Cranberry Kumquat Conserve

There are so many delicious “November foods.” Like sweet potatoes, pears, cranberries, persimmons and so on.

Not as many people know about kumquats though.

In case you don’t know what they are or haven’t used them, kumquats are a small citrus fruit. They look like oval mini-oranges.

They aren’t everybody’s taste. Kumquats are tart, so the flavor is something you love or hate immediately.

I love them. In fact, one of my favorite treats is candied (sugar coated) kumquats.

You can eat kumquats raw. Cut them into a salad — they’re especially good with greens or Brussels sprouts and a soft goat’s milk cheese.

But the pungent flavor mellows beautifully when cooked, so kumquats are especially wonderful in chutneys, relishes and preserves. If you need a pretty hors d’oeuvre that goes beyond ordinary for a party or New Year’s Eve guests, check out my mascarpone crisps with kumquat preserves.

The recipe here for cranberry conserve, is a really good option for Thanksgiving. This dish has several virtues:

1) it goes with turkey, so it’s perfect for Thanksgiving.

2) it’s quick and easy to prepare — about 30 minutes from start to finish.

3) it’s colorful, making it a festive addition to your holiday table.

4) it lasts for a week or so in the fridge, so you can make it ahead and also rely on leftovers.

5) best of all, it is really tasty.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Cranberry Kumquat Conserve

• 3 cups fresh cranberries

• 10-12 kumquats

• 1/2 cup honey

• 1/2 cup orange juice

Rinse the cranberries and place them in a saucepan. Cut the kumquats in half and remove the seeds. Chop the kumquats and add them to the cranberries. Add the honey and orange juice. Stir the ingredients and bring the liquid to a boil over high heat. Turn the heat to medium and simmer the ingredients for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until thick.

Makes about 2 cups

Bread Stuffing with Sour Cherries

Every year I make at least two stuffings for Thanksgiving dinner. For old time’s sake one is usually my Mom's (Nana’s) barley-shape noodle "filling" or a sorghum-based version of that.

I just put one of those Nana ones in the freezer.

Once I made a fabulous Bread Stuffing with Figs and Hazelnuts. This year I want dinner to be completely nut-free though, so, maybe I’ll redo that one some other time.

I have prepared gluten-free stuffings for certain guests and once made one based on spelt bread.

A while ago a friend of mine gave me a jar of sour cherries, so I used some recently in an experiment to see if they would be tasty in a stuffing for a turkey dinner.

They were!

This recipe is versatile though. If you don’t want to buy a bottle of sour cherries, you can use grapes or fresh or dried cranberries.

Bread Stuffing with Sour Cherries

• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil

• 1 medium onion, chopped

• 2 stalks celery, chopped

• 2 medium apples, peeled, cored and chopped

• 6 cups 1/2-inch diced bread

• 1 cup sour cherries

• 2 teaspoons grated orange peel

• 1 teaspoon dried rosemary (1 tablespoon fresh, chopped rosemary)

• 1 teaspoon dried thyme (1-1/2 teaspoons chopped, fresh thyme)

• 1 cup chicken or vegetable stock

• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Heat the vegetable oil in a sauté pan over medium heat. Add the onion, celery and apples and cook, stirring occasionally, for 3-4 minutes or until slightly softened. Add the bread cubes, cherries, orange peel, rosemary and thyme. Toss ingredients to distribute them evenly. Pour in the stock and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss the ingredients to moisten the bread. Spoon the stuffing into a casserole, cover the casserole and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the cover and bake for another 12-15 minutes.

Makes about 8 cups

Sweet Potatoes with Raisins and Ginger

Is it just me or does everyone else think that life goes from holiday to holiday?

Rosh Hashanah/Yom Kippur — Sukkot — weren’t they just a few days ago?

And now, Thanksgiving is coming. I already ordered a turkey. Already have my menu planned.

It includes this sweet potato dish which I served recently to much acclaim.

Bonus to this dish? You can prepare this ahead up to adding the raisins and ginger. How easy is that?

Sweet Potatoes with Raisins and Ginger

• 3 medium sweet potatoes

• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil

• 3 tablespoons honey or maple syrup

• cinnamon, salt

• Cayenne pepper (or use Aleppo pepper), optional

• 1/4 cup raisins

• 1/4 cup chopped crystallized ginger

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Peel the sweet potatoes, cut them into bite size pieces and place on the baking sheet. Heat the vegetable oil and honey together until warm and easy to combine; pour over the pieces and toss to coat them. Sprinkle lightly with cinnamon, salt and pepper if used. Roast for 14-15 minutes, turning the potatoes 2-3 times, or until softened. Add the raisins and crystallized ginger, toss and continue to bake for another 5-6 minutes or until the potatoes are crispy and tender..

Makes 4 servings

Chick Pea and Carrot Salad

Of course, of course we will be slicing apples and dipping them in honey on Rosh Hashanah. (which begins at sunset on September 29th).

But chickpeas are on the menu too. In his Encyclopedia of Jewish Food, the late rabbi and food authority Gil Marks wrote that “chickpeas are a traditional Rosh Hashanah food, a symbol of fertility, abundance and a wish for a well-rounded year to come.”

I usually make chickpeas into hummus, but sometimes I serve them whole, as a snack, roasted, the way my mother made them when I was growing up – a recipe called nahit. She coated the chickpeas with vegetable oil, sprinkled them with salt and paprika and baked them until crispy.

I changed her recipe somewhat -- I use olive oil, kosher salt and fresh thyme, or sometimes za’atar, as seasonings. Nahit is a delicious snack and a healthy one too: chickpeas are a good source of protein, minerals (including calcium) and fiber.

For this coming holiday though I’ll be making a chickpea and carrot salad to serve with dinner. Carrots are another symbolic ingredient of the holiday, so this recipe is a double-up of special ingredients of festive food for the holiday table. It’s a dish that can be made in advance, which makes it a good choice at such a busy time. And it is colorful too, fit for any celebration, including Break-the-Fast. 

Chick Pea and Carrot Salad

• 1 15-ounce can chickpeas

• 4 medium carrots, sliced thin

• 1/2 chopped red onion

• 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

• 1/4 cup chopped fresh mint

• 1 teaspoon ground cumin

• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

• 1/4 cup olive oil

• 3 tablespoons lemon juice

• salt to taste

Rinse the chickpeas under cold running water; let drain and place in a bowl. Add the carrots, onion, parsley, mint, cumin and cayenne pepper and toss to distribute the ingredients evenly. Pour in the olive oil and lemon juice. Toss to coat the ingredients evenly. Taste for seasoning and add salt to taste.

Makes 6 servings

Blue Salad (with green): Berries and Cheese

I love blueberries and I love blue cheese, so I figured they might go together well.

They did!

In this light, refreshing summer salad.

Nice for a full lunch — add a crust of bread. Or as a first course for dinner.

I bought the blueberries and the cheese. But the greens? Right from my garden! What a joy!

Blue Salad (with green)

• 1 head leaf lettuce or 6 cups mixed greens

• 1 cup blueberries

• 1 cup crumbled blue cheese

• 3 tablespoons chopped chives or scallion tops

• 1/3 cup olive oil (or use avocado oil)

• 3-4 tablespoons Balsamic vinegar

• 1/4 cup chopped toasted almonds, optional

Tear the lettuce into smaller pieces and place them in a salad bowl. Add the blueberries, cheese and chives and toss the ingredients. Pour in the olive oil and toss the ingredients again. Add 3 tablespoons of the Balsamic vinegar, toss and taste, add more Balsamic vinegar to taste. Serve and garnish with the toasted almonds if desired.

Makes 4-6 servings

Vegetable Salad

Light, refreshing food. That’s what we want during the summer.

Also, easy to make. And as quick as possible.

I made this vegetable salad using leftovers from the veggies we had over a couple of meals. Added some fresh tomatoes, an avocado and some herbs. Not only did I get to use up stuff from the fridge, the dish took less than 10 minutes to make.

It’s a side dish. But you can add some tofu, cheese or hard-cooked eggs and make it into a main course (or add leftover fish, meat or poultry).

Add crusty bread and it’s a sandwich filling.

Mix it into cooked penne or ziti and it becomes pasta primavera.

Use whatever vegetables you have in proportions suggested. There’s no magic here, no actual recipe that will fail if you don’t have one of the ingredients.

Vegetable Salad

• 3 cups cooked cut up cauliflower

• 1 cup cooked, cut up green beans

• 1 cup cooked cut up yellow squash

• 3-4 cut up small tomatoes

• 1 avocado, cut into small chunks

• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh oregano

• 2 tablespoons olive oil

• 2-3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (or use white wine vinegar)

• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Place the cauliflower, green beans, yellow squash, tomatoes, avocado, basil and oregano in a bowl and toss the ingredients to distribute them evenly. Pour the olive oil over the vegetables and toss again. Pour 2 tablespoons of the lemon juice over the vegetables and toss again. Taste for seasoning and add more lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste.

Makes 4-6 servings

Bulgur Wheat Varnishkes

Tisha B’av isn’t one of the better-known Jewish holidays. I’ve heard people say “oh yeah, I think that’s when you can’t get married.” Or, “you can’t get a haircut or listen to music.”

All true, and much more, and that’s because, unlike holidays when we celebrate joyful occasions such as a new year or deliverance from Pharaoh, Tisha B’av is when observant Jews mourn the destruction of the First and Second Temples. In addition, we remember the numerous times throughout history that the Jewish people were subjected to pogroms, exile and a multitude of other catastrophes. These are days that we don’t celebrate; we grieve.

Mournful times deserve respect and reflection. During the nine days leading up to the actual holiday (which begins at sundown on August 10th) many families will refrain from the usual pleasure-filled events and activities that make up our lives.

That includes getting married or getting a haircut or listening to music.

It also includes refraining from eating certain foods.

Tisha B’av is a full fast day, but during the days leading up to it many families don’t eat meat. Fish, dairy, vegetarian — is on the menu, and especially eggs and lentils, which are considered “mourner’s food.”

It’s just as well frankly. Skipping heavy meat meals during the hot weather makes good sense. It’s a whole lot smarter to eat fish, dairy and vegetarian.

Whether or not you follow the culinary guidelines during the Nine Days, this dish will do!

Anytime.

It’s my particular riff on classic kasha varnishkes. Our family really doesn’t like kasha, so I make the dish using bulgur wheat. Not only does it taste better, it’s easier to prepare and easier on the digestion.

Bulgur wheat or kasha varnishkes is usually a side dish, but it becomes a full meal if you add a fried egg or two on top.

Bulgur Wheat Varnishkes

• 6 tablespoons vegetable oil

• 1 cup bulgur wheat

• 1-3/4 cup water, vegetable stock (can use chicken stock)

• 2 large onions, chopped

• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

• 6 ounces bow-tie pasta

• 6 fried eggs

Heat 3 tablespoons of the vegetable oil in a sauté pan over medium heat. Add the bulgur wheat and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 3-4 minutes or until lightly toasted. Pour in the water or stock, bring to a boil, lower the heat and cover the pan. Cook for about 20 minutes or until all the liquid has been absorbed. Heat the remaining 3 tablespoons vegetable oil in a sauté pan over medium heat. Add the onions, sprinkle with salt and pepper and cook for about 20 minutes, stirring often, or until the onions are soft and browned. Cook the pasta according to directions on the package. Combine the bulgur wheat, pasta and onions in a large bowl. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Keep warm while you fry 6 eggs, sunnyside-up style.

Makes 6 servings

Grilled Crispy Pineapple

Grilled Pineapple

If you’ve never tasted grilled pineapple, you’ve missed a real treat.

Cut into thick slices, it’s a fabulous side dish for dinners of grilled or roasted chicken, lamb, duck or fish.

But it has a sort of rum-like flavor, so I also think of it as a “solid cocktail.” Which makes it the perfect accompaniment to such items as grilled chicken wings and other savory nibbles. In that case, cut the large slices into cubes and skewer the chunks onto toothpicks.

OR — this dish is so versatile — top each slice with whipped cream, ice cream or sweetened mascarpone cheese (garnish with some chopped pistachios or mint) and use it as a dessert.

Any way at all — you can’t go wrong.

Grilled Pineapple

• One whole pineapple

• 2 tablespoons brown sugar

• 2 tablespoons coconut oil, vegetable oil, melted butter or a mixture of these

• 2 tablespoons orange juice

• 1 teaspoon grated orange peel

• sea salt

• mint for garnish, optional

Cut the leaves off the pineapple. Remove the outer fibrous rind. Cut the peeled pineapple in slices about 3/4-inch thick. Set aside in a single layer in a pan. Heat the brown sugar, coconut oil, orange juice and orange peel in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Pour over the pineapple slices, turning the pieces to coat both sides. Let macerate for about 45 minutes. Preheat an outdoor grill to medium (or use a grill pan or the oven broiler). Grill the slices for about 4 minutes per side or until well glazed and tender, brushing occasionally with some of the liquid. Sprinkle lightly with sea salt. Garnish with fresh mint if desired.

Makes 6 servings

Two Color Cabbage Slaw

Picnic on July 4th? Of course! It’s the American thing to do.

So of course, we need to bring typically American food.

Like cole slaw.

Which has become an iconic American picnic dish but is actually not an American recipe at all. Cole slaw (which means “cabbage salad”) was originally a Dutch specialty.

Nevertheless, we Americans love it so much we have claimed it as our own and it is therefore perfectly perfect for any Fourth of July celebration.

Two Color Cabbage Slaw

• 4 cups packed shredded green cabbage

• 2 cups packed shredded purple cabbage

• salt

• 2 finely chopped carrots

• 3 chopped scallions

• 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill

• 1-1/4 cups buttermilk

• 1/3 cup mayonnaise

• 2 tablespoons cider vinegar

• 1 tablespoon sugar

• pinch or two of cayenne pepper, optional

Place the green and purple cabbage shreds in a large bowl, sprinkle with 1-2 teaspoons of kosher salt and toss to distribute the ingredients evenly. Let rest for 45 minutes. Rinse the cabbage and wipe the shreds dry on paper towels. Place the shreds in a large bowl. Add the carrots, scallions, parsley and dill and toss the ingredients. In another bowl, combine the buttermilk, mayonnaise, cider vinegar and sugar. Whisk the ingredients and pour over the vegetables. Toss the ingredients and let rest for at least 15 minutes. Before serving, taste for seasoning and add salt and cayenne pepper to taste.

Makes 8 servings

Stuff It: Matzo Stuffing

Matzo Stuffing with Apples and Portobello Mushrooms

Almost everyone I know makes brisket for the first Seder.

But my grandma, and then my mother — for all the years that I remember — served turkey. So, so do I.

I may also make a brisket, depending on how many people are coming to celebrate with us. Or, I may make brisket for the second night. Depends.

But there’s always a turkey. And that means stuffing.

And so, the chosen stuffing for this year: crushed matzo with apples and portobello mushrooms. It’s easy and can be prepared in advance; just pop it in the oven to cook about 40 minutes before serving time. Sometimes I add thyme to this dish, sometimes I don’t, depending on the crowd. It’s delicious either way, although of course, the fresh herb gives it a bit more flavor.

Matzo Stuffing with Apples and Portobello Mushrooms

• 6 pieces of matzo, broken up into little pieces

• 1-1/2 cups chicken or turkey stock (or vegetable stock)

• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil

• 1 large onion, chopped

• 1 large stalk celery, chopped

• 2 large Portobello mushroom caps, chopped

• 2 tart apples, peeled and chopped

• 1/2 cup golden raisins

• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

• 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves, optional

• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

• 2 large eggs, beaten

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Place the matzot in a bowl and pour the stock over them. Let soak for 5-6 minutes or until liquid has been absorbed. Set aside. While the matzot are soaking, heat the vegetable oil in a saute pan over medium heat. Add the onion and celery and cook for 1-2 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook for 3-4 minutes. Add the apples, raisins, parsley and thyme, if used, and cook for another minute. Spoon the contents of the pan into the bowl with the matzot. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss ingredients to distribute them evenly. Add the eggs, mix the ingredients thoroughly. Spoon the ingredients into a baking dish. Bake for about 40 minutes or until the top is crispy.

Makes 6-8 servings