Food and Sukkot

While there are no specific dishes associated with Sukkot, some lend themselves better to the sometimes chilly weather we are experiencing these days. The aromas, the warmth they evoke are just perfect for eating in the Sukkah. So, here is a superb recipe by one of New York’s favorite chefs, Jeff Nathan of Abigael’s on Broadway:

Photo by: Alison Nathan

Jeff Nathan’s
Tarragon Salmon Fillets with Vegetable Ragout

Dairy — Makes 4 servings

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided (2 tablespoons chilled)
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/8 teaspoon ground fennel seed, optional
• 5 ounces shiitake mushrooms, stems discarded, caps sliced
• 4 ounces sugar snap peas, trimmed
• 1/2 pint grape tomatoes or halved cherry tomatoes
• 3/4 cup Vegetable Broth
• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh tarragon
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 4 7 to 8-ounce salmon fillets, skinned
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Position a broiler rack about 6 inches from the source of heat and preheat the broiler.
2. To make the ragout, melt the butter with the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and fennel and cook, stirring often, until garlic gives off its aroma, about 1 minute. Add the shiitakes and cook, stirring occasionally, until they give off their juices, about 4 minutes. Stir in the sugar snap peas and cook for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes, broth, lemon juice, and tarragon. Bring the broth to a simmer. Cook, stirring often, until the tomatoes are heated through, about 3 minutes. Remove from the heat, partially cover with a lid, and keep warm
3. Meanwhile, brush the salmon on both sides with the oil, sprinkle with the tarragon, and season with salt and pepper. Oil the broiler rack. Broil the fish, skin sides up, for 3 minutes. Turn and continue broiling until the fish is opaque in the center with a tinge of rose color when prodded with the tip of a sharp knife, about 5 minutes more for medium-rare salmon. Place each salmon fillet on a dinner plate.
4. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons chilled butter, cut into bits, to the vegetables. Stir with a wooden spoon, being careful not to break up the vegetables, to melt the butter. Season the ragout with salt and pepper. Spoon the ragout over the salmon and serve immediately.

Enjoy, gentle reader enjoy!

CS

This Evening’s Two Hour Internet Radio Show And a Recipe…

Last Wednesday’s live broadcast from Gotham Wines and Liquors‘ 8th Annual Wine Extravaganza, held at the West End Institutional Synagogue. We had some great guests on that show and made new friends. Unfortunately the .mp3 file got trashed, so we never got a chance to hear it the actual broadcast. Tonight’s show will focus on wine and food. Our guests will be several kosher winery spokesmen and distributors, then at the last half hour we will talk to Chef Jeff Nathan, Chef/owner of Abigael’s on Broadway.

We will discuss the reasons for the 4 cups of wine and other Pessach customs, we will hear about their selections from the various wineries, while Chef Jeff will explain the whole concept of the New Jewish Cuisine, which he made into a wildly successful series on Public Television. We will also talk about his journey to become a successful restaurateur and what Abigael’s is planning for Passover.

Please listen in to The Kosher Scene’s Show, this evening at 6:30pm to 8:30pm Eastern Time,

The first cookbook Jeff Nathan published – in 2002 –  Adventures in Jewish Cooking, included some great recipes that can be made on Passover. Here is one I intend to savor on the last day of Pessach, when I finally do eat gebroks. It will go perfectly with a glass of  Psagot Cabernet Sauvignon 2009

Veal Chops Milanese with Tomato Salad and Arugula

In Milan, you’ll find golden-crusted veal chops so big they fill your plate. Before being cooked, they are pounded while still on the bone. This creates wide flaps of meat to allow for more crispy coating that everyone loves. A combination of matzo flour, matzo meal, and matzo farfel is my secret to creating a crunchier crust than is possible with bread crumbs alone. Using matzo also opens up the possibility of enjoying this dish right through Passover week. You will need a very large, 12-14 inch skillet to cook both chops at once. Of course, if you have two such skillets, you can invite a couple of friends over for dinner, doubling the amount of tomato salad.

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 ripe tomatoes, preferably 1 red and 1 yellow, seeded and cut into 1/2 inch dice
• 1 tablespoon fresh basil, cut into thin ribbons
• 1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• Two twelve ounce bone-in veal chops, about 1 inch thick, trimmed of excess fat
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 1/4 cup matzo flour (also called matzo cake flour)
• 2 large eggs, beaten with 2 teaspoons water
• 1/2 cup matzo meal
• 1/2 cup matzo farfel
• 1/2 cup olive oil (regular or extra-virgin)
• 6 ounces arugula, washed and dried, torn bite-sized pieces.
• Lemon wedges, for serving

Directions

1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 400 F.
2. To make the tomato salad, whisk the lemon juice and oil in a medium bowl. Add the tomatoes, basil, oregano and rosemary and toss. Season with salt and pepper. Cover and let stand at room temperature, stirring occasionally, while preparing the veal.
3. Place the chops between sheets of plastic wrap or wax paper. Using a heavy mallet or rolling pin, pound the meaty part of each chop until it’s about 1/2 inch thick, to create chops with a thinner flasp of meat attached to the rib bone. (In Milanese restaurants, the veal is pounded even thinner and wider, but at home, practicality demands that you pound the veal to a size that will allow two chops to fit into the skillet.) Season the chops with salt and pepper.
4. Place the matzo flour in a shallow dish, the beaten eggs in a second shallow dish and the matzo farfel in a third shallow dish, Coat each veal chop with matzoh flour, then the egg wash, and then the matzoh meal.
5. Heat the oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium heat until hot but not smoking. Add the chops and cook, turning one, until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Place the browned chops on a large baking sheet. Bake until they feel firm when pressed in the center, 8 to 10 minutes.
6. Just before serving, add the arugula to the tomato salad and mix. For each serving place a chop on a dinner plate and heap the tomato salad on top. Serve immediately with a wedge of lemon.

Just like his other book (which we reviewed) and has become one of my favorites, this one is also chuck full of mouth watering recipes which I can’t wait to try.

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy!

This Week’s Events

This is a great week! If you like food, if you like wine these events are tailor made for you:

Tuesday, February 22nd

Kosher Food & Wine Experience 2011

Tomorrow’s the event of the year!

As always, the star of the show is the food and wine on offer. This year over 300 wines from all over the world will be available from wineries including Herzog, Yatir, Castel, Capcanes, Elvi, Goose Bay and more! In addition, Royal Wine will be launching some new wines at KFWE2011 including the Herzog Special Edition Chalk Hill Warnecke Vineyard 2008, the Oak Knoll Single Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon and a new line of Gamla Reserves. Additionally, the wines of Alexander Winery in Israel will be making their debut in the United States market.

Guests will also be able to taste delicious food from some of the top rated kosher restaurants and caterers in the Tri-State area. “This is an opportunity to try some exceptional wines and great food, we don’t hold anything back,” said Mr. Landsman, “KFWE is our gift to our customers. We want to give people a chance to try the wines they are hesitant to buy, the special occasion wines they read about or see in the store.” Another benefit of this event is its proximity to Passover, giving people the opportunity to trywines that they would like to feature at their Seders.

A notable addition to the event this year will be the attendance of celebrity cookbook authors/food personalities Joan Nathan, Jamie Geller, Suzy Fishbein, Lévana Kirschenbaum and Jeff Nathan who will all be available to discuss food and wine pairing and their newest books.

KFWE 2011 will take place on Tuesday, February 22, 2011 at 6:30pm at Pier 60 – Chelsea Piers, NYC. For more information on the 2011 Kosher Food & Wine Experience or to order tickets, please visit: http://www.kfwe2011.com .

Don’t forget to enter KSCENE10, as your discount code, when you buy your ticket(s).

Wednesday, February 23rd

Israel Wine Lovers featuring: Barkan Winery

9 Interesting Wines, 2 Great Winemakers and 1 Amazing Evening with Barkan Winery

Nanoosh Hummus Bar

Who’s hosting? Avi Ashman, Raphael Sutton
Price: $36.00 per person
Where? Nanoosh Hummus Bar
171 Madison Avenue New York, NY
When? 7:00pm

Barkan, with vineyards all across Israel, is the second largest winery in the country.  The winemaking team’s quest to produce a variety of quality wines results in Barkan making all of the right moves (including large financial investments) to continue improvements in their vineyards and in the winery. You can always count on Barkan, and it’s Boutique winery Segal, to release quite a few interesting wines.

We are honored that Irit Boxer and Yotam Sharon, two of Barkan’s winemakers, will be with us and present a selected wine list that demonstrates the great quality of their craftsmanship.  This tasting is a MUST and we promise a fun night!!  Where else can you taste two styles of Pinotage (never tasted that grape yet? you have to…) and the effect of 100 meter (300 feet) height difference on Cabernet Sauvignon’s flavor?  Other great wines will be explored as well…

All wines and foods, during the tasting, are Kosher.

Israel Wine Lovers meets at the back of Nanoosh and brings their own food, their own wines, since Nanoosh is not under ANY kosher supervision!!!

CS

Jeff Nathan’s Rosemary Potato Latkes with Honey Drizzle

Hanukkah at Abigael’s on Broadway

Gift Giving Special ~ Buy One, Get One
All gift cards ordered now through December 31st, 2010
will receive a 10 % additional card.

$ 100 gift card gets you a $ 10 gift card
$ 200 gift card gets you a $ 20 gift card

Each day of Hanukkah will feature three latke selections
~Savory or sweet, each one will be a treat!

407 Broadway – at 39th Street, New York, NY; Tel: 212.575.1407

—)x0x0x(—

Chef Jeff Nathan, from Abigael’s, has graciously agreed to share this delicious latke recipe.

Pareve
Makes about 20 latkes, 5 to 6 servings

Ingredients

• 4 large russet potatoes (2 pounds)
• 1 pound yellow onions (1 pound)
• 2 large eggs, beaten
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, rough chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh mint
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• olive oil, for fryinghoney, (use varying flavors of honey for added taste, ie: clover, lavender, pine, blueberry)

Directions

1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 200°F. Line a baking sheet with papertowels.
2. Using the large holes of a box grater or the grating disk of a food processor, alternately grate thepotatoes and onions into a work bowl (this provides better distribution of the onions). Using your hands,squeeze out as much moisture as you can from the potato mixture. Add the eggs, flour, parsley, garlic,rosemary and mint. Add in the salt and pepper, and mix well.
3. Add enough oil to a large, deep skillet to come 1/2-inch up the sides. Do not skimp! Heat over medium-high heat until very hot but not smoking. In batches without crowding, using about 1/4 cup of the potatomixture for each pancake, carefully add the mixture to the oil, spreading it with a spoon to make 3-inchpancakes. Fry, turning once, until deep golden brown on both sides. Use a slotted spatula to transfer tothe baking sheet. Serve immediately or keep warm in the oven while making the remaining pancakes.Drain off any excess liquid that forms in the bowl as you make subsequent batches.
4. Serve hot drizzled with honey.

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy. I can’t wait to try it!

CS

Jeff Nathan Creations

Logic would have suggested I do this post, after Passover, but I’m excited about these products, I couldn’t wait. From Abigael’s on Broadway’s website I ordered a set of all three flavors of Jeff Nathan Creations All Natural Gourmet Panko Bread Flakes.

Gourmet Panko's three flavors: Plain, Fine Herbs and Italian Blend

I couldn’t wait to taste these bread flakes and considering that it’s almost Peissach and all chametz must go, I wasted no time in following Chef Jeff’s Panko Crusted Chicken recipe, printed on the back of each box. I used the Fine Herbs Panko. Strongly aromatic and what a difference over regular breadcrumbs it made!

8  ounces Panko – Plain, Italian blend or Fine Herbs
1/2 cup all purpose flour
3 large eggs
2 tablespoons water
4 seven-ounce boneless, skinless chicken breasts, lightly pounded (or use filet or sole or thinly sliced vegetables)
1/2 cup olive oil
Lemon wedges, for serving

1. Place the panko in a shallow dish. Place the flour in another shallow dish. Beat 2 eggs and 2 tablespoons water in a third shallow dish.
2. One at a time, dip the chicken breasts (sole or vegetable), in the flour and shake off the excess. Dip in the egg mixture, then in the panko to coat, gently pressing the panko to adhere.
3. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 375F. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium high until hot but not smoking. Add the chicken breasts to the skillet. Cook turning once, until the crust is golden brown, about 4 minutes. Transfer the breasts to a baking sheet. Bake until the chicken feels firm when pressed in the center, 10-12 minutes.
4. Transfer the chicken to paper towels to drain briefly. Serve hot with lemon wedges, or sauce of your choice.

My results of Chef Jeff's Panko Crusted Chicken

Instead of lemon wedges, we added some breaded zucchini… The breaded chicken was delicately spiced, full of flavor, loved it! Try it and enjoy.

CS

Abigael’s on Broadway

Abigael’s (1407 Broadway – at 39th Street, New York, NY; Tel: 212.575.1407) calls to mind the posh elegance of the bygone era where films like My Man Godfrey, with William Powell and Carole Lombard, were set. It is a classy, sedate and uniquely appointed restaurant. Yet… the simple but rich atmosphere and decor, are not all that attract the eye and whet the palate at Abigael’s… The dishes are inspired and delicious!

Partial view of Abigael's main dining room

I met Chef Jeff Nathan in the small private library (one of various party rooms at Abigael’s). There, amidst the Soncino Talmud and the Encyclopedia Britannica we discussed what precipitated his becoming a Chef. As a member of a generation where every Jewish parent dreamed of “my son the doctor” or “my son the lawyer,” Jeff Nathan journeyed against the grain and, after a stint in the US Navy, attended the Culinary Institute of America. Driven to transcend and surpass, as in all else he ever attempted, chef Nathan dominated the competition and graduated at the top of his class in 1980.

Since 1998 he has been the chef/host of PBS’ “New Jewish Cuisine, the only international gourmet Kosher cooking series, which is seen in four countries and translated into three languages.” He is also a kosher and restaurant consultant to various food and wine producers.

I started the meal with with Abigael’s Ultimate Sushi Platter which consisted of three sushi rolls.

Ultimate Sushi Platter presented with a soothing, drip fountain

The three rolls are: Tempura Trio (salmon, tuna, and fluke, tempura fried, with avocado, masago and scallions), Broadway (seaweed roll with tuna, yellow-tail and salmon, cucumber, avocado, Japanese dressing and masago), and Green Tea (yellowtail and avocado, topped with salmon, spicy tuna tartar and sweet wasabi soy sauce). Though fish and sushi are but a recently acquired tastes of mine, I did find the platter beautifully presented and deliciously toothsome to eat.

I then tried their Smoked Brisket Eggroll (Texas style, with barbecue vinaigrette and a chipotle potato salad). This dish fully demonstrates the creativity of Jeff Nathan as he metamorphoses the quintessentially traditional Brisket with a saucy bold new flavor and crispy exterior. Flavorful, as my mother used to say, ta’am fun ganeiden!

I followed that full flavored brisket with the Crispy Asian Chicken (crisp fried and tossed with spicy chile sauce, served with sweet and sour sesame-cucumber slaw).

Crispy Asian Chicken

Presentation was again an eyeful and the taste was quite savory.

A Latin American bred carnivore to the core, I loved the Argentine Smoked Short Ribs (house smoked rib tossed tossed with BBQ vinaigrette and chimi churri with scallion whipped potatoes).

Argentine Smoked Short Ribs

The ribs were succulent, heavenly smoked and spiced, cooked to tender perfection. The scallion whipped potatoes… just right!

Great dinner, in a great atmosphere, though missing Carole Lombard or Myrna Loy by my side, but life… isn’t perfect, could I really ask for more?

CS