◊ Thanks dad

Posted on September 12, 2013 by shainashealy

Dear dad,

Next time I question who I am, I won’t drive out to the farm to find my name. Instead I’ll look for a perfect tomato, slather it with mayo and layer it with egg in two pieces of white bread. I’m sure the egg and tomato sandwich will root me plenty. It is the food of my childhood… a summer treat that you made when mom’s work kept her late, the garden turned out beautiful home-growns or you entertained my friends and me with your attempts at the one-handed egg flip.

The other day, I had a friend over for the first time who was surprised when I said that my parents were out of town: “Your parents? I always assumed you lived with just your mom. I always hear Shaina’s mom this and Shaina’s mom that… but I’ve never hear much about your dad.”

Last week I received a check in the mail for “Shaina Schuster” and in high school I had to correct my friends: my dad isn’t Schuster… his last name is Shealy.

Mom is definitely the louder voice in our family, but please let’s not confuse her volume with her side’s influence on my nature. It might not be so apparent, but your “country roots” contribution to who I am extends a few notches beyond the egg and tomato sandwich. Our family talks a lot about Bubbe’s kitchen and her recipes, but your mother coveted her time in the kitchen too … And let’s face it, my kitchen habits inch more towards your mom’s than Bubbe’s (who kept the ends of her curtains tied in plastic bags – curtain condoms – so they wouldn’t get dirty). Sorry, mom… I do not lament my lack of Schuster-obsessiveness.

I’m with Tom Robbins on his last-meal wishes: the egg and tomato sandwich is a perfect food. Thanks for sharing and for sparing our readers from your second favorite sandwich – I cringe – banana and mayo on white bread.

xo,
Shaina

I created the following recipes with The Cleanse in mind. I’m cleansing in celebration of Esrei Yamim, the ten days in between Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur. I’ve experimented with raw, paleo and vegan diets, but The Cleanse feels like the healthiest eating style for my body.

If you’re interested in the cleanse, visit our cleanse recipe page to get inspired and leave a comment if you want to learn more… I’m always excited for new cleanse buddies!
Mom, it’s so much easier to cleanse when I’m at home with your three freezers and three fridges stocked to their brims with nuts, dried fruits, weird flours, restaurant-sized tubs of spinach… there’s no lack of cleanse-friendly foods!

Big Kale Salad

Tahini Dressing:

4 tbs tahini paste
Juice of 2 lemons
zest of 2 lemons
2 cloves garlic
2 tsp honey (optional)
1/4 cup warm water if needed
salt and black pepper to taste

Kale:

1 big bunch of kale, destemmed, torn into pieces
1 tsp course sea salt
juice of 1 lemon
1 tsp paprika
dash of chipotle chili seasoning, to taste

Accoutrements:

 4 medium carrots, shredded or finely chopped
2 peaches or nectarines, cut into bite sized pieces
 1 yellow bell pepper, sliced thinly
1 medium golden or red beet, cubed into 1 inch pieces
1 avocado, cubed into 1 inch pieces
1/4 cup golden raisins
1/3 cup toasted sunflower, pumpkin seeds, almond slices, and/or walnuts

Make the dressing by pureeing tahini, lemon, garlic, honey, etc with an immersion blender or food processor until smooth.
Pile kale into a big bowl. Massage lemon juice, salt, paprika and chipotle chili seasoning into kale leaves. It sounds silly, but the massage is crucial… you have to exercise the leaves until they are tender. Gently rub the leaves with your hands for 2 – 5 minutes. This can be done the night before, hours before or minutes before serving.

Just before serving, combine the kale with half of the dressing and remaining ingredients. Use your hands to gently toss ingredients together. Drizzle the salad with remaining dressing if desired.

Miso-Sesame Soba Noodles with Pan-Fried Tofu

1 package (12 oz) dried soba noodles (I like to use 100% buckwheat, but they can be hard to find and expensive. More common is a buckwheat + spelt or wheat combination.)

3 cloves garlic, peeled
5 shallots, peeled
2 tablespoons grated, peeled ginger
2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp cane sugar (optional)
3 tbs miso paste
2 tbs brown rice vinegar
zest of 1 lemon
1/2 red onion, finely chopped
1 tbs toasted sesame oil

1/2 tbs olive oil
1/2 tbs toasted sesame oil
1 package (12 oz) extra-firm tofu, sliced
1/3 cup black sesame seeds

2 heads of baby bok choy, chunked and steamed (or blanched)
2 heads broccolini (baby broccoli), chopped into bite size pieces and steamed (or blanched)
  1 bunch of chives or scallions, minced

Cook the soba noodles in well salted water, drain, rinse under cold water. Set aside.

For the dressing, combine shallot, salt, sugar, ginger and garlic in morter and pestle. Crush until ingredients are well-mashed. Heat olive oil in pan and add shallot, salt, ginger and garlic. When browned and fragrant, remove from heat and whisk with toasted sesame oil, miso, vinegar, onion and lemon zest. Stir vigorously until all ingredients are incorporated. Set aside.

Drain the tofu and pat it dry. Cut into matchstick shapes and season with a pinch of salt, 1/2 tbs olive oil, 1/2 tbs sesame oil, and black sesame seeds. Cook in a large pan on medium heat until tofu is golden brown on both sides. This may take 10 – 15 minutes.
In a large bowl, toss the soba noodles with the veggies and dressing. Top with tofu and garnish with chives or scallions.

Guest Post

Posted on September 4, 2013 by shainashealy

Dear Shaina,

Thanks for inviting me to be a guest contributor to your and your mom’s blog. I’m glad you wanted me to describe the making of my tomato sandwich which I have made for us many times. And I’m assuming this invitation is not just because your mom is busy cooking for Rosh Hashana.

This is an appropriate recipe for me to write for you because it relates to my “country roots” contribution to who you are. I used to feel shame about my dad selling eggs in town, raising our own wheat and grinding the flour, and eating mostly fresh vegetables or ones we canned during winter. I wanted to be like town people who bought bread and other groceries at a store. Now city people want to be like country folks, at least about groceries.

I was at the farm today and when there I always make a point to see the “Shaina Lane” sign. When you were born, my basic hope as an older father was to live long enough for you to remember me. Now the danger is that I might live so long I won’t be able to remember you. So the sign may come in handy.

In one of my early travels to NYC I was walking across Central Park feeling insignificant and had a mild depersonalization experience. When I emerged from the park there was a pet shop where I knew I could find a Tropical Fish Hobbyist book “Cichlids of the World.” My name was in the book under a photo I had taken… When I saw it and read my name, I felt rooted in the world. So if you ever question who you are, drive to the country and see the street sign with your name on it.

To be remembered is so important to Jews, maybe because it is as close to eternal life as we get. And my beliefs don’t include an afterlife, so in the words of Todd Snider “Babyface, that’s all I’ve got.”

It has been really nice to have you home for the summer. Let’s find time to go to the farm and walk and talk-or at least walk- before you leave for Israel in a few weeks.

love,

Dad

Fried Egg Tomato Sandwich

In Wild Ducks Flying Backward Tom Robbins wrote an essay about what his last meal would be if he were facing the hour of execution. It was the tomato sandwich made with two slices of Wonder bread or some other white bread you might find in a 1950 kid’s school lunchbox. Other necessary ingredients were Hellman’s mayonnaise, a home-grown tomato, and plenty of salt and pepper. The proper tomato for our sandwich is also the topic of a bluegrass song: “There’s just two things that money can’t buy; that’s true love and home-grown tomatoes.”

I would modify TR’s recipe for my last request by adding an “over easy” fried egg.

Ingredients:

Two slices of fresh white bread, for example, Merita or Claussen’s brand. Do not use any bread that claims to have whole wheat as an ingredient.
One preferably warm, just picked home-grown tomato. If you don’t have this growing in your garden, it would be OK to buy a tomato from a farmer’s market. Do not use Mountain Pride, Roma or any tasteless type of tomato bred for shelf life which is all you will find in grocery stores. My favorite is Rutgers; most “heirloom” varieties such as Brandywine are not acidic enough. Beefsteak will work.
Hellmans Mayonnaise; at least two tablespoons; the more, the better.
Salt and black pepper; LOTS of salt.
Two fresh eggs, preferably just laid with dark yellow yolks. If you have your own chickens you will occasionally get a double-yolked egg which is ideal.

Begin with the two untoasted pieces of white bread; if it is not absolutely fresh, or has been refrigerated, microwave for five seconds (both pieces together) or until the bread is soft. Slather at least one heaping tablespoon of mayonnaise on each slice. Have your frying pan medium hot and break your egg (or two) into the pan; being careful to not break the yolk. While they are frying for less than a minute, cut enough thick slices of juicy tomato to go to the edges of one of the bread slices. When this is done (you have to do it quickly; otherwise the eggs will be overcooked), slightly break the yolk(s) with your spatula and flip the eggs and cook the other side for maybe five seconds, depending on how hot the pan is. You want the yolks to be a little runny but not too much. The perfect sandwich will have a runny yolk that comes to the edge of the bread but not spill out when you bite into it. Sprinkle the tomato slices liberally with salt and black pepper before you put the egg on top of the tomato slices. Cap it with the other slice of bread and eat it while it’s hot with a cold glass of milk.

◊ A Left Turn Or Something

Posted on August 27, 2013 by shainashealy

Dear mom,

You got your wish: I’ll be home for Rosh Hashana.

My plans took a swift left turn last week… another plane ticket, another commitment; it’s real… I’m moving to Jerusalem. A year of hummus and salty cheese is reason enough. I’m nervous and I’m laughing about it.

My deliberation over the decision was all-consuming as usual. But I learned something important: that my gut is a more informative organ than my brain. It’s smarter than the projections cast by rationale – it told me that right now I need nourishment and connection and new territory. Even though I worry about long-term stability (straight roads put me to sleep, so I seek twists and turns that sometimes just become rocky bumps what is wrong with me?!), I’m okay with stepping onto a wayward path right now. I don’t care about the weirdness.

I’ll be home through the holidays and am excited for the Esrei Yamim Cleanse. I hope that more people join this year since we now have a whole Cleanse category in our recipe index. Can we make our Rosh Hashana menu as cleanse-friendly as possible? I’ve been practicing with the vitamix (since our reunion we’ve been inseparable – it’s pathetic) and last week, I made beautiful purees that will be perfect for Rosh Hashana appetizers and Esrei Yamim snacks. No offense – I think my beets are prettier than yours.

I don’t have much time left to trash the house and destroy the liquor cabinet before you come home from your vacation and we hit the kitchen hard. I’m ashamed that I didn’t do more bad things while you were out of town, but I accept defeat: my parents are better at drinking alcohol than me and my friends are too good/sparse. But I still have a few hours left…

Safe travels home!

xo,

Shaina

Razzle-dazzle Savory Beet Puree

This puree is creamy, earthy, deep and freaking rad. My favorite breakfast lately is a rice cake with beet puree, yogurt, avocado and salt and pepper.

It’s also great with apples, sandwiches and vinegary salad dressings… it will be a fabulous accompaniment to honey during the rounds of Rosh Hashana apples n’ honey. And it’s so pretty!

1 cup raw walnuts (or half cup walnuts, half cup cashews)
2 medium beets
sea salt to taste
black pepper to taste

Wrap unpeeled, whole beets in foil and roast for 40 – 50 minutes. Allow to cool and peel (the peel should slip right off). Blend with remaining ingredients in food processor until a thick, psychedelic paste is formed. So simple!

Zesty Spinach Puree

Perfect as a cracker dip or over roasted veggies.

1 avocado
1/2 cup walnuts or cashews
16 oz fresh, washed spinach
juice of 1 lemon
zest of 1 lemon
2 cloves garlic
salt
pepper

Add all ingredients to food process and puree until desired consistency.

Perfect Cinnamon Vanilla ‘Cleanse’ Pudding

I’ve been experimenting with a cleanse-friendly pudding recipe for almost two years now – I’ve tried it with avocado, chia, flax, cashews, almonds, dates, apples…. the variations are countless. I finally got it down to the perfect result. And the recipe requires just a few basic ingredients. I have two versions to share with you: vanilla and chocolate.

1 Cup Walnuts
2 Cups Rolled Oats
8 de-stemmed dried figs
dash of cinnamon
tsp vanilla
1 cup warm water

Add all ingredients to food processor and pulse until blended. Add more warm water if needed. Consistency should be like creamy peanut butter.

Delicious warm or cold, this “pudding” is so healthy that you can eat it for breakfast… it’s just like a bowl of oatmeal with dried fruits and nuts! It’s also satisfying as a dessert. Try it with fresh berries or peaches and a dollop of greek yogurt for a filling sweet treat.

Perfect Chocolate ‘Cleanse’ Pudding

1 Cup Walnuts
2 Cups Rolled Oats
8 destemmed dried figs
dash of cinnamon
tsp vanilla
4 tbs good cocoa powder

Layer onto a rice cake with peanut or almond butter for a healthier take on the Reese’s Cup! Or stir into greek yogurt and berries for a special treat.

Black Sesame Amaranth Crackers

3/4 Cup raw amaranth
1/3 cup raw pumpkin seeds
1/3 cup black sesame seeds
sea salt to taste1 tsp
olive oil

Preheat oven to 170 degrees.

Cook amaranth (bring one part amaranth to two parts water to boil and then reduce to simmer… it takes about 20 minutes). It should be a sticky, gooey consistency… like thick oatmeal. Mix cooked amaranth with remaining ingredients. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper and spread amaranth mixture into thin layers, using the back of a spatula to even it out (I covered the back of my spatula with olive oil so it wouldn’t stick to the amaranth mixture).

Place in oven (convection bake setting is preferable) at 170 degrees for 35 – 60 minutes, depending on how thin your layer is. Remove from oven when browned as crisp. Allow to cool and gently break into cracker-size pieces. They should easily lift from the parchment paper.

These crackers are super healthy – vegan, gluten free, etc – and great for dipping into purees or crumbling over salad or yogurt bowls.

♦ Tzereis Gezundereit…or Carpe Diem

Posted on August 23, 2013 by estherschuster

Dear Shaina,

What a role reversal for you to be driving us to the airport to send us off on an adventure! No guilt or fear…maybe a little worry…worry that you might get lonely or scared, especially since you’re still afraid to go into the basement alone! But you sound good and I am thrilled for you…not even the slightest bit concerned about the state of the kitchen. Out of sight, out of mind!

I am happy for your comfort in cooking and sharing with friends and using the house for what it is meant for: a place to enjoy, to eat and drink and be with friends and family. As Bubbe used to say, Tzereis Gezundereit: tear it up in good health! Not literally, of course.

She meant that the things we have shouldn’t be saved and preserved for some later pleasure…use what you have, enjoy it today and share it with the people in your life. It was the Bubbe version of Carpe Diem, plus the acknowledgement that most of our stuff will outlast us, hence, tear it up while you can.

picking peaches on the streets of our neighborhood

We all seem to have taken that message to heart. Here we are in Portland indulging in food, wine, and the distinctive sights and sounds that live in an environment that seems to be fearless when it comes to the expression of individual style, creativity and preference for just about anything…as long as it doesn’t hurt your neighbor or the environment. We are drinking ( we are tasting a lot of wine) this city in like parched nomads emerging from the desert…and it is delicious!

There are hundreds of neighborhoods (and we have hit many of them on this trip) each boasting unique flavors and personalities. The walkable streets, lined with bike lanes and crosswalks and closely packed craftsman style homes are lushly adorned with Portland greenery and fruit trees… small independently owned coffee shops, French bakeries and taquerias, bars and ice cream parlors, vintage stores and shops displaying the work of artisans of every talent and skill (dress shops complete with sewing machine and seamstress, old fashioned barber shops, weavers, painters and jewelers) are everywhere. The costumes on the street are wide open…from biking shorts to hiking boots to retro flowered dresses to…well, anything goes in this town, really. The tattoos are bold and sported by people of all ages and lifestyles. Freedom and independence feeds the creative spirit…and the entrepreneur.

We followed a llama into a jewellery boutique

We have shared good wine, food and conversation with our new dear friends from Portland and look forward to showing them Portland’s polar opposite twin city in the South when they visit us. We’ll try to break them in slowly.

Today we drove to Ashland, home of the Oregon Shakespeare Theater and saw a production of Midsummer Night’s Dream set in 1964 at a Catholic Parochial School. Tomorrow on to Napa.

The luxury of our trip reminds me that now is our time. Even old couples need some time alone in a fresh space every now and then to remind them of who they are…separately and together. We are seizing the day…and hope to continue to do so together for a very long time.

Breakfast on our porch

Soon it will be the holidays. I saw your post for the cleanse. Although I haven’t done much cooking (not that I haven’t been eating), the one thing I did make is cleanse-friendly. I tried to replicate a beet dish that we had at a Peruvian restaurant in Portland. I thought mine tasted good, but definitely didn’t have quite the same visual appeal.

Everyday there are new places and sites and experiences I want to share, but enough is enough! I am looking forward to coming home and returning to the normal order of things…me doting on you for the last few weeks of your home-stay…you preparing to leave and being annoyed with my stickiness.

I miss you already. Even though I know its not easy for us to live in the same house. I still miss being around you…being a part of the moments of your every day. I know these days are short-lived and that soon, I will be hearing about your life through the wonders of technology, again.

We’re off for a wine tour in Napa, so I better send this now because I am sure I won’t feel much like focusing after we return.

Love,
Mom
xoxoxoxoxoxooxoxo

Beet Salad with Cilantro Chimichurri Sauce

2 Red Beets, medium sized
2 Golden Beets, medium sized

Wrap beets in aluminum foil and roast in a 375° oven for 30 -45 minutes or until done (able to be pierced easily with a knife)
Slice thinly, keeping red and yellow beets in separate bowls

Beet Dressing

2 limes, juice and zest
1 Tblsp olive oil
A few drops of sesame oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Mix together and adjust to taste.

Cilantro Chimichurri Sauce

1 cup (packed) fresh cilantro
1/2 cup (packed) fresh Italian parsley
1/4 cup olive oil
2 garlic cloves, peeled
Jalapeno or habanero pepper to taste
1/2 teaspoon salt

Process all ingredients in a food processor. Adjust seasonings to taste.

The restaurant version

Arrange thinly sliced beets in alternating layers of red, golden, red beets on a platter. Pour lime sesame dressing over beets.
Drip Cilantro Chimichurri sauce along edges or center of beets.

Garnish with fresh cucumber , cut in thin julienne strips and fresh chopped cilantro or parsley. Serve cold or at room temperature as an appetizer with a fresh baguette or on a bed of arugula as a salad with dinner.

◊ I’m Back

Posted on August 2, 2013 by shainashealy

Dear mom,

I don’t have much to say. Being back home is weird. I dither around preparations towards next steps, and my friends from high school are doctors and lawyers and married. I returned from a time warp – why do things progress without me? – and I am nothing.

My job-for-now is my saving grace (though it seems just opposite for you). I prepare meals for a friend braving chemotherapy. Her dietary shift omits dairy, processed foods, soy, various legumes, cruciferous vegetables, etc, and she only eats organic. I drift through my days assembling creative menus and exploring new ingredients that yield foods tasty and healthy. It’s indispensably meditative as I mull over how I’ll get to where I need to be next (on time) and what that means exactly.

But I know my presence in your kitchen has totally rocked your boat: you take every opportunity to complain about me completely trashing your house and destroying your kitchen. I leave my sneakers and gym bag in the hallway; plates and jars are out of place; my clothes are on the bathroom floor; there is crusted yogurt on the fridge door-handle and drops of almond butter in hard to reach places; the salt is in the wrong cubby. There’s a reason that our site’s tagline ends with the word distance.

It’s usually my job to initiate distance, but you stole away on your West Coast adventure yesterday. How does it feel? I perceived some guilt (or fear?) as you left me to man the kitchen all by myself. But that’s your problem. For me, it’s a dream come true. Even though I’m weary about navigating your kitchen drawers without you (it took me 30 minutes to find the box grater this morning!), the space is welcomed. Please, conquer your retirement unsullied by guilt, and I’ll keep my fingers crossed that I won’t have to go to the basement while you’re away (still the scariest place I’ve ever been).

Back to the kitchen! I’ll try to minimize the havoc as much as possible.

xo,
Shaina

Roasted Cherry Almond Millet Mini Muffins (gluten and dairy free!)
Prep time: 45 minutes
Serves 10 – 15

1 cup almond meal
1/2 cup cornmeal (i like to use blue cornmeal)
1/2 c flax meal
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp (sea) salt
1/3 c molasses
3 eggs
1/4 c almond milk
4 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
2 Tbsp. honey
1/2 tsp. almond extract
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup millet, lightly toasted*
1 cup roasted cherries*

Last time I wrecked the kitchen, these crunchy, gluten-free Roasted Cherry Almond Millet Muffins were born –slightly sweet and perfect for a filling breakfast or a satisfying midday snack, they were inspired by a search for a healthy treat that I could make for my new “client.” Now I’m hooked on millet! A crunchy muffin is like ice cream with sprinkles.. eating it is just more fun! Top these gems with almond butter or yogurt in the morning for a healthy, fiber-full, protein-packed start to the day.

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Combine the almond meal, cornmeal, flax meal, baking soda, baking powder and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, molasses, olive oil, almond milk, honey, almond and vanilla extracts together. Stir wet ingredients into dry ingredients until loose batter is formed. Gently fold in the millet and cherries until combined. Fill the muffin liners and bake on middle rack for 15 – 20 minutes. Let cool before serving.

*Roasted Cherries: Toss 2 cups of halved and pitted cherries with a pinch of salt, 2 tsp olive oil, 1 tsp honey and splash of lemon. Spread them evenly on parchment paper and roast for 20 – 25 minutes on 350 degrees. For the purpose of this recipe, feel free to substitute strawberries, peaches or other summer fruits for cherries.
*Toasted millet: Spread millet evenly on baking sheet and stick in oven or toaster oven at 350 degrees for 15 – 20 minutes. To make sure your millet muffins are perfectly crunchy, toast it half an hour (at least) before using it for baking so that it can cool… It becomes more firm once it’s cool.

Blueberry Almond Galette
Serves 6
Prep time: 40 min
Adapted from Sprouted Kitchen’s Cherry Almond Galette

Ingredients for Dough:

3/4 cup red hard wheat flour
3/4 cup rye flour
1/2 tsp. sea salt
4 oz. / 1 stick cold unsalted butter, cut in cubes
2 tsp. lemon juice
2 Tbsp. yogurt
1 tsp. almond extract
3 Tbsp. ice water

Ingredients for Filling:

3 cups blueberries
pinch of salt
2 tsp. lemon juice
1 tsp lemon zest
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 Tbsp. corn starch, almond flour or wheat flour
dash fresh grated nutmeg
dash cinnamon
1/3 cup raw sugar
1 egg
splash of water
turbinado sugar, optional

Our blueberry picking venture was pathetic… My memories of bushes generously bearing cloyingly sweet, plump blueberries were tainted by this season’s scarce branches. I blame this season’s monsoon-like weather for our meager bucket of water-logged, almost rotting berries. Usually, I’d season freshly picked berries with lemon juice and spices and bake them under a simple oat crumble.

But this summer’s berry batch needed hardcore TLC. I was drawn to a galette recipe on Sprouted Kitchen because of the almond extract in the dough recipe. So I substituted rye and hard red wheat flour for their spelt and white flour combo, and, duh, blueberries + appropriate spices instead of cherries.
The dough turned out delish and, served with ice cream, the galette eased my distress over this summer’s wretched crop. But I still prefer my berries sweetened by the earth and sun – simple, ample, untouched and undoctored. Oh well.. there’s always next summer.

First, mix all dry ingredients. Second, quickly work the cold butter into the flour mixture. One tip that my mom taught me is to shred the frozen butter into the flour with a cheese grater. It makes it easier to combine in with the flour. Smush the butter into the flour with your fingers, making small pea-sized clumps. In a separate dish, mix lemon juice, yogurt, almond extract and water, and add it to the dough mixture until combined. Do not over-mix! Form a ball and wrap it up – chill in the fridge for at least an hour or a day or two in advance.
Heat the oven to 400′ and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Wash blueberries and mix with spices, salt, lemon juice, flour and sugar.

On a floured surface, roll out the tough to a a 12 inch circle (doesn’t have to be perfect… clearly). Put the dough on a baking sheet and pile the blueberries in the center (leave roughly 2-3 inches of the outer dough empty). Fold the dough towards the center, pinching it together to make it stick. Pull it tight and thin.
Mix egg and brush it on the outside of the dough. Then sprinkle with turbinado sugar. Bake on the middle rack for 40 – 45 minutes until browned. Serve with vanilla ice cream and a drizzle of almond butter.

♦ From Down the Hall

Posted on July 24, 2013 by estherschuster

Dear Shaina,

It is really odd to be writing a letter to you when you are just down the hall and we are crossing paths in the kitchen, preparing lists for almost daily grocery store excursions, merging dirty clothes in the washing machine and…exchanging words (not always so nicely) face to face.

So here I sit struggling to do my assignment, “mom, do ur blog” instructions in a text from you, following a text that said, “having din w friends, will b home later.”

Parenting is not an easy business at any age…of any aged child. It is perplexing and daunting and evokes anxieties and insecurities from the depths of your core. Shaina, lest you think this is about you, believe me, it is not! You are, and have been, a relatively easy child. I do know how fortunate I am to have the privilege of being your parent.

I am immensely proud of your accomplishments, your bravery and self-awareness, your independence and your many ever-emerging talents. Not to mention the bonuses of having a child who travels to exotic places, always has another exciting option up her sleeve and provides us with never-ending tales to share with family and friends.

The challenges of parenting are not about you, or any kid, I suspect. It’s about what and who we bring to the game. You think you’ve escaped the ghosts you tried so hard to release in your own life…and all of a sudden, you have become your mother…and those shreds of familiarity are chilling.

There were so many things that Bubbe and Zayde did intuitively, as parents, that were right. They had no expectations of who we should become. They only wanted us to be healthy and happy and able to take care of ourselves. They insisted on the absolute importance of love and family. I think that was it…and all that flowed from that. Any screaming and arguing was just another tactic to ensure those principles.

I think it worked, but with it came the whole package…the sense of obligation, the persistent quest for happiness, the need to leave home and find my place in the world. I did that in my own way.

I know some parents who think their job is to control their children in an attempt to produce the desired product.

My understanding of parenting is more about powerlessness and staying out of the way of the inevitable. Neither approach is easy or foolproof…and I have made errors on both ends of the spectrum.

Having you home brings all the players out of the closet…yours and mine. All in all, I think we are okay. You are a child any mother would be proud to claim…as I am. We are just both doing what we both need to do…hanging on and getting away!

Thank God for food…the grains that bind us! I have learned so much from you, although I am not sure I will ever be able to replicate your style. You prepared an amazing Indian feast for Shabbat dinner…dishes that even our Indian guests loved!

Watching you create recipes for a friend who is undergoing chemo has made me appreciate what a unique gift you have.

sss & es in kitchen 072313

Your food is creative and delicious, elaborate and healing…and remarkably beautiful and awe-inspiring.

I am also impressed at how much your kitchen maintenance has improved! Thank you!

I don’t know how long you’ll be here, but I am glad to be in these moments with you. My wishes for you are simple…to be healthy and happy…to remember the importance of family…to find your place in the world and…to be safe.

Love,

Mom

xoxoxoxoxoxo

Browned Butter Halibut
Although I am intimidated by your creations. I still have to cook dinner occasionally,at least when I am not throwing together all your tasty leftover morsels into a humongous salad. This is a very simple fish recipe that Dad really enjoyed.

Add a simple green summer salad and baked sweet potatoes, plus the dessert below, and you have a satisfying quick and easy dinner.

Yield: 4 servings

1 – 1½ pounds of fresh wild caught halibut (4-6 ounces per person)
1-2 tablespoons butter
1-2 teaspoons olive oil
Salt, pepper, garlic to taste
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice and zest from one lemon (or lime juice and zest)
Garnish with fresh chopped dill, parsley or tarragon and lemon wedges if desired

Salt and pepper fish generously on both sides. Add fresh finely chopped or thinly sliced garlic.

Lime Juice and zest…a great substitute for lemon.

Marinate in lemon juice with zest plus 1 teaspoon olive oil for a half hour.

Heat a sauté pan large enough to hold all the fish over medium heat.

Put oil and butter in the pan and heat until lightly browned. Add fish immediately to browned butter and cook 3 – 5 minutes (depending on thickness of fish) on each side. Fish is done when it is opaque and flakes easily with a fork.

Serve with lemon wedges. Add salt, pepper and fresh herbs to taste. Serve immediately.

Blueberry Oatmeal-Buckwheat Crumble

This lightly sweetened blueberry crumble recipe is inspired by your healthy crunchy-grainy approach to food…and all those gallons of late summer blueberries we picked.

Blueberry Filling

5-6 cups fresh blueberries
1 teaspoon potato starch or corn starch
Zest and lemon juice from small lemon
¾ cup chopped dried fruit (apricots, dates, figs, raisins or any dried fruit)
2 tablespoons raw sugar or to taste (agave or honey can be substituted)
1 teaspoon almond extract

Wash blueberries and place them in a pot with the next four ingredients for the blueberry filling. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally throughout the cooking process. Turn the heat down and simmer for about forty-five more minutes or until blueberry mixture is slightly thickened and reduced by half, but still liquidy. Add the almond extract and stir. Cool slightly.

Oatmeal-Buckwheat Crust and Topping

1¼ cup uncooked rolled oats
½ cup almond flour
½ cup buckwheat flour
¼ tsp salt
¼ cup butter, melted (margarine or coconut oil can be substituted)
¾ cup chopped walnuts or pecans
1 T raw sugar or agave

While berries are cooking, prepare crust by whisking together the oats, flour and salt in a bowl. Add the melted butter or margarine to the oat mixture and stir until crumbly. Reserve ¾ cup of this mixture in a separate bowl for the topping.

Preheat oven to 350°

Grease an 8” x 10” baking dish and pat the remaining oat crumb crust mixture onto the bottom of the baking dish.

Prepare the topping by adding ¾ cup of chopped nuts and 1 tablespoon of raw sugar to the reserved oat mixture. More sugar can be added if you like a sweeter topping. Mix thoroughly.

Bake at 350° for 35 – 45 minutes or until oats and nuts are lightly browned and blueberries are bubbling.Pour the slightly cooled blueberry filling over the crust in the baking dish. Sprinkle the oat-nut topping mixture evenly over the berries.

Eat warm with ice cream or serve cold as a fruit snack or breakfast treat.

◊ Unloading

Posted on July 7, 2013 by shainashealy

Dear mom,

Home after 6 months of wandering… It’s finally time to unload! My closet shelves seem wider and your kitchen appliances shinier and I am SO done with my freakin humongous backpack.

I still need to process it all as I recover from the exhaustion that comes with the bag-lady package, and I can’t stop thinking about Israel. My role as birthright staff was a success and I enjoyed the days with our distant but familiar family in Israel after the trip.

My group watching the sunrise from Masada

During my first few days in Israel, I laughed a lot in my head. A simple “Shalom” slammed me back to the pit of my childhood… Hebrew words were throwbacks that roped chants from the Jewish Day School back into my brain. Every Israeli situation was a novelty.

I know that a visit to the Western Wall is supposed to be emotional and that I’m supposed to cry when I touch it and blablabla. But during our visit to the Old City, all I could think of was my 4th grade art project, when my classmates and I each reported on one of the city’s landmarks. I was in charge of Sha’ar Ha’ashpot, the Dung Gate, where Jersulamites chucked their trash. I presented it with an intricate drawing of an old relic surrounded by diapers, banana peels and flies.

prayers shoved into cracks of the wall

And when I opened my mouth to speak Hebrew, I only thought of Carl’s made-up song to the tune of Kool and the Gang’s Celebration, which helped me remember Hebrew grammar rules… “Conjugate the verbs, come on!” followed by a quick rap of the actual conjugations, ani ahavti, ata ahavta, hoo ahav, etc…

Most embarrassing was my response to Sivan (our group’s medic and my roomate) when she introduced herself to me. Instead of introducing myself back like a normal person, I sang to her. The chant that Mrs. Posner sang to help us remember the months of the Jewish calendar just slipped off my tongue… Sivan, Iyar, Tamuz, Av…

Sharing a camel with our bus driver, David

From that moment on, Sivan made a rule that I couldn’t call her name unless I sang it.

My American Jewish education prepared me for a visit to my homeland with Israeli songs, folk dances and silly games that seemed irrelevant to any real situation. And as I toured ancient sites and tested memories in my head, the nostalgia for Israel that I was trained to feel possessed me… it was creepy.

But after ten days of touring ancient sites with other American Jews (Jewish Americans?), I relocated to the homes of our Israeli family members. I met Chana for the first time, your Israeli replica. After showing off each room in her home (including a whole room just for kitchen appliances), she force fed me for hours… Israeli salads and hummus and a spongy orange cake that tasted exactly like one Bubbe used to make I couldn’t believe it. I observed personalities so clearly unique to our family’s gene pool… the force feeding, the loud talking all at once… that at times I thought I was back in Birmingham.

Chana with her cake and cool glasses

I heard stories of how Zayde’s brothers and sisters landed in Israel, and how we have cousins in Russia who are rediscovering their Jewish heritage right now preparing to make Aliyah. Sitting around a table of aunts and uncles, baby cousins and plates and plates of food, I saw, firsthand, the joyous outcome of a country that prioritizes the provision of a safe haven for Jews seeking refuge. The songs and dances that I learned at summer camp and school provided the initial backdrop of familiarity… but with the family, the sense of belonging that I learned about at summer camp and youth group and Jewish Day School finally unfurled.

I know it’s all a cliche and I’m surprised by my reaction to Israel… it wasn’t my first time there but it was the first time I’ve felt this way.

I think my emotional experience was shaped by the juxtaposition of my itinerary: I headed to Israel from India. In India, my outsider perspective was extreme and the “welcome” limited. The religious and societal structures create a barrier that makes integration into Indian culture impossible for a white American like me. The newness, surprise and unfamiliarity of everything around me in India was acutely opposite of the nostalgic comforts in Israel. So of course the “welcome home” from the Israeli customs officer in the airport elicited a heightened reaction.

I don’t really know… I have a lot to unload.

love,
Shaina

In Israel, the breakfast spread is glorious: dozens of fresh salads, salty cheeses, creamy tahini and thick yogurt. The participants on my trip stared at my plates piled high with crunchy veggies at 7 AM each day, How can you eat vegetables so early in the morning?

Post breakfast bliss with Naomi!

The Zucchini and Tomato Salad recipe below is adapted from my favorite cookbook right now, Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi’s Jerusalem, and the carrot salad is one that I made up to commemorate my moment of glory as a Birthright staff, which happened in the morning of our last day of the trip. I complimented the quantity of veggies on a participant’s breakfast plate and his response to my comment was, “ You know I started eating vegetables in the morning because you told me to.”

Wow. I’m not sure I’ve ever had such a positive influence on a young person’s life. Salads in the morning are where it’s at.

I also included a recipe for hummus because it’s just so basic… I’m shocked that we don’t have it in our recipe index yet!

Chunky Zucchini and Tomato Salad

Serves 8-12 people as a side dish
Prep time: 30 minutes

8 green zucchini
5 large tomatoes
3 tbs olive oil
2 cups greek yogurt
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 red chiles, crushed or 1 tsp red chili flakes
grated zest of 1 lemon
juice from 1 lemon
2 cups walnuts, coarsely chopped
1 handful of fresh mint, chopped
1/2 C chopped parsley
salt
black pepper
1 tbs date syrup, agave or honey

*Note that I modified the original recipe for this dish for American convenience and ease. So if you want the real thing, pick up a copy of Jerusalem. You won’t be disappointed!

Preheat the oven to 425 F and cover two cookie sheets with parchment paper. Trim the zucchini and cut lengthwise into thin 3/4 inch pieces. Halve the tomatoes. Brush with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

Place zucchini and tomatoes cut side down on separate pans. Cook for 15 – 20 minutes until browned on the tops and edges. The veggies should be tender in the middle and crisp on the edges.

Remove from oven and allow to cool. Meanwhile, mix all remaining ingredients (except for honey/date syrup) together and hold some parsley for garnish. Once cool, chop zucchini and tomatoes coarsely. Gently fold into mixture and spread over large, shallow bowl. Drizzle with olive oil and date syrup/honey, and garnish with parsley. Serve with warm pita, couscous or your favorite bread.

Chopped Carrot, Beet and Tahini salad

Serves 10 – 12 people as side dish
prep time:

15 – 20 minutes

1 lb of carrots
2 medium beets
2/3 c walnuts
6 medium dates
4 tbs tahini paste
1 tbs olive oil
1 tbs water
2 tbs lemon zest
juice of one lemon
1 tbs sesame seeds
4 tbs zatar
salt

To roast beets and walnuts, preheat the oven to 350. Wrap the beets in foil, place them on a pan, and keep them in the oven for 15-25 minutes until soft. Place walnuts on a pan and keep them in the oven for 7-10 minutes until brown and fragrant. Allow to cool. *This can be done the night/day before.

*You can also opt to leave the beets and walnuts raw for a crunchier, earthier dish.

Chop raw carrots, roasted beets, walnuts and dates into small 1/4 inch chunks (you can do this in a food processor for ease, but make sure that you don’t pulverize too much) and mix. In a separate bowl, mix tahini paste, olive oil, water, lemon zest, lemon juice and sesame seeds into a fluid paste. Combine all ingredients and add zatar and salt to taste. Eat as a crunchy, healthy breakfast salad on its own, top with plain yogurt, or use as an accompaniment in sandwiches and pitas. The possibilities are endless.

Hummus

4 C chickpeas (canned will work, but it’s much better if you cook them yourself)
5 cloves garlic
1/3 c tahini
juice from 2 lemons
1/3 c water
3 tbs olive oil
salt to taste

Optional additions

turmeric
roasted red pepper
more garlic
spinach
chili powder/hot sauce
black pepper
olive oil, zatar, parsley, cilantro, tahini for garnish

Puree all ingredients in food processor until smooth and creamy. Play around with optional additions and garishes. Serve with warm pita, french fries :), roasted veggies, salads, chips… anything!

See what I did:

Sivan and I always held up the caboose… I the sheep herder and she the body guard. Here, we rest at Masada while waiting for kids in the bathroom. Always in the freakin bathroom.

Rugelach yum… even the foods were familiar and comforting

Shabbat din!

Herzliya with Ron, Nurit and the kids

In the mornings Hanoch showed me the agriculture fields near his house. He rode his bike and I jogged after him.

Reunited with a long lost friend in Tel Aviv with shakshuka yum!

So much grafitti in Tel Aviv… the most colorful Bubbe I’ve seen

♦ Commingling

Posted on July 3, 2013 by estherschuster

Dear Shaina,

It seems that the airports have been very busy this week flying Schuster and Shealy kids around. Naomi left for Israel Saturday morning and Rebecca arrived in B’ham in the evening. Now you are on a plane from Israel ending/continuing/beginning your journey.

Gail and Abe were at a wedding Saturday night so I picked Rebecca up from the airport and invited her and a fourth for mahjong and dinner. I made a simple dinner of pesto pasta with roasted vegetables, pan-seared flounder and tomato-cucumber-basil salad with garlic bread toast…and both Dad and Rebecca were thrilled to have the opportunity to play mahjong. As always, there were plenty of leftovers.

It was the leftovers…and Bubbe, who never threw away any left over food…that inspired the morning-after brunch I prepared for Dad and me. Sunday morning was one of the first in a long time that both Dad and I were at home together…a cause for celebration…and breakfast. I didn’t really have any specific menu in mind, but as I started rooting around the refrigerator and saw those leftovers, I knew what I had to do. The result was a breakfast casserole that turned out good enough to serve to company. Dad said it reminded him of a New Orleans brunch (without the heavy sauces)…and I used up all the leftovers!

I have been preparing for your homecoming this week. I removed all of our junk from your room and left your junk pretty much intact. It is daunting how much space our lives take up even when we don’t really live there. Our commingled stuff has been separated, at least for now…at least in your room.

We seem to have crossed thresholds in our lives almost simultaneously. Just because I continue to remind you to wear a raincoat in the rain doesn’t mean that I don’t recognize the capable young adult you have become. And just because I want to know your plans doesn’t mean I don’t have a life of my own filled with my own activities and schedules. It is precisely because we are two separate adults traveling on our own ever-evolving life paths, that I want to ensure our commingling during these brief moments that you will be spending in a place that was at one time the only place you knew as home.

Our relationship, at this point in both of our lives, is more a choice and less a given. I think often about my relationship with my mother, your Bubbe. It seemed that it was always a given. Maybe it was the nature of that generation or maybe it was just that we both needed so much from each other that we didn’t know how to be anything other than mother and daughter and daughter and mother…needing and wanting…without ever really knowing each other.

Although our relationship naturally has some of the strains and issues that exist between most mothers and daughters, it is my hope that we will choose to be in each others lives…to share our stories and our hearts and our interests…even if that means you might have to learn to play mahjong!

I can’t wait to see you, to cook with you and to commingle our lives again in this place that we still call home.

Love,

Mom

xoxooxoxoxxoxoxoo

P.S. I love my new Prius!

Egg and Veggie Breakfast Casserole

This easy casserole was made from leftovers from dinner the night before. Whole wheat and sour dough rolls had been sliced and made into garlic toast rounds with roasted garlic paste and olive oil and the veggies were oven-roasted with a little olive oil and salt and pepper. You can vary this recipe with different vegetables, cheeses and breads…depending on what’s leftover in your refrigerator.

I served it with tomato-cucumber-basil salad, flounder seared in a little butter and garlic and some fresh fruit. Mimosas and good coffee topped off this great Sunday brunch menu.

Yield: 4-6 depending on what else is served

6-8 small round garlic toasts
2-3 cups of cubed roasted vegetables
4-6 ounces of grated cheddar or Jarlsburg cheese (I used equal parts of both)
6 eggs (Egg whites can be substituted – 2 egg whites for 1 whole egg)
¾ cup milk (skim can be used)
1 tsp pesto ( finely ground basil, olive oil, salt and pepper)
Dash of freshly ground nutmeg
Salt and Pepper to taste
Pine nuts and parmesan cheese for garnish (optional)

Lightly grease a deep 10” round casserole dish with butter or spray. Layer garlic toasts on bottom of dish. Top with a layer of roasted veggies and then a layer of grated cheese. Continue layering…bread, veggies, cheese…until casserole dish is filled to about ¾” from the top or until you run out of veggies.

Whisk together eggs, milk, pesto, nutmeg and salt and pepper. Pour over layered ingredients in the casserole. Top with more grated cheese and pine nuts and parmesan cheese if desired.

Bake in a 350° oven for about 45 minutes or until all liquid is absorbed and top of casserole puffs up and is lightly browned. Let dish rest for five minutes before cutting and serving.

Tomato-Cucumber-Basil Salad

6-8 small Campari tomatoes (or your favorite variety of tomato), thinly sliced
4 small Persian cucumbers (or your favorite variety of cucumber), thinly sliced
6-8 fresh basil leaves, washed and cut into strips
½ cup of green onions or Vidalia onions, thinly sliced
Black Greek olives, pitted (optional)
Salt and Pepper to taste
Olive Oil
Balsamic Vinegar

Cut and mix all vegetables in a bowl. Drizzle lightly with olive oil. Add a few splashes of Balsamic vinegar and toss. Season to taste.

◊ Bag Lady Luxury

Posted on June 16, 2013 by shainashealy

Dear Mom,

I’m out of India and savoring the small luxuries of familiar territory.

During the bus ride from Copenhagen to Hamburg, I enjoyed a 45 minute ferry ride into a farm of windmills lit by the setting sun. And then Hamburg and Berlin… wow. The air was crisp and smelled like flowers and the sun shined until 10:30 PM. Cars stopped for pedestrians and the huge, green parks around every corner were packed with people eating ice cream and soaking up the sun. All week long, I walked around in my short shorts eating brown bread and feeling so free.

Beautiful breakfast in Berlin… breadbasket full of korns!

Leider Frau Carolyn reminded me why I love spinning so much

Leider Frau Carolyn reminding me why I love spinning so much

Vegan currywurst…. So odd.

I’m now in New Jersey with you and all my stuff. Tomorrow, I’ll be schlepping it back across the Atlantic to Israel. It’s crazy how time flies when we busy ourselves with important errands like pedicures and sandal shopping.

In India, ovens (our definition) are extremely rare. I’m not a baker per se, but during my last few days in India I daydreamt about the possibilities – fluffy breads, dense muffins, beautiful cakes. And when I got to Germany, the bread omg. Teresa introduced me to the typical German brown bread with volle korns (whole grains) when I got to Hamburg and I munched away non-stop. I want to grow a sourdough starter. Brown bread with so many grains… korn an korn an korn an korn – grain to grain to grain… inspiration.

So I prioritized baking (up there with a pedicure) during my short visit to America. Larry and I made delicious rolls together that were inspired the volle korns of Germany. Aside from challah, this was my first bread making experience! Luckily, Larry is an experienced bread master with a bread making machine to make it easy.

Despite the simple luxuries (and delicious breads) of Europe and America, I remain a bag lady… or a stadtstreicherin as Carolyn would say. And though it’s been really really fun, no matter what part of the world I’m in (and how easy the livability seems), living out of bags is not easy. I adapt well to new spaces — as you see, I have no problem hijacking laundry rooms and taking over kitchens that are not my own — but I can’t wait for clothes hangers, cupboards stacked with my jars/experiments and my own pillow.

I need to go re-stuff my bags for my trip to Israel in the morning.

Love,

Shaina

Chocolate Bundt Cake

I’ve been wanting to make this cake from the 101cookbooks.com for a long time, and it turned out even better than I could have imagined. It is ridiculously moist, barely sweet, and deeply, darkly chocolately. The texture is almost like a bread pudding. I know it’s not as sweet as your gooey brownies, so it may not please a dessert hungry sweet tooth, but it would be great for a brunch and it’s even almost healthy…?

2 cups beer (the recipe calls for chocolate porter or stout beer, but I used Brooklyn Ale – just what I had on hand)
 7 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more for the pan
 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup whole wheat flour
 1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup dark brown sugar
 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
 3/4 tsp fine grain sea salt
 3 large eggs
 1 1/2 cups plain whole yogurt
 3/4 cup maple syrup

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Butter and flour a 12 cup bundt pan.
Simmer the beer to 1 cup in a saucepan and add butter until melted. Stir in the cocoa powder and set aside to cool.

In medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, salt and baking powder. In a separate bowl, combine eggs, yogurt and maple syrup. Whisk until smooth and then stir in the chocolate mixture until blended. Add flour mixture and fold until blended.

Pour the batter into the pan and bake for 35 – 45 minutes (insert knife on sides to make sure cake can be pulled apart from pan without it falling apart). Let cool for 10 – 25 minutes and flip upside down onto a plate.

There’s a beautiful buttermilk frosting recipe for this cake on 101cookbooks, but I didn’t want to mess with such a beautiful cake. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

Seeds n Nuts n Whole Wheat Lemon Rolls

…A tribute to Carolyn Kerchof and Teresa Kleinschmidt… Korn an korn an korn an korn I just can’t stop.

This recipe was a winner with the fam – densely packed with nutritious seeds and nuts and grains. And the kitchen smelled like lemon and yeast all morning. I started with a basic whole wheat honey bread recipe and added German inspired seeds and nuts for extra crunch and protein.

2 cups all purpose flour
 1/2 oz dry yeast
 3 teaspoons salt
 2 1/4 cups hot water
1/4 cup honey
3 tbs butter
 grated zest of 1 lemon
2 – 3 cups whole-wheat flour
1/4 c poppy seeds
1/4 c flax seeds
1/3 c pumpkin seeds/pepitas
1/3 c crushed walnuts

Thanks to Larry’s wondrous bread machine, this was a cinch. We just dumped the ingredients in the machine all together and waited two hours for the dough to be mixed and rise. Then, I separated the dough into rolls, stuck them into the fridge overnight, and baked them the next day at 400 degrees with ice on the bottom rack of the oven to create steam.

The real instructions are a bit more complex:

First, add all purpose flour, yeast, salt, hot water, honey, butter and lemon peel into a food processor and pulse until a dough forms. Then, add the whole wheat flour, seeds and nuts.Knead the dough for a minute until it is light (but still sticky) – cover your hands with all purpose flour as necessary. Kneed for 10 – 15 minutes.

Mold it into a mound and cover with wax paper for about 20 minutes. After it has risen, knead the dough for 30 seconds to release air bubbles. cut of pieces of dough the size of a golf ball and roll into balls. Place on parchment paper covered cookie sheet. Brush rolls with oil and loosely cover with plastic wrap (to allow the rolls to rise). Place in refridgerator overnight.

Remove from fridge and allow for rolls to reach room temperature. Preheat oven to 400 degrease.

Fill two pans with ice and uncover rolls. As soon as you put the rolls in the oven, put ice trays on the bottom shelf of the oven to form steam. Close the oven door and bake for 25 – 30 minutes until rolls are brown on top. Enjoy with butter or a thick slice of cheese and veggies.

In Germany, I ate so much brown bread densely packed with crunchy, chewy whole grains. Volle korn an korn (whole grain to grain) an korn an korn until my intestines exploded.

♦ Counting the Hours

Posted on June 9, 2013 by estherschuster

Dear Shaina,

This will be a short letter since we will be seeing you very soon and I have a few things to do to get ready…laundry, packing and pesto harvesting.

It rained all day and night and I swear the basil grew an extra crop of leaves overnight. It is prime for picking and I am afraid if I wait until we return, it will be past the point of perfection.

Armed with my kitchen scissors and grocery bag, I chopped all the Basil down and am settling into the kitchen for a morning of trimming, washing and prepping to the background of TED talks and CNN news.

The kitchen smells like fresh cut basil and garlic (my favorite odors)… and I am so happy…mostly because I will be seeing you in a few days! I will be bringing plenty of fresh pesto in case you want to sample some and there will be even more in the freezer waiting for you when you return from your travels…ready to be taken wherever you decide to call home thereafter.

I am cleaning out the fridge before we leave, so this letter, as far as food goes, is about using up stuff that is about to go bad or just can’t be finished by the time you go on a trip. I took the Campari tomatoes that were getting a little wrinkly and roasted them (with a little salt) in the oven for a batch of tomato pesto.

My excessive stash of garlic also needed to be used up pronto so I left some raw…perfect for my pesto and my newest favorite home-made half sour pickles…and roasted the rest for roasted garlic (with a little olive oil and salt) paste/pesto.

I used the mini cucumbers that I love so much,but just couldn’t finish, for the pickles which are simple to make.

Just for fun, I made a batch of one bowl brownies with chocolate and peanut butter chips (Dad’s favorites) to bring to New Jersey. There is nothing like a classic brownie to bring you back to the reality of being back in America.

Dad and I have been playing a lot of mahjong with another couple.
It just goes to show that there is no end to the fun you can have with the person you marry…even after all these years! I won a super hard hand the other night..all pairs. I know that doesn’t mean anything to you, but it’s a big deal in the mahjong world. Maybe we’ll teach you while we’re in New Jersey…and make it a family game!

I really am counting the hours until I see you. The sporadic emails and calls and brief conversations just aren’t enough for me to get the real feel for what is going on in your life and your heart. So if I stare at you and sit real close and want to be near you for an annoyingly long time…just put up with it!

It’s the least I deserve for all that packing and schlepping …and letting you go so far away from home…with my blessings.

Love,

Mom

oooxoxoxoxoxoxoxooxo

Pesto Tips

Although I have already posted my pesto recipe, here it is again with a few variations. It is very forgiving and the amounts of basil and garlic vary every time I make it.

Basic Basil Pesto

4 packed cups of washed and dried fresh pesto leaves
4-6 cloves of garlic
1/4 cup olive oil (EVOO)
1 tsp salt

Put all ingredients in a food processor and process until chopped finely and well blended. This Basic Basil Pesto may be frozen, as is, in airtight containers for future use.

If you like to add nuts to your pesto, roast 1/3 -1/2 cup of pine nuts or walnuts and add them to the processor with the other ingredients and process.

Parmesan cheese can also be added if desired. I leave the cheese out and add it later if my recipe calls for it. Pesto made with nuts or cheese can also be frozen for later use.

I also added the roasted tomatoes to a small batch of my pesto in the processor for a Roasted Tomato Basil Pesto. Sun dried tomatoes can be substituted if you don’t have any fresh tomatoes that you need to use.

My freezer now contains three variations of the Basic Basil Pesto. For a dairy-free, nut-free option to use in any recipe calling for basil and garlic, I have plenty of Basic Basil Pesto. I also have some Basic Basil Pesto with Pine Nuts for pastas and sauces. I always add more pine nuts when preparing those dishes. I made a small batch of Roasted Tomato Basil Pesto just for a little variety. All can be used for sauces and soups and to make dips and cheese spreads. Any variety of Basil Pesto makes a delicious savory topping for Brie as an alternative to some of the sweet toppings on baked Brie. This basic Basil Pesto can be diluted with olive oil and flavorful vinegars for pastas and salads.

Don’t forget the roasted garlic. It is delicious as a spread for garlic bread mixed with a little butter, as a dip for fresh bread mixed with olive oil and a little basil pesto. Squeeze fresh from the clove onto an arugula salad with pine nuts and parmesan cheeses and a little oil and balsamic vinaigrette dressing for a sweet garlicky treat.

One Bowl Brownies (with a little extra)

Yield: About 3 dozen

½ cup butter or margarine (1 stick)
2 cups (12 oz package) Semi Sweet Chocolate Chips, divided
½ cup white chocolate chips
1 ¼ cups sugar
1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
3 eggs
1 cup chopped walnuts or 1 cup peanut butter chips

Heat oven to 350 F. Grease 13” x 9” x 2” baking pan.

Place butter and 1 cup chocolate chips in a large microwave-safe bowl. Microwave at HIGH 1 to 1 ½ minutes or until chips are melted when stirred.

Add sugar, flour, vanilla, baking powder, salt and eggs and stir until batter is smooth.

Stir in remaining 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips and white chocolate chips.

Spread batter into prepared baking pan.

Sprinkle walnuts or peanut butter chips over top. If you would like to use both, cut the amount of each by ⅓ and sprinkle evenly over the top.

Bake 30 minutes or until center is set. Cool completely and cut into bars.