Category: Blog

Matzo Ball Soup

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Homemade Matzo Ball Soup

Matzo ball soup may be one of the most quintessential Jewish recipes, but growing up in New York you didn’t have to be Jewish – and it didn’t have to be Passover – for you to consider this classic dish comfort food. Living in Israel Passover takes on new meaning as all chametz, or leavened foods, are cleared from supermarket shelves and restaurant menus. Even a week before the holiday begins, the chip aisle was replaced with matzo, matzo meal, and more matzo. Passover begins this Friday, but I started craving matzo ball soup weeks ago, and have been buying matzo just to snack on. Apparently I’m weird like that. Continue reading “Matzo Ball Soup” →

On My Shelf: Season to Taste

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Season to Taste by Molly BirnbaumThe book for this month’s On My Shelf and Kitchen Reader post is Season to Taste: How I Lost My Sense of Smell and Found My Way by Molly Birnbaum (this month is was my pick!). As you may guess from the title, this is not your typical culinary memoir. Food is at the core of the story, but Birnbaum isn’t here to tell us how backbreaking being a chef is, or recount her adventures eating around the world (although you get the sense that, had things turned out differently, that may have been the book she’d written). Although she is working as a restaurant dishwasher and about to begin culinary school when the book begins, that all changes when she is hit by a car and loses her sense of smell.

 

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Strawberry Shortcake and a Strawberry Blog Hop

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Is it strawberry season where you live? Here in Israel it’s my favorite time of year. Strawberries, artichokes, fresh almonds, and gorgeous fresh garlic are all in season and in abundance. I love it!!! It’s actually nearing the end of strawberry season, which is when they are cheapest and at they’re best. What better use for glorious fresh strawberries than strawberry shortcake?! Perhaps one of my favorite desserts of all time, this simple dessert is the best way I know to welcome in spring.

Strawberry Shortcake

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Guest Post: Spinach and Feta Turnovers

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I have a special surprise for you today: I am so honored to be guest posting over at Just One Cookbook! Although Nami and I have never met I feel like we are friends. Even through emails and blog posts I can tell that she is a warm, kind soul who always tries to make time for everyone. I always enjoy emailing with Nami about blogging and food, and I want to try every single gorgeous dish that she makes. I feel so lucky to have Nami as a blog friend.

Living in Israel, I’ve been exposed to so many new cuisines. Bourekas, a kind of savory turnover, have become a staple of my diet and are the inspiration for this recipe. They are common throughout the Middle East, Mediterranean, and North Africa and come with all kinds of fillings, from potato to “pizza.” Spinach and feta is one of my favorite flavor combinations, and it works perfectly here. These are great for brunch, but work just as well as a breakfast on the run. I like to freeze some to reheat them for an easy snack.

Spinach and Feta Turnovers

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Sweet and Sour Meatballs for World on a Plate

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I am excited about this post for so many reasons! First of all I get to share with you what may be the world’s greatest recipe: my mother-in-law’s sweet and sour meatballs. Second of all, I am part of a wonderful new blogging group called World on a Plate! Started by Pola from Italian in the Midwest, World on a Plate is a purposefully small group that is all about cultural exchange. Each month we will have a theme (this month’s theme is meatballs!) and will post a recipe from our “home country” that fits the theme. We are currently eight bloggers who represent Germany, India, Italy, Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Sweden, and the United States (that’s me!). If you are interested in joining and see that your home country is not represented, give Pola a shout!

Sweet and Sour Meatballs

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Blood Orange Panna Cotta and a Citrus Blog Hop

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Is there anything as beautiful as a blood orange? Their gorgeous tart flavor and vibrant red color make them irresistible to me. So irresistible, in fact, that I dragged two kilos home from Tel Aviv (an hour and a half away) just so I could have my way with these seductive fruits. I drank blood orange juice and put it in cocktails. And I made this: blood orange panna cotta. It was so good, and so easy! Bursting with bright citrus flavor, the blood orange dyes the dessert a beautiful shade of pink. It’s the ultimate palate cleanser, and a wonderful end to any meal.

Blood Orange Panna Cotta Recipe

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Announcing my Cookbook: Puff Pastry at Brunch

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Puff Pastry at BrunchI have some exciting news to share with you. I’ve been keeping it under wraps for months. Waiting. Sitting on my hands. Impatient for the day when I could tell you: my first cookbook has just been published! I’m trying to stay calm, cool, collected, but the truth is I can barely contain my excitement. Of course I could have told you it was coming, drummed up excitement and shown you previews. Call me superstitious, but I couldn’t believe it until I saw it on Amazon (you see, I’ve had a few projects in the pipelines that either never got started or have been delayed dramatically, so I’ve learned to be cautious). But yesterday it was published. For real. In living color. Here, see for yourself:

 

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Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Red Onion and Bacon

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Roasted Brussels Sprouts Recipe

There isn’t much that I love more than Brussels sprouts. Ok, that may be exaggerating, but only a little. These adorable little veggies have gotten quite the PR treatment in recent years, shooting from America’s most hated vegetable to veggie darling of the foodie community. I always knew that Brussels sprouts resembled baby cabbages, but it wasn’t until recently that I learned that they are actually related (I always figured it was a corn/baby corn type scenario). As part of the brassica family, Brussels sprouts are also kin to broccoli, cauliflower, kohlrabi, and turnip. “Ooooohhhh,” replied my husband when I read him the Wikipedia entry. You see, a light had just gone off: these are all his favorite foods.

 

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Irish Beef Stew Recipe and a St. Patrick’s Day Blog Hop

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Irish Beef Stew with Daikon Radish Puree

In case you couldn’t tell from my last name, I’m not Irish. But growing up in New York City, come St. Patrick’s Day everyone is Irish. It’s fun and festive, rowdy and chaotic. I know that drinking lots of beer is a St. Patrick’s Day tradition (an entirely made up one, by the way – but who’s to argue?!), but this weekend why not save some of that brew for your stew (watch out, I may break out into limericks at any moment…). Enter Irish Beef Stew, sometimes called Guiness Beef Stew, a hearty and delicious way to celebrate the luck of the Irish.

 

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Arugula Salad with Fresh Mozzarella, Tomato, and Basil Vinaigrette

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Arugula Salad with Basil Vinaigrette

It’s starting to warm up here in Israel. The rains are over (and what rains they were this year!), we had a proper sandstorm (not fun), and the temperature is rising every day. As soon as I get my first taste of spring I start to crave light, bright, fresh foods. That’s where this salad comes in. I got a beautiful bunch of fresh basil from my local produce market and the intoxicating smell followed me all the way home, planting the idea of this vinaigrette in my head. Continue reading "Arugula Salad with Fresh Mozzarella, Tomato, and Basil Vinaigrette" →