Category: Lunch

Melon Carpaccio

The term carpaccio is usually used to refer to thinly sliced cuts of meat or fish that are served as an appetizer. In recent years, however, chef’s have reinvented the idea of carpaccio, preparing  dishes of thinly sliced veggies or fruit, like zucchini and melon, carpaccio-style. The trick to making a carpaccio is to keep the ingredients thin and uniform by shaving them down with a mandolin or vegetable peeler. Ever since slicing my palm on a mandolin last year, I have a hard time using it without cringing, so peelers are a welcome substitute in this case!

When working with melon, you don’t want your fruit to be too ripe, otherwise the thin shavings won’t hold up after plating. They’ll let out too much juice and turn to mush. Use just-ripened fruit that’s cold (warm melon will be harder to peel) and shave it over a bowl to catch the juices. If using a mandolin or peeler doesn’t work for you, you can also slice it thinly with a knife.

What I love most about this melon appetizer, is the combination of sweet melon with spicy jalapeno and tart lime.  It celebrates the best of summer produce –  melon, tomatoes & basil – at their prime. This unconventional melon salad is not only a party on your palate, it looks beautiful on your plate too.

Melon Carpaccio

1/2 green melon (canary or honeydew)
1/2 orange melon (cantaloupe or orange flesh honeydew)
1 handful yellow grape tomatoes
1 handful red grape tomatoes
1/2 jalapeno, seeded and finely minced
1/3 cup tomato juice
juice of 1 lime
1 tsp lime zest
5 basil leaves, chiffonade
pinch of salt
additional basil, for garnish

Method:

Over a bowl (to catch the drippings), thinly slice melon using a mandoline, peeler or knife (see above for tips). Add the remaining ingredients and mix gently to combine. Serve in glasses and garnish with fresh basil.

 

1 year ago: cherries in red wine syrup
2 years ago: fried fish sandwich

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The Modern Menu Review & Giveaway

While this cookbook may have been published back in March, it’s never too late to bring a fabulous collection of kosher, innovative recipes to your attention.

At first look, The Modern Menu is exactly what it appears to be – modern. The food is laid out perfectly sleek and contemporary, without any over the top garnishes or plating. It simply speaks for itself, and I love that.

Unlike traditional cookbooks, Kim Kushner brings her own style and pizzazz, arranging the cookbook by how the dishes make you feel – from vibrant and indulgent to gutsy and clever. “To my mind,” says Kim, “Less is more, simple is always best, and food should look as good as it tastes and taste as good as it looks.” A healthy philosophy and outlook that should be the motto of every cook in the kitchen.

Browsing through the cookbook, I can’t help but be inspired by Kim’s clean and simple dishes that are so fresh and appealing. I find myself wanting to bookmark every single page. While Kim emphasizes healthy from-scratch ingredients, her Middle Eastern inspired recipes are possible for the novice chef with a well-stocked pantry.  Her dishes remain light, but the flavors seem anything but. Kushner does not shy away from herbs and spices, adding surprising notes to every dish.

I look forward to trying many of The Modern Menu Cookbook recipes including the kohlrabi cabbage salad with maple lemon dressing, crunchy curry cauliflower with tahini and pomegranate, crispy miso marinated chicken, jalapeno and tomato chutney, chicken with pumpkin, figs and honey, tequila london broil with mango chutney, black sesame crusted char, sticky beef ribs, fig and pecan biscotti, plum crumb cake with star anise and individual halvah, gelato and sorbet towers.

If I could critique anything about this wonderful cookbook, it would be to say that some of the recipes require ingredients that may be hard to find. In addition, while I love Kim’s concept for arranging the book’s chapters, it’s slightly difficult to follow the sections when they are categorized this way.

Busy In Brooklyn is giving away a free copy of The Modern Menu.

To enter the giveaway:

1. Leave a comment with your favorite light & healthy summer food/recipe.
2. Like Busy In Brooklyn on Facebook.

Winner will be chosen at random on August 2nd, 2013.

Spinach, Haricots Vert & Avocado Salad with Honey Dressing
Reprinted with permission from The Modern Menu by Kim Kushner
Gefen Publishing

Crunchy, salty, sweet, and sharp—this salad has it all! The dressing contributes texture with sunflower and sesame seeds as well as sweetness and tang with honey and cider vinegar. All in all, a unique and delicious concoction.

8 cups baby spinach
Handful haricots verts, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
1 avocado, pitted, peeled, and cut into small cubes
1 white peach, skin on, pitted and cut into very thin slices
¼ cup sugar
¼ cup honey
¼ cup vegetable oil
¼ cup cider vinegar
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 garlic clove, minced
¼ cup salted shelled sunflower seeds
2 tablespoons sesame seeds

Place the spinach, haricots verts, avocado, and peach in a large bowl or on a large platter.

Combine the sugar, honey, vegetable oil, vinegar, mustard, garlic, sunflower seeds, and sesame seeds in a jar with a tight-fitting lid. Shake to thoroughly combine. Drizzle the dressing over the salad and toss to coat all over.

Serves 6 to 8

Baby Lamb Chops with Pesto Croute
Reprinted with permission from The Modern Menu by Kim Kushner
Gefen Publishing

This recipe calls for frenched lamb chops, which are chops with the meat cut away from the end of the rib so that part of the bone is exposed. Frenching the chop makes it cleaner and let’s call it fancier, almost like a lamb lollipop, if you will! Your butcher can do this with the quick swipe of a knife; asking him or her to do this makes fast work of this simple-to-prepare dish. Croute simply means “crust” in French. Fancy.

1 handful fresh basil, washed and dried well
½ handful cilantro, washed and dried well
3 garlic cloves, peeled
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
½ cup pine nuts, toasted
¼ cup unseasoned dried bread crumbs, plus more for sprinkling
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
12 baby lamb chops, frenched

Preheat the oven to 400°F.

In a food processor, combine the basil, cilantro, and garlic. Pulse until coarsely chopped. Add the olive oil and pine nuts and process until the mixture forms a paste, about 30 seconds. Transfer the mixture to a bowl, stir in the bread crumbs, and season with salt and pepper.

Season both sides of the lamb chops with salt and pepper. Prepare a grill or set a grill pan over high heat. Sear the lamb chops on both sides, about 1 minute per side. Transfer to a baking sheet.

Place a spoonful of pesto in the center of each chop, then spread it evenly over the surface. Sprinkle with additional bread crumbs and drizzle with olive oil. Bake until the crust is golden and crisp and the lamb is pink inside, about 10 minutes. Serve warm.

Serves 6

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Portobello Burgers with Sundried Tomato Aioli


When Dena from Chai & Home contacted me about a collaboration between Jewish bloggers to celebrate summer recipes, I was more than happy to join the team. I love the opportunity to work with and promote other bloggers, especially those that share the same traditions and customs as me. “A Very Jewish Summer Week” has been underway since Monday, with fun and exciting posts ranging from tablescapes to summer camp packages.

You can join in on the fun, by visiting the following blog posts:

Monday: Evoking Childhood Shabbat Memories on YentaMamas
Tuesday: Shabbat Style: Alfresco Orange Tablescape on Chai&Home
Wednesday: Summer Camp Care Packages on MadeByMamaleh
Thursday:  Grilled Portobello Burgers with Sundried Tomato Aioli by ME ;)
Friday: Ceviche & Champagne on Bisstyle. English translation here.

When I thought about what kind of recipe to post as part of a weeklong summerfest, I just knew it had to involve grilling. It doesn’t hurt that my newly purchased grill pan was waiting to be broken into! Well what better way to celebrate “A Very Jewish Summer Week” than with the  quintessential American summer food – burgers. Burgers, especially grilled ones on the BBQ, are a summer staple in our culture. When you think of summer BBQ’s – burgers and hot dogs are the very first things that come to mind. They cook up rather quickly on a hot grill, and paired with some fresh lettuce, tomato and onion, make the perfect summertime meal.

The only problem with featuring an authentic burger on “A Very Jewish Summer Week” is that as an observant Jew who keeps kosher, cheeseburgers are a no-no (we don’t eat milk and meat together). I’ve never been to McDonalds or Burger King, and I’ve never tried a slice of melted cheese on a beef patty.

So what’s a kosher blogger to do? I decided to celebrate both my Jewishness, and the joy of Summer BBQing with something even better. A grilled portobello burger with all the fixings. With the Nine Days (a period of mourning in which observant Jews abstain from eating meat). soon approaching, we’ll be thankful for this delicious vegetarian take on a summer classic!

Now, back why you’re all here. The burger. I decided on a portobello mushroom cheeseburger because thick and meaty portobellos are the perfect stand-in for beef in a vegetarian sandwich. They also lend themselves really well to grilling. To take this vegetarian burger over the top, I topped it off with some sundried tomato aioli, the perfect complement to grilled mushrooms. The addition of mozzarella cheese, beefsteak tomatoes, bitter arugula and red onions leaves nothing behind. One bite of this heavenly sandwich and you’ll forget what meat burgers are all about!

UPDATE 10/2/13: This recipe won 2nd place in The Mushroom Channel’s Swap It or Top It Contest. To watch me make the burger for News 12 Brooklyn, click here.

Grilled Portobello Burgers with Sundried Tomato Aioli

portobello mushrooms
olive oil
salt & pepper, to taste
mozzarella cheese
arugula
beefsteak tomato
red onion
burger bun
sundried tomato aioli, recipe follows

Method:

Heat up your grill pan until it’s nice and hot. Lightly clean the mushrooms and brush with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Grill for approximately 5 minutes per side. While the mushroom is still on the grill, top with slice of mozzarella cheese.

If desired, toast the burger bun on the grill. Top with sundried tomato aioli, arugula, portobello mushroom with cheese, tomato & red onion.

VARIATION: For added flavor, you may marinate the mushrooms for several hours in some Italian dressing, garlic-infused olive oil, or any marinade of your choice.

Sundried Tomato Aioli

1/2 cup mayo
3 sundried tomatoes packed in olive oil
1 tbsp olive oil from sundried tomato jar
1 clove garlic
juice of 1/2 lemon
s&p to taste

Method:

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

1 year ago: kid-friendly dirty rice
2 years ago: easy strawberry shortcake

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Summer Tomato Feta Salad

Believe it or not, I’m not the biggest tomato person. I’ll happily leave them out of my burger, and I never put them in my tuna sandwiches. My husband, on the other hand, is tomato-obsessed. Ask him what he would take to a desert island, and I know without a doubt, that it would be a boat-load of tomatoes. So when it comes to salad-making, you can imagine that we are not always in agreement.

Summer, though, is the exception. There’s just something about summer tomatoes that is so deliciously sweet. Instead of arguing about adding tomatoes to the salad, we end up making tomato-only salads. Using an assortment of tomatoes like red and yellow tomatoes on the vine, or colorful heirloom tomatoes, makes for a beautiful presentation. With summer tomatoes being so juicy and delicious, you really don’t need much to make them sing. A simple drizzle of good quality olive oil and balsamic vinegar is enough to dress them up. Feta adds protein, color, and saltiness, to balance out the tomatoes sweet flavor.

Needless to say, my husband is in LOVE with this salad. I hope you will be too.

Summer Tomato Feta Salad

Red & yellow tomatoes on the vine (or heirloom tomatoes)
Feta cheese
Good quality olive oil
Balsamic vinegar
Kosher salt
Black pepper, optional
Chopped parsley, for garnish

Method: Slice the tomatoes, about 1/4″ thick. Lay the tomatoes on a platter, alternating between red and yellow. Sprinkle the feta cheese over the tomatoes. Drizzle with olive oil and balsamic vinegar and season with kosher salt. Garnish with parsley.

1 year ago: picture perfect teacher’s gift
2 years ago: Asian bigger bowl soup

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3-Cheese Broccoli Pull-Apart Buns

I’m on a serious broccoli-cheddar kick right now, and every time I go to the pizza store, I find myself ordering a broccoli calzone. Or, at the very least, a broccoli pizza. There’s just something about broccoli and cheese that go together like cookies and cream, peanut butter and jelly or spaghetti and meatballs.

Now, I’m no baker, so the thought of making individual calzones is just too much for me. But after I made these amazing cinnamon buns (from scratch!) recently, I felt inspired to try a savory version. Using store-bought pizza dough made it all-the-more simple (thanks, Trader Joes!).

Making broccoli calzones into pull-apart buns, not only saves you on calories (if you can stick to eating just one!), it’s also cheesier, gooier and especially, prettier. Serve this up at a lunch with friends for some serious wow-factor!

If you’re not a broccoli person (what’s wrong with you?) then serve these up with the vegetables of your choice. Think olives, roasted veggies, caramelized onions, or whatever pizza toppings you wish! You can go also go crazy with the cheese varieties, using feta (feta and olives sounds great!), brie (how about some brie and figs!), or goat cheese (with pesto and sundried tomatoes, mmm…) Oh, the possibilities!

3-Cheese Broccoli Calzone Buns

1 lb. store-bought pizza dough (I use Trader Joe’s)
1 10oz. package frozen chopped broccoli, cooked and drained
1 cup ricotta cheese
1-2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1-2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
parmesan or garlic powder, for topping (optional)
marinara sauce, for dipping

Method:

On a lightly floured surface, roll out pizza dough into a large rectangle. Spread ricotta cheese over dough. Top with chopped broccolli, shredded cheddar and mozzarella cheeses. Starting from the shorter side, roll the dough up tightly. Cut the roll into 7 slices and place in a lightly greased 9″ round pan. Sprinkle the buns with parmesan cheese or garlic powder (optional) and bake at 350 degrees until dough is puffed and cheese is bubbly and starting to brown.

1 year ago: DIY teacher’s gift
2 years ago: fast food, lightened up

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