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Five Simple Ways to Rediscover the Wow in Pesach
I love Pesach (Passover). I love the purity and the newness. I love the springtime freshness and the themes of freedom and family. I don’t mind the cleaning and the rotation of special dishes and ingredients. The secret is that I do a bare minimum of the cleaning and really try to put the emphasis on…
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A Rare Treat: Simply Perfect Seared Ahi Tuna
Leah recently prepared dinner for us. It was simple, luxurious and beautiful…and one of my favorite dishes. She created perfectly seared Ahi tuna, rare and delicious. Ahi tuna preparation must start with a fresh piece of sushi-grade fish and must be seared carefully until just rare. If done right, it takes almost no time and…
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Simple Cabbage Kugel
Most Pesach (Passover) recipes are heavy on the potatoes and eggs. I have been trying to discover new ingredients that fit within my low-carb diet that can be used for Pesach (Passover). Cabbage is one of those simple, inexpensive and delicious ingredients that was right under my nose all the time. This cabbage kugel recipe…
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Blackened Atkins Low-Carb Tilapia Fillets
I wanted to develop a delicious low-carb tilapia recipe for our Friday night appetizer as an alternative to the salmon fillets that we have been eating on our new diet. Don will only eat tilapia if is fried and with our new low-carb high-protein diet, there are so few choices for fry coatings. This recipe is simple, delicious,…
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Simple and Passover-Ready Individual Mushroom Onion Quiches
My friend’s daughter, Gila, is getting married and her friends planned a shower for her. I volunteered to make a dairy Onion-Mushroom Quiche. Since the shower guests may be arriving at different times, I thought that it would be best to prepare individual mini-quiches. That way, the platters would look complete all evening and the individual quiches could…
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Simple and Vegetarian: Beet-Stuffed Peppers
I have begun preparing for Pesach (Passover) and I have been trying to create recipes that are simple, nutritious, delicious and beautiful. I think that this one is a winner. I have remarked for years that beets are an under-appreciated ingredient. Many people are turned off by its texture and have only been exposed to canned…
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Simply the Best Potato Kugel Ever
This week, I have started compiling my favorite simple Pesach recipes. Here is one that I plan to make for Pesach this year. My daughter, Michelle, was married last June and moved to California. While growing up, Michelle never really showed much interest in cooking, but was always quite a baker. Since getting married, though, Michelle…
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Simple and Wow Recipes..reinvented for Passover
I find that my best Pesach (Passover) recipes are the ones that I use year round. They use simple and reliable ingredients and taste just as good (and sometimes even better) for Passover. I try to stay away from special for Passover shelf-ready dressings. Salad dressings are simple to make for Pesach and extra virgin olive…
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Simply Summarized: Ju-Ju’s One Year Old Little Man Birthday Party
We celebrated Ju-Ju’s first birthday party earlier this week. I have enclosed some pictures of the table setting, menu and props that we used to create a little man theme for the party. Enjoy! Some table props with suitcase and photo props Little Man Taco Bar Menu brownies shaped with mustache cookie cutter for goody bags…
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Simple Rules to Becoming the Perfect Little Man/Little Mentsch: Printables Included
As a small gift for Yehuda (Ju-Ju)’s first birthday and as a cute table prop, I created a nursery sign with simple rules for becoming the perfect mentsch. It fit well with the “little man” theme of his birthday party and looked great in a vintage gold frame. I hope and pray that our…
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Simple Table Props for Ju-Ju’s Little Man Party
For our grandson, Yehuda’s first birthday, we created a vintage little man theme. For the first many months of his life, family members would remark that he looks like a “little man”, just like his namesake, Yehuda (Leo) Schlusselberg a’H. As cute table props, we printed some cute little man signs and displayed them on the…
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BowTie Napkins: Folded with DIY Napkin Rings
Our grandson, Yehuda, also known as JuJu, just celebrated his first birthday. Whenever family members would meet him, they would remark that he looks like a “little man.” Those that knew his namesake, Yehuda (Leo) Schlusselberg a’H, would consider JuJu a pint-size clone of him. For his birthday, therefore, we chose a vintage Little Man theme. For…
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Low-Carb Snacks: Simply Made with Love
Now that Don and I are on this low-carb, high-protein diet, we have encountered some challenges. We realize that having snacks prepared and measured out in advance is key. Knowing that the snack is ready to eat at responsible intervals helps curb cravings and satiate our appetites. We had hoped to find some ready-made protein…
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Daffodils: Simply and Artfully Arranged
Daffodils are in season and they are inexpensive and beautiful. I like to buy bunches with blossoms that are mostly closed, so that they will last the longest. I usually look for bunches that have only one or two blossoms showing and the rest are still tight buds. My favorite arrangements are ones where…
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Simple and Spiralized Salami Slinky: Three Ways
For our Purim seuda (festive meal), I wanted to prepare something that would be original, interesting to serve and fun enough for the kids. I set up a dinner buffet with a carving station. I wanted something that could be baked right in the oven with the other meats. I came up with this simple and spiralized…
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A Purim to Remember
Tzippy Respler Purim 5776 In memory of Chaya Sharona bas Shraga Feivel a’H There are people and events in your life that transform the way you view things. Sometimes you recognize the enormity of the influence while you are engaged with that person or at the time that you experience the event. Sometimes you don’t realize how…
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Simple Forsythia Arrangement: Bringing the Outside Inside
Our forsythia hedges are blossoming. Their yellow flowers are a burst of sunshine to announce the coming of spring. The forsythia hedges are rather ordinary in the summer, but create gorgeous, showy yellow blossoms on bare branches in early spring. To decorate our Shabbos table last week, I snipped a few branches and arranged them in a simple silver vase.…
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Mason Jar Salad with Purim Croutons: A Simple Purim Mishloach Manos Wow
Purim is coming! One of the mitzvos (commandments) unique to the Jewish holiday of Purim is to deliver gifts of food, called Mishloach Manos, to friends and family. The parameters of this mitzvah require each Jewish adult to send a minimum of two ready-to-eat-foods to at least one person. I like to send Mishloach Manos…
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Five Simple Tips to Keep the Wow in Purim
Tzippy Respler Adar II, 5776 For years, I had been remarking that Purim is more stressful for me than Pesach (Passover). Most people scoff when they hear that. I had become the Purim Grinch, especially because the Holiday of Purim is one that is based upon fun, joy and goodwill. I get that. But for me,…
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Homemade Iced Tea, a True Gift
I always loved tea. Tea offers so many different varieties and flavors and can really warm your soul. I find sipping a cup of tea to be deliciously relaxing and comforting. When my kids were little, they wanted to drink tea just like me. When I offered it to them, they asked for…
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Simple Baby Arugula Salad with Red Peppers, Tomatoes and Avocado
I love the dark green color, peppery taste and crisp texture of baby arugula. It is one of those ingredients that has its own audacious personality and must be bought as fresh as possible. It is one of those love-hate greens: some love it and others cannot tolerate its assertive flavor. I embrace it…
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Mason Jar Mishloach Manos: Soup with Purim Croutons
Purim is coming! One of the mitzvos (commandments) unique to the Jewish holiday of Purim is to deliver gifts of food, called Mishloach Manos, to friends and family. The parameters of this mitzvah require each Jewish adult to send a minimum of two ready-to-eat-foods to at least one person. I like to send Mishloach Manos that…
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Simply the Best Low-Carb Zucchini Soup
On my low-carb diet, I often eat soup for lunch. They are filling, hearty and warm the soul. One of the things that I am enjoying and hope to retain once I complete the diet is the idea of making regular times for meals and snacks. I find that I am more satiated by meals…
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Robot Mishloach Manos: a Robot-Themed Purim with Printables
My daughter, Kaitlyn, created a Robot-themed Purim. Each member of the family dressed up as a robot and she created Mishloach Manos to fit the theme. It was simple and it was a wow. I asked her to share a picture of the robot-themed bags and the printable designs. One of the mitzvos (commandments) unique…
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Robot Costume…Fashioned from Dollar Store Finds
My daughter, Kaitlyn, creates the cutest costumes ever! This is one of my favorites. This robot costume is one that she designed for her husband, Aaron, to wear on Purim. There is a custom to dress up in disguises on Purim to commemorate the events in ancient Persia whereby the Jewish nation was saved…
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You Say Tomato…I Say Heirloom Tomato Salad
Leafy salads are fresh and delicious, but take quite a bit of prep time. Soaking, rinsing and drying lettuce just seems to take forever. Here is one salad that go from the refrigerator to the table in record time. It uses an assortment of tomatoes and optional scallions. Rinse, slice, dice, halve or leave small tomatoes…
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Sunny Yellow Floral Arrangements
Cut daffodils are for sale and that signals that spring is near. I was so excited to see the sunny daffodil blossoms. I decided to create a grouping of yellow floral arrangements to welcome and complement the gorgeous daffodils. Creating several smaller arrangements, rather than one large floral arrangement offers versatility. This allows me to spread the…
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Our Backyard is for the Birds…now that I have discovered suet feeders
We enjoy sitting at the kitchen table and watching the variety of gorgeous birds that frequent our backyard. Over the years, I have purchased and created many different bird feeders. Some were not sturdy enough, others attracted too many squirrels, but most were just too difficult to refill. Last year, our favorite birdhouse feeder was knocked over…
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Rainbow Carrot Curls: A Wow Garnish
Trader Joe’s sells bags of organic rainbow carrots. The carrots come in all hues of the rainbow: dark red, white, bright yellow and the “ordinary” orange carrots. It is a small splurge, but well worth it in the “wow” factor. These carrots are low in calories and powerful in vitamin A and antioxidants. Rainbow carrot…
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Davida’s Simple Roasted Corn Salad
This simple salad is one that you can prepare when you think you have no salad ingredients at hand because it uses simple ingredients including…wait for it….canned corn. This recipe was developed by my youngest daughter, Davida. We had an ongoing friendly disagreement. I was certain that a good corn salad recipe required fresh…
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Wow Waffles: A Recipe Simple Enough for Papa
Avigail (age 2) and JuJu (age 11 months) are here to visit. Avigail announced that she would like “eggies” for dinner and that JuJu would like waffles. We all know that JuJu enjoys anything that Avigail decides for him and will even finish Avigail’s omelet, if given the chance. JuJu loves to eat, especially when his…