This dish is often served as one of starters for the Jewish New Years Dinner.  Black eyed peas signify increasing ones merit in life and are used in a Sephardic ceremony using many symbolic foods to ask for blessings at the start of Rosh Hashanah dinner.  

This dish is so rich and comforting that it would be great served for a main course dinner on a cold day.

1 16 ounce package of dried black eyed peas.

1 large onion, diced small

4 cloves of fresh garlic, chopped

4 strips of beef short rib meat with bone

2 tablespoon of safflower oil

1 bunch of fresh parsley, washed and chopped

1 14 ounce can of chopped tomatoes

½ cup of Tamarhindi sauce in a jar (available at Persian, Syrian, or Indian markets)

Salt and pepper

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 tablespoon Baharat seasoning 

Rinse the black eyed peas and check them over for any defects.  Set the peas in a bowl of cool water to soak for a couple of hours or overnight.  Fill a large stock pot with 3 quarts of water, add peas, and bring to a boil.  Turn them down to a simmer and cook for 1 and ½ hours.  In the meantime, prepare the other ingredients.  

Slice each long piece of short rib into 3 or 4 pieces.  Season the meat with salt and pepper.  Heat a large Dutch oven, and then add the safflower oil.  Swish the oil around to cover the bottom of the pan and then add the short rib pieces.  Sear the pieces and remove each piece from the pan once it is gold crusted and set aside on a plate. 

When all of the pieces of short ribs are seared, turn the heat down a bit and add the onions and garlic.  Sauté a bit, season with salt and pepper, and then add the parsley.  Stir all together and then add the cooked beans with their liquid.  Add the cinnamon and baharat, add the tomatoes, tamarhindi, and seared meat along with any juices that have collected on the plate.  Cover the beans with a tight fitting heavy lid.  When the beans come to a boil, turn down the heat, and let it cook on low heat for about three hours.  The dish should be well blended and very fragrant.  The meat falls off the bones when it is ready and the beans are very tender.  The entire individual ingredients meld together to create a wonderful taste.  Serve as a main course stew, or an appetizer portion or side dish.

Black Eyed Peas with Short Ribs, Fijones or Lubia is a post from: The Boreka Diary at The Jewish Global Kitchen

In our family Rosh Hashanah Lunch is a dairy meal.  This is the tradition of the Jews from Rhodes or from Turkey.  The meal consists of Huevos Haminados (a hard cooked egg with onion skins to turn them brown), Borekas, Boyuz, fish (either fried or oven baked with sauce), tomatoes, cucumbers, melons, grapes, berries, sweet Challah rolls, Fritada or Quajado and dessert.  All washed down with Turkish coffee. 

Since we consume such large meals at the Rosh Hashanah dinners, it only seems appropriate to have a lighter, dairy lunch.  The Boyuz, Borekas, and Fritada, are referred to as Desayuno.  In Ladino, desayuno is food served for breakfast or brunch.  Desayuno comes from the Spanish verb Desayunar, or eat breakfast. 

Spinach Fritada is thin and crisp with a salty, cheese enhanced, green flavor.  It is easy to make and may be frozen and reheated.  Just cut it into squares and serve it. 

16 ounces of fresh pre-washed baby spinach

8 ounces of Feta cheese (I prefer Bulgarian style from Israel, Sheep’s Milk)

4 ounces of Sharp white cheddar

1 cup of finely grated Parmesano Reggiano

10 large eggs

¾ cup panko crumbs

3 tablespoons of safflower oil

Preheat the oven to 350º.  Using a very sharp Chef’s knife chop the spinach.  Place the spinach in a large bowl and crumble the feta cheese on top.  Grate the cheddar on the large hole side of a box grater and add the cheddar to the spinach.  Next, add the Parmesano.  Toss the spinach lightly with your finger tips. 

Crack the eggs one by one to check, and then add them to the bowl of spinach.  Lastly add the Panko crumbs (I use Kikkoman brand).  Toss the whole spinach mix together until moist and cohesive.  Pour two tablespoons of safflower oil into a 9 x 13 glass (Pyrex) or pottery baking dish.  Spread the oil in the dish and then add the spinach.  Lightly pat the spinach into an even thickness with your palm of your hand.  Next drizzle the top of the Fritada with the remaining tablespoon of oil and spread with the palm of your hand.  Place the Fritada in the preheated oven and bake for about 30 minutes or until the top is puffed and golden.  Cut into squares and serve. 

Just a note, many people place the baking dish with the oil in the oven for a few minutes until hot, and then they add the spinach mix to the hot baking dish, and return it to the oven.  I am always afraid of burning myself so I pass on this procedure. 

A slice of Fritada is a whole healthy meal in itself.

Spinach Fritada, Sephardic Style is a post from: The Boreka Diary at The Jewish Global Kitchen

This little nut filled boreka, with a slightly sweet, crisp crust, is simmered in syrup flavored with honey and lemon after baking.  They are time consuming to make, so I only make them once or twice a year for special holidays.  My youngest son Mitchell is excellent at finding their hiding place and devouring them ahead of the evening when I am planning to serve them.  One year, I was about to prepare the dessert trays for a party, only to discover that the containers were empty! 

Since anything containing honey is evocative of having a sweet New Year, it is traditional to serve these and other honey pastry such as baklava for Rosh Hashanah or Sukkot. 

Dough:

4 and 1/3 cups flour

½ cup almond flour

1/3 cup sugar

½ teaspoon salt

¾ cup safflower oil

1 egg

2/3 cup water

Place the dry ingredients in the bowl of a food processor.  Pulse once to blend.  Add the liquid and process for a few moments until a ball gathers.  Remove the dough from the processor.  Divide the dough into 50-55 little pieces.  Roll each piece into a smooth ball.  Let the dough rest for 5-10 minutes.  In the meantime, prepare the filling. 

Filling:

2 cups almonds, ground

1 cup pistachios, ground

1 cup of pecans, ground

½ cup sugar

4 teaspoons honey

1/2 cup fresh orange juice

Zest from one large orange or Mineola

1 teaspoon cinnamon 

I use a small mini processor and grind my nuts 1 cup at a time.  It is best to use frozen nuts.  I put a couple of teaspoons from the measured sugar in the processor while I grind the nuts; it helps them to process better.  Mix ground nuts, sugar, honey, juice, and cinnamon together.  The filling should be sticky and pliable. 

Next, using a rolling pin, roll out each ball of dough to about 2 and ½ inch in diameter.  Place a spoon of filling in each one and then close it like a boreka (fold and seal in half moon shape).  Place on a silpat lined cookie sheet and bake in 350 degree oven about 30 minutes until done.  They will be very pale in color not deep golden.  While they are baking, make the syrup. 

Syrup:

3 cups sugar

1 and 1/2 cups water

¾ cup honey

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice 

Place the sugar, water and honey in a heavy bottomed sauce pan.  Heat on medium low until the sugar dissolves and the honey liquefies.  Boil syrup until just under 230º.  230 is threads stage.  If you put a bit of hot syrup between your thumb and index finger, then touch them, and then pull your fingers apart you should see threads almost form.  Add the lemon juice and turn the heat down to the lowest setting.  When the Travados come out of the oven, use a spoon or tong to gently dunk each one in the syrup for a few moments, turn, and remove to a plate.  I have a very small sauce pan, because I like the syrup as deep as possible and only place 6 Travados in the syrup at a time.   

Set the boiled Travados in a storage container but leave the lid off until they are fully cool.  Store them, sealed and wrapped tightly, in a cool dry place for up to several of weeks.

Enjoy with tea or coffee.

Travados or Borekitas de Muez is a post from: The Boreka Diary at The Jewish Global Kitchen

First Night Wednesday September 8, 2010 

Starters, Yehi Ratzones 

Wine, see Herzog Winery, Kiddush

Wash Hands 

Challah, drizzled with honey

Orange Blossom Honey, Avocado Honey, Wildflower Honey

Honey Crisp Apples (or other new apple) dipped in honey

Kufte de Prassa, leek meatballs

Spinach

Medjool Dates

Pumpkin Borekas

Fijones, Black eyed peas with short ribs 

Halibut Plaki 

Salad of miniature heirloom tomatoes, baby beets, pomegranate seeds, and basil 

Main Course 

Spencer Roast (Prime Rib Eye Roast)

Mushroom Pomegranate sauce

Citrus Roasted Chicken

Green Apples stuffed with rice pilaf

Sweet potato (Garnet yams) and Parsnip oven baked fries

Spinach with Sultana raisins and pine nuts

Oven Roasted multi colored cauliflower

Dessert 

Pink Lady Apple Cake

Honey Cake

Travados

Pistachio Biscotti

Assorted Chocolates

Berries 

Coffee

Tea

Many of these recipes are available on my site under recipe index.  I wish you all Le Shanah Tova, a happy and healthy New Year

Menu for Rosh Hashanah Dinner is a post from: The Boreka Diary at The Jewish Global Kitchen

Please accept my apologies for spotty posting for the last two weeks.  I have just returned from one of my visits to East Coast, in search of shopping bargains and new kosher places to dine.  Kosher certified foods, not readily available on the West Coast are also on my lookout list.  Fortunately, for me I have a sister that lives at the Jersey Shore.  My sister’s home makes a great base to set out on our adventures. 

On Monday, we headed out, destination Brooklyn.  Although old, dirty, and in parts broken down, it fascinates me.  Brooklyn is an incredible cross section of America.  Just driving the old worn streets and observing the signage and foot traffic is exhilarating.  Everything from religious Jewish neighborhoods, Chinese funeral parlors, Latin produce stands and signs that say Halal certified Chinese food intrigue me.  Perfectly kept little gardens in front of red brick houses in Italian neighborhoods, give way to a black Bible belt area of Crown Heights and then on to religious Jewish women with wigs, strollers and six children in tow, all dressed the same.  You have to love it. 

Today after walking through the crowded streets of Boro Park (some spell it Borough), we drove over a few blocks to the Kings Highway neighborhood.  First stop, Brenda’s, a clothing store.  It is amazing how discount shopping sharpens one’s appetite.  We walked down a few blocks from Brenda’s to David’s Grill, an Israeli restaurant with Yemenite specialties.  

It was late in the afternoon, but there were still a few lunch stragglers like us eating.  As the kitchen staff was changing the display case and setting out fresh kabob for the evening’s menu, we ordered.  We started with mezze of hummus, eggplant salad, falafel, tabouleh, fried eggplant, and barzargan.  Next chicken kabob, one order with fasoulia (white rice and beans like Avicas) and one order with Israeli salad (cucumbers and tomatoes).  When the waitress brought the food, it was hot off the grill and accompanied with warm fluffy fresh pita bread.  Just fab. 

We devoured our lunch and proceeded next door to check out the Holon Kosher Market and buy sweet kaak (Syrian biscotios) and kosher cheese.  In Holon, people are fishing beans and nuts out of bins and buying pistachio lokum by the piece.  One more stop in this area, we went to the world famous Monsoura pastry shop.  The owner makes Syrian pastry like sambusac (Syrian Borekas), along with sweets like fancy baklava and chocolates.  If you need pareve chocolates or Marzipan for a simha, this is the place to order it.  Of course, they ship just about anywhere. 

After parking the block before Pomegranate Market, at a meter, we noticed a ready made Sukkah Kit store.  They had Sukkahs constructed for the weather on the East Coast.  These Sukkahs had hard walls with windows but I am assuming a correctly (by Jewish law) open roof.  There were even Sukkahs for apartment balconies.  They looked like tall tents with an open roof.  Just amazing. 

We entered the market with great anticipation.  Pomegranate is the be all and end all of kosher markets.  The size of a large supermarket, Pomegranate has an incredible bakery and take out department along with a prime meat counter and fresh fish. 

Are you looking for kosher Asiago cheese or Parmegano Reggiano?  Perhaps you need Kalamata olives or mixed French Nicoise olives, Pomegranate is the place.  If you need Kosher Panko Crumbs, fresh Sashimi grade Ahi Tuna or Sushi Nori (seaweed wrappers for sushi), Pomegranate is the place. 

By now, we were exhausted the heat and humidity had taken its toll despite the fact it had been drizzling a little.  We drove home and contentedly reviewed our purchases before bed.

A Kosher Day in Brooklyn, New York is a post from: The Boreka Diary at The Jewish Global Kitchen

Zucchini, zucchini, everywhere, in the farm market, in the backyard; they come in every size and shape.  Some have different names or colors but they are all delectable little squash that can be sautéed, baked, grilled, stuffed, and shredded.

I like my zucchini sliced and sautéed with mushrooms, layered into vegetable lasagna, baked in a quajado and fried in a pancake.  One of my favorite dishes from childhood is stuffed zucchini.

My mom, Nona, has always been ahead of her time and as she approaches her 92^nd birthday I realize that she new about purchasing fresh and local when we were children.

A firm believer in sustainability, she composted in our back yard in the 1950’s and 60’s.  In the very back of the yard we had a large compost pile where she tossed all the vegetable peelings and fruit remains.  Many years, a zucchini plant sprouted out of the compost in the spring and by summer a huge curving vine snaked its way down the garden path filled with zucchini and the delicious flowers.

Try making this stuffed zucchini dish and you will love it.  It is mild in flavor but you could spice it up if you prefer.  Serve this with rice and you have a meal.

8 medium zucchini

2 pounds of ground beef

½ cup of long grain rice

½ teaspoon salt

Fresh ground pepper

1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley

4 tablespoons of olive oil

2 tablespoons of sugar

1 28 ounce can of chopped tomatoes (Try San Marzano variety)

Wash and dry the zucchini, then trim the tips.  Cut the zucchini in half.  Using a coring device, I think Nona called it a kavacador, hollow out the centers leaving tubes to stuff.  Chop up the zucchini pulp from the centers and save it to add to the sauce. 

Mix the ground beef with the rice, salt, pepper and chopped parsley.  Gently stuff the zucchini tubes with the ground beef.  Add the olive oil to a preheated Dutch oven. Add the sugar and wait a moment for the sugar to begin to turn light caramel.  At that point add the zucchini tubes and sauté for a couple of minutes taking care not to let the sugar burn.  Next add all of the reserved zucchini pulp that you removed from the insides. Season all with salt and pepper.

Lastly add the chopped tomatoes and bring the zucchinis and sauce to a simmer. Cover the stuffed zucchini and let them simmer for and hour and a half.  This can easily be refrigerated and reheated later to serve.

Stuffed Zucchini, Kalavasas Yenas is a post from: The Boreka Diary at The Jewish Global Kitchen

Today I looked at my calendar, and in a moment of panic, I realized that Rosh Hashanah 5771-2010 will be here on September 8^th this year.  Since I will be out of town for a lot of August for family stuff, it is time to get busy with planning my menus, extending invitations to guests, and baking and freezing things ahead. 

I will try to share as much of my planning as I can with you in the few days that I have. In addition to the food and menus, I give a thought to the table settings, flowers, and who may be alone on this holiday and need an invitation.

Pink Lady apples have a perfect balance of sweet with acid. They cook up beautifully, becoming soft with out loosing their shape. Since Rosh Hashanah traditionally involves a lot of apple recipes, give these a try. When you buy Pink Ladys they should be hard to the touch and crisp to the bite.

3 Pink Lady apples,
5 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon

2 and ½ cups granulated sugar
5 large eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil (I prefer safflower oil)
1/4 cup fresh squeezed orange juice
2 tablespoons of orange zest
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup Pink Lady apple sauce

3 cups flour
3 & 1/2 teaspoons baking powder (be sure to check the expiration date)
1/2 teaspoon salt

¼ cup powdered sugar

Peel the Pink Lady apples, cut them half, and core them. I find it easiest to core them with a melon baller tool. Dice the halves into 1/3 inch cubes. Place the apples in a bowl with the 5 tablespoons of sugar and the cinnamon.

Combine 2 &1/2 cups sugar, eggs, vegetable oil, orange juice, orange peel, and vanilla in a large bowl. Whisk to blend. Add the apple sauce and whisk again. Combine the dry ingredients in a separate bowl. Stir the dry ingredients into the wet. Do not over mix, but the batter should be smooth.

Preheat oven to 350º. Spray a 12 cup Bundt pan with a non stick spray. Take care to use a spray that will not ruin the finish of your Bundt over time. Spoon approximately 1 & 1/2 cups of batter into greased Bundt pan. Top with half of apple mixture taking care not to let any apple pieces touch the sides or center core of the pan. If the apples have released liquid while you were preparing the rest of the ingredients, squeeze the excess liquid out of them before you put them in the cake. Repeat for the next layer. Finish with the last of the batter. The batter should be well below the top of the pan if it is a true 12 cup Bundt pan.

Many of the new fancy shaped bundt pans are not really 12 cups and you will have left over batter and apples. I layer this left over into a small individual loaf pan or two depending on how much doesn’t fit in the original Bundt pan. Bake about 55 minutes to 1 hour and 5 minutes or until tester comes out dry, with no wet batter. Remove the cake from the oven when ready and set on a cooling rack.

Cool the cake in the pan for 15-20 minutes. Turn the cake out onto rack. Sprinkle with powdered sugar before you serve. Sometimes I make clear almond brittle and fill the center of the Bundt pan with broken shards of brittle for a spectacular presentation. You can make this cake ahead and freeze it for up to a month. Don’t freeze the brittle if you make that. Make brittle the day you use it. Powdered sugar also goes on the day you serve it.

See my blog for a post on apple sauce. It is easy to make and contains no sugar.

Pink Lady Apple Apple Cake is a post from: The Boreka Diary at The Jewish Global Kitchen

My first introduction to couscous was at summer camp as a child, on a small island in the waters off Puget Sound near Seattle.  This was not some slick, organized, professionally run summer camp.  This was Sephardic Bikur Cholim congregation summer camp, put together by some brave congregants for two weeks every summer.  Never mind that camp was always in June or that it usually rained most of the time, we could hardly wait for camp time to come every year. 

The congregation would rent a camp facility with bunks and a mess hall from a church group and an advance party would go ahead to kasher up the kitchen.  The Ladies of the sisterhood volunteered along with some of the men to be the cooks.  My mother was the camp nurse.

Couscous, just the name was enough to illicit peels of laughter from our irreverent gang of kids.  One older lady in particular known as Auntie Beya M (I am omitting her actual last name) made couscous to accompany baked chicken some evenings for dinner. Auntie Beya was delightful but the food was always just awful.  Somehow, we survived and it was always the best two weeks of the summer especially the Friday afternoon water, squirt gun fight.

Now as an adult, I find that couscous is a versatile, delicious tasting alternative to rice, potatoes, or pasta.  You can eat it plain, steam it with all kind of vegetables like in Moroccan restaurants, or you can combine it with herbs, or roasted vegetables like in this recipe.  I prefer the larger pearl like Israeli couscous.  You can find it whole grain or white.

1 large carrots

1 large parsnips

1/2 large sweet potato

1/2 fennel bulb

1/2 red onion

2 beets

1 cup whole tiny grape tomatoes

1 and  1/2 tablespoons Baharat powder

Salt

Olive Oil

1 cup of Israeli couscous

 1 and 1/2 cups of water

½ teaspoon salt

1/3 cup pine nuts

1/4 cup chopped fresh basil

1/4 cup chopped fresh mint

Wash and peel the carrots, parsnips, and sweet potato.  Chop them into about ½ inch dice, all around the same size.  Wash the fennel and trim off the stems and fronds.  Dice the bulb about the same size squares as the other vegetables.  Peel the red onion and dice it.  Peel the beets and dice them as well.  Wash and dry the tomatoes. 

Preheat the oven to 350º.  Toss each vegetable in its own small foil pan with a couple of teaspoons of olive oil, salt, and Baharat powder.  Roast until  golden, around twenty minutes.  Remove the vegetables from the oven and set aside.  Toast the pine nuts on a sheet pan for about 5 minutes.  Keep a close watch on the pine nuts as they burn rapidly. 

To prepare the couscous bring the 3 cups of water to a boil in a heavy bottom saucepan.  Add a ½ teaspoon of salt to the water.  Add the couscous.  Turn down the heat and simmer for about 5 minutes.  Turn off the heat and leave the sauce pan covered for 10 minutes until the couscous has absorbed all the liquid. 

Just before serving, fluff the couscous with a fork, add in all the roasted vegetables and any olive oil remaining in the roasting pans.  Then add the chopped herbs and toasted pine nuts.

Couscous with Root Vegetables is a post from: The Boreka Diary at The Jewish Global Kitchen

Since we are all trying to eat healthier, brown rice has become a staple in my kitchen.  Serving a lot of brown rice presents a dilemma.  How do I keep it fresh and interesting?  Sometimes it is good just plain or sometimes with yellow onions, green onions, chilies, raisins, nuts, and cumin or curry powder.  Many times, I use a brown and wild blend of rice.  The jewel tones of the diced grilled vegetables in this rice dish make it very appetizing.  Serve this rice on summer barbeque buffets or in the fall at holiday dinners.   

1/2 medium brown onion

2 teaspoons olive oil

1 cup brown and wild rice blend

2 cups cold water

1 teaspoon of salt

1 zucchini, washed

1-2 Japanese eggplant

1 yellow squash

1 red bell pepper

1 large carrot

1/3 cup sultana raisins

Olive oil for brushing vegetables

Salt

¼ cup fresh mint

¼ cup fresh cilantro 

Dice the onion and sauté in two teaspoons of olive oil in a saucepan with a fitted lid.  Add the rice, stir for a minute, add the salt, add the water, cover, and bring to a boil.  Reduce the heat to a simmer and let the rice finish cooking.  The rice takes about 40 minutes to cook.  Fluff the rice with a fork when it is finished and let it cool off. 

Slice the zucchini lengthwise into about ¼ inch thick slices.  Slice the yellow squash, carrot, and the eggplant the same way.  Paint the zucchini, carrot, eggplant, and yellow squash with olive oil and a sprinkle with a little salt.  Grill until cooked with light char marks. 

Grill the pepper whole until lightly charred on all sides.  Place the charred pepper in a paper bag to finish steaming and make it easier to peel. 

Peel the pepper, remove the stem, and seed it.  Dice the pepper and all of the other vegetables to about the same size.  Toss the vegetables with the cooled rice, raisins, mint, and cilantro.    Serve cold or room temperature.

Brown Rice with Grilled Vegetables is a post from: The Boreka Diary at The Jewish Global Kitchen

My children are technically adults and have their own apartments. Even so they are often at home usually looking for food.  It is still a rare occasion when my husband and I are actually home alone for dinner.  Last week I made this beautiful menu for the two of us.

Tricolore Salad with Nicoise Olives,  Heirloom Cherry Tomatoes, and Mint

Grilled Baby Lamb Chops

Parsnip and Garnet Yam Oven Roasted Frys

Oven Braised Fennel

Sauteed Haricort Verts with Shitake Mushrooms

Dinner for Two is a post from: The Boreka Diary at The Jewish Global Kitchen