Cafe Belinda: Chanukah

Showing posts with label Chanukah. Show all posts

11.22.2013

Vegetarian Holiday Recipes: On Turkey, Sausage Stuffing and other Holiday Perils by Suz deMello

Need vegetarian Thanksgiving, Christmas or New Year recipes? Award-winning novelist and meatless maven, Suz deMello, aka Sue Swift, is here with an encore holiday guest post to help your family enjoy the season. Be sure to connect with Suz and check out her latest projects. - Belinda

Everyone feels the temptation of overeating rich foods during the holiday season. From Halloween, with its plethora of sugar-laden sweets (Snickers, yum) to Thanksgiving, which to many means pumpkin pie, mushroom soup casseroles and candied yams with marshmallows; through Christmas, with candy canes galore—to say nothing of even less-healthy foods—this season seems to offer nothing but platters of diabetes, tureens of heart disease, and bowls full of jelly—or maybe one of those awful Jello salads your great-auntie brought to every holiday gathering.

And then comes New Years’ Eve.

Photo © madle-fotowelt.de

But there’s a better, tastier way.

If you’re omnivorous, stick with the plain turkey and sauce-free side dishes and you’re fine. But what if you’re a vegetarian? What do you eat, given that the centerpiece of just about every holiday gathering is a dead bird or pig?

Fear not! This vegetarian has attended many a holiday feast and come away full, satisfied and still entirely ethical. So what do I eat?

First and foremost in my mind is the concept of balance—balancing protein and carbs, primarily. This takes some fancy footwork given that often I can’t find much protein among the carbs. So what’s my solution?

I don my “Sweet Suzie” hat and offer to bring food that I want to eat, enough to share. I might bring a loaf of excellent crusty bread, studded with nuts and seeds. Maybe a pilaf with nuts and quinoa, so I get my protein. Maybe a sautéed or roasted vegetable dish garnished with cheese so I again get some protein along with veggies. And a dessert that won’t be too ruinous to my waistline.

Here’s a couple of recipes for you to try:

Photo © net_efekt

Holiday Pilaf—serves 6

RE: quinoa: the basic recipe is a 1:2 proportion of grain to water.

1 chopped onion

1 chopped carrot

1 chopped celery spear

1 Tbsp olive oil

1C quinoa

2C hot water

½ C toasted, slivered almonds or other nut of your choice

¼ C dried cranberries

Salt and pepper to taste

Heat the oil in a saucepan large enough to hold the ingredients. Saute the vegetables in the oil until soft. Add the quinoa and stir to toast the grains and coat them in the oil. Add the hot water, bring to a boil. Cover and reduce the heat for twenty minutes or until the quinoa is cooked. Fluff with fork.

Add most of the cranberries and almonds, reserving some to sprinkle on top. Fluff again. Correct the seasonings to your taste.

Remove to a serving dish, sprinkle with the rest of the nuts and berries, and serve.

Photo © Kate Ter Haar

Berries and Cake—serves 4-6.

1 carton of raspberries

1 carton of blueberries

1 carton of blackberries

2-3 C frozen mixed berries

Sugar to taste

Store-bought pound cake or any other pastry of your choice

Put the frozen berries into a saucepan large enough to hold them and heat gently. When they’ve melted down into a mush, use a serving fork or a potato masher to squash them into a puree. You may use a food processor if you wish. Add sugar to taste.

Gently mix the fresh berries with the warm berry sauce you’ve created. Slice the cake and arrange on individual serving plates. Spoon the berries over the top. A sprinkling of confectioner’s or powdered sugar elegantly finishes this dessert.

You may also serve the berries in small bowls with a sugar cookie or a piece of shortbread tucked on the side. This mixture is also a tasty topping for French toast or oatmeal. It can also be used as the filling for a pie or tart.

Enjoy!

Guest Blogger: Suz deMello

Photo © Suz deMello

Best-selling, award-winning author Suz deMello, a.k.a Sue Swift, has written over sixteen romance novels in several subgenres, including erotica, comedy, historical, paranormal, mystery and suspense, plus a number of short stories and non-fiction articles on writing. A freelance editor, she’s worked for Total-E-Bound, Liquid Silver Books and Ai Press, where she is currently Managing Editor. She also takes private clients.

Her books have been favorably reviewed in Publishers Weekly, Kirkus and Booklist, won a contest or two, attained the finals of the RITA and hit several bestseller lists.

A former trial attorney, her passion is world travel. She’s left the US over a dozen times, including lengthy stints working overseas. She’s now writing a vampire tale and planning her next trip.

--Find her books at http://www.suzdemello.com

--For editing services, email her at suzswift@yahoo.com

--Befriend her on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/sueswift, and visit her group at

http://www.facebook.com/HotWriters

--She tweets her reading picks @ReadThis4fun

--Her current blog is http://www.fearlessfastpacedfiction.com

What are some of your favorite holiday food memories: as a child, as an adult, cooking, eating? Please share them in the comments below.

May you and your loved ones enjoy an abundant Thanksgiving! - Belinda

11.16.2013

Meatless Monday: Green Bean Casserole Recipe by Nicole Cibellis Andrews

Guest Blogger: Nicole Cibellis Andrews

Photo © Nicole Cibellis Andrews

Happy Meatless Monday! Our guest blogger today is Nicole Cibellis Andrews, a passionate foodie mom blogger based in San Francisco, CA. Her blog, a family that eats together, is the result of her quest for delicious, nutritious, quick and easy, kid-friendly recipes for her own family of three. A family that eats together has won Blog of the Month on Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution, Chef of the Week on Recipe.com and has been featured on BlogHer. Nicole is a huge fan of farmer’s markets and an ardent Slow Food USA supporter.

Below she shares a healthy Meatless Monday alternative to the traditional Green Bean Casserole recipe. Nicole’s lighter version is perfect for busy parents with taste and picky kid chefs. It also complements the potato recipes in the last two posts (simply scroll down) and meets the needs of many special diets: dairy free (IBS), gluten free (celiac), sugar free (diabetic), Kosher, vegan and vegetarian. Let your kid chefs help with the holiday cooking this year and watch the magic happen! - BYH

Green Bean Casserole Recipe,
aka Haricots Verts with Shallot Vinaigrette

Photo © Claude Fabry

When I meet people who don’t like green beans, I suggest that they try this recipe. If your kids are squeamish about green beans it is because they haven’t tried these. They are always a favorite around our table. Encourage your kids to get in the kitchen with you and help with washing beans or tossing them with the vinaigrette. This recipe takes the average green bean casserole recipe and elevates it into something really special. It is my go-to recipe for holiday dinners or dinner parties that need a fabulous green veggie.

Note: I recommend that this be the last thing you prepare. It doesn’t take long to cook and you don’t want to chance over-cooking the beans. No one likes mushy green beans.

Photo © rameshng

Servings: 12+

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

INGREDIENTS

• 2 pounds of Haricots Verts (green beans), ends trimmed

• 1 large clove of garlic, minced

• 2 large shallots, finely chopped

• the juice of 1 lemon (ideally Meyer Lemon)

• 4 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil

• Salt and Pepper

DIRECTIONS

1. In large skillet, pour ½ cup of water to the bottom of the pan and add the Haricots Verts. Cook on high until all the water evaporates. Drain but do not rinse the beans.

2. In another skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and shallots. Cook until softened. About 3-5 minutes more. Toss the beans with the garlic and shallots. Pour in the oil and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Mix thoroughly.

3. Serve immediately.

Connect with Nicole:

Blog: a family that eats together

Twitter: @afmlyeats2gthr

Facebook: a family that eats together

11.04.2013

Meatless Monday: Vegan Vegetarian Chanukah Thanksgiving Recipes by Suz deMello

Guest Blogger: Suz deMello

Photo courtesy Suz deMello

Happy Meatless Monday! Café Belinda is proud as punch to welcome back an old friend, best-selling, award-winning author Suz deMello, a.k.a Sue Swift. I asked Suz to discuss an incredibly rare event this holiday season: the coinciding of Chanukah and Thanksgiving. She’s also got a couple quick and easy Kosher vegetarian recipes to share for Thanksmukah. Check out her previous Meatless Monday guest posts here.

Note: Egg replacer, vegan cheese, vegan margarine and vegan sour cream would make these vegan Chanukah Thanksgiving recipes. - BYH

Thanksmukah and Other Culinary Dilemmas

Photo © tedeytan

This year, both the American holiday of Thanksgiving and the Jewish celebration of Chanukah fall on the same day. I’m told that this has not happened for 70,000 years and will not reoccur for another 70,000. That is to say, it has never happened before because the Jewish religion is less than 6,000 years old. And, though the first fabled Thanksgiving took place in 1621, it wasn’t declared a holiday until 1789, when President Washington declared the day to be one of “thanksgiving and prayer.”

For vegetarians, this time of year presents dilemmas, but until 2013, Chanukah was delightfully non-controversial. The favored foods were either potato latkes if your family’s Ashkenazi, and doughnuts if you’re Sephardic. The celebratory foods are fried because the miracle of Chanukah was that a small amount of oil allowed the “eternal light” in the main temple of Jerusalem to remain aglow for eight days. This all took place in about 165 BCE.

So what foods should a “Thanksmukah” celebration feature?

In an omnivorous household, the roast turkey would take pride of place alongside side dishes that would include all the traditional favorites including potato latkes, and perhaps feature doughnuts as a non-traditional dessert.

As a vegetarian, I often take creative approaches to holidays and shape them to my needs and to the needs of my large extended family. Because we are a large group, with multiple important relationships, time on Thanksgiving Day is often scarce. One of my nieces, for example, is a child of divorced parents and was engaged to a man who was in the same situation. They therefore had four Thanksgiving celebrations they felt obligated to attend. Needless to say, they became truly sick of turkey, stuffing and pumpkin pie!

Here’s a creative approach--Instead of enduring the stress of a giant sit-down dinner for a gazillion people, how about a casual buffet brunch?

Chanukah Thanksgiving Menu

Fried tofu sausages

Potato latkes served with applesauce and sour cream

Pumpkin frittata

Fruit salad

Coffee and tea

And here’s a couple of recipes:

Potato Latkes

1-2 bags frozen hash browns

Grated onions or dried chives

One egg, beaten

Matzoh meal

Salt

Pepper

Safflower oil

Applesauce

Sour cream

You can grate the potatoes yourself but it’s far easier to buy a bag or two of frozen hash browns. Defrost them in a colander to allow the moisture to drip out, then add some grated onions (also available ready-to-use) or dried chives. Throw enough in so that the chives will add pleasant green flecks to the mixture. Add a beaten egg and enough matzoh meal to hold everything together, plus salt and pepper to taste.

Use a frying pan large enough to hold a number of latkes without crowding. Pour in enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan, about a quarter of an inch deep, and use an oil that can tolerate high heat, such as safflower oil.

Heat the oil. Wet your hands and shape the latkes into patties about the same size as an average burger patty, making sure that they are thin enough to cook through without burning but thick enough to hold together. After cooking on both sides to a golden-brown, drain the excess oil from each latke using paper towels. Serve while hot with dollops or dishes of applesauce and sour cream.

Pumpkin Frittata—serves 6

A frittata is a baked egg dish sort of like quiche without the crust. Use a cast iron pan that can go from stovetop to oven.

6 eggs

1 ounce of grated cheese

Half cup of grated fresh pumpkin

Half cup of grated fresh zucchini

2 teaspoons butter

Salt, pepper, nutmeg and cinnamon to taste

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Beat together the eggs, cheese and seasonings. Melt the butter in the bottom of the pan on the stovetop and add the vegetables, cooking until they’re soft. Add the egg mixture, stirring everything together. Cook for a few minutes then transfer the pan to the preheated oven, allowing it to cook through. Cut into pieces and serve promptly.

About Suz