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Purple Potato Latkes 3

Tonight was the fifth night of chanukah. Which means that if you are partying hard in true hanukkah fashion, you have had a lot of latkes by now. Are you bored of the typical? I am. I know that the world is full of people making latkes with all kinds of interesting vegetables, spices and sauces. But I decided to go a different direction, because I care more than I should about aesthetics. Which is how this idea was born. Let’s make a pretty latke, I thought to myself. So I bought some purple potatoes.

I posted a picture on instagram of my latkes frying, and they were totally beautiful:

latkes frying

You can’t see it clearly, but the purple potatoes and flecks of green courtesy of the scallions really are eye-catching.

I got a lot of skeptical questions on the picture. People wanted to know if they would keep their beautiful color.

The answer? Yes and no. The potatoes did lose some of their vibrant purple color, but they still looked far prettier and way different than any ordinary potato latke. And more than that, purple potatoes have a different taste and texture than ordinary ones, making these beauties all around unique, fun and delicious.

If you are experiencing latke boredom try these!

Purple Potato Latkes 2

Purple Potato Latkes

Ingredients:

(approximately) 1 lb small purple potatoes, scrubbed and unpeeled

3 scallions, thinly sliced

2 eggs

2 teaspoons kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon onion powder

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Olive oil, for frying

Instructions:

Grate the potatoes on the large side of the grater, and drain completely. (Excess water will prevent your latkes from getting crispy, so really squeeze them well!)

Heat olive oil in a frying pan on medium heat.

In a large mixing bowl, stir together the grated potatoes, scallions, eggs and spices until combine. Form a small patty of the mixture and place in the hot oil. Fry until golden brown on both sides.

Serve hot.

Enjoy!

Purple Potato Latkes 1

Hope everyone’s chanukah is going great! Mine sure is! Did you all check out my fabulous giveaway (plus the best dessert…ever) earlier this week? I am giving away SIX cookbooks! -Miriam

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Giveaway Closed!

cannoli with chocolate mousse filling on Overtime Cook

Remember how I co-hosted a Rosh Hashanah blog party a couple of months ago with my friend Jessie? Well today I bring you another fabulous holiday blog party. This one is co-hosted by the one and only me and my friend Leah from Cook Kosher. I present:

A Hanukkah Blog Party! Scroll down past the party info for the most delicious dessert recipe you’ve ever tasted. No jokes. PS: in honor of Chanukah, I totally deep fried it!

Let’s get some details, shall we?

Hanukkah Blog PartyWelcome to our first ever Hanukkah Blog Party, hosted by Leah of Cook Kosher and Miriam of Overtime Cook. It’s traditional on Hanukkah to eat fried treats, most notably donuts and latkes, and we’ve got a fabulous array of Hanukkah themed recipes, treats and crafts from Jewish bloggers all over the world! Scroll down for links to all of the delicious treats.
To help get everyone into party mode, we have a bunch of fabulous new cookbooks to giveaway! Leave a comment on this post for your chance to win one of:
2 copies of Susie Fishbein’s new Kosher By Design Cooking Coach
(sponsored by Artscroll) Reviewed by me here.
2 copies of Leah Schapira’s  Fresh & Easy Kosher Cooking
(sponsored by Artscroll) Reviewed by me here.
2 copies of Esther Deutch’s CHIC Made Simple
(sponsored by the author) Reviewed by me here.
Giveaway ends at 11:59 PM on Sunday, December 16th. Limit one entry per person per blog, so visit the other blogs for extra chances to win!
Prizes can only be shipped within the US. Entries must be accompanied by a valid email address in order to qualify.
 
How to enter: Leave a comment on this post telling me what your favorite fried treat is!
 
This is the second of many fabulous Holiday Blog Parties. If you would like to be added to the mailing list to participate in future parties, please email holidayblogparties@gmail.com
 
Scroll past the recipe for lots of other amazing chanuka recipes!
And now let’s talk Cannoli.
Sometimes I feel like it’s a very good thing that I don’t have an Italian granmother, because she might be really angry at me for calling this recipe a cannoli. I am pretty sure that a real italian would be completely scandalized by the concept of a shortcut in cannoli making. But let’s get real, shall we? I am not Italian. I don’t possess a pasta roller, nor do I possess the energy or time to sit there rolling out cannoli dough as thin as pasta with nothing but my rolling pin. And y’all know how I am totally not into buying premade things, but I made an exception here. You’re going to be deep frying the dough, and you’re going to make a dreamy-creamy-sinfully amazing filling, nobody will complain if you start with something out of your grocery’s freezer. My secret: wonton wrappers! You got it! They are already super thin, and they fry up really nicely (just ask your local Asian restaurant). Trust me. You will completely rethink cannoli once you try this.
Now let’s talk filling. I have made “cannoli” in the past (using store bought wafer “shells” and filled them with lightly sweetened whipped cream. But this time I decided to take things a step further. I made the most amazing mousse filling for these. I don’t know that there are adequate words in the English language to describe this filling, so make it and you will see what I am talking about.
cannoli with chocolate mousse filling 2
Shortcut Cannoli Shells:
Ingredients:
canola oil, for frying
45-50 wonton wrappers
melted chocolate, for garnish, optional
special equipment: 2 x Cannoli Forms, Set of Four
Instructions:
Heat about 2-3 inches of oil in a deep frying pan over medium heat.
Meanwhile, prepare the cannoli shells: wrap a wonton wrapper around a cannoli form tightly. Dip your finger in water and rub along the edges. Press well to seal. (If the wrapper isn’t tight enough, or the seam isn’t sealed well enough, the shell will open while frying.) Repeat with all remaining cannoli forms.
Before frying, test that the oil is hot enough. Place a small piece of wonton wrapper in the oil- if it rises immediately it’s ready for frying.
Fry 3-4 cannoli at a time, depending on the size of your frying pan. Don’t overcrowd the pan or they will open. Fry the cannoli for a couple of minutes (about 2-4) until they are golden brown. Remove from pan and place on paper towel to drain the oil, then set aside to cool. When cooled enough to handle, gently remove the cannoli from the form, and repeat with the remaining wrappers.
Once all cannoli have been fried, cooled and removed from the forms, dip the ends in melted chocolate, if desired. Place the dipped cannoli shells on parchment paper to set.
At this point you can store the shells in an airtight container for a day or two, or even freeze for later use. Or you can fill immediately, but then you need to serve the within a couple of hours.
Chocolate (Nutella)  Mousse 
Adapted from My Baking Addiction
Ingredients:
1 cup whipping cream or rich’s whip
3/4 cup chocolate hazelnut spread such as Nutella or for a non-dairy option use Schneider’s Delinut
8 ounces cream cheese
1 teaspoon vanilla
optional 1/2 cup additional cream, for garnish/serving
Instructions: 
In the bowl of your electric mixer, using the whisk attachment, beat the cream or whip until stiff. (If using extra for garnish, you can whip it together to save time.) Remove whipped cream from mixer and set aside.
In the bowl of the electric mixer (no need to wash it between this and the previous use) beat together the chocolate-hazelnut spread, cream cheese and vanilla until combined.
Using a rubber spatula, gently fold in the cream (if whipped extra for garnish only use 2/3 of the total amount). Stir gently until all of the cream has been incorporated.
Within a couple of hours before serving the cannoli, fill the shells with the mousse. To get the look in the picture, fit a piping bag with a Wilton 1M piping tip and fill it with mousse. Pipe some mouse in to one end of the cannoli shell, ending with a nice tip, then turn around a fill the other end, again ending in a nice tip. Otherwise, just place the mousse in a bag, snip off the end, and pipe it into the shells.
Serve the cannoli within a few hours of filling them, alongside the reserved whipped cream.
And of course, enjoy!
cannoli with chocolate mousse filling 1
Stop by the other blogs and check out these Chanukah Themed Recipes:
Latkes:

Jamie from Joy of Kosher made Zucchini Latkes with Tzatziki

Daniel from Peikes Cookbook made Potato and Fennel Latkes Fried in Duck Fat With Chinese Five Spice Apple Sauce
Susan from The Girl in the Little Red Kitchen made Squash and Potato Latkes
Samantha from The Little Ferraro Kitchen made Ruby Red Beet Latkes with Cumin
Nechamah from TIforOA Food Ideas made Healthy Oatmeal Latkes
Liz from The Lemon Bowl made Traditional Potato Latkes
Melanie from From Fast Food to Fresh Food made (I Can’t Believe They’re Crispy!) Baked Latkes
Laura from Mother Would Know made Three Variations of Sweet and Savory Latkes
Sarah from Crispy Bits and Burnt Ends made Kimchee Latkes
Shulie from Food Wanderings made Baked Panko Sweet Potato Leek Latkes
Donuts and Desserts: 
Miriam from Overtime Cook made Shortcut Cannoli with Chocolate Mousse Filling
Leah from Cook Kosher made 5 Minute Donuts
Estee from The Kosher Scoop made Tropical Fruit Fritters
Melinda from Kitchen-Tested made Sweet Steamed Buns
Amy from What Jew Wanna Eat made Homemade Dark Chocolate Sea Salt Gelt
Avidan from Baking It Up As I Go Along made Orange Olive Oil Cake
Tali from More Quiche Please made Glazed Chocolate Donut Holes
Amital from Organized Jewish Home made Mom’s Sour Cream Sugar Cookies
Princess Lea from The Frumanista made Túrógombóc
Stephanie and Jessica from The Kosher Foodies made Beignets
Gigi from Gigi’s Kitchen made Bunuelos: Mini Powdered Cheese Donuts 
Esther from Esther O Designs made Edible Menorahs
Patti from No Bacon Here made Hanukkah Oreo Balls
Shoshana from Couldn’t Be Parve made Churros con Chocolate
Shaindy from My Happily Hectic Life made Inside Out Apple Crisp
Eve from Gluten Free Nosh made Gluten-Free Hanukkah Sugar Cookies
The Gluten Free maven made Gluten Free Vegan Cake Donuts
Amy from Baking and Mistaking made Mini Cream-Filled French Beignets
Sarah from Food, Words, Photos made Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies
Victoria from Itsy Bitsy Balebusta made Pure Vanilla Donuts
Vicky and Ruth from May I Have That Recipe made Dulce de Leche and Eggnog cream filled mini sufganiot
Dena from Oh You Cook made Poached Pears in Pomegranate Sauce
Michele from Kosher Treif Cooking made Tiramisu Cheessecake
Sharon from FashionIsha made Sparkly Chanukah Cookies
Appetizers, Soups, Sauces, Drinks and other Hanukkah Food:
Laura from Pragmatic Attic made Caramel Spice Applesauce
Jessie from Bread and Butter made Honey Spiced Hanukkah Martini
G6 from Guess Who’s Coming 2 Dinner made Sweet Potato Leek Soup
Claire from I Love Soup made Sweet Potato, Coconut & Lemongrass Soup
Jennifer from Juanita’s Cocina made Kugel
Liz from Kosher Like Me made Ready, Stuff Roll!
Shelley from The Kosher Home made Hanukkah Crafts and Printables
Yosef from This American Bite made Zaatar, Garlic & Olive Oil Popcorn
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Aren’t these the most beautiful and delicious looking little treats? You know you want to make them! Thank you, as always, for stopping by, and make sure to enter my giveaway, then click on all the links above for more amazing recipes and lots of chances to win! Happy Chanukkah, Hanukkah, or however else you say it to all my Jewish Friends and readers! -Miriam PS- come back soon for a super cool latke recipe!

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baked donuts

Remember how I recently discussed how hard I find the process of making decisions? Well tonight’s post is basically a post script to that one, because if you thought deciding between pecan pie or brownies was hard, imagine trying to decide between chocolate glazed peanut butter donuts or glazed nutella (chocolate hazelnut) donuts! I know, it totally boggles the mind.

Well I, for one, don’t believe in making such difficult decisions. So I thought to myself…why choose?

Yep, that’s right. I made both peanut butter donuts and nutella donuts. Which means, if you think about it, that these donuts are super easy to make. Because I started making them late at night, and still had time and patience to make a second batch.

Psst! Looking for traditional fried donuts for Hannukah? Well, I’ve got you covered!

So, will you make both? Or pick one of these? Either way, you can’t really go wrong. My tasters raved about how these are as good as fried donuts. Plus they are practically health food because they’re baked. And mini.

baked donuts 4

Chocolate Glazed Peanut Butter Baked Donuts:

adapted from Fake Ginger

This recipe makes very little, so I recommend doubling it.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup peanut butter

1/4 cup sugar

1/3 cup plus 1 Tablespoon milk or soy-milk

1 Tablespoon canola oil

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 egg

1 cup flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

for the glaze:

1/2 cup confectioner’s sugar

2 Tablespoons cocoa powder

1 Tablespoon light corn syrup

1/4 teaspoon vanilla exract

1 Tablespoon milk or soy milk

optional finely chopped peanuts

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 325. Lightly grease a mini donut pan and set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat together the peanut butter and sugar and set aside.

Add in the milk, oil, vanilla and egg. Beat to combine. Add the flour, baking powder and salt and stir until evenly distributed.

Pour the mixture into a resealable bag or a piping bag and cut a small hole in the corner. Pipe the mixture into the donut pan, filling the cavity about 3/4 of the way to the top.

Place in the oven and bake at 325 for 5-6 minutes, until the top springs back when touched. Remove donuts from the pan, and set aside to cool. Repeat with remaining batter.

To make the glaze, mix all ingredients together in a small bowl and stir to combine. Dip cooled donuts into the glaze, then sprinkle with finely chopped peanuts, if using. Allow the glaze to set before serving.

baked donuts

Glazed Chocolate Hazelnut Baked Donuts

adapted from the recipe above

This recipe makes very little, so I recommend doubling it.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup nutella or chocolate hazelnut spread (for a non-dairy option, I use Shneider’s Delinut)

1/4 cup sugar

1/3 cup plus 1 Tablespoon milk or soy-milk

1 Tablespoon canola oil

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 egg

1 cup plus 2 Tablespoons flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

for the glaze: 

1/2 cup confectioner’s sugar

2 Tablespoons chocolate hazelnut spread

1 T milk

1 1 Tablespoon water

1 Tablespoon corn syrup

optional chocolate sprinkles

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 325. Lightly grease a mini donut pan and set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat together the nutella and sugar and set aside.

Add in the milk, oil, vanilla and egg. Beat to combine. Add the flour, baking powder and salt and stir until evenly distributed.

Pour the mixture into a resealable bag or a piping bag and cut a small hole in the corner. Pipe the mixture into the donut pan, filling the cavity about 3/4 of the way to the top.

Place in the oven and bake at 325 for 5-7 minutes, until the top springs back when touched. Remove donuts from the pan, and set aside to cool. Repeat with remaining batter.

To make the glaze, mix all ingredients together in a small bowl and stir to combine. Dip cooled donuts into the glaze, then sprinkle with sprinkles, if using. Allow the glaze to set before serving.

Note: to use a full size donut pan, bake either recipe for 8-10 minutes. 

Enjoy!

baked donuts

Look how I just freed you from making a tough decision! You can thank me later.

Thanks for stopping by! I hope you all make these donuts, but for a seriously decadent, fried chanukah treat, come back soon…and save up your calories- it’s worth it! -Miriam

PS: Did you enter the fabulous giveaway I have going on?

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I can’t believe Chanuka is more than half over. Where did all those days go? And could you believe I haven’t posted anything fried yet? Well, never fear, I have a delicious donut recipe to share with you. Isn’t there always time for one more batch of donuts?

Here’s the thing about making donuts: people seem to think they are ultra complicated, something to attempt only in your most ambitious moments. But I am here to tell you that donuts are totally easy- or at least they should be.

I’m usually the queen of making things from scratch, so I had to seriously resist the temptation to make my own caramel sauce for these, but let me introduce you to my awesomely fun donut topping method. I’ve been doing this for years, and people love it. I prepare a selection of toppings, then bring the donuts out straight from the frying pan, and let my guests make their own combinations.

This year I made a simple glaze (confectioner’s sugar mixed with oil and water). Because I am the coolest aunt ever, I split the glaze in half and let two of my nieces pick a color. They had such a good time mixing the coloring into the icing! I also bought caramel sauce, chocolate caramel sauce and custard. Then my nieces had a great time picking through my box of sprinkles and other decorating stuff (doesn’t everyone have a big box of different shaped and colored sprinkles? No? Maybe that’s what makes me the coolest aunt ever). We put out little bowls of the different sprinkles and toppings. When the donuts were ready, I brought them out and everyone had a phenomenal time designing their own donuts- fresh hot out of the frying pan!

Easy Homemade Donuts:
Adapted from The Original Heimishe Kitchen
Ingredients:

1 heaping Tablespoon instant yeast (or 1 oz fresh yeast)

2 Tablespoons sugar

1/2 cup water

5 cups flour

4 Tablespoons margerine

3 egg yolks

1 1/4 cups water

Instructions:

In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of an electric mixer, dissolve yeast and sugar in 1/2 cup water. Add remaining ingredients and knead until smooth. Cover dough and let rise for 30-45 minutes.

On a floured surface, roll out dough to about 1/4-1/2 an inch. Allow to rise an additional 30 minutes. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat about 1 1/2 inches of oil.

When oil is fully heated (if you are unsure, test the oil by dropping a small piece of dough into the oil. If it immediately rises to the top, the oil is ready.) Carefully place the dough rounds in the oil, fry on each side until golden brown. (Be careful not to overcook, they brown very quickly.)

Serve hot with confectioner’s sugar, caramel sauce, custard, glaze sprinkles, or your favorite donut toppings.

Enjoy!

So easy, so delicious!

Enjoy! Thanks for stopping by!

-Miriam

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Who is ready for some chanukah cookies?!

I’ve had this idea for ages. There are many cookies that involve pressing a chocolate or some other candy into the finished cookie, and a while ago I realized that a Chanukah chocolate coin would be the ultimate item to finish off a cookie for Chanukah.

I waited for ages until the local stores started their seasonal displays of Chanukah merchandise. I happily purchased a couple of pouches of these delicious coins, and settled into my chair with a stack of cookbooks to decide which cookie would work best with my Chanukah Gelt (chocolate coins.)

Finally, and idea hit me. I decided on what turned out to be a match made in heaven. Peanut butter blossom cookies, usually made with a Hershey’s kiss, aren’t generally something I can make, as Hershey’s kisses are dairy, and I bake non-dairy. But with these chocolate coins, peanut butter blossoms with a lovely Chanukah twist were soon happening in my kitchen.

If you can’t find chocolate coins, or prefer to use Hershey’s kisses, go ahead. These cookies will be delicious either way. After all, who doesn’t love peanut butter with a deliciously chocolatey seasonal twist?

Chanukah Style Peanut Butter Blossoms:

Adapted from Hershey’s Incredibly Easy Desserts

Ingredients:

40-50 chocolate coins, unwrapped

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup creamy peanut butter

1/2 cup shortening

1/3 cup granulated sugar

1/3 cup packed light brown sugar

1 egg

2 Tablespoons milk or milk substitute

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

granulated sugar, for rolling (about 1/3 cup)

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 375.

In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat together the peanut butter and shortening until combined. Add the granulated and brown sugar, and beat until light and fluffy.

Add the egg, milk and vanilla extract, beating well after each addition.

Turn the mixer to low, and slowly add the flour mixture. Stir until just combined.

Using a small cookie scoop, or a teaspoon (or half Tablespoon) measuring spoon, scoop balls of dough about an inch in diameter. Roll the dough between your palms to create a neat ball, then roll in the sugar to coat. Place on ungreased cookie sheet. Repeat with remaining dough.

Work with one tray at a time; bake the cookies about 2 inches apart on the cookie sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes. Remove from oven, and while hot, press an unwrapped chocolate coin into the center of the cookie. Make sure to press the chocolate far enough in to ensure that it will melt into the cookie a bit. Set cookies on a wire rack to cool. Do not touch the chocolate while the cookies are cooling, as it is soft and slightly melted at that point.

Enjoy!

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