Moon Milk - Say Good-Might Moon

 Ingredients:                                                                      Difficulty Rating:  Easy                                                             

1 cup milk (whole milk, 2% or fat free milk, almond milk or milk of your choice)

½ teaspoon turmeric

½ inch cinnamon stick.  If you don’t have a cinnamon stick use a scant ½ teaspoon of cinnamon

½ inch ginger root.  If you don’t have ginger root you can either use Penzys Sliced China Ginger Root or ½ ginger powder.  If you use Penzys Sliced China Ginger Root try it first with 1 piece, it’s strong. 

2-3 green cardamom pods, slightly crushed

2 black peppercorns.  If your pepper isn’t very strong, use 3.  Don’t crush them.

A few scrapes of fresh nutmeg

1 teaspoon honey or to taste

Preparation: 

Put milk in a saucepan at low heat.  While it is heating add all the ingredients 

except the honey.

Add the honey to the teapot or French press or to individual cups.   

When the milk looks like it’s about to simmer, shut off the heat. 

If you are using a French Press, pour everything into it an stir well.   After you’ve stirred it well, put the top on, but do not push the press down on the plunger until it steeps for about 5 miutes.

If you are using a strainer, stir everything, cover the pot and let it stand so the flavors marry.  After at least 5 minutes, remove the cover, stir again and  pour it through the strainer into a teapot.

To double the recipe, double all ingredients

 Enjoy.  Oh, it’s best served in your pajamas.

 

 

Thai Iced Coffee - Gafea Yen กาแฟเย็น

Serves 2 or 3 depending on the size of the glass

 Ingredient:

To make 1 glass, half this recipe, to make 4 or 5, double the recipe

 

·        5 Tbsp Thai coffee (Oliang powder mix) If you can't get Thai Coffee Powder (Oliang) try it with strong coffee like espresso

·        1 1/2 cup boiling water

·        31/2  Tbsp sweetened condensed milk

·        3 tsp sugar

·        Pinch of salt

·        Fill the glasses with ice

·        About 5  Tbsp evaporated milk

Preparation:

Place dry coffee into
the Coffee into the press or strainer.  Pour boiling water into your coffee press (you can use a jar and a strainer). Stir it well.  Let it steep for about 5 minutes  Note:  Most Thai people use the cloth strainer, I prefer to use the press. It's easier to keep clean and it lasts forever.

Add sweetened condensed milk
sugar, pinch of salt into a glass
mixing cup

While you wait, get a glass mixing cup (glass so you can see through it and ensure that the condensed milk is totally mixed).

Mix together the sweetened condensed milk, sugar, pinch of salt.

Add hot coffee to the mixing cup.

Add the hot coffee to the mixing glass and stir until everything is dissolved.

When you are ready for your treat, fill the drinking glasses with ice, almost to the top and pour in your coffee leaving just enough room on the top to add some evaporated milk to taste.

Cauliflower Latkes - Gluten free, low carb, delicious

 

A food processor is used in this recipe.  You don’t have a food processor, you can use the shredding side of a grater.  It takes a little longer, but it's easy

 
Ingredients:                                                                        Difficulty Rating: Easy to Medium

·       1 medium head cauliflower 

·       1 small to medium onion depending on your taste

·       2 eggs beaten

·       1/2 teaspoon baking powder

·       1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt or to taste

·       1/2 cup almond flour (more may be needed)

·       oil – a light oil that doesn't burn as quickly as olive oil.  I use Grapeseed Oil

·       Sour cream - optional dollop of sour cream for each pancake

Hot Buttered Rum

Ingredients:

·       2 cups water

·       1 teaspoon cinnamon

·      Between 1/8 and ¼   cup dark brown sugar depending on how sweet you like it

·       1/8 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg

·       A ‘pinch’ of cayenne pepper (optional)

·       4 Tablespoons butter

·       ½ cup dark rum

·       ½ cinnamon stick per cup (optional)

Preparation:

Bring water to a boil in a saucepan

Lower to a simmer

Add brown sugar and stir until dissolved

Add nutmeg and butter

When butter is almost melted add the rum.

Stir a few times and remove from the heat.

Stir until the butter is melted.

Pour into cups and add the cinnamon stick

Lemon Orzo Soup Recipe - Avgolemono

I usually go for thick, full meal type of soups, but this one made me rethink that. But this isn't a thin brothy soup.  The combination of the egg yolks and lemon thicken it perfectly.

Note - if you use store-bought broth and you decide not to buy low-sodium broth, at least check the ingredients to ensure that salt is at the bottom of the list. You can add your own salt as you need it, but no soup can be good with a stock made with mostly salt.


Ingredients:                                              Difficulty rating: easy

·      2 Tablespoons of olive oil

·   2 Medium carrots, diced *

·   2 Medium stalks of celery, diced * 

·      1/4 teaspoon Aleppo pepper (optional)

     

·      1 medium leek, the white and like green parts only. *

o  Cut it in half lengthwise and cut the halves into ½ “ pieces

·     1 32 oz. package of organic vegetable broth 

o  Use organic chicken broth if you prefer

·      2 organic eggs

·      2/3 cup orzo or 2/3 cup white basmati rice

·      Juice and zest of 2 lemons **- plus some lemon wedges to serve with soup for people who really like the taste of the lemon (like me)***

·      Kosher salt (to taste)

·      Black pepper (to taste)

* Note - when I'm in a hurry, I don't add the carrots, celery or leek, I just depend on the vegetable broth for the taste.  Sometimes you are just cold and don't want to wait for a delicious way to get warm! Just remember, nothing beats a homemade broth.

** Note - DO NOT use store bought lemon juice.  Use real lemons, the soup depends on that.

*** Note - I like to serve it with wedges of preserved lemons if I have them.

Preparation: 
Add the olive oil into a 3 quart pot over a medium flame. 
If using the Aleppo pepper, add it now.  (When it's a souper cold night this can really warm you up)
Add the leek and stir frequently until it is translucent. 
Pour the broth into a 3 qt. pot. 
Cover and bring it to a boil.

Whisk egg and broth together

Once it boils, turn the heat down so it is no longer at a rapid boil, but to a simmer and add the orzo or rice, and cook until it is al dente (firm to the bite).  The orzo has a faster cooking time than the rice.

Pouring orzo into the broth

While waiting for it to the soup to cook, break the 2 eggs, add add the yolk into a medium bowl.  Whisk them together and slowly add lemon juice, whisking for about 45 seconds to 1 minute - until they look smooth.  This makes the soup a bit thick and silky.

SLOWLY add 1 cup broth of hot broth from the soup to the eggs, a little bit at a time and whisk.
(You don't want egg drop soup, so this should be well whisked).
This should take about 2 minutes, until there is a good froth on the top.

Incorporate this into the soup pot with the rest of the soup slowly.

When the orzo or rice is al dente (a bit firm 'to the teeth', not mushy), 

When the broth comes to a boil, uncover it pour the egg, lemon mixture in a steady stream into the broth.  

Add the lemon zest before turning off the flame.  

If necessary, add more lemon, salt and pepper.  

Put the lemon wedges or preserved lemon on the table so people can add more lemon as they chose.  I always add more lemon, because I prefer the lemony tang, but being mindful of others, I give them the choice.

Sauteed Escarole and Beans (Scarola & Fagioli)

Serving size depends on how it is being served.

Ingredients:                                                                                          Difficulty Rating:  Easy

1 8 oz. can cannellini beans
2 medium heads of escarole – preferably organic
6 medium cloves of garlic-well diced
½ medium onion, diced
2 Tablespoons olive oil (not extra virgin)
About ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Freshly grated Pecorino-Romano cheese
Extra Virgin Olive Oil to taste

Preparation

Rinse the beans well.  Don’t keep the liquid that the beans come in.  Some recipes may tell you to keep the liquid because it will make the dish creamier, but the sugars, starch and sodium from the beans are concentrated in the liquid and that is the part you want toget rid of. 

Rip the escarole into medium size pieces and rinse very well.  I usually spray it with Eat Cleaner, All Natural Fruit and Vegetable cleaner while I’m rinsing it. Then spin or pat dry.

Add 2 Tablespoons of olive oil to a large sauté pan over a medium flame.  A large pan is needed because you’ll add the escarole at once.  It will shrink tremendously, but to hold it all in the beginning, the pan has to be big. 

When the oil is hot, but not yet smoking, add the crushed red pepper and the onions.  Sauté them for about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally, and add the garlic and a little bit of the salt. Let it sauté until the garlic is translucent.   Be sure it doesn’t burn.



Add the beans, stir and sauté for another 5 minutes.

Add the escarole to the pan.  It will be a lot of escarole, but it cooks down quickly.  



 

Cover the pan and let it cook over a low/medium flame for about 7 minutes.  It will cook down quite a bit. 

Uncover, add salt, pepper and Pecorino Romano to taste.  I often add a bit of good fruity Extra Virgin Olive Oil as well  Ahhhh....  delicious.

Escarole and beans can be served so many different ways.  We've had it as a main dish, as a side dish, over pasta, over risotto and even for breakfast.

That's how I had it today - as part of my favorite meal, breakfast.

How?

With sunny side eggs!  Sound crazy?

Give it a try.  It's delicious!









Chipirone (Baby Squid) Salad with Arugula, Grilled Pineapple,

Serves 6 people

Ingredients:                                                      Difficulty rating – Easy to Medium

1pound Padron peppers, or shishito peppers,or  any kind of organic frying peppers
Fresh organic pineapple, cut into rings or11/2 pieces
1 pound chipirones (tiny squid) or 1 pound of regular squid cut into 1inch circles
3 pieces garlic, well chopped
2 Tablespoons olive oil
Organic arugula  

1 or 2 organic tomatoes depending on the size, cut into wedges
1 medium size cucumber, peeled and cut into thin slices

1 shallot or small onion - cut into small pieces

3 Tablespoons, fruitty Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 organic lemon – 1 Tablespoon zest then juice

Kosher Salt
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
Freshly ground pepper
pinch cayenne pepper (optional)

 


Preparation:
Note:  You will be grilling the peppers, pineapple and chipirones. If you grill the chipirones last, you can use  the same griddle for everything.  If you grill the chipirones first, wash your griddle prior to grilling the pineapple and peppers.
 

Note: Always wash everything before you use them, even if it says 'prewashed'.  That includes the outside of lemons.

Heat the griddle and spread 1 Tablespoon of oil on it.  When it's hot, add the pineapple.
Sprinkle with a pinch of Kosher salt and cayenne (optional).
When the bottom has a grilled look, turn it and grill the other side

When the pineapple is done, grill the peppers in the same way.

When the peppers are done, add another tablespoon of olive oil to the griddle and  when it's hot add the chopped garlic and as soon as it is translucent add the chipirones in batches -  don't crowd them or it will lower the temperature.  They will shrink as they cook. Don't grill for more than 2 -3 minutes.
 

Whisk the 3 Tablespoons of oil, lemon juice and zest together in a small bowl or cup.

Arrange the pineapple, tomatoes, cucumbers and shallots over the arugula.  Place the chipirones on the and drizzle the oil and lemon mixture over the salad.
Add freshly ground pepper and Kosher salt.

Toss the salad before serving.

 

Chicken a la Gabel

Preheat to 200 degrees

Ingredients:                                                          Difficulty Rating: Medium to Easy

1 cup flour


2 teaspoon sweet Hungarian Paprika

2 +teaspoons  1 teaspoon ground French thyme

2 teaspoons +1 teaspoon ground sage

Either 1 whole organic, free range chicken cut into pieces or chicken legs and thighs – about 6 of each, or as much as you want

2 - 3 Tablespoons Coconut Oil

4 medium cloves garlic, well chopped
1 medium onion, chopped

5 anchovies
2 Tablespoons aged Balsamic Vinegar

3 to 4 cups organic low-sodium chicken broth

1 cup dry white wine
4 carrots - chopped
2 Yukon Gold potatoes - cut into 2"pieces

Kosher salt to taste

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Preparation:

In a paper or plastic bag add half the flour, sage, paprika and thyme and the chicken.  Then add the rest of the flour, 2 teaspoons of sage, paprika and 2 teaspoons of thyme.  Add the chicken to the bag and shake it to cover all the chicken.  Take the pieces out and shake off the excess flour.

In a 3 quart heavy Dutch Oven, heat the coconut oil over a medium flame. Add the garlic , onions, remaining sage and thyme and the anchovies.  When the garlic is translucent and the anchovies have dissolved, add chicken – don’t overcrowd it. Brown for about 5 to 7 minutes, and turn to brown the other side for about 5 minutes.

Remove the chicken and put in the next group – and do the same thing.

After all the chicken is browned, deglaze by keeping the Dutch oven on the heat and add the Balsamic Vinegar and about ½ cup of the chicken broth. Scrape the pieces of chicken off the bottom.

Add the wine, and bring it to a low boil. Add all the chicken and add enough of the reminder of the broth to cover ¾ of the chicken.  Don’t cover the chicken completely. Add salt and pepper.

Bring the liquid to a boil, cover and put in the oven.

While this is cooking, boil the potatoes and carrots together until you can put a fork in easily.  Then add them to the chicken. 

Check it several times to be sure the liquid level stays at about ¾, add more chicken broth if necessary and move the chicken around to be sure each piece gets its turn in the liquid.

Note: when you check the chicken, take it out of the oven and close the oven door right away so the temperature doesn’t decrease.

After 2 hours, lower the temperature to 180 degrees and cook for another 2 hours. Use a fork to be sure the chicken falls off the bone.  Check occasionally to ensure the liquid level stays been half and ¾  of the way covering the chicken.



Chicken a la Gable
In honor of Addie and Harold Gabel

This can be cooked a day ahead of time and refrigerated.  When you take it out of the refrigerator, you can scrape off any fat that has hardend and let it sit for about ½ hour.  Then put it on the stove over a medium heat, covered and bring it to a low boil and take off the heat and let it sit for a short while.

Serve with potatoes or rice or noodles to soak up the juices, and a green vegetable and salad.  I served this with a pea  and ricotta puree, creamy mashed potatoes and an Israeli salad with lemon and extra virgin olive oil.
 

Al Frank's Horseradish

Ingredients                                 Difficulty Rating: Easy (but don’t touch your eyes)

• Horseradish root
• 1 good sized, but not giant beet
• 3 parts vinegar to 1 part water - Dad used white vinegar, but I use apple cider vinegar, about ¾ cup of vinegar to ¼ cup of water, pour a little at a time.  You don’t want this too liquidy
• 2 heaping teaspoons sugar
• Kosher salt

Preparation:

Warning:  Your eyes will burn!  DO NOT TOUCH YOUR EYES!

Peel the horseradish - you may have to use a knife because it is not easy to peel
Scrub the beet and clip off the top and bottom.
Cut horseradish and beet into very small pieces. 
Add all the ingredients, a little at a time, to a blender and grind
If it's too strong, add more vinegar, water, salt or sugar to taste - make sure you don't  make it too liquidy.
Put in glass jars, with very tight lids, in the refrigerator. Make sure the lids are tight or everything in the refrigerator will have a slight bouquet of my dad's horseradish.
 

Cacio e Pepe Pasta

 Serves 4                                                                      Difficulty Rating: Easy

 Ingredients:

·       5 quart pot of boiling water  (big enough to hold pasta without breaking it)

·       1 teaspoon Kosher salt, plus salt to be used later

·       1 pound pasta (spaghetti, linguini, gemelli, bucatini, bavette)

·       ¼ cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
·       Some Cannellini beans, well rinsed (this is my addition, I need the protien and I like this)
·       2 Tablespoons butter

·       Good quality freshly ground black pepper (I use Penzy’s India Special Extra Bold peppercorns)

·       ¾ cup freshly grated Cacio de Roma or Pecorino Romano or Gran Padano cheese

Preparation:

Bring water to a boil and add 2 teaspoon Kosher salt

Add pasta and cook following the package directions – al dente, that is, firm ‘to the teeth’

While boiling the pasta, heat the oil in a large sauté pan until very hot.

When it's hot, add some freshly ground pepper to toast it
If you decide to add the Cannellini beans as I often do because I need the protien (and it's delicous) I add them here and toss them around with the pepper - this is not part of the standard recipe.

When the pasta is al dente (still firm "to the teeth"), drain, keeping some of the pasta water aside

Add pasta and butter to the sauté pan – toss over medium high heat.

Add cheese and pepper, and salt if necessary and toss. If it’s too dry, add reserved cooking liquid ¼ cup at a time until you get the desired moisture level (not too much, moist, not swimming).

Toss and serve immediately.

Big Al Frank's Potato Latkes - with some new tips

  

Frying Latkes in Dad's Skillet
Al Frank's Potato Latkes

Super Crispy Outside, Soft Inside

A food processor is used in this recipe.  My dad started using one about 20 years ago.  If you don’t have a food processor, you can use the shredding side of a grater.  It takes a little longer, but my dad used a grater for years and years

Ingredients:                                         Difficulty Rating: Easy to Medium

·       5 lbs baking potatoes – they have to be hard, like Russet.  Peel and cut out all the eyes, because they  add a bitter taste.  Hint - You can easily half or double this recipe. But when you half it,  use 2 eggs and use just a little less than 1 teaspoon baking powder.

·       3 or 4 yams (a variation – use 3or 4 medium size yams, it’s delicious if you want to give it a try)

·       1 big onion

·       3 eggs beaten

·       1 teaspoon baking powder

·       1 palm of Kosher (course) salt (if your palm is small, add more, my dad was a big guy with big hands)

·       Matzo Meal

·       All purpose flour

·       oil – a light oil like canola or sunflower oil or a light vegetable oil

Tip 1 - put a cheese cloth in a big colander in the pot or bowl you are using and put the shredded   potatoes in the cheese cloth covered colander.  The moisture will drip out through the colander and then you can squeeze the extra out using the cheese cloth.  Once you squeeze it all out, open it up, toss the potatoes around and squeeze them in the cheese cloth again to ensure that all the moisture is out.  If they aren't dry, they won't hold together.

Tip 2 -  Potato Latkes should be golden brown and crispy.  They often start out  that way, but by the time they hit the table they are soft.  Or, people make the mixture ahead of time and do the frying right before dinner, but then the potatoes turn black and ugly.  This year my sister Carol and I tried something new.  We cooked the latkes until they held together like a pancake but were not yet golden brown.  Then right before we served them we refried them in hot oil for about 45 seconds per side, or until they are golden on each side.  It is fast and a perfect way to serve perfect latkes even for a large crowd.

If you have one, use a heavy frying pan, if not, use what you have. Sometimes we use 2 frying pans to get this done faster, if you do that, you’ll need more oil. But usually there is too much going on in my small kitchen to use 2 pans

Cut the onion into pieces that will fit in the food processor - put in food processor with bottom blade – and process


Remove the bottom blade, put on top blade with shredder side up (not slicer)

Shred potatoes and then put them into a very large bowl or pot (preferably a colander covered with cheese cloth)

When they’re all shredded you need to get as much moisture out as possible. I do the following:
Drain excess liquid from potato mixture - if you have them in a colander over a bowl or pan, push them down and squish the moisture out.  If you're following the cheese cloth hint above, squeeze the moisture out, toss the potatoes around and squeeze again.  Only dry potatoes hold their shape.

Add eggs to onion/potato mixture

Add baking powder and salt

Cover mixture with flour  (not too thick, not too thin - that's what Dad told me)

Cover this mixture with matzo meal (thicker than flour)

Mix everything together - I use my hands because there's a lot of potatoes here.

Taste to be sure salt is OK (hint - if you taste before adding the matzo meal and flour it may taste too salty, always taste after they've been added)

(In the variation using the yams, the mixture doesn’t get as wet, but it is ok)

Heat the oil in a very large frying pan (or two). The oil has to be very hot or the pancakes will fall apart

Important - the oil must be very hot, but not smoking.  I usually am not patient enough to wait for the oil to be hot enough and my first batch fails.

Scoop some mixture into a slotted spoon - make it just enough to allow at least 4 pancakes to cook at the same time with enough room that they don't touch – don’t expect to make it into a pancake before it is in the oil.  Just carefully place it into the hot oil and it will stay together.

Before turning it over, lift it a little to be sure bottom is deep golden brown (they’re the most delicious when they’re crispy).

Remove from heat when both sides are golden.  When you lift them out with a spatula, press top of the pancake with a big fork or against the side of the pan to get excess oil out.  Drain on acookie sheet covered with paper towels (or a brown paper bag like Dad used to do)to get as much oil out as possible. 

General Hint - Keep an eye on the people in the kitchen at this point, because they will trying to sneak a latke.

Tip 3 - This is my sister Meryl's tip for cooking and freezing lateks ahead of time, and keeping them crispy. 
Cook the latkes as you normally would. When the are cool freeze them in a single layer.  When you are going to use them, preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Put the latkes in a single layer on a rack in the oven.  Cook for 10 - 15 minutes or until warm all the way through.  Voila!  Crispy delicious latkes!

Traditionally, for Chanukah, Potato Latkes are served with apple sauce.