Queso Blanco Pull Apart Bread

In scouring the web for some great recipes we’ve come across one that we know you’ll love. From Evil Shenanigans:

RECIPE AND PHOTOS © 2013, EVIL SHENANIGANS

Queso Blanco Pull Apart Bread

Author: Kelly Jaggers
Recipe type: Bread
Cuisine: Tex-Mex
Prep time:  40 mins
Cook time:  30 mins
Total time:  1 hour 10 mins
Serves: 8

Photo by: Evil Shenanigans

Ingredients

• 8 tablespoons butter, divided
• 2 jalapeno peppers, seeded and minced
• 2 serrano peppers, seeded and minced
• ½ medium onion, finely chopped (about ⅔ cup)
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• ½ teaspoon cumin
• ½ teaspoon coriander
• ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• ¾ cup beer, heated to 110F (any ale will do)
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1¼ teaspoons dry active yeast
• 2¼ cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• ½ cup shredded sharp white cheddar cheese
• ½ cup shredded Monterrey jack cheese

Directions

1. In a medium skillet over medium heat add 1 tablespoon of butter.
2. Once the butter foams add the diced peppers and onions. Cook, stirring frequently, until the mixture begins to soften, about 1 minute. Add the chili powder, cumin, coriander, and smoked paprika and cook until the spices are very fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Divide the mixture in half, placing one half in the work bowl of a stand mixer and the other half in a medium sized mixing bowl. Allow to cool to room temperature.
3. In a small bowl combine the beer, water, and yeast. Let the mixture stand until very foamy, about 10 minutes. Pour the yeast mixture into the work bowl with the pepper mixture along with 2 tablespoons of melted butter, flour, salt, and baking powder. Mix with the dough hook for 3 minutes on low speed. Check the hydration – the dough should form a smooth ball that is fairly sticky. Add additional flour if needed to achieve the right consistency. Increase the speed to medium and continue mixing for 5 minutes.
4. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and shape into a smooth ball. Place the ball into a bowl that is lightly coated with non-stick cooking spray. Spray the top of the ball lightly, cover and let the dough proof until double in bulk, about 2 hours.
5. Once the dough has proofed turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Dust the top of the dough lightly with flour, and with the palm of you hand lightly press out any large air bubble. Roll the dough out into an approximately 18×12-inch rectangle.
6. Melt the remaining butter and brush half of the melted butter on the dough. Spread over the remaining pepper mixture and both the shredded cheeses. Slice the dough into 8 strips and place the strips into two stacks of four strips each. Cut each stack into 4 equal pieces.
7. Brush the inside of a 10-inch loaf pan with the melted butter. place the stacks into the buttered pan so the cut sides face up. Pour over any remaining butter, cover, and let rise until the dough holds a finger mark when gently pressed about 1½ hours.
8. Heat the oven to 350 F. Bake the bread for 25 – 30 minutes, or until the bread is golden brown and sounds hollow when gently thumped on the top. Allow to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool. Serve warm.

Photo by: Evil Shenanigans

Since the shape of this is very different from traditional breads, there is little chance to forget that it is a dairy rather than a parve product.
Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy!

CS

// //

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

Dairy Beet Borsht

Growing up in Uruguay, I always used to look forward to Borsht Soup. Whether hot or cold, it was always a treat! I never got my mother’s recipe, but I made this one last night and it brought back some sweet memories of my childhood. With Shavous almost here, I thought I’d try a dairy version (parve, also given)

Beet Borsht

Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients

• 1 lb 8 oz small tender beets
• 1 large chopped onion
• 15 cups of water *
• 1 teaspoon salt
• pepper
• 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• chopped fresh dill to garnish
• sour cream (optional, do not use if you prefer a parve soup)

Directions

1. Cut tops from beets leaving a bit of the stems attached, wash thoroughly to remove any sand or grit. Peel the betts and grate them. Transfer to a heavy pan. You might want to wear rubber gloves to prevent your hands being stained.
2. Add the onion to the pan and cover with the water. Bring to a boil over medium heat and simmer partially covered for about 30 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Take off from heat and allow the vegetables to cool slightly.
3. Ladle the liquid into a food processor and process until smooth. Rinse off the pan and put the soup back in it.
4. Bring to a boil over medium heat and add salt, pepper (to taste), lemon juice and sugar. Simmer for 3 minutes and taste, it should have a sweet and sour taste. If necessary add a little more sugar or lemon juice, if it’s a bit thick, thin out by adding a little bit more water.
5. Serve hot with a swirl of sour cream. Sprinkle with dill. You may also serve it cold if you refrigerate it covered, but you thin out the soup as it will thicken when chilled.

(Sometimes you may find a similar recipe using vegetable stock instead of water, I’ll have to do that next time.)

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy. I did! I tied hot, I can’t wait to try it cold.

CS

3rd Annual Shavuos Contest!

We are proud to announce our 3rd Annual Shavuos Contest. Last year’s prize (a beautiful basket of cholov Yisroel N&K cheeses), went to Pessy Haskelevich in the Crown Heights section of Brooklyn; the year before that Brachie S. from Lakewood took the top honors and also received a great selection of cholov Yisroel N&K cheeses. Both times Brigitte Mizrahi, from Anderson International Foods graciously supplied the prizes.

This year Brent Delman from The Cheese Guy.com is supplying the prize:

Photo by: Brent Delman, The Cheese Guy

Two winners will be selected and each will receive a basket consisting of: Italian Montaggio and Pecorino Romano, Pepper Jack, Mild Cheddar, Monterrey Jack and Aged Havarti as well as a jar of honey and a jar of Swiss Hero preserves. All cheeses are cholov Yisroel.

The last date for entries will be May 25th (the Friday prior to erev Shavuot which will start on Motzey Shabbat) at 12:00pm. We will choose the best dairy recipe using cheeses as one of the ingredients. We’ve had some great entries in the past, be creative and send us your best. Winners will be announced on June 4th, the first Monday following Shavuot.

You may enter multiple times if you believe you have more than one possible winning entry. We can’t wait to sample those recipes!

Please send us your recipes to:

kosherscene@gmail.com

CS

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

What Gives a Food Critic the Right to Critique?

Granted, CS and I have a combined prandial gastronomic, collectivistic consumption spanning nearly a century (we make no admission of time exceeding that!). Coincidentally, we were both blessed with superbly critical, highly skilled, culinary genius in the kitchen – parents of Polish and Hungarian descent respectively. They tolerated nothing but brilliance and excellence from their gifted, savant, miraculous offspring of the Diaspora and post Nazi oblation – instilling in us not only superior minds and egos endowed by birth, as well as a natural hunger for all things good. Our generation was brought up with the assumption that somehow we were born with inalienable rights to judge and critique the handiwork of our peers but never our parents. Both of us share the uncanny experience of every patriarchal inquisition into our lives and all critical moments predicated with the always relevant questions: “What did they serve?”, or “What did you eat? Was it good?”

The locus of kosher restaurants we’ve marked collectively through the various stages of our lives is equally impressive. From family style restaurants, to fancy upscale dating restaurants, from cafés for momentary pondering or perusal to married dating eateries, circling back to family restaurants and some of us back to dating restaurants again… we’ve done them all! The Shabbos tables we’ve set and served along with the tables we’ve guested at – often with suffered grimaced smiles of approval conceding to our napkins the putrid memorial – or being imparadised by occasional sensational dishes provided by our hosts! The trials and tribulations of experimental dishes imposed on our loving families without dis-ownership or dis-membership is legendary.

...eating our words

CS has an impressive curriculum vitae – having written many a fine food and/or wine review for well known global publications. I, on the other hand, am more the ‘everyman’, learning through doing, acquiring new skill sets, cultivating and advancing my palate and knowledge as I go along. And now we both sit here… judging others with culinary degrees and years of mastery in the art of Kosher cooking. Yeah, maybe we’ve cultivated our palates enough to judge… certainly as well as the consumers whose attendance make or break a restaurant. Mostly, we are grateful, grateful for the abundance of excellent restaurant choices and fine cuisine that we have been privileged to find and sample. It’s competitive out there and to keep the edge, a fine dining restaurant has to be good. We want a great dining experience and customers want to feel that the money spent was well worth the investment. The mediocre don’t survive for long. There are some food reviews that we’ll never publish, nameless here forever more…

There are many great kosher restaurants yet to review and savor. We love sharing our experiences with you and hope you enjoy sharing with us here at The Kosher Scene. With z’man matan Torah upon us, we would like to wish all our readers a Chag Shavuot sameach! May this time of Torah and harvest bring cornucopian blessings of plenty into your homes and lives.

We’ve collected some great Yom Tov recipes here and here. Enjoy!

SYR