Volume 8, Issue 071 - April 11, 2005

Hello Recipe Club,

Susie Fishbein has done it again. Following on the heels of her best-selling cookbook, Kosher By Design, Susie has created an inviting array of recipes written for the average person who desires above average entertaining.

"Over the years there has been a gradual shift away from formal meals loaded with rich choices to simpler, yet well-planned menus," says Susie. "While many of us enjoy gourmet cooking, we want easy-to-follow recipes which don't take as much time yet are perfect for any party. That's why I created KOSHER BY DESIGN ENTERTAINS."

As the mother of four children, Susie knows the value of time. Each recipe in KOSHER BY DESIGN ENTERTAINS is simple, yet elegant enough for any Shabbat, holiday, party, or everyday meal and uses fresh and seasonal ingredients that are easy to find and prepare. The book is divided into menu courses with an index to find just the right recipe for any occasion.

And KOSHER BY DESIGN ENTERTAINS is not just about cooking. Susie Fishbein reveals the secrets of successful hostesses. From an outdoor picnic to a formal anniversary dinner, Susie knows how to make your guests feel at home. During the course of the book she shares her special tips and advice, warmth, style, and hostess expertise with readers. KOSHER BY DESIGN ENTERTAINS provides the creativity and confidence to create a party guests will never forget with more than 250 new recipes and over 200 beautiful color photos.

I have two copies of this great new book and they will be given away on Friday of this week to one of our lucky Recipe Club members. To win one, just drop me a note with your email address by clicking here, and I hope to draw your name out of the the Chef Hat Thursday night.

Enter to Win an All-Clad Stainless Steel Sauce Pan and Cover from Signature Secrets. Signature Secrets ® Culinary Thickener thickens instantly - hot or cold, no lumps, no added taste, freeze/thaw stable. Now available online. Look for the Chef2Chef Discount Codes available only until April 30th.

Chicken Tagine
Meat 

Makes 6 to 8 servings

Ingredients:

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon curry
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
3 tablespoons olive oil
4 chicken legs, with skin
4 chicken thighs with skin
4 chicken breasts, with skin
1 head fennel
2 large Spanish onions, cut into 1 inch chunks
1 carrot, peeled and cut into 1 inch chunks
3 parsnips, peeled and cut into 1 inch chunks
2 to 3 cups chicken broth
Moroccan Couscous, optional (see note)

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a small bowl, mix the garlic powder, cayenne, cumin, coriander, curry, cinnamon and allspice. Set aside.

If the fennel came with the long fronds, cut them off and remove for garnish. Slice the fennel into 1 inch bias cut strips.

Season the chicken pieces on both sides with salt and black pepper.

Heat olive oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the chicken pieces, skin side down, in batches. Sear until skin is nice and brown, try not to shake the pan too much.

Remove chicken to a baking dish or oven-to-table casserole dish. Sprinkle half of the spice mixture on the chicken, rubbing it into the pieces.

Add the fennel, onion, carrots and parsnips to the pan. It should still have olive oil in it plus some fat that the chicken pieces rendered. If necessary, add a drop of olive oil. Sauté and scrape up all of the browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Add the remaining spice mixture. Cook for 3 minutes, until nice and shiny.

Surround the chicken with the vegetables. Add chicken broth to come halfway up on the chicken.

Bake covered for 1 hour.

Serve with Moroccan Couscous.

Note: For Moroccan Couscous, prepare a 10 ounce box of couscous as per directions on box. Soak a cup of golden raisins in rum (or orange juice) while the chicken cooks. When ready to serve, toss the couscous with the drained raisins, 1 cup of chopped green pitted olives and 1/2 cup chopped almonds.

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Roasted Beet Salad
Parve or Dairy

Not one person in my family likes beets. Not one person left a drop of this salad over when I served it and it was requested the very next night! The roasted beets become almost like beet chips. They are incredible. The procedure can be done with taro root or other root vegetables as well. One of the unique aspects to this recipe is not needing to peel the beets.

Cutting the beets on newspaper keeps the red from dying your kitchen pink, gloves keep it off your hands. If you can't find golden beets just double the amount of red beets.

Makes 4 to 6 servings

Ingredients:

2 medium-large red beets, scrubbed but not peeled
2 medium-large golden beets, scrubbed but not peeled
olive oil
kosher salt
dried thyme
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons orange juice
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon balsamic or apple cider vinegar
2 ounces frisée lettuce
3 ounces red leaf lettuce
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
3 ounces blue or gorgonzola cheese, optional for dairy meals*

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. 

Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Slice off the top and bottom of each beet. Slice into rounds as thin as possible, 1/4 inch thick or less. Drizzle each beet slice with olive oil, brushing it to evenly coat. Sprinkle with coarse salt and thyme. 

Place on prepared baking sheet. Roast 18 to 22 minutes, until the beets are soft, and slightly shrunken. The smaller or thinner beets will need to come out of the oven so they don't burn. Set aside. Keep the colors separate as they will bleed otherwise.

Prepare the dressing. Using an immersion blender or with a whisk, combine the honey, mustard, orange juice, olive oil and balsamic or apple cider vinegar. Blend or whisk until emulsified. Season with salt and pepper.

Place the frisée and red leaf lettuce leaves into a bowl and lightly dress, tossing to combine, reserving 6 teaspoons of the dressing.

Arrange the roasted beet slices, in alternating colors in a single layer on each plate. Drizzle a scant teaspoon of the dressing over the beets. Place a tall mound of the greens in the center of each plate, allowing the beets to peek out. 

Sprinkle with walnuts evenly over each plate. If using cheese, crumble over each mound of lettuce.

*In Kosher by Design Entertains you will find great Resource and Buying Guide sections for sourcing and buying unusual kosher ingredients and kitchenwares.

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Apple Crunch Galette
Parve or Dairy

To tell you the truth I am awful at rolling two crusted pie dough. I know all the techniques in my head but somehow they don't transfer well to my rolling pin. Necessity being the mother of invention, I bring you the galette, the free form, no top crust, no lattice work needed, yummy, flaky, crunchy, easiest apple pie you will ever make.

Makes 10 to 12 servings

Ingredients:

Crust:

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons sugar
8 tablespoons margarine, or unsalted butter at room temperature, cut into 7 pieces
8 tablespoons pure vegetable shortening, cut into 7 pieces
4 to 4 1/2 tablespoons ice water

Crunch:

3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup old-fashioned oats (not quick cooking or 1-minute type)
6 tablespoons margarine or butter, melted

Apple Filling:

3 McIntosh or Braeburn apples
2 Granny Smith apples
1/2 cup sugar
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons apricot preserves
1 egg yolk, beaten with 1 teaspoon water

Preparation:

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough or batter hook, or in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade, mix the flour, salt and sugar. Cut the margarine or butter and shortening into the flour and mix until mixture resembles baby peas. Sprinkle the water over the dough, 1 tablespoon at a time and blend in with the mixer or with a fork. 

Repeat until the dough is moist enough to come together. Gather the dough and knead just to get it into a ball. Flatten the ball slightly and shape into a disc. Wrap in parchment or plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes in the refrigerator.

Prepare the crunch topping. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, brown sugar, oats and melted margarine or butter. Stir to combine. Set aside.

Prepare the apple filling. Peel, halve, and seed the apples. In a large bowl, combine the sugar, flour, cinnamon and salt. Add the apple slices and toss to coat.

Preheat oven to 375˚ F.

Remove dough from refrigerator. On a lightly floured piece of parchment paper, roll the dough into a large (14 to 15 inch) circle. Leaving a 3 to 4-inch border, brush the apricot preserves over the center of the dough. Place 3/4ths of the crunchy oat mixture over the apricot, still leaving the border of dough uncovered. 

Starting at the outer edge of the apricot and working your way towards the center, lay the apple slices in concentric circles, going around and adding layers until all of the apples are used. Sprinkle remaining crunch topping over the apples. 

Using the parchment to help, fold the dough border over the apples, turning the galette as needed. The dough will cover 2 to 3 inches of the filling. Carefully peel back parchment and slide the parchment with the galette on to a rimless baking sheet. Brush the exposed dough with the beaten egg yolk.

Bake for 25 minutes. Remove from oven and carefully cover the dough with foil to prevent burning. Return to oven and bake 30 minutes longer. The galette is great served warm or at room temperature with a scoop of ice-cream or caramel flavored ice-cream topping.