Volume 8, Issue 075 - April 15, 2005

Hello Recipe Club,

I would like to thank Susie Fishbein for sharing her recipes from her new cookbook, Kosher By Design Entertains. It is time for me to announce the winners of the two cookbooks she generously donated for our members. The winners are [insert drum roll here]....Tara Anthony and Patricia Raymond! Congratulations to both of you!

Next week we have some simple chicken dishes you can add to your repertoire. Have a great weekend.

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.

Lamb Kabobs on Eggplant Purée
Meat

One of the best jobs I ever had was giving cooking demonstrations for Chosen Voyage, a completely Glatt kosher luxury cruiseliner. Just imagine, unlimited amounts of gourmet prepared food, it was like a 5 star Grossingers Hotel at sea. The team of international chefs even prepared their renditions of my Kosher by Design food at the Shabbos buffet. Good manners dictated that I had to try everything at every meal. While there were many amazing dishes, this was one must have recipe that the chefs graciously shared with me for this book.

Makes 8 servings

Ingredients:

Lamb Kabobs:

1 medium onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 cup fresh mint leaves, chopped
1/4 cup fresh curly parsley leaves, chopped
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon paprika
2 teaspoons olive oil
2 pounds boneless lamb cubes
cherry tomatoes
1 medium red onion, cubed

Eggplant Purée:

2 large purple eggplants
2 cloves garlic
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
3 tablespoons tahini

Preparation:

In a large mixing bowl or zip lock bag, combine the onion, garlic, thyme, mint, parsley, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, cumin, paprika and olive oil. Mix to combine. Add in the lamb cubes and mix again to evenly distribute the spice mixture with the lamb.

Cover or seal and refrigerate several hours or overnight.

Meanwhile prepare the eggplant purée. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

With the skin intact, cut the eggplants in half lengthwise. Make diamond shaped slash marks on the cut surface of the eggplants. Place them cut side down on a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for about 1 hour or until soft. 

In the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade, place the garlic, parsley, cumin, coriander and tahini. When the eggplant is cool enough to handle, use a large spoon to scoop the flesh out of the shells and place into the food processor bowl. Discard the eggplant skin. 

Purée the mixture. Add salt to taste. The purée can be served room temperature or warm, so feel free to make it a few days in advance and keep in a sealed container in the refrigerator.

Remove lamb from spice mixture, leaving some of the onions and spices to adhere to the lamb. Place the lamb on skewers, alternating with tomatoes and red onion cubes.

Place the kabobs on a hot oiled grill or in a hot grill pan, lightly coated with olive oil. Grill for a total of 8 to 10 minutes, turning to cook all sides, until lamb is done. It should still be slightly pink inside. 

You can broil them in your oven as well, turning every three minutes until done, for a total of 10 minutes.

Serve with eggplant purée.

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Moroccan Sweet Potato Stew
Meat or Parve

This was another recipe that was given to me from the crew on the Windstar cruise when I traveled with Chosen Voyage. It is from their Sail Light menu and is a nice hearty, healthy side dish or can even be made with the vegetable broth as a vegetarian main dish.

Makes 10 to 12 servings

Ingredients:

1 large onion, chopped into 1/2 inch dice
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons turmeric
1 teaspoon cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon curry powder
3/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
3/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 to 4 sweet potatoes (3 1/2 pounds), peeled and chopped into 1 inch cubes
1 large red bell pepper, seeded and chopped into 1 inch pieces
1 eggplant, peeled and chopped into 1 inch cubes
3/4 cup vegetable broth or chicken broth
2 cups canned chick peas, also known as garbanzo beans, drained
1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
chopped fresh cilantro leaves for garnish

Preparation:

Place the onions and garlic into a large pot with 1/4 cup water. Cook, covered, over low heat until tender, about 10 to 12 minutes, adding more water as necessary to prevent scorching.

Stir in the turmeric, cinnamon, curry, cumin, nutmeg, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Cook for 3 minutes. Stir in the sweet potatoes, bell pepper, eggplant and broth. Raise the heat to medium and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, for 5 minutes.

Add garbanzo beans and tomatoes, and simmer, covered, until sweet potatoes are tender, about 45 to 60 minutes, stirring occasionally. Garnish with fresh cilantro before serving.

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Peach and Berry Crisp
Parve or Dairy

In my town there is a farmer's market every Thursday. It is such a treat to get fresh from the farm amazing ripe produce right in my neighborhood's Walgreen's parking lot! That part always makes me laugh, but in the summer there is no beating the peaches and fresh berries for this dessert. In the winter, when these fruits are no longer in season, substitute a combination of Macintosh and Granny Smith apples with fresh or frozen blueberries. For one party I threw, I used very small ramekins and made 3 different versions of this crisp recipe; the peach, apple and one with pears and raspberries. I arranged them on a three tiered cake plate. My guests loved the chance to sample all three without feeling too indulgent and the cute tiny size made them irresistible. Just watch your baking time; the smaller amounts in each ramekin cook faster than the fuller size.

Makes 14 servings

Ingredients:

4 to 5 large ripe peaches (2 pounds), peeled (see note), pitted and chopped
10 ounces blueberries
10 ounces raspberries, can be combination of red and black raspberries
juice of 1/2 lemon
1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

Topping:

1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
1/4 cup finely chopped pecans
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons cold margarine, or butter, cut into 16 pieces

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 degree F.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Spray 14 (1/2 cup) ramekins, 7 (1 cup ramekins) or 1 large (4 quart) baking dish, any shape, with nonstick cooking spray. Arrange on the prepared sheet to avoid oven spills and for ease in removing from oven.

Place the peaches, blueberries and raspberries into a large bowl. Toss with lemon juice, sugar and 2 tablespoons flour. Combine. Transfer to prepared ramekins or baking dish.

Bake fruit for 20 minutes.

Remove from oven. Increase oven temperature to 400 degrees F.

While fruit is baking, prepare the topping. Whisk 1 1/4 cups flour with brown sugar, pecans, cinnamon, ginger and salt. Add in margarine or butter. Rub in with fingertips until small moist clumps form. Sprinkle generously and evenly over the hot fruit. Return to oven and bake until crisp and golden brown, about 20 minutes.

Serve warm or room temperature. Can be re-warmed if made in advance.

Note: To find a ripe peach look for well-colored fruit that yields slightly when pressed. Sniff the bottom, not the stem end of your peach; if it is very fragrant it is ripe. If it has little or no aroma, it is not. 

To peel, cut a small x into the bottom of each peach. Drop into a pot of boiling water for 45 to 60 seconds. Run under cold water and slip the skins off with your fingertips.