Rosh Hashanah Dinner Menu – Happy New Year

This past Monday I made (with some help) a large and super tasty meal for my very first Rosh Hashanah Dinner. I may not be Jewish, but my guy is and we thought to make a nice meal for several of our friends, one couple whose wedding we had just gone to days before. So to keep the festivities going from their new wedding bliss, my guy and I sought out to create one heck of a meal.

I learned a lot including adding a few new dishes and appetizers to my arsenal of recipes, all of which came out wonderfully. I share them with you here. One thing that I found most interesting what that you eat certain foods to help start the new year sweetly – so that it is sweeter than the previous year. I am all for that. And certain foods are quite traditional as well such as pumpkin, pomegranates, honey, whole fish, just to name a few. Let me share with you some of the reasons as to why you eat these foods and the thoughts behind them.

By eating a head of a fish…yes, you make a large whole fish is “to help represent being ahead for the new year, and not ‘be’ the tail for the new year”…thankfully my guy’s brother is making this one..2) eating a new fruit or apple with honey, so help bring in sweetness to the new year and that your new year will be sweeter than the last year…3) also foods such as beets, pumpkins, spinach, dates, pomegranates.

One particular cool thing about the pomegranates is that they supposedly contain 613 seeds. Thus, Jews display their desire to fulfill God’s 613 mitzvoth (commandments from the Torah) by eating the pomegranate. ok I did not know that…

I will provide all the recipes in a separate post.

So our party menu is the following:

• Sliced apples dipped in honey (the honey was from a local farm and was incredible!) to start (tradition I’m told) all said with a beginning prayer for the meal/feast.
  
• Clear chicken soupwith special spices
• Spinach patties and leak with ground beef patties (new to me, my guy and I made these – and they were fantastic! You make them the night before and serve them up cold.
• Whole fish served in a creamy super light sauce with chopped tomatoes (will have to ask my guy’s brother for the recipe – it was amazing and looked incredibly pretty)
• Super Salad which resembles a Greek salad with fresh feta cheese, cucumbers, carrots, bell peppers, red onions, parsley, tomatoes with only fresh lemon juice and olive oil. This was mostly all vegetables and very little lettuce at all.
• homemade hummus – (already posted)
• homemade tortilla chips and toasted pita bread
• cilantro pesto (posted)
• zahatar and olive oil for bread dipping (posted)
• cilantro bean salad (my dish – posted)
• honey glazed carrots
• steamed green beans with then toasted almonds, garlic and drizzled olive oil (posted)
• Cilantro Basmati Rice (posted)
• A huge Roasted rib eye roast (posted)
• Yorkshire pudding and homemade horseradish sauce (ok this is totally me, but heck, give this wasp girl a break – lol)
• pumpkin pie and pecan pie from scratch
• Honey Cake (very traditional and kosher as well)
• then the usual wine, coffee lattes, turkish coffee, etc.

This was followed by followed by two days of cleaning…was it worth it all?… You betcha! You could tell everyone was so impressed (always love that factor, I admit!) – the food was super tasty, beautiful looking and was enjoyed by all…as it turns out, I did have left overs and have been making some interesting new dishes which I will share in another post….Chef Maven

Happy New Year!

National Napoleon Food Day is September 7th

A classic napoleon served with caramel sauce

Napoleons are one of those desserts few at home would make since it seems to be a lot of work. But those layers of flaky crust with rich buttery whipped cream which assault your taste buds can get anyone interested in learning how to make these incredible desserts.

But before we get there, here is an excerpt from wikipedia.com on the incredible napoleon dessert in case you were wondering:

The Mille-feuille (French ‘thousand sheets’), Napoleon (U.S.), vanilla slice, cream slice or custard slice (Commonwealth countries) is a pastry made of several layers of puff pastry alternating with a sweet filling, typically pastry cream, but sometimes whipped cream, or jam. It is usually glazed with icing or fondant in alternating white and brown (chocolate) strips, and combed. The name is also written as “millefeuille” and “mille feuille”.

There are also savory mille-feuilles with cheese and spinach or other fillings.

Variant names and forms

In Italy, where the pastry is thought to have originated in Naples, it is called mille foglie and contains similar fillings. A savory Italian version consists of puff pastry filled with spinach, cheese or pesto, among other things.

In the Commonwealth (Quebec excepted), mille-feuille is known as ‘vanilla slice’ or ‘cream slice’, and usually has only a top and bottom pastry layer. The filling is often flavored with chocolate. In Australia, popular icings include vanilla, chocolate, strawberry, raspberry, and passion fruit. In New Zealand, it is usually called a ‘custard square.’

A variation popular in England is the Bavarian Slice which has a layer of raspberry or strawberry jam and rippled icing, although there is no evidence that this is a traditional Bavarian dish.

In Australia, there are varying forms of this pastry. Balfours, claiming to be Australia’s largest bakery^[1], produce their own form of Napoleon Cake which is multi layered and contains icing, pastry, cream, jam and sponge cake. This differs from the more widely known vanilla slice which is composed of icing, pastry and custard.

In Sweden as well as in Finland the Napoleonbakelse (Napoleon pastry) is a mille-feuille filled with whipped cream, custard, and jam. The top of the pastry is glazed with icing and currant jelly.

The Netherlands and Belgium eat the tompoes or tompouce. Several variations exist in Belgium, but in the Netherlands, it is iconic and the market allows preciously little variation in form, size, ingredients and colour. See tompouce.

History

The origin of the mille-feuille is unknown. The Hungarian city of Szeged may have something to do with its origins. Carême (writing at the end of the 18th century) considered it of ‘ancient origin’. It was earlier called “gâteau de mille-feuilles” ‘cake of a thousand leaves’.

Origin of the name ‘Napoleon’

The name appears to come from napolitain, the French adjective for the Italian city of Naples, but altered by association with the name of Emperor Napoleon I of France. There is no evidence to connect the pastry to the emperor himself.

In France, a Napoléon is a kind of mille-feuille filled with almond paste.

Competitions

An annual competition for the best vanilla slice baker is the Great Australian Vanilla Slice Triumph held in Ouyen in western Victoria (Australia). Judging criteria include “when tasted, should reveal a custard with a creamy smooth texture and a balance of vanilla taste with a crisp, crunchy pastry topped with a smooth and shiny glaze/fondant”. ^[2]

Popular culture

• The time-travel card game Early American Chrononauts includes a tongue-in-cheek card called Napoleon’s Napoleon which players can symbolically acquire from the year 1815.

• On the cd label for the 1998 Sonic Youth album A Thousand Leaves the phrase “mille feuille” is crossed out and “a thousand leaves” is written under it.

• Milfeulle Sakuraba is a character in the anime Galaxy Angel. She is highly skilled in cooking, but especially enjoys making pastries and other desserts.

• In the Woody Allen film Love and Death, Napoleon berated his chefs for a pastry attempt at a Napoleon (they’d included raisins, among other things). Napoleon declared himself in competition with Wellington, who was “inventing” Beef Wellington.

• In the video game Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin, the cake is the most expensive one when found in the hidden bakery of the City of Haze, at $1000 per single payment. It will reappear on sale once the player consumes it, but is also found again in another hidden bakery later on in 13th Street.

• In the video game For the Frog the Bell Tolls, The Princess Tiramisu lives in the Mille-Feuille kingdom.

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As I searched for appropriate photos (the one above came from bonappettite.com) I was shocked by the photos that did come up as samples of the real thing – I kid you not, most of these photos of desserts were not very appealing…but I assure you there are a variety of ways to make napoleon’s but I found a good recipe to create the perfect dessert for your next shingdig.

Now that you have learned a thing or two about Napoleon Pastries here’s your most basic recipe for making your very own flaky pasties for your eating pleasures…

Napoleon Dessert Recipe:
Courtesy of Baking.About.com

Prep Time: 1 hours, 00 minutes

Ingredients:

• 17-ounce package frozen pastry
• chocolate or vanilla pastry cream*
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1 ounce semisweet chocolate, melted

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Lighly flour bread board and rolling pin. Roll dough to 13 x 17 inch triangle, 1/8 inch thick. Transfer to cookie sheet. Prick dough with fork. Cover with another cookie sheet. Bake for 5 minutes. Remove top sheet and continue to bake for 5 more minutes or until lightly browned. Cool on wire rack.

Cut pastry into thirds, lengthwise. Mix powdered sugar and water. Stir until smooth. Turn over 1 pastry strip on rack. Pour sugar glaze over strip. Smooth with spatula. Quickly pour stripes of chocolate over glaze. Drag knife over top to make decorative design. Let stand until dry, about 30 minutes.

To assemble: Place one unglazed strip on serving platter. Spread half of pastry cream on top. Top with the other unglazed strip. Top with rest of pastry cream. Top that with glazed strip. Chill until firm, about and hour. (Don’t chill longer than 3 hours. It may get soggy.) For serving, cut with serrated knife.

Vanilla Pastry Cream Filling Recipe:

Prep Time: 25 minutes

Cook Time: 02 minutes

Ingredients:

• 2-1/4 cups milk
• 4 egg yolks
• 2/3 cups sugar
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 1/4 cup flour
• 2 tablespoons vanilla extract

Preparation:

Boil 2 cups of milk. Beat yolks with sugar and remaining milk. Whisk until smooth. Add cornstarch and flour until combined. Gradually whisk hot milk into egg mixture. Return to saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture boils and thickens. Reduce to low and stir for 2 minutes longer. Remove from heat. Stir in vanilla. Pour into a shallow disk. Cover with plastic wrap. (Make sure wrap touches surface to prevent a skim from forming.) Cool to room temperature. Refrigerate for 2 hours or overnight. Makes approximately 2-3/4 cups.

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Also interesting on this September 7th – Some historical facts:

St. Gratus of Aosta, protector of vineyards
St. Regina, patron of shepherdesses

1840 Luther Crowell was born. He invented a machine to make square bottomed grocery bags.

1847 Henry David Thoreau left Walden Pond.

1912 David Packard was born. Founder with William Hewlett of the Hewlett Packard Company. Before they became famous for computers and printers etc., some of their early inventions were an automatic urinal flusher and a weight loss shock machine!

1971 The final episode of ‘The Beverly Hillbillies’ TV show is aired.

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I won’t be making napoleons for today, but will be making my coconut oatmeal cookies for a church community function that is happening tomorrow, weather permitting.

Have a great September 7th. ~Chef Maven

Quick Quiche Leah

My take on an old favorite includes the use of at least three different cheeses (Brie, Goat, and Parmesan) which really makes a huge difference, along with the crispy bacon and ham along with caramelized onions. It’s also light and fluffy! Oh My! I cheat on occasion with a pre-made pastry dough when I am in a hurry. When I have left over ham, along with making the inevitable split pea soup, I usually make one of these quiches…And from the picture, you now know what size of piece of quiche I took…yum, it’s still warm and delicious as I take another bite!! And no, you can’t have a piece of mine – go on and make your own!

• I love bacon and ham, and who doesn’t love this combined with cheeses…I do not use half-n-half but whole milk…(as if that was going to help with lessoning the calorie count!) lol
• 5 thick slices on bacon diced
• 1 cup of diced (Bodacious) Baked Ham that maybe left over in fridge.
• 1 large onion diced
• 4 jumbo eggs or 5 large eggs
• 1-1/2 cups of three cheeses – I use up whatever is left over before it goes into a downward spiral of unidentifiable cheese – This time I chose brie, parmesan freshly grated, fresh mozzarella cut up and crumbled goat cheeses.
• 2-1/2 tablespoons of flour
• 2 tablespoons freshly minced green scallions or chives
• 1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg in addition to
• 3 or 4 shakes of nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• Salt is really not needed due to the bacon and ham
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 pastry shell uncooked and chilled.
• ***Equipment Needed:
• Large skillet, one working oven at 350 degrees, several bowls, cookie sheet

1. Take eggs out of refrigerator and let come to room temperature.
2. In cold skillet, add olive oil and diced bacon and turn heat onto medium.
3. With spoon, stir on occasion to let bacon crisp all over, tis better to allow bacon to cook slowly versus too quick and smoke up the house. Less bacon shrinkage too. (who knew?!?)
4. Remove cooked bacon and put in cut up ham and onions into remaining bacon fat. Cook till onions are translucent and starts to become caramelized.
5. While ham and onions are cooking, crack eggs and place into one bowl. Whisk eggs till smooth, add milk, salt and pepper and 1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg. Stir till well combined and set aside.
6. Grate and cut up your cheeses and place into a second bowl. Stir cheese till combined then add flour, stirring till flour coats the cheese.
7. Return to skillet, and with slotted spoon, drain out caramelized onions and cooked ham. Drain on paper towels and add bacon. Let cool for five minutes.
8. Mix bacon mixture into cheese mixture and stir till well combined.
9. Pour this mixture into unbaked pie shell.
10. Place pie shell onto cookie sheet.
11. Pour egg mixture into pie shell over the bacon mixture.
12. Add a couple of shakes of ground nutmeg to top along with freshly minced scallions on top of unbaked quiche.
13. Carefully, place cookie sheet with quiche sitting on top, into the oven and let bake for 45 minutes at 350 degrees.
14. Check if done when taking knife and inserting it, the knife comes out clean.
15. Let quiche sit for 20 minutes before serving allowing it to finish “setting up”, serve with fresh mixed salad greens and or warm and toasty soup for a perfect luncheon.
16. PS, I said to heck with the 20 minutes, and sliced me up a piece immediately – thinking about going for naughty seconds.

Leahs Quick Quiche Lorraine @ Group Recipes

Superb Touch Down and Score Chicken Wings – A How To by Divaliscious

Here’s my take on delicious and crispy chicken wings which are not hot but have a savory and complex taste that will keep people guessing what your secret ingredient is…mind you there are many!
If you are up to the chore -and who isn’t well here it is…and have your self one heck of a super bowl party!

Ingredients:

• ***The list of the ingredients is as long as I could make it (just kidding) though it is longer than anticipated – but it is surely worth all the ingredients as the chicken wings marinade over this great marinade
• ***I also created the recipes for the required spice mixes for those that are handy in your cupboard and for those who might not make it to the store in time…
• ***btw – I was going to call this recipe “Everything in your Fridge and Cupboards Chicken Wings” – rofl
• Here goes anything and everything:
• 1 large package of chicken wings (24 wings in total) cut up removing tips (reserve to make broth see separate recipe for wing tip gingered chicken broth) OR your choice chicken parts and do this on the grill
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup sugar (white or brown)
• 4 tablespoons soy – reduced sodium
• 3 tablespoons fresh scallions minced
• 3 tablespoons fresh garlic minced (3-4 cloves)
• 3 tablespoons honey
• 3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 3 tablespoons ketchup
• 2 tablespoons balsamic syrup or vinegar
• 2 tablespoons fresh ginger minced/grated (dry would be fine I am sure)
• 2 tablespoons jerk seasoning (if you don’t have it, measure out roughly and use equal parts of the following: allspice, paprika, cumin, red chili flakes, pepper, turmeric, celery salt, thyme and celery salt)
• 2 dried bay leaves
• 2 tablespoons of Zahatar - see recipe for this at: my grouprecipes.com page
• 1 tablespoon freshly dried oregano
• 1 tablespoon freshly dried rosemary
• 1 teaspoon crushed red chili flakes
• 1 tablespoon cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper (freshly grounded would be prefect)
• Zest and juice of one lemon (try and not let seeds get into bowl)

Directions

The real trick to having juicy delicious chicken wings with any recipe is to not overcook them, I prefer not to par-boil them nor fry them prior to baking, but simply roasting them in the oven on a cookie sheet or in a roasting pan than had been lined with tinfoil and placed on top of a cookie cooling rack that’s placed inside the roasting pan to allow them to crisp and let fat drip away.
Also, do you want a dipping sauce for later when serving up your chicken wings? Then make extra marinade (without putting raw chicken in it of course) and set aside to heat up later for 10-15 minutes in a sauce pan. Add a little more ketchup if you would like.
Cut up all the chicken wings – reserve tips if you would like to make my “winging it gingered chicken broth”
Rinse all cut up chicken wings and set aside momentarily.
In extra large bowl, place all ingredients listed above.
Mix marinade till all in combined.
Place all the chicken wings into the bowl with the marinade and using hands which is best or spoon, move chicken all around coating all chicken pieces with the marinade.
Let marinade for at least four hours or even over night for best flavor. Stir a couple times during the marinating time to ensure all chicken parts have been well coated.
Preheat oven at 375 degrees, using either a deep roasting pan lined with tinfoil for easier cleaning or “coated” cookie sheets and spread out chicken wing parts.
Place in oven and let bake in oven for 20-30 minutes.
Open up oven door, with potholders of course, take out pan or cookie sheets and using tongs or fork, turn over each chicken wing, and return to oven.
Let bake for 30-40 minutes more and then set them up on a plate to be devoured by your friends and family.
Serve with blue cheese dressing, carrots and/or celery – and enjoy!