Carrot and Parsnip Soup

Need a quick soup for Rosh Hashanah? Try this Carrot and Parsnip Soup, which comes from my book Hip Kosher. Just a few ingredients. And ingredients can be substituted to make it fit in a meat, dairy or pareve meal. It can be frozen too, so you can make plenty and store it for when it’s cold outside and you need a good, light, but nourishing starter for dinner.

And also — it’s loaded with vegetables. That’s a good thing.

Carrots and parsnips are both sweet vegetables, which makes this soup particularly nice for Rosh Hashanah, when sweet foods are in order. While not quite as ubiquitous as honey, carrots have always been a key High Holiday food. The Yiddish word for carrot is “mehren,” which means to “increase” or “multiply,” and thus underscores wishes for good fortune and good deeds in the new year.

So here it is. Good, cheap and easy to make.

Carrot and Parsnip Soup

·      2 tablespoons olive oil

·      1 large onion, chopped

·      2 medium garlic cloves, chopped

·      1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh ginger

·      1/2 pound carrots, peeled and chopped

·      1/2 pound parsnips, peeled and chopped

·      1 teaspoon ground cumin

·      3/4 teaspoon ground coriander

·      salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

·      4 cups vegetable or chicken stock

Heat the olive oil in a soup pot or large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 2-3 minutes, or until the onion is slightly softened. Add the garlic and ginger and cook for another minute. Add the carrots, parsnips, cumin, coriander and salt and pepper to taste and stir. Pour in the stock and one cup water. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat to a simmer. Cook, partially covered, for about 25 minutes or until the vegetables are tender. Puree the ingredients, return the soup to the pan and reheat to serve.

Makes 4-6 servings

For cream soup: use vegetable stock; add 1/2 cup half and half cream; reheat.

For dairy soup: prepare soup with vegetable stock and serve with a dollop of plain yogurt or dairy sour cream

For parve cream soup: use coconut milk or soy milk

Garnish: with croutons or pita crisps

Pita crisps: brush pita bread wedges with olive oil and bake for 5-6 minutes at 400 degrees (or until crispy and browned)

Rosh Hashanah Gluten Free Honey Cake

Need gluten-free desserts for the holidays? I came across this recipe from Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer, who wrote (among other things) a book called “The Kitchen Classroom” which demonstrates ways for parents and children to communicate with each other through cooking together. 

She is a freelance writer and educator. Her blog is also about cooking with children. Go take a look!

Rosh Hashanah Gluten Free Honey Cake

There are lots of great honey cake recipes out there and this is one that I’ve adapted from several Gf recipes and simplified so that you can make it with your kids.

You will need:

3 cups GF flour mix

1 t. baking soda

1/2 t. sea salt

1 t. cinnamon

1 t. ground ginger

1/4 t. cloves

3/4 c. honey

1/4 c. organic coconut oil

2 T. brewed coffee

1/2 c. orange juice

2 eggs

Directions:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Measure the flour blend, baking soda, salt and spices. Pour into a big bowl, mix and set aside.
3. Crack the eggs in a large bowl and beat with a fork.
4. Squeeze the honey into a measuring cup and pour into eggs.
5. Measure the oil and add it to the honey-egg mixture.
6. Measure the coffee and orange juice and add to the egg mixture.
7. Slowly pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and stir with a large spoon.
8. Grease a round pan and with a grown-up’s help, pour the batter into the pan.
9. Bake for 35-40 minutes.

Aunt Belle’s Spicy Honey Cake

I used to shiver at the thought of honey cake. The old Rosh Hashanah dessert, every year, year in, year out. Too sweet, too sticky, too oozing with whatever it was that it oozed with.

Tastes change. I now love honey cake and don’t think it’s too sweet at all. I do use a good honey, not the store brand, and I can taste the difference. 

So, now that it’s time for Rosh Hashanah and all things honey, it’s time for me to get out Aunt Belle’s recipe. She was known for only this one recipe and it is a good one. She made her honey cake spicy. And citrusy. And this, too, makes the big difference. The seasonings and refreshing flavors or orange and lemon cut the ultra-sweet honey rush.

This is a good cake (which you can freeze, by the way).

Here’s the recipe. But in case you hate to bake, you can buy a good honey cake for the holidays here: http://www.koshercarepackages.com/

Aunt Belle’s Spicy Honey Cake

3-1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2-1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg

1-1/2 tablespoons grated fresh orange peel

2 teaspoons grated fresh lemon peel

2 cups honey

1 cup strong coffee

1/4 cup vegetable oil

4 large eggs

3/4 cup sugar

sliced almonds

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Lightly grease two 9” x 5” loaf pans. Line the pans with parchment paper, then lightly grease the paper. Set the pans aside. Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg together into a bowl. Stir in the orange peel and lemon peel and set aside. Heat the honey, coffee and vegetable oil together over low-medium heat for a minute or two, just enough to blend them together easily. Set aside to cool. In the bowl of an electric mixer set at medium speed, beat the eggs and sugar for 2-3 minutes or until well blended. Stir in the honey mixture and blend it in thoroughly. Add the flour mixture and blend it in thoroughly. Spoon the batter into the prepared pans. Scatter some sliced almonds on top. Bake for about 1-1/4 hours or until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool in the pans for 10 minutes then invert onto a cake rack to cool completely. Makes 2 cakes

Roasted Cider Chicken

I’m in an apples and honey frame of mind these days because the Jewish High Holidays are coming. So next Wednesday night, when Rosh Hashanah begins at sundown, my family will be snacking on slices of apples dipped in honey. Just like my family did when I was a kid. Just like other Jewish families do and have been doing for generations.

It wouldn’t be Rosh Hashanah without that. 

But besides the usual apples and honey snack, I like to make food that has apples and honey in it. Like this Roasted Cider Chicken, which I will probably make for dinner the first night of the holiday. 

Roasted Cider Chickenwith Apples and Honey

• 2 cups apple cider
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 6 whole cloves
• 6 thin slices fresh ginger
• 1 roasting chicken, 5-7 pounds
• 2 tablespoons softened margarine or vegetable oil 
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 small red onion, sliced
• 2 tart apples, peeled, cored and quartered

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Combine the cider, honey, cloves and ginger in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat and cook until the liquid has reduced to one cup. Discard the cloves and ginger. Set the liquid aside. Rinse and dry the chicken. Place it on a rack in a roasting pan. Rub the chicken with the margarine or vegetable oil (or butter if you are not kosher) and sprinkle with salt, pepper and thyme. Place the chicken breast side down on the rack. Scatter the onion in the bottom of the roasting pan. Place the pan in the oven. Immediately reduce the oven heat to 350 degrees. Roast for 30 minutes. Pour the reduced cider over the chicken. Roast for another 30 minutes, basting the chicken once or twice, then turn it breast side up. Place the apples in the pan. Roast for another hour or so, or until a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the breast reads 160 degrees F. Baste several times during the roasting period. Remove the chicken to a carving board. Strain the pan fluids, remove the fat and pour the fluids into a small saucepan. Let the chicken rest at least 15 minutes before carving. While carving, cook the pan fluids to reduce them to a syrupy consistency. Serve the chicken and fluids separately.

Makes 6-8 servings

Aunt Beck's Apple Cake; Sibling Rivalry, part 2

Sibling Rivalry Part 2

Yesterday I mentioned the apple-baking rivalry between my Mom and her sister, my Aunt Beck. It was a really fascinating thing for them to be competitive about because although my mother loved to cook and was really good at it, Aunt Beck wasn’t much of a food person and never thought of herself as much of a cook. In fact, my grandma lived with that family and she did most of the cooking.

Somehow the sisters got themselves into this apple thing though. Aunt Beck figured that her little sister could star in the kitchen but, well, with this one exception.

Aunt Beck’s family, the Cohens, raved about the apple cake.

My family, the Vails, raved about the apple pie.

To tell you the truth, both were really delicious. I make both and am in competition with no one.

So, Aunt Beck, you may not have thought of yourself as a stellar cook, but you did let me and Leslie play with all your snazzy clothes and open toe high heels and you did actually make a fabulous apple cake.

So, here’s to you. I miss you.

Your recipe:

Aunt Beck’s Famous Two-Crust Apple CakeCrust:

Crust:

• 2 large eggs

• 3/4 cup sugar

• 3/4 cup vegetable oil

• 1/4 cup orange juice

• 4 cups all-purpose flour

• 1 tablespoon baking powder

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 2 teaspoon grated fresh orange peel, optional

Filling:

• 3 pounds tart apples, peeled and sliced

• 1 cup sugar

• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon if desired

• 2-3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

• 2 tablespoons butter or margarine, cut into tiny pieces

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. To make the crust, beat the eggs, sugar, vegetable oil and orange juice together in a mixer set at medium speed for 1-2 minutes or until well mixed. Add the flour, baking powder, salt and orange peel, if used, and mix until a smooth, soft, uniform dough has formed, about 2-3 minutes. Cut the dough into two pieces, one piece twice as large as the other. Press the larger piece into the bottom and halfway up the sides of a 13”x9” pan (or roll the dough and fit it inside the pan). Mix the apples, sugar, cinnamon if used, and flour together in a bowl (the amount of flour depending on juiciness of the apples) and place the mixture over the dough. Dot the surface with butter. Roll the smaller piece of dough and place it on top. Press the edges to seal them. Bake for 50-60 minutes or until well browned.

Makes 12 servings

Cranberry-Orange Noodle Kugel

KUGEL CHALLENGE II

Just because Rosh Hashanah is over doesn’t mean I’m no longer thinking about kugel. Good food memories linger and besides, I always serve kugel for my Yom Kippur break-the-fast — the Linda/Susan recipe I mentioned last week — so I still have noodle pudding on the brain.

I know that ultra-rich and crunchy topped version is coming next Saturday night, so in the meantime, in between holidays, I like to tinker with different recipes.

My mother was an “if a recipe works why fix it?” person. But I can’t help myself. I experiment a lot to see what happens if you add this or that. Not necessarily to make it better. Just different.

I came up with this one, Cranberry-Orange, a traditional kugel with a contemporary twist. It’s sweet, tender in the middle and crunchy on top. 

Cranberry-Orange Noodle Kugel

1 cup dried cranberries

1/4 cup orange juice

1 pound wide egg noodles

1/4 pound butter, melted

6 large eggs

2 cups cottage cheese

1-1/2 cups dairy sour cream

1/3 cup sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 teaspoons grated fresh orange rind

1/8 teaspoon salt

Place the cranberries in a bowl and pour the orange juice over them. Let soak for at least 30 minutes. Set aside. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9”x13” baking dish. Cook the noodles al dente (not quite done). Drain the noodles and place them in a large bowl. Pour in the melted butter and stir to coat all the noodles with the butter. In a separate bowl, combine the eggs, cottage cheese, sour cream, sugar, cinnamon, orange rind and salt. Mix thoroughly. Spoon the cheese mixture over the noodles and toss to coat all the noodles. Add the cranberries and any remaining juice. Mix in. Place the mixture into the prepared baking dish. Bake for about 40 minutes or until the top is browned and crunchy. Makes 8-10 servings

Ask Ronnie a question: http://ronniefein.com/ask

To comment: http://ronniefein.com/submit

Cooking a Whole Brisket

In the world of Jewish holidays, September means brisket. It’s what’s for dinner.

At least that’s what I hear from most of the Jewish people I know and what I read in the papers.

My mother wanted to make brisket but none of us liked brown meat. We are steak eaters and, when it comes to beef, the rarer, the better. So she gave up on brisket and made a turkey during the High Holidays.

My kids — and their kids — won’t eat brown meat either. UNLESS it’s barbecued. Then there’s never enough of it. So I make brisket, Texas style, grilled and crispy-edged.

The problem with brisket is that even though it’s high on flavor, it can be TOUGH if you don’t cook it right. Most of the recipes I’ve seen say to braise it in the oven at 350 degrees.

Okay, there’s the usual fight about whether to put the meat in the oven or on the cooktop, but I don’t want to get into that one.

Either way, the best way to come out with meat that’s soft, but not mushy, firm enough but not chewy is this: brown the meat first if you like (I never do), season it to taste (I use garlic, black pepper and paprika), smother it with sweet onions (I use Vidalias but common yellow onions are fine). Seal the top with a lid (I use aluminum foil) and place it in a cold oven. Turn the heat to 225 degrees. Go to sleep. Wake up and it’s done. The meat cooks magically while you are in bed.

I love the smell of brisket in the morning.

Of course, this is good only if the brisket is large. I buy a WHOLE one, both first and second cuts, because it feeds a lot of people and has much more flavor. It also has more fat, which bastes the meat and makes it tender and even more flavorful (you can get rid of the fat after you cook the meat). And it is less expensive per pound. A large one also holds together a lot better on an outdoor grill.

If you only buy the flat, first cut, follow the same procedure but don’t let it cook for 7-8 hours. Maybe 4 or 5.

The point is: COOK IT SLOW AT A LOW TEMPERATURE.

For brisket lovers, you don’t have to do anything else, though it’s better to cook the meat the day before, separate the meat from the gravy and refrigerate everything. The fat comes to the top and you can remove and discard it. Then slice the meat, put it into a baking dish, cover it with the sauce and onions and heat it through.

For my family, I brush the meat with barbecue sauce and cook it slowly on the grill until it’s crispy on the outside.

Ask Ronnie a question: http://ronniefein.com/ask

To comment: http://ronniefein.com/submit