Easy Crochet Apple Trivet

When I imagine getting old, I like to think of myself sitting on a rocking chair on a porch somewhere, crocheting. It doesnt have to be for oldies though. In fact, I think crocheting keeps me young. There’s something about sitting down with a ball of yarn that I find so peaceful and relaxing. It really helps me unwind. When I have some free time, especially in the summer months, I love to whip up quick and easy crochet projects in the cool summer breeze.

I recently purchased these cork trivets at Ikea. Trivets really come in handy, especially when cooking for Shabbos. At $2.99 for a 3-pack, they were really a steal and I just couldn’t pass them up. They were not too exciting as far as looks go, so I decided to crochet some fun designs around them.

Since they are made of cork, you can use these for your hot pots, or as little bulletin boards in your kids room!

Front of Apple:

Using red yarn,

Rnd 1: Ch 4, 12 hdc in the 4th ch from hook (12 hdc)
Rnd 2: ch2, 2 hdc in each hdc around, sl st to ch-2 sp (24 hdc)
Rnd 3: ch2 [hdc in next st, 2 hdc in next st] around, sl st to ch-2 sp (36 hdc)
Rnd 4: ch2 [hdc in next 2 sts, 2 hdc in next st] around, sl st to ch-2 sp (48 hdc)
Rnd 5: ch2 [hdc in next 3 sts, 2 hdc in next st] around, sl st to ch-2 sp (60 hdc)
Rnd 6: ch2 [Hdc in next 4 sts, 2 hdc in next st] around, sl st to ch-2 sp (72 hdc)
Rnd 7: ch2 [Hdc in next 5 sts, 2 hdc in next st] around, sl st to ch-2 sp (84 hdc)
Rnd 8: ch2 [Hdc in next 6 sts, 2 hdc in next st] around, sl st to ch-2 sp (96 hdc)

Back of Apple:

Using white yarn,

Rnd 1: Ch 4, 12 hdc in the 4th ch from hook (12 hdc)
Rnd 2: ch2, 2 hdc in each hdc around, sl st to ch-2 sp (24 hdc)
Rnd 3: ch2 [hdc in next st, 2 hdc in next st] around, sl st to ch-2 sp (36 hdc)
Rnd 4: ch2 [hdc in next 2 sts, 2 hdc in next st] around, sl st to ch-2 sp (48 hdc)
Rnd 5: ch2 [hdc in next 3 sts, 2 hdc in next st] around, sl st to ch-2 sp (60 hdc)
Rnd 6: ch2 [Hdc in next 4 sts, 2 hdc in next st] around, sl st to ch-2 sp (72 hdc)

switch to red yarn,

Rnd 7: ch2 [Hdc in next 5 sts, 2 hdc in next st] around, sl st to ch-2 sp (84 hdc)
Rnd 8: ch2 [Hdc in next 6 sts, 2 hdc in next st] around, sl st to ch-2 sp (96 hdc)

Sew front and back of apple together around the trivet by sewing in and out of parallel stitches around.

For branch:

using brown yarn,

ch10, sc in each ch from hook.

For leaf:

using green yarn,
ch8, sc in 2nd ch from hook. hdc, dc, tr, dc, hdc, sc. ch3. working down the other side, sc, hdc, dc, tr, dc, hdc, sc. sl st all around leaf to finish.

sew or glue branch and leave to front of apple.

For seeds:

using black yarn, sew 3 loops around 2 hdc’s on each side of your circle.

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Blueberry Corn Pancakes


There’s nothing better on a Sunday morning than good old pancakes. OK maybe just one thing: corn cakes. If you like corn bread, like I do, you’ll love these. Blueberries add moisture, tartness and a burst of flavor.

If you want to make the most of summer’s bounty, feel free to add fresh corn into the batter and use the blueberries to make fresh blueberry syrup (easy recipe included below).

Blueberry Corn Pancakes

1/2 c cornmeal
1/2 c flour
1 tbsp baking powder
2 tbsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 c milk
1 egg
2 tbsp melted butter or oil
1 heaping cup fresh blueberries
oil or butter, for frying
maple syrup, for serving

Method:

Combine cornmeal, flour, baking powder, sugar and salt. In a separate bowl, mix milk, egg and butter. Stir wet mixture into dry, mixing until just incorporated. Add blueberries. Do not overmix, batter should be slightly lumpy. Grease griddle or skillet and heat up. Spoon heaping tablespoons of batter onto the griddle. When browned, flip and crisp on other side. Continue with the rest of the batter. Serve with syrup.

Easy Blueberry Syrup

1 cup blueberries
1/2 c sugar
1/3 c water

Method:

Combine blueberries, sugar and water in a pot and bring to a boil. Crush blueberries with the back of a spoon and simmer until thickened, about 15 minutes.

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Sushi Salad II


Google Analytics is a fascinating tool. It allows you to track who visited your website, how they found it and what they looked at, among other things. When I have time, I like to research how people came to Busy in Brooklyn, and which recipes are the most popular. Ever since starting my blog in February, the all-time most popular post is this sushi salad. Being such a crowd-pleasing recipe, I figured it was about time to try another variation. Now I am beginning to understand why just about every kosher pizza shop, restaurant (be it meat or dairy) and supermarket is carrying sushi! I thought the fad might pass at some point, but I think I can rest assured that it is here to stay!

I love making sushi salad because it takes all the hassle out of hand rolling the sushi, but it offers the same taste and texture with minimal effort. It is also visually appealing. For a beautiful presentation, choose vegetables with vibrant colors. I recently made a similar recipe to this one, using shredded carrots in place of the edamame. The bright orange carrots with the green cucumbers and vibrant pink radishes looked picture-perfect. Feel free to try whatever vegetables suit your taste. You can also add mock crab, flaked salmon, lox and/or pickled ginger.

NOTE: Edamame are soybeans that come in a pod. They are commonly served in Japanese restaurants with a dusting of sea salt. Edamame are tasty, fun to eat, and good for you. When served in their pods, just squeeze the beans out and they’ll easily pop. I like to buy them already hulled. They can be found in the freezer section of most supermarkets.

Sushi Salad II

2 cups sushi rice
3 cups water
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp rice vinegar
2 sheets nori
1-2 cups frozen edamame, thawed
3 Persian cucumbers, peeled and diced into tiny pieces
4-6 radishes, diced into tiny pieces
2 scallions, thinly sliced
black sesame seeds

Dressing:

1/4 c extra light olive oil
1/4 c soy sauce
2 tbsp seasoned rice vinegar
1 heaping tbsp Gold’s wasabi sauce
1 tbsp sugar

Method:

Rinse the sushi rice until water runs clear. Soak rice in 3 cups of water for 30 minutes. Add 1 tsp salt. Bring to a boil. Stir once. Cover with lid. Reduce heat to simmer and cook 20 minutes. Remove from heat. Let stand in covered pot for 10 minutes. Pour 2 tablespoons rice vinegar over rice and mix. Put into a Ziploc bag and refrigerate, or use immediately (when it comes to room temperature).

For the nori, with tongs, hold a sheet of nori over a low flame, moving it slowly over the flame to toast it. Be careful not to hold it too close or it will burn. Tear the nori into bite size pieces.

To plate, spread the rice out on a large platter. Top with nori. Sprinkle edamame, cucumbers, radishes, and garnish with scallions and a sprinkle of black sesame seeds. Mix the dressing ingredients and pour over salad.

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Peanut Chicken Curry


My sister Sara opened my eyes to Indian food with this chicken recipe. I never imagined peanut butter and chicken would make a good combination, but she urged me to try it, and I’m so glad I did. Now I’ve broadened my horizons and have taken to experimenting with Indian spices like garam masala, chicken curries, coconut rice, and more.

I wasn’t quite sure if my kids would take to this recipe. One of my daughters loves peanut butter, so once I elaborated on the peanut-butteriness of the dish, she was willing to give it a go. The younger one is willing to try anything new, and thankfully, both of them absolutely loved it. So if your kid loves peanut butter, just tell them you’re making extra special “peanut butter chicken” and they’ll be singing your praises around the dinner table.

Peanut Chicken Curry

1 onion, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp curry powder
1 pkg chicken breasts, cut into small chunks
3 tbsp honey
3 tbsp soy sauce
1/2 cup crunchy peanut butter
1/2 cup water
Basmati rice, for serving
scallions, diced, for garnish

Method:

Saute onion and garlic in a bit of oil until translucent. Add curry powder and continue to saute until fragrant. Add chicken and stir over medium heat until no longer pink. Add remaining ingredients, mixing well to incorporate. Cook, stirring until sauce thickens, about 10 minutes.

Serve over basmati rice and garnish with scallions.

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Grilled Chickpea Burgers


First of all, I’m happy to say that we are back in business. My very talented husband was able to recover most of the stuff off my faulty hard drive and I’ve learned a few important things along the way.

#1 Back up your stuff on an external hard drive or through dropbox.
#2 Don’t put too many pictures in one folder. Sort folders by date or topics.
#3 If you use windows, defragment and run a disc cleanup on your hard drive every month. You can do so by right clicking on your hard drive and clicking properties. Disc cleanup can be found under the general tab. Defrag can be found under the tools tab.
#4 If you like to surf the web for recipes like I do, chances are you have malware/spyware on your computer. Run software like Malware bytes weekly to get rid of all the junk that slows down your computer.

And now back to our scheduled programming…food! :)

I’m sure most of you are warming up the grill for a nice BBQ over this long holiday weekend. Hot dogs and burgers are the usual fare, but I’ve got something healthy, light, vegetarian, and positively delicious. Last week, my husband rounded the kids up for a trip to Costco on Erev Shabbos, while I put the finishing touches on our Shabbos menu. He returned with the usual fare – napkins, tissues, some produce and an extra special gift – an assortment of food magazines. In lieu of flowers that week, we drooled over tantalizing photos of delicious recipes I promised to make. From all the magazines (granted not the best selection at Costo), “Fine Cooking” stood out with the most delicious recipes, including a feature on “Going Meatless on the Grill”. I knew I had to try the Grilled Chickpea Burgers, so I heated up the BBQ on Sunday afternoon and got grilling!

If you like falafel, you’ll love these flavorful patties. Serve with coleslaw, Israeli salad, or sliced cucumbers and tomatoes. Charif, chumus and techina round out your meal, for the perfect meatless BBQ.

Happy Grilling!

Grilled Chickpea Burgers
Fine Cooking, June-July 2011

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil; more for brushing
4 medium cloves garlic, sliced
2 tsp ground cumin
2 whole wheat pitas
2 15.5-oz. cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2 tbsp techina
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 large egg
3/4 tsp salt
2 Tbs. chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
2 Tbs. chopped fresh cilantro

Method:

Prepare a high gas or charcoal grill fire.

Heat the oil, garlic, and cumin in a small saucepan over medium-low heat until the garlic is soft but not brown, about 3 minutes. Set aside off the heat.

Toast pitas until golden-brown and crisp. In a food processor, grind the pita into fine crumbs; transfer the crumbs to a small bowl and measure them—you’ll need 1/2 cup.

In the food processor, purée 1 can of the chickpeas with the oil mixture, techina, lemon juice, egg, and salt until smooth. Add the remaining chickpeas, pita crumbs, parsley, and cilantro; pulse until the chickpeas are coarsely chopped and the mixture is well blended.

Shape the chickpea mixture into patties. Brush both sides with oil. Grill, covered, until heated through and nicely marked on both sides, 2 to 3 minutes per side.

NOTE: I did find the mixture to be slightly crumbly. Some crumbs may fall while grilling, but the patties stay together when handled gently.

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