Category: Appetizer

Cruciferous Crunch Chicken Salad

Gimme all the cruciferous veg! Maybe it’s the crunch, maybe it’s the color, but I love everything in the cabbage family – kale, cauliflower, kohlrabi – it’s my jam! Mix it all together and you’ve got a party in your mouth. I made this on the last day of the Chag to use up leftover grilled chicken and the bowl was licked clean (mostly by me!!). So I had to make it again for y’all!

Kale Crunch Salad
YIELD: 6 servings

4 cups kale
2 cups shredded red cabbage
1 kohlrabi, peeled and julienned
1 cup pomegranate seeds
1/4 cup roasted & salted sunflower seeds
2 pieces leftover sumac pargiot (or any chicken)

Dressing:

1/3 cup grapeseed or light olive oil
3 tbsp pomegranate concentrate (see note)
2 tbsp honey
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
2 tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice
Salt and pepper, to taste

Method:

Spread the kale out on a platter or bowl. Mix the cabbage into the kale. Top with pomegranate seeds, kohlrabi, chicken and sunflower seeds.

In a small bowl, combine dressing ingredients and whisk until thickened.

When ready to serve, toss the salad with the dressing.

NOTE: I used Sadaf pomegranate concentrate which is like molasses, but it doesn’t have added sugar. If using molasses, reduce honey as needed.

Related Recipes:

Kale Crunch Salad
Grilled Chicken Salad with Basil Dressing
Asian Chicken Salad With Clementines
Green Goddess Bissli Chicken Salad
Curry Chicken Salad
Grilled Chicken Salad with Jalapeno Honey Mustard Dressing
Grilled Chicken Fattoush with Za’atar Ranch 

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Simanim Stuffed Leeks

After the recipe for my haman holipches stuffed leeks went viral on Purim, I decided I had to make a Rosh Hashanah version for y’all! This one is rolled like stuffed cabbage, and ode to the upcoming harvest season. (It also makes it easier to prep because you don’t need to blanch the leek skins, yay!)

Well, the sad thing is that this photo does not do this recipe justice because it is JUST THE THING you need for the High Holidays. The meat filling is loaded with sweet apples and dates, and it all simmers in a delicious sauce of apple cider and silan that complements the flavors beautifully! It hits the spot like a comforting bowl of stuffed cabbage, or my Bubby’s cabbage soup – but in the most fall-forward applelicious kind of way!

The good thing is, you can watch me make it on Instagram and hopefully it’s a wee bit more appetizing than the pic! (which I forgot to take, so I grabbed a quick photo of it when I made it for a recent live cooking demo!).

It’s got so many simanim rolled into one delicious package, so go ahead and give it a try.

Simanim Stuffed Leeks

8 large leeks, divided (see recipe instructions)

Meat filling:
1.25 lbs. ground beef (not lean)
3/4 cup jasmine or basmati rice (raw)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup chopped dried dates (3)
½ cup grated apple
⅓ cup chopped parsley
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 ½ tsp kosher salt

Sauce:
1 ½ cups chicken or vegetable stock
1 ½ cups apple cider
3 tbsp tomato paste
¼ cup silan
juice of 1/2 lemon
¼ tsp allspice
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp kosher salt
¼ tsp pepper

Trim the leeks by removing the root and the dark green tops. Cut along the length of the leeks and peel the first few layers apart until the peels are no longer wide enough to use for filling (depending on the thickness of the leeks, you should be able to use the first 5-6 layers or so).

Wash the leek peels well to remove dirt. Transfer to a paper towel. Finely chop the leftover leek (that was too narrow to use for wrapping) until you have 1/2 cup.

In a large bowl, combine the meat filling with the chopped leek. Fill the leeks skins with the meat filling (leaving some space on the sides because the rice will expand during cooking) and roll up like a cigar. Place each roll into a second leek skin so it has a double layer. Transfer to a 9×13 pan or Pyrex dish.

In a large bowl, combine the sauce ingredients, whisking until smooth. Pour the sauce over the leeks and cover with a layer of parchment paper and foil.

Bake at 375 degrees for 1 1/2 hours, basting every 30 minutes with the sauce. Uncover and broil for 2 minutes until the leeks caramelize lightly.

FREEZING: While it is best served fresh, you may freeze the stuffed leeks (once cooked). Thaw and add some extra apple cider or stock, cover, and warm at 350 degrees.

Related Recipes

Haman Holipches Stuffed Leeks
lemon grilled leeks
salmon en croute with creamed leeks
Passover stuffed cabbage

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Apple & Honey Garlic Confit

Confit is all the rage these days, and I see garlic confit on just about every Shabbos table! This jalapeno date confit went all out viral when I first posted it on the gram, and it’s made it’s rounds around the world! What is it about confit? Well, it’s a vehicle to drive through an entire loaf of challah or sourdough, that’s for sure. But this one? It’s SO GOOD you will literally just want to eat it with a spoon! Happy sweet new year, indeed!

 

Apple & Honey Garlic Confit

1 firm apple, peeled and sliced
1 large or 2 small leeks, white and pale green parts, chopped
1/2 cup peeled garlic cloves
3 sprigs thyme
Kosher salt and pepper, to taste
1 heaping tbsp honey
Extra virgin olive oil

Method:

Preheat oven to 350°
Cut the leeks in half lengthwise, rinse between the layers to remove any dirt. Slice. Add to a non-reactive baking dish with the remaining ingredients with enough olive oil to mostly cover everything.

Bake, uncovered for 45 minutes or until everything is soft and buttery and starting to brown.

Slather on sourdough and enjoy!

Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to two weeks. May be frozen.

 

Related Recipes

date jalapeno confit
bone marrow confit

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Crispy Rice Sushi Salad

Let’s be honest: leftover rice is rarely exciting. It’s dry, a little clumpy, and often destined for the microwave. But with one simple trick — a sheet pan and a little oil (and spice!) — you’re not reheating rice. You’re upgrading it.

If you’ve ever scraped the bottom of a rice pot and secretly loved those toasty, crunchy bits (or peeled the entire crust off a pot of tahdig!) – THAT’S crispy rice. It’s all about the crrrrunch — nutty, golden nuggets of caramelized crispiness. That texture alone could carry a dish, but when tossed with fresh toppings and punchy sauces, it becomes the foundation of something truly next level.

So move over boring ‘ole sushi salad, and let your CRISPY RICE sushi salad begin!

CRISPY RICE SUSHI SALAD

Crispy Rice
4 cups leftover jasmine rice
2 tsp soy sauce
1-2 tbsp chili garlic paste, sambal oelek or chili crisp
2 tsp sesame oil
2 tsp grapeseed or avocado oil

Salad
1-2 cups leftover salmon, tuna or kani
2 Persian cucumbers, thinly sliced
1/2 cup edamame, thawed
2 scallions, thinly sliced
1 avocado, diced
1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
1/3 cup spicy mayo
1/4 cup sweet sauce

Method:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and spread the rice out. Add the soy sauce, chili paste, sesame oil and grapeseed oil and stir until incorporated. Bake for 35-45 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes until the rice is crispy but not burned.

Transfer the crispy rice to a large bowl. Top with flaked salmon, cucumber, edamame, scallions, avocado and sesame seeds. Drizzle with spicy mayo and sweet sauce and serve.

Related Recipes:

sushi salad
crispy rice carrot salad with harissa 
crispy rice latkes
chili lime crispy salmon

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Wedge Salad with Hot Pepper Dressing & Smoky Chickpea Crumble

I love me a wedge salad, because iceberg just doesn’t get the love it deserves. Am I right? It’s all about the kale these days! But let me tell you what kale doesn’t have – crunch! And I’m all about the crrrunncchh!

I especially love throwing this salad together when I have leftover chicken on hand, because everything is better with a little shredded chicken. And when there are leftover shifka peppers in the fridge, I have to make my delicious creamy hot pepper dressing that is so incredibly delicious! My dad would always eat them growing up and they were a staple in our pantry, but I always found them too spicy. But when you remove the veins and seeds and blend them up with mayo and garlic – pure magic happens!

Oh and lets not forget that chickpea crumble! Talk about texture, the stuff is a dream! When larger crispy bits and crunchy chickpea dust come together – you get the most incredible combo for topping a salad.

So try these components together, or on their own – they’ll be your new favorite salad toppers!

Wedge Salad with Hot Pepper Dressing & Smoky Chickpea Crumble

1 head iceberg lettuce, quartered
1 cup grape tomatoes, sliced
2 cups leftover rotisserie chicken, shredded
1 bunch chives, chopped

Hot Pepper Dressing:
3 canned shifka hot peppers, veins and seeds removed
1 clove garlic
1 cup mayonnaise
2 tsp lemon juice
kosher salt, to taste

Blend in a food processor until creamy.

Smoky Chickpea Crumble:
1 can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
1 tbsp smoked paprika
kosher salt, to taste
1 1/2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Place the chickpeas onto a parchment lined baking sheet and mash with a potato masher so that you have some larger and some smaller pieces. Mix with smoked paprika, salt and oil and bake until crispy, about 20 minutes, stirring once.

To assemble the salad, place a wedge of lettuce onto a plate, drizzle with dressing and top with chicken, tomatoes, chives and chickpea crumble. Finish with more dressing.

 

Related Recipes

wedge salad with turkey “bacon” bits
wedge salad with carrot ginger dressing

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