Rosh Hashanah A Global Menu

 There will always be Rosh Hashanah in the world. Yet where you celebrate  may be different Depending upon the country, various ingredients are used to bring in the new year.It could be ripe pomegranates or exotic spices. A global feast awaits with various colors and flavors.

Exotic dishes abound in both the Sephardic and Mizrahi branches of Judaism. Sephardic are the Mediterra nean Jews of Morocco, Greece, Italy, Spain, and Portugal. The Morrocans feature the savory red snapper stew cooked  in  a sauce of garlic, turmeric, saffron and bell peppers. The fish head is also included to symbolize the head and not the tail. They use the Mediterranean staple preserved lemons along with cilantro as well. Another dish that's both sweet and savory is tanzia, a caramelized fruit and onion topping served over rice or couscous.Moroccans use such dried fruit as aprocits, prunes, dates and raisins, simmered with date syrup or honey and spiced with cinnamon and ginger. The dinner ends with melt away cinnamon cookies.fluffy honey drenched cookies made with cinnamon and almond flour. Syrian Jews celebrate with kibbit yatkeen , pumpkin patties and rice stuffed Swiss chard.

Italian Jews have a different spin on Rosh Hashanah. Their main meal is chicken with fruit. Autumn fruits such as plums, grapes and apples make up the sauce. There is also zucca sfranta in forno baked mashed squash. Onion, basil and parsley give it a distinct flavor. There are also sfratti, honey walnut stick cookies that when cut resemble Fig Newtons.Greek and Turkish Jews have keftes de prasa or leek patties, Cinnamon, and black pepper along with nutmeg spice them up.They also make and bake pastelicos, ground lamb filled pastries similar to kreplach. Calabaza or a public pastry finishes the meal.Iraqi and Temeni Jews also have spiced foods Iraquis make apple jam to be served with squash. There's also a sour soup with meat dumplings. Swiss chard is layered with rice and beef as a main course. The Yemeni make a beef and white bean soup made with the traditional Yemeni spice blend hawaj., black, pepper, coriander and cumin.There are sweet quinces and dates with sesame seed to eat too.

Rosh Hashanah is an international holiday. ALl over the world it's greeted with savory and sweet dishes. It's the perfect way to greet the New Year.

Honey For All Seasons

 Honey is a big part of Rosh Hashanah.Eating it represents a sweet new year .It's also a vital part of fall baking and cooking too. It has it's benefits as well along with having an earthy sweet flavor - the perfect addition to any recipe.

What exactly is honey? In rough terms bee vomit which is stockpiled in the hive in  a wax structure called a honeycomb. The bees regurgitate in the honeycombs' thousands of cells where it's then stored. The sweet's thick and viscous texture comes from water evaporation thus producing a type of syrup. Honey can be gotten from both wild and domesticated bee coloniest has many uses , including acting as a kind of antispeptic . YOu could use it on wounnds if there are no bandaids around. Sugar is known to have an osmotic effects, drawing water out of surrounding tissues.It also reduces swelling and encourages fluid from lymph nodes to heal the wound. However honey is best in different recipes and even some cocktails. What kind should you buy? There are eight varieties that can suit your needs. Most stores sell wildlfower honey which is a blend of different wildflowers to make it. This can be used in baking, especially apple recipes along with  -  surprisinly tomato sauce. The honey gives th e sauce a rich earthy sweetness that paired perfectly with the savory ingredients. Another popular honey is clover honey. This has a light , sweet taate that's perfect for baking, marinades or just adding to tea or oatmeal. There is also eucalyptus from Austrailia and orange blossom honey , another popular kind. 

Since it's the start of the Jewish New Year a honey cake recipe is the perfect recipe for the weekend. Try one that also has strong black tea along with cinnamon and nutmeg blended in for a unique flavor. Any kind of honey would work here but if you want it to give it a light flavor then go with the clover. A lovely fall treat are honey cupcakes with salted honey icing . You cna use fresh  honey from your local farm for both the cake and the frosting or one with some flavor like the orange blossom. Don;t use raw honey or it could liquify and ruin the texture of both. Honey cookies are an unusual but tasty treat to make. They have a light  flavor , perfect with tea or coffee .They'd also make a good addition to any fall brunch as well. Honey can also be an ingredient in apple pies too. Use it instead of sugar to sweeten. Again a light clover based one works well.  you could also create a healthy apple cake that uses the sweet instead of sugar. This is also the season for roasts , especially for ham. use a honey baked glaze rich also with fresh orange juice,  and brown sugar for one. Honey is an excellent glaze for chicken , especially Cornish hens,

Start the year off with honey. Begin autumn with a wide range of delicious honey recipes.it's the perfect ingredient to try with both sweet and savory fall dishes.

A Marriage Of Old And New Rosh Hashanah Dishes

 The Jewish New Year is upon us and it's a time to celebrate with the traditional. It's also a time to embrace the new as well. Both ideas can also mean the Rosh Hashanah table, with a marriage of family recipes along with introducing different dishes. This will make for a more interesting meal.

Brisket has always been the centerpiece of the holiday table. It's been enjoyed  for generations, usually braised. Many will cook ones with onions added, to give it a sweet and earthy flavor. A sweet and sour sauce , with crushed tomatoes, brown sugar and garlic, can also be used. More adventurous cooks can try rubs such as a garlic and onion rub or ones spiked  with chile powder. Chicken is another choice to try for the holiday. Think of making it with cinnamon and apples for that touch of sweetness that represents a sweet new year. Another recipe that's a blend of sweet and savory is  one made with pomegranate or cranberry juice along with Granny Smith apples and the traditional ingredient of honey. Cayenne pepper is added for bite and kick.This calls for the chicken to be cut into pieces and cooked in a Dutch oven.Every family has vegans and they should be considered into the equation as well.Think tofu, zested up with cumin and ginger Moroccan  style. This is an easy dish, with first cooking the tofu, then setting it aside to create a sauce redolent with onions , garlic and scallions. Almonds and apricots are added for crunch and sweetness.

Side dishes are just as important as the main ones. If the family insists on traditional then think tzimmes, but maybe with a slight twist. Try a trio of yams, sweet potatoes, and carrots, cooked in orange juice, honey and chicken broth.If it's too sweet add a sprinkle of flaky sea salt to cut the sugar. Salads can also be incorporated into the dinner. Use the super green of the moment - kale mixed with pomegranate seeds covered with an almond halvah (!) dressing. For crunch and zing try the Sephardic Jewish  inspired lemon fried cauliflower .This is breading the boiled florets in a breadcrumb batter and then frying them in oil. They are then drenched with lemon juice to cut the oiliness.Carrots are a big part of any Rosh Hashanah meal. Roast baby ones with olive oil, honey,  and orange zest. They can be also served with basmati rice , spiked with raisins and almonds. This is also a good main dish for vegans too.  How to end the meal? With the traditional honey cake. The timeless recipe is spiced with cloves and allspice but it can be modernized with coffee and even whiskey (!) It can even be baked into cupcakes Decorate with dried apple slices and drizzles of honey.

Rosh Hashanah is a time of celebrating the new while holding on to tradition. Create a holiday meal that reflects this. Use old and new recipes to create a unique New Year's dinner.

Brisket For The Holiday

With the holidays coming up within the week, it's a good time to look at what to serve. One of the staples of any Rosh Hashanah  table is brisket. This classic cut is versatile and can also be made for any fall dinner. Make it in a variety of ways.

What is brisket exactly? It's breast meat from the cow and it can be tough. The reason why is that the meat  serves as the cow's collarbone - mostly comprised of muscles and connective tissue. This does make it ideal for barbecuing and many home chefs only cook it this way. However, it is also ideal for a slow cooker and of course, braising. Before doing all this the perfect cut needs to be bought. What should a home chef look for? A really white layer of fat. The whiter the better because it indicates that the cow has been grain  fed.Stay away from any that have yellowing fat. A dark butter hue  means that the meat is older along with indicating  that there is more gristle to deal with when cooking and eating. The meat should be a dark red color. Another must is good marbling . Look for a cut that has an equal amount of fat and flesh  veining it. The last thing to do is picking up the meat  and its' package and bending them. The cut  should be flexible and the plastic wrap should not have any tears, rips, or holes. The ideal place to buy a brisket is the local butcher's however if there's none within your area, then go for the supermarket. Most groceries usually have pretty good cuts and a variety of sizes to choose from too.

Now what to do with it. David Tanis gave an excellent recipe for it in Wednesday's New York Times Food section. He first rubs it with a fiery mix of cayenne and paprika blended with salt and  pepper. After doing this, wrap it in Saran wrap and then refrigerate preferably overnight but it can also sit for a few hours too.It is then cooked in a 300 degree F oven . Pour a cup of either red or white wine over it  then add cloves, garlic bayleaf  and  allspice berries. Mr. Tanis scatters sliced onions over it and bakes it forth ree hours until tender. He also caramelizes more  onions  and ladles them over the brisket once its' sliced.. If this is too "onion.y" for you, then omit them.Scallions can be sprinkled on top for more flavor.  For a different taste try a sweet and sour version in which ketchup and brown sugar is used.Cook the brisket in a Dutch oven or skillet and then adding the two along with water, cider vinegar, and two sliced onions. This last  creates a sauce that's then ladled over the brisket slices.It can be refrigerated and reheated  too., although eating it freshly cooked is preferred. Serve any brisket with carrots, celery and potatoes.

Brisket is a nice way of welcoming in Rosh Hashanah. It is the centerpiece of the holiday table and works well with any cooking method. Celebrate with a good  cut ,delicious on its' own or with onions ad other vegetables./

The Rosh Hashanah Feast

The fall holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are arriving in the upcoming week. It's a  time of celebrating the new year as well as atoning and fasting.. The first holy day is a day of feasting , and wishing prosperity to others.Families and friends get together to enjoy a meal as they welcome in another year

A must for the holiday is having something sweet at the table. One of the most traditional dishes is apples dipped in honey. This was taken from 12th Century Ashkenazi Jews of Eastern Europe and is widely accepted worldwide.Pears could be used too, as they're in harvest right now. Many first courses combine the savory and sweet. Melissa Clark marries chicken with figs for her holiday main course as seen in her A Good Appetite column in Wednesday's New York Times Food section.She also gives it bite thanks to Serrano chiles added for color and heat. Many home chefs pair chicken with pomegranates. The last represents fertility and prosperity as well.Fish heads are also served. This symbolizes the prayer "Let us be the head and not the tail." Gefilte or stuffed fish can be served however the tradition can be bent. Try pesce al Ebraica, fish cooked in the Jewish tradition.It''s taking any white fleshed fish such as cod and haddock, Sole could be used too.It's making a marinade out of olive oil, honey and vinegar along with salt.Raisins and pine nuts are then scattered over the fish and its' baked for only twenty minutes. Parsley is then sprinkled on it.

The holiday meal is also about sides as well. Honey glazed carrots are always a Rosh Hashanah staple. They're  the easiest to make,it's first simmering the roots in water and then cooking them in a glaze of honey , butter and brown sugar. Cinnamon is added for spice as are raisins.Carrots can also be turned into tzimmes,This stew also highlights yams and sweet potatoes along with  dried apples and cranberries Chopped pitted prunes are another ingredient that gives the dish color., Black eyed peas are also traditional and add a nice nuttiness to the holiday feast. Serve these just with melted butter or margarine. Spinach is another new year's food. Served just boiled with salt and margarine.A more refreshing way is having it fresh in  a salad, along with eggs, pomegranate seeds, and walnuts. Dessert plays an important part too. Regular contributor to the New York Times Food section, Joan Nathan lent an  apple cider honey cake recipe, coming from Chef Alex Levin of Washington's Osteria Morini. It's his grandmother's who was Craig Claiborne's expert on Jewish cuisine,It's made with apple cider butter, a homemade mix of butter, Granny Smith apples, apple cider, butter and brown sugar. The cake recipe has the extra filip of whiskey. The finished product is simply dusted with confectioner's sugar and served.

Rosh Hashanah is the new year coming in. Celebrate it with traditional and symbolic foods. Enjoy with family and friends.

Feasting With Meaning

Feasting usually means a meal full of lush food and drink, with all sorts of revelry to follow. Yet there  is also a religious aspect to it, a facet that gets pushed aside.Old Testament readers will know  about these, along with their meanings and place in yearly celebrations.For those who don't there's a brand new book to aid in deciphering each feast.

Sonya A. Mozingo is the author of that book, A Year Of Feasting:Manual On The Seven Feasts Of God, Seen From a Christian Messanic  Jewish Perspective(2016 Archway Publishing). This is not the usual cookbook that has recipes for Passover or Succot. It's an explanation of the different feasts  occurring throughout the calendar. The author had many years of troubles before she turned to religion to help reunite her family and give her purpose in life. Feasting and celebrating has helped her understand basically why we are on this earth and what is our purpose in the eternal scheme of things.Ms. Mozinga explains foods' symbolism and their connection to a particular dinner. For those looking into a deeper historical meaning, with Old Testament references, this is not the book for you. The preparations and rituals are explained in simple terms. This is a great book for churches and youth groups who want to have interfaith celebrations. It can be used as a template when conducting services as well.

So, are there even any recipes in this book on feasting? Yes, but not in the traditional cookbook sense. Ms. Mozinga gives broad ones. For example,  the Feast of Pentecost or Shavout , there are the traditional loaves of wheat bread mentioned along with the individual cups of mixed herbs  blended with oil and vinegar.Tables also have trays of barley, olives figs, pomegranate and and grapes. Then there's a mention of cheesecake from Sam's Club. It would have been nice to have a home made  cheesecake recipe, perhaps one flavored with pomegranate juice or figs. Rosh Hashanah has the traditional apples dipped in honey along with a loaf of challah bread and a tray  of sweet potato muffins. There are also carrot, dishes integral to the ceremony, Again, it would have been nice if Ms. Mozingo had included a challah recipe or a salad one for the carrots., The Passover feast is pretty exact. Celebrants must have unleavened bread or matzoh, along with maror or bitter herbs. There is also matzoh ball soup but she recommends getting packets at Harris Teeter, a local Southern grocery chain, I would have liked to have seen at least one matzoh ball soup recipe and some variations on it.

A Year of  Feasting :Manual On The seven Feasts of God is an excellent book fr those wishing to recreate the different Jewish feasts .This book shows how Judaism  has always influenced Christianity and how the two are interwoven. Buy this book,, its' more food for the soul and spirit than it is for the body.

New Spins On New Year's Foods

Rosh Hashanah begins on Sunday night .It is a new year full of old recipes, lovingly passed down for generations. Sometimes, though, it pays to add a touch of the new . Nothing livens up a holiday meal than a new spin that guests and family will love.

Both Melissa Clark and David Tanis realized this and made it the center of their respective columns in today's New York Times Food section. Ms. Clark decided to make a roast chicken with plums for her menu and column A Good Appetite. which is a spin on serving something sweet for the New Year. This ensures tht the upcoming twelve months will be sweet .This can be cloying if done wrong. There has to be a balance as sweet and savory play off each other. For this Ms. Clark uses a roast chicken flavored with red sumac a , spice popular in Middle Eastern and Greek cooking. This is not derived from the tree but is a tart, bright red berry that is dried and ground up into a powder.Ms. Clark uses it as part of a garlicky rub for the chicken. She roasts two in a large roasting pan with a rack, the kind used for roasting Thanksgiving turkeys.  Cooking underneath, and absorbing the sumac infused drippings are the plums, cut up to make a kind of chutney. Cinnamon is added to the rub and the plums to tie it all together. It's a perfect way of adding sweetness without it being too overwhelming.

David Tanis also contributes a family favorite in his A City Kitchen column. It's his Aunt Edith's apple kuchen ,It is an easy bake  with the recipe similar to a coffee cake.It's a quickly made batter too, topped with any kind of fruit , sprinkled with sugar and then baked,Mr Tanis tweaked the recipe by adding candied ginger and a touch of honey to the batter and giving the cake a honey glaze. New crop apples give it texture and fruitness. Home bakers could sub in pears, another fall fruitjust coming into ripeness.,, for the apple and the ginger can be nixed  for a milder tasting cake. The honey glaze can be kept and for a more fallish taste, try wildflower honey. It is a bit richer than other cakes thanks to the  three whole eggs along with a stick of butter however it is a holiday cake so  it can be indulgent. Margarine could be subbed in but then the cake loses its' rich buttery flavor. The apples and honey are a spin on a Rosh Hashanah tradition of dipping slices in a bowl of honey to ensure a sweet year.

The new year is a time for honoring traditions and new hopes. These recipes are like that, a combination of the old embracing the new. They are a delicious way of welcoming in Rosh Hashanah.

New Spins On The New Year

Rosh Hashanah starts this Wednesday, and with it comes the tradition arrays of both sweet and savory foods?Both add great symbolism to the meal.Yet there's no law or rule that says the both can be combined.New traditions can be made by varying centuries old recipes to create new ones.They will still adhere to tradition , but will also add a twist to the holiday table. Both Melissa Clark and Joan Nathan decided to do this in separate articles in yesterday's New York Times Dining section. Mr. Clark takes her A Good Appetite column to show a usual holiday favorite ,roast chicken, and gives it both a spicy and sweet flavor.It is always served at this meal, usually smeared on challah bread and apple slices.Ms Clark will do this but will also add it to a marinade for the poultry. The marinade also has orange juice for more flavor and sweetness but zings in red pepper flakes for an untraditional spin.Mustard is also added as well.A traditional side is tzimmes ,a baked vegetable dish that features carrots or sweet potatoes that have been coated with orange juice and then tossed with dried fruit,Her take is throw the veggies in with the chicken to marinate and then cook all together.She also adds onions too,a vegetable not normally associated with Rosh Hashanah. Another Dining writer, regular' Joan Nathan, goes to a far country, Uzbekistan, for an interesting dish that could could work at any event.It is a rice dish ,similar to pilaf and called plov.The dish is actually a national dish here in this country once part of the famed Silk Road.It has all the components of a holiday dinner,with beef and carrots. Plov calls for a pound and a half of medium grained rice and Ms. Nathan recommends Kukoho Rose variety, usually used for sushi.(although some may want to use brown rice) for a better dish.Barberries are added in, a nod to the area's Middle Eastern roots.Barberries are always added to rice dishes in the Uzbek region.They give the plov a sharp tang that cuts the carrots' sweetness.Cayenne and cumin are added ,a touch of exoticism and a nod to the Spice Route.For Rosh Hashanah pomegranate seeds are tossed over the finished dish.It is not exclusively made just for this holiday,It can be made for birthdays and engagements too. Home chefs can use traditional Rosh Hashanah dishes to bring in the New Year.They can also mix it up by trying these dishes and breathe new life into their holidays.The dishes have a touch of sweetness and something more

Foods For The New Year

Tomorrow night is the start of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish  New Year.Its a time of celebrating and welcoming in new harvests.It;s also a time to ensure luck by serving special dishes with meaning. . These have been handed down for centuries, and eaten with the same relish and hope that their ancestors had. Each is special.

The Jews like to start with something sweet to ensure a sweet year. This is often honey dipped in their delicious egg bread challah.This last is baked either in a braided shape or in spirals or rounds to symbolize the continuity of Creation. Sometimes raisins or honey is added to the dough for extra sweetness. Children , whether at home or at school,get treated to apple slices dipped in honey. Another specialty is honey cake itself, more of a spice cake thanks to addition of cloves, cinnamon and allspice,.New fruit is also on the Rosh Hashanah  table as well and it has to be the first fruit , untasted of the season. This is usually the desert pomegranate because its' many seeds are an allegory to good deeds that will be done in the upcoming year. Fish too is eaten for fertility.

The holiday is also full of special recipes as well. Many households prefer to have brisket served with carrots,Carrots are another holiday food with special meaning as well. Some create tzimmes, baked and sweetened carrots. Like brisket recipes these vary from family to family. Some add honey as a sweetener while others use chopped prunes or even a sprinkle of cinnamon. A roasted chicken is another holiday favorite. Again making it involves an element of sweetness This time again with cinnamon and apples.Since fish symbolizes fertility , many young couples opt for it.  Try a fish stew with cod and haddock or stick with the traditional gefilte or stuffed fish.

A new year will be coming it and with it foods to both celebrate and symbolize it's arrival and meaning. What is eaten  is a connection to a past rich with culture and history. The foods also symbolize a bright , sweet and prosperous year ahead. too.