Category: Dinner

Cranberry Apple Braised Chicken


And just like that, summer is over. I’m starting to smell that fresh, crisp fall air and the nights have that slight chill that wraps me like a warm sweater. If I’m honest, I don’t hate the winter at all, but I’ll sure miss the carefree spirit of summer and the smell of freshly cut grass.

I’m excited for the fall flavors that are making their way into the supermarkets. Pumpkins, persimmon and pomegranates are just a few of my favorite things and I can’t wait to see the seasonal produce on the shelves!

It’s a bit early for cranberry season, but you can easily use frozen cranberries in this recipe. The tartness of the berries are a great contrast to the sweetness of the apples and honey, and they make for the most luscious sauce that you’ll want to smother all over rice or noodles. Considering the popularity of my tart pomegranate roast, I think this chicken will be a winner as well!

Serve with a side of sweet tzimmes and braised leeks and you’ve got a simanim-filled entree worthy of your holiday table.

Cranberry Apple Braised Chicken

1 chicken, quartered (skin-on)
1 tbsp grapeseed or other neutral flavored oil
salt and pepper, to taste
2 fuji apples, cut into eights
2 cup fresh or frozen cranberries
1 cup port or sweet red wine
heaping 1/3 cup honey
a few sprigs of thyme

Method:

Season the chicken generously with salt and pepper on both sides. Heat a dutch oven or oven-safe pot to medium-high heat and add the oil. Sear the chicken on both sides until browned. Add the wine, honey, apples, cranberries and thyme and season everything with salt and pepper. Bring the mixture to a boil, allowing the alcohol to cook off for a minute or two and transfer the pot, covered, to a 350 degree oven. Bake the chicken for 1 1/2 hours.

Related Recipes:

turkey meatballs with red wine cranberry marinara
cranberry sriracha green beans
honey roasted za’atar chicken with dried fruit
duchesse sweet potato apples

Post a Comment

Kosher Shrimp & Grits

Before you go ahead and close your browser, no you did not make your way onto a treif blog, everything on here is still kosher! I can’t get over how real those shrimp look, can you?

So to be honest, I’m not really one for kosherizing treif dishes. Like I don’t do cheeseburgers with fake cheese or buttermilk fried chicken with soy milk. It’s just not my thing. But when I saw a package of grits at Shoprite last week, I just had to buy it. I’m a big fan of farina (the wheat version of grits, which are made from corn) and I love all things corn, so I was intrigued. I also mistakenly bought a package of mock shrimp instead of mock crab (we are obsessed with this kani salad in this house) so that’s how this kosher version of shrimp and grits came to be.

Now shrimp and grits is real Southern comfort food, and definitely more of a winter dish than a summer one – so I incorporated some fresh corn and a basil pistou to cut through the heaviness and lighten things up. A squeeze of lime in the creamy cheddar grits also goes a long way.

So, for an anti-tofu, real-food person, I have to be honest and say that the shrimp tasted amazing, but was definitely on the rubbery side. When I made this in my Instagram story, many readers suggested butterflying the shrimp by cutting it in half lengthwise, so I’ve made that suggestion below. But honestly, when I make this again, I’m just going to use kani (mock crab) since we are huge fans of that in this house (and ironically one of my readers messaged me that her dad, who is not religious, ate kani at her house and said it tasted just like shrimp!).

I’m stoked that I managed to plate this up all pretty for a blog post for you guys, its been great having a break, but I’ve missed posting!

 

Kosher Shrimp & Grits

Mock Shrimp:
1 1/2 tbsp butter
2 cloves garlic
10.5oz. pkg surimi shrimp, cut in half lengthwise
1 tsp old bay seasoning
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
kosher salt, to taste

Heat the butter over medium heat and add the garlic. Saute until fragrant. Add the shrimp and spices and saute until coated and heated through.

VARIATION: You may use kani (mock crab) or firm white fish, such as cod or halibut instead of the shrimp. For cod, dice into chunks and saute until cooked through.

Corn:
1 tbsp butter
Corn from 3 cobs
salt and pepper, to taste

Melt butter over medium heat and add the corn. Saute until tender and season with salt and pepper.

Basil Pistou:
1 bunch basil
1/3 c olive oil
1 clove garlic
salt and pepper, to taste

Add all the ingredients to a food processor or blender and blend until smooth.

Grits:
1 c quick 5 minute grits
4 cups vegetable stock
salt and pepper, to taste
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
1/2 c half and half or heavy cream
Juice of half lime

Prepare the grits last, right before serving. Bring the stock up to a boil, reduce the heat to medium and and slowly stir in the grits. Cook for 5-7 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat and stir in the cream, cheddar and lime juice. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper.

To assemble the shrimp and grits, divide the grits between 6 bowls and top with fresh corn, basil pistou and shrimp. Serve immediately.

Other Fish Dishes:

kani salad
spicy tuna melt twice baked potatoes
tuna pasta salad
fish tacos

Post a Comment

Asian Lettuce Wraps

Summer has officially begun! Last week, we made the 3  hour trek to the Catskills in Upstate New York where we spend our summer. I’m more of a city gal myself, but the city heat is unbearable, so I welcome the cool mountain air, rolling hills, grass and trees (something we majorly lack in Brooklyn)! The ten weeks we spend here fill my kids with vitality like a tank fills with gas. The long summer days spent carefree in the the outdoors are life’s best medicine, and I’m so thankful I get to give it to them.

As for me, some of my best memories are the ones I spent in the bungalow colony as a child. I love waking up to the smell of the mountains, and when I sit outside sipping my coffee and listening to the birds sing their song, it’s like pure heaven. But I can do without the endless laundry (they change like four times a day!), constant meals (all the swimming and biking makes them ravenous), and not seeing my husband the whole week (someone’s got to pay for all the food and laundry detergent we go through lol!).

I’m not really sure how much I’ll be able to keep up my blogging from here. I didn’t bring any props with me and I’m keeping things simple in the kitchen. But I did bring my camera and I loved the challenge of putting together a summer recipe without all of my fancy ingredients and food styling stuff. It’s also a learning experience working with different natural light, so I was happy to prepare these simple summer wraps and blog about them. Otherwise, I’ll be keeping things light around here, and probably blogging a lot less than usual. But I hope you’ll all be taking a break too!

Wishing you a light, healthy and refreshing summer!

Asian Lettuce Wraps

2 lbs dark meat turkey
3 cloves garlic
2 tsp fresh grated ginger
2 tsp sesame oil
2 tsp grapeseed oil (or other neutral flavored oil)
2 tbsp soy sauce.
1 1/2 tbsp lime juice
1 tsp sriracha plus more for garnish
kosher salt, to taste
Boston lettuce
optional toppings: carrot sticks, radish, scallions

Method:

Heat the sesame and grapeseed oil in a skillet and add the ginger and garlic. Saute until fragrant but not browned. Add the ground turkey and season with salt. Cook over medium heat, breaking it up as it cooks, until the turkey is crumbled and no longer pink. Add the soy sauce, lime juice and sriracha and stir to incorporate.

Divide the turkey among lettuce cups and top with carrot sticks, sliced radish and scallions. Finish with sriracha.

NOTE: to make these Paleo/Whole30, use coconut aminos instead of soy sauce and substitute hot sauce for the sriracha.

If desired, you may pickle the carrots and/or radishes as follows:

OPTIONAL PICKLES
julienned carrots, sliced radishes, sliced cucumbers
1 cup rice vinegar
1 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
1 tbsp kosher salt

Bring the vinegar, water, sugar and salt to a boil. Remove from the heat. Add veggies and set aside to cool. Refrigerate until ready to use.


Related Recipes:

quinoa pad thai
curried chicken lettuce wraps

Post a Comment

Mongolian Beef

It’s been hard getting back into the blogging groove lately. I surprised myself when I kept things going so consistently ever since baby #5 came last July, but those days of sleeping babies are long gone, and my little rascal is crawling around putting every last tiny speck and crumb into her mouth.


I also lost my cleaning help (of 6 years!)  recently, which any mom knows is the single most important thing to help us keep our sanity. I mean, who do you think did the dishes after every cookfest I had in the kitchen? I mean, I love to cook, but I don’t love to clean up after myself. ;) Yes, my friends. That is my dirty little secret.

People always ask me, “How do you do what you do?” and the truth is, I’d never be able to do it without help! I always say – somethings got to give. Having five kids is a full time job in and of itself, so how I manage recipe testing, blogging, cooking classes and photography work boils down to this – I can’t do it all. I’m not very active in the gazillion whatsapp groups I belong to. I went off Facebook. I cut down on volunteer work (and send a donation instead!) and I have, ahem – had, cleaning help.

Luckily, this recipe was photographed and tested months ago, and I love saving things like these in the archives for those stressful times when I don’t have time to work on new recipes. I had made it for dinner one night and it came together super fast with little fuss. Who doesn’t love recipes like that?!

With summer coming and school coming to an end, we all need those quick and easy stir fries that we can throw together at the last minute. I hope you all enjoy this one as much as we did!

Mongolian Beef

1 lb pepper steak (see note)
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tbsp grapeseed or other neutral flavored oil
salt and pepper, to taste
1 cloves garlic, minced
small knob of ginger, peeled and very finely julienned
1/2 red chili pepper, thinly sliced (remove veins and seeds for less heat)
1/2 c stock
1/3 c hoison sauce
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp soy sauce
2 tsp cornstarch
2 scallions, thinly sliced
1 tbsp sesame seeds

Method:

Heat a large wok or skillet over medium-high heat and add the sesame and grapeseed oils. Stir fry the meat until brown, seasoning it with salt and pepper (I prefer to do this in two batches). Remove the meat from the pan and discard any liquid. Add more oil, if needed, and saute the garlic, ginger and chili pepper until fragrant. Add the stock, hoison sauce, brown sugar and soy sauce and bring to a boil.

In a small bowl mix the cornstarch with a tablespoon of water to dissolve. Add the mixture the pan and simmer until the sauce thickens. Return the meat to the pan and stir to coat the meat in the sauce.

Serve the meat over rice with sliced scallions and sesame seeds for garnish.

NOTE: Kosher pepper steak is thinly sliced steak that is usually used for stir fry. Many butchers cut their pepper steak from different parts of the steer. Depending on where the pepper steak is cut from, it can be very tender or it can be very tough. Many people assume that it is the way they are cooking it, but it has to do with the quality of the meat and where it is cut from. For instance, meat that is cut from the top of the rib will be pretty tough, and meat this is cut from the filet split (a smaller cut from a minute steak roast) will be tender. Pepper steak that is tender will be soft and easy to chew after a quick stir fry, however meat that is tough will be rubbery and will require a long braise to break it down and tenderize. For this recipe, I recommend purchasing a tender cut of pepper steak because of the quick preparation. For a more in-depth explanation of kosher cuts and cooking methods, read this guide.

Related Recipes:

pepper steak with plum sauce
soy and ginger glazed sugar snap peas

Post a Comment

Refried Bean Tacos

I hope you all had an amazing Passover, it feels like a lifetime ago! We spent the holiday in New Hampshire at the Arlington Hotel Passover Program. It was a wonderful experience filled with new friends, great food and beautiful scenery. I had never been to New Hampshire before and the small towns filled with old barns, antiques and mountainous terrain were a feast for the eyes. It was truly a magical holiday.


What was not truly magical was the number on the scale I saw when I got back! With three (sometimes four!) heavy meals a day and a 24 hour tea-room, Passover programs are not exactly figure friendly. Add matzo to that and you’ve got a recipe for weight gain [see what I did there? ;)].

Even more than the weight though, I just felt heavy and gross from eating so much animal protein. When you have Chateaubriand for dinner one night, rack of veal for the next, and brisket the next, it definitely catches up with you! So I decided to take a little break from all that and go vegetarian – if only for one week. It’s not really sustainable longer because with five little mouths to feed, I definitely need to be able to serve chicken and meat.

Our week of vegetarian fare has almost come to an end. I cooked up some of these amazing refried bean tacos, Moroccan salmon, Asian lettuce cups made from soy beef crumbles, lentil bolognese, spinach spaghetti lasagna and tonight we’re having falafel. I have to admit that all these legume-based recipes are still quite heavy and I can honestly say ready for a good steak! So it’s back to regular programming next week!

In the meantime, these refried bean tacos were definitely our favorite from our vegetarian week, I hope you enjoy them as much as we did!

Refried Bean Tacos

2 15oz. cans pinto beans
2 tbsp olive oil
1 small onion, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder
3/4 cup vegetable stock
juice of 1/2 lime
salt and pepper, to taste
1 package soft corn tortillas
1 avocado, peeled and thinly sliced
2 plum tomatoes, diced
1 head lettuce, thinly sliced
8oz shredded cheddar cheese
8oz. sour cream
1 cup salsa

Method:

Drain and rinse the beans in a colander. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet and add the onion. Saute until translucent. Add the garlic and continue to saute until fragrant. Add the cumin and chili powder and saute until toasted and aromatic. Add the pinto beans and the stock and bring to a simmer. Cook the beans for a few minutes to soften and then mash with a potato masher until the beans are mostly smooth with some chunks of beans. Add the lime and season, to taste, with salt and pepper. For a smoother puree, blend the beans in a food processor or blender until desired consistency is reached.

To serve, heat the tortillas in a dry skillet (for a crispier taco, grease the skillet or for burnt edges, toast over an open flame) and fill with refried beans, sliced avocado, tomatoes, lettuce, cheddar, sour cream and salsa.

VARIATION: if you’d like to serve the tacos with melted cheese, place the corn tortilla in a the skillet for a minute so that it’s pliable but not toasted. Add refried beans and top with shredded cheese. Cover the skillet and cook until the tortilla is toasted and the cheese is melted. Add additional toppings and serve.

NOTE: if you make the refried beans in advance and they start to dry out, just add a bit more stock to make them creamy again.

Related Recipes:

fish tacos
taco skillet
chicken fajita tacos
plantain tacos

Post a Comment