Tropical Fruit Smoothie

Technically it’s only been about a week and a half since my last post, but somehow it feels like an eternity. Thankfully, the weather has FINALLY turned around here in Brooklyn, and the sun is starting to peak through the clouds. With the warm weather making it’s entrance, it’s time to lighten up our menu’s and keep things simple and healthy before summer comes around. Smoothie’s are a great start!

Most of the time, I tend to skip breakfast altogether as I don’t have much of an appetite in the morning. With smoothies being ice cold and refreshing, I’m able to get in some nutrients without feeling like I’m filling up too much. This tropical fruit smoothie is one of my favorite blends. It’s just so refreshing!

Some of my other favorite smoothie combinations include:

banana+dates+almond milk + honey
persismmon + yogurt + cinnamon/nutmeg + honey
peaches+oatmeal+vanilla+milk+agave
avocado+raspberries+pomegranate juice
kale+kiwi+banana+orange juice

What are some of your favorites? Share them with me in the comments below!

Tropical Fruit Smoothie

1 large ripe banana
8 strawberries
1/2 cup canned pineapple*
1/2 cup coconut milk
pineapple juice, for consistency

Method:

Add banana, strawberries, pineapple and coconut milk to a blender and puree until smooth. If mixture is too thick, add pineapple juice (from the canned pineapple) until you reach desired consistency.

*Look for canned pineapple in 100% pineapple juice instead of a sweetened syrup.

TIP: Instead of adding ice cubes (which water down your smoothie), use prefrozen leftover bananas or frozen strawberries instead.


1 year ago: pepper steak with plum sauce
2 years ago: sesame linguini with marinated chicken breast

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Rainbow Pommes Anna


The more I’ve been reading through Passover recipe books and surfing through recipes online, I realize just how strict my family’s customs are. On Pesach, we are truly down to the bare basics, using only vegetables that can be peeled and seasoning them simply with oil and salt. We don’t use herbs, spices or any processed ingredients like Kosher for Passover ketchup, brown sugar or sauces. My mom even makes simple syrup to use in place of sugar to sweeten dishes. Matza meal, of course, is out of the question, as we do no eat Gebroks (matza that has absorbed liquid).

Due to our stringent dietary restrictions on Pesach, we tend to make simpler, wholesome dishes that don’t require a lot of ingredients. Basics like mock chopped liver, chremslach, beet salad and orange chicken are staples in our home. When I thought about classic dishes I could reinvent for Passover, I took inspiration from Pommes Anna (also called Anna potatoes), a French dish of sliced, layered potatoes that are minimally seasoned with salt and pepper and brushed liberally with butter. Using traditional Passover ingredients of beets, sweet potatoes and russet potatoes creates a stunning rainbow effect and lends a touch of sweetness to the potato cake.

Rainbow Pommes Anna

2 russet potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
2 sweet potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
2 red beets, peeled and thinly sliced
oil, shmaltz, or duck fat
kosher salt, to taste
black pepper, to taste (optional)

Method:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Brush a 9″ round baking dish generously with oil and arrange potatoes and beets in layers, overlapping them slightly. When you complete each layer, brush it with oil and season with salt and pepper. Cover the vegetables with a sheet of greased parchment paper and place a heavy dish or skillet on top of it. Bake for approximately 30 minutes until vegetables are fork-tender. Uncover the vegetables and bake for an additional 15-20 minutes until the edges are browned and crispy.

To serve, you may cut slices directly from the baking dish, or, run a knife around the potato cake to release around the edges and flip over onto a platter.

VARIATION: Add additional seasonings according to your Passover customs, such as fresh rosemary, thyme, caraway seeds, smoked paprika, minced garlic and/or sauteed onions.

1 year ago: sweet pepper burgers
2 years ago: quick & easy shakshuka

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Chicken Pot Pie Passover Croquettes


Growing up, my mom would often prepare chremslach on Passover whenever there were leftover mashed potatoes. Some people refer to chremslach as matza fritters, but in our house, mashed potatoes were the ingredient of choice. They were held together with some egg, dipped in potato starch and fried. Nothing fancy, just another use for potatoes and a simple side for yet another meal.

I decided to spruce up my mom’s basic recipe with some leftover chicken, carrots and onions, for a take on chicken pot pie. If you eat kitniyot, peas would be the perfect addition! The patties are dredged in ground nuts for a crunchy Passover coating. Serve with a side of homemade ketchup, marinara or garlic aioli.

Chicken Pot Pie Passover Croquettes

2 cups leftover mashed potatoes
1 cup shredded leftover chicken
1/2 cup onions, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced (optional)
1/2 cup carrots, diced and blanched
1 tbsp oil
1 egg
salt and pepper, to taste

For coating:

1/4 cup potato starch
1 egg
1/2 cup ground nuts, such as almonds
salt and pepper, to taste
oil or shmaltz, for frying

Method:

In a pan, saute the onion in oil until translucent. Add carrots and garlic (optional) and continue to saute until golden. In a bowl, combine the potatoes, chicken, sauteed veggies, and egg. Season with salt and pepper (see note for additional seasoning).

Set up a dredging station with separate containers for potato starch, egg and ground nuts. Season with a little salt and pepper. Shape croquettes and dredge into potato starch, then egg, and finish with ground nuts. Fry the croquettes in shmaltz or oil until golden brown on both sides.

Yields: approximately 14 croquettes.

NOTE: You may add additional herbs and/or spices according to your Passover customs, such as chopped thyme, rosemary or parsley.

KITNIYOT OPTION: Add peas or corn. Dredge in matza meal instead of ground nuts.

VARIATION: Prepare patties (as pictured below) by lightly dredging in potato starch and frying.

1 year ago: homemade raspberry sorbet
2 years ago: roasted beet & orange salad

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Nut Omelette

This is going to sound pretty ridiculous considering all the things I learned to make in culinary school, but the humble omelette is what really got me. It wasn’t so much the technique as much as flipping the thing. A well-made omelette is fluffy and moist, so when you’re ready to flip, it’s a jiggly mess. I can’t tell you how many omelettes I went through (actually I can, it was 5) until I was able to flip one properly on omelette day.

You can’t begin to imagine what the kitchen looked like after Hurricane Omelette came through. Even Chef Wiseman’s shoes were covered in scrambled eggs. The stovetop was a complete disaster, with bits and pieces of sticky eggs stuck to every crevice. And guess which lucky individual was assigned to clean it all? That would be ME. Miss-goofed-up-with-5-omelettes-till-she-got-it-right.
Nisht gut.

I was determined to get that flipping action down, so for the next couple of days, my husband woke up to a fluffy 3-egg omelette for breakfast, and my kids got their choice of quesadillas for dinner. I was flippin’ paper clips, candy, and yes, I was flipping myself…out.

By the time our practical test came at the end of the semester, my omelette was spot on. I flipped it on the first try. Couldn’t be better. I wish you could have seen the smile on my face when I put that fluffy omelette on the plate. Priceless.

But I’ll share a little secret with you all. I’m not above another omelette flipping disaster. When I went to flip the dessert omelette in the photo, the yolk splattered all over me. I was covered in Passover nut omelette batter.
Nisht gut.

So now that I’ve shared my omelette hall of shame, I’d be happy to share some secrets to making the perfect fluffy American omelette (French omelettes are creamier and are not browned or flipped).

#1 Add a splash of milk to your eggs and season with salt and pepper.
#2 Whisk the mixture well to incorporate some air into the batter.
#3 Make sure your nonstick pan is greased and hot so you get a nice brown finish on the egg.
#4 As soon as your batter hits the pan, stir with a spatula from the inside out and quickly scrape down the sides. Repeat several times until the omelette is beginning to set.
#5 Sneak some butter or oil under the edge of the omelette and shake the pan to see if the omelette can slide. If not, add a bit more fat and test again. Once you are sure the omelette can slide on the pan, you’re ready to flip.
#6. Slide the omelette towards the sloped end of the pan and FLIP. Try not to get egg batter all over your face.
#7 This is where you would add your fillings of choice.
#8 Fold the omelette by one third, starting from the right side.
#9 Turn the pan towards you [like how someone might stab themselves (thanks to The Wise Man for that awful metaphor!)] and flip the pan over onto a plate, so that it sits seam-side-down.
#10 Garnish with fresh herbs or your garnish of choice.

The process sounds long, but it shouldn’t take more than 1 1/2-2 minutes total, from start to finish.

Now that I’ve given you some tips on making the perfect omelette, lets talk a little bit about nut omelettes. Huh? Yes, I said nut omelettes. Why would anyone want to eat a sweet omelette? Well, they might be on a strict no-carb diet. Or, it might be Passover, and they might not be fond of eating chocolate cake made out of potato starch for breakfast.

When I was growing up, my mom would scramble up this sweet nut omelette batter for us whenever we felt sick of the heavy Pesach food (which was pretty often). Last year, I even managed to convince my toddler that they were pancakes (she hates eggs!) and she gobbled them down.

So before you make a face at having a sweet omelette for breakfast, just imagine that you’re almost having a crepe – only fluffier. And you get to skip all the crepe-making. Which is a lot harder than it looks BTW. I should know, I went through a LOT of them on breakfast day.
Nisht gut.

For more Passover dessert ideas, check out the Kosher Connection Link-Up below!

Nut Omelette

3 eggs
2 tbsp milk (use almond milk for nondairy, or omit if you must)
1/4 cup ground walnuts (or your nut of choice)
1 tbsp sugar
pinch of salt
raspberry jam (or your favorite jam), optional, for filling
fresh fruit, optional, for garnish

Method:

Whisk together the eggs, milk, nuts, sugar and salt until fluffy. Pour dessert omelette batter into a hot nonstick frying pan that’s been greased. Working quickly, continuously stir the eggs, scraping down the sides as you go. When the eggs looks like they’re starting to set, shake the pan to see if the omelette can slide around. If it’s stuck, sneak some butter or oil underneath, going all around the edges until it’s able to slide easily. Slide the omelette towards to sloped edge of the pan and flip it over. If desired, spread some jam in the center of the omelette and fold it in thirds. Roll it on to a plate, seam side down. Garnish with fresh fruit.

1 year ago: tater tot chicken nuggets
2 years ago: orange chicken

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Passover Made Easy Cookbook Review & Giveaway

There is so much I love about this cookbook that I don’t quite know where to start! So I’ll start at the beginning.

When you first set your eyes on Passover Made Easy, you’ll be struck by it’s beautiful design and styling. Rachel Adler did an impressive job laying out this cookbook with brilliant coloring, masterful layout, and gorgeous typography. I am literally blown away.

Aside from the graphics, the photographs and styling are also impeccable. As a blogger who photographs and styles her dishes, I can tell you firsthand that many, if not most, of the dishes in this cookbook are extremely difficult to photograph. And so many Pesach recipes lack eye-appeal. But not only have the dishes been masterfully plated, the authors also include many step-by-step plating guides to help you serve the dishes as beautifully as they are pictured.

Passover Made Easy is the brainchild of an unlikely pairing – Leah Schapira, the author of Fresh & Easy Kosher Cooking and co-founder of CookKosher.com, as well as Victoria Dwek, the managing editor of Whisk Magazine. Leah is Ashkenazi, with Hungarian roots, while Victoria is Sephardi, with Syrian roots. How an Ashkenazi and a Sephardi came together to write a successful Passover cookbook is nothing short of a Pesach miracle. Leah and Victoria each offer their own unique perspective, striking the perfect balance of grebroks and non-gebroks recipes. The authors guide you along page after page in a playful and friendly manner. You almost feel as if you’re hanging out with them in the kitchen. Victoria shares her recipes for Syrian Charoset, tortillas, Matzaroni and Cheese, as well as many non-grebroks dishes. Leah offers up unique and tasty dishes like Meatballs in Blueberry Sauce, Roasted Tomato & Eggplant Soup, Apple-Jam Chicken Drumettes, and so much more.

Some of the other features that I enjoyed from this cookbook are the wine pairings and building block recipes like mayo, crepes, and Passover crumbs. There is also a nifty replacement index that helps guide those who avoid using processed ingredients and peels on Pesach. While the guide is helpful, I wish there were a few more recipes suited for the more stringent among us (me included!)

While I am unable to make most of these recipes on Passover, I look forward to trying many recipes throughout the year including the Mock Techineh (for my brother who is allergic to sesame seeds!), Butternut Squash Salad with Sugar ‘n Spice Nuts, Braised Short Ribs, Jalapeno-Lime & Ginger Salmon, Stuffed Onions, Vegetable Lo Mein (for my dieting days!), Espresso Macaroons with Chocolate-Hazelnut Cream, and Truffled Grapes.

Busy In Brooklyn is giving a copy of Passover Made Easy! To enter the giveaway, you must:

1. Share you favorite Passover memory in the comments below.
2. Like Busy In Brooklyn on Facebook.

Winner will be chosen at random on Monday, March 18th, 9:00 AM.

BONUS RECIPES FROM PASSOVER MADE EASY:

Eggplant Wrapped Chicken

Ingredients:

Eggplant
1 tall eggplant
1/2 cup oil
1/4 tsp salt
pinch coarse black pepper

Meat Mixture
3 tbsp oil
1 onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 lb. ground meat
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp garlic powder

Chicken
6 boneless skinless chicken thighs
1/4 tsp salt
pinch coarse black pepper

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to broil. Grease a baking sheet. Cut eggplants lengthwise, 1/4″ thick to get 6 or 7 slices. Reserve remaining eggplant scraps. Place eggplant slices on prepared baking sheet. Brush slices with oil and season with salt and pepper. Broil 5 minutes per side, until second side is beginning to brown. The slices should appear as if they were fried. Remove and set aside.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
3. Peel and finely dice remaining eggplant to obtain 1/2 cup diced eggplant. Heat oil a in a saute pan over medium heat. Add onion, garlic and diced eggplant and saute until soft, about 5-7 minutes.
4. In a small bowl, combine onion mixture with ground meat. Season with salt and garlic powder.
5. Season chicken thighs with salt and pepper Place a tabslepoon of the meat mixture into each thigh and roll up to lose. Roll a eggplant slice around each stuffed chicken thigh. Place, seam side down and close together, in a baking pan. Cover and bake for 2 1/2 hours.

 


Homemade Mayonnaise

Ingredients:

3 garlic cloves or 1/4 onion
juice of 1 1/2 lemons
2 eggs
1/2 tsp salt
1 pinch black pepper
3 cups oil

Instructions:

1. In a bowl of a food processor or in a blender, blend garlic, lemon juice and eggs.
2. With the machine running, slowly pour in the oil in a thin stream.
3. Blend until thoroughly combined and mayonnaise is emulsified. Do no over-mix. When the mayonnaise is thick and holds together, it’s done. Store in refrigerator for up to one week.

The immersion blender method:

Add oil to a tall jar (you can use the one that comes with the blender). Add garlic, lemon juice, eggs, salt and pepper. Insert the immersion blender and blend, without moving the blender, for 2 minutes. When the mixture begins to thicken, move the immersion blender up and down until mayonnaise is emulsified.

 

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