Author: chanie

Chanukah Wall Hanging Craft


You know all those useless catalogs that stuff up your mailbox before the holidays? Well, it turns out they’re not always so useless. Especially when you’re stumped in the crafting department and you’re looking for some inspiration. The Land of Nod is a great place to find it. I was skimming through their overpriced catalog when I happened upon this idea. And when you have the Hanukkah decor squashed into a quarter of a page (against a several page spread of Christmas decorations) you’ve got to learn to be creative.  When I saw the countdown-to-Christmas calendar, I knew I had to make a Chanukah version with draidel pockets for each night. The pockets are perfect little holders for Chanukah chocolate coins, the real (green) stuff, draidels and little gifts. You can even use the center ribbon to personalize it for your family or child.

Hang this fun holiday wall hanging behind the menorah for some festive Hannukah decor.

Happy Crafting & Happy Chanukah!

Chanukah Craft

1 9×12 sheet blue felt
2 9×12 sheets white felt
assorted colors felt sheets
glue gun
stapler
dreidel shape template
dreidel pocket template
gift bow template

How to:

Glue the blue felt sheet to one of the white felt sheets. Cut a piece of white felt 12″ long x 2.35″ wide. Glue it to the center of the blue felt sheet. Using the gift bow template, cut out around the bow shapes and staple them to the remaining white felt sheet. Cut out the bow shapes and the ribbon for the center. Glue one side of the ribbon around the back of one of the bows. Glue one bow to the white backing, and the other to the front blue sheet. Wrap the open end of the ribbon around the back and glue down.

To prepare the draidel pockets, print out 2 copies of each of the draidel templates. Staple the templates to sheets of felt (you can double the felt so you cut 2 at once) and cut out the shapes. Attach the pocket covers to the draidels, making sure to only glue down the sides. Glue all the draidel pockets to the blue felt sheet. For the numbers, cut 8 very thin strips of white felt. Working quickly, draw the number shape with glue onto the draidel pocket and press the strips of felt down on the glue, adjusting the strip to fit the number shape (you can practice with the strips beforehand to set the shape). Alternatively, you may write the numbers with puff paint, or use number stickers.

Fill the pockets each night with Chanukah gelt, chocolate coins, or little gifts!

VARIATION: Instead of a bow, you can make the center strip into a stem for a menorah, and have a menorah branch out at the top. You may also write the family name,  child’s name or simply Chanukah along the center strip.


1 year ago: draidel snowglobe
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Chic Made Simple – Review & Giveaway!

When I first received the Chic Made Simple cookbook, I was wowed. It’s filled with beautiful pictures, impeccable food styling, and lots of delicious recipes that are truly, made simple. Esther Deutsch’s new cookbook promises fresh, fast and fabulous kosher cuisine, and it delivers. With appetizers & sides, soups, salads, poultry, meat, fish, dairy and desserts, the cookbook lacks for nothing. Chef’s are fond of saying “We eat with our eyes first”, and no one knows that better than Esther. Her talent for plating and food styling are on full display page after page. As a wannabe food stylist (at least for my blog) this book has taught me a lot.

While styling is important, the food also has to speak for itself. The recipes in Chic are simple enough for the novice cook, yet sophisticated enough for the more experienced chef. Some of my favorite dishes include quinoa patties, pulled meat wontons, roasted chestnut pumpkin soup, sundried tomato basil capons, creole veal burgers, 60-second cajun salmon, fruit tartare, and many more.

All that being said, I do have a few small qualms about this book. As the food editor of Ami magazine, many, of the recipes appeared in the magazine at some point (46 of the recipes in the book have never been published). While it mostly reads like a cookbook, there is some confusion where the pictures don’t entirely relate to the recipe, and some magazine spreads that were stuck in the book, disrupting the flow. The pictures, having been photographed by a few photographers, don’t offer the same style, and some are so highly manipulated, they don’t look realistic. As a graphic designer, I find this very frustrating, but to the untrained eye, most people will not be disturbed by it.

Bottom line: Chic Made Simple does in fact offer chic recipes that are fairly easy. Some recipes use highly processed ingredients, but most include ingredients that you’d find in your pantry. While many will not be able to plate their dishes as impeccably as pictured, the recipes sure seem to taste as delicious as they look.

To enter the giveaway, leave a comment telling me about a simple recipe that you serve in a chic way! And if you don’t already follow me on facebook, like the BIB page here. Winner will be chosen at random at 11:00 PM Wednesday, December 5th. 

Warm Deep-Dish Giant Chocolate Chip Cookie Torte
excerpted from CHIC Made Simple: Fresh. Fast. Fabulous. Kosher Cooking By Esther Deutsch, Feldheim Publishers

Ingredients

2 cups oil
1 cup sugar
2 cups brown sugar
1 Tbsp. pure vanilla extract
4 eggs
4 cups all-purpose fl our
4 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 pkg. (10 oz.) chocolate chips
Store-bought vanilla ice cream

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350° F. In the bowl of a mixer, beat the oil, sugar, brown sugar, vanilla, eggs, flour, baking powder, and salt on medium speed until well combined, about 2–3 minutes. Add the chocolate chips and combine.

2. Pour the batter into two 9-inch round baking pans and bake, uncovered, for 55–60 minutes. Serve the torte warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on the side.

3. To reheat, warm the torte, tightly covered, in a preheated 200° F oven for no longer than 1 hour. Serves 16.

Note: This recipe yields two 9-inch round cakes. You can serve the second one as a breakfast cake.

1 year ago: black bean brownies
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Kani Salad


This kani salad recipe (courtesy of my cousin Chana, a great hostess!) converted me into a mock-crab fan. It’s that good. If you go back to this post, you can read in my own words how much I used to dislike those orange colored surimi sticks. I’d always pick them out of California sushi rolls. But not anymore. Does the idea of eating mock-crab freak you out too? Well then do yourself a favor and make this salad. Trust me, you’ll never look back!

I’m not the only one who’s gaga over this recipe. I had my friend Dina and her family over during the holidays, and I served this among the appetizers. I hadn’t known, but apparently Dina and her husband have sampled kani salad at just about every kosher restaurant in (and out of) town. They were excited to see how this recipe would measure up to their favorite. Not only did it measure up, it exceeded their expectations by far. In fact, they no longer order it at restaurants, they make it at home instead!

There’s just something about the stringy texture and spicy dressing that makes you want to eat it all up with chopsticks. And chopsticks are fun. So, if you’re looking for a colorful, spicy and delicious dish, give this kani salad a try!

Kani Salad

1 pkg mock crab surimi sticks, cut or pulled apart into thin strips
1 English cucumbers, jullienned (see tip)
1/3 cup mayo
3 tbsp rice vinegar
1-2 tbsp sriracha
2 tsp black sesame seeds, plus more for garnish
1/4 cup Rice Krispies or french fried onions

Method:

Add kani and cucumber to a bowl. In a separate bowl, combine mayo, rice vinegar, sriracha and sesame seeds. Pour dressing over kani salad and mix. Garnish with additional sesame seeds and Rice Krispies.

NOTE: Sriracha is an Asian hot sauce, typically made from chili peppers, vinegar, sugar and salt. I prefer my kani salad to be spicy so I use 2 tbsp.

TIP: The simplest method to julienne a cucumber is by using a julienne peeler. First, I cut the cucumber in half so that I can get shorter pieces (you don’t want your strips the entire length of the cucumber). Then, I peel the cucumber all around, once for the peel, and another time around the inside. I discard the rest. If you don’t have a julienne peeler, cut the cucumber lengthwise, and using a spoon or melon baller, scoop out the seeds. Cut the cucumber in half so that you have 2 u-shaped pieces. Place the cucumber face-down on the cutting board and cut lengthwise into thin slices. Keep the slices stacked and cut the stacks into thin strips.

VARIATION: If it’s too hard for you to cut the crab and cucumbers into sticks, you can dice them up instead.

1 year ago: pan seared tuna steak
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Thankgiving Turkey Roulade with 5-Minute Stuffing

When the “Kosher Connection” Team decided to feature stuffing for the November LinkUp, I was so excited to post this recipe! I also happen to be doing a Thanksgiving demo tonight, so the timing was perfect to develop this dish to perfection. I prefer to make individual turkey roulades using turkey cutlets, but you can also make one larger one using a turkey london broil (essentially a skinless, boneless turkey breast half) that’s been butterflied and pounded. The visual impact is enough to make everyone at the table ooh and ahh. And that’s before they’ve even tasted it.

Now I love a beautiful plate of food as much of the other person, but I don’t like to spend hours in the kitchen. To simplify this recipe, I decided not to sear the turkey breasts (this gives it a nice brown color all around) because that would require me to tie each one up with kitchen twine. Instead, I just rubbed them down with some paprika, garlic powder and olive oil, baked seam-side down in the pan. My 5-Minute (no-joke!) stuffing also keeps things simple, but you can easily stuff the roulades with any store-bought filling (even cold cuts, like in this recipe).

So, if you’re making thanksgiving for a small group, and a whole turkey seems too large for your crowd (or like me, you’re daunted by the thought of cooking the huge bird), give this beautiful and delicious recipe a try!

Gobble, gobble!

For more delicious Thanksgiving stuffing recipes, visit the Kosher Connection Linkup below. Happy Thanksgiving!

Turkey Roulade

1 pkg turkey cutlets
salt and pepper
5 minute stuffing (recipe below)
paprika
garlic powder
extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup chicken stock

Method:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place turkey cutlets between two sheets of plastic wrap and pound with a mallet or rolling pin to even thickness. Remove plastic wrap and season with salt and pepper. Place a spoonful of stuffing on the turkey breast and spread out over cutlet, leaving a 1″ border all around. Starting from the shortest side, roll the turkey breast tightly and place seam-side down in a baking dish. Repeat with remaining cutlets (use a second baking dish, if needed). Sprinkle the roulades with paprika and garlic powder and drizzle with olive oil. Lightly rub in the spices. Pour 1/4 cup chicken stock into the bottom of the pan (repeat with 2nd pan, if you are using). Cover, and bake for 15-20 minutes (more for thicker cutlets). Uncover and bake for an additional 5 minutes.

Slice each roulade and serve over cranberry sauce. My mulled wine version works wonderfully with this recipe!

VARIATION: Instead of cutlets, you can make a larger roulade using a butterflied turkey breast (or turkey london broil). Pound out the breast to even thickness and continue as above. Bake for approximately 1 hour, until thermometer reaches 160 degrees.

One taste of this fantastic stuffing and you’d never imagine it took only 5 minutes to make! There are few tricks here! Firstly, instead of sauteing up onion and garlic, I just use onion and garlic flavored croutons! Nifty, right? Then, I add just a touch of poultry seasoning (a little goes a long way!) to give it that been-stuffed-into-a-bird-for-hours quality! Using frozen spinach not only eliminates work, it also adds a beautiful touch of green – so festive and autumnesque!

5-Minute Stuffing

1 10oz. box frozen chopped spinach, thawed
2 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper, to taste
2 cups chicken stock
1 5.25oz. bag onion & garlic flavored croutons
1/4 tsp poultry seasoning

Method:

Using gloves, squeeze out spinach to remove water. Heat up olive oil in a skillet and add spinach. Season with salt and pepper, and stir until heated through. Add chicken stock, stirring to incorporate, and heat through. Add the croutons and poultry seasoning and stir until croutons soften and soak up the chicken stock.

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Mulled Wine Cranberry Sauce


Some people seem to think that cranberry sauce it just for Thanksgiving, but I happen to enjoy it all cranberry season! There are so many variations to make, and so many ways to enjoy it. My favorite is mulled wine cranberry sauce.

It you’ve been following my blog for a while, you may remember this celebratory post from my one year blogoversary, featuring mulled wine. I decided to combine two of my favorite holiday foods – mulled wine and cranberries – to create this out of this world dish. I’m sure it will become your favorite too!

For the recipe, hop on over to my blogger friend Mara at KosherOnABudget. I’ve also included lots of ideas for enjoying cranberry sauce. If you love bargains and freebies, her site is jam-packed with amazing deals and discounts for all around the web!

1 year ago: hassleback sweet potatoes

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