Recipes by Yiddishe Mama
Honey Tomato Eggplant Pate with a help of Rebbetzin
Yield about 1 cup
1 medium eggplant (about 1 lb.), peeled and cut into medium cubes
About 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
2-3 cloves minced garlic
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp paprika
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/2 – 1 tablespoon honey (depends on a sweatiness you want)
1 teaspoon lemon juice
Salt and ground black pepper to taste
Preheat the oven to 375 F and line a medium baking pan with aluminum foil. Spray with non-stick baking spray.
Sprinkle eggplant cubes generously with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Then sprinkle with salt. Place on a prepared baking sheet and bake until very soft, about 40 minutes. Turn it halfway through.
While the eggplant is baking, fry up minced garlic in 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Once it starts to brown, turn the heat down and add lemon juice, cumin, paprika, tomato paste, and 1/2 tablespoon honey. Mix well.
In a medium bowl, mix the sauce from the pan and the baked eggplant. With the help of an immersion blender, paste everything. Check for honey, salt and pepper, then add if needed. Add pate to a glass jar with a lid and place in a refrigerator for more flavor.
Serve with crackers, challah, matzoh, or toasted bread. For decorations, use pomegranate seeds and chopped parsley. An excellent addition to a cheese plate.
Smashed Cucumber and Potato Salad with Tahini Dressing
Serves 4
1 lb. baby Yukon gold potatoes
5 small cucumbers smashed and cut into pieces
¼ of a large red onion thinly sliced and rinsed under cold water
3 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley plus more for garnish
2 Tbsp chopped fresh dill plus more for garnish
2 Tbsp chopped fresh mint plus more for garnish
Sesame seeds for garnish (optional)
Dressing
3 Tbsp tahini
1 Tbsp whole grain mustard
1 lemon zested and juiced
½ inch piece of ginger finely grated
2 tsp water
1 tsp honey
⅓ cup olive oil
Kosher salt and pepper to taste
Add potatoes to a medium pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil and salt the water. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook until potatoes are just fork tender, about 12-15 minutes. Try not to overcook them so they aren’t mushy in the salad.
Drain potatoes and let cool completely. Once cool, cut into bite size wedges.
Add potatoes, cucumbers, red onion, parsley, dill, and mint to a large bowl, Set aside.
In a small bowl whisk tahini, mustard, lemon juice, lemon zest, ginger, water, honey, and olive oil until smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Pour dressing over the potatoes and cucumbers and toss to combine. Season with salt and pepper, if needed.
Serve topped with more fresh herbs and sesame seeds. (optional)
Turkish Tabbouleh
Yields 8 servings
1/2 cup dry bulgur
1 cup water, room temperature
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon chili flakes
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 cup red onion, finely chopped
6 mini cucumbers, diced
4 medium tomatoes, diced
2 tablespoon pomegranate syrup
Juice of half a lemon
Chopped dill, mint, parsley
Salt, ground black pepper to taste
Bring to boil water and add bulgur. Lower the heat and simmer for about 10-12 minutes covered. Remove from the heat and let sit for 10-15 minutes.
Add one tablespoon of olive oil to a medium frying pan and heat to medium-high heat. Add cooked bulgur, spices, and tomato paste and saute for 3-4 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside. Add pomegranate syrup.
Add the diced tomatoes, cucumbers, chopped red onion, mint, dill, and parsley to the large plastic bowl. Squeeze the juice of half a lemon over it. Add the remaining one tablespoon of olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Stir well to combine.
Let it sit for another 20 minutes to allow the flavors to meld.
Serve the bulgur salad with meat, fish, or flatbreads.
Fish with Herby Lemon and Walnut Relish
Makes 4 servings
1/2 cup walnuts
1 lemon
1/2 cup chopped dill
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1/2 cup of oil plus one tablespoon for brushing
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon fine sea salt, divided
4 (6 Oz) fillet fresh white fish
Heat the oven to 350 F. and line a baking sheet with the parchment paper. Spread the walnuts on the baking sheet and toast for about 4 minutes until pregnant. Transfer the nuts to work service and let cool slightly, then of coarsely chop them. Safe the parchment paper.
Meanwhile, using the sharp knife remove the ring and bitter white pitch from the lemon. Cut between the membranes to release the section on the work service, then coarsely chop the flesh removing the seeds as you go.
In a bowl, mix the walnuts with a chopped lemon, dill, parsley, cumin, 1/4 tsp of salt, and 1/2 cup or olive oil.
Arrange the fish on a parchment lined baking sheet and brush with the remaining 1 tbsp olive oil. Season with a 3/4 teaspoon salt, bake for 6-10 minutes depending on the thickness on a fillet until the butter knife inserted into the center of the fish is very warm. Serve the fish with a relish.
Recipe from “real Food” by Lunds and Byerlys, Winter 2024
Date roulade (egg-free ma’amul cookies)
Makes 20-30 cookies
For the filling
2 & 1/4 cups pitted dates (I prefer medjool, roughly chopped)
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
3 tablespoons water
1 tsp ground cardamom or finely grated unwaxed orange zest (optional)
For the dough
2 cups plain flour, plus extra for dusting if needed
1 tsp baking powder
Pinch of salt
2 & 1/2 tablespoons granulated sugar
6 tablespoons very soft butter (not melted)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
Icing sugar, for dusting
Preheat your oven to 350 F (190°C/170°C) and line a baking tray with baking parchment.
For the filling, blend all the ingredients until you have a smooth texture with no visible date skin.
For the dough, mix all the dough ingredients together in a mixing bowl until they have all combined to a soft and slightly sticky dough. There’s no need to use an electric mixer – it’s very easy to do by hand. The mixture will start off looking too wet, but keep kneading and the dough will absorb all the liquid.
Roll out the dough between two pieces of baking parchment to a thin rectangle about 10 x 16 inches (40 cm x 25 cm) in size, and 3 mm thick – dust the paper with flour if it sticks.
Take off the top sheet of parchment and spread the filling on to the dough. If it gets too sticky, dip your spoon in water from time to time. Starting from the one long side, roll the dough into a roulade, using the parchment to help you roll. Then simply lift the parchment and separate the dough from it, and roll the dough a little more to seal the seam underneath the roulade.
Transfer the roulade to the lined baking tray. Score it at 1.5cm intervals using a sharp knife – to make it easier to cut the roulade after baking. Bake for 30 minutes until golden brown.
Remove from the oven and cool for about 15 minutes. Then dust with icing sugar and slice the roulade where you marked it before baking.
Recipe from “The Palomar Cookbook: Modern Israeli Cuisine”
Thin Apple Crumb Bars with Apricot Jam
Yields: 9-12 medium size squares
Filling
2 tablespoons apricot jam
4 medium apples, cored, peed, and shredded in large holes on the grater
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon butter, divided
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Dough
2 large eggs, room temperature
2 tablespoons sugar (4 tablespoons for a sweeter version)
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
About 2 cups of all-purpose flour
Add-ons
Dry bread crumbs for the sprinkling
Powdered Sugar for decoration
For the filling, mix grated apples with sugar and lemon juice. Heat the 1/2 tablespoon of butter on medium-high heat in the medium frying or sauté pan. Add apple mixture and sauté on medium heat for about 10 minutes, stirring several times. Remove from the heat, add 1/2 tablespoon butter and vanilla extract. Mix well and leave on a counter to cool off.
Preheat the oven to 350 F (180 C). Grease the non-stick baking pan (8 x 10 inches) with vegetable oil and non-stick baking spray. Sprinkle lightly with some flour.
For the dough, add eggs, salt, and sugar to a large plastic bowl. Whisk together and add sifted flour with baking powder. Make a dough by hand and divide into two equal parts.
Press half of the dough into the bottom of the pan and smear with jam. Sprinkle lightly with bread crumbs and spread apple filling. Sprinkle again lightly with bread crumbs. Grate another half of the dough in large holes in the grater and spread over the filling. Press the ends.
Bake for about 30 minutes. Remove from the oven. Leave in the pan for about 30 minutes. Cut into squares and sprinkle with powdered sugar. Serve with wine, tea, coffee, or ice cream.
