BIZZY BAKES

When I prepare for the holidays, I marathon cook.  So far today, I have made two broccoli kugels, 2 cauliflower-leek kugels, a ton of kneidlach (matzah balls) and this carrot apple kugel.  I didn't start till almost 2 o'clock. We just finished the first two days of the holiday Rosh Ha Shana, head of the year, and while we eat well, that is not the priority.  The meals were good but my focus is on Succos which comes around in two weeks.  There are six major meals a week plus a seventh smaller one (not counting regular meals on the non-holidays.  Each meal has challah, a fish course with salad, soup, meat or poultry with a few side dishes and desserts.  By the last meal, I am full before we start. Along side of the heavier dishes which I make ahead of time, I like to serve fresh vegetables to lighten the meals.  I also make the potato and apple dishes a day or two before the holiday since I don't find they freeze well.  So far I have two...

This photo is from another soup.  I forgot to take one after it was blended.  The second photo is a true one.  This looks just like it though. My husband is having difficulty swallowing and is on a creamy liquid diet.  I have been playing around with different foods.  The easiest is soup, any kind, due to the wonderful immersion blender.  I use it for many foods but I use it the most in soups to thicken them or smooth them out.  This time, I used some of our basic veggies to make this soup.  Usually, I go to spinach or broccoli or butternut squash.  This is what we had in the "olden days." Creamy Vegetable Soup Ingredients: 6 carrots, peeled, 1/2-inch chunks 1 large onion, quartered 2 celery stalks, 1/2-inch chunks 1 zucchini, chunked 3 medium Yukon Gold potatoes chunked 3 cups vegetable stock 2 cups water 1 teaspoon basil 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes salt to taste pepper to taste spices ...

These are the Ultimate Veggie Burgers.    Although there are no nuts present, there is a nuttiness to the taste of this "burger". Ultimate Veggie Burgers ( adapted from Susie Fishbein ) Ingredients: 3/4 cup carrot, shredded (I used food processor to shred) 3/4 cup sweet potato, shredded (1/2 sweet potato shredded in food processor) 1/4 cup water 1` 1/2 cup cooked brown rice (I used the mix in the photo) 8 crimini mushrooms, stems – trimmed (I was out of mushrooms so I skipped them.) 1/3 cup raw sunflower seeds 1/4 cup soy flour (or any flour – I had soy closest to me.) 1 heaping vegetable comsume powder (Don’t have and didn’t sub) zest of one lemon 2 very leafy basil stems from my garden (No, you do not have to get it from my garden.  I am just so proud.) 3 sprigs oregano (ditto) 1/2 cup white beans, rinsed and drained 2 eggs 1 teaspoon fine sea salt 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper 3 tablespoons olive oil (I used safflo...

I love quick breads, yes because they are easy to make but more so, because they are usually delicious. Zucchini Carrot Bread Ingredients: 3 cups flour 2 teaspoons cinnamon 1 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon sea salt 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1 1/2 cups sugar 2 medium carrots, peeled and grated 2 medium zucchini, unpeeled and grated 1/2 cup canola oil 2 eggs This recipe is on page 223 of Kosher Design Entertains.  It includes a delicious sounding streusel. Method: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease two loaf pans on the bottom and half-way up. You can use one 9 x 13 inch pan, if you would prefer. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder and sea salt. Set aside. In a separate bowl, combine sugar, carrots, zucchini, oil and eggs and stir. Add flour mixture to zucchini mixture and stir until combine. Bake uncovered for 1 hour.    F oodie Friday    ...

Once in  a while, we find a recipe that everyone likes and wants again and this is an example.  I ate two good sized bowls before I shared with my  husband.  I wanted to hide the rest so he wouldn't find it but he did and then he ate his share of the soup.  Somewhere in the middle, I added water to the pot and stretched the soup.  I did not add more seasonings and the soup maintained its goodness,  We got another day out of it but hubby put it in the back of the refrigerator and he got even more.  I kept adding water and the goodness remained. I wonder if I had added water each day, the soup would have multiplied forever.  It would have been well worth it.  You can guess, we loved this soup and hubby is already asking me to make it again.  Let me quote: "If you would make this soup on a regular basis, you would not have to make any other soup, ever again." Sausage, Cabbage & Root Vegetable Soup  (adapted from Eatin...

This week, I selected this Roasted Carrot and Dumpling Soup.  We loved the carrots soup and did not like the dumplings which were heavy and  hard.  I did make them gluten-free which might  have been the cause for this. This was another easy recipe although it had the additional step of roasting the carrots and onions.  That did not seem like a big deal.  The ever powerful immersion  blender made for a smooth soup. The dumplings were very easy to make.  They rolled into balls with no effort and frankly, at the rolling stage, I did not think we were going to enjoy them. You can find the recipe   online and I do recommend the soup.  I can't wait to check out the other Donna hay cooks and see what their soups were like.  Do visit them and get their opinions. Gaye           Sarah       and       Margaret If you are interested in cooking with our Donna Hay group, ple...

I am back to using what is in the house for our meals.  I looked around and found a bag of cabbage and used that as my basis for the following recipe.  What goes with cabbage?  Apples popped into mind.  I like to shred some apples for cole slaw, sometimes and I am sure they will be good with cabbage.  Now, what to do to make the recipe better and a little different which is when I thought of the butternut squash I had with no plans as to how to use it. Sauteed Apples, Squash and Cabbage Ingredients: 1 tablespoon butter 1 - 2 tablespoons olive oil 4 large tart apples - peeled and cubed 2 cups cubed butternut squash, peeled about 12 ounces of shredded cabbage 1/2 cup shredded carrot 2 tablespoons brown sugar 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon or 1/2 teaspoon five spice seasoning 1/2 teaspoon black pepper Method: In a large skillet or saucepan, melt butter over medium heat.  Add the olive oil and heat together....

Potato soup is an all-time favorite.  Everyone likes it.  My preference in a potato soup has sour cream included in the soup ingredients but this turned out to be rich and creamy and takes second place.  Not bad. Potato-Carrot Soup - adapted from Mr. Food 1 1/2 cup diced onion 1 tablespoon oil  1 tablespoon butter 4 cups large-diced potatoes 1 carrot, coarsely grated 2 cups water 1 cup vegetable broth (organic) 1/2 teaspoon pepper 1 teaspoon dried dill 3 cups milk 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley Method: In a large skillet, brown the onion in the butter.  Add the potatoes, carrot, water, broth, pepper and dill. Cook on low until potatoes are creamy, about 45 minutes.  Stir in the milk and parsley and continue cooking until mixture is heated through.  Remove about a cup of vegetables and put aside. Using an immersion blender or full sized blender, mix until you get the smoothness desire.   Add vegetables that were pu...

I was in a playful mood so I used my challah pan to make this carrot cake.  This is another cake from what is becoming a favorite cookbook, Everyday Baking.  I made it gluten free and hubby gave it, his approval. Carrot Cake (adapted from Everyday Baking - Cooking Light) Ingredients 1 1/2 cups gluten-free flour mix  1 1/3 cups  sugar  1/3 cup chopped pecans  2 teaspoons baking soda 1 teaspoon salt  2 teaspoons ground cinnamon  3 tablespoons oil  2 large eggs  2 cups grated carrot  Cooking spray  Confectioner's sugar for top.... Method: Preheat oven to 350°. Spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, sugar,  pecans, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon in a large bowl and  stir well with a whisk. Combine oil and eggs and stir well.  Stir egg mixture and grated carrot into flour mixture.  Spoon batter into a 13 x 9-inch...

This is the first meal of my experiment to actively show you how I use what is in the house, ready to leave this world, if I don't save it. My biggie was the bag of shredded cabbage, I had planned to used on the Sabbath, and then just didn't bother with it.  The other was a package of Italian sausages with only two left.  Potatoes, carrots, onions and apples are usually on hand. Although I did add black pepper, this does not need much in the way of spices.  The sausage is strong enough to permeate the vegetable.  The crispy apple adds the crunch (slight) but it makes a difference. Ingredients: 2 Sweet Italian Sausages. sliced 1 huge onion (Costco style), rough chopped 3 large potatoes, rough diced 2 large carrots, sliced 12 ounces of cabbage 1 - 3 apples, rough chopped in 1 teaspoon brown sugar 2 cups organic vegetable soup water or additional soup if necessary Method: Spray a large skillet with cooking oil (olive) Brown the sausage and chopped...

For the holiday, I made a Thai salad but didn't take a picture of it.  Since I still had slaw left, I decided to find a similar recipe and make it.  We liked the first and I think this one is even better.  The difference is the peanut butter.  I think nut butters make all the difference, no matter how little you put into the dish. My favorite part of using peanut butter in a recipe is the spoonful I get to indulge on.  Yummy. Asian Slaw with Ginger-Peanut Dressing  adapted  from Once Upon a Chef Ingredients: For the Dressing 1/4 cup honey 1/4 cup olive oil 1/4 cup unseasoned rice vinegar 1 tablespoon soy sauce 1 teaspoon Asian sesame oil 1 tablespoon peanut butter  1/2 teaspoon salt 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger For the Slaw 4 cups prepared shredded coleslaw 2 cups prepared shredded carrots 1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced into bite-sized pieces 2 medium s...

Cassoulet with Lots of Vegetables - Food of the World The name of this recipe appealed to me, immediately, because I thought, it had no meat in it. I was wrong. It calls for a choice Italian sausage, bone-in pork chops, comfit duck legs or duck breasts. No, no, Mr. Bittman - not for me and I don't believe we missed anything without the meat.  Of course, I found out, after the fact that a cassoulet usually does have meat in it. I like what Mark does put into it - that is Mark Bittman, the author of Food Matters. I left out the meat and will ask, "Who needed it?" This totally vegetable dish was filled with flavor and we cleaned our dishes. We like this cassoulet and I would be happy to make this again. It was filled with veggies, which we love and the combination was one, both hubby and I enjoy. I pretty much followed the recipe but I turned it, into a soup by adding some organic vegetable brot...

I made some unique and fabulous dishes over the Passover holiday.  I had no time to post them, at that time , but now I would like to share them with you.  They can be made all year and certainly flour can be subbed in for potato starch.    It is amazing how good the food is considering our limitations.  There are some different customs amongst groups of Jews and ours is not to use rice, beans, peas and corn along with any of our usual flour.  Sephardic Jew use these. Some of us don't wet matzah which means no matzah balls.  I know there are some who make these with potato starch.  I tried one year and we did not like them.  The truth is we eat kneidlach (matzah balls) throughout the year so we don't miss them for a week. My kitchen is filled with fresh fruit and vegetables.   It seems like we peel and chop for the entire week.  Fortunately, I have a food processor which does make a major difference in the work load.  We ...

This year, I have decided to serve manicotti and stuffed shells, at the Chanukah party. Actually, I decided to make the shells but I saw a box of manicotti and wanted to play with it, too.  I made one tray gluten-free for hubby, one tray regular stuffed shells and one of manicotti.   I used a spinach cheese mixture for one tray of manicotti and one tray of shells.  I made this vegetable -pasta dish as the second shell dish.  This is the new recipe for me and it is intriguing.  I added the mushrooms because I could, as my husband would say.  I also used diced tomatoes which was not in the original recipe. I have to plan the rest of the menu.  I am thinking garlic bread and spinach salad with a simple dessert.  Sorbet and cookies sounds good to me. Stuffed Shells With Vegetable Bolognese Sauce (adapted from   Ragú ) Ingredients : 1 can diced tomatoes (about 16 ounces) (serves 8) 1 container (15 oz.) ricotta cheese 1 cup shr...