If you are looking for more Shavuot recipes, check out our Frojalda: Turkish Cheese Bread.

This recipe comes from Leonie Vickers who we met at a Monday Morning Cooking Club Passover cooking demonstration on the North Shore in Sydney, and she was excited to tell us about her family’s kolac.  We had never heard of this Czech cake but when she described it as layers of buttery pastry, tart apricots and sweet cheese, all topped with a toasty crumble, we were just as excited. 

We’ve made a short video HERE so you can see how it’s made.

Print

Kolac: Apricot + Ricotta Crumble Slice

Course Sweet Things

Cuisine European, Jewish

Servings 12 squares

Ingredients

Pastry

• 150 g plain (all-purpose) flour (1 cup)
• 40 g caster (Superfine) Sugar (2 tablespoons)
• ⅛ teaspoon salt
• 75 g cold unsalted butter (2 1/2 oz) chopped
• 1 egg yolk lightly beaten
• finely grated zest and juice of 1/2 lemon

Crumble topping

• 125 g plain flour (1 cup less 1 heaped tablespoon)
• 125 g cold unsalted butter chopped
• 115 g caster sugar (½ cup)
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Cheese filling

• 250 g drained ricotta (½ lb 2 oz)
• 1 egg
• 60 g caster (Superfine) Sugar scant ¼ cup
• 20 dried apricot halves (Australian or californian (not Turkish))

Instructions

• Put dried apricots in a heat proof bowl and cover with boiling water. Allow to soak for 15 minutes and drain well before using.
• Preheat the oven to 180 C with an oven tray inside. Line a square tin with an overhang, 20 or 22 cm.
• To make the pastry, place the flours, sugar and salt in the food processor and process to combine. Add the butter and pulse until crumbs form. Add the egg yolk, and the lemon juice and zest, and pulse until a dough is formed. Remove the dough and shape it into a disk. Wrap and refrigerate for 10 minutes.
• On a lightly floured benchtop, roll out the dough until it is the size of the tin. Place the pastry into the tin, ensuring the base is evenly covered. Bake for 15 minutes.
• To make the crumble topping, place the flour, butter, sugar and vanilla in the food processor and pulse until it is a rough crumbly mixture. Remove from the processor and set aside.
• To make the cheese filling, place the cheese, eggs and sugar in the food processor and process until it is a smooth mixture.
• Spread the cheese filling on the dough and place the apricots on top. Sprinkle with the crumble topping.
• Bake for 1 hour or until the top is light golden. Allow to cool.

The post Kolac: Dried Apricot + Ricotta Crumble Slice appeared first on Monday Morning Cooking Club.

Frojalda is the traditional Shavuot bread baked by Jewish Turkish families. We included it in our fourth book, Now for Something Sweet, in the savoury chapter.

This thick, cheesey foccacia-style loaf has a super crisp buttery edge, and a chewy almost-crumpety inside, studded with feta and topped with melted cheese. It is extraordinary. We found this recipe by Janna Gur when we were scouring the local library for Jewish cooks from around the world; we wanted to ensure we had seen every recipe that had been published in the global Jewish community. We fell in love with Jewish Soul Food: From Minsk to Marrakesh and this was just one of the many recipes that got a post-it note on the page. 

CHECK OUT OUR FROJALDA VIDEO!

Check out the recipe for Kolac: Dried Apricot, Ricotta and Crumble Slice

Print

TURKISH CHEESE BREAD: FROJALDA

Course Extras

Cuisine Jewish, Turkish

Ingredients

• 500 g (3 1/3 cups) plain (all-purpose) flour
• 1½ teaspoons (¾ sachet/5 g) active dried yeast
• 500 ml (2 cups) warm water
• 300 g (11 oz) feta cheese, crumbled
• 150 g (5 1/2 oz) unsalted butter, melted
• 120 g (4 oz) cheddar cheese, grated

Instructions

• You will need an extra large rectangular (preferably non-stick) roasting pan or deep tray, 40 x 30 cm (17 x 12 in).
• Combine the flour, yeast and water in a large bowl and knead with your hands or with the dough hook in an electric mixer until a very soft, almost runny dough is formed, about 5 minutes. Add the feta cheese and mix through the dough.
• Pour half of the melted butter into the pan. Pour the dough into the butter, flatten with a spatula and your fingertips and top with the remaining butter, making sure the dough is covered with butter on all sides.
• Cover with another roasting pan or deep tray, facing down (so that the dough has room to rise) and then cover with a towel for 2 hours or until doubled in volume.
• Preheat the oven to 200C conventional (390F).
• Sprinkle the grated cheese over the dough and bake for 35 minutes or until golden and crisp on top and bottom. Remove from the pan onto a board and cut into large squares to serve.
• Best eaten warm. Store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 3 days and reheat for 15 minutes at 200C to serve.
• Serves 12.

The post A SAVOURY DELIGHT FOR SHAVUOT appeared first on Monday Morning Cooking Club.

Looking for a brunch or lunch idea for Mothers’ Day? These are excellent eaten hot, straight out of the pan, or at room temp with a couple of salads like the Everyday Green Salad and the Broccoli Slaw from our new book.

Print

SMOKED TROUT FISH CAKES

Course Mains

Cuisine Jewish

Prep Time 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 40 minutes minutes

Servings 8 patties

Ingredients

• 200 g (7 oz) hot smoked river trout or other smoked fish
• 1 potato cooked, roughly mashed and cooled to room temperature
• ¼ cup each flat leaf parsley leaves and dill chopped
• finely grated zest and juice of 1/2 lemon
• 3 teaspoons olive oil
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons plain flour
• 1 egg lightly beaten
• 1 cup (90 g) panko breadcrumbs, plus extra
• olive oil for frying
• to serve
• lemon wedges

Instructions

• To make the fish cakes, combine the smoked trout, potato, parsley, dill, lemon juice, lemon zest, olive oil, salt and pepper. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt, pepper and lemon juice, if needed.Divide the mixture into 8 and shape into patties.
• Put the flour on a plate and season with extra salt and pepper. Lightly beat the egg in a small bowl. Put the breadcrumbs on a separate plate. Line them up on the kitchen counter, assembly line style. Dip a patty into the flour first, then the egg and then the breadcrumbs, ensuring it is well coated and re-shaping if necessary. Repeat with the remaining patties.
• Heat the oil in a shallow frying pan over medium heat, and fry the patties in batches for a few minutes on each side or until golden brown. Remove and drain on a rack.
• Serve warm or at room temperature with lemon wedges.
• Makes 8 medium fish cakes.

A Year of Jewish Cooking

$60.00

A YEAR OF JEWISH COOKING. Recipes we can’t live without.

This must-have fifth book from the Monday Morning Cooking Club is part guidebook for the next generation and part ‘best-of-MMCC’ and, in these difficult times, we believe it has even more relevance than ever.

A Year of Jewish Cooking shares our modern Jewish kitchen, cooking to the rhythm of a year of festivals and rituals – from Shabbat dinner to Shiva, from Purim and Pesach to Shauvot and Sukkot.

 

A Year of Jewish Cooking quantity

Add to cart

Category: Books

Tags: A Year of Jewish Cooking, MMCC new book, monday morning cooking club

The post Smoked Trout Fish Cakes appeared first on Monday Morning Cooking Club.

Simply perfect with a good cuppa.

If you want to make the real deal Anzac biscuits, then use the same mixture but instead of baking in a slab, shape small biscuits (see recipe and also this reel I did in 2024 with Ro Knox before the Federal election).

Thank you Saranne Chait for an enduring and wonderful recipe. The recipe was from Saranne’s South African kitchen and was first published in our 2020 book, Now for Something Sweet, and we still LOVE it. Anzac biscuits were made during WW 1 in Australia to send to the troops; these bickies were the perfect choice as they could withstand the long journey and travel time needed to reach the war zones. They are a sturdy biscuit which lasts and lasts! I imagine they were created in South Africa for the same reason.

A special request to all – when you bake your batch, please take a pic and tag us @heylisagoldberg on instagram so we can share the baking love. Check out the the 2026 Crunchies reel on Instagram.

And if you love to cook, we hope you’ve already got a copy of our new book. If not, you can buy it right here.

A gluten free option which is pretty good is in the NOTES under the recipe.

Lisa xx

#anzacday #anzacbiscuits

Print

CRUNCHIES

THE MMCC VERSION OF ANAZAC BISCUITS

Course Sweet Things

Cuisine Australian, South African

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 40 minutes minutes

After cutting into squares… 2 hours hours

Total Time 3 hours hours

Servings 24 squares

Ingredients

• 275 g (1 1/2 cups) plain (all-purpose) flour
• 110 g (1 cup) rolled oats
• 175 g (¾ cup) caster (superfine) sugar
• 85 g (1 cup) desiccated coconut
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 220 g (2 sticks – 2 tspns) unsalted butter
• 2 heaped tablespoons golden syrup
• 1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda baking soda

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 150°C (300°F/Gas 2).
• Line a 32 x 22 cm (12½ inch x 8½ inch) baking tin.
• Mix the flour, oats, sugar, coconut and salt together in an extra-large bowl.
• In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter and golden syrup together, and then stir in the bicarb.
• Once it froths, pour it into the dry ingredients and mix well with a wooden spoon.
• Use your fingertips to separate any clumps that form.
• Tip the mixture into the prepared tin and just smooth the top, not compressing the mixture too much.
• Bake for 35 minutes or until deep golden.
• If it is not deep golden at this stage, cook for an additional 10 minutes or so. Leave the oven on at this stage.
• Allow to cool for 10 minutes before turning out and slicing into squares (as big or as small as you like).
• Place the cut squares onto a flat baking tray then put into the oven and then switch the oven off for 2 hours.
• They will become hard and crunchy once they cool completely.
• IIf they are not as crunchy as you would like, turn the oven on and cook again for a further 15 minutes or so and then allow to cool.

Notes

If you prefer to make traditional Anzac biscuits, use the same mixture and, with a teaspoon, place mounds of mixture on lined baking trays.

Bake at 160C for about 20 minutes or until golden. It will make about 60 biscuits, depending on the size. 

FOR GLUTEN FREE Anzac-like biscuits (can’t really call them Anzacs without oats!), substitute (same weight) brown rice flour for plain flour and quinoa flakes for oats. Also sub 100 g shredded coconut for 85 g desiccated. Everything else remains the same. Using a teaspoon, shape mounds of mixture onto lined baking trays. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden. Makes about 60.

The post CRUNCHIES appeared first on Monday Morning Cooking Club.

We have been making these three-cornered biscuits/pastries (yes, we are divided on what to call them!) for the festival of Purim for decades. For our new book, A Year of Jewish Cooking, we have devised a brand new recipe. This is a recipe you can’t live without.

What is your favourite filling?

In our book, you will find the perfect summary of the festival of Purim, along with all the other major Jewish festivals and important times in the Jewish year. You can buy your copy right here.

The pastry is inspired by the delicious Jam Ring Biscuits in our fourth book, Now for Something Sweet (2020). Thank you to the late Zoli Romer and his daughter Susie Owen.

Print

The NEW MMCC Hamantashen

A brand new and outstanding recipe for our favourite three cornered biscuit for the festival of Purim, with three fabulous fillings, from A Year of Jewish Cooking.

Course Sweet Things

Cuisine Jewish

Keyword Haman, Haman's hat, Hamantaschen, Hamantashen, Jewish pastry, Purim

Prep Time 1 hour hour

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Fridge time for pastry 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour 45 minutes minutes

Servings 40 Hamantashen

Author Monday Morning Cooking Club

Ingredients

Pastry

• 200 g (7 oz) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 50 g (⅓ cup + 3 teaspoons/1 ¾ oz) icing sugar
• ⅛ teaspoon salt
• 1 egg lightly beaten
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• 150 g (1 cup/5 ⅓ oz) plain flour
• 150 g (1 cup/5 ⅓ oz) self-raising flour

fillings - see below

• thick raspberry + vanilla jam
• nutella + halva
• stuffed monkey dried fruit + jam

to eggwash

• 1 egg lightly beaten with
• 1 tablespoon water

Thick Raspberry Jam Filling

• 375 g (1 cup) raspberry jam
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Nutella and Halva Filling

• 70 g (¼ cup) nutella or chocolate hazelnut spread
• 40 g (¼ cup) halva, finely shaved

Stuffed Monkey Filling

• 40 g (¼ cup) apricot jam
• 6 dried Australian/Californian not Turkish apricots
• 1 tablespoon currants
• 1 tablespoon sultanas
• 1 tablespoon raisins
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Instructions

Pastry

• Line a large baking tray.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer, using the paddle beater, beat together the butter, icing sugar and salt for a few minutes until well combined. Add the egg and vanilla and beat to combine.
• In a separate bowl, mix the flours together. On low speed add the flour to the butter mixture, a quarter at a time. Once a soft dough has formed, remove from the mixer bowl and shape into a flat disc. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
• Divide the dough into four so you can work with one piece at a time. Each piece will make about 10 hamantashen. On a lightly floured board, with a lightly floured rolling pin, roll out one piece of the dough to a thickness of 3 mm (1/10 in). Using a 7 cm (2 3/4 in) cookie cutter, cut out circles.. Place 1/2 -1 teaspoon of your chosen filling in the centre of each circle.
• Fold the hamantashen by folding three flaps as follows:
• Take the left side of the circle and fold it towards the centre so it covers the left third of the circle.
• Take the upper right side of the circle and fold it towards the middle, overlapping the previous flap at the top, creating a triangular tip. You will see a small triangle of filling in the middle.
• Take the bottom edge of the circle and fold it up towards the top to complete the triangle. When you fold this part up, tuck the left side of this flap underneath the bottom of the first (left) flap you folded, and let the right side of this flap overlap the second flap you folded.
• Gently pinch each corner to secure and place on the prepared tray.
• Re-roll the scraps, fill and fold as above.
• Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before baking. Preheat the oven to 180℃ (355℉). Brush each hamantashen with egg wash. Bake for 15 minutes or until light golden.
• Makes about 40 hamantashen. Store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.

To make the Raspberry Filling.

• Spoon the jam into a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring from time to time. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 10 minutes or until the mixture has reduced by about one sixth (to 200 ml/ ⅘ cup). Take care, the jam is dangerously hot. Once it cools a little, pour it back into the original jam jar and allow to cool. Use 1/2 - 3/4 teaspoon in each hamantashen. Leftover jam will keep for months in the fridge. Makes enough for at least 48 hamantashen.

To make the Nutella + Halva Filling.

• In a small bowl with a wooden spoon, mix together the nutella and the halva. It’s not essential but if you refrigerate the filling for at least 30 minutes before using, it is easier to use. Use 3/4 - 1 teaspoon filling in each hamantashen. Makes enough for at least 24 hamantashen.

To make the Stuffed Monkey Filling.

• Place all the filling ingredients onto a large chopping board and, with a large knife, chop the dried fruit with the jam until you have a rough paste. You can also do this in a mini food processor. Use 3/4 - 1 teaspoon filling in each hamantashen.
• Makes enough for 24 hamantashen.

Notes

DAIRY FREE NOTE: If you want to make these dairy free, substitute your best cooking margarine. You may have to refrigerate the pastry for longer before rolling, and roll in smaller batches as the pastry will be softer.

 

The post 2026: the year to master hamantashen appeared first on Monday Morning Cooking Club.

It’s been 10 years since my dad passed away and we had a shared history of hot jam doughnuts, eaten down at Port Melbourne when I was a kid, watching the ships come in. So many years ago. Read about it here.

The post Hot Jam Doughnuts (Sufganiyot) appeared first on Monday Morning Cooking Club.

Rachel is a Sydney girl, part of our Jewish community, who now lives in New York City with her family. She is the co-founder of the iconic Seed and Mill – who sell all things sesame including the most sublime tahini – at the well known Chelsea Market.

Lisa xx

(Top and bottom photo of cookies from ‘Sesame’ by Alan Benson, Photographer)

Print

Brown Butter, Choc Chip & Halva Cookies

Edited excerpt from 'Sesame – Global Recipes & Stories of an Ancient Seed' by Rachel Simons (Ten Speed Press 2025)

Course Sweet Things

Cuisine International

Keyword Halva, Tahini

Prep Time 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

2 hours hours

Servings 16 cookies

Ingredients

• 170 g (6 oz) unsalted butter
• 115 g (4 oz) tahini
• 60 g (⅓ cup, firmly packed) light brown sugar
• 140 g (⅔ cup) caster sugar
• 1 egg plus 1 egg yolk at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 200 g (1 ⅓ cups) plain flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon flaky salt
• 1 cup walnuts roughly chopped
• ½ cup coarsely chopped 70% dark chocolate
• ⅓ cup roughly chopped halva
• ½ teaspoon flaky salt

Instructions

• In a small saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. When it begins to foam, lower the heat slightly so it doesn't burn and continue cooking for a few more minutes, until the butter has turned a deep golden brown and the milk solids have separated and settled at the bottom of the saucepan. Keep a close eye on the butter as it cooks so it doesn't burn-the butter will very quickly go from sizzling to silent once it's almost ready. Pour into a small (heatproof) bowl to cool slightly. Cover and refrigerate until solidified, at least 20 minutes.
• Place the solidified browned butter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or a large bowl if using a handheld mixer. Add the tahini and beat until smooth on medium speed. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides before adding egg, egg yolk, vanilla, and both sugars. Beat until well combined and light.
• In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt. Add the flour mixture to the mixer and beat on low speed until just combined. Fold in the walnuts and chocolate.
• Scoop 16 golf ball-size portions of dough and place on the prepared baking sheets, allowing at least 3 cm between each scoop. Place a small chunk of the halva in the center of each cookie and use your thumb to gently press it into the dough.
• Refrigerate for at least 2 hours (or preferably overnight).
• When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 175°C (conventional). Line 2 baking trays.
• Bake for 15 minutes until the edges are golden (mine took closer to 18 mins), rotating the baking trays halfway. They may look a little underdone in the centre, but they will firm up as they cool.
• Sprinkle with the sea salt while they are still warm

Notes

The cookies are best eaten warm or on the day you bake them, but they can also be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

I have made a few minor tweaks in measurements and method to Rachel’s original recipe which can be found in her book.

The post A GORGEOUS new book straight from NYC! appeared first on Monday Morning Cooking Club.

The post Chunky Dried Fruit + Mixed Nut Biscotti appeared first on Monday Morning Cooking Club.

[See image gallery at mondaymorningcookingclub.com.au] Ready for Pesach (Passover)?

The time of the year where so much time is spent thinking about the food.

How many have you got for seder?

What are you going to cook? 

What am I going to cook?!?

When are you starting to cook?

You get the drift.

We start on Saturday night 12 April with the first night seder, or feast, followed by 8 days ahead of us where these questions will be asked over and over again.

And we hope we can help with some answers.

If you have our books, this list will help you find the recipes just PERFECT for Pesach. If you don’t have our books we have lots of free recipes right here on our site. Our first three books are out of print and hard to find online. We have some copies of our most recent (2020) book, ‘Now for Something Sweet’.

Our FOUR books are absolutely and positively jam-packed with the most delicious, interesting and altogether useful recipes for Pesach (Passover).

We have created our ‘top 10-ish’ savoury and sweet recipes from our books to help make your menu planning a breeze.

TO HELP YOU WORK OUT WHERE EACH RECIPE IS FROM:

MMCC is our first book ‘Monday Morning Cooking Club – the food, the stories, the sisterhood‘ (2011).
TFGO is our second book ‘The Feast Goes On‘ (2014).
AATF is our third book, ‘It’s Always About the Food‘ (2017).
NFSS is our fourth book, ‘Now for Something Sweet’ (2020).

THE TOP ELEVEN

SAVOURY

1. SARA’S BRISKET, MMCC p. 66
2. PAULA’S BRISKET, MMCC p. 80
3. ULNYIK, MMCC p. 80
4. CHICKEN SOUP AND MATZO BALLS, TFGO p. 248
5. CHICKEN WITH SHALLOTS AND HERBS, AATF p. 128
6. SALMON PASTRAMI, TFGO p. 24
7. FRAGRANT SPRING LAMB, MMCC p. 47
8. CUCUMBER SALAD, MMCC p. 133
9. SHAKSHUKA EGGS, TFGO p. 127
10. RED CABBAGE AND RAISIN SLAW, TFGO p. 49
11. STANDING RIB ROAST WITH HORSERADISH CRUST, AATF p. 166

SWEET

1. ALMOND MERINGUE TORTE, NFSS p. 88 (featured image)
2. PASSOVER CITRUS SPONGE, NFSS p. 117
3. PASSOVER PEAR CAKE, NFSS p. 57 
4. CHAROSET ICE CREAM, NFSS p. 242
5. MATZO KUGEL, TFGO p. 277
6. FLOURLESS NUT CAKE, TFGO p. 281
7. CHAROSET BALLS, AATF p. 272
8. JAM COOKIES, AATF p. 302
9. ORANGE COMPOTE, MMCC p. 239
10. CHOC COCONUT MACAROONS, NFSS p. 25
11. BON VIVANT, NFSS p. 75
12. DOUBLE CHOCOLATE WALNUT CAKE, NFSS p. 73
13. BROWN SUGAR NUTTIES, NFSS p. 24

VIDEOS

1. PAULA’S BRISKET WITH ULNYIK
2. FROZEN LEMON MERINGUE
3. SIMPLE CHICKEN SOUP AND MATZO BALLS
4. ALMOND MERINGUE TORTE

AND THERE ARE MORE IDEAS RIGHT HERE:

1. Pesach Recipes PART 1, 2011
2. Pesach Recipes PART 2, 2014
3. Pesach Recipes PART 3, 2017
4. Pesach Recipes PART 4, 2020

OUR SEDER FAVOURITES (AND MAKE SURE YOU CHECK OUT THE ADDITIONS FROM THE NEW BOOK HERE)

The post Passover 2025 appeared first on Monday Morning Cooking Club.

We think this is the BEST do-ahead super-impressive dessert around. Think crisp yet chewy layers of meringue sandwiched together with light lemony custard and drizzled with a tart and sticky lemon syrup.

Make days before you need it and store, well wrapped, in the freezer until just before serving. Yum! This recipe comes from the kitchen of Vivienne Polak.

If you would like to make this recipe KLP, use 2 teaspoons white vinegar in place of the cream of tartar and cornflour.

Print

Frozen Lemon Meringue

Course Sweet Things

Cuisine International

Prep Time 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour

Total Time 13 hours hours 30 minutes minutes

Servings 10 serves

Ingredients

Meringue Discs

• 4 egg whites
• 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 2 teaspoons cornflour (cornstarch)
• 225 grams caster (superfine) sugat (1 cup)

Lemon Custard

• 4 egg yolks
• 125 grams caster (superfine) sugat (1/2 cup)
• 125 ml lemon juice (1/2 cup)
• finely grated zest of 2 lemons
• 300 ml thickened (whipping) cream (1 1/3 cups)

Lemon Syrup (Optional)

• finely grated zest of 1/2 lemon
• 60 ml lemon juice, strained (1/4 cup)
• 2 tablespoons sugar

Instructions

• Start this recipe the day before serving. Preheat the oven to 150°C (300°F/Gas 2). Line two baking trays with baking paper which have been marked with three 20 cm (8 inch) diameter circles or 28 x 12 cm (11 x 4 3/4 inch) rectangles.
• To make the meringue discs, sprinkle the egg whites with the cream of tartar and whisk until stiff. Mix the cornflour with the sugar, then add to the egg whites, 1 tablespoon at a time, whisking well after each addition. Whisk for a few more minutes until thick and glossy.
• Using a spatula, spread the meringue inside the marked outlines, smoothing out to the edges. Place in the oven, reduce the temperature to 140°C (275°F/Gas 1) and bake for 1 hour, or until the meringues are crisp to touch and will lift off the paper easily. Place on a wire rack to cool completely.
• Start making the lemon custard as soon as the meringues go in to the oven, as it must be quite cold before the cream is folded in. Put the egg yolks and sugar in a heavy-based saucepan. Over a low heat, mix until smooth and well combined then add the lemon juice and zest. Continue to stir constantly until the mixture thickens and coats the back of a spoon, about 10 - 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir for another minute.
• Pour into a bowl and refrigerate until completely cold, or place over a bowl of ice to cool faster. In a separate bowl, whip the cream until firm, then gently fold it in into the cooled lemon custard one spoon at a time, until combined. Refrigerate until needed
• Set aside the best meringue disc to be the top. To assemble, place one meringue disc on a piece of baking paper and top it with half of the lemon custard. Do not spread the custard all the way to the edge; when you place the next disc on top, it will spread. Repeat with another layer of meringue and the remaining filling, then top with the final meringue layer. Wrap gently in foil then freeze for several hours or overnight.This can be done several days ahead.
• To make the lemon syrup, combine all the syrup ingredients in a small saucepan, stirring over low heat until the sugar dissolves. Simmer, without stirring, for about 5 minutes, or until slightly thickened and tacky. Allow to cool to room temperature.
• Remove the lemon meringue from the freezer 30 minutes before serving. Drizzle the lemon syrup over the top.

Have you seen our other recipe videos?

Chicken Soup and Matzo Balls, Middle Eastern Crunch Salad, Clay Pot Snapper and Chocolate Yeast Kugelhopf.

The post Frozen Lemon Meringue appeared first on Monday Morning Cooking Club.

Print

BROWN SUGAR NUTTIES

(With thanks to Mish Arndt for this recipe)

Course Sweet Things

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Total Time 25 minutes minutes

Servings 30 biscuits

Ingredients

• 150 grams walnuts or other nuts coarsely chopped
• 125 grams brown sugar
• 20 grams Unsalted Butter chopped
• 1 egg white lightly beaten

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 160°C (325°F/Gas 3). Line 2 baking trays.
• Place the nuts, sugar, butter and egg white in a medium saucepan and cook, stirring constantly, over low heat until the butter has melted and the mixture is combined. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.
• Place heaped teaspoons of the mixture onto the prepared trays, allowing enough space for them to spread.
• Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown and just firm to the touch. Allow to cool for 10 minutes on the baking tray before transferring to a wire rack.

The post BROWN SUGAR NUTTIES appeared first on Monday Morning Cooking Club.

This absolutely delightful Passover recipe comes from the kitchen of Rocky Lambert Kozica in Melbourne, first published in Monday Morning Cooking Club’s The Feast Goes On (2014). This is one of those recipes that will forever be in your repertoire.

Print

Sweet Matzo Kugel

Course Sweet Things

Cuisine Jewish

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 45 minutes minutes

Total Time 55 minutes minutes

Servings 8

Ingredients

• 3 sheets matzo (matzoh, matza)
• 6 eggs
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2 cup sultanas (golden raisins)
• 4 apples peeled and grated
• 115 grams butter or margarine melted
• 1/4 cup caster sugar for sprinkling
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon for sprinkling

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 180℃. Grease a 20 cm square ovenproof dish.
• Break the matzo into rough 3 cm square pieces, place in a bowl, cover with water for a minute, then drain and squeeze out any excess water.
• In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, sugar, cinnamon and salt until well combined. Fold in the sultanas, apples, and matzo. Pour into the prepared dish and pour the melted butter on top, then sprinkle with the extra sugar and cinnamon.
• Bake for 45 minutes, or until golden brown.

If you need more recipes for Passover, check out our annual Pesach 2022 Recipe Roundup.

The post Matzo Kugel: PASSOVER IS COMING appeared first on Monday Morning Cooking Club.

In Leah Koenig‘s wonderful book, ‘Modern Jewish Cooking’, Leah explains that she isn’t a fan of baking with matzo meal but in this cake, it’s very well hidden.

This recipe can also be found in our latest book, Now for Something Sweet. 

For all our best PFP recipes, check out this year’s Passover Roundup.

Print

Leah Koenig's Passover Pear Cake

Course Sweet Things

Cuisine Jewish

Servings 10 serves

Ingredients

• 60 g pecans chopped (½ cup)
• 110 g brown sugar (½ cup, firmly packed)
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 4 eggs
• 230 g Caster (Superfine) Sugar (1 cup)
• 125 ml oil (½ cup)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 140 g superfine matzo flour (cake meal) (1 cup)
• 4 medium pears sliced (not peeled)

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F/Gas 4).
• Line a 20 cm (8 inch) square baking tin.
• Mix together the pecans, brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg in a small bowl.
• Using an electric mixer, whisk the eggs until creamy and light. Add the sugar, 2 spoons at a time, whisking until the mixture is thick and billowy.
• Add the oil in a steady stream, followed by the vanilla, and whisk until just combined.
• Add the matzo flour and mix on low speed until just combined.
• Pour half the batter into the prepared tin. Sprinkle with half the pecan mixture and arrange half the pears on top.
• Add the remaining batter, smoothing the top with a spatula. Top with the remaining pears, followed by the remaining pecan mixture.
• Bake for 60 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
• Transfer to a wire rack and allow to cool completely before removing from the tin.

Adapted and printed with permission of the publisher, from Modern Jewish Cooking: Recipes and customs for today’s kitchen by Leah Koenig, published by Chronicle Books, 2015.

The post Leah Koenig’s Passover Pear Cake appeared first on Monday Morning Cooking Club.

We were so lucky to come across Susan Barocas in our world wide search for recipes for our third book, It’s Always About the Food.

Susan’s story about these Charoset Balls is just wonderful:

If you look closely at the official photos from the past two White House Seders, you can see them. There, sitting on silver serving dishes on the beautifully set table—my charoset balls! 

I still get a jolt surprise and pleasure when I think back to my three years serving as the guest chef for the Obamas’ seder. I remember after the first year in 2014, someone remarked that I could check that off my bucket list. Really?? I gotta’ tell you that cooking at the White House was never on any list of mine.

Who could have imagined it for this self-taught cook, teacher, caterer and writer! I’ve been cooking since I was a young child and still have my first cookbook from 1959 when I was seven, Betty Crocker’s Cookbook for Boys and Girls. While I started cooking because I liked it and it was fun, by the time I was 11, family circumstances meant it became my job to fix dinner nearly every week night for my parents and three siblings. When this kind of responsibility is thrust on a kid, I think eventually you face a choice as I did: resent that responsibility, rejecting it as soon as possible, or embrace it and make it your own. I was fortunate because cooking remained mostly enjoyable for me, becoming a positive piece of my identity growing up…and this was way before Food Network!

To this day, I find the kitchen is a place of unending creativity and self-expression. It is also where I connect strongly with my family history and my Jewish heritage, both the Sephardic and Ashkenazic sides, as well as with my now 20-year-old son as he was growing up and still today.

Each year, standing in the compact White House kitchen, cooking all day with the other chefs, the anticipatory nervousness quickly disappeared as the joy of where I was and what I was doing took over.

After the first year, I was able to add a few Sephardic items to the menu, including those charoset balls, which have become one of my trademark dishes over the past 20 years. And each year, as I ground the fruit and nuts mixture, then rolled the balls in uniform sizes, I truly felt that somehow, my parents, grandparents and even unknown ancestors were there with me, smiling and sharing this most unexpected and amazing experience.  

Print

Charoset Balls for Passover

Course Sweet Things

Cuisine Jewish

Servings 36 balls

Ingredients

• 240 g pitted dried dates 2 cups
• 100 g dried figs about 7
• 160 g raisins or sultanas 1 cup
• 60 g dried apricot halves about 12
• 120 g roughly chopped walnuts 1 cup
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon or to taste
• 2 pinches allspice optional
• 1 1/2 tablespoons sweet red wine or grape juice
• 80 g raw or toasted almonds ground (optional), ½ cup

Instructions

• Line a baking tray and set aside.
• Using a food processor with the metal blade, pulse and grind the dates, figs, raisins (or sultanas) and apricots coarsely.
• Add the walnuts, cinnamon, allspice and wine (or grape juice) and pulse until the mixture is well chopped (but with pieces still visible) and starting to stick together. Pulse it a few more times until the mixture forms a large ball, taking care not to over process.
• With slightly damp hands, gently roll the mixture into large-marble sized balls and roll each ball in the ground almonds.
• Place the balls in a single layer on the prepared tray and refrigerate until firm, about 3 hours.
• The charoset balls can then be layered in a container in the refrigerator for up to 3 weeks.
• Makes approximately 36 balls.

 

The post Charoset Balls for Passover appeared first on Monday Morning Cooking Club.

The last weekend in January is a long one here in Australia and we love nothing more than a public holiday and a long weekend. Australia Day is generally a day for BBQs and swimming, beach-going and drinking beer, and eating sausage rolls and lamingtons. As usual, for us, it’s always about the food.

The lamington is, in essence, a square (actually a rectangle, more traditionally) of sponge cake (butter cake, pound cake, white cake) which is quickly coated in a light icing (really more a glaze than an icing) and then rolled generously in coconut.

It can be made with home made cake, leftover cake or bought cake. If the cake is a tiny bit stale, it is easier to roll but then won’t be as delicious to eat. So you need to find the balance.

This recipe comes from Railea Don and is published in our first book ‘Monday Morning Cooking Club – the food, the stories, the sisterhood’. Railea’s lamington story is as delectable as her lamingtons.

 “I taught this to so many students over the years at the Sydney County Council. It was a staple recipe and always a favourite. It is known as the ‘2 4 6 8’ recipe as it has 2 eggs, 4 oz butter, 6 oz sugar and 8 oz flour (and 1⁄2 cup liquid). I also used this recipe to make hundreds of lamingtons for the annual fete at the Montefiore (aged care) Home. Every year my kitchen would be filled with thirty slabs of cake, lined up on every work surface possible, ready for covering in masses of dripping chocolate and coconut. People would drop in, roll up their sleeves and all have a turn at dipping and rolling.”

And we are SO looking forward to seeing all your lamington pics on instagram. Please do tag @heylisagoldberg and #mondaymorningcookingclub – then we can share them with the world! Happy baking xx

Print

Lamingtons

Course Sweet Things

Cuisine Australian

Servings 30 small

Ingredients

Cake

• 125 grams butter (unsalted)
• 185 grams Caster (Superfine) Sugar
• 2 eggs
• 250 grams Self-Raising (Self-Rising) flour (1 2/3 cups)
• 1/2 cup milk or fresh orange juice

Icing

• 500 grams icing (confectioners) sugar
• 3 tablespoons best quality cocoa powder (unsweetened)
• 1 tablespoon butter (unsalted)
• 1 cup hot water
• 250 grams shredded or desiccated coconut

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 180°C. Line a 28 x 19 x 4 cm lamington tin.
• To make the cake, cream the butter and sugar until the sugar is dissolved. Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. Gradually add the flour, alternating with the milk or orange juice. Mix together well, then pour the mixture evenly into the prepared tin. Bake for 30 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean. Allow the cake to cool completely.
• Cut the cake into 4 cm squares, trimming the edges if necessary.
• Mix the icing sugar and cocoa together in a bowl. Put the butter into the hot water to melt, and mix into the icing sugar mixture until thick and smooth. Drop the cake squares into the chocolate, ensuring the cake is fully covered, then remove very quickly. Drain the cake on a wire rack for a few seconds. Using a large cooking fork, roll in the coconut.

The post Lamingtons appeared first on Monday Morning Cooking Club.