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Simple Layered Iris Arrangement
For effective layering, use tall straight flowers for the top layer. Good choices for the top layer are tall roses, irises, allium, tulips, gladiolas, birds of paradise or lilies. For the bottom layer, use large leaves that fan out creating a base that covers the top of your floral container or vase For the middle…
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The 17th of Tammuz: A Fast to Begin Three Weeks of Mourning
Why did the broken tablets find a resting place among the unbroken tablets and among the nation? Why did we not bury them as we bury those that no longer are living? Why do we force ourselves to remember the sin, the imperfection and the tragic misdeeds of our nation? Because our lives, personal and…
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Simple Chicken Vegetable Packets
I devone of those hot and humid days that were exhausting. I just had very little energy left at the end of the day to prepare dinner. I had defrosted chicken breasts earlier to use for dinner and needed inspiration to create a simple and delicious meal. I wanted no fuss and very little effort.…
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The Perfect Grilled Salmon Wrap
One of my favorite lunches is a grilled salmon wrap. It is portable, delicious and very satisfying. It is so simple to prepare once you know the way to roll the perfect wrap.
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Kaitlyn’s Simple and Delicious Chili Recipe
Kaitlyn loves to make chili for her family. Her husband, Aaron, has some Texas roots and that may account for her family’s penchant for chili. Aaron loves his chili with plenty of cayenne pepper and Avigail and Yehuda don’t seem to mind the heat in their chili, either. Kaitlyn refers to their chili as…
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Davida’s Awesome Potato Kugel
It is so wonderful to have Davida back from Israel. The house is a more joyful abode and Davida and her friends fill our house with laughter, music and good food. No matter how chaotic things are, Davida seems to have just the right lighthearted joke and is always willing and able to prepare delicious…
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Pastrami Sandwich Chicken Rolls
This morning, I looked at the thin cut chicken breasts that I bought for Shabbos and thought, “How about deli sandwich chicken rolls for Friday night dinner?”. Here it is!
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Watermelon Jicama Salad
A few weeks ago, we had very hot weather on Shabbos. It was one of those weeks that boasted a potpourri of weather patterns. We had rain, cold, overcast skies, bursts of sunshine and then a 40 degree rise in temperatures from Friday to Shabbos. We just did not have enough time for our bodies to…
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Firecracker Cauliflower
Every once in a while, I want to serve something that surprises everyone. Cauliflower is one of those side dishes that everyone enjoys and is simply good for you. When roasted, it has both delicious flavor and texture (see Rockstar Roasted Cauliflower). This week, I decided to wake everyone’s taste buds up by adding some heat…
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A Vinegar Pantry Tutorial
For centuries, vinegar has been valued for its health benefits. Vinegar comes in many different tastes and colors and has a wide variety of uses beyond the salad bowl.
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Simple and Colorful Rainbow Carrot Salad
Many unusual color vegetable varieties lose their vivid color when heated, so I prefer to use these in salads and in fresh preparations…This salad is hearty, satisfying and simple to prepare. It can be made with orange carrots instead of rainbow carrots and will be equally tasty with just a few less colors of the rainbow…
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Simple Jalapeño Dip
This dip recipe has become a family favorite. I prepare it before Shabbos as a delicious dip for challah. I often serve it with salmon and grilled chicken, too. Both my sons-in-law, Aaron and Scotty, look forward to this jalapeño dip at our Shabbos table. It is simple to prepare and lasts in the refrigerator for about…
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Showstopper Soup Combinations
Sometimes the wow factor is just in the plating. Pureed soups are simple, fresh and delicious. They are easily prepared in a crockpot and then simply pureed using a stick blender. Some excellent pureed crockpot soups are Carrot Soup, spring pea soup, Crockpot Mushroom Soup, Orange Root Vegetable Soup and Low-Carb Zucchini Soup. Soups can be garnished beautifully with…
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Nutty Barley Edamame Salad
I’m always looking for salads that can be prepared when the vegetable bins are empty. This one is simple to prepare and can be made using simple pantry and freezer items. The nuttiness of the barley in concert with the varied colors and textures of the other ingredients makes this salad unique and delicious. This salad is…
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Simple 15 Minute Spring Pea Soup
I have been known to define spring as the seasonal period of time when neither heat nor air conditioning is necessary. There were many days within the past few weeks that definitely fit that definition. Although we have had some rain, we have had some lovely days filled with cool, breezy weather and intermittent sunshine.…
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Fresh and Bright Carrot Soup
Cool weather is soup weather. When the weather is cool, my crockpot does not leave my counter. This carrot soup is bright and fresh, simple to prepare and delicious. The gorgeous color and silky texture will make this a go-to recipe. INGREDIENTS 1 container chicken broth 2 pounds of carrots, peeled and cut into chunks…
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Simply Perfect and Healthier Cheesecake
Shavuos is the holiday that we literally count the days toward its arrival. We count 49 days (seven weeks) from Pesach (Passover) to Shavuos, blessing the sefira (counting) every evening from the second night of Pesach until Shavuos begins. From a culinary perspective, many of us count the days until we can enjoy the delicious…
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A Nightstand Workbench for Ju-Ju
I walk most mornings again with my friend, Linda. The hour walk goes by quickly as we share ideas, inspirations and tidbits of each other’s lives. Linda offers me lots of recipe and shopping tips and shortcuts and I cherish her sage advice. I find the walks healthy for my body and inspiring for…
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Individual Sushi Salads
Sushi salads eliminate most of the fussiness of rolling sushi. I can choose the proportions of each element in the sushi salad, favoring more vegetables and fish than rice and nori.
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Perfectly Moist Baked Stuffed Chicken
For the Purim seuda (feast) this year, Don did almost all of the shopping for ingredients. My mother had emergency surgery shortly before Purim and I spent the week with her in Cleveland. That meant that I would not have the time to shop and fully prepare for the seuda. Don offered to help by doing…
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Lattice Chicken Pie
I’ve always suggested that we start a leftovers club. After all, your leftovers would be like new to me and my leftovers may be palatable to you. As long as our families subscribe to the same dietary laws, allergy restrictions, likes and dislikes, a leftovers club would be perfect. There are times that I repurpose…
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An Endless Row of Roses
For a recent dinner party, I constructed arrangements of single roses on gold wooden planks (see An arrangement of Single Roses: Simple, Upcycled and Breathtaking). For that original arrangement, I used 6 roses for each 6-foot section of gilded wood. This arrangement takes inspiration from that one, but uses 10 single rose blossoms for each 6…
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Zucchini Mushroom Kugel
Although I favor keeping my vegetables raw and simply prepared, this kugel has become one of my favorites. It highlights a simple list of fresh ingredients and this kugel is perfect for freezing in advance of a busy Yom Tov (holiday, lit: good day) like Pesach (Passover). Although zucchini squash has a high water content…
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Charoset Ices
Last year in Israel, we discovered that Ben and Jerry’s manufactures Charoset ice cream for Pesach (Passover). We bought it at the Israel supermarket for its Passover-themed value but we devoured it for its delicious taste. After all, charoset is a traditional dip consumed at the Passover Seder. It is typically prepared with chopped apples, nuts, cinnamon…
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Frosted Candied Grapes
We are taught that parents are to give their children special foods and gifts in order to engage them at the seder. So, why not combine the elements of tradition and whimsy in creating these adorable and delicious candied grapes?
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Simple Lean Kosher for Passover Brisket
The briskets that I purchased were leaner than I expected and I was nervous that they would cook up tough. When this happens, I usually smother the roast in fresh or french fried onions. This creates a blanket of moisture that replaces the fat and protects the tender beef.
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Passover Meat Muffins
Meat muffins are just individual meatloaves prepared in round ramekins and topped with mashed potato or sweet potato icing. They are whimsical enough to entice the children and delicious enough for even the adults to try.
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Pesach Pesto Stuffed Chicken
Stuffed chicken is the perfect way to prepare a main dish and side dish all in one. I find that it is a main dish that can be served hot or at room temperature and makes for great leftovers. I developed this stuffed chicken recipe in honor of Rachel. Last week, after the big snowstorm,…
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DIY Passover French Baked Onions
So many of my simple and moist recipes rely on french fried onions. They add moisture and pizazz to even the simplest and leanest of fish, meats and poultry. Recipes such as Onion-Battered Baked Tilapia, Simple Onion Baked Chicken Cutlets and Low and Slow Oven Brisket require this as a key ingredient. Year-round, this is a readily available ingredient…
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Passover Stuffed Cabbage
Stuffed cabbage is one of those menu items that takes some time, but makes enough for many meals. Best of all, stuffed cabbage freezes so well. I freeze them in freezer bags and take out as many as needed for the next meal.
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Roses in a Grid
I placed all the vases that I had collected on my kitchen table and was contemplating what to do with the flowers. When I looked down, I realized that I had inadvertently formed a beautiful, albeit haphazard collection of individual roses interspersed with submerged berries and tulip petals.