Roasted Gazpacho

I absolute love tomatoes, I eat them pretty much every day and I always have a big bowl of cherry tomatoes in my kitchen that I munch on while I cook. The funny thing is,  I didn't eat tomatoes when I lived in America. When I moved to Israel I decided I'm going to try to like them because tomatoes are such a big part of Israeli cuisine (I still don't like olives, but I'm working on it). I took a bite of a cherry tomato and as the tight skin snapped and the sweet juices burst from the tomato I instantly fell in love.

I love tomatoes so much that I often buy too many and I'm always looking for ways to use them up. Since it's summer I turned to the cold soup, gazpacho. This chilled Spanish soup is traditionally made with tomatoes as the main ingredient and is served chilled so it is the perfect refreshing dish for a hot summer day. To balance all those bright fresh flavors I chose to roast the vegetables to give a bit of a deeper caramelized smoky flavor to the soup.

The great thing about soup and especially gazpacho that the longer it sits the better it tastes as it gives time for the flavors to really meld together, so this soup is great to make in advance. Make it on Thursday or Friday and serve it at seudat shlishit. Make it at the start of the week and bring it to work with you and since it's meant to be served cold it's the perfect desk lunch.

Roasted Gazpacho 
12 plum tomatoes
3 red bell peppers
3 cloves garlic, peeled
1 jalapeño, seeded
1 tsp red wine vinegar
1 Tbs fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp crushed black pepper
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

To serve:
Greek yogurt or labne
Toasted bread
Fresh Herbs

Preheat oven to 450°F/230°C
Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and place the whole tomatoes and peppers on the tray. Roast for about 25 minutes flipping the vegetables halfway until blistered all over. Place the roasted vegetables in a bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap, this will allow the tomatoes and peppers to steam so the skins can be easily removed. Set the bowl to the side until the vegetables are cool enough to handle. Peel the skins off the tomatoes and peppers and remove the seeds from the peppers.
Place the garlic and jalapenõ into the work bowl of a food processor fitted with an s-blade or in a blender and pulse until minced.
Add the peeled tomatoes, peppers, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. With the motor running slowly stream in the olive oil. Check for seasoning and add more salt or lemon juice if needed. Feel free to puree the soup as much as you want some like it chunky I happen to like it pretty smooth, it's up to you.
Pour the gazpacho into a container with a tight fitting lid and place in the fridge for up to a week.
To serve, ladle into bowls and top with a dollop of Greek yogurt or labne, a sprinkling of torn fresh herbs and some toasted bread for dunking.

Fire Roasted Corn Salad

Summertime means corn. 

Ears and ears of sweet fresh corn.

 

If you are taking advantage of one of the greatest gifts summer has to offer and have an abundance of fresh corn and want to change it up from the classic corn on the cob then make this salad! 

You also can change up your pancake game by adding some of that fresh corn to your regular batter check out the recipe for savory corn pancakes.

Fire Roasted Corn Salad 

4 ears corn - husks and silk removed 

2 bell peppers*

3 green onions, sliced 

2 cloves garlic, minced 

1 jalapeño seeded diced 

Zest and juice of one lime 

1/2 tsp salt 

3 Tbs olive oil 

1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled (optional) 

*You can use jarred roasted peppers if you don't have the time to roast, steam and peel the peppers, but you will be missing out on some of that smokey flavor.

The corn and peppers can be charred under the broiler, on the grill, or on a gas stove top right on the burners. Whichever way you choose to char the corn and peppers just make sure to rotate constantly for even charring all around.

Allow the corn to cool and place the peppers in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap to steam, this will allow them to steam so that you can peel the peppers when they are cool enough to handle.  

Shave the corn off the cob and place in a mixing bowl. 

When the peppers are cool enough to handle peel, seed, and dice then add to the corn. Add the rest of the ingredients and toss to combine. 

All of the ingredients for this delicious salad perfect for summer are available at Seasons! 

Savory Corn Pancakes

When someone says pancakes I'm assuming the first thing that comes to mind is a big stack of fluffy pancakes dripping with sweet sticky maple syrup. Don't get me wrong, I love those types of pancakes, but I'm going to try to change that image of sweetness that can basically qualify as a dessert by opening you up to the world of savory pancakes. An unsweetened pancake batter is pretty much a blank canvas you can mix in anything you want from sauteed vegetables, cheeses, to herbs and spices. These pancakes are super fluffy with great crisp edges and are packed with corn and spice. They are the perfect dish to enjoy all summer long since they take minutes to whip up and are chock full of corn which is pretty much the greatest thing summer has to offer.

Recipe is adapted from Foodnetwork 

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 

1/2 cup whole wheat flour 

2 1/4 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

2 Tbs sugar

1 tsp salt 

2 eggs

2 cups buttermilk (if you don't have buttermilk you can add 2 Tbs of lemon juice to regular milk) 

1/4 melted butter or oil plus more for frying 

2 1/2 cups fresh corn shaved right off the cob (you can also use canned or frozen) 

1 jalapeno seeded and diced 

1 tsp smoked paprika 

zest of 1 lime 

1/2 cup shredded cheddar 

2 Tbs chopped cilantro 

3 green onions sliced 

Mix together the dry ingredients then add the wet. At this point, you have a great batter that you can add anything to or just fry them up as they are. Add the rest of the ingredients. Heat the butter or oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add scoopfuls of the batter and cook about 3 minutes per side. You know you're ready to flip when you see bubbles all over the top of the pancakes that means there has been heat evenly distributed throughout and you should have golden brown pancakes that are good to flip. Transfer the cooked pancakes to a plate and serve with a big scoop of sour cream or greek yogurt. 

All of the ingredients for these pancakes are available at Seasons! 

Remember that you can add whatever you want to these pancakes - my favorite add in is the classic blueberry! 

Watermelon Lime Granita

Ice. Cold. Refreshing.

Thos are the most satisfying words to hear when it's 100° outside and this watermelon lime granita is just that. Comes together in minutes, uses a few ingredients, and your freezer is the one doing pretty much all the work, it's the perfect treat for a hot summer day. 

4 cups of cubed watermelon, about 1.5 lbs 

Juice of 8 limes - about 1/2 cup of juice 

1/4 pinch of salt 

1/4 cup sugar 

In a blender or food processor puree the watermelon cubes and then pour through a fine mesh strainer to remove seeds. In a small pot mix together the lime juice, salt, and sugar cook until the salt and sugar are dissolved. Mix together with the watermelon juice. Pour into a 9x13 pan and place in the freezer. After 1 hour, give the mixture a stir then allow the mixture to freeze until solid. Using a fork scrape to make shavings. Scoop into small bowls and serve with a garnish of lime zest and mint. 

The watermelon lime juice mixture is delicious even before it's frozen. Mix it with some seltzer pour it over ice and enjoy during your next BBQ and to make it even better add some tequila! 

Peaches and Cream

Pretty much anything can be grilled and if you haven't yet grilled fruit well then you're missing out on some major delicousness, but don't worry because this is the perfect recipe for all of you first-time fruit grillers. If you don't have an outdoor grill then this recipe can be made indoors on a grill pan or even a cast iron skillet.

You can use any type of stone fruit in this recipe; apricots, peaches, plums, or nectarines. Simply slice them in half, remove the pit, brush with some vegetable oil and place flesh side down on the grill. Serve these soft, slightly smokey, extra sweet fruit with a few dollops of coconut whipped cream and dessert is done.

This simple summer dessert is going to be the star of your next bbq! Oh and plus it's vegan and gluten-free!

Grilled Stone Fruit with Vegan Whipped Cream 

2 lbs. assorted stone fruit, cut in half and pit removed
Canola oil for brushing

Vegan whipped cream
1 14 oz. can coconut milk 
2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
pinch of salt

Zest of one lime for garnish

Heat a grill pan over medium-high heat or heat your outdoor grill to medium.
Brush the flesh side of the cut fruit with oil and place flesh side down on the grill. Grill the fruit for about 5 minutes and then remove.

To make the vegan whipped cream, place the can of coconut milk in the fridge for at least 8 hours or overnight. Place a metal bowl and the whisk or beaters in the freezer about 30 minutes before your ready to make the whipped cream. Open the can of coconut milk, careful not to shake it. Scoop the coconut milk solids out of the can and place in the chilled mixing bowl. Beat the coconut milk until stiff peaks form, this will take about 5 minutes. Add the sugar, vanilla, and salt and beat for an additional minute. Keep the whipped cream in the fridge until ready to use, can be made up to 3 days in advance just be sure to whisk the cream as it may have settled while in the fridge.

Place the grilled fruit on a platter cut side up to show those beautifully charred edges and grill marks. Scoop a few dollops of coconut whipped cream on the fruit and top with lime zest.

Perfect Potato Kugel

There's nothing really tastier than a piping hot potato kugel fresh from the oven. Golden brown top, crispy edges, and a mouthwatering aroma that wafts through the whole house.

Perfect Potato Kugel
7-8 Potatoes, peeled and grated*
1 Large onion, peeled and grated
6 eggs
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 tsp salt
3/4 tsp black pepper

Preheat oven to 200°C/400°F
Spray a 9x13 baking dish (I think potato kugel taste best from a pyrex pan) with non-stick cooking spray. Pour in the oil and place in the oven.
In a large bowl mix together the eggs with the salt and pepper. Add the grated potatoes and onions and stir to combine. Carefully remove the pan with oil from the oven and pour the hot oil into the potato mixture and stir to combine. Pour the potato mixture into the hot pan, smooth out the top, and place it back in the oven. Bake for about 1.5 hours until golden brown.

Potatoes can be grated using a the coarse side of a box grater, the kugel blade on a Braun food processor or twice grated with the standard grating blade on the cuisinart or magimix food processor. 

*To make sure you have the right amount of potatoes place the whole potatoes in the pan you are using to make the kugel. The potatoes should fill the pan in a single layer. 

Cheeeesy Baked Ziti

Is there anything better than scooping up a spoonful of hot baked ziti and seeing the melted cheese stretch from the baking dish? This baked ziti has so much creamy melted cheese it's going to be difficult to share it with others :) 

Make this simple dish for shavuot and the best part is, is that all of the ingredients can be purchased at Seasons 

2 lbs ziti (or really any short cut pasta) 

-Cheese mixture

2 1/2 cups ricotta cheese 
3 eggs lightly beaten
2 cups shredded mozzarella 
1 tsp salt 
1/2 tsp black pepper
2 tsp garlic powder 
1 1/2 tsp dried basil 
1 tsp dried oregano 

1 1/2 cups tomato sauce

Topping 
1/3 cup grated parmesan 

1/2 cup shredded mozzarella 

Preheat oven to 375°F/190°C
Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add a lot of salt. This is a key step when cooking pasta because it seasons the pasta all the way through. Cook pasta 2 minutes less than what is written in the package directions as the pasta will finish cooking when you bake it in the sauce. Drain the pasta and then put back in the pot.

Coat a large baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.

While the pasta is cooking mix together cheese mixture ingredients.
Add the cheese mixture and tomato sauce to the pot of cooked pasta and stir to coat all of the pasta.
Pour the pasta into the prepared baking dish and top with 1/2 cup of shredded cheese and the grated parmesan
Bake for 25 minutes and then broil for 3 minutes.