Salmon with Asparagus and Shiitakes

May 22, 2013 by Jessica | 12 Comments

I love pouch cooking. Why? Because it’s easily prep-able in the morning, and you can just pop it in the fridge till you get home after a long day of school/work/errands and put it in the oven right before dinner. It makes cooking dinner a breeze! Also, it’s a everything you need for dinner…protein from the fish, veggies mixed in, and usually I add some kind of carb or grain. This time I didn’t, but served it with couscous (takes only 5 minutes to cook), so dinner was ready in no time. Also, individual portions make it harder to eat too much for all those people on diets or doing P90X. Continue reading …

Hamud

May 20, 2013March 11, 2018 by Jessica | 12 Comments

Hamud is a delicious lemony vegetable broth or sour sauce flavored with mint and filled with kibbe (haven’t heard of kibbe yet? Look at all the things you can do with it!). It’s a traditional Shabbat dish that we love eating on Friday night over rice. You see different families make it with different twists. Some people use citric acid, or sour salt to make theirs tart. I use fresh lemon juice. Continue reading …

Braised Leeks

May 13, 2013 by Stephanie | 21 Comments

I bet you’re all in the kitchen, getting ready for Shavuot? Well, my favorite part about this Shavuot is the dairy desserts, since it’s our minhag to eat dairy during this chag, instead of the traditional meat holiday meals. But I’m not sharing a dessert with you now, we have plenty of those. I’m going to share a simple side dish instead. (Note: you can never have too many recipes for desserts! Especially ones loaded with cream and butter. But alas, we’ll share those with you some other time.)

I’d like to introduce to you my new obsession: braised leeks!

We already know that I love leeks. Like in this lamb and leek hotpot, or this leek-fried rice. But those have other ingredients, in this recipe, the leek really is the star of the show! Continue reading …

Mustard Jibben

May 10, 2013 by Stephanie | 10 Comments

Now that we have a baby, it’s hard to go out as much as we used to (duh!), so we have to invite our friends over to our apartment instead. It’s always nice to lure people over with some good food. On the weekends, husband can be on baby duty while I’m in the kitchen—and while I’m on baby duty, he can clean up; no complaints there! And this is how we maintain a social life with a newborn…

Couscous with Sauteed Greens and Tomatoes

May 7, 2013 by Jessica | 18 Comments

I really like couscous, but it can get very boring. So I decided to layer it with some healthy stuff and make it sorta like a lasagna. I thought it was a hit! And so did Richie, who ate two bowls of it for dinner.

I was inspired to make this dish when my friend Danielle told me about a great couscous dish her mother made. Her ingredients were pretty much the same, but she used canned tomatoes and mixed everything together, more like a traditional couscous. When Danielle called it a couscous lasagna, I knew I had to try it. Plus, I’m on a healthy greens kick, so I was excited to use kale and spinach in the same dish. Continue reading …

Grilled Lamb Chops

May 6, 2013 by Jessica | 16 Comments

Lamb chops are not something you can make very often. They’re very expensive for a very little bit of meat (maybe you’re paying for the bone, so save it! Make stock!). That being said, they are a perfect “special occasion” food. Is it someone you love’s birthday? Add a couple of lamb chops to make it extra special. Or, maybe you’re celebrating your graduation after five years of graduate school? Whatever your reason for celebrating, these lamb chops are easy and amazing. Make sure to buy good lamb, too. Don’t want to spend all that money just to have an okay treat. Continue reading …

BLTs

May 2, 2013 by Jessica | 15 Comments

Aha – I got you! you’re wondering why a kosher blog is featuring a sandwich with the main ingredient as bacon! Well, Jack’s Gourmet has an awesome new-ish product on the market called facon, which is dry cured beef! I’m not sure how it compares to the real stuff, but I do know it’s awesome. We baked it up to make it crispy and put it on a fresh, toasted sourdough bread with some lettuce and thick slices of tomato – voila! an easy, delicious, and filling dinner! Continue reading …

Asparagus Custard Tart

April 29, 2013 by Jessica | 16 Comments

Spring is here! And spring means asparagus is in season. No more boring roasted or grilled asparagus, we’re going gourmet here. Now, gourmet doesn’t mean hard. Actually, while there are a few steps in this recipe (you should read it over once before actually attempting it – you’ll need to do a bit of juggling), it’s quite easy! and impressive looking. Feel free to use store-bought pie crust or even puff pastry, as in the original recipe. Continue reading …

Guest Post: Polow, Persian Basmati Rice with Dill and Pistachios

April 25, 2013 by Stephanie | 10 Comments

Adele’s back to finish off her Friday night meal with some dressed-up rice, because what’s a Shabbat dinner without rice in a Syrian household? Did you miss her chicken and braised carrots from earlier this week? Catch up!

I copied this recipe so long ago out of I-cant-remember-which cookbook, and have been meaning to make it ever since (ed note: we always do that! Do you?). So simple, so delicious. Continue reading …

Guest Post: Ourt-Braised Carrots

April 23, 2013 by Stephanie | 8 Comments

Remember Adele? She made something to serve on the side of the ginger chicken. Check it out:

I thought I was making mechshi cusa (stuffed zucchini), but when I went to get it from my freezer, I realized that I had only had dairy meschi, not meat. I decided to braise baby carrots in the mechshi sauce I already made. They turned out so good!