Category: Recipes

DIY Glitter Mustache Glasses

I’m just gaga for mustache crafts, I admit it! They’re just so. darn. cute. You might have seen my mustache straws or my crocheted coffee cup mustache cozy, other mustache crafts I adore.

Purim is the perfect time to celebrate with mustache mania. The holiday is all about dress up and diguises, so why not dress up your tablescape with these adorable mustache glasses? I love to use different shape glasses for visual impact, but feel free to do these on shot glasses or even disposable martini ones!

There are so many options and variations when it comes to a craft like this, so go with your style and dress these glasses up however you like! Colorful sharpies work (as a temporary option, they’ll wash off with soap and water), colorful glitter adds a fun touch or use the template to create photo props or mustache straws.

I have to give a shout out to the talented Abbey Wolin of Not2Shabbey. She gave me the brilliant idea of taping the template to the inside of the glass – how smart is that? No need to cut out the mustache or create a stencil, simply trace through the glass!

For more fun glitter projects, check out the gorgeous glitter wine bottle centerpieces we decorated at the JCreate Magazine Blogger Purim Party!

DIY Glitter Mustache Glasses

What you’ll need:

Assorted glass cups
Martha Stewart glass paint
Glitter
Mustache template
Scissors
Tape

How To:

Wash your cups and dry completely. Cut out the mustache design of your choice (you don’t need to cut out the whole shape – you’ll just be using it as a stencil to trace from). Tape the mustache template onto the inside of the glass, towards the top. Trace the mustache with the glass paint and fill it in with the paint completely. Sprinkle the glitter over the paint (I prefer to do this over a garbage can) and set aside to dry. Do not shake off the excess glitter!

Once the paint has completely dried (preferably overnight), gently remove the excess glitter with a dry cloth. Do not wash the glasses for a few days so the paint and glitter have time to fully set. Wash gently with mild soap and water, taking care not to scrape the glitter.

NOTE: For long term care, it is best to cure the paint by air curing for 21 days OR baking in an oven for 30 minutes (if oven safe) at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. You can read more about that here.

VARIATIONS: Use different color paint and glitter for a fun & colorful look.

DISPOSABLE OPTION: Use disposable plastic martini glasses and trace the mustaches with elmers glue (using the screw on cap). Top with glitter and throw away after the party. You can even have everyone make their own as an activity! For a quick and easy disposable option – forget the mess and use colorful sharpies!

OTHER MUSTACHE IDEAS: tape the mustaches to craft dowels and use as a fun photo prop or glue them to bendy straws.

Other Mustache Crafts:

mustache straws
crocheted coffee cup mustache cozy

Cocktail Recipes:

The Hamantini
whiskey cider
3 layer chocolate cake martini
Sangria

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Date & Almond Hamantaschen

You know Purim is coming around when the blogosphere is overflowing with creative hamantasch recipes. It almost feels as if no-one makes classic hamantaschen anymore! The funny thing is, I’ll make just about any triangular-shaped-cookie-concoction besides classic hamantaschen. I’ve heard way too many disaster stories of the corners splitting open and jam spilling all over the place.

Call me a hypocrite but if I want good old-fashioned hamantaschen, I reach for the highly-processed Reisman’s variety. I mean, if I’m gonna eat a hamantasch, I might as well eat. a. hamantasch. Right?

But if I’m eating a different kind of hamantasch, well then I might as well go crazy, right? And by crazy I mean whipping up some sushi hamantaschen, baklava hamantaschen, or a trio of savory puff pastry hamantaschen.

Believe me, I’ve been dreaming up some crazy hamantaschen ideas all year long! But as we got closer to Purim, I couldn’t imagine breaking the momentum of my diet for some 3-cornered cookies. Instead, I challenged myself to come up with a healthy hamantasch for a change. And by healthy, I don’t mean spelt, or whole wheat, or even sugar-free. I’m talking no-flour, no-baking, no-dough or jam of any kind!

My first thought was to create a raw hamantasch using dates to create a cookie “dough”. I went to my local produce market to pick up some medjool dates and there was my inspiration – marzipan stuffed dates! Brilliant!

I got right to work creating my healthy no-bake hamantaschen. It’s amazing how something with such few natural ingredients can come out so spectacular! Not only do the raw hamantaschen resemble a real cookie, they taste incredible too, all without the guilt.

The best part about making these cookies is choosing what to roll them in. While coconut, pistachios and cocoa keep things healthy, you can up the fun-factor with some nonpareils or colorful sprinkles. Don’t worry, my lips are sealed. We’ll call it our Purim secret ;)

Date & Almond Hamantaschen

10 oz pitted medjool dates (approximately 1 cup, condensed)
1/2 cup almonds
1 tbsp cocoa powder
1 tsp cinnamon
pinch of sea salt
2 oz almond paste (canned or use recipe below)
cocoa powder, coconut & ground pistachios, for rolling

Method:

Add dates, almonds, cocoa powder, cinnamon and sea salt to a food processor and process until the mixture starts to clump together and pulls away from the side of the bowl. If it doesn’t form a ball of dough, add a bit more nuts.

Line a baking sheet with plastic wrap and place the date mixture on it. Cover the mixture with another sheet of plastic wrap, wrapping it around the bottom of the tray so that it’s secure. Using a rolling pin, roll out the “dough” from on top of the plastic wrap until it is about 1/8″ thick. Remove the top layer of plastic wrap and cut the dough into circles using a cookie or biscuit cutter. Collect the scraps and roll them out as above to create more circles.

Roll the almond paste into teaspoon-sized balls and place in the center of the cookies. Fold the cookies over the almond paste from each side and pinch lightly at the corners to create a triangle. Roll the hamantaschen in cocoa powder, coconut and/or ground pistachios.

Serve immediately or refrigerate for up to one month. May also be frozen for up to six months.

YIELD: approximately 18 hamantaschen.

Homemade Almond Paste (Egg-Free)

1 1/2 cups blanched almonds
1 1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 1/2 tbsp water
1 tsp almond extract
pinch of salt

Method:

Add the almonds and sugar to a food processor and process until the almonds are finely ground (stop to scrape the sides of the bowl, if needed). Add remaining ingredients and blend until the mixture forms into a dough and pulls away from the side of the bowl.

Wrap the almond paste tightly in plastic wrap and store in a ziploc bag. Can be refrigerated for up to 3 months or frozen for up to 6 months.

YIELD: approximately 12 oz. or 1 1/2 cups.

Other hamantasch recipes:

trio of savory puff pastry hamantaschen
sushi hamantaschen
baklava hamantaschen
“The Hamantini” Purim cocktail

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Brie Marsala Pizza

It’s a funny thing about brie. I’m really not a stinky cheese kind of person. I won’t go near bleu cheese with a ten food pole. Not even if you paid me. But brie, now that sort of moldy cheese, I like!

Brie is a soft cow’s milk cheese named after the French region from which it originated. It is pale in color with a slight grayish tinge under a rind of edible white mold. The thing about the mold is – it doesn’t taste moldy. And it definitely doesn’t stink.

Inside that rind, you’ll find the creamiest pale yellow cheese that is spectacular with jam, amazing in puff pastry, and unbelievable with wine.

Since wine pairs so wonderfully with the rich and fruity notes in brie, I decided to create a pizza with a classic Marsala sauce and Natural & Kosher Cheese’s wheel of soft ripened brie. It would work equally well with their camembert.

With sweet fruity marsala, fragrant rosemary and rich brie, this pizza is a mushroom lover’s dream! Thyme or wild mushrooms make another great option!

Brie Marsala Pizza

1 lb. store-bought pizza dough (I use Trader Joe’s)
1/2 wheel brie
1 8 oz pkg button mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
1 lg shallot, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
salt & pepper, to taste
1 cup marsala wine
1/2 cup vegetable stock
1 sprig rosemary plus more for garnish

Method:

Heat the butter and oil in a pan and saute the shallot and garlic until fragrant. Add mushrooms and saute until the liquid evaporates. Season with salt & pepper. Deglaze the pan with Marsala wine and simmer until reduced by half. Add the stock and rosemary and continue to simmer until reduced and thickened, about 5 minutes.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the pizza dough to a 12″ diameter circle and top with mushrooms, and brie. Garnish with rosemary. Bake until cheese is bubbly and the pizza dough is crisp and golden, about 15-20 minutes.


This post was sponsored by Natural & Kosher Cheese. Follow them on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, YouTube, Google+, or via their Blog
Related Recipes:
dried fruit brie bites

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Chickpea Cakes with Za’atar Cauliflower Relish

If you follow my blog, you probably already know about my passion for Israeli fare. From cumin to za’atar and roasted eggplant to chickpeas – you’ll find loads of Middle Eastern-inspired recipes here on BIB. I’ve been growing my collection of Middle Eastern cookbooks as well, with Balaboosta just recently added to books like Plenty, Jerusalem, Cook in Israel, The Book of New Israeli Food, and more.

In this delicious appetizer, I’ve created a chickpea cake, in a preparation similar to polenta, using garbanzo flour. Such cakes are popularly served in Northern Italy (where it’s called panisse) as well as the South of France (where it’s called panelle). They are often cut into sticks and fried to resemble french fries.

For the topping, I went with a delicious combination of za’atar roasted cauliflower with caramelized onions, prunes and toasted pine nuts. The result is a delicious combination of Middle Eastern flavors – the perfect recipe to guest post on Yosef Silver’s blog, This American Bite. You may remember it from The Great Blog Swap Link-Up where I created a recipe for grilled corn with za’atar garlic butter, inspired by his recipe for garlic, za’atar & olive oil stovetop popcorn.

For the recipe, head on over to This American Bite.

1 year ago: teriyaki salmon
2 years ago: stuffed roasted butternut squash
3 years ago: quick & easy chocolate rugelach

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Grape Nut Coconut Crunch Cookies

As a kid growing up in a small community, my friends and I would make our rounds early Purim morning, skipping excitedly down Kingston Avenue, our bags overflowing with shalach manos. There was always someone who delivered a bottle of chocolate milk and a danish, or better yet, some milk and cookies. Taffy and candies weren’t my thing, but cookies? Cookies were special. I’d rip open the shiny cellophane and dig right in to the perfect Purim breakfast.

Cookies have always been one of my favorite things. I love them chewy, but also crunchy, and sweet but also salty. How is that possible? Well, if you try these Grape Nut coconut crunch cookies, you’ll understand. The coconut flakes add chewiness while the Grape Nuts complement with just the right amount of crunch. They bake up into these perfect little mounds that are oh-so-pretty and perfect for a milk and cookies breakfast come Purim morning. And if you’ve got some friends down the block, I’m sure they’d appreciate a batch wrapped in cellophane, with a cold bottle of milk.

Grape Nut Coconut Crunch Cookies

1 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup solidified coconut oil, softened
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups lightly packed sweetened flaked coconut
1/2 cup Grape Nuts Original cereal
1/3 cup mini chocolate chips

Method:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt in a bowl and stir with a whisk. In a separate bowl, beat the sugars, egg, coconut oil and vanilla until creamy. Stir in flour and mix. Add remaining ingredients and stir to combine. Place tablespoons of batter (you make need to press the mixture together if it’s slightly crumbly) onto a cookie sheet and bake for 10 minutes. Cool completely before serving.

 

Other cookie recipes:

oatmeal cookies
pecan lace cookies
gingerbread cookies
s’mores cookies
chocolate crinkle cookies
classic sugar cookies
cowboy cookies

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