Roasted Potatoes with Preserved Lemon

Recently I wrote an article for the Jewish Week Food & Wine about preserved lemons. You can find the article and the recipe here.

So. What to do with all the preserved lemons I now have!

I’ve used them on chicken — classic Moroccan dish. Delicious.

I’ve placed some under fish that I baked. Merveilleux!

But I have to say — with potatoes! Beyond awesome.

These:

Roasted Potatoes with Preserved Lemons and Rosemary 

• 4 medium all-purpose potatoes, peeled and cut into small cubes

• 2 tablespoons olive oil

• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

• Paprika

• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary

• 2 tablespoons finely chopped preserved lemon

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place the potato cubes on the parchment paper. Pour the olive oil over the potatoes and toss to coat each cube. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, paprika and rosemary. Roast for 15 minutes. Toss the potatoes and continue to roast for another 12-15 minutes. Sprinkle with the lemon. Return to the oven for a minute to heat the lemon. Serve immediately.

Makes 4 servings

Homemade Lekvar

A few days ago, while looking into my cupboard for something, I found an unopened package of prunes that had reached its "best by" date. Indeed, when I opened it, the prunes were a bit too dry for tasty snacking.

But!

I can’t throw out perfectly good food. Rather than discard, I decided to make my own lekvar (and then use it for all sorts of recipes).

For several mornings I had some lekvar with yogurt (awesome). Just like the old days when Dannon had a perfectly wonderful prune yogurt.

I also made some of our treasured family recipe of butter cookies and used the lekvar for filling the center.

I don't ever have to buy lekvar again.

Here’s the recipe. I added fresh ginger to a portion and cooked it separately. It’s not typical for lekvar but I thought it added a good flavor. I list it as an option, but encourage you to try it too.

I’ll remember this recipe next Purim when I need to fill some homemade hamantashen.

Prune Lekvar

• one pound pitted prunes (about 2 cups)

• mixture or orange juice, apple juice or other fruit juice plus water (enough to cover the prunes)

• 4 slices of peeled fresh ginger (1/4-inch thick)

• pinch of salt

• 5 tablespoons packed brown sugar

• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Place the prunes in a saucepan. Add juice plus water, using enough to cover the fruit and add the ginger and salt. Bring the liquid to a boil over high heat. Lower the heat, cover the pan and simmer for about 20 minutes or until the prunes are soft. Be sure there is some liquid left in the pan; if not, add a bit more. Stir in the sugar and cook for another 5-6 minutes. Remove from the heat, stir in the lemon juice and puree using a blender hand blender.

Makes 2 cups

Quarantine Charoset or Pantry Charoset or Completely Made-up Charoset

When I was growing up the Seder charoset was used symbolically only. My grandmother, and in later years my mother, would grate an apple or two, mix it with some walnuts and Manischewitz concord grape wine and that was that. It always turned brown and didn’t look very appetizing and we ate it only as commanded during the reading of the Haggadah.

Then, several years ago, charoset became a big deal. It was now expected to taste good, look good and be eaten like a side dish, the way we eat cranberry sauce or apple sauce.

And so, I stopped making the apple mush. Instead, over the years, I’ve made Persian versions, nut-free versions, coconut charosets and all sorts of others, based on different ethnicities.

This year I am making my special COVID19 jumble, made with what I have on hand in the way of dried fruit (plus an orange, which I always have in the fridge.

Should I call it Quarantine Charoset, Pantry Charoset or simply Completely Made Up Charoset?

I don’t use any nuts because of allergies, but you can add 1/3-1/2 cup of chopped nuts (any kind) to this recipe if you have some in your pantry.

Quarantine Charoset or Pantry Charoset or Completely Made-up Charoset

• 1-1/2 cups chopped dates

• 1 cup chop dried figs

• 1 cup chopped dried apricots

• 1/2 cup raisins

• 1 fresh apple, peeled and chopped

• 1/2 cup pomegranate jam (or any jam you have)

• 1/3 cup Passover wine (preferably Concord grape)

• 1/4 cup orange juice

• 1 teaspoon grated fresh orange peel

Place the dates, figs, apricots, raisins and apple in a bowl and toss the fruit to distribute the pieces evenly. Add the pomegranate jam and stir to coat the fruit. Pour in the wine and orange juice; add the orange peel. Toss the ingredients. Let rest for at least one hour before serving.

Makes about 5 cups

Cranberry Kumquat Conserve

There are so many delicious “November foods.” Like sweet potatoes, pears, cranberries, persimmons and so on.

Not as many people know about kumquats though.

In case you don’t know what they are or haven’t used them, kumquats are a small citrus fruit. They look like oval mini-oranges.

They aren’t everybody’s taste. Kumquats are tart, so the flavor is something you love or hate immediately.

I love them. In fact, one of my favorite treats is candied (sugar coated) kumquats.

You can eat kumquats raw. Cut them into a salad — they’re especially good with greens or Brussels sprouts and a soft goat’s milk cheese.

But the pungent flavor mellows beautifully when cooked, so kumquats are especially wonderful in chutneys, relishes and preserves. If you need a pretty hors d’oeuvre that goes beyond ordinary for a party or New Year’s Eve guests, check out my mascarpone crisps with kumquat preserves.

The recipe here for cranberry conserve, is a really good option for Thanksgiving. This dish has several virtues:

1) it goes with turkey, so it’s perfect for Thanksgiving.

2) it’s quick and easy to prepare — about 30 minutes from start to finish.

3) it’s colorful, making it a festive addition to your holiday table.

4) it lasts for a week or so in the fridge, so you can make it ahead and also rely on leftovers.

5) best of all, it is really tasty.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Cranberry Kumquat Conserve

• 3 cups fresh cranberries

• 10-12 kumquats

• 1/2 cup honey

• 1/2 cup orange juice

Rinse the cranberries and place them in a saucepan. Cut the kumquats in half and remove the seeds. Chop the kumquats and add them to the cranberries. Add the honey and orange juice. Stir the ingredients and bring the liquid to a boil over high heat. Turn the heat to medium and simmer the ingredients for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until thick.

Makes about 2 cups

Dried Fig and Coconut Charoset

Every year I make two charosets for our Seders: the family favorite (a Persian style with pistachios, dried fruit and a hint of cayenne), and also a new one.

Last year the newbie was this Dried Fig and Coconut charoset. It was a BIG HIT!

It’s easy to make, you can make it ahead and it is NUT FREE.

Dried Fig and Coconut Charoset

• 1 cup chopped dried figs

• 1/2 cup chopped dried apricots

• 1/2 cup dried cherries or cranberries

• 1 navel orange

• 1 cup flaked coconut

• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh ginger

• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

• 1/2 cup apricot jam

• 1/4 cup sweet white or red Passover wine

Combine the figs, apricots and cherries in a bowl. Peel the orange and remove the outer white pith (leaving only the orange flesh). Cut the flesh into small pieces and add to the bowl. Add the coconut, ginger, cinnamon apricot jam and wine and mix ingredients. Let rest for at least one hour (preferably several hours) before serving. May be made a day ahead.

Makes about 3 cups

Matbucha

Spring has sprung and for me, that means more salad.

So I got to thinking about that word salad, which I realize means so many things that I was never able to fit all of my salad recipes into a file folder simply marked “salad.” I had to sub-categorize them into files such as “grain salads,” “tomato salads,” “fruit salads” and so on.

Over the years I’ve made salads of all sorts. Some based mostly on greens and some that had no greens at all.

I’ve made beet salads, dinner salads, fish salads and quinoa salads.

I could go on. But really, there is no one way to describe “salad,” even though a dictionary might say something like “a mixture of raw and cooked vegetables served with dressing.”

No.

Because recently I prepared some Matbucha, which is an entirely different salad category.

Matbucha is a “salade cuit” — that is, “cooked salad.” In fact the word Matbucha, is an Arabic word that means “cooked salad".”

Cooked salad may seem odd to Western thinking except for the fact that most of us actually eat lots of cooked salads, such as potato salad and egg salad too. We just don’t think of them as “cooked salads,” but that’s what they are.

Matbucha is a Moroccan dish, especially popular in the Moroccan Jewish community, which was once large and thriving in North Africa. When good numbers of Moroccan Jews migrated to Israel, they brought their love of this dish with them and it is now wildly popular in Israel too.

For good reason: Matbucha is vibrantly tasty, easy to cook and is ideal for Shabbat because, even though it’s cooked, you can serve it at room temperature. Use it as a salad course or as a side dish with dinner. I’ve always served it with hors d’oeuvre, as a topping for crackers or pita wedges (it works well with other Middle Eastern nibbles and dips such as hummus, raheb, baba ghanoush and so on).

You can make Matbucha 3-4 days ahead. That’s handy isn’t it?

Matbucha

• 2 large red bell peppers

• 3 tablespoons olive oil

• 1 serrano pepper, deseeded and chopped

• 2 large cloves garlic, finely chopped

• 6 medium tomatoes peeled and finely chopped

• 1-1/2 teaspoons paprika

• 1 teaspoon sugar

• 1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste

Preheat the broiler. Place the peppers under the broiler, about 4-6" away from the heat, and broil for 2-3 minutes, until the skin has blistered. Turn the peppers and repeat this process until the entire surface is blistered and lightly charred. Remove the peppers and place them in a paper bag. Let rest at least 10 minutes. Remove the peppers from the bag, peel off the skin and discard the stem and the seeds. Cut the peppers into pieces. Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the peppers, serrano pepper and garlic and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add the tomatoes, paprika, sugar and salt. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Cook for 30-35 minutes, until most of the liquid has evaporated and the mixture is thick.

 Makes 1-1/2 to 2 cups

Nut-Free Dried Fruit and Apple Haroset

Passover has it's culinary challenges, it's true, but if you're like me, and have a kid with food allergies you are used to reading labels and figuring out substitutions throughout the year. I actually never minded this part. The fears of what could happen to my daughter if she ate fish or certain nuts, plus the medication and trips to the ER when it did happen were enough to motivate me.

Looked at it in a positive way, the Passover prohibitions plus the allergy no-nos are actually ways that have made my cooking more creative.

I like that.

Obviously, we do not have traditional Ashkenazi haroset at our Seders. My daughter can't even be in the same room as a walnut. She can eat pistachios and almonds, so our usual family haroset with dried fruit includes these.

But -- why take any chances? Because it's possible that one nut allergy could be a warning against all others, my daughter doesn't eat any nuts, in haroset or anything else. On Passover I always serve a second version that's nut-free.

Here is this year's:

Nut-Free Dried Fruit and Apple Haroset

• 1/2 cup chopped dried figs

• 1/2 cup chopped dates

• 1/2 cup chopped dried apricots

• 1/2 cup raisins

• 1 apple, peeled, cored and chopped

• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg

• 1/3 cup apricot preserves

• 4-5 tablespoons sweet red Passover wine

• pinch of cayenne pepper 

Combine the figs, dates, apricots, raisins and apple in a bowl. Add the nutmeg, preserves, wine and cayenne pepper and mix until the ingredients are evenly distributed. Let the mixture stand for at least one hour before serving. 

 Makes about 2-1/2 cups

Easy Peasy Fuss-Free Blueberry Jam

Things are still blooming in my garden. And I'm not usually so lucky when it comes to my produce plantings, so I only planted tomatoes and herbs.

Next year: going to try berries. Strawberries and blueberries.

In the meantime it's store bought for me (including farmer's markets).

So the other day, when Fairway had a sale on blueberries (each dry pint for $1!!!!)I bought 5 (the limit). Even though I already had some fresh blueberries at home.

And then I had to use them.

I made blueberry cake, blueberry muffins and blueberry soup (so refreshing on a summer day!). And a blueberry crisp.

And also blueberry jam.

I like jam, but don't like fussing with sterilizing jars and putting the jars in one of those water-bath things. So I only make an amount that will be used within a couple of weeks and store it in my fridge. For example, for:

• peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwiches (or soy nut, etc.) -- for back-to-school lunch
• a layer beneath the lemon part of a meringue or lemon cream pie
• filling the center of thumbprint butter cookies (also bar cookies, linzer cookies, etc.)
• mixing into vanilla ice cream (you can add a small amount of orange extract also)
• glazing roasted chicken or duck
• mixing with plain yogurt
• spooning over pancakes, French toast or matzo brei
• spreading onto scones

Here's the simple recipe:

Fuss-Free Blueberry Jam

• 4 cups blueberries
• 2 tablespoons orange juice
• 2 teaspoons grated orange peel
• 1 cup sugar

Place the blueberries, orange juice, orange peel and sugar in a large saucepan. Bring the ingredients to a boil over medium-high heat. Stir, reduce the heat to medium and cook for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally and pressing down on the ingredients with a wooden spoon to crush the berries slightly. When the liquid has thickened to jam-like, remove the pan from the heat. Let cool and spoon into a jar. Store in the refrigerator.

Makes about 1-1/2 cups

Celebrate! with Sun-dried Tomato Dip

A colleague of mine, Elizabeth Kurtz, who blogs at GourmetKosherCooking, has written a beautiful cookbook.

"Celebrate" celebrates not only good food and the beauty of Shabbat, but also benefits an organization called Emunah, a social service agency that helps families in physical or emotional distress -- at-risk teens, lonely seniors, young children who may have been neglected or abandoned. And much more. 

The book is filled with interesting recipes. Like the Everything Bagel Chicken, which I made for dinner last weekend. You know that bagel topping that has poppy seeds and sesame seeds and garlic and all? That's a really good coating for boneless chicken breasts!

I also loved the Butternut Squash Soup with Curry and Sweet Apples, a comforting dish on cold winter days.

There's lots to love here, including the luscious photos.

But my cooking mind is turning to Superbowl this week, so I looked for a recipe that I could bring to my brother and sister-in-law's annual party. I picked the Sun-Dried Tomato Dip -- it's easy to make, you can cook it a couple of days ahead, serve it with crudites or crackers. Elizabeth says it's also wonderful as a spread for challah (I liked it with warm pita) and even as a topping for chicken or salmon (I think it would be terrific, mixed with some mayo, on a burger). I made this for my New Year's Eve get-together and everyone gave it a thumbs up! (I used vegetable stock, not pareve chicken broth).

Whether it's a day of rest, a day together with friends and football, a birthday or anything else, it's always good to celebrate with good food. Like this:

Sun-Dried Tomato Dip (from "Celebrate" by Elizabeth Kurtz)

• 1 (8-ounce) jar sun-dried tomatoes, packed in oil, drained and chopped, 1 tablespoon oil reserved
• 1/2 yellow onion, thinly sliced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup pareve chicken broth
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• 1/4 cup dry red wine
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

Heat reserved sun-dried tomato oil in a large skillet over medium. Add tomatoes, onion, and garlic; cook 5 to 7 minutes, stirring frequently until onion is soft and beginning to brown at the edges.

Add water, broth, vinegar, wine, sugar, thyme, salt, and pepper to skillet; bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook 30 minutes. Uncover and continue simmering another 5 to 10 minutes, or until most of the liquid has evaporated and mixture is the consistency of jam.

 With an immersion blender or food processor, puree until blended but still a little chunky.

Serve warm or at room temperature with pita chips or vegetable crudite. Store refrigerated in a clean glass jar (the one from the sun-dried tomatoes works great!) if not using immediately. It will keep 2 weeks.

Makes 1-1/2 cups

No Easier Cranberry Sauce than this one

Sometimes all you have to do is change one ingredient in a recipe and the entire dish tastes different. Like this one. I've made cranberries the same way for years -- bake them with sugar, let them cool, then add brandy.

This year I added some freshly grated orange peel. Huge difference! If you like the orange-cranberry duo, this recipe is for you. Plus -- this recipe is the next easiest thing after opening a can.

Baked Orange Scented Cranberries

• 12 ounces fresh cranberries (3 cups)
• 1-1/2 cups sugar
• 2 teaspoons grated fresh orange peel
• 3 tablespoons orange juice (or use brandy or rum)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Wash and drain the berries and place them in a single layer in a baking dish. Add the sugar and orange peel and toss to coat all the berries. Cover the dish tightly with a lid or aluminum foil. Bake for 45-50 minutes. Remove the cover and stir thoroughly. Let the berries cool. Stir in the juice. Chill thoroughly.

Makes 6-8 servings