Jewish Food Festival at the JCC in Richmond, VA

Yesterday was the first day of the annual two day Jewish Food Festival, held at the JCC (5403 Monument Avenue, Richmond, VA 23226 – Tel: 804.285.6500), presented by Knesset Beth Israel (6300 Patterson Avenue, Richmond, VA 23226 – Tel: 804.288.7953) with supervision by the Moro d’Asro, Rabbi Dovid Asher.

One of the various stations preparing food in the kitchen

Carrot kugel, broccoli kugel, latkes and stuffed peppers… MmmmMMm!

Donut Holes, Homentashen, Menorah Cookies, Rugelach and more!

There was so much to choose, but I started with a plate of brisket, potato latkes and a ouple of knishesk. I followed with a combination of lamb and turkey shawarma with roasted vegetables wrapped in a laffa. The portion were nice sized, in fact I’m afraid the only way to get rid of the weight I gained would be to walk all the way back to Brooklyn.

Among the various booth, and being a foodie, there was one which really got my attention, Ginger Juice…

It was hard to decide which flavor to buy…

I tasted various of their juices, including Giving made from beets, pears and ginger. It reminded me so much of my mother’s (aleha haShalom) borsht – a taste nobody had ever been able to replicate…. until now. Another flavor I liked was Goodness which consisted of kale, apple, celery and mint. Who knew kale and celery could taste this good?!?!? When I finally got ready to go home, I picked up a bottle of Glitzy (pineapple, apple, pear). Needless to say, it didn’t last very long.

This event was truly a feast for the palate, the eyes and the nose!

CS

Easy Chocolate Squares

Just because something’s very easy to prepare, does not detract from the fact that it still can be delicious. If you want to start your kids or grandkids cooking with chocolate, this is a great beginning!

Yields: 16 squares

Ingredients

• 9 1/2 oz dark chocolate
• 3/4 cup margarine
• 4 tbsp light corn syrup
• 2 tbsp coconut flavored liqueur
• 6 oz plain cookies
• 1/3 cup toasted rice cereal (non-toasted rice cereal will do well in a pinch)
• 1/2 cup shredded coconut
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecan nuts
• 1/2 cup candied cherries, roughly chopped
• 1 oz white chocolate, to decorate

Directions

1. Place the dark chocolate in a double boiler with the margarine, syrup, and coconut liqueur over gently simmering water until melted, stirring continuously until blended.
2. Break the cookies into small pieces and stir into the chocolate mixture, stir in the rice cereal, nuts and cherries.
3. Line a 7″ inch square cookie pan with parchment paper. Pour the mixture into the pan and level the top, pressing down well with the back of a spoon. Chill in the refrigerator for about 2 hours.
4. Melt the white chocolate and drizzle over the top of the cake in a random pattern. Let it set.
5. Carefully take out of the pan and discard the parchment paper. Cut up into 16 squares.

Enjoy!

SYR

Chocolate Checkerboard Cookies

Some of my grandkids will be visiting today, I thought these would make a special treat:

(adapted from Jacqueline Bellefontaine‘s What’s Cooking: Chocolate)

Detail of photo from page 125

Yield: 18

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup margarine, softened (use butter if you prefer creamier tasting dairy cookies)
• 6 tablespoons confectioner’s sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or the grated rind of 1/2 an orange
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1oz dark bittersweet chocolate, melted
• a little beaten egg white

Directions

1. Lightly grease a cookie sheet. Beat the margarine and confectioner’s sugar in a mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in the vanilla extract or the grated orange rind.
2. Gradually beat in the flour to form a soft dough. Use your fingers to incorporate the last of the flour and to bring the dough together.
3. Divide the dough into 2 equal pieces and beat the melted chocolate into one half. Keeping each half of the dough separate, cover and chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
4. Roll out each piece of dough to a rectangle about 3″ x 8″ inches long and 1 1/2 inches thick. Brush one piece of dough with a little egg white and place the other piece of dough on top.
5. Cut the block of dough in half lengthwise and turn over one half. Brush the side of one strip with egg white and butt the other up to it, so that it resembles a checkerboard.
6. Cut the block into thin slices and place each slice flat on a cookie sheet, allowing enough space to spread a little during baking.
7. Bake in a preheated oven at 350 F. for about 10 minutes, until just firm. Cool on on the cookie sheet for a few minutes before carefully transferring to a wire rack with a spatula. Cool completely.

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy!

CS

Triple Chocolate Financiers

Hardly anything beats these “Financiers” as my idea of a coffee accompaniment, Ive adapted the following from François Payard‘s Chocolate Epiphany:

Yield: 40 financiers

If you can not get financier molds, you can make this recipe in mini muffin pans, lining them with paper baking cups before pouring the batter in the molds. The resulting financiers will be a bit larger, so you’ll have fewer, but they’ll taste just as good.

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy!

CS

Ingredients

• 1 cup confectioners’ sugar
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons finely ground blanched almonds
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons  Dutch processed cocoa powder
• 4 large egg whites, slightly beaten
• 1 teaspoon dark rum
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon honey
• 4 tablespoons unsalted margarine **
• Vegetable cooking spray, for the molds
• 3 tablespoons semisweet mini chocolate chips
• 2 tablespoons cocoa nibs

Directions

Make the Batter: Sift together the confectioners’ sugar, finely ground blanched almonds, all-purpose flour,cocoa powder, and baking powder over a large bowl.Whisk in the egg whites, rum, and vanilla extract, until just combined.

Whisk the honey into the margarine and whisk the mixture into the batter until everything is combined, and lump free. Cover the batter and refrigerate it overnight or up to 4 days. This allows the flour to relax.

Bake the Financiers: Place a rack and preheat the oven  to 375 F. Spray to 20 count financier molds with vegetable cooking spray. If using silicone molds, arrange them on a baking sheet.

Sprinkler 8 to 10 mini chocolate chips in each cup. Spoon the batter into a pastry bag or resealable plastic bag, and cut a 1/4 inch opening in the tip or corner of the bag. Pipe the batter almost to the top of each cup, and sprinkle cocoa nibs on the top.

Bake 10 to 12 minutes, or until the financiers spring back when you lightly press on them and the sides slightly pull back from the edges of the molds. Remove the molds from the oven and leave them on the baking sheet. Let the financiers cool in the molds. They can be stored in an airtight container in a cool, dry environment for up to 2 days.

–OoOX0XOoO–

Browned Margarine

Put the quantity of margarine required by the recipe in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Let it bubble and cook until it turns light golden brown. Whisk a couple of times during the process to ensure that all the butter melts and browns evenly. Once it reachers the desired color, immediately remove the butter from the heat and transfer to a bowl to stop the cooking process. Use immediately, or let cool until just warm to the touch but still melted, as directed in the recipe. [They taste great as parve cookies, but will taste far better as dairy ones. Use butter instead of margarine; browned butter has a nutty taste that goes fantastically well in desserts.]

Lilly’s Home Style Bake Shop

As I toured Lilly’s Home Style Bake Shop, the sweet aromas wafting through the air, I was transported back to my mother’s kitchen, where the promise of sweet delicious treats were imminent as she prepared Shabbos or Yom Tov cakes and cookies. This past Tuesday morning, I walked the plant with Ethan Lieberman who together with CEO Irving Guttman, started the company in 2004 and kept on expanding the premises as new machinery was needed to streamline production of their growing product line.

Sprinkling cinnamon onto babka dough...

From jumbo to regular sized bagels, to assorted breads and challah types of various shapes and sizes, to mouth watering cakes and danishes, to cookies and biscottis,  all beckoned before my gluttonous Hansel and Gretel eyes as the various doughs were being made, shaped and baked.

Racks filled with challah, chocolate danish, hamentashen and so much more...

Lilly’s (named after Ethan‘s – Avrumi‘s – mother) ships nationally under their own name and under various private labels – including well known supermarket chains and warehouse type wholesalers. The whole operation is supervised by Silliker, a third party approver which specializes in certifying the cleanliness and strict adherence to codes governing this type of operations. Kashrus is under OU supervision.

Fresh and moist! A tray full of chocolate babka, rainbow cookies, black and whites are awaiting me...

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy! As for me, I’ll just grab another piece of that decadent babka oozing with chocolate… Get your own, kid!!!

CS

Grandma’s Wholesome Treats

Grandma’s makes three flavors, so far: Coconut, Chocolate Chip and Cinnamon. What distinguishes these cookies from the rest of the pack, you ask? Unlike the rest, these are made from kamut. What is kamut? It is one of the oldest used grains, it’s name appears on many Egyptian hieroglyphics. Legend has it, that it was a staple of the ancient Egyptians’ diet,  because it was reputed to give high energy to those who ingested it; we can presume therefore that our ancestors while enslaved in the land of the Nile, likely ate it too.

Coconut, Chocolate Chip and Cinnamon flavored kamut cookies from Grandma's

Kamut wheat is considered an ancient grain, and because it hasn’t been modified with modern agricultural methods it has many benefits. The grain itself is very high in its protein content. It also contains a high concentration of selenium, zinc, and magnesium. This grain variety is a high energy wheat, and provides the body with more energy in the form of complex carbohydrates. Because of its low oxidation levels it loses little nutritional content when ground and processed. Even though this wheat variety contains gluten, it has been found to be more easily digestible by people who may have slight allergic tendencies.

they didn't last very long...

These cookies are:

• Very filling (therefore you eat less!)
• Easily absorbed
• High in protein
• Low in gluten

They contain no transfat, no refined sugar and no preservatives.

They provide:

• Fiber
• Omega 3
• Essential vitamins and minerals

They taste somewhat different from anything I was used to, but the flavors grow on you and you soon come to crave them. My personal favorite was the Chocolate Chip. These cookies are good for you, but… would you expect anything different from a name like Grandma’s?

CS