Swisskaese

I don't feel bad. I was honored that I could test a recipe for the book. As a writer myself, I understand that Editors and space in the book are a factor.

I just received my book today and I can't wait to try more recipes. David (Tapenade) and I tested something very close to Chicken Thighs With Pineau de Charentes on page 155. Here are our notes (written by David): "We just made the Chicken with Cepes (more or less) according to your recipe, and have the following to report: On our gas stove, which has slightly low gas pressure, and using a 30cm teflon saute pan, it took about 8 minutes to get the skin side crispy, and another 4 minutes for the other side before going on to the next stage. I would personally choose to use a deeper cast iron pan with teflon coating, or a Creuset, next time. Even a nice heavy clay pot would do well. As you know, we keep kosher, and so used butter-flavoured margarine instead of butter. I would want to try this next time with a mild olive oil, or half oil and margarine. There was no need to skim off the fat after cooking the chicken, as I had already taken off most of the surplus fat from the meat while cleaning the chicken pieces. We used a mixture of real cognac (it turned out I only had about 1 Tsp left in the bottle, as I occasionally drink the stuff) and Israeli brandy, which was absolutely fine. The wine we used was an Israeli Emerald Riesling, which is semi-sweet but definitely not heavy (and we made some Kir to quaff during the cooking phase with what was left over from the cooking). The white mushrooms were already ready in less than five minutes, so we added the dried cepes after 3-4 minutes instead. And because we weren't using cream, and the stock was still pretty liquid, I made a roux with 1 Tsp of flour and 2 Tsp of water, added 2 Tsp of the hot chicken-mushroom liquid and the water from soaking the cepes, and added that to the mushroom mixture. We added the chives-parsley mixture to the chicken pieces in the pan just before serving, rather than dusting the pieces on the plate, and served with cauliflower and green beans steamed al dente. It's an extremely easy recipe to prepare, and delicious on the plate -- we drank a new Golan semi-sweet white (the grape types, unusually, weren't listed, but I'd guess a mixture of Emerald Riesling and Colombard), which went very well with the chicken. I, personally, found the taste a little too delicate, and would have preferred to add about 50 percent more shallots and cepes to make the taste a bit more pronounced. I think a little thyme or even sage would go well, added to the mushroom mixture. I would also serve it with a rice and wild rice mixture (preferably brown or red rice, because this dish needs a complement that has a little crunch to it), together with the haricots verts and perhaps steamed baby carrots. Michelle initially thought of asparagus, but I think it would clash with the chicken-mushroom flavours: on the other hand, it could be a very good first course. All in all, we both loved it, especially because so little effort produced such wonderful tastes, and we look forward to making it again, and again. But I would like to try other mushroom varieties as well (such as the forest mushrooms we have here), which I think would add more intensity to the flavour."

Here is a thread about interesting stuffings for goose: Goose

You re-hydrate the eggplant. You can stuff them with a rice mixture or meat & rice mixture or just meat. I bake them in a tomato sauce.

I do not like this kugel. I have never had one I liked. All of the ones I have had are lumps of oily noodles. I prefer dairy kugels.

I finally made a successful Honey Cake. I made the Moist and Majestic and I was very happy with the results. Thanks to everyone for the suggestion.

I make this RLB recipe and it is baked for 15-20 minutes.

What is iabloko? I am only familiar with the sweet ones and the ones I am familar with are either made with a walnut or chocolate filling. The savory and apple ones sound interesting. Tell me more.....

For more info and other recipes, look at this thread

I like the River Cafe Chocolate Nemesis recipe, but it might be quite expensive to make for retail.

I bought saffron in the Spice Market in Istanbul and it is from Iran. It much better than what I bought in Spain. If you go to a reputable seller, they will show you the difference between a variety of saffron. It is not cheap, but I prefer spending a little more for quality. I also bought apple tea. There are different types. I bought the dried apple tea without added sugar. And I bought dried eggplant, and turkish chopped pepper for kofte.

Tonight we had: Stuffed butternut squash with mince meat, onions, pinenuts, rice and spices Green peas Barkan Vin de Table red Now I am embarking on the Rosh Hashana preparations..... Shabbat Shalom Everyone and Chag Sameach

Lamb is very expensive here because someone with the last name of Sharon has a monopoly on Lamb here in Israel. Some of it is imported, but for some reason it is very expensive. I was trying to be very politically correct. So far our menu is as follows: Matzah Ball Soup Chicken with dates, apricots, figs and pomegranates or Chicken with quince Rice or couscous Green beans with melted leek Honey cake Either an apple-dried cherry strudel or an Apple Gateau ala Anne Willan which is made with thinly sliced apples, orange-flavoured sugar and is served with a caramel sauce. I am trying to think of how to make it parve without tasting parve. Apple Challah and Plain Challah Apple slices and honey Pomegranate seeds Not sure about the wine yet

I am jealous. Lamb shoulder (frozen) which is not very meaty costs about 45USD. I would have to buy two of them and that is just a little steep for my budget at the moment.

Sorry it has taken me so long to post recipes, but my home computer is not connected to the network yet. Here is the recipe for Apple Challah: Marcy Goldman's Apple Challah I don't really have a recipe for the Salmon with Pomegranate sauce. I mix approximately 3-4 tablespoons of pomegranate molasses, 1 garlic clove minced, 1/4 cup of red wine, splash of lemon juice, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/8-1/4 tsp minced ginger. Sweat the garlic and ginger, add the rest of the ingredients and cook on a low flame. If the sauce is too thick I add a little water. The sauce should not be too watery; it should coat the back of a spoon. I roast the Salmon in the oven and then at the last minute put the sauce on top. I sprinkle pomegranate seeds on top before serving.

We had the following: Georgian Chicken (stuffed with rice, dried cherries and pinenuts) Cauliflower Rice from the stuffing Barkan Dry Red table wine Apple Strudel

I think my grandmother makes the best cabbage rolls I have ever had. I will call her tonight for the recipe. I have never tried to make them, maybe it is time to give it a whirl.

The fruit I couldn't think of is called Pomelo.

I meant Winnipeg. Oh my friends here from Winnipeg would kill me for saying Toronto. Sorry Pam.

It does taste different. My suggestion would be to try and find very thick skinned lemons and do not cut off all of the pith. The truth is I am not that crazy about etrog jam. The ones I have tried have had too much pectin in them. I do get some excellent mixed citrus marmalade from someone from Ashdod. He sells his jams at a food fair every Thursday and Friday. It has grapefruit, orange, lemon and pomelo. Maybe you could try making something like that. He carmelizes the fruit before he makes the marmelade. It is delicious. Also try recipes with quince if you can find it in Toronto. Very popular for Rosh Hashanah and Sukkot.

Hi Pam, People here tend to make things with different kinds of fruits. Such as: Strudel with a variety of fruits Etrog jam Stuffed fruits and vegetables. I would dare say, similar to Shavuot. Here are some recipes: Sukkot Recipes

Yes that is true. I believe that the majority of Algerian Jews emigrated to France. Israel's North African influences are mainly from Moroccan, Libyan and Ethiopian Jews.

I will put the recipe in RecipeGullet as soon as my network at my new home is setup this week.

The Apple Challah is for Rosh Hashanah. I make a Shavuot Challah that has various dried fruits and nuts.

I have made the above chicken recipe a number of times and I highly recommend it. It is easy to make and tastes delicious. It is even better the next day. In the last four years I have only made non-traditional (at least by my family's standards) recipes for the high-holy days. We do not like gefilte fish, so I usually make salmon with pomegranate sauce. I have also made chicken with quince. It gives it a nice smoky flavour. I also make 1 apple challah and 1 plain challah for Rosh Hashanah. It is nice to know that my cousin Benjamin Disraeli kept with the family traditions of eating right for the holidays. I will explain the relationship in my foodblog......