset can make the rainiest days with leftovers into a childhood memory that never fades!

I was inspired for this recipe by Jamie Oliver.  Jamie Oliver first raised his head in 1997 with the bit BBC series, The Naked Chef.  Instantly, he grabbed the heart of British TV watchers with his open kitchen and chatty nature.  Over in the US, his colloquialisms made him an instant celebrity and his crusade against processed food and obesity is a cause that I support wholeheartedly.  Things are done a little differently in England, especially when it comes to the culinary art of “dinner” and Jamie has a handle of this art, taking the mundane and elevating it, without complexity, so it’s fit for the Queen.

So in the spirit of London 2012, I share with you the classic British Comfort Food, Bubble and Squeak, inspired by Jamie Oliver and adapted by This American Bite.

Don’t miss this recipe for another British classic, Yorkshire Pudding.

Tell the kids they are mad scientists, who get to alter the flavor profile by deciding which fruit and tea flavors to use. While your little chefs are concocting their own brew, they’ll also be creating summer memories they’ll never forget.

Iced Tea Fruit Coolers using Turbinado sugar, a less refined alternative to regular sugar. It absorbs moisture well, making it good for tea or coffee.

Strawberries and Watermelon Smoothies and Popsicles

Here’s how to get the kids involved:

Kids 2 and up: With a plastic knife or metal butter knife, slice the strawberries and cube the watermelon.
Adults with kids: In a blender or food processor, combine strawberries, watermelon, and Iced Tea Fruit Cooler. Add 1 tablespoon of sugar and taste—if need be, add more. Blend entire mixture well.
Kids 8 and older: Thread fruit onto rainbow colored toothpicks. Pour puréed fruit drink into plastic cocktail glasses and garnish with cubed fruit.
For Popsicles: Pour puréed fruit drink into popsicle molds or small plastic cups and freeze for at least 6 hours.

VARIATIONS:

Blue Lagoons: Try replacing a few raspberry tea bags with blueberry tea bags. Substitute 1 cup of strawberries with blueberries.
Jungle Fun: Use orange mandarin tea instead of raspberry tea and blend in mangos or pineapples for a tropical flavor.

Originally published in the Summer 2011 issue of Joy of Kosher with Jamie Geller

“There were no days as glorious for the people of Israel as the 15th of Av and Yom Kippur, when the daughters of Jerusalem would come outside with borrowed white garments and dance in the vineyards” (Gemara Ta’anit 26b).

Tu B’Av, the 15th of the month of Av, which happens to be this Friday August 3rd, is a minor celebrated holiday on the Jewish calendar. In the days of the Second Temple, the day marked the beginning of the grape harvest and a matchmaking day for unmarried woman.  Immediately following the mourning period of the three weeks, today Tu B’Av has become one of the most popular days on the Jewish calendar for weddings—and celebrations of sheva brachos (literally, “seven blessings”), parties in honor of the bride and groom, are held for seven consecutive days after the wedding.
Whether you are hosting a sheva brachos or celebrating any number of happy occasions this summer, Shavy’s entertaining hints will inspire you for your own glorious day.

“Attach these whirly hanging candleholders from CB2.com to the ceiling with ribbon or invisible string.  Group them together and vary the heights.  If you use invisible string, it will look like these balls are suspended in the air. Fill them with tea lights or flowers,” says Shavy.  Shavy
used whimsical grass balls from Noir inside her candleholders.

“Love this look but don’t have white vases? You can spray paint the insides of glass vases and let dry,” Shavy advises.

“The placemats and table runners are also going in the vertical direction. These placemats by Mydrap serve as napkins—they are disposable and come in every color. You can wash and reuse them five times! With white stitching at the edging, they’re fabulous!” These napkin/placemats are also available in cocktail sizes and lots of funky colors. These beautiful chargers are by Godinger, but Shavy says you can also use pieces of mirror for a similar look, “Ikea sells mirrors that measure 1 square foot for less than a dollar.”

“In August, evenings begin to get chillier.  Especially if you are entertaining in your backyard—it’s a great idea to drape your chairs with pashminas in a color to match your theme.  It gives the chairs a custom look and a souvenir for guests to take home,” Shavy says.  Pashminas are available for only a few dollars from a number of sources, from Canal Street in New York, discount stores, or a number of online sources.

“These napkins come with a neat little cutlery holder attached, but you can create the same napkin ring substitute,” says Shavy. Sew a button
on a piece of ribbon and wrap around your napkin. Cute little limes serve as place cards for the guests.

“Matching macarons add a nice little touch.  They’re available in every color!”

“The outside of these cards is a menu—the inside is the blessing of Birkas Hamazon.”

“Do you see those vintage looking jars? If you can’t find jars in your theme color, use clear jars and fill them up with a drink in that color—or
use them just for décor filled with water and food coloring,” Shavy says. In this party, drinks by Pellegrino carry over Shavy’s theme.

Vendor Information
Party by Shavy Weiss of Shevy Dezign 732.966.9607
Custom Birkas Hamazon Cards and Menus by
Designer Announcements 732.822.3238
Mydrap Napkins and Grass Balls by Noir Gifts 732.363.3263
Tablecloth runners and napkins with cutlery holder
by Toby Engel 845.825.2223

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After the conclusion of the Three Weeks and the fast day commemorating the destruction of the Temple on Tisha B’Av, our thoughts turn from sadness to consolation and joy.  This is the time when the summer Jewish wedding season resumes and romance is most definitely in the air.  All the more so this Friday, which is the holiday of Tu B’Av, a day mentioned in the Talmud when unmarried girls would dance among the vineyards outside Jerusalem.  In modern times it is a day popular for weddings, proposals and dates.  We’re going to prolong the passion this Shabbat evening with a romantic menu that everyone will love.

Romaine Pecan Salad

Chicken Wellington

Roasted Beets With Orange Sauce

Vanilla Heart-Shaped Meringues filled with Cranberries

For last year’s shabbat menu for Shabbat Nachamu, Parsha VaEtchanan

Chef Jeff is the well known proprietor of the Kosher restaurant Abigael’s in New York City.  He really knows his food. After touring through the Farmer’s Market with Cheff Jeff Nathan of Abigael’s we get to cook and eat his fabulous foods.

Jeff Nathan's Asian Chicken Stir Fry

Pan Roasted Salmon with Summer Vegetables

Jeff Nathan's String Bean and Tofu salad with Soy-Wasabi Vinaigrette

Pepper Crusted Tuna

Berries with Honey Ginger Zabaglione

We go shopping with Chef Jeff Nathan at Union Square Farmer’s Market—then it’s off to Abigael’s to cook with summer produce at its peak.

We’re standing in front of Barnes and Noble on East 17th St. To the south of us stretches Union Square, and today—a steamy day in June, the Union Square Farmer’s Market graces the park.  Walking on the city streets, if I didn’t divert my eyes to see the rows of brightly colored tents and high mounds of fresh-from the- farm produce—I could most definitely smell it. I’m here with Chef Jeff Nathan, his wife Alison, and my inquisitive friend Rachel.

“Alright, c’mon.” Chef Jeff Nathan motions for us to follow him inside. “One of the good things about a market is that you know everything is fresh. You don’t get a lot of good deals monetarily, but you’re helping the farmers. There is a lot of sustainability. They will advertise if they are using fertilizers, antibiotics, steroids, or what have you. I always love natural and fresh. Organic, though, is a little tricky—sometimes, a person would buy a cantaloupe because it’s organic. You don’t need to, because it has a thick skin. If you can peel something, you are wasting your
money by buying organic.

“What’s amazing about having a market here, right in the middle of the city—all the restaurants come every day, and that’s how they create their specials. We cook what’s in season. I wouldn’t decide to feature a tomato basil salad in the middle of the winter—for what reason? Tomatoes aren’t at their peak. But right now, the beautiful beefsteak tomatoes are amazing. I don’t plan my menu and then go shopping. I go shopping—and then plan my menu. I won’t come here and say, ‘I’m looking for peaches.’ I’m going to look at the peach—is the peach good?
“The key here is the freshness—you know the produce is just picked. Taste this sugar snap pea—it’s got flavor, it tastes like a pea. We just passed rhubarb season, which was amazing. We might see a little rhubarb leftover today. Let’s start over here.”  Chef Jeff leads us to the booth that’s closest to us at the Northern end of the market. Pints of strawberries cover the table. They aren’t large and red like the ones you see in the
supermarket.

“Someone who doesn’t know strawberries might say, ‘They’re so small.’ But if you taste one of these babies— they explode in your mouth. Don’t think size is important.  These have the most flavor. Also, when you’re purchasing strawberries, it’s important to know that if one strawberry is
rotten, it’ll make the whole container decay. So if you have one rotten in the bunch, take it out right away.  “But—this is the stuff we want to eat. I’d make a salad with bitter arugula and sweet, sweet strawberries. Maybe some jicama, maybe pineapples.”

“Alright, you’re making us hungry,” Rachel says.

Everyone laughs. We’re only going to get hungrier. Chef Jeff has just begun.  “Strawberries are not just for dessert—I love light and refreshing salads. I’d also make a salsa to use over fish—strawberries with cilantro, red onion, cracked black pepper, a little rice vinegar.”

In the stall next to the strawberries are big bunches of lettuces, other greens, and different kinds of onions. “These purslane are very healthy greens. They have a lemony tang to them—they’re great for stir-fries and sautés.” “Are they sometimes used for garnish?” asks Rachel.
“You’re thinking of watercress, they look similar,” Alison tells Rachel, as she grabs some of the purslane to take home.  Lined up next to the purslane are a great variety of leafy bunches. Jeff picks up a bunch of mustard greens. “Mustard greens have a hearty flavor. If you want to sauté, you can cook this without worrying about it falling apart. Now is the time to use different lettuces—mix them up for different textures.

Lolla rossa is amazing. If I have romaine, I want to mix it up with lolla rossa, or boston or bibb that are a little softer, so each bite is a different texture or consistency. When we have a salad, why do we put nuts or fruit in it? Because we are creating a sensation for our palate.”

Jeff isn’t a fan of iceberg or romaine—the latter is only used for Caesar salad on his menu. “I don’t like icebergs for salads either—it has no taste. But iceberg is great for a sandwich—I love that crunch. With soft bread, it adds texture. If you were to take hummos and eat it plain, it would get boring after a couple of spoonfuls. But with pita or a crunchy veggie, you are introducing a different texture and it’s much more interesting.”

“Does it make such a difference if you substitute an onion for a shallot?” Rachel asks. Rows of different kinds of onions abut the lettuces.
“90% of people wouldn’t be able to tell the difference,” Jeff shakes his head. “Use a red onion if you don’t have shallots.  I don’t believe in recipes—they are there to inspire you. If a recipe calls for a green pepper, and you only have a different color pepper in your fridge, does it matter?”

Across the way, a vendor is selling different types of string beans—there are purple varieties called Romano beans, yellow wax beans, and your typical green been. “Even for a visual—I’d use the three of these together in a basic string bean salad, with one-third of each variety, red onion, a
handful of tomatoes, and vinaigrette.”

“Is there a difference between the different colors?” Rachel asks.

“Can I be honest? Is there a big flavor difference? Not really. They are just different varieties.”  “But it’s not like they took the tomato and made it square.”  We all laugh. “No!” The purple string beans are natural just the same.  It’s the fava bean that’s sitting next to the string beans, though, that gets Chef Jeff excited. He takes a bean and starts to peel. “The outside isn’t edible,” he says, revealing the inner beans. “Cook them slowly. They become like butter, the most tender, amazing thing. I love to make a fava bean hummos.”

Rachel wants to know about summer squash. “To me, it seems the oversized ones don’t have as much flavor.”
“It’s true,” Alison agrees.
“I have a different perception,” says Jeff. “To me, baby squashes are premature and don’t have flavor. I won’t use a baby patty pan or baby squashes. If I close my eyes, I don’t taste anything. Give it a chance to mature.”  When it comes to mature zucchini and yellow squash, though, Jeff agrees. The smaller ones are a little better because they have less seeds.

We come right up to a huge mound of sugar snap peas— they seem to be the star of the market today. Jeff takes a pea and demonstrates, taking off the tail at one end, and then peeling off the edge. “There’s two pieces I take off before serving them at the restaurant. I don’t mind the little
blemishes—they’re natural. Everything can’t be perfect, but the flavor of these are amazing.”

Walking down the aisles, there’s a vendor selling flowers.  Another has jars of pickles, stacked high. In another booth, there are jars of preserves, made of almost every kind of berry or citrus fruit. There’s also fresh apple cider for sale.

“Apple cider is a fermented product. In my cookbook, I have a recipe that is more requested than any other dish. It’s a brisket with black strap molasses and apple cider sauce.”  Later, when I get home, I look up the recipe he’s referring to in Adventures in Jewish Cooking, where the brisket cooks in the juice for hours.

We stroll over to the next stall, where root vegetables, with their straggling tails, are piled the highest on the tables.  “Different radishes do have different flavors. If you’re using a few different radishes in your salad, cut some on an angle, some square, and some round so it’s more interesting.

Everything that you put into a dish, ask yourself, ‘What am I putting this in there for? Is one bitter? Is one sweet? Does one add crunch? Do I need a red or orange for something to pop?’ There has to be a thought process, because you are never eating one element at a time.”

Our lesson in mushrooms will definitely affect the type I buy. “The portobello is the vegetarian king. They bread it or braise it and treat it like a piece of meat. I take the gills and the stem off, but I don’t throw away the stem.” Next to the portobellos are big, white domestic mushrooms—and the little creminis next to them. “You don’t have to take the stems off the cremini mushrooms.”  “Are those the same as baby bellas?” I ask.  “Yes, those are the baby bellas. White button mushrooms—I don’t use. They have no flavor. Cremini and button mushrooms are often the same price, but the flavor you’re getting with the cremini is much better.  “Oyster mushrooms are delicious, they fry up crispy and nice. But this is my favorite mushroom to use in therestaurant.” Chef Jeff is holding up a large, white mushroom that’s shaped like a cylinder. “The king oyster—it’s like the portobello—it has a tremendous amount of flavor. And I can cut it into different shapes. I’ll cut it on angles and grill it, or into discs and sauté. It’s very porous, so any sauce I add to the pan just gets sucked up. When it’s cut, you can add it to a dish and no one knows what it is.”  At the end of the row are the shiitakes, which Jeff also calls “a great mushroom.” But—he warns. “You can’t use the stem of the shiitake.”

“Have you ever used sunchokes? They are absolutely delicious. They taste something like a potato. Peel them, cut them into pieces, and stir-fry them with water chestnuts, peppers, or mushrooms. Or—boil them like potatoes and make a sun choke puree. You can also do a puree with two
parts potatoes and one part sunchoke. It’s really nice.”

“What about edible flowers?” I’ve always wondered—could they be kosher? Or are they too difficult to clean? Jeff tells us that he can’t use them in the restaurant—by the time they were cleaned, there would be nothing left.

“I’m surprised I don’t see any heirloom tomatoes,” Jeff says, looking around. I don’t see eggplants or melons around either.
But there are cherries. “On Facebook, I posted several salads with cherries. When there’s one specific item I like that’s only available for a short season, I obsess. When rhubarb was around, I did rhubarb cobblers and crisps. I did a rhubarb sauce for my duck. I also love fruit soups for summer—tomato or strawberry soup. Blueberry soup is one of my favorites.”  As we walk south down the main aisle of the market,

Jeff spots one vendor with monstrous looking eggs sitting in two baskets. A sign next to them reads, “Ostrich Eggs. Empty—$20. Full—$30.” Jeff picks up an empty one with a little hole at the top. “Wow! Presentation at the restaurant. Imagine a waiter pouring a vinaigrette out of this thing.”

“Until a waiter tries to squeeze it,” Rachel quips.

“Did you pick up the fresh one?” asks the vendor.   “It’s heavy?”
“It’s the equivalent of 18 to 24 eggs.” Wow.

“Fresh is best,” Chef Jeff summarizes our experience today.  “Next is frozen—it hasn’t been adulterated. Next, aseptic is a minimally invasive cooking process, where items are flash pasteurized, cooking for a few seconds at a high temperature so the nutrition isn’t destroyed. Canned vegetables are worthless. Why they have canned vegetables today is beyond me.”  “Are there any that are ok? Like chickpeas?” Rachel asks.
“Chick peas are ok—they take so long to cook, so let them do it for us.”  “I thought you don’t use canned chickpeas!” I turn to Rachel.
“For falafel—no. It turns to mush. But for hummos, yes.”  “Baking soda will make chick peas cook faster,” Jeff says.  “But will also destroy the nutrition.”

Today, it’s the baby greens that impress Chef Jeff the most. “These greens are amazing—look at these. Pea greens, sunflower greens.”
Every farm, he tells us, makes their own lettuce blend. Jeff picks up the tongs to show us, “This is a mixture of baby lettuces. This particular one has very expensive, light, and delicate greens in it.”  On our way out, Jeff spots a lone vendor that is still carrying rhubarb. It disappoints him, though, when he picks up a spear and bends it. “There’s nothing to it. It’s woody. Rhubarb usually snaps.”  Rhubarb season, apparently, is over.

For some fabulously fresh recipes from Cheff Jeff, click on.

Erin Grunstein hails from Canada, at least that is what her email says and she and Jamie have a lot in common.  In turns out Erin didn’t really know anything about cooking until she got married, but once she gave it try she fell in love and decided to share that love with the world on her blog, Erin’s Kosher Cooking Adventures.

Tell us about your blog and how you got started:

I’m not sure what inspired me to start a cooking blog – I’m not a professional chef, nor am I someone who really followed blogs. I honestly didn’t know what to do in the kitchen until getting married (only 3 years ago) and I’m still learning to this day. I found that frequently, friends were asking me for recipes, so one day last summer, I started posting my favorite creations. At first I was a bit shy, but I had a few people look at it and they loved it, so I shared it. I started getting amazing feedback from people I’d bump into all over the city, and from there, I decided to keep it going.

What is your earliest cooking memory?

I have pictures of myself as an 18-month-old baby baking cookies with my mom. As a kid, this was one of my favorite pastimes – especially baking sugar cookies and dousing them with multicolor (food coloring dyed) sugars.

What is your favorite kitchen implement / utensil / gadget?

The magic bullet! It’s amazing for making salad dressings, pesto sauces, mincing garlic, grinding nuts… Also, it doesn’t take up too much space so you can easily put it into the dishwasher. As well, it comes with different plastic containers to process and then store your food in.

What’s your favorite kosher dish to cook?

There are so many! It’s so hard to choose. I love making food that not only tastes delicious but also presents beautifully and I have a thing for mini and individual food items. So I would probably say appetizers, like my Caprese Eggplant Stacks (the one pictures above) or my Asian rice paper rolls. I also should probably say anything with pesto sauce is a personal favorite- it’s just so yummy!

Who is your cooking inspiration?

My mother – she’s a phenomenal cook. The only problem is she never remembers what she does to make the food so tasty and she can’t give a recipe to save her life! Many of my recipes are spin-offs of hers (such as my Moroccan meat pie) or are mother-daughter creation, such as our Pesto-Stuffed Mushrooms.

Please share a favorite cooking tip or trick with our readers:

Continuing with the pesto talk – when making pesto, always coat the top of the container holding the pesto with olive oil so that the basil does not turn brown.

Another tip when cooking for a crowd and to help make things run smoother: take a place in your kitchen (I just use my table) and prepare all your serving dishes and utensils beforehand, so that when serving (and your guests are waiting for their food) all you have to do is place the food on the plate, instead of scrambling to find each serving dish one by one. It sounds simple but makes a huge time (and stress) difference.

Which recipes are you sharing with us today?

Eggplant Caprese Stacks

Pesto Stuffed Mushrooms

Lebanese Chicken Kabobs

My family and I love seltzer.  It’s more fun than water.  It’s soda without the calories.  Over the years, the supermarket aisle has expanded from the ubiquitous lemon-lime and orange varieties of seltzer to ever more complex and sophisticated flavors of carbonated water.  As my three kids started requesting seltzer with every meal, the plastic bottles kept piling up outside our recycling bin and I started to feel a little guilty.  It was also getting expensive.

It was time to give Soda Stream a try.

We recently got the Soda Stream Genesis and it takes up a very small corner on our kitchen counter.  It’s sleek and stylish and an instant hit around the Shabbat table, where the kids beg for a chance to turn water into sparkling water with three simple pushes of the CO2 cartridge.  Making seltzer and soft drinks is simple and takes about 15 seconds!  If you like the taste of popular brand name cola and soft drinks, OU kosher-certified syrups are available for almost every style you can think of and some, you probably haven’t!  No heavy bottles to carry up to my apartment anymore and I don’t have to clear out a shelf in my coat closet to store a case of seltzer bottles.

I love the idea of being able to reuse the same dishwasher-safe plastic bottle, over and over again, and experiment with my own unique (calorie-free) flavors like Ginger Lime and Cinnamon Spice.  SodaStream rapidly became one of my very favorite kitchen gadgets.

CO2 cartridges are available at most major big box retail stores (where they can be refilled) or online and each cartridge lasts for about 80-100 bottles of seltzer.  It works out to about $.25 a liter.

SodaStream has its headquarters located in the West Bank of Israel and it feels great to support an Israeli company every time we sit down to drink.  Something is definitely fizzy around here!

Check out my other Gadget Adventures and let me know what else you want to learn more about and maybe I will try it out for you.

Allyson Kramer takes on the challenge of creating not only vegan foods, but gluten free too.  After living a vegan lifestyle for quite a few years by choice she was then diagnosed with Celiac disease.  It doesn’t seem to have fazed her one bit.  She put all her energy into creating delicious meals that satisfy this double diet and all of us.  Alyson blogs at ManifestVegan.com and recently published her first cookbook, Great Gluten Free Vegan Eats.  Let’s find out more.

You became a vegan as a teenager, what prompted that decision and how did your parents handle it?

There were multiple reasons why I became vegan as a teenager; much of it had to do with my family’s influence, actually. My sister had been a vegetarian for 10 years at the time, and my father was always talking about compassion as well as being an advocate for treating animals with respect. I also loved cooking, so I was always checking out new ways to prepare food and got really into vegetarian cooking at a young age.

It didn’t take long for me to learn about veganism when reading my vegetarian books, and the concept of eliminating all animal products from my diet and lifestyle seemed to resonate with me the most—both for my own health and for the health of the environment. My parents were not all that supportive or understanding at first, but they knew I was passionate about it.

I had a few moments where my mom or dad would be concerned about my health and they would make me drink cow’s milk or try and convince me to eat “some meat”, but over the years, they came to understand that veganism was important to me, and they eventually respected that. But, I do think it was a rather strange concept for them to grasp at first.

Enchiladas

You embraced cooking at a very young age, what is your earliest memory of cooking?

I can remember being a very small child (maybe 2 years old?) when I first started hanging around with my mother in the kitchen while she cooked, but my first memory of accomplishing a recipe on my own was when I was 8 years old and in the 2^nd grade. I spent the entire afternoon after school one day making a batch of cookies from a simple drop cookie recipe I found in my mother’s recipe box—which I have now converted to vegan and gluten free in my book as my “Sweetheart Cookies”.  I followed the directions to a “t” and they came out wonderfully. I shared them with my classmates the next day at school and one of my closest friends declared, “Allyson, these are the best cookies I’ve ever eaten! I can’t believe you made them!” And, from that moment on I was hooked.

Did you ever think of going to Culinary School?

I did, but not until after I graduated from art school. I ultimately decided to put it off because I knew that many of the culinary programs I was looking into (especially those which were vegan friendly) taught basic concepts and cooking techniques that I had already learned from studying cookbooks and had been doing for years in my own recipe development. Although I knew I’d pick up some more knowledge and skills at culinary school, I wasn’t convinced it was the best path to doing what I really craved to do for a living: writing cookbooks.

I decided to give blogging a shot first, and it eventually evolved into me being able to write cookbooks full time without the need to go to culinary school.

Vegan Calamari

What do you think is the biggest misconception about vegan food? And about Gluten Free food?

I think the biggest misconception about vegan and gluten-free food is that it is so restrictive! I wrote this book to show people that even though I eat vegan and gluten-free, I can still enjoy my ice cream, cake, cookies and pizza, and that it is just as delicious as the versions that contain animal products and/or gluten.  Now when people ask me what do I eat, or how do I survive without cupcakes, I happily direct them to my book or my website to explain to them that there is a world of great eats out there for us gluten-free vegans.

You have a list of subs on your site and book that will help turn any recipe vegan.  Is it really that simple?  

Aside from the obviously more difficult foods to replicate, such as a steak, I do honestly think it’s pretty simple to convert foods to vegan versions. When I first became vegan I was overjoyed at how simple it was to replace eggs and milk in most recipes, and how well vegan cream cheese subs and other non-dairy options worked in place of traditional dairy foods. When you are making very basic recipes, such as simple cakes, cookies, pies, etc. yes, it’s really as easy as replacing cow’s milk for almond or soymilk, and eggs can be swapped out for healthier alternatives such as flaxseed or tofu. Cooking and baking are so fascinating to me because there are a variety of ways to come to ultimately the same conclusion. My list of vegan substitutions–which is hardly exhaustive–is simple proof of that.

How did you learn to take food pictures?

I went to art school for 6 years and even though I mainly studied painting and sculpture, knowing the fundamentals, of color, composition, and intention in making art was a world of help to me. The camera is just another tool to create with, so it came pretty easily to me—but it also took a lot of practice and persistence to learn about the camera and how I best like to use it as well. I took a few photography classes while in college, which helped introduce me to concepts such as light, processing photos, and basics like F-stop and ISO. Even today, I take around 200 photos a day and often try new techniques or approaches, so I’m still learning a great deal about food photography; I hope to continue to learn as long as I do it.

What do you recommend for someone interested in eating less gluten and less animal products?

Take a trip to your local library to get inspired by the vast number of books available on the subject/s today. And, check out my “links” page on my website and other countless sources on the web for gluten-free and or vegan eating. There is a wealth of culinary advice for anyone who is curious about cutting down on either and some beautiful and inspiring cookbooks on the market today. Also, I encourage everyone to just get in the kitchen and experiment using a simple vegan/gluten-free substitution guide. You may be surprised at just how much you can create without animal products or gluten!

Chocolate Salted Caramel Bars

What has been your greatest cooking influences?

My mother, my grandmother, as well as countless cookbook authors have influenced me tremendously in my cooking and baking. There are too many to list, but I’ve read hundreds of cookbooks in my time, and have picked up a valuable tip, trick, or technique from each along the way. Good friends, mothers of friends, chefs at my favorite restaurants, and pretty much anyone who has ever cooked delicious food around me have also been important in influencing my cooking over the years.

Can you share a tip for busy people who need to get dinner on the table?

Make a recipe with a large yield ahead of time and freeze in individual portions. Dishes like casseroles, pasta dishes or soups are wonderful for freezing, and can be portioned out before freezing for an easy (and still home-cooked) solution that’s on the table in less than 30 minutes. Just thaw and serve!

Thank you to Allsyon for being with us today and for sharing a few of her masterful recipes.

Black Bean Potatoes and Cheese Enchiladas

Compassionate Calamari

Chocolate Salted Caramels

“THE LIFT” is the most anticipated event for anyone making aliyah. Your whole life is packed into a forty foot container (or crammed into a 20 footer).  About  four weeks before the big day a truck pulls up to your door, some guys jump out and proceed to package and cart away everyone of your earthly possessions, or at least the ones you want to take with you.

If you forget to put it on the lift, you’ll have to squeeze it into the two bags and one carry-on per passenger that you’re allotted on the plane. So whatever you erroneously left off, it better be small.

As the lift backed into our driveway my girls squealed  “it’s SO big!” but I knew better.  OMG, I thought, I must be taking too much. All of our stuff will never fit into that big/little space.  But Ilan, the owner of Strand, our overseas moving company, assured me that lots of people have taken more. Is that a consolation? I happen to know that we’ll be moving into a place half the size of the one we’re leaving.  Never mind fitting into the lift – will we be able to squeeze all this into our new home?  Hubby said our curb in Israel will have more furniture than our house.  Guess he also agrees we overdid it, a bit.

So right now, the kids think it’s cool to camp out in sleeping bags on the carpet in their rooms. When we get to Israel, we’ll be lift-less for about a week and a half. Let’s hope the kids won’t tire of sleeping on the floor – are we having fun yet?

Now we’re in it, enough with the announcement tease and episode, this is the  nitty gritty of aliyah and you are officially along for the ride.

Watch our 20-hour lift day condensed into just five minutes on the latest Joy of Aliyah webisode.

Love having you with us!

Mark your calendars with our Episode Guid

The Announcement Teaser

Premiere Date: Tuesday June 26 7:00pm EST

The Announcement Episode

Premiere Date: Wednesday July 11 7:00pm EST

The US Lift Teaser

Premiere Date: Wednesday July 18 7:00pm EST

The US Lift Episode

Premiere Date: Wednesday July 25 7:00pm EST

Goodbye BBQ Teaser

Premiere Date: Wednesday August 8 7:00pm EST

Airport Teaser

Premiere Date: Wednesday August 15 7:00pm EST

Last 24/The Flight Episode

Premiere Date: Wednesday August 22 7:00pm EST

First 48/Welcome to Israel Episode

Premiere Date: Wednesday September 5 7:00pm EST

The Israel Lift Teaser

Premiere Date:Wednesday September 12 7:00pm EST

Happy New Year from Israel Episode

Premiere Date: Wednesday September 19 7:00pm EST

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If I say “British Food” you’re either thinking bland pub food with room-temperature Newcastle Brown, or your mouth is watering at the thought of melt-in-the-mouth fish and chips enjoyed with the smell of salt sea air.  If you’re going to London for the 2012 Olympics and keep a kosher diet, I can all but promise you that neither of these images will come alive for you.  London has always had plenty of fine dining options, from the classics that I remember as a child, to the near culinary delights to hit the scene and I intend to help you make sure you have a taste of the best when you get to Her Majesty’s land.

Central London has fewer kosher options than Golders Green, Edgeware and Boreham Wood, but for the best salt beef (corned beef to those of us in the US) on rye with Coleman’ss mustard and latkes large enough to share, I beg you to visit the West End and stop at Reubens (79 Baker Street, W1U 6RG).  The smells and sounds of this Zagat-rated deli make it so much more than just a place to eat.  Reuben’s is a place to dine, to people watch, and to experience part of Jewish London that hasn’t changed since 1973.  One similar culinary adventure that brings a smile to my face is Blooms, unfortunately they closed their doors in the summer of 2010.  If you’ve heard of Blooms from friends or family, the experience you will enjoy at Reuben’s will stay with you forever.

If you’re staying in Golder’s Green or Hendon and want an authentic taste of the Middle East, visit Solly’s (146-150 Golders Green Road, NW11 8HE).  For years, I swore the shwarma I would get at Solly’s was better than the shwarma I could get in Israel.  Family owned, and Israeli-run, you can order in English or Hebrew.  As well as providing a filling, and flavorful lunch or dinner, the decor of this restaurant is unique and adds to the experience too.

Also in Golder’s Green, Carmelli’s Kosher Bakery (126-128 Golders Green Road) close their doors only on shabbat and chagim.  If you’re itching for a donut, pastry or bagel with lox and cream cheese at 3am, this is the place to find it.  Just a short walk from Golder’s Green Tube station and no more than one block away from Solly’s, be sure to pick up some treats to enjoy while at the Olympics.  Be warned, they get busy on a Saturday night, especially as the other eateries near-by, kosher and non-kosher alike, start to empty out.

If you are still in London on August 5, be sure to check out Kosher Roast.  Inspired by Amy Beilin, a fellow foodie that missed the smells and taste’s of a Sunday roast lunch, Kosher Roast is a one of a kind “pop up restaurant”.  Pop up restaurants, perhaps like supper clubs in the US, offer restaurants and chefs the chance to test run new concepts.  By the same token, would-be chefs and restauranteurs can get a taste of the business.  During the Olympic celebrations, Amy will share her British classics like the scotch egg and mini chicken and leek pies with a Kosher Roast event.