Swisskaese

I made Moroccan doughnuts called Sfenj. For more information check out the Sfenj thread

They do not leave the shwarma meat out overnight here. If there is any left, they remove it and put in the refrigerator.

You could make Alsatian Schwobe Broedel, which are doughnuts that are baked in the oven.

Here is an article in Haaretz introducing the new sufganyiot flavours this year. I will try and get some pictures. Sufganyiot 2006 I want to try the cream and forest fruits.

I can't believe that Hannukah is already around the corner. I am not having a big shindig this year. I am going to have a couple of friends over for latkes and Orange Sfinj (Moroccan soufganyiot). I am still planning the menu.

Also the skewers of meat whether prepared on the spot or pre-made are refrigerated prior to cooking. At least here in Israel. I wasn't aware that the shwarma was marinated with yogurt in Lebanon. Is that common? Here they make the chicken shwarma with young chickens. I think the young chickens are a little bit larger than cornish hens. I prefer lamb or turkey shwarma, but the chicken shwarma that I have had is not dry and looks a little different from ChefCrash's picture. I may be wrong, but I am pretty sure they put some fat between some of the chicken layers to keep the meat moist and the place that I go to, bastes it with marinade.

They grill them here on skewers. I am sure any man that reads this is going to shrivel a little bit. I refuse to eat them, so I am not sure if they marinade them or not.

Mom's dining room table would be the logical place for guests to drop off wrapped gifts. That being said, my white gloved Georgia Grandma would have swooned to see gifts on "display" on anyone's dining room table, much less cards with them identifying the sender. Anyone who would linger around the gifts and checking the cards would be looked at askance, to say the least, and someone would be watching. It would have been considered "trashy" to say the least. I only remember maybe three or four weddings where actual presents were visible at the wedding itself, one in particular - my cousin was marrying a girl from Texas, so we sort of blamed it on cultural differences and politely ignored it. Every once in a while a guest will turn up at the wedding itself with a gift in hand, but it was usually politely received by a relative and given to the bride's mother for safe keeping, locked in the trunk of the car. A real pain in the neck, the last thing a bride needs is to hassle with a gift on her wedding day. But a better alternative than the guest walking around with a wrapped gift in hand all day. Now I do remember helping a bride that was a close relation organize her gifts at her mother's house, and we did so in the dining room, making sure she had a list to work from for thank you notes later. The gifts were then stored in a back bedroom. They certainly were not on display to the general public or guests. I suppose those that walked through the house might have saw us working on them, or we might have left them there when taking a break or something. We do tend to give gifts more often than cash in the South in general, considered more "thoughtful" and "personal", but even that has changed over the last 20 years or so. If brides are registered, and that is so easy to do these days, it makes things much easier, but about 75% of my stepdaugher's presents for her wedding last August were either gift cards or cash. Ironically, most of the non cash gifts came from the Groom's relatives in New Jersey. Most of the Georgia/Florida/Virginia folks sent a check, but since my stepdaugher and her new husband had been living together for two years already and had set up housekeeping, so it made better sense. ← I was born and raised in Alabama and lived in Atlanta for many years. This is/was the custom for all of my friend's weddings.

As I mentioned earlier in the thread. Wedding guests in Israel give money as a gift. The amount, unless the wedding couple is family or a very close friend, is the amount of what the reception costs per person. In other words, if David and I go to a wedding of a colleague, we write a check for approximately 50-100USD and place it in a wedding card. This is the wedding gift. We don't have wedding registries here. Most couples use the money to pay for part of their honeymoon or items they need for their apartment. I don't see anything wrong with this. This doesn't mean you can't give them a gift. Some people prefer to buy them a gift in lieu of money, but this is certainly not the norm. Frankly, I find the Southern US custom of showing off your gifts in your parent's dining room with the gift cards really loathesome.

My mother sent me her recipe and I put it in RecipeGullet: Pecan Tassies

Shabbat Shalom! We had: Siniya Aubergine Steamed broccoli White wine

I don't know where you had shwarma in Israel, but there is very good shwarma here. You just need to know where to go. I have also had various styles of shwarma, including Turkish and I like them all. As for the condiments, it depends on what country your in. I don't think it hides the flavour of the meat, it enhances it. Especially if the meat has been well seasoned.

Pecan Tassies Serves 48. Dough 6 oz softened cream cheese 1 c softened butter 2 c plain flour Filling 3/4 c chopped pecans 2 slightly beaten eggs 1-1/2 c light brown sugar 2 T melted butter 1/8 tsp salt 1 tsp vanilla Blend Cream Cheese and Margarine at lowest speed. Add Flour. Mix well & chill in refrigerator 2-3 hours. Preheat oven to 350F/180C. Roll dough into 1" balls and press into tiny muffin tins, forming shells. Sprinkle approximately 1/2 tsp. pecans into each shell. Mix eggs, sugar, butter, salt and vanilla. Spoon into shells; fill 2/3 to 3/4 full. Sprinkle pecans on top. Bake 15-17 minutes. Reduce temperature to 250F/130C and bake an additional 10 minutes, until set. Keywords: Dessert, Cookie ( RG1888 )

My mother makes these for the holidays. However, I do not have here recipe. Here is a similar one from Martha Stewart. You can substitute cream cheese for the mascarpone: Pecan Tassies

What is Potlach?

The cake does make a crown, not always this bad, but I always invert the cake and no one's the wiser.

Don't be offended if they won't eat anything. The best thing to do is have a package of unopened plastic cups available. Let them open the package and then have soft drinks or water available. I would suggest buying a bottle of coke and have a bottle of water for them. If you want serve some fruit, do not cut or peel the fruit. Only serve them whole fruit. If you have access to a Kosher bakery, then you could buy a parve cake (not made with dairy products), but do not open it until they arrive and see the package with the heksher (U or K). They will know what that means.

Those look beautiful Pam. I have been trying very hard to stay away from them. They have already been available for a few weeks. I have only tried making them once. I tried the second method and about have of them opened up. I would recommend frying an then filling.

In that case, don't have a rehearsal dinner and pay for your guests. Your husband is right.

With shaved parmesean and Pomegranate seeds

Are you inviting more people than they are? If not, then I find this uncommon for American weddings. If the bride's parents can't afford to pay for the wedding, then this should have been discussed from the get-go and some agreement should have been made, such as reducing the number of invites. Here in Israel, we don't have a rehearsal dinner. We only have the wedding and the cost is split between the parents. We also don't give gifts. Typically, we give the bride and groom a check for the cost of our part of the reception or if they are family or close friends you give them a little more money than the cost of the meal.

I mix pomegranate molasses, cinnamon, grainy dijon mustard, pine nuts, onion, raw rice and minced meat and stuff either an aubergine or a butternut squash that I have pre-roasted. Pour a can of crushed tomatoes and a cup of water on top and bake for 30 - 45 minutes in 350F/180C oven. I mix pomegranate molasses and HP sauce and pour it over chicken wings and bake it in the oven. I put pomegranate seeds on my salad.

Wow. I don't know how anyone can follow that. I love the whole presentation, but especially the lime creme brulee legos. Great work! Thank you for taking time during one of your busiest times of the year. We are very honored.

I am in total agreement about wanting to go the extra mile to find out what an original dish tastes like and I think I should have become an anthropologist instead of going into hi-tech, but when you have more than one country making the same dish and there are variations to this dish in each country, then whose is the original dish? You claim it is a traditional Allepian dish and others say it is from Southeastern Turkey. Who is right? Maybe the Allepian dish is a bastardization of the Turkish dish that was served when the Ottomans were in Syria? Is there any historical proof to either claim? I deal with this problem all the time. I ask someone about a dish and they tell me it is Lebanese, then someone else tells me, no my Grandmother made that dish and it is Syrian, then I have someone else tell me, "What are you talking about?!, my mother makes that and it is Turkish." Do I start a food war and ask all them for written proof? Or, do I try each variation and decide which one or ones I like the best and shutup?

Shabbat Shalom everyone! We are having the following: Roasted chicken with lemon, garlic, sage, thyme, rosemary and oregano Roasted potatoes Steamed artichokes with garlic mayonnaise Marron glacé (candied chestnuts) from Chocolat Debauve & Gallais (a gift from a friend of ours who just returned from Paris) Golan Beujolais Nouveau 2006