Category: Vegetarian

Seder Salad With Charoset Clusters

For my second Passover (Pesach) Seder recipe I wanted to make a salad that borrows from the ninth step in the Seder, Maror (מָרוֹר).  The term maror literally translates to bitter.  In  this step we eat a bitter herb or vegetable dipped in a paste of fruits and nuts mixed with sweet red wine called Charoset to temper the bitterness. (Or is it haroset,  charoises, or חֲרֽוֹסֶת(

Maror Seder Salad

We eat maror at the Seder to remind us of the bitterness of the slavery in Egypt. In Ashkenazic circles the most common things to use for maror are romaine lettuce and horseradish.  Others have the custom to use other bitter greens such as dandelions, endive, or radicchio. Using onion is not unheard of either.  The great thing about all of these, is they make excellent salad greens.  If you can’t (or don’t feel like) finding all these greens, bagged spring mix will do in a pinch. I also borrowed from the Karpas step of the Seder (where we eat vegetables dipped in salt water) for this recipe, by including celery and radishes.

Charoset Clusters

The charoset reminds us of the bricks and mortar we were forced to make and build with when we toiled in the hot Egyptian sun. As standard croutons are prohibited for those of us who don’t eat  leavened bread on Passover, I needed to find a suitable substitution.  The crunchy nuts of the charoset was a great option. Also, the sweetness of the apples do a great job balancing out all the bitterness in the salad.

Dressing

For the dressing I call for red wine vinegar, as a play on the four cups of wine traditionally drunk at the seder, but apple cider vinegar will work as a substitute. I mixed that with a little bit of horseradish and parsley to bring everything back to maror and karpas.

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Seder Salad
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Seder Salad With Charoset Clusters
Prep Time
5 mins
Cook Time
15 mins
 

A salad for your seder that borrows from marror, charoset, and karpas. The bitter greens are balanced by the crunchy apple and nut clusters.

Course: Salad, Side
Cuisine: Jewish, Kosher, Passover, Pesach, vegan, vegetarian
Keyword: Passover, pesach, salad, seder
Servings: 10
Author: Daniel Peikes
Ingredients
Salad
  • 2 Cups Romain Lettuce Roughly Chopped
  • 2 Cups Endive Roughly Chopped
  • 2 Cups Dandelion Greens Roughly Chopped
  • 2 Cups Radicchio Roughly Chopped
  • 3 Radishes Sliced into rounds
  • 3 Stalks Celery with their Leaves Slice the stalks thinly on a bias and reserve the leaves to add to the salad
  • 1 Small Red Onion Sliced thin
Candied Charoset Clusters
  • 1 Small Apple Pealed, cored, and diced small
  • 1 Cup Walnuts Roughly copped
  • 1 Cup Sugar
Dressing
  • ⅓ Cup Red Wine Vinegar
  • ⅔ Cup Olive Oil
  • ¼ tsp Grated Horseradish
  • 1 tsp Chopped Garlic Garlic powder will work in a pinch
  • 1 tsp Chopped Parsley
  • 1 tbsp Honey
  • Salt and Pepper To taste
Instructions
Apple and Walnut Clusters

  1. Add the sugar to the sauce pan and place on the stove over medium heat.

  2. Cook sugar stirring constantly. Once the sugar melts add the walnuts and apples. Stir thoroughly to coat.

  3. Cook the apple, nut, and sugar mixture until the sugar begins to caramelize.

  4. Once the sugar is a light brown spread the mixture in a thin layer on to the parchment lined sheet pan to cool.

  5. Once the mixture is cool, cover it with another sheet of parchment paper and break it up into small pieces with a heavy pan or a meat mallet.

Dressing

  1. Whisk together the oil, vinegar, honey, horseradish, parsley, garlic, salt and pepper. Note you may not need to use all the dressing.

Salad Assembly

  1. Lightly dress the greens and vegetables, and top with the charoset clusters.

Don’t forget to check out some of our other Passover recipes:

Passover Potatoes

Passover Basics: Honey Roasted Chicken

Kumquat Mango Chutney Charoset Chicken

Apple Cider Donuts Filled With Apple Filling and Apple Glaze

As fall approaches apple cider donuts (or is it doughnut) seem to be all the rage (and I personally believe apple always beats pumpkin spice) and they make a great Rosh Hashana dessert. One of the major complaints I have about your average apple cider donut is they don’t really taste like apples. I wanted to find a way to infuse as much apple flavor into the recipe.  I decided to go with an apple glazed apple filled yeast donut made with apple cider instead of the more traditional cake donut usually used for apple cider donuts.

Don’t forget to check out some of our  other Rosh Hashanah recipes:

Spaghetti Squash Apple Date Kugel

Slow Braised Brisket With Apples For Rosh Hashanah

Braised Short Ribs with Apples and Pomegranate Honey Glaze

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Apple Cider Doughnuts
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Apple Glazed and Apple Filled Apple Cider Donuts
Prep Time
30 mins
Cook Time
30 mins
Rise Times
4 hrs
 

A fall classic that is perfect for Rosh Hashanah

Course: Dessert, Snack
Cuisine: American, Fall, Holiday, Jewish, Kosher, Rosh Hashanah
Keyword: Apple, Apple Cider, Apple Cider Donut, Apple Cider Doughnut, Donut, Doughnut, Fall, Holiday, kosher, rosh hashanah
Servings: 12 Donuts
Author: Daniel Peikes
Ingredients
Apple Filling
  • 2.5 Cups Apple Cider Divided
  • 1/2 Cup Maple Syrup
  • 2 Tbsp Cornstarch
  • 6 Large Apples Peeled, cored, and diced small
  • 2 Cups Apple Sauce
  • 1/2 Cup Apple Butter
  • 1/2 Cup Dark Brown Sugar
  • 1 Tsp Nutmeg
  • 1 Tsp Cinnamon
  • 1 Pinch Kosher Salt
Apple Glaze
  • 8 Cups Apple Cider
  • 4 Cups Powdered Sugar
  • 1/4 Cup Maple Syrup
  • 1 Tsp Cinnamon
  • 1 Tsp Nutmeg
  • 1/4 Cup Apple Butter
Apple Cider Donuts
  • 1-1/2 Cups Apple Cider Divided
  • 1 Envelope Instant Yeast
  • 1/4 Cup Shortening Melted and cooled
  • 2 Large Eggs
  • 1/4 Cup Brown Sugar
  • 1 tbsp Vanilla
  • 1 tsp Cinnamon
  • 1 tsp Nutmeg
  • 1 Pinch Kosher Salt
  • 24 Ounces All Purpose Flour About 5 cups
  • Vegetable or Canola Oil for Frying
  • Apple Glaze See recipe above
  • Apple Filling See recipe above
Instructions
Apple Cider Donuts

  1. Pour 1/2 a cup of apple cider into a microwave bowl and heat in the microwave to about 100°F. Alternatively you could do this in a small pot on the stove. Add in the packet of yeast, stir to combine, and set aside.

  2. In a large bowl combine the flour, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg and stir to combine.

  3. In the bowl of your mixer, add the 2 eggs, brown sugar, vanilla, the remaining 1 cup of apple cider and melted shortening and beat with the whisk attachment until lighter in color and volume doubles. Then slowly add the yeast and apple cider mixture.

  4. Switch to the paddle attachment on your mixer and add a ⅓ of the dry ingredients. Mix until fully incorporated, then slowly add in the remaining dry ingredients until a dough forms. If the there are still dry pockets of flour add a little bit more apple cider.

  5. Cover and allow to rise at room temperature until doubled in size.

  6. Roll the dough into pieces slightly larger than a golf ball. You should get about 12 pieces. Place on parchment lined baking sheet dusted with flour and allow to rise until doubled in size.

  7. Place 3 inches of oil in your Dutch oven or pot, place over medium heat, and bring up to 350°F

  8. Fry your donuts until golden brown, about 3 minutes on each side. Allow to cool.

  9. Using a large piping bag with a wide filling nozzle fill with the apple filling (see recipe below). Sometime it help to use the handle of a large wooden mixing spoon to create a pocket first.

  10. Dip the top of each donut in to the apple glaze (see recipe below) and top with a little more of the apple filling.

Apple Filling/Topping

  1. Pour two cups of the apple cider in a large sauce pot, reserving a 1/2 cup for later use.

  2. Add the apples, apple sauce, apple butter, brown sugar, maple syrup, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg to the pot and place on the stove over medium heat. Stir to combine.

  3. Continue stirring the apple mixture and once it begins to thicken, in a bowl combine the remaining 1/2 cup of apple cider and corn starch and stir to create a slurry. Add the slurry to the apple mixture to and continue to cook until until the filling starts to gel.

  4. Allow the filling to cool and and use to fill and top your donuts.

Apple Glaze

  1. Combine 8 cups apple cider, 4 cups powdered sugar, 1/4 cup maple syrup, 1 tablespoon of nutmeg and 1 tablespoon of cinnamon in a medium sauce pan. Place over medium heat and reduce by ¾.

  2. Set the glaze aside to cool to room temperature and stir in the the apple butter. Alternatively make this in advance and store in the fridge and bring back to room temperature before using.

Chayote Squash Slaw

We’re just 2 weeks away from our Jamaican Pop-Up Event at Ezras Israel Congregation in Chicago! If you haven’t registered yet, here is the link!

Since Daniel and I are cooking delicious Jamaican Caribbean food at this upcoming event, here’s a sneak peek at one of the menu items – Chayote Squash Slaw.

What is Chayote Squash?

Chayote Squash is very popular in Jamaican cuisine (a.k.a. “Cho Cho”), found all other Latin America, but originating in Mexico. The fruit is a member of the gourd family and it looks like a large pear, with a more wrinkly bottom. There are so many great health benefits to chayote squash too. It’s high in antioxidants, vitamin C, folic acid, and vitamin K and B6. It can also help improve blood sugar and studies have found that the chayote can help lower cholesterol levels too.

Chayote squash is a great addition to this slaw because the skin is so thin that you don’t need to peel it and it can be eaten raw. I just sliced it like a pear, removing the inner seed(s) and slicing it thin. Of course, if you want to cook it (not for this slaw) you can treat it just like a summer squash – roasted or grilled would be delicious. It tastes similar to jicama, or even as tart as a green apple. Can’t find chayote squash for this recipe? Substitute it for zucchini!

Spicy, Tangy, Sweet, Crunchy & Herbaceous

I love a good dish that brings together lots of flavor combinations and this slaw certainly hits the mark. The dressing is so simple. Mustard (I used yellow), honey (or for a shortcut, use honey mustard), lime zest and juice, salt, dried thyme. I never knew until my research that thyme is a popular herb in Jamaican cuisine! The slaw combines all of these flavor bombs, The jalapenos bring the heat and spice, mustard for tang, sweet from the bit of honey, tart from the lime, veggies from crunch and thyme and cilantro bring herby flavors!

Can’t wait to devour this slaw, either on its own or piled into a sandwich – YUM!

Hope to see you all soon at our pop-up event!

Like this recipe? Be sure to rate it 5 stars!

 

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Chayote Squash Slaw
Servings: 8 servings
Author: Rachel Katzman
Ingredients
Slaw
  • 1 8 oz. bag Shredded Red Cabbage Feel free to use a coleslaw mix or green cabbage
  • 1/2 cup Shredded Carrots
  • 1 Chayote Squash, seeds removed, sliced thin
  • 1 cup Cilantro, chopped Don't throw away the cilantro stems! That's where all the flavor is, so chop them up and add them to the slaw too.
  • 1-2 Jalapenos or other hot peppers I used a mix of home-grown small jalapenos and banana peppers (which are more mild) for color
Dressing
  • 3 tbsp. Mustard (I used yellow mustard for an extra tang, but really, any kind would be delish) Or just use honey mustard instead
  • 1 1/2 tbsp. Honey Omit if using honey mustard
  • 2 Limes, zest & juice
  • 1/4 tsp. Salt
  • 1/2 tsp. Dried Thyme
Instructions

  1. Mix all of the slaw ingredients in a large bowl or serving dish

  2. In a bowl or mason jar, add the mustard, honey, zest and juice of both limes, salt and dried thyme. Shake or mix well and pour over slaw

  3. Mix well and serve immediately. The salt will draw out moisture from the veggies so it's best served same-day, however, leftovers are still good in the fridge for about 1-2 days

Shakshuka With Feta Cheese

Feta ShakshukaA while back I needed a fast vegetarian recipe that works well for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. I was in charge of doing a virtual team building exercise for my team at work. We were split between Chicago and London with several different food restrictions. The decision was made for it be a “cook-a-long”. I decided on shakshuka, because it is fast, easy and works well for any meal. It is a dish of eggs simmered in a spicy tomato sauce that originates from the Middle East and North Africa.

Shakshuka is great recipe for the “nine days“. The nine days are time a traditional time of mourning when many Jews do not eat meat. While this recipe is already pretty easy, if you are is a rush you can take a short cut and use jarred salsa instead of peppers, onions, hot sauce, and crushed tomatoes.

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Feta Shakshuka
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Shakshuka With Feta Cheese
Prep Time
5 mins
Cook Time
15 mins
 

Shakshuka is a fast vegetarian egg dish that works well for breakfast, lunch, or dinner, that is great for the "nine days".

Course: Breakfast, Brunch, Dinner, Lunch, Main Course
Cuisine: Israeli, Jewish, Kosher, Mediterranean, Middle Eastern
Servings: 2 Serving
Author: Daniel Peikes
Ingredients
  • 1½ Cups Canned Crushed Tomatoes
  • 1 Medium Onion Diced
  • 1 Medium Sweet Bell Pepper Diced
  • 3 Large Eggs Brought to room temperature
  • 1/4 Cup Feta Cheese Crumbled
  • 2 tbsp Olive Oil
  • 1 tsp Schug , Harrisa, or the hot sauce of your choice Optional
  • Salt and Pepper To taste
  • Crusty Sourdough Toast or Baguette For serving
Instructions

  1. Take the eggs out of the refrigerator and allow them to come to room temperature.

  2. Place the pan over low heat and add the oil and the onions. Season the onions with salt and pepper to taste. Sauté the onions until they begin to become translucent.

  3. Add the bell peppers to the pan and sauté until the peppers begin to soften. Add the crushed tomatoes and bring the mixture to a simmer. Stir in the schug, harrisa, or the hot sauce of your choice, if you want to add a kick.

  4. Carefully crack the eggs directly in to the pan, making sure not to break the yolks. Allow the eggs to simmer in the tomatoes until the whites are set and yolks just stark to thicken. Top with the feta and a little more black pepper.

  5. This is traditionally eaten right out of the pan accompanied by some toast or crusty bread.

Vegan Nacho “Cheese” Dip

I can confidently say this is one of the most talked about recipes I’ve ever made. My Vegan Nacho Cheese Dip is most definitely a crowd-pleaser but yet this humble dip has so many stories surrounding it. Let’s get into it!

Crowd-pleasing surprise

First off, I have to give my other blog (riskyveggie.com) some props because I posted a version of this recipe a few years back, since it was such a huge hit. I’ve made it for Super bowl parties in the past and it’s always fun to see the look on everyone’s faces when they see a “cheese”-looking dip on the same table as the chicken wings. Hmm…doesn’t look so kosher to me. But when I told them it’s vegan? Not to toot my own horn, but pure amazement on everyone’s faces.

The second time I made this dip for a crowd was last year’s Super bowl party. It was right before Ellie and I moved into our new condo and somehow I mustered up enough energy to whip up a batch of this dip. It’s THAT easy, that it didn’t feel like a chore. We went to a friend’s house to watch the game and their teenage son could not get enough of this. So much so that every time I see their family, there’s a good chance that one of them will ask me when I’m making it next. Well, Gottesman fam, this is for you.

Performance Recipe?

In October 2021, my little sister got married. It was an unbelievably magical weekend. Sunday night (the night before the wedding), there was a dinner and an activity called “Share” – basically like a talent show! There were lots of fun performances – jokes, songs, dances, funny stories and lots of laughs. I hadn’t planned on performing anything for share but about 20 minutes before the program started, a friend said “why don’t you share a recipe?” I looked at her quizzically, “um, how exactly would I do that? I’ve never “performed” a recipe before.”

But I decided super last minute to participate and the first recipe that came to mind was my infamous Vegan Nacho Cheese Dip. This is probably my most-requested recipe (apart from my Coconut Date Balls).

So, I mustered up some courage, jumped up on stage to “perform” my recipe! Wow, everyone was so into it! Maybe because it was a little different and unusual for a talent show? Either way, it turns out, this recipe is the perfect one to “perform” – all I did was share the ingredients and mimicked the action of my blender whirling away! But, the fun part is that I had several people approach me afterwards comment on how delicious (and easy) it sounded and of course, they wanted to know where to find the recipe! Cue a plug for MYV!

Well, look no further, my long-awaited Vegan Nacho Cheese Dip. I promise, it won’t disappoint.

Happy blending!

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Vegan Nacho "Cheese" Dip
Servings: 4 cups
Author: Rachel Katzman
Ingredients
  • 1 Large handful of raw cashews You don't want roasted or seasoned, just buy the raw whole or pieces (in bulk is cheaper) - and store in the freezer to keep them fresh
  • 4 cups Filtered water
  • 4 tbsp Nutritional Yeast
  • 1/2 cup Salsa
  • 2-3 Garlic cloves No need to chop, the blender will do all the hard work for you!
  • 2 tbsp Turmeric
  • 1 can Diced green chilies Optional
Instructions

  1. Add the cashews to the container of a high-powered blender. Add the water and the rest of the ingredients, except the diced green chilies

  2. Slowly power up to the highest setting and let it blend for about 6-7 minutes. The key here is to be patient. You need to let the blender do its job, so it'll be loud but trust me, it's worth it

  3. After about 6-7 minutes, you should hear a slight "chugging" noise and the sauce thicken and tighten up. Lower the speed to the medium speed for 1 more minute

  4. Turn off the blender and slowly pour out the sauce into a large container. Careful, it's going to be HOT! Add in the green chilies and serve!

  5. If you're going to be serving this for a party, I recommend serving it in a slow cooker on low to keep it warm and clump-free. Store in the fridge and use for up to 1 week. Serve with tortilla chips! (Note - this recipe is one of those things where you really don't need to measure. I put in rough measurements here, but you can always taste half-way through the blending process and adjust. One time I wanted to make this for a party but didn't have any salsa, so I substituted spicy red harissa and it was incredible. The perfect amount of heat and spice. So play around with it. Add in some lemon juice for a tang, or add in pickled jalapenos once it's mixed, or even pour in some of the juice before you blend! You can also omit the salsa and turmeric and add in more garlic and almond milk (like half almond milk, half water) to make a vegan alfredo sauce. It's the perfect base to make lots of yummy vegan sauces!!)

Cheeseburger Salad Bowl

Cheeseburger Salad Bowl

For those of you in the Keto or Low-Carb community, you know full well what a “Big Mac Bowl” is. This is my spin – a KOSHER take on this classic keto dish, made with my homemade “Big Mac sauce” – the Cheeseburger Salad Bowl!

Low-Carb goodness

I’ve been following a low-carb eating lifestyle for several years now but I’ve lately more strict when it comes to tracking my macros. This salad is easy to prepare in advance for lunch or dinner and it’s incredibly filling and satisfying – even for a salad! It’s become my “several-day-of-the-week” meal and I haven’t gotten tired of it yet.

Even if you’re not following a low-carb lifestyle, this is the perfect salad to jazz up your weekday lunches with the perfect balance. The combination of healthy fats veggies and protein – the sharpness of the red onion, the sweetness of the tomato, the “meaty” veggie burger, and the tang of the pickles and the dressing. Topped with sesame seeds, to mimic the bun – YUM.

Simple swaps

Want to make your salad prep even easier? Buy shredded lettuce, or meatless crumbles (and cook the night before). I like using the burger patty so it’s easier to track my macros and it’s the perfect protein serving of 1 for my Cheeseburger Salad Bowl. This would also be great with shredded coleslaw mix, or chopped romaine, or kale too.

And we can’t forget about the main star here – the Big Mac Sauce! It’s so ridiculously simple – enlist your kids to help make it! I just add everything in a mason jar and store it in my fridge to last about one week. Oh and it also makes a delicious tangy dip for French fries too!

Enjoy!

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Cheeseburger Salad Bowl
Prep Time
10 mins
Cook Time
10 mins
 
Course: Salad
Servings: 1 serving
Author: Rachel Katzman
Ingredients
  • 1 Meatless Burger Patty You can use either Beyond Meat or Impossible Burger - delish! You could also use any veggie burger crumbles. I like using the patty and crumbling it up as it cooks, so it's the perfect protein portion!
  • 1 cup Iceberg lettuce, shredded
  • 1/4 cup Cheddar cheese, shredded
  • 1/4 cup Cherry tomatoes, sliced
  • 1/8 cup Red or white onion, diced
  • 5-6 Pickle chips, chopped I like the giant container of Grillo's pickle chips from Costco!
  • 1-2 tbsp "Big Mac Sauce"
  • Sprinkle of sesame seeds
Big Mac Sauce
  • Mayo
  • Ketchup
  • Yellow mustard
  • Splash of pickle juice
Instructions

  1. Heat a sauté pan on medium heat and cook the veggie burger on both sides. Break up the meat patty with a wooden spoon until it resembles ground beef crumbles. While the burger cooks, make the big mac sauce

  2. There's no exact science to this - just mix the mayo, ketchup and mustard together in a small bowl or mason jar, and add in a bit of the pickle juice. I start with about a 1/4 cup of mayo and add a big squeeze of ketchup and mustard, add in the pickle juice and adjust as needed. It makes about a cup of dressing and lasts in the fridge for about 1 week

  3. Assemble the salad bowls: In a big bowl, add in the shredded lettuce, onion, tomato, cheddar cheese, (slightly cooled) crumbled up veggie meat patty, and chopped pickles. Top with the big mac sauce and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Enjoy!

Check out some more salad recipes here:

Watermelon Tomato Salad

Blistered Green Bean & Tomato Salad with Basil Garlic Dressing

 

Tomato Pomegranate Salad

 

Israeli Shawarma Feta Salad

 

Herby Cabbage Salad – perfect for Passover!

 

Maple Pecan Twice Baked Sweet Potatoes

Maple Pecan Twice Baked Sweet Potatoes

Thanksgiving is almost upon us, and one thing I like to do is try and elevate some of my dishes.  I take a dish that I would make for any Friday night and give it a little more pizzazz. Sweet potatoes are a classic fall side dish. They have so more potential than being simply roasted or mashed and baked in a casserole with marshmallows on top. 

First thing you can do is a add some warm fall spices to your mash. Flavors such as cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg will give your sweet potatoes a nice zing. If you really like it you also add some clove, but use it sparingly as it can easily overtake a dish.  Adding a bit of maple syrup for some complex sweetness wouldn’t be a bad thing either. Just please do not use “pancake syrup.” If you don’t have real maple syrup you can use honey in a pinch. The pecans also give some nice textural contrast to what is otherwise a fairly mushy dish.

By piping the sweet potato back in to the skin you get a fun presentation.  When you make individual portions as opposed to a large casserole, it seems a little more special and brings a little bit extra to your holiday table. This will be a dish that deserves a place right next to your beautifully  cooked turkey (or duck if you want to do something a little different). Just don’t let me catch you putting them next to the cranberry sauce that still looks like the can.

Also, please don’t call them yams. Sweet potatoes and yams are two different things. Don’t forget to check out Rachel’s latest Thanksgiving recipe: Gluten-Free Pumpkin Cornbread or our other Thanksgiving recipes. Finally, let us know how you make Thanksgiving special or just something are thankful for in the comments.

 

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Maple Pecan Twice Baked Sweet Potatoes
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Maple Pecan Twice Baked Sweet Potatoes
Prep Time
10 mins
Cook Time
2 hrs
Cooling Time
4 hrs
 

A tasty side dish for your Thanksgiving table

Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: Holiday, Kosher, Thanksgiving
Keyword: Holiday, Sweet Potatoes, Thanksgiving
Servings: 6 People
Author: Daniel Peikes
Ingredients
  • 6 Large Sweet Potatoes
  • 1 Stick Butter or Margarine
  • 1 tbsp Cinnamon
  • 1 tbsp Ginger
  • 1 tbsp Nutmeg
  • Salt and Pepper To taste
  • Real Maple Syrup For brushing on top of your sweet potatoes
  • 48 Whole Pecans
Instructions

  1. Position a rack in your oven in the farthest position from the heat source that still allows you to enough space for a baking sheet loaded with sweet potatoes. If the heating element is on the bottom place your rack towards the top, and if the heating element is on the bottom then place the rack towards the bottom. This helps the sweet potatoes bake more evenly.

  2. Preheat your oven to 350°F.

  3. Wash the outside of your sweet potatoes and place them whole on a parchment paper lined baking sheet.

  4. Bake until a paring knife easily goes through your largest potato, about a 1 ½ hours. Be careful to try and pierce the sweet potato as close to center as possible as you will be splitting the potato and reusing the skin later.

  5. Allow your sweet potatoes to cool completely. Then cut them in half the long way and scoop out the flesh, being careful not tear the skin, and add it to a large mixing bowl.

  6. Preheat the oven to 350°F again.

  7. Add the butter (or margarine), cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, salt, and pepper to the sweet potato flesh and mash until smooth.

  8. Place the sweet potato mixture in a piping bag. Place the skins on parchment lined baking sheet and and use the piping bag to refill the skins. It should fill about 6 skins. If you are feeling fancy, use different tips to a cool design.

  9. Brush the top of each sweet potato with maple syrup and artfully place 8 pecans on each sweet potato . Then brush the pecans with maple syrup.

  10. Bake until the the top starts to brown, about 30 minutes, and serve immediately.

 

Gluten-Free Pumpkin Cornbread

As promised, here’s a new recipe to add to your Thanksgiving collection! What better way to ring in a Thanksgiving feast then pulling out a cast iron pan to make my (gluten-free) Pumpkin Cornbread! And it just feels so right to marry these two together. Just a disclaimer here, I didn’t end up using a full can of pumpkin puree because it made the cornbread a bit dense. But if you like that or you don’t want to save the excess pumpkin in your fridge, by all means, go for it.

And since usually when we all look up recipes online, we skip the text and scroll right to the recipe, so here ya go! Keeping this short and sweet, because well, pumpkin cornbread doesn’t need all the extra fanfare. We all know it’s delish. Just add some honey (or honey butter) on top, and it’s autumn perfection.

Enjoy!

Check out some other MYV Thanksgiving recipes here! And one of my personal favorites…

Ginger Lime Cranberry Sauce

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Gluten-Free Pumpkin Cornbread
Prep Time
10 mins
Cook Time
35 mins
 
Course: Side
Servings: 8 servings
Author: Rachel Katzman
Ingredients
  • 1 1/2 cups Cornmeal
  • 1 cup Almond Flour
  • 1 tbsp Baking Powder
  • 3/4 tsp Sea Salt
  • Dash of Cinnamon I didn't measure here, I just sprinkled some in! You could also add in some ginger too for a kick!
  • 1 cup Pumpkin Puree Not pumpkin pie filling
  • 1 cup Almond Milk
  • 1/3 cup Oil I used Avocado oil for its neutral flavor but you can also use olive oil or (refined) coconut oil. The refined coconut oil tastes less "coconutty". Or you could use butter if you're making this dairy
  • 1/3 cup Honey
  • 2 Eggs
Instructions

  1. Pre-heat the oven to 350F.

  2. In a large bowl, mix all of of the dry ingredients together

  3. In a separate large bowl, mix the wet ingredients together

  4. Add the dry ingredients into the bowl with the wet ingredients and make sure not to overmix

  5. Lightly grease a cast iron pan and pour in the batter and smooth around the pan using your hands or the back of a spoon

  6. Bake for 30-35 minutes

  7. Cut into slices and drizzle with honey if desired. I like it best served warm, especially because the honey sinks into the cornbread, YUM! Or, if you're making this dairy, you could mix a little softened butter with honey and add a pat of honey butter to the top of your slice!

Watermelon Tomato Salad

 

Watermelon Tomato Salad

End-of-Summer produce haul

Why does summer always seem to FLY by? Maybe we’re all having too much fun (hopefully), or maybe we’re all too busy eating this delicious and fresh Watermelon Tomato Salad! This is a perfect use of your end-of-season tomatoes that you’ve worked hard to grow on your deck.

I made the watermelon tomato salad when my parents came to visit Ellie and me in our new condo, over July 4th weekend. It’s super easy to assemble. Just mix chopped watermelon, tomato, fresh mint and a simple dressing of vinegar, olive oil and sumac (that’s the key). This salad is the perfect addition to a hot summer Shabbat lunch side dish and will definitely be a crowd-pleaser! Even my father-in-law was kind of blown away by this simple, yet delicious salad. The watermelon and tomato pairing was a new combo for him but he went back for seconds (and possibly thirds), so I think he was a fan. 🙂

You all know I LOVE sumac – I think it’s so underappreciated! It has a hint of tart and lemony flavor and pairs perfectly with the sweetness of the watermelon and tomato. I used Trader Joe’s raspberry vinegar as the base for the dressing but apple cider or white wine vinegar would be great too!

So go ahead and grab a glass or wine or a refreshing cocktail, a BIG bowl of this salad and enjoy those last few weeks of summer. Salud!

Want some more light and easy summer recipes? Check out a few here!

Raw Walnut Tacos

Israeli Shawarma Feta Salad

Tomato Pomegranate Salad

Fish Tacos With Mango Peach Pico De Gallo

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Watermelon Tomato Salad
Prep Time
15 mins
 
Course: Salad
Servings: 2 people
Author: Rachel Katzman
Ingredients
  • 2 cups Cherry Tomatoes, sliced I like to use a mixture of colors!
  • 2 cups Watermelon, diced Preferably chilled
  • 1 Handful Fresh mint, julienned (or chopped)
  • 1/2 tsp. Sumac
  • 1 tsp. Raspberry Vinegar Or use whatever you have at home - white wine, apple cider - those would all be good
  • 1 tsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 1/4 tsp. Salt
Instructions

  1. Add the tomatoes, watermelon and mint to a small bowl

  2. Mix the sumac, vinegar, olive oil and salt in a small bowl and drizzle over the salad

  3. Mix well, making sure not to break up the tomatoes or watermelon. Serve within a few hours of making the salad - either cold or room temp (the watermelon is best served cold so I like to keep it in my fridge until I'm ready to assemble the salad)

I

Broccoli Cheddar Soup

I was cleaning out my freezer the other day and I had a giant bag of frozen broccoli. I wasn’t really in the mood for roasted veggies, just craving something different. Looking in the fridge, I realized we had shredded cheddar cheese of course, the classic Broccoli Cheddar Soup immediately came to mind.

Now sure, this soup is great a cold winter day and well, it has been a bit chilly here lately in Chicago. But since Shavuot starts in just a couple days, this is a great time for this soup to shine. Hello CHEESE!

Childhood Classic

Growing up in Omaha, Nebraska, we kept kosher in the house. but at that time, we were still eating out at non-kosher restaurants. My dad would take my younger sister Avi and me to Panera Bread on occasion and our order of choice was the Broccoli Cheddar Soup. Sometimes with the bread bowl. I mean, it’s a great idea in theory, but really, it’s just too much. I have no idea how we would devour the soup AND the bread bowl. Growing kids, I guess, HA!

How fun is it to recreate classic restaurant dishes at home? The food don’t always turn out exactly as we remember, but the moment I tasted this soup, I was instantly brought back to my childhood. Sitting at the booth at Panera with my sister and my dad, eating this soup just reminds me of home. Pure nostalgia. I guess that’s the whole idea of comfort food!

This soup does the trick. Not only is it homey and comforting, but it’s ridiculously easy, with only a handful of ingredients. Oh and it reheats well – perfect for a yom tov meal.

I hope you get as much joy eating this as I did. 🙂 Happy Shavuot!

Don’t forget to check out our other Shavuot recipes here!

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Broccoli Cheddar Soup
Course: Soup
Servings: 8 servings
Author: Rachel Katzman
Ingredients
  • 4 Garlic cloves, minced
  • 3 cups Low-sodium vegetable broth
  • 1 cup Heavy Cream
  • 4 cups Broccoli florets Use frozen to make it SO much easier!
  • 3 cups Shredded cheddar cheese
  • 1/2 tsp Salt
  • 1/4 tsp Pepper
  • 1 tbsp. Butter, or ghee
Instructions

  1. In a large pot, melt the butter or ghee on medium heat and cook the garlic for about 1 minute

  2. Add the broth, broccoli, heavy cream, salt and pepper and bring to a boil

  3. Simmer the soup covered for about 20 minutes, or until the broccoli is tender

  4. Reduce the heat to low and blend the soup with an immersion/stick blender. If you want to keep chunks of broccoli, you can either use a slotted spoon to take some out, or just blend until most of it is pureed

  5. Turn off the heat and add in the cheddar cheese about 1/2 cup at a time and immediately blend using your immersion blender. If you saved some broccoli for texture, return it to the soup and stir. This is a trick I learned from reading other bloggers and reading cookbooks for this post - blending the cheddar cheese into the soup helps not only to thicken but it prevents the cheese from getting clumpy in the soup

  6. Serve hot with extra cheddar cheese sprinkled on top (and I added a crazy of fresh pepper to garnish too). Bread bowl optional. 🙂