And this Year’s Winner Is…

We are proud to announce 1 runner up and the 2 winners of our 3rd Annual Shavous Contest. We received 17 recipes (some with accompanying photos, some without), some recipes were mediocre, most were very g0od; they ranged from easy to intricate. We finally selected this three:

1st Runner Up

Grilled Mozzarella and Tomato Sandwich

Photo by Leah Rubenfeld – The best photo that was sent in.

Ingredients

• 8 slices country style bread, cut 1/4″ thick each
• 1/2 lb whole milk mozzarella cheese, cut into 12 slices
• Sea Salt to taste
• 16 sun dried tomatoes
• 16 large fresh basil leaves
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Directions

1. On each of 4 bread slices, place 3 slices of mozzarella. Season with salt, top with 4 sun-dried tomatoes, 4 basil leaves, cover with another slice of bread.
2. Heat 2 large nonstick pans over moderately high heat. When hot, add 1 tablespoon of butter to each pan and swirl to melt the butter and coat the pan. Put 2 sandwiches in each pan and place a heavy skillet on top of each as a weight. If the to is not heavy enough you can weigh down with canned goods or anything that will add weight. cook for 2 to 3 minutes until the bottoms are well browned and remove.
3. Add another 1/2 teaspoon butter to each pan, put sandwiches back on with the browned side up. Weigh them down again and cook until the second side is well browned (2 to 3 minutes).
4. Cut sandwiches diagonally and serve while hot.

Contributed by Leah Rubenfeld

(2) 1st Prize Winners

This year Brent Delman from The Cheese Guy.com gave us 2 baskets, a good thing, because we would had a tough time choosing the final winner.

Tiramisu

Ingredients

• 3 large eggs
• 1 cup espresso or strong coffee
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 Tbsp. rum (preferably dark)
• 8 oz. Mascarpone
• 16 ladyfingers
• Cocoa powder, for dusting (I used Dutch process cocoa powder, because it’s not as bitter as regular cocoa powder)

Directions

1. Combine 3 egg yolks, 1 Tbsp. espresso, sugar and rum in large mixing bowl. Beat 2-3 minutes, until pale. Add Mascarpone and beat 3-5 minutes until smooth.
2. In another bowl, combine 3 egg whites and a pinch of sugar. Beat until stiff peaks form. Gently fold into Mascarpone mixture.
3. Spread half of the mixture on the bottom of your serving dish.
4. Dip one side of each ladyfinger into remaining espresso and layer on top of the first layer of mascarpone mix.
5. Spread the remaining mascarpone mixture on top, and sprinkle with cocoa.
6. Refrigerate at least 3 hours before serving.

Contributed by Nossi Fogel,
from his website: http://thekoshergastronome.wordpress.com/2011/06/16/moms-tiramisu/
on the site you can also see step by step photos.

–oOOoOOo–

Chocolate Drizzled Cheesecake IceCream Pie

Photo by Sari Minzer

Ingredients

Crust

• 1 package chocolate Tea Biscuits
• 6 Tbs. sugar
• 1 stick butter, melted

Filling

• 8 oz. 5% Soft White Cheese
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2 egg yolks
• 1 tsp. corn starch (dissolved in 1/4 cup hot water)
• 1 10 oz whip
• 1 bar Dairy Chocolate

Directions

1. Blend Tea Biscuits with sugar and butter.  Press into a 9″ round pan.
2. Beat the whip.  Combine all other ingredients, besides for the chocolate, and fold into whip. Pour into pie crust.
3. Melt the chocolate bar and drizzle on top of filling and use a fork to marbleize.
4. Freeze for at least 2 hrs and garnish with chocolate curls.

Congratulations to the 2 winners and the runner up!!!

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy!

CS

A Roundup of our Shavuos Recipes

Over the last couple of years we featured some great Shavuos recipes on these pages. To make it easy for anyone to find them, we”ll put up all the links together, right here.

For three superb cheesecake recipes, check out And the Winner Is…, or you can try Levana’s Ricotta Almond Pie. You’ll enjoy Pam Reiss’ Cheese Kugel it is different from the usual kugels and very tasty! If you are looking for a different recipe to make blintzes or you want a Macaroni, Tuna and Cheese Casserole, you’ll find them at: And the Runner Up Recipes Are.

Macaroni, Tuna and Cheese Casserole — Photo by: Giora Malinowski

For an incredible treat, you might want to look at Pessy Haskelevich‘s Beet and Asparagus Crosstata, at: The winning Recipe Is…; for a great soup, hardly anything is better or more refreshing than Cold Watercress Soup,  while there you might also like the Polenta Casserole au Gratin. One of my all time favorites, which I”ll make many times during the year besides Shavuos is: Fettuccine Alfredo with Mushrooms. If pasta, cheese and mushrooms are involved… I can’t help myself!

Fettuccine Alfredo with Mushrooms, I can’t wait!

This week we presented Dairy Beet Borsht, ‘Ataiyef – Syrian Blintzes? and another cold soup, Vichyssoise. i must confide in you, gentle reader, not only will shavuos be inspiring as a renewal of each individual Jew’s re-acceptance of Torah, but the food will also be delicious.

Wishing a chag same’ach – agutten yontef to everyone and may our hearts be fully imbued with the true spirit of na’ase venishma and may torah always be sweet on every Jew’s lips!

CS & SYR

Vichyssoise

It can be served cold or hot, but I prefer it cold; it’s perfect for summer and… perfect for Shavuos!

Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients

• 3 large leeks
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1 onion, thinly sliced
• 1 lb potatoes, chopped
• 3 1/2 cups vegetable stock *
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• pinch of ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 egg yolk
• 2/3 cup light cream
• salt and white pepper
• freshly snipped chives, to garnish

Directions

1. Trim the leeks and remove most of the green parts. slice the white part of the leeks very finely.
2. Melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the leeks and onion and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes, without browning.
3. Add the potatoes, stock, lemon juice, nutmeg, coriander, and bay leaf to the pan, season to taste with salt and pepper, and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for about 30 minutes, until all the vegetables are very soft.
4. Let the soup cool a bit, remove and discard the bay leaf, and then press through a strainer or process in a food processor or blender until smooth. Pour into a clean pan.
5. Blend the egg yolk into the cream, add a little of the soup to the mixture, and then whisk it all back into the soup and reheat gently, without boiling. Adjust the seasoning to taste. Cool and then chill thoroughly in the refrigerator.
6. Serve the soup sprinkled with freshly snipped chives.

–oOOoOOo–

* Vegetable Stock

Yield: 8 1/2 cups

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons sunflower or corn oil
• 1/2 cup finely chopped onion
• 1/2 cup finely chopped leek
• 2/3 cup finely chopped carrots
• 4 celery stalk, finely chopped
• 3/4 cup finely chopped fennel
• 1 small tomato, finely chopped
• 10 cups water
• 1 bouquet garni

Directions

1. Heat the oil in a large pan. Add the onion and leek and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes, until softened. Add the remaining vegetables, cover and cook for 10 minutes. Add the water and bouquet garni, bring to a boil, and simmer for 20 minutes,
2. Strain the stock into a bowl, let cool, cover and store in the refrigerator. use immediately or freeze in portions for up to 3 months.

Since I was a kid this soup was a favorite of mine, considering that very few dishes were deemed acceptable to my palate, that’s saying a lot about Vichyssoise. Try it, and you’ll be hooked too.

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy!

CS

Chopped Vegetable Salad with Lemon-Garlic Dressing

David Lebovitz, is one of my favorite food bloggers. the San Francisco Chronicle named him one of the Five Top Pastry Chefs in the Bay Area, he’s been featured in every major food publication and most of the big newspapers. In 1999 he left the US and moved to Paris to write books (he’s written six, so far) and enjoy great food. I quoted his blog before about something I grew up with in Uruguay, something which if one of my South American cousins wouldn’t have sent me from time to time (until I found the recipe!) would have turned me into a desperate junkie in search of a fix. Yes, gentle reader, I confess I am a hopeless Dulce de Leche addict.

Today as I scoured David Lebovitz‘ blog, which I do periodically, I found a great salad recipe (which I made some slight changes to so as to make it kosher):

Photo by: David Lebovitz

Two servings

I guess I’m more French than I thought because I’m not a fan of very hard vegetables raw, like broccoli, cauliflower, or green beans. So if I use them, I blanch or steam the vegetables lightly, to make them a bit more palatable.

For the dressing:

2 cloves garlic, peeled and grated or minced
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon kosher or sea salt
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/4 cup (60ml) olive or grape seed oil, or another favorite oil

For the salad:

6 cups (700g) mixed chopped vegetables and other additions, such as:

-Crumbled Morningstar Farms Veggie Bacon Strips or Bacos, (both products are kosher certified by the OU)
-Diced avocado
-Batons of baked tofu
-Crumbled feta, goat, or blue cheese
-Shredded romaine, radicchio, or gem lettuce
-Sliced or quartered radishes
-Grated or julienne-cut carrots
-Shredded red cabbage
-Minced parsley or chives
_Lightly steamed or blanched broccoli, cauliflower, green beans, or asparagus
-Diced hard-cooked eggs
-Pumpkin seeds
-Quartered cherry tomatoes

1. In a large salad bowl, mix together the garlic, lemon juice, salt, and mustard with a fork

2. Add the olive oil and stir with the fork until the dressing is well mixed. (I don’t emulsify the dressing as I feel it gets too heavy and thick.)

3. Add the salad ingredients and toss well.

I fully realize that after the Nine Days a nice meat recipe, rather than a dairy one, would have been far more welcome, but this one is simple to make, healthy and delicious!

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy!

Mamaliga, Mammelige!

I full well know that Jews were not the first to come up with this cornmeal dish, but among my earliest memories of my youth in Montevideo, Uruguay – from various relatives with Romanian spouses – was the aroma, the taste of Mamaliga (which some pronounced: mammelige)  I full well know that Mamaliga is not even a Yiddish name, yet there was also something very Jewish about the word, at least to my childhood mind, especially so, since my Italian friends’ mothers would call it polenta.

Elizabeth Wolf Cohen, in her Perfect Jewish, gives us the following recipe on page 154:

Romanian Mamaliga with Cheese

Serves 6 – 8
Cornmeal, made from maize  was introduced to Europe from the newly discovered Americas in the 16th century. Known as polenta in Italy, cornmeal became so popular in Romania that it was eaten as a porridge for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Ingredients

• 1 cup fine yellow cornmeal or polenta
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 5 cups water
• 4 tablespoons butter or pareve margarine
• 1 cup cottage cheese, drained and strained

Mamaliga, mammelige... polenta?

Directions 

Put the cornmeal and salt into a medium bowl and stir in 1 cup of the cold water and smooth. Bring to a large pan filled with 4 cups of water to a boil over high heat. Gradually pour the the wet cornmeal into the boiling water stirring to prevent any lumps forming. 

Cook stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, over medium-low heat for 20-25 minutes, or until the cornmeal forms a mushy porridge and the water is absorbed.

Remove from the heat and stir in the butter and the strained cheese. Leave to stand for 1 minute. Stir and spoon into a serving bowl.

——)xoxox(——

Alternatively cook the cornmeal as above, reducing the water by 1 cup. Stir in only half the margarine and omit the cheese. Pour into a greased 9x5x3,5 inch loaf pan and leave to cool. Refrigerate, covered for 2 – 3 hours, or until firm and chilled.

Run a shar knife around the edges of the pan and unmold on to a cutting board. Cut into thin slices.

Heat the remaining butter in a large, heavy bottom skillet over medium-heat. Working in batches, add the cornmealslices and cook for 2 minutes, or until heated through  and crisp and golden. Carefully turn and cook for 1 minute more. Serve with roasted poultry or stew.

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy!

CS

And the Runner Up Recipes Are…

We got quite a few interesting recipes and even some nice photos. On Monday past, we posted the winning recipe for our Shavous contest, now we are posting the next best ones.

2nd Runner Up

The following recipe shows that you can make something delicious even if it is easy to prepare…

Baked Blintz

(My daughter in Providence, RI, made this. It was easy to prepare and it was truly delicious! CS)

Ingredients

We usually “Healthify” it by substituting for ingredient in parenthesis. Tastes AMAZING either way.

FILLING:

• 2 Eggs (or Egg Substitutes)
• ½ Cup Sugar (or Splenda)
• 1 lb Cream Cheese
• 1 lb Cottage Cheese or Farmers Cheese

BATTER:

• ½ cup Sugar (or Splenda)
• 2 eggs (or Egg Substitutes)
• 1 cup Flour (or Whole Wheat Flour)
• ½ lb melted margarine or butter
• Pinch Salt
• 3 tsp Baking Powder
• ¼ cup Milk
• 1 tsp Vanilla

Directions

1. Mix Filling – Set aside
2. Mix Batter
3. Pour ½ Batter into greased 9” X 13” pan (preferably glass)
4. Spread Filling over batter
5. Pour remaining Batter over Filling
6. Bake 1 hour at 325

Submitted by Evan Rosenhouse LMSW, TX

—–)xOx(—–

1st Runner Up

Macaroni, Tuna and Cheese Casserole

Ingredients

• 8 oz elbow macaroni
• 2 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 crushed garlic cloves
• 4 oz mushrooms, sliced
• 1/2 red bell pepper, sliced thinly
• 7 oz can of tuna
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 3 teaspoons butter (and more for greasing)
• 2 tablespoons all purpose flower
• 1 cups of milk
• 2 sliced tomatoes
• 4 tablespoons bread crumbs
• 1 cup grated cheddar
• salt and pepper to taste

Photo sent in by: Giora Malinovsky

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 F.
2. Boil a large pan of slightly salted water. Add macaroni and return to boil. Cook for 8-10 minutes until macaroni is al dente. Drain, rinse, then drain thoroughly again.
3. Heat olive in a skillet and cook the garlic, mushrooms and bell pepper until soft. Add the tuna and oregano, season with salt and pepper and heat through.
4. Grease an 8 cup oven proof dish with a little butter. Add half the of the cooked macaroni, cover with tuna mixture, then add remaining macaroni.
5. Melt butter in a pan, add the flour. Cook for 1 minute. Slowly add the milk and bring to a boil. Simmer for 2 minutes, stirring constantly until thickened. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
6. Pour the sauce over the macaroni. Add the sliced tomatoes on top of the sauce, sprinkle with the breadcrumbs and cheese. Cook in the preheated oven for 25 minutes.

Submitted by Giora Malinovsky, FL

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy… even if it is no longer Shavuos.

CS

RELATED POSTS

The Winning Recipe Is…

And the Winner is…

Shavuos Recipes – Part 2

I am a confirmed hardcore carnivore, but every once in a while I have to make some nice pasta dishes for a milchig dinner. Especially now that Shavuos is almost upon us… Here are two of my favorites:

Fettuccine Alfredo with Mushrooms

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 lb fettucine
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• pinch of nutmeg
• salt and pepper to taste.
• 3/4 cup chopped shitake mushrooms
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 cup shredded Mozarella

Directions

1. Mix the butter and 2/3 cup of the heavy cream, bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce heat and simmer gently for 2 minutes or until the cream has thickened slightly.
2. Boil a large pan of lightly salted water, over medium heat.
3. Add the pasta, bring back to a boil and cook for 9 minutes or until tender but still firm to the bite. Drain pasta thoroughly, return to pan, pour in the sauce (from step 1)
4. Toss the pasta in the sauce, over a low fire, until thoroughly coated. Add the remaining 1/3 cup of heavy cream, the shredded Mozarella, nutmeg, mushrooms, salt and pepper to taste. Toss the pasta thoroughly in the whole mixture while on a low flame.
5. While pasta is cooking, sauté the mushrooms and garlic in a little bit of oil, until garlic pieces are golden brown.
6. Put the pasta mixture on a large warmed serving plate. Add the sautéed mushrooms and garlic. Serve and sprinkle generously with the grated Parmesan cheese.

Serves 4

Vegetable Cannelloni

Delicious is an understatement!

Ingredients

• 12 cannelloni
• 1 eggplant
• 1/2 cup fresh spinach
• 2 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 1/4 cup chopped mushrooms
• salt and pepper
• Basil, to garnish

Tomato Sauce

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 lb 12 ozs canned chopped tomatoes
• 1 teaspoon 10x confectioners sugar
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
• 4 Mozzarella slices

Directions

1. In a large pan boil some lightly salted water. Add the cannelloni, return to a boil and cook for another 9 minutes or until tender but still firm to the bite. Put pasta in a plate and pat dry with paper towels.
2. Cut the eggplant into small dice. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. add the eggplant, stir frequently while cooking for about three minutes.
3. Add spinach, garlic, cumin and mushrooms. Reduce the heat. Season with pepper and salt to taste. Cooking for 2 to 3 minutes stirring constantly. Spoon the mixture into the cannelloni. Arrange cannelloni in a casserole in a single layer.
4. To make the sauce, heat oil in a pan over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic, cook for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes, sugar and basil. Bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer gently for 5 minutes. Spoon the sauce over cannelloni.
5. Arrange the Mozzarella slices over the sauce and bake in 375 F. preheated oven for 30 minutes or until cheese is golden brown and bubbling. serve hot garnished with a prig of basil.

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy AND don’t forget to send us your favorite Shavuos recipes (there is a nice selection of cholov Yisroel cheeses as the prize for the best!) to:

kosherscene@gmail.com

CS

RELATED POSTS

shavuos recipes 

————–

shavuos recipes – part 2

shavuos recipes – part 1 

For prize winning cheese cake recipes: and the winner is…

Shavuos Recipes

The Shavuos Recipe Contest, which we announced on May 12th, has so far netted only 11 entries. Come now, gentle readers, we know there are some great cooks out there, please send us your favorite dairy recipes for a chance to win a nice selection of cholov Yisroel cheeses.

Meanwhile, having attended Lévana’s delicious Shavuos themed Dinner and a Show this past Monday, she graciously agreed to share two recipes:

Photo by: levanacooks.com

Cold Watercress Soup Recipe

Cold soups would always be a thrill if only they were made with full-bodied and full-flavored veggies, as they are here. No stock or broth whatsoever! Bouillon cubes? Let’s not even go there!

There are several variations you might enjoy on this theme, keeping as always a short and sweet ingredient selection: Broccoli, spinach, kale, asparagus instead of the watercress and zucchini; potatoes, turnips, parsnips, cauliflower instead of the celery root. Play with all the possibilities!

The immersion blender is a wonderfully nifty tool, inexpensive and portable (it will fit in a drawer), that allows you to blend your soup directly and in one shot right in your pot. No transferring, no mess. Just make sure there are no bones in the soup, or you will break your blade.

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 4 large leeks, sliced
• 1 large celery knob, diced
• 2 large zucchini, cut in large chunks
• 2 teaspoons turmeric
• 2 quarts (8 cups) water
• 2 cups dry white wine
• Salt to taste
• 4 bunches watercress, stems and leaves
• Good pinch nutmeg
• 4 cups cold milk or non-dairy milk
• Pepper to taste

Directions

1. Heat the oil in a wide heavy pot. Add the leeks and sauté until translucent.
2. Add the celery, zucchini, turmeric, water, wine and salt, and bring to a boil.
3. Reduce the heat to medium and cook, covered, 30 minutes.
4. Stir in the watercress and cook only a few seconds, until wilted. Turn off the flame.
5. The remaining ingredients and cream the soup with an immersion blender. Adjust the texture and seasonings.
6. Chill the soup.

As a kid growing up in Montevideo, Uruguay, I had to contend with two major handicaps:

• The first neighborhood we lived in was mostly Italian and we were the only Jews in our building, the lone Jewboy was a natural target…
• I was extremely overweight and couldn’t run too well, that much better for the nabe’s bullies.

My saintly mother (aleha Hasholom!) decided she’d become the best Italian cook in the neighborhood. Why? So that everyone would want to be invited over for a meal and thus, out of pure self interest, stop beating up the very fat Jewish kid… One of the favorites was polenta, here’s Lévana’s own version:

Polenta Casserole au Gratin Recipe

Please ignore those insipid cooked polenta rolls you find in the supermarket: Making the polenta base takes minutes, and is the bulk of the work for this delicious dish, which will serve a good dozen guests! Au Gratin just means it is topped with a crust: Yum!

This is only one of the wonderful polenta possiblities: You will love to explore them, as it is not only delicious but very nutritious, and gluten-free to boot. You can:

• Eat the polenta as is, hot and un-assembled (in other words, only the first step of the recipe) as the grain for a main course.
• Thin it with a little water, garlic and minced basil, maybe a couple diced tomatoes for a great soup
• Cut the cooled polenta in cubes or triangles and put it right under your broiler flame
• Make other fillings: Roasted diced vegetables (mushrooms, eggplant, red pepper, fennel, artichoke hearts, etc…..
• Make it dairy-free. Cook it in water or dairy-free milk, and/or substitute some white wine for some of the water or milk.

Ingredients

• 9 cups milk, low-fat OK
• A few drops olive oil
• Salt to taste (remember the cheese is salty, so very little please)
• 3 cups coarse cornmeal
• 2 cups freshly grated Parmesan or other strong cheese
• 6 cloves garlic
• 1 cup basil leaves, packed
• 1 large red onion
• 2 tablespoons dried oregano
• 5 cups canned crushed tomatoes
• Good pinch dried pepper flakes
• Salt and pepper to taste

Topping

• 1 cup fresh bread crumbs, gluten-free OK
• 3 tablespoons butter

Directions

1. Boil water, oil, and salt in a large pot. Add the cornmeal and stir until thick. This should take about ten minutes.
2. Stir in the cheese.
3. Pour the mixture into a greased cookie sheet, in a layer no more than half an inch thick. You might fill one and a half cookie sheets. Let the polenta cool.
4. Preheat oven to 425°F.
5. While the polenta is cooling, make the sauce: in a food processor, coarsely grind the garlic, basil and onion. Transfer to a bowl and stir in the remaining sauce ingredients.
6. Grease an 11-by-14-inch lasagna pan. Make one layer polenta, making sure you leave no blank spaces. Add half the sauce.
7. Repeat: one layer polenta, one layer sauce. Bake the casserole for about 45 minutes, or until the dish looks bubbly and hot.
8. Mix the bread crumbs with the butter, and sprinkle over the dish. Bake another 10 minutes.
9. Let cool slightly before cutting into squares. Makes a dozen servings.

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy AND don’t forget to send us your favorite Shavuos recipes (there is a nice selection of cholov Yisroel cheeses as the prize for the best!) to:

kosherscene@gmail.com

Meanwhile, check out Lévana’s pages for more Shavuos delicacies.

CS

RELATED POSTS

shavuos recipes – part 2 

————–

shavuos recipes – part 2

shavuos recipes – part 1

and for prize winning cheese cake recipes: and the winner is…

Shavuos Contest

Last year we announced The Kosher Scene’s First Annual Shavuot Cheese Cake Contest, as a result we received 21 recipes by the time it was over. We realize that not everyone is a baker so this year instead of cheesecake we are announcing a Shavuot Best Dairy Recipe Contest. It need not be a cheescake, it can be anything, BUT cheese must be one the ingredients.

Last year’s winner got the following cholov Yisroel cheeses from N&K some of whose products we’ve reviewed on these pages (here and here):

Stack 108 slices stack White American, 16ozs. Mozarella chunk, 8ozs. Muenster chunk, 8 ozs. Cheddar chunk, 6ozs. Muenster slices, 6ozs. Swiss slices, 6ozs. Processed Pepper Jack slices, 8ozs. shredded Pizza Cheese, 8 ozs. shredded Chef's Blend, 12 Mozarella Cheese Sticks

You may not like to bake, but you may like to cook up a storm of delicious dishes for Shavuot, so please, send us some of your best recipes to:

KosherScene@gmail.com

We’ll publish the most mouth watering ones with the author’s name and the winner will receive a selection of cheeses from N&K to rival last year’s prize. All entries must be emailed by Monday, June 6 of 2011. We will announce the winner on Monday the 13th of June. Send us your best recipes, don’t be shy. Even if you think other readers may send in better ones, try anyway, don’t let your modesty keep you from winning. Your family will be proud of you, other readers will thank you. We can’t wait to see your best efforts, our mouth are already salivating.

For last year’s delicious winning cheesecake recipes, check out: and the winner is…

CS

This Evening’s Radio Show and a Recipe

Right before Pessach we did a two hour show featuring various wine experts and distributors, talking about kosher wines from around the world. It ended with a half hour conversation with Chef Jeff Nathan of Abigael’s.  You can listen to the archived show here.

This evening our internet radio guest will be Chef Sarah Lasry. Mrs. Lasry is Food Editor at Binah Magazine, author of The Dairy Gourmet and The At Home Gourmet. For eight years she owned and operated Tastebuds, a very successful dairy restaurant in the Howell/Lakewood area in New Jersey. You can hear our conversation, at 8:00pm (Eastern Time) on BlogTalk Radio. To talk to our guest, or to comment, you may call in at: 714.333.3357, we will be on from 8:00 – 8:30pm.

Looking through her latest of cookbook, The At Home Gourmet, I found it well organized and easy to follow. It’s divided in seven sections (Amazing Appetizers, Simple Soups, Zestful Salads, Lazy Lunches, Delicious Dinners, Waist Watchers, Basic Desserts) )and has a well organized Index. Quite a few of its recipes are destined to become new favorites, among them some of the very decadent desserts.

While I’m a carnivore to the core, those who follow this blog also know that any recipe that calls for cheese is sure to get my attention. Therefore, out of the many mouthwatering recipes in this book, I thought the one below would be perfect…

So Cheesy Onion Potato Gratin

• 1 large onion sliced thin
• 2 tbsp.extra virgin oil
• 2 lbs. Yukon Gold potatoes, sliced into thin rounds
• 2 1/3 cups heavy cream
• 2 tsp. Kosher salt
• Fresh ground black pepper
• 1 cup grated Mozarella cheese
• 1 cup grated cheddar cheese
• 1 cup bread crumbs
• 4 tbsp. melted butter
• Extra shredded Cheddar or Mozzarella for sprinkling

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a skillet over med-high heat, saute the onions in olive oil until they have browned (about 4-5 minutes). In a sprayed 9 x 13 baking pan, layer the bottom with the fried onions. Then layer the potatoes over the onions, covering them completely and overlapping the potatoes one on top of the other.

In a small mixing bowl, whisk the heavy cream, salt, black pepper and both cheeses together. Pour the heavy cream mixture over the potatoes. In a separate bowl, add the crumbs and melted margarine, mix well and then spread generously over the top layer of potatoes. Sprinkle with a little more cheese and bake the gratin until it becomes bubbly, the top is brown and the potatoes are completely soft, about 20-30 minutes. Let gratin rest for about 15 minutes before serving.

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy! As for me I plan on pairing it tonight with a well chilled Balma Venetia 2006 Muscat Beaumes de Venise… can’t wait!

CS