Category: Holiday
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Spinach and Feta Rolls (or Pie)
No Shavuot would be complete without these ubiquitous Balkan rolls of spinach and feta. That said, after every single year I’ve made them—and made a total fool of myself eating far more than I should—I ask, “Why only once a year?” Don’t be like me. Make these, and make them often! INGREDIENTS: METHOD: To Make…
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Hungarian Cherry Soup
A heady, creamy, sweet-and-tart soup served ice cold—a taste of Shavuot, the Catskills, and Carpathian nostalgia in every spoonful. I always wonder whether it’s nature or nurture that shapes our taste buds. I’ve yet to meet someone from Eastern Europe—especially the Carpathian Mountains, where my father’s family comes from—who isn’t obsessed with cherries. My father,…
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Salmon with Preseved Lemon and Israeli Couscous
This is one of those dishes that sounds like a patchke (Yiddish for messing with little things, getting busy when you just don’t need to – don’t you just love Yiddish, where one word can mean so much) but in truth, all the little steps amount to one delicious dish, where every element works together…
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Ultimate Cheesecake
Rich, smooth, and unapologetically indulgent—this classic cheesecake owes its luxurious texture to American-style cream cheese and a gentle bake in a water bath. The history of cheesecake is ancient. The first known cheesecakes date back to Classical Greece, and remarkably, the core recipe has changed little over the millennia: a combination of soft cheese, sweetened—then…
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Blintzes
The blintz sounds like an extraordinary Ashkenazi dish, with a name that could only have come from the Old Country. But broken down to its simplest form, a blintz is a thin crêpe filled with just about anything—from cheese to potatoes to chopped liver. In a world where food was limited and ways of using…
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Blueberry Sauce
The perfect accompaniment to Blintzes or this Ultimate Cheesecake! INGREDIENTS: METHOD: MAKE AHEAD: Blueberry sauce can be made up to 3 days in advance and stored in the fridge in a sealed container. It also freezes well for up to 2 months. Defrost overnight in the fridge and stir before serving.
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Meatball Soup
This is comfort food as comfort food should be served: in a bowl. It was inspired when, considering the fact that I hate walking in and out of the Sukkah (the ‘shed’ in which many Jewish people eat all their meals during the festival of Sukkot), I did my best to create one-pot meals. All…
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Seder Plate
There are at least five foods (though really it’s six) that go on the Seder plate: All of them are meant to remind us of the primary theme of Passover: the Jewish people’s transition from slavery to freedom. There is generally only a small, symbolic amount of food on the Seder plate, with additional dishes…
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Charoset
There is no detailed recipe here — just a method and some guidelines. And perhaps this is how a Pesach recipe should be handed down generationally: with a little bit of this and a lot of that. Of all the different dishes that we bring to the Pesach table, none is quite as family-specific as…
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Chocolate Mousse
A good chocolate mousse recipe is something to treasure. Truly, when I’m at a loss for what to serve, I always come back to chocolate mousse — and this recipe has never let me down. Pictured here is one of my favourite ways to serve it: layered with brownies or other desserts like orange jelly…