A Cool Dessert!

   



Here's a little taste of tropics that might warm you up, while chilling your taste buds!  We're talking about Coconut Sorbet, but our old friend Chef Billy from Restaurant Associates is here to make it even better. Chef Billy told Tonia's Kitchen the sorbet is a very healthy treat, but add some honeydew melon with an olive oil drizzle to make it even more of a tasty dessert.  Billy tells Tonia the Extra Virgin Olive Oil gives a spiciness that combines well with the creaminess of the sorbet, as does the fresh flavor of the melon.  It's healthy, it's delicious and it's easy.  What more could you ask for in a dessert!

Delicious Lamb for Passover AND Easter

   



Spring holidays are here, and to celebrate, we at Tonia's Kitchen have a dish that's equally at home at your Easter Dinner or your Passover Seder!  Judy Bart Kancigor, who wrote Cooking Jewish told Tonia she has a delicious braised lamb dish that's moist, tender and flavorful.  And the flavor comes from the brine.  She uses a coffee grinder to bring together a chicken stock brine made of cinnamon, black pepper, coriander, ginger, cloves, fennel, nutmeg, cumin, cardiman and allspice.  Judy then browns some onions in garlic and olive oil and adds it to the stock.  It's important to let the lamb rest in your refrigerator for a day, to really bring out those wonderful flavors. 

Moroccan Spicy Apricot Lamb Shanks

Source: “COOKING JEWISH: 532 Great Recipes from the Rabinowitz Family” by Judy Bart Kancigor

4 lamb shanks (about 1 pound each), visible fat removed

Kosher (coarse) salt to taste

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 medium-size onions, chopped

2 to 3 tablespoons coarsely chopped garlic

1 cup dry red wine

1 3/4 cups homemade chicken stock or 1 can (14 1/2 ounces) low-sodium chicken broth

Moroccan Spice Mix (recipe follows)

1 cup dried apricots

Black pepper to taste

1. Soak the lamb shanks in water to cover in a large bowl, changing the water frequently until it runs clear. (This will take about 15 minutes in all.) Remove the lamb shanks, dry them very well with paper towels, and then season them all over with salt.

2. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350°F.

3. Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a Dutch oven or other large, heavy, ovenproof pot over medium-high heat. Add the shanks and brown them on all sides, about 15 minutes altogether. Remove the shanks and set them aside.

4. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon oil to the pot, if necessary (you will need it if you have been diligent in removing all the visible fat from the lamb), reduce the heat to medium, and cook the onions until they are soft, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute more. Remove the pot from the heat. Stir in the wine and deglaze the pot, scraping up all the crusty brown bits. Stir in the chicken stock and the spice mixture. Return the lamb shanks to the pot.

5. Place the pot in the oven and roast, covered, turning and basting the shanks frequently, for about 1 hour.

6. Add the apricots and continue roasting, covered, until the meat is very soft, about 1 1/2 hours.

7. Transfer the shanks to a platter and keep warm. Remove as much fat as possible from the sauce, using a spoon or a fat separator. Season the sauce with salt and pepper to taste.

Spoon the sauce over the lamb shanks and serve, passing any extra sauce in a sauceboat.

Serves 4 

Moroccan Spice Mix

2 thin cinnamon sticks (about 3 inches)

2 teaspoons black peppercorns

2 teaspoons fennel seeds

1 teaspoon coriander seeds

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon whole cloves

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg, or 2 slivers whole nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds

1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom or seeds of 12 pods

1/2 teaspoon allspice

Combine the spices in a spice grinder or coffee mill, and grind until fine and well mixed.

© 2015 by Judy Bart Kancigor    

 www.cookingjewish.com

A Perfect Souffle for Easter

   

If you're starting to make plans for that perfect Easter Brunch, here's a start, little individual goat-cheese souffles.  Jessie Price, who's the Editor-In-Chief with Eating Well Magazine, stopped by Tonia's Kitchen to talk about how to make them (not hard) and why they belong in your holiday meal (they're pretty).  Give them a try, and start your Easter Brunch off right!

• 1/2 cup packed grated Parmesan cheese, divided
• 1/3 cup minced fresh chives, divided
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 cup reduced-fat milk
• 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 2 ounces soft goat cheese, at room temperature, crumbled
• 4 large eggs, separated
• 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
• Preheat oven to 375°F. Coat the bottom and sides of four 10-ounce ramekins with cooking spray. Sprinkle the bottom of each with 1 teaspoon Parmesan and 1/2 teaspoon chives. Place on a rimmed baking sheet.
• Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir in flour and cook for 30 seconds. Whisk in milk, pepper and salt; cook, whisking, until thickened, 2 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat and whisk in goat cheese and the remaining Parmesan and chives. Whisk in egg yolks, one at a time. Stir in zest.
• Beat egg whites in a large bowl with an electric mixer just until stiff peaks begin to form (see Tip); do not overbeat. Gently fold about one-third of beaten whites into the egg yolk mixture to lighten it; then gently fold in the remaining egg whites until just incorporated. Divide the mixture among the prepared ramekins.
• Bake until the souffles have risen, are browned in spots and do not appear wet or moist, 20 to 24 minutes. Serve immediately.
• Soft peaks are egg whites that are beaten until thickening but still soft enough to curl when beaters are turned upside down. For stiff peaks, keep beating just until the whites are stiff and upright.

A Taste of Tradition for Passover

   

This week begins the annual celebration of Passover. And in celebration of the traditional meal, or Seder, Tonia's Kitchen chatted with author Judy Bart Kancigor.  Judy wrote the book Cooking Jewish, and told Tonia about her Yemenite Haroset Truffles.  Haroset, is a ceremonial food eaten during the Seder, and it represents the labor and hardships endured by the Jewish people at the hands of a cruel ancient Egyptian Pharoah. 

To make the truffles, Judy takes dried fruit; things like figs, raisins and apricots.  She then forms the fruit into little balls using orange liqueur, and rolls it in dried almonds.  It makes for a very special holiday treat that doesn't have to be served only at Passover.

















Yemenite Haroset Truffles
Makes 16 to 20

  FOR THE TRUFFLES
⅓ cup (2 ounces) pitted dates
⅓ cup (2 ounces) dried figs
⅓ cup (2 ounces) raisins
⅓ cup (2 ounces) dried apricots
2½ tablespoons honey
1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground ginger
⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
⅛ teaspoon ground cumin
¾ cup toasted coarsely chopped pecans
¾ cup slivered almonds, toasted
1½ tablespoons orange liqueur

FOR THE COATING
½ cup slivered almonds, toasted and finely ground
1. Combine the dried fruit, honey, and spices in a food processor and
pulse until smooth. Add the pecans, slivered almonds, and orange
liqueur, and process until just combined.
2. Form the mixture into balls 1 to 1½ inches in diameter. Roll them in
the ground almonds, and place them in individual fluted foil or paper
candy cups. Refrigerate, covered, until firm, at least 3 hours. These
will keep for up to 5 days in the refrigerator.

What Wine for Passover?

  

Gabe Geller from Royal Wine joined Tonia's Kitchen to talk about a question that may be as old as the Passover holiday itself. That is, which wine with your dinner. That's a topic that need not be mysterious. And like everything else wine, it depends on what you're eating. Gabe starts off with one his favorites, Essa from South Africa. He told Tonia the Essa Altera, is a sauvignon blanc-style that has high acidity. Gabe describes it as one of his favorites.

Yet another choice Gabe likes is a bottle from Lovatelli which is an Italian wine just launched a short time ago. It is a high-acidity red. As always, these wines are certified as
kosher. If lamb or brisket is on the menu, Gabe says a red like Merlot or Malbec should be in your glass. If it's fish or chicken, a white is best. Royal Wine has a number of ideas to make your Passover Seder great. Check them out here at Royal Wine's homepage.