Some news, restaurant reviews and a recipe

As many of you may know, due to circumstances beyond my control, I will not be doing any demos at Chef Central in the near future.  I am very sorry to disappoint all of you who normally come to my demos.  Hopefully, I will be teaching again in the near future and will keep you all informed.

 Bucatini with Raisins and Slivered Almonds

Escarole Sauteed with Garlic

Any way,  my DH and I went to one of our favorite restaurants, Nicola's in Totowa, NJ.  They have lots of thing to eat if you are ingredient kosher, especially some of the freshest fish around and some great pastas.  I had a wonderful pasta, Bucatini with cauliflower, raisins and slivered almonds.  It is one of the best pastas I have had in a long time.  Marvin had fish and although his fish came with sides, we shared an order of escarole sauteed with garlic.  Absolutely delicious.

Another great place for fish, although it's usually limited to salmon and sole, however, he will be selling halibut in the next week or two.  Brigantine Seafood in Hawthorne, NJ.  It's a restaurant and a fish store.  Only sells and cooks what he can buy fresh that morning.  Worth a try.

I did promise you a recipe, here's one that is perfect for this time of year.  Enjoy!

Zesty Cole Slaw

1/4 cup sugar

1/3 cup ketchup

1/2 cup apple cider vinegar

1 teaspoon celery salt, or to taste

1 teaspoon ground black pepper, or to taste

1 tablespoon chopped, fresh thyme leaves

1/2 to 1 teaspoon hot sauce, or to taste, optional

1 large head white cabbage, shredded

2 to 3 carrots, grated

In a medium bowl, mix together the sugar, ketchup, vinegar, celery salt, pepper, thyme leaves, and hot sauce until well combined.

Place the cabbage and carrots in a large bowl.  Pour the ketchup/vinegar mixture over the cabbage and carrots and toss to mix well.  Place in the refrigerator for at least one hour to allow the flavors to marry.

Serve cold with your favorite meats or fish, hot from the grill.

Will keep in the refrigerator for three days.

Enjoy!

Stay tuned, more to come in the next week or so.

My News!

Oops!  Forgot to let you know.  I will be guest Chef at Picnic the Restaurant this Thursday night, May 24th.  It is located at 14-25 Plaza Road North, Fair Lawn, NJ.  For reservations call:  (201)796-2700.
Hope to see you there!

Two for Shavuot

I know, it's been a while.  To make up for my long absence, I will be posting two wonderful recipes from my first cookbook, An Almost Kosher Cookbook.


Crunchy Savory Tart Crust
Makes enough pastry for two 9 inch tart crusts

2 1/3 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup semolina flour
1 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) cold butter, cut into 1/4 inch cubes
3 tablespoons cold Crisco, cut into 1/4 inch cubes
A glass of ice water

Position oven racks so that one is in the center and preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Put flours and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade and pulse a couple of times to integrate the flours with the salt.  Add the butter and Crisco all at once and pulse a few times, until mixture forms little balls, like moist crumbs, and no chunks of butter or Crisco remain.
Remove the blade from the food processor and dumb the dough crumbs into a large bowl.  Fill a tablespoon with the ice water and sprinkle over the surface of the dough.  Repeat with 3 more tablespoons.
Use your finger tips to bring the dough together into a ball, adding more water if needed 1 tablespoon at a time.  Dough should be just holding together.
Cut the dough in half, and wrap each half in plastic wrap.  Press each half with the palm of your hand to form a disk.  Place in the refrigerator and chill for at least one hour  before rolling out.
Flour a flat surface and roll out a disk of dough to 1/4 inch thick.  Fit into a tart pan and chill for 30 minutes.  Use the tines of a fork to prick holes over the bottom of the tart.  Line the dough with parchment paper or aluminum foil and fill with pie weights or dried beans (my preferred method).  Place the tart shell on the rack in the center of the oven and bake for 10 minutes.  Remove the paper and weights from the pan and return to the oven.  Bake an additional 5 to 10 minutes, until lightly browned, for a par-baked tart shell.  For a fully baked tart shell, bake another 15 minutes or until it is golden brown all over.

Oven Roasted Tomato Tart
Makes 8 servings

This is perfect for Shavuot, or Shabbat, since it can be made ahead and served at room temperature.

1 tart crust, par-baked
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
3 pounds vine tomatoes
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram
Salt and pepper to taste
Olive oil

Slice the tomatoes, across the width, lay on an aluminum foil line baking sheet, sprinkle with olive oil, salt and pepper, and  bake at 250 degrees for two hours.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Spread the mustard over the prepared crust in a thin layer.  Grate the Gruyere cheese and spread evenly over the mustard.  Arrange the roasted tomatoes, in one layer, overlapping on the crust.  Sprinkle with herbs, salt and pepper to taste.
Place in the preheated oven until the cheese is melted and bubbly, about 15 to 20 minutes

Serve warm or at room temperature.

Onion Tart

Makes 8 servings

1 tart crust, par-baked


3 pounds large sweet onions, cut in half and sliced thin
6 shallots, sliced
1/4 cup olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 1/2 cups grated Asiago cheese
1/3 cup pitted Kalamata olives, slice in half lengthwise

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees

Heat the olive oil in a large saute pan.  Add the onions and shallots, sprinkle with salt and pepper and cook over medium heat until caramelized, light brown in color.  Remove from the pan and allow to cool to room temperature.
Spread the prepared tart shell with a thin layer of Dijon mustard.  Layer the cheese evenly over the mustard, then evenly layer the onion mixture over the cheese.  Arrange the olives on top.
Place in the oven and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the cheese is melted.
Serve warm or at room temperature.

Enjoy!


B'tayavon!


Chag Sameach!

THE SEDER PROBLEM--FEEDING THE VEGAN/VEGETARIAN IN YOUR LIFE

At my class last week, I promised a vegan/vegetarian recipe for those who, like me, have a vegan or vegetarian in the family.  I wanted something that gave a complete protein and had lots of color, hence the  parsley.  This has lots of flavor and can be enjoyed by everyone at the seder.

Hag Pesach Sameach.

Enjoy!

Quinoa With Artichokes Hearts

1 tablespoon grape seed or olive oil

1 cup chopped scallions

1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme

1- 12 ounce package frozen artichoke hearts, thawed

1 cup vegetable stock

1/2 cup uncooked quinoa

1 cup chopped, fresh parsley, leaves only

grated rind of 3 lemons

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1/2 teaspoon salt (sea or kosher)

Heat the oil in a 5 quart saucepan over medium-high heat.  Add the scallions and thyme and saute until the scallions are tender.  Add the thawed artichokes and cook until heated through, about 2 to 3 minutes.  

Add the vegetable stock and the quinoa to the pan.  Bring to a boil, cover, lower the heat and cook at a simmer until the liquid is absorbed, about 15 to 20 minutes.

Remove the pan from the heat.  Stir in the remaining ingredients.  Put on a platter and garnish with some thyme leaves.  Serve warm or at room temperature.

Sharyn Rosler (c) February, 2012

A Purim Dish

It is traditional during Purim to serve a vegetarian meal.  This is because Queen Esther ate only vegetables while she was in the palace of King Ahasuerus because she did not want to inadvertently eat anything trafe.  In honor of Queen Esther, here is a vegetarian casserole to enjoy.

Chickpeas and Rice, a Purim Casserole

Makes 8 servings

2 - 15 ounce cans chickpeas, rinsed and drained

2 large Spanish onions, chopped

1/2 green bell pepper, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 pound mushrooms, sliced

2 tablespoons grape seed oil

3 large tomatoes, skinned, seeded and chopped

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

salt and pepper to taste

3 1/2 cups vegetable stock, low sodium

1 cup  brown rice

in a 6 quart stock pot, heat the oil over medium heat.  Add the onions, pepper, mushrooms, and garlic and saute until golden brown.  Add the tomatoes, salt, pepper, cumin, and cinnamon, and cook, stirring often for 3 to 5 minutes, until the tomatoes are soft.  

Pour in the stock and bring to a boil.  Add the rice and chickpeas.  Cover the pot and reduce the heat to a simmer.  Simmer for 30 minutes or until the stock is absorbed and the rice is tender.

Variations:  If desired, pour ingredients into a lightly oiled 9 x 13 casserole, top with 1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese and bake for 15 minutes or until the cheese is melted and lightly browned.

Sharyn Rosler (c) December, 2011

Hag Purim Sameach!


Don't forget, I will be giving two Passover cooking demos at Chef Central.  The first is at Chef Central on Route 17 in Paramus, NJ and will be on March 21st at 6:30 PM.  The second is at Chef Central on South Central Avenue in Hartsdale, NY and will be on March 22nd at 6:30 PM.
If you come, please say hello!  Hope to see you at one of them.

Hi! Well the snow that was predicted for North Jersey fizzled out again. I just wanted to share a fantastic product I just discovered. It is called DAIYA. It is a kosher and parve cheese substitute. It comes in three flavors that I have found: pepper jack style shreds, mozzarella style shreds, and cheddar style shreds. It melts to a nice gooeyness. We tried the pepper jack on chili and it was fantastic. The flavor was great. I was very pleasantly surprised, as was my husband. Now to try chicken parmigiana with the mozzarella flavored one. Give it a try and let me know what you think. By the way, I have a great vegetarian Purim recipe I will be sharing with you in the next week or so. Staring to work on recipes for my Passover demos. Have a great week.

Happy New Year

I know it's three weeks into the new year, but I wanted to wish all of you a Happy, Healthy, and Prosperous New Year!

After a hectic two months, I am finally getting back to the cooktop and starting to develop some new and exciting recipes for Purim and Pesach! I will be posting recipes within the next two weeks. Some wonderful vegetarian recipes for Purim in honor of Queen Esther, and some interesting recipes for Pesach.

Speaking of Pesach, my demos at Chef Central in both Paramus, NJ and Hartsdale, NY have been scheduled. The Paramus demo will be on Wednesday, March 21st, at 6:30 PM and in Hartsdale on Thursday, March 22nd, at 6:30 PM. Hope to see you all at one of them!

Enjoy life!