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Ricotta Blintzes, From Scratch…with Homemade Lemon Curd

10 Jun

Remember when I started to tell you about the Shavuot feast that my pal Sara and I put on? Well, the real star of the meal was ricotta blintzes that we made from scratch.

With 2 pans going to make our thin crepe-like pancakes, and the oven on to finish and keep warm the filled blintzes, Sara and I were hard at work.

While this was indeed a fun experience, making blintzes from scratch is quite labor-intensive and in my opinion, not worth the sweat. Next time I would opt for the easier yet equally delicious route by making Ina Garten’s Baked Blintz Casserole from her cookbook Back to Basics.

Alas, biting into a homemade blintz filled with a sweet but not too sweet ricotta cheese and dolloped with homemade lemon curd was really like nothing else. The fruits of our labor were worth all of the sweat. It was a fun process with a delicious outcome. All in the name of love, family, and celebration.

The meal: Ricotta Blinzes, Lemon Curd, Veggie Fritatta Casserole, French Bread

Click HERE for my recipe for Homemade Lemon Curd

Sweet Ricotta Blinzes From Scratch

from Picture and Plate

serves 5

**NOTE: Check out my tips for crepe making HERE as a good base to compare methods and techniques.

Blintz Batter:

1 1/2 cups of flour

1 teaspoon salt

2 tsp baking powder

4 tbsp powdered sugar (don’t use for savory fillings)

4 eggs

1 1/3 cup of milk

2/3 cup of water

2 tsp vanilla  (don’t use for savory fillings)

Sweet Filling:

1-2 cup ricotta mixed with a little bit of cinnamon or lemon zest

½-1 cup Strawberry Jam (optional) **You can also make some lemon curd and serve on the side

2 tbsp butter reserved for baking

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

For the blintz batter, put all the wet ingredients in the blender and blend them for 10 seconds and then pour in all the dry ones and then blend that for 20 seconds. Let the batter sit for a half an hour to relax. It helps the texture get smoother.

When you make the blintzes it’s all about having the right pan and the right heat.  A big wide non-stick frying pan works best if you don’t have a crepe pan. Set the heat to medium high on the stove. I find it easier and healthier to use cooking spray rather than butter to cook the blintzes in. The batter should be thin and spread evenly but just barely cover the bottom of the pan as you tilt it around to spread it. Watch for the bubbles to start to pop on the first side before flipping them over. It takes about 45 seconds on the first side and roughly 30 seconds on the second side. We had two pans going to make it go faster.

**NOTE: I think it is a rule of thumb that your first pancake will always be a mess-up. Just keep on trucking, the pan needs to get to the right heat and then you will be fine.

Fill each crepe with ricotta filling and put in a baking dish. If you are using strawberry jam, spread the ricotta first and then do the jam. Melt the reserved butter and brush it lightly over the top of each blintz. Bake for ten minutes. Eat them.

Rhubarb Ice Cream

8 Jun

Today has certainly been a whirlwind in the kitchen. After a day of lounging and swimming in the pool, my good friend Sara and I cooked up a feast: ricotta blintzes from scratch with homemade lemon curd, a veggie cheesy fritatta baked with breadcrumbs, and rhubarb ice cream for dessert.

Today is the Jewish Holiday known as Shavuot. In short, this holiday is a celebration of the Israelites receiving the Torah and of the seasonal harvest of wheat. Most of what I remember from this holiday is the FOOD. Dairy is the name of the game on this holiday. There are all sorts of explanations given as to why it is customary to eat dairy on Shavuot (see wikipedia). Anyway, I saw today as the perfect excuse to make some ice cream.

Rhubarb ice cream.

So easy to make. First you chop your rhubarb, then you simmer it for 15 minutes until it softens.

(The black piece is a vanilla bean)

Then you combine your braised rhubarb with some milk and some cream. Let it chill. And freeze in the ice cream maker. OOooo this tastes HEAVENLY. And it is the most precious pink color.

Here is my pal, Sara, scooping out the last bits of the ice cream. Check out that smirk on her face, she is going to get every last drop out of that bowl!

Rhubarb Ice Cream

from Not without salt

3-3 1/2 cups rhubarb (I used 6 medium sized stalks), washed and cut into half inch pieces

OPTIONAL: 2 oz (1/2 stick) butter ***I just nixed the butter and threw in a splash of water

1 vanilla bean, seeded

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup brown sugar, not packed (you could probably use regular granulated sugar, too if you prefer)

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 cups heavy cream

1 cup milk

Combine the rhubarb, butter (if using), vanilla bean, vanilla extract, sugar, and salt in a saucepan. Cover and place on medium-low heat for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the rhubarb has softened. Remove the lid and break the rhubarb up with a wooden spoon or spatula.

In a medium bowl, combine the cream and milk and add the braised rhubarb. Cover and let it chill completely in the fridge or an ice water bath. Churn in the ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

Give me an “M” Matzo Lasagna

21 Apr

Matzo lasagna and a shot-glass full of Manischewitz wine. Good dinner. Good dinner, indeed.

Hey it’s Passover, the Jewish holiday that remembers and celebrates the Jewish people’s exodus from slavery. Good stuff. Traditionally Jews celebrate by having a big dinner called a “Seder” (Hebrew for ‘order’) where the story of this exodus from slavery is re-told. Then for 8 days it is common to refrain from any bread products except for matzo, which is an unleavened sheet of crunchiness.

You can make loads of awesome goods with matzo: matzo brei (aka matzo n’ eggs), matzo pizza (aka melted cheese and sauce atop matzo), matzo granola, matzo toffee crunch, matzo spread with butter, matzo spread with cream cheese, matzo slathered with baba ganoush (eggplant dip), etc. etc.

Tonight I give you MATZO LASAGNA. It’s just like regular lasagna but instead of lasagna noodles, I used sheets of matzo that I ran under cold water.

And let me tell ya, this is goooood stuff, especially when you turn on the broiler for the last 5 minutes of baking. Browned cheesy delight.


I sauteed some onion and dino-kale to add between the layers of sauce and cheese. Feel free to use mushrooms, spinach, summer squash, whatever you want.


If you are in a Passover rut, or just like matzo, or just like lasagna, this is the business right here.


Oh, and don’t forget the Manischewitz wine. So sweet, so delish, so much needed.

Matzo Lasagna

I’ve have been making this recipe for over 2 years. I printed it online, possibly from “The Jew and the Carrot” although I have yet to find exactly where on the website.

makes a 13 x 9 inch pan’s-worth of goodness
(8-12 servings?)

Ingredients
1 cup part-skim ricotta
2 cups non-fat cottage cheese
4 cups tomato sauce
1 onion, chopped
1 large bunch kale
Enough matzo sheets to make four layers in a 13 x 9 inch baking dish, lightly softened with water (I just ran it under the tap water for a few seconds as needed)
Grated mozzarella cheese
Salt and Pepper

Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. In a saute pan, brown onions and chopped kale in some olive oil and set aside.

3. In a bowl, mix ricotta, cottage cheese, and some salt and pepper.

4. Spoon 1 cup of the tomato sauce on the bottom of the baking dish. Cover with one layer of moistened matzo. Layer 1/3 of the cheese mixture, 1/3 of the vegetable mixture, and 2/3 cup of the sauce. Add some salt and pepper between each layer. Repeat twice. Cover with a final layer of moistened matzo, sauce, and mozzarella cheese.

5. Cover with foil and bake for 35 minutes, uncover and bake another 10 minutes or until thoroughly heated and cheese is melted and beginning to brown (I turned the broiler on for the last few minutes of baking). Let stand for 15 minutes before serving.

Heaven in a mazto.

>Homemade Apple Spice Sauce

7 Sep

>

Tomorrow night is Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year.

Last year, I made this wonderful challah bread on Rosh Hashanah for my 60 housemates. This year I have scaled down to live in a little apartment with 2 friends, so I won’t be making 8 loaves of challah bread.

I was, however, fortunate to receive a beautiful bag of Fuji apples as a gift last week. How fitting for the Jewish New Year! Apples and honey are two big symbols for this particular holiday, meant to bring in a SWEET new year.

I chose to make a big batch of gingery-cinnamony-nutmegy applesauce. Homemade applesauce is the way to go my friends. And you can serve it in pretty wine glasses for an elegant touch. Maybe make some basic cookies as an accoutrement, or place a plate of dates on the table to eat with the applesauce. Dates could also be a great Rosh Hashanah food, sweet and satisfying!

I also like to put this homemade applesauce in my yogurt or oatmeal for a nice breakfast. Or it would go great as a sweet sauce with roast pork or chicken (I have heard that added a touch of butter to the applesauce takes it to that next level, if ya know what I mean!).


Homemade Apple Spice Sauceadapted from Allrecipes

10 apples, peeled, cored, and chopped
1 3/4 cups water
1/4 cup + 1/8 cup sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 2-inch piece of ginger, minced finely
pinch of salt

Combine everything in a saucepan or pot. Cover and cook on medium heat for about 20-30 minutes, until the apples are soft. You may have to adjust the amounts of your spices if you think it needs more. Let cool for about 5 minutes, then pour it in batches in a blender and pulse until it reaches the desired consistency (my apples were so soft it literally only took me one pulse per batch).

Hamentaschen for Purim

8 Mar
IMG_4617
“Hamentaschen, Hamentaschen,
You’re my favorite Purim treat,
One filled with prunes and
Two filled with cherries
Three filled with poppy seeds
I will eat, I will eat, I will eat”
I used to sing this song every year in elementary school. We would also host a big carnival on the Jewish holiday, Purim. Dunk tank, goldfish, snacks, spin art, the whole shebang…
So, what exactly is the story of Purim? It involves kings and queens, good guys and bad guys, banquets and drinking, and, well, drinking. Purim celebrates Queen Esther of Persia foiling the evil vizier Haman’s plot to destroy the Jews. This holiday is very joyous and celebratory, and possibly akin to a Jewish Mardi Gras. You get to dress up, drink, party, and just have fun.On Purim, it is traditional to make these triangle cookies filled with either jam or chocolate or poppy seeds etc. Hamentaschen are named for Haman, the villan of Purim. Some call these cookies Oznei Haman or “Haman’s ears.” Haman was also known for his triangular hat, and thus we now make triangular cookies to uh…eat the bad guy? The name “Hamentaschen” could also be a corruption of the Yiddish word montashn or the German word mohntaschen, both meaning poppyseed-filled pouches (from Wikipedia).

The pouches that I made this year did not have poppy seeds in them. Instead I filled some with homemade lime curd, some with homemade (by my buddy Tim) ginger and pear jam, and some with Nutella. Pretty freaking delicious if I say so myself.

IMG_4618
So this year I made two versions: one was vegan and one was not vegan. I liked them both so much, in fact I could not decide which I liked better. I guess I will just have one of each. Enjoy and Happy Belated Purim!

IMG_4622
The vegan Hamentaschen, with ginger and pear jam
Vegan Hamentaschen Dough
Recipe from Emily Weingarten

I really enjoyed the subtle flavor of the brown sugar in this dough. Really great vegan recipe!

2 cups unbleached flour
1 ½ tsp. baking powder
½ cup non-hydrogenated vegetable oil spread (such as Earth Balance)
¾ cup brown sugar
¼ cup soymilk

Your choice of filling. Suggestions include: any flavor fruit preserves or butter, chocolate, poppyseed filling…

  1. Mix together the flour and baking powder in a medium bowl and set aside.
  2. In a large bowl, cream the vegetable oil spread, brown sugar and soymilk. Mix in the dry ingredients. Chill dough for 6 hours or overnight (I just chilled for a few hours and my dough was A-okay).
  3. On a floured surface, roll dough ¼ inch thick. Use a 3-inch cookie cutter or drinking glass to cut circles in the dough. Place a small amount of filling in the center of each circle. Pinch three corners of the dough to form a triangular-shaped cookie with a small hole in the center.
  4. Bake on a lightly oiled cookie sheet at 375 degrees for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on wire racks.

IMG_4619


Jean’s Award-Winning Hamentaschen Dough Recipe
Recipe adapted from Jean, a family friend/winner of the synagogue’s Hamentaschen baking challenge

1 stick of butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
a pinch of salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 cups all purpose flour

Filling of your choice

1. Beat together butter and sugar. Add the egg. Add the lemon juice and vanilla.
2. Combine salt, baking powder, and flour. Add this to the butter mixture.
3. Wrap the dough in plastic and chill for at least an hour.
4. Roll out your dough, cut into circles, fill the circles, pinch your edges to look like a triangle (make sure you pinch your ends together tightly otherwise they will open in the oven).
5. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 20-25 minutes.

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