Yankee Chopped Salad

This recipe came about from a need to use up some odds and ends in my crisper.  Feel free to riff on it.  We had this with grilled lamb chops and and it's substantial enough that you don't need anything else.  Leftovers keep well. 

1 1/2 cups cooked bulgur (1/2 cup bulgur simmered with 1 cup water for about 10 min or until water absorbed)

3-4 mushrooms, sliced thin

3 slices bacon, cooked and chopped or crumbled

1/2 granny smith apple, small dice

1 stalk celery, small dice

6-8 cherry tomatoes, sliced in quarters

1 small shallot, small dice

2 large handfuls spinach, chopped

1/3 cup feta, crumbled

1/4 cup sliced almonds

Vinaigrette:

2 tablespoons white wine vinegar

1/4 cup olive oil

1 teaspoon dijon mustard

1 teaspoon maple syrup

salt and pepper to taste

Marie LeBlanc's Millionaire's Shortbread

 From my friend Marie LeBlanc.  

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a 13X9 with parchment paper (helps if you put it up the sides so that you can grab it out of the pan – so much easier to cut them)

 

Shortbread Crust:

1 cup – unsalted butter – softened

1/3 cup – sugar

1/3 cup – light brown sugar packed

1 large egg yolk

¾ teaspoon – vanilla

½ teaspoon - salt

2 ¼ cups – all-purpose flour

 

Beat butter until well creamed.

Add sugars and beat until light and fluffy (30-60 seconds)

Add egg yolk and vanilla, stir and combine well.

Gradually add flour – sprinkle salt halfway through while beater is still running.

You want it to be slightly crumbly.

Press evenly into pan.

Cook 20-25 minutes till edges are brown.

Let cool.

 

Caramel

2 – 14oz. cans of sweetened condensed milk

14 tablespoons of unsalted butter

1 cup of light brown sugar packed

1/3 cup – light corn syrup

¾ teaspoon – salt

1 teaspoon – vanilla extract

 

Combine everything but the vanilla extract.  Put all in pot prior to starting the heat.

Put on medium to low heat, stir frequently until butter is melted.

Once butter is melted stir constantly until it comes to boil then reduce heat to simmer, always stirring.

Continue till mixture turns a rich caramel color and has thickened – it should start pulling away from the sides.

Candy thermometer temp=225 degrees.

Remove from heat and immediately stir in vanilla extract.

Pour over cooled shortbread

Put in refrigerator for at least an hour before adding chocolate ganache.

 

Chocolate Ganache

2 cups – Semi sweet chocolate (I use 1 cup milk – 1 cup semi sweet and sometimes I just use milk chocolate.  I have also used Sea Salt Caramel Chocolate – Wegmans sells a good one but they used to cost $1.99 now they are $4.29 a bar – CRAZY)

½ cup – heavy cream

 

It seems that the longer they sit, the tastier they get.  ENJOY!

 

Sigara Boregi

This is a very quick and easy appetizer, and really delicious!  This recipe makes approximately 12 boregi about 4" long.  You can make them ahead of time and refrigerate or freeze them.  

250 grams good quality feta 

1 egg

1/4 cup finely chopped red onion

1/4 cup finely chopped parsley

1/4 tsp cayenne or kashmiri chili, adjust to taste

Phylo pastry -- I used about 4 large sheets of the thinnest phylo

Enough neutral oil to come about 1/3 of the way up the borek when you fry it, ~1/8-1/4".  I like corn oil, but canola or whatever you have is fine. 

Filling:  Mix everything but the phylo and oil together in a bowl.  

Put a sheet of phylo over another one to make a 2-sheet stack.  Cut the sheets into triangles roughly 6" at the base and about 10-12" long (you can adjust this to the size of borek you want).  Beginning 1" from the base of each triangle, put about 2 tsp of filling across the base, leaving about 1" of phylo on either side.  Fold the sides over the filling and then roll the whole thing up from the base of the triangle, folding the sides in as you go.  You are making a little phylo cigar.  Place the finished rolls on a piece of parchment.  Repeat until your filling is done.  

Heat the oil in your pan to about 350, and add as many boregi as you can fit without crowding them -- I like to leave 1-2" between them.  Fry until the bottom is golden brown, about 30 sec-1 minute, and then turn each one with tongs, continuing until they are a nice even brown on all sides -- maybe 2-3 minutes total.  Remove from pan and place on a couple of layers of paper towels to drain.  Repeat until you've cooked them all.  

These are best served warm.

Vin D'Orange

 Adapted from Samin Nosrat's recipe, which seems to have disappeared from the internet.  

12 Seville oranges
1 orange
400 g sugar
1 vanilla bean, cut in half lengthwise
3 liters of cheap white or rose wine
1 750 ml bottle of vodka

Rinse all the citrus, cut them it into smallish chunks.

Place all the fruit into a tub big enough for everything. Add the sugar and vanilla bean, and pour in the alcohol. Mix well but gently until the sugar dissolves. Cover and leave in a cool, dark place (or the fridge, if there is room!) for at least 40 days 

 Strain the liquid through a fine mesh sieve lined with cheesecloth into clean sealable bottles.  I use my corker to cork them but you can use whatever you've got. The vin d’orange is now ready to drink, and will only get better and better. 

Braised Brisket

2 large red onions, sliced

1 6 lb brisket

10 oz jar Mina harissa, mild
8 oz dried apricots
2 tablespoons beef bouillon base, or 2 cups of beef bouillon
Soy sauce, salt, pepper, honey to taste - see directions below

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 yellow onion, sliced
1/2 lb of mushrooms, sliced


Brisket is much easier if you cook it the day before. Heat the oven to 300. Put the sliced red onions in the bottom of a roasting pan. Slather the brisket with the harissa and put it on top of the onions with the fatty side up. Add the apricots around the brisket, beef bouillon, and enough water to come up to the top of the brisket. Cover with foil and cook until tender - a 6 lb brisket should take about 6 hours.

When it’s done take it out of the oven and let it cool. Wrap it and put it in the fridge overnight. Save the braising liquid including onions and apricots in a separate container and refrigerate that as well - you should have at least a quart,

The next day, slice the brisket across the grain and put it in a smaller baking dish. Remove the solidified fat from the top of the braising liquid if you want to and put the rest of it in a blender and blend until smooth. Taste it and correct seasonings - you may want it a little saltier or a little spicier or a little sweeter.  Pour half of the braising liquid over the brisket. At this point you can cover the baking dish with foil and return everything to the fridge until you’re ready to heat it up for dinner. When you’re ready to re- heat, leave the foil on and put the baking dish in a 350 oven for about half an hour, or until everything is hot. In the meantime, put the remaining braising sauce in a small saucepan and heat it to a simmer (taste and correct seasonings - I usually add a couple of tablespoons of soy sauce to it)

In a frying pan, sauté the onion gently in the olive oil until it starts to turn brown in bits, then add the mushrooms and sauté both together until they’re soft. When you’re ready to serve, put the brisket on a serving plate and pour the onion and mushroom mixture and the hot braising liquid over it.

Persian Roast Chicken for Shabbat

Marinade for two chickens:

3T sumac

3 T ground dried lime

2 T honey

1 tsp turmeric

Juice of 4 limes

Bottom of pan:

1 lime cut into thin slices

1/2 red onion, peeled and sliced thinly

1 head of garlic, cloves separated but peels left on

Mix the marinade ingredients together in a small bowl.  Put a sheet of aluminum foil in the bottom of a rimmed baking sheet and scatter  the vegetables over it.  Spatchcock the chickens and lay them on the veggies.  Cover the chickens with the marinade.  (At this point you can put the chicken pan in the fridge until you're ready to cook it.)  

Heat oven to 425 and roast the chicken for 45-90 minutes until it's done, depending on the size of the chicken.  

Bran Muffins

 1 1/2 c bran (I replace 1/4 c of this with milled flax seed if I have it - ups the flavor and fiber)

1 c boiling water

1 egg

1/2 c oil

2 T brown sugar

1 c flour

2 T ground flax seed

2 T chia seed

1 T baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 c blueberries

Set oven to 375. Mix bran and water. Add egg, oil, and sugar. Stir in everything else except blueberries. Add blueberries. Put in greased muffin tin or paper cups and bake 15-20 min. Makes 9 large or 12 small or 20 mini muffins