Category: Brunch

Apple Crumb Cake


I have to admit I’m not much of a baker but when it comes to the High Holidays, I pull out all the stops
Whether it’s an over the top bundt cake, my mason jar honey cakes for gift giving or my red wine chocolate cake – you’ll always
find me baking up something special for Rosh Hashanah. There’s just nothing like a a comforting slice of cake with tea for dessert,
or even for breakfast with a cup of coffee. I love creating new dishes that gets everyone excited for the holiday – it sets such a festive
mood for the whole family, and is really the foundation for making memories around the table. I know honey cake doesn’t always get
the most love, so this year, I created a recipe for an apple cider crumb cake that brings all the warm, cozy feels of fall. You can bake it
in a bundt pan, 9×13 tray or even a loaf – whatever you like best.

To view the reel on Instagram click here.

Apple Crumb Cake

3 medium apples, peeled and grated
1/2 tsp cinnamon
3 cups all purpose flour
2 cups granulated sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp kosher salt
4 eggs
1 cup canola oil
1 cup apple cider (unfiltered apple juice)
2 tsp vanilla extract

Crumbs
1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/2 cup canola oil

Method:

Grease and lightly flour a Bundt pan, set aside.
In a small bowl mix the apples and cinnamon.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.

In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs, oil, apple cider and vanilla.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir with a rubber spatula to incorporate.

In a separate bowl, mix the crumb ingredients until crumbly.

Pour half of the cake batter into the Bundt pan. Add the shredded apples, discarding any liquid that accumulated in the bowl. Top with remaining half of the batter, and sprinkle generously with the crumbs.

Bake for 60-70 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Related Recipes:

Apple & Honey Galette
Lemon Blueberry Crumb Cake

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Sweet Tahini Dip


For years I’ve been saying that sweet challah for Rosh Hashanah requires a sweet dip! I don’t want my raisin challah to be dipped into olive dip! Chocolate chip in matbucha? No thank you! So I took tahini paste – and instead of adding garlic, lemon and cumin – per usual – I added all the sweet things! And the result is an addictive halva-style dip that is perfect, not only for sweet challah – but for apples, pretzels, smeared over sourdough toast or bananas. Yum!

To view the reel on Instagram click here.

Sweet Tahini Dip

1/2 cup tahini paste (stir if separated)
3 tbsp silan
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
Kosher salt, to taste
3-4 tbsp water
Raw tahini, silan, toasted sesame seeds and shredded halva, for topping

Whisk until smooth!

Related Recipes:
Creamiest Tahini
Tahini Rice Cakes
Tahini Scones
Tahini Frappuccino
Tahini Date Smoothie

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Roasted Baby Elote (Mexican Street Corn)

Welcome summer! After a crazy busy winter that flew by faster than I ever thought possible, it’s corn season – my favorite! There’s nothing quite like crispy corn on the cob, and I love it in all forms – raw, roasted, grilled, steamed, and even made into ice cream and pudding. Baby corn though? It doesn’t get much love.

But when I saw my friend Melinda roast it in the oven with some garlic salt, my imagination went wild! So I picked up a couple of bags at Trader Joes, and I made this lipsmacking dish that is inspired by Elote, or Mexican Street Corn. Traditionally, elote is grilled, rolled in a sour cream and mayo mixture that’s seasoned with chili powder, lime and cilantro, and then rolled in cotija cheese (similar to feta). Here, I roasted the baby corn with tajin chili lime seasoning, and made a light Greek yogurt sauce with cilantro, jalapeno, garlic and lime. I finished it with crumbled feta and cilantro and OMG it’s my new favorite dish!!

For the corn:

2 6oz. pkg fresh baby corn
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp tajin seasoning or chili lime spice
pinch of kosher salt
1/2 cup crumbled feta
fresh cilantro, for garnish

For the crema
2 5.3oz containers Greek yogurt
juice and zest of 1/2 lime
1 cup cilantro
2 cloves garlic
1 jalapeno, seeds and veins removed
kosher salt, to taste

Method:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Spread the baby corn on a parchment lined baking sheet and toss with olive oil, tajin and salt. Roast for 25 minutes or until slightly charred.

While the corn is roasting, combine the crema ingredients in a food processor or blender and blend until smooth.

Spread the crema on a platter and top with roasted corn, Finish with crumbled feta and cilantro.

Related Recipes:

grilled corn with za’atar garlic butter
watermelon corn salsa

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Lacy Latkes Tips & Tricks!

I’ll admit that I’m the first one to trash up latkes and have fun with them, but really, nothing competes with the classic perfect latke – if you get them right! There’s an art to the perfect potato latke, and I like to call them LACY LATKES for the shards of potato that crunch up between your teeth like crispy potato sticks! So how do you make these little bites of heaven? Read on!

• Use russet potatoes, they’re perfectly starchy!
• Place your potatoes in water until ready to grate so they don’t brown.
• Prep all your ingredients so that you can work fast!
• Alternate your potato and onion when you grate them, it keeps the mixture white!
• Grate your potatoes from top to bottom (or sideways in the food processor) for longer strands of potato = lacy edges!
• Squeeze your potato/onion mixture as dry as you can! Squeeze into a bowl so you can reserve the starch.
• Once the starch settles to the bottom of the bowl, discard the remaining liquid, and add the starch back in to the latke mixture for extra crispiness!
• Use a heavy bottomed skillet or cast iron pan.
• Add a carrot to your oil, it will keep it clean!
• Use plenty of oil, and get it nice and hot before adding the batter.
• Use a 1/4 cup measuring cup to scoop out the batter and flatten it out with the bottom of the measuring cup, so the edges spread out.
• Don’t overcrowd your pan, give the latkes plenty of room so they don’t steam.
• Leave the latkes alone! Don’t touch and let them develop a good crust! Flip and give the other side some time too!
• If the latke mixture starts to get soggy, give it a squeeze before adding it to the pan.
• Place the latkes on a rack set over a baking sheet to keep them crispy.

So you’ve made the perfect latke, now how do you top them? I put a Questions box on Instagram and here are some of the fun toppings that came in!

Sweet Chili Sauce
Sugar! (who knew?!)
Applesauce MIXED with sour cream!
Sour cream mixed with horseradish
Ketchup (!!!!!)
Tuna & melted cheese a la tuna melt!
Spicy tuna and spicy mayo
Truffle aioli
Sour Cream, pickled onions, capers
Poached egg (yes please!)
Cheddar cheese sauce
Beef fry and coleslaw
Labneh with garlic, dried mint, olive oil, Aleppo pepper
Garlic Mayo and shredded BBQ chicken or pulled beef
Cranberry Sauce
Greek Yogurt, Lox, Dill
Pastrami and sautéed onion
Sriracha
Guacamole
Tzatziki
Ranch Dip
Caviar and creme fraiche

Perfect Potato Latkes
YIELD: approximately 18 latkes

4 large russet potatoes
1 small white onion
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 tbsp matzo meal
2 tsp kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
canola oil, for frying

Method:

Prepare the latkes: Peel potatoes and immediately place in a bowl of water to prevent browning. Drain the potatoes and grate, alternating between the potatoes and onion, either by hand or with a shredding disc in your food processor. Place the grated potato and onion mixture into a large piece of cheesecloth or a kitchen towel. Wrap it tightly and squeeze out as much juice as possible into a large bowl. Let the juice sit for a bit so the potato starch settles to the bottom. Slowly pour the liquid out of the bowl (into the sink), leaving the potato starch in the bowl. Add eggs, matzah meal, salt, and pepper to the starch; stir to combine. Add the grated potatoes and onions to the bowl and stir to incorporate. Heat oil in a skillet and fry 1/4 cup of batter at a time until golden brown on both sides.

TIP: Use ¼-cup measuring cup to portion out the latkes. This makes the latkes the same size. When you scoop the batter into the pan, use the flat underside of the measuring cup to press down on the latke and spread it out. This creates super crispy edges.

Other Latke Recipes:

crispy rice latkes
salami potato latkes
sabich latkes
falatkes (falafel latkes)
poutine latkes
confetti latkes
butternut squash latkes
cheese latkes

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Corn Dogs

Corn dogs + Bonus Cornbread Funnel Cakes!!

Click here to view the reel on Instagram.

Corn Dogs

1 pkg @abelesheymann hot dogs cut in half crosswise
1¼ cups flour
¾ cup cornmeal
⅓ cup sugar
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup nondairy milk
Canola oil, for frying

Method:

Mix the flour, cornmeal, sugar, salt and baking powder in a bowl. Add the eggs, milk and oil and whisk together until the mixture is very creamy. Transfer to a tall glass.

Push a wooden skewer through the center of the hot dogs or sausages (if the skewer is too long to fit in your pot, cut it to shorten).

Fill a 4qt saucepan with 2” of oil. Heat the oil over medium-high heat until it reaches 375 degrees.

Holding the tip of the skewer, dip the hot dogs into the batter, then rotate it to let excess batter drip off. Carefully place the hot dog into the hot oil, fry until golden and crisp, 2-3 minutes. Repeat with the remaining hot dogs. Serve immediately.

Tip! If you have leftover batter use it to make Cornbread Funnel Cakes. Fill a ziploc bag with the batter, cut a hole to create a piping bag and pour the batter into a pot of hot oil. Flip when golden brown. Top with powdered sugar. Serve Immediately.


Related Recipes:

Bunless Fajita Dogs
Corndog Hamantaschen

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