LAVENDER ICED LATTE is about to be your new favorite pick-me-up!! So easy and oh. so. deeelish!!!
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Lavender Iced Coffee
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
1tbsp lavender buds
1 shot espresso
1/2 cup milk
Method:
Mix the water, sugar, and lavender in a saucepan and bring to a simmer until the sugar dissolves. Steep for about ten minutes then strain. Pour your espresso and add in 1-2 tsp of lavender syrup. Add your milk over ice and enjoy!
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Every week people ask me for the recipe to this simple BASIL PASTA thats a staple in our house. I love that’s it’s so adaptable, and I even use frozen basil and garlic (don’t @ me!) so it’s ready in a pinch. Also great for shalosh seudot!
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Basil Pasta
1 box of your favorite pasta (I use bow ties)
14 cubes frozen basil
2 cubes frozen garlic
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper, to taste
Method:
Cook pasta according to package directions. Place basil, garlic, olive oil, salt, pepper in a large bowl. Drain pasta and pour into the bowl. Rest a few minutes so cubes defrost. Stir. Adjust seasoning, to taste.
OPTIONAL ADDITIONS: lemon zest, red pepper flakes, sundried tomatoes, roasted zucchini, grape tomatoes, hearts of palm, tuna, flaked salmon, feta cheese, fresh mozzarella.
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One of my kids is obsessed with sushi. You might call him a sushi monster. He’s 7 and he makes his own avocado rolls because he just loves it that much. Every Friday, when I shop for Shabbat, i buy him a sushi roll for lunch and he devours it.
Sushi salad is also a staple in our house. Especially when I have leftover cooked salmon or kani. Sushi salad is a real #oldiebutgoodie around here, and I’ve since adapted the recipe so many times!
These days, our favorite is layered sushi rice, flaked salmon, kani, julienned carrots, julienned cucumbers, edamame, sesame seeds, french fried onions, and a generous drizzle of sweet sauce and spicy mayo. Every time I serve it for Shabbos lunch, the guests go gaga all over again – and I often set up a build-your-own-bowl on a lazy Susan so everyone can make their own.
When it comes to Sukkot, “Sushi in the Sukkah” is a favorite theme of mine, and not just because I like alliteration! I’m all for any meal in a bowl and sushi is really so filling, it makes the perfect lunch.
Years ago, I made these onigiri hamantaschen here on the blog, and the other night, this fun Sukkah idea came to me. I couldn’t be happier with how they turned out! Of course my sushi-loving son started building tons of different Sukkot out of the leftover sushi rice – he pressed some into a ice cube tray to make a 3D version and then topped it off with mashed avocado and a nori “door”. And then he ate them, of course. I took the leftovers and made some of these for breakfast the next morning – a very happy and sushi loving family indeed!
Happy Sushi in the Sukkah!!!
Sukkah Onigiri
2 cups sushi rice
3 cups water
2 tbsp rice vinegar
1 1/2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
2 sheets nori
1/2 cup toasted sesame seeds
soy sauce, for serving
Method:
Rinse the sushi rice until the water runs clear. Place the sushi rice and water into a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, cover with a tight-fitting lid, reduce heat to a low simmer and cook for 20 minutes. Remove from the heat and steam for 10 minutes.
In a small saucepan cook the the rice vinegar, sugar and salt until the salt and sugar dissolves. Pour the mixture over the cooked rice and stir gently.
To make the onigiri, form the sushi rice into a rectangular shape. Cut one sheet of nori into fine shreds and cut the second sheet of nori into strips. Fold the strips around one side of the sushi to resemble a door, and dip the opposite side into the nori shreds to resemble schach. If desired, dip the sushi rice into sesame seeds.
Serve with soy sauce for dipping.
sushi salad
Asian kani bites
sushi hamantaschen
snowman sushi
Cannoli!! I always manage to spell it wrong (that’s 2 n’s, not l’s, and the plural form is also cannoli!), even though I’ve made them before, in the form of these adorable Torah cannoli!
Of course my love for this fabulous dessert was reignited on my recent trip to Italy, where I saw cannoli in many forms in bakeries and pizza shops alike. Many were topped with crushed pistachios, or folded with Luxardo cherries, mmm mmmm….
I was especially excited to try these with the latest snack to hit the kosher market, stroopwafels! Stroopwafels have nothing to do with cannoli, in fact they come from The Netherlands, where they place the caramel-stuffed wafers on their coffee to warm them up in the morning. A stroopwafel, literally “syrup waffle”, is a wafer waffle made from two thin layers of baked dough joined by a caramel filling. First made in the Dutch city of Gouda, stroopwafels are popular throughout the Netherlands and is a well-known Dutch snack.
When I first tried stroopwafels, I realized that they would make the perfect cannoli wrapper if I soften them in the microwave to make them pliable, and boy was I right! So you get the best of cannoli, with a sweetened ricotta filling, and the best of stroopwafel, with a crispy wafer reminiscent of Lotus cookies, stuffed with a gooey caramel. I mean what’s not to love?!
And to top it all off, as an homage to my Italy trip, I even made my own homemade ricotta! I’ve been dreaming about it ever since eating the herbed baked ricotta at the kosher winery in Tuscany, Cantina Giuliano, and I had so much extra milk so I just went for it. Making homemade ricotta is super easy! So enjoy the bonus recipe below.
Some other fun things to do with stroopwafels while we’re at it… make smores! or ice cream sandwiches (chipwiches, anyone?!). They come in single portion-control packages of two, or family packs of 8, so look for them in your local supermarket!
As for these adorable plates, it’s Walmart for the win! I love when I find great prop finds at the most unexpected places and these are just everything. Freeform. Fun patterns. Black and white. Just. My. Jam.
Speaking of jam, feel free to swirl in some good quality jam, or make some Stroopwafel PB&J’s! Omg, how good would that be? Yes please!!
buon appetito!
Stroopwafel Cannoli
YIELD: 8 cannoli
8 Smackin’ Good stroopwafels
15oz. ricotta cheese, whipped (see below for bonus homemade ricotta recipe!)
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/4 tsp cinammon
1/4 tsp orange or lemon zest
1/2 cup powdered sugar
3 tbsp mini chocolate chips, plus more for declorating
Method:
In a bowl, combine the ricotta cheese (if there is a lot of liquid, drain before using), vanilla, cinnamon, citrus zest, powdered sugar and mini chocolate chips. If the mixture is loose, add more powdered sugar until it reaches a stiffer consistency. Add the cheese mixture to a piping bag.
Heat the stroopwafel in the microwave until just warmed through and pliable (this took 7 seconds in my microwave). Do not make it to hot, just warm enough that it bends without cracking. Once the stroopwafels are softened, bend them into a curved shape, pinching the edges together to hold. Place in the fridge or set aside till it holds it’s shape.
Pipe the cannoli filling into each side of the stroopwafel. Decorate with mini chocolate chips.
VARIATION: for an easier version, create a sandwich cookie by placing the cannoli cream between two stroopwafels and roll in mini chocolate chips.
Homemade Ricotta
1/2 gallon whole milk
1/3 cup fresh-squeezed lemon juice or distilled white vinegar
1 tsp kosher salt
Method:
Add the milk to a stockpot and bring it to 200 degrees over medium heat, stirring occasionally so the milk doesn’t bubble over or scorch the bottom of the pan. Remove from the heat. Add the lemon juice and salt and stir; rest 10 minutes. Place a strainer in the sink and line with cheesecloth. Gently remove the cheese curds from the pot using a ladle and place into the cheesecloth-lined strainer. Allow to sit for 5-10 minutes or until desired thickness is reached.
To whip the ricotta, add to a blender and blend until creamy. If the ricotta is too thick to blend, add a splash of milk or cream to reach desired consistency.
This post is sponsored by Smackin’ Good. All opinions are my own.
It’s that time of year, when we celebrate with cheese and wine, lasagna and blintzes and Torah’s all around.
But lets be real. Life is not easy these days and the state of the world is sad. Every day seems to bring on another challenge and most of us just aren’t feeling it. ((HUGS)) all around.
So I’m here to say this: food is comfort. Especially cheese. And bring on all the comfort food because WE NEED IT. And that’s ok.
This Shavuot, think about what brings you joy. Decorate your house in flowers, pour yourself some Rose’ and DISCONNECT. Focus on the people you love and the things that make you happy.
I’m on a pickle binge so what makes me happy right now is all the sour, crunchy and spicy elements I can plate up with some savory Everything Bagel Brie. It makes a great starter to balance out all that cheesecake!
Wishing you all a Chag Sameach.
Pan Fried Everything Bagel Brie
1 wheel brie, chilled (see note)
1 egg, beaten
1/4 cup panko crumbs
2 tbsp everything bagel seasoning
salt, to taste
canola oil, for frying
In a shallow bowl, mix the panko crumbs and everything bagel seasoning. Season, with salt, if needed (depending on saltiness of the everything bagel spice). Dip the brie into the egg and then press into the panko mix, coating on all sides.
Heat 2 inches of oil in a small frying pan (or enough to reach half way up the brie). Fry the brie until golden on both sides. Serve immediately with assorted crackers, tapenade and pickles.
NOTE: Make sure the brie is cold from the fridge, otherwise it will melt before the crumbs have a chance to brown.
Sundried Tomato Olive Tapenade
1/2 cup sundried tomatoes packed in oil
1/3 cup fresh dill leaves
1 clove garlic
2 tbsp olive oil from sundried tomato jar (or good quality olive oil)
zest of 1/2 lemon
juice of 1/2 lemon
salt and pepper, to taste
Add all the ingredients to a food processor and blend until finely minced.
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