Are you one of those people who thinks making homemade potato knishes from scratch is difficult? I used to think so. Then I made them. And I realized it's a lot easier than I imagined. I guest posted the recipe and some instructional photos on The Spiffy Cookie. Check it out here. Click here for the recipe. Enjoy! … [Read more...]
Apple Cherry Layered Crumb Cake (Kugel)
Remember the Kugel Quandary I had recently? Well, in case you were not yet confused about kugel, here we go. Honestly, I am highly uncertain about posting this recipe as a kugel. It's a cake, really. But when it comes down to it, a sweet kugel (such as this one) is really nothing but a great excuse to eat dessert halfway through your meal. And how can anyone not like that? To avoid confusion, I am going to call this a cake, going forward. Call it a sailboat if you want. The important thing is that you make it and thoroughly enjoy it. Now, a little bit of background on this cake. A number of years ago, just before a holiday, my father came down with a nasty infection and had to be … [Read more...]
Mini Shepherd’s Pies
What a week. I don't even know where to start. I guess with Sunday, when I worked a full day to make up for the days we were closed last week. Then came Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, all of which felt like a day later than they actually were. I got home on average 7:30 each night, and got straight to work in the kitchen. I went to bed after 2 am every night. Now it's Thursday, well after 2 and I am not nearly done in the kitchen. Did I mention that my company will be closed next week, so it's about doubly busy this week? Yeah, I did drink loads of coffee. Why do you ask? Enough complaining about me. Let's talk global issues. I honestly couldn't believe how saddened I was at the … [Read more...]
Mocha Cheesecake with Oreo Crumb Crust
Note: the pictures on this post don't do the dessert justice- at all! Please trust me on this one- this recipe is delicious, easy to make and even impressive. I've mentioned before that I occasionally get cooking or baking ideas into my head and can't get them out- until I find out how good they might be. Yesterday's Eureka moment came while I was at work. (Yes, on a Sunday. No, I am not insane, nor a workaholic. Ok...maybe a tad of both.) It wasn't until later at night that I was able to get into the kitchen to start tinkering. That's when the first disaster struck. Ok, it was (thankfully) the only disaster, but it was pretty bad. The lid to my food processor was missing. Yes, the very … [Read more...]
Puff Pastry Apple Pie Cups with Crumb Topping
Lets try a little pop quiz, shall we? 1) Are you one of those people who is terrified of making real old fashioned pie crust? 2) Do you simply not have time to make a pie crust, roll it out, and prepare a proper pie? 3) Do you have an over-abundance of delicious fresh apples this fall, and need a great way to use some? 4) Do you enjoy simple, easy and seasonal desserts? If you answered yes to one of more of the above questions, you will love this recipe. It's as simple as buying some puff pastry, peeling and dicing some apples, and making a simple crumb topping. Really, it's that simple. Besides, who doesn't love single serve desserts? Puff Pastry Apple Pie Cups with Crumb … [Read more...]
Sweet Lemon Lukshen (Noodle) Kugel
I'm sitting here trying to figure out how to describe a kugel to my non-Jewish readers. I know I am not the only one. I guess Kugel is one of those quintessential Jewish foods that have slowly seeped into the non-Jewish culinary world, but not nearly enough. A kugel is generally a side dish of sorts. It can be sweet or savory, and served with almost any meal. In some observant Jewish houses, (such as mine!) it doesn't feel like Shabbos (Sabbath) without potato kugel (a casserole of sorts, featuring finely ground potatoes). In many cases, especially for a holiday like Rosh Hashanah, where the tradition is to eat sweet foods, a sweet kugel is a great accompaniment to a meal. For my Jewish … [Read more...]
Bakery Style Cookies
A recent comment on Twitter by my friend pointed out that the last three cookie recipes I posted involved rolling the balls in something before baking. "Too complicated", she complained. "How about a cookie recipe that uses 4 or five ingredients?" As soon as she said that, I knew I'd be posting these delicious cookies. The dough involves just three ingredients, and takes minutes to throw together. The end result is a soft, almost flaky cookie that will make you nostalgic for the sprinkle covered bakery cookies of your childhood. These cookies are endlessly versatile. While they are hot out of the oven, they are soft and somewhat pliable, so you can press something into the cookies (as I … [Read more...]
Spicy Carrot Chips
I've been hesitant to post this recipe. Not because it's not delicious, but because they came out of the oven at some ridiculous hour, and I didn't have the energy to get proper pictures. The one I'm posting seriously doesn't do these chips any kind of justice. But I'm going to post the recipe for a number of reasons. Firstly, there's going to be a complete sugar overload on this blog in the next week or so (you have been warned!) so I figured I'd preempt it with some delicious veggies. Because, as we all know, a vegetable plus a cupcake cancel each other out. Right? The other reason is that, as my Jewish readers know, it is traditional to ear carrots on Rosh Hashanah, the upcoming Jewish … [Read more...]
Chocolate Peanut Butter Surprise Cookies
Y'know when you bite into a cookie and think "yeah, I know what this is gonna be like" but then you take that bite, and instead, you're greeted with a delightful surprise? No? Well that's because you haven't tried these cookies yet. From the outside, they look like chocolate cookies. Good chocolate cookies, mind you, but that's pretty much it. Then you taste them and... a surprise is waiting for you! A chocolate cookie is definitely a nice thing. But even a very good chocolate cookie is "just" a chocolate cookie. We've all had those. I originally saw this recipe on Recipe Girl, and just from the look of it, I knew it was going to be one of the best cookies I had ever made. Bite … [Read more...]
(Not Your Bubby’s) Honey Cookies
Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish new year) is coming, and it's traditional to have honey to symbolize our hopes for a sweet new year. In past years, I have made various honey cakes- for tradition's sake. The problem? My family isn't big on honey cake. So this year, I went a different route. Instead of the traditional heavy honey cake or cookies, I made a delicious and more modern style of honey cake. It's light and modern, yet still has that honey taste: i.e. it's the best of both worlds. I've been planning to make these cookies ever since I got this cookbook- almost a year ago. The dough is one of the most interesting I've ever worked with, so I have to admit I was skeptical from the moment I … [Read more...]