Chag Tu B’Shevat sameach and happy Valentine’s Day to all the lovers out there! Last month’s dishes were inspiration for Tu B’Shevat, the New Year for the Trees, and now the holiday is upon us. Although it’s too early for the trees in Ohio to begin budding, it won’t be long (allergy sufferers, get ready!). Perhaps you find yourself reading this after the holiday has ended, but it’s never too late to think about how we can care for the trees, the planet, and the environment in general. But how does this relate to food?
There is a Jewish principle of bal tashchit (avoiding waste) that most certainly applies to food. Food waste is a significant problem, not to mention that none of us likes to see our hard-earned money go into the trash. Food is the single largest category of material placed in municipal landfills. If you’re like me, somewhere in the back of your pantry are cans collecting dust or boxes of things that are half-full. You may have bought them months ago for some recipe you can’t remember now. Rather than let them sit and then throw them away after more months go by, I have a suggestion to help you use up those odds and ends.
I’ve been experimenting with apps that will generate recipes based on the items I have on hand. I tried three different apps and the one I recommend you try is SuperCook. I give it a strong recommendation because it’s very useful. You can download it for free, and it will easily help you create a comprehensive inventory of your pantry, cupboards, and refrigerator from the list of items in the app. You can use your phone’s microphone and say the items as you take inventory, or you can type in each one. Once all your items are entered, you can select recipes by meal type, key ingredient, ingredient to avoid, and several other options. Some recipes even have accompanying videos. Under the “Quick and Easy” category, the app gave me over 1300 recipes! It’s fun to play around with and an extremely easy way to put together a dish you may never have thought to make. (The fig and almond bundt cake recipe I shared last month came from this app.) I’ve used SuperCook several times at the last minute to solve that never-ending conundrum, “What’s for dinner?”
SuperCook does not have a filter specifically for a kosher diet; however, you can work around this by selecting diets like “vegetarian” or deleting certain items from your inventory. You can also tell the app if you’d like to avoid one specific ingredient. I found and made three of the recipes you’ll see here today using SuperCook.
Another resource you can try is not an app, but rather a website — Allrecipes.com. Allrecipes is a good general resource for all kinds of dishes. They have recipes for any occasion, including Jewish holidays, and most have an easy to medium level of difficulty. On this website, click on the Ingredients heading, and you can search for recipes featuring a specific ingredient. It won’t take into account everything you have on hand, but it is helpful if you have one particular thing you’re trying to use up. After I made the pumpkin mac and cheese, I still had half the can of pumpkin left. So I went to Allrecipes for some inspiration of how to use that up and found the recipe for pumpkin waffles.
Adopting mindful practices in the kitchen not only helps us minimize waste but also allows us to create new dishes. In the spirit of trying something new, I’d like to suggest you visit the Cincinnati Museum Center’s special exhibit “Julia Child: A Recipe for Life” before May 18. Julia was one of the first people to have a cooking program broadcast on national television, and the PBS network was a pioneer of food television long before Food Network came along. The Museum Center’s website says, “Discover the passion and perseverance that made Julia a culinary icon and be inspired by her legacy — one that continues to influence and inspire generations of food enthusiasts and trailblazers.” Sounds like a great place to take your valentine for some culinary inspiration. I can’t wait to check it out myself!
Until next month — from my kitchen to yours!
Slow cooker healthy chicken fajita soup – serves 8
Ingredients:
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 yellow bell pepper, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
6 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 15-ounce cans fire-roasted diced tomatoes
3 teaspoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon cayenne powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon oregano
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained
Juice of 1 lime
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
2 cups cooked rice (use any kind you have on hand)
Optional toppings: sour cream, shredded cheddar cheese
Directions:
Spray a slow cooker with nonstick cooking spray.
Place chicken breasts in the bottom of the slow cooker.
Add peppers, onion, garlic, chicken broth, tomatoes, chili powder, cayenne powder, cumin, paprika, oregano, salt, pepper, and black beans to slow cooker. Cook on low for 6-7 hours or high for 3-4 hours.
Remove chicken breasts from slow cooker and shred using 2 forks.
Add chicken back into the slow cooker, along with lime juice, cilantro, and cooked rice.
If desired, serve topped with sour cream and cheddar cheese.
Banana bread babka – makes 2 loaves
(Babka, a quintessential Jewish American treat! I had 1 package of yeast left over from holiday baking, and who doesn’t have over-ripe bananas around eventually?)
Ingredients:
For the dough:
1 cup milk
1 packet (or 2 1/4 tsp) active dry yeast
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup canola oil
2 overripe bananas, mashed
4 cups bread flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cinnamon
For the filling:
1 1/2 cups dark brown sugar (light brown will work also. Remember, use what you have.)
3/4 cup butter, softened
3 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the topping:
1 egg
1 tablespoon water
coarse sugar
Directions:
Start by making the dough. Heat milk to 100-110°F (about 30-90 seconds in the microwave). Stir in yeast and allow to sit for 10 minutes. Yeast will activate and become foamy.
Add remaining dough ingredients and milk/yeast mixture to a mixer fitted with a dough hook. Mix until combined and then allow the mixer to continue kneading for a further 10 minutes.
Transfer dough to a greased bowl and cover with a towel or plastic wrap. Leave to rise in a dry place for 8 hours or overnight.
Once the dough has risen, remove from the bowl and divide the dough (it will be sticky) into two equal halves. Prepare two loaf pans with parchment paper.
Mix the filling ingredients together and set aside.
Flour your work surface and rolling pin generously. Roll out half of the dough to about 16×10 inches and spread with half of the filling, leaving about ½-inch of dough bare on one of the short ends. Wet the bare dough with water and then tightly roll the dough into a log starting on one of the longer sides.
Using a sharp knife, cut the log in half lengthwise. Pinch both halves together at one end, then cross one side over the other repeatedly until you reach the other end. Pinch that end together and fold the pinched end under the loaf to neaten it before carefully transferring it to one of the prepared loaf pans. Repeat with the remaining half of the dough.
Preheat the oven to 350°F and allow the 2 loaves to rise for 30 minutes.
After the dough has risen, whisk together the egg and water and brush over the tops of each loaf. Sprinkle tops with coarse sugar before putting in the oven for 40 minutes. Allow to cool before eating. (I recommend you put a sheet pan under these in case the filling oozes out while baking.)
Pumpkin mac and cheese – serves 6
Ingredients:
1 3/4 cups elbow macaroni
3 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon dry mustard
Dash of nutmeg
2 cups milk
1 cup pumpkin puree
3 cups grated cheddar cheese
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375°F.
Boil your macaroni until al dente. Drain and set aside.
Over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the flour and stir constantly over medium heat for about three minutes, until smooth. Pour in 1 cup of the milk in a thin stream while whisking. When smooth, add the rest of the milk. Add salt, pepper, dry mustard and nutmeg. Keep on medium heat and stir for about 10 minutes, until the sauce thickens. Taste and adjust salt and pepper if needed.
Remove from the heat and stir in pumpkin and 2 cups of the cheese. Stir until melted. Add the cheese sauce to the noodles and gently mix.
Pour the cheese and noodles into a 2-quart oven-proof baking dish. Sprinkle on the remaining 1 cup of cheese.
Bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown on top.
Pumpkin waffles – makes 6 round or 10 square waffles
photo: Food-Column-2.13
Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups milk
1 cup canned pumpkin
4 large eggs, separated
1/4 cup butter, melted
Directions:
Preheat your waffle iron.
In a medium bowl, combine flour, brown sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, allspice, ginger, and salt.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk milk, pumpkin, and egg yolks together.
In a third bowl, whip egg whites until soft peaks form.
Stir the flour mixture and 1/4 cup melted butter into the pumpkin mixture, stirring just to combine. Use a rubber spatula to fold 1/3 of the egg whites into the batter, stirring gently until incorporated. Fold in the remaining egg whites. Cook waffles according to waffle iron instructions (mine took about 4 1/4 minutes to cook.)
