Category: Passover

Creamy Pareve Mashed Potatoes

With Thanksgiving just a few days away, what’s a kosher girl to do? Those turkey drippings have got to be sopped up by something. Enter my perfect pareve mashed potatoes – creamy, fluffy and oh so delicious. Traditionally, butter and milk are used to bind the potatoes, while some include sour or cream cheese for added creaminess. With turkey as the main component of Thanksgiving dinner, dairy is not an option. Of course margarine, soy milk and toffuti cream cheese/sour cream can do the trick, but you’ll be left with an overwhelming taste of soy. I know some people who use mayo, but that just doesn’t work for me. Instead, I opt for a healthy dose of olive oil to bind the mixture, while chicken stock stands in as a flavorful creamer. The results are lighter, yet still smooth and delicious (which leaves room for the smorgasbord of calories awaiting you).

Now that you’ve got your mashed potatoes nice and creamy, it’s time to talk about add-ins. When I was growing up, my mother never made mashed potatoes without a side of caramelized onions. Not surprisingly, that’s my go-to every time. Still, there are some other options out there, so go ahead and mix up your favorite version.

– spices: garlic salt, smoked paprika, curry powder, lawry’s seasoned salt
– pepper (some people like to use white pepper so the potatoes don’t have black flecks)
– fresh herbs: oregano, parsley, basil, cilantro, thyme, rosemary
– caramelized onions and/or mushrooms
– roasted garlic cloves
– horseradish or wasabi
– chipotle or poblano chilies
– lemon juice and/or zest
– sundried tomatoes
– pesto or tapenade
– spinach
– chives
– truffle oil
– mustard

Have you got your own version of pareve mashed potatoes that you’d like to share? Tell us about it in the comments below!


Creamy Pareve Mashed Potatoes

4 Idaho potatoes
3 tbsp olive oil (use full-bodied or extra-light depending on your taste)
1/3-1/2 cup vegetable stock (I like Imagine)
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste
chives, for garnish

Method:

Peel potatoes and cut into chunks. Do you best to keep the pieces the same size so they will cook evenly. Add potatoes to a pot, cover with water and sprinkle with salt. Bring to a boil over high heat, and then lower the flame slightly so that the water maintains a rolling boil. Continue to cook the potatoes until they fall apart when poked with a fork. Pour potatoes into a strainer and drain well. Return potatoes to the pot and turn the flame on low. This will evaporate any leftover water so that the potatoes won’t be mealy. With a potato masher, mash the potatoes well, making sure that no lumps remain. Remove from heat and mix in olive oil, chicken stock, salt and pepper. If needed, add more chicken stock. Mix in your fillers of choice and serve.

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Hasselback Sweet Potatoes


Hassleback potatoes are the Swedish version of a baked potato, and are named for Hasslebacken, the Stockholm restaurant where it was first served. Traditionally, hassleback potatoes are made with white potatoes and are sometimes stuffed with garlic cloves. I came up with this sweeter version, using thin slices of apples, and topping it off with some sweet maple syrup and a sprinkle of brown sugar. The sweet potatoes came out soft on the inside, and crispy on the outside while the apples caramelized and crisped around the edges. With the autumn colors, rustic styling, and sweet taste, hassleback sweet potatoes make the perfect accompaniment to your Thanksgiving feast!

Hassleback Sweet Potatoes

4 organic sweet potatoes
2 crispy sweet apples, such as honeycrisp
3 tbsp butter or margarine, melted
1/3 cup dark brown sugar
1/4 cup maple syrup
kosher salt

Method:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Scrub potatoes well and pat dry. Lay them flat on a cutting board and set one chopstick on each side. The chopsticks will ensure that you don’t cut all the way through. Starting from one end, make slits about 1/8″ thick. Peel and core apples and slice very thinly. Place apple slices in between each slit in the potatoes. Brush potatoes with butter and sprinkle with brown sugar. Drizzle with maple syrup and finish with a sprinkle of kosher salt. Bake, uncovered for about 1 hour, until the insides are cooked through and the outsides are crispy. If the apples begin to burn around the edges, and the sweet potatoes are still not soft, cover the pan with foil to prevent more burning.

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Bubby’s Cabbage Soup with Flanken


Succos is one of my most favorite times of year. I love the smell in the air, the breeze in my hair, the fall harvest and the brilliant autumn leaves. The crisp air is the perfect backdrop for this warm, hearty soup. With cabbage, apples, tomatoes, onions and flanken in a sweet tomato broth, this bowl of goodness is sure to be a star at your Yom Tov table. The more you cook this soup, the better and thicker it becomes, so don’t mind rewarming it for several meals!

To view the reel on Instagram click here.

Bubby’s Cabbage Soup with Flanken

1 medium head of cabbage, sliced
1 onion, sliced
2 green apples, peeled and diced or grated
2 soft tomatoes, diced
1/2 cup golden raisins
2 pieces flanken
2 marrow bones
3 15 oz. cans tomato sauce
7 canfuls of water
1/3 cup sugar, or to taste
salt and pepper, to taste
juice of 1/2 lemon

Method:

Add all ingredients to the pot and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for a few hours, until the broth has thickened and the meat has softened.

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Cherry Yogurt Popsicles


Gone are the days when you just fill up a plastic cup with grape juice and freeze it for your kids. Homemade popsicles are all the rage right now, with lots of new popsicle books on the market, as well as a quick pop-making machine! The New York Times even ran a feature in their magazine which included lots of cool recipes for fruit, savory, creamy, and boozy pops. Who would have thought of making avocado-cilantro, fennel, or chocolate-chili ices?

Popsicles are a great way to cool down from the summer heat. Instead of store-bought varieties that are packed with sugar and food coloring, try making some at home. Here, I whipped up some cherry yogurt pops for a delicious cool and milky treat.

Cherry Yogurt Popsicles

1 cup vanilla Greek yogurt
1/2 cup pitted cherries, chopped
2 tbsp honey or agave

Method:

Combine yogurt, cherries and honey and spoon into popsicle molds. Freeze until completely solid, about 5 hours.

TIP: to loosen popsicles from their molds (these are from IKEA), just hold under running water for a minute or so.

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Gefilte Fish Patties in Tomato Sauce

If you follow my blog, you’ve probably realized by now that my family is big into gefilte fish. I’ve already posted quite a few variations. This one however, is even closer to home – it’s a family recipe. My mom has been been making her gefilte this way ever since I can remember, and my Bubby before her. My kids love these patties so much that I even make them for dinner every now and then. They like it without the sauce, so I just leave some out. These are best served fresh and warm because they fluff up in the tomato sauce. They can also be served at room temperature with or without the sauce.

NOTE: These patties freeze very well. If you are like me and don’t like to fry a lot, just make a double batch and freeze half of the patties. When you are ready to use, just defrost, cook up the tomato sauce and add the patties. They’ll taste as fresh as the day you made them.

Gefilte Fish Patties in Tomato Sauce

2 loaves frozen gefilte fish, defrosted (I like Raskins Sweet)
2 eggs
1/3 c matza meal
1 bag frozen mixed vegetables
2 15 oz. cans tomato sauce
2-3 tbsp sugar
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste
canola oil, for frying

Method:

Mix gefilte fish, eggs and matza meal in a bowl. Heat oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Form patties from the gefilte mixture and fry until golden brown on both sides. Remove to paper towel. In a separate pot, cook mixed vegetables in salted water and drain. Bring tomato sauce, sugar, salt and pepper to a boil and add mixed vegetables. Add gefilte fish patties and simmer for a few minutes, or, spoon sauce over patties.

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