Your Spring Baking Guide

With Easter ,Orthodox Easter and Passover coming soon, home bakers are probably gearing up for all sorts of baking. Make sure the kitchen is prepared, with the right ingredients and pans. It'll make holiday baking that much easier during these hectic days.

Passover start April 19th which is  only a few days away. It''s time to sell or throw out all flour and use ground matzoh. It's also time to buy cocoa powder and honey. Potato starch is another must have because it's used as a thickener in cakes and brownies.Another ingredient in many savory and sweet Seder dishes is matzoh farfel. These are small pellets made from egg noodle dough and is frequently toasted before being used. Also have egg noodles on the ready too, for kugel Make sure there is also fresh fruit such as apples and bananas for baking. Easter follows on Sunday the 21st. This is the time for all those lamb and Easter egg cakes. These cakes can either be made with mixes or by scratch. If you use mixes then make sure you not only have eggs but also oil, either vegetable or canola. The lamb cakes come out perfectly if Dream Whip is added to the mix so have those boxes on hand. (there are two packs to a box).If you go the scratch cake route, there's the need for flour and the leaveners such as baking soda and baking powder. Vegan cakes require corn starch and in some recipe , apple cider vinegar. Make sure you have both. The vinegar can also be used in egg dying and , salads. The lamb cake requires mini skewers in the neck to hold the head on. Please have these. Without them your creation will look like a victim of the French Revolution.

Of course these, along with those Easter cupcakes and cookies have to be decorated. The lamb cake requires five to six cups of confectioners sugar. Here I recommend buying the two pound bags  instead of boxes of it. There's also the need for butter or margarine sticks along with vegetable shortening. Country Crock also has butter flavored sticks that make for a rich tasting frosting. Remember to also have food coloring ad if you're planning on making an Easter egg cake , then add colored sugar and sprinkles to the list. These will be used to create the stripes and dots along with zigzags on the cake. If you're baking Easter egg cookies, then  make sure you have gel icing tubes, the ones used for writing on cakes. These can create perfect lines and polka dots on cookies.  You can also buy white and pastel chocolates for melting and then drizzling onto the cookie tops. If you're also thinking about making cake pops, then make sure you have sticks for them. Both the Greek and Russian Easters center around homemade sweet breads. Again, it's vital that you have yeast along with raisins and candied citrus for flavoring.

Spring holiday season is upon us. Make sure you have all your ingredients to create the perfect cakes and sweets. They will be as memorable as the holidays themselves.

The Many Facets Of Egg Noodles

Egg noodles have been a kitchen staple forever. Many of our mother's and grandmother's recipes centered around them. They're still as versatile and delicious as ever. They could be the main dish or part of a side.They can even be used in desserts.Egg noodles are what you make them whether in savory or sweet dishes.

Egg noodles originated in China not in Europe as many would believe. They were first made about  4000 years ago and preserved ones were unearthed at Lajia in Quinghai ,China in 2005. They made their way to Europe where most German and Scandinavian households used them on a regular basis. Egg noodles were in savory dishes, sopping up gravy and providing the carb part of the meal. German Jews used the noodles in sweet dishes such as kugel.They're different from pasta in the sense of whole  eggs or egg yolks mixed with wheat flour and then boiled in water. Pasta can come with or without eggs. Sometimes olive oil and vegetables can be incorporated in the recipe. Noodles are generally one length and shape while the other,as we all know, comes in avariety of shapes and sizes. Like pasta, egg noodles can be bought or made at home. It's just taking two cups of flour and mixing ot with one teaspoon of salt and one teaspoon of baking powder . Two whole eggs are added and this is what gives the noodles their rich , sunny color.Half a cup of milk is added as well.It's left to sit for half an hour before rolling out. You can use a pasta machine to make them or a knife.It's then dropping them into boiling waiter for two to four minutes.

Whether they're home made or store bought egg noodles are a great base for so many dishes. The Swabian Germans from southwest Germany cook boiled ones with eggs for Lent. This traditional and delicious dish also has sliced peaches  on the side to cut the intensity of the eggs.Germans also use them with meat and gravy recipes. They can be used instead of the traditional spaetzle, a kind of noodle itself. Another delicious recipe is beef tips and gravy over egg noodles. The noodles' mildness is the perfect foil for the beef's and sauce's strong flavors.Try them with either beef or chicken paprikash, the famed Austrian dish, known for its spicy ' paprika sauce. Of course egg noodles taste their best in chicken soup. Nothing beats a homemade one, thick with those luscious eggy, strands and hearty chicken chunks. You can also think out of the box and put the noodles in a minestrone for a chunkier version of the original recipe. Egg noodles have a sweet side. They give body to cinnamon laced sweet casserole along with providing the base.  A lush one involves egg noodles,cherries and sour cream baked together for  truly rich dessert.

Egg noodles are a versatile staple every pantry and kitchen should have. They're easy to use and easy to create hearty dinners and desserts. Make them, buy them but definitely use them in your next dish.,

Easter And Passover Catered Or Home Cooked?

Nothing beats a holiday with a table full of food and tradition especially the. Easter and Passover ones. With them comes the question of catered or home cooked? Would it better and easier on the home chef if the whole brunch or dinner was cooked? Or are family recipes important and vital in keeping up tradition?

Easter may be the easier dinner - especially in the States - to have catered. Every family has different traditions. Southern Italians and Greeks are the most traditional, cooking and baking foods and bread recipes that have been passed down for centuries.Everyone else usually just makes ham and a few sides.Some groceries such as Acme and Stop & Shop will work with you to create the perfect holiday dinner. They'll offer sliced ham and/or turkey along with sides such as potato  and macaroni salads along with throwing in a festive Easter cake.Easter brunch is always popular and there are shops and caterers who will bring in such brunch favorites as quiche, scrambled eggs and even French toast.Of course, all of this can be made at home and there is a lot of control as to the ingredients. If you don't want an elaborate Easter meal, then think of a German style one.It's a roast ham with do it yourself potato salad and handcrafted baked beans. All these are labor intensive but the homemade taste is worth it. Dessert can be a simple lamb, bunny or egg shaped cake, and again these can be baked on Holy Saturday.

Passover is a bit trickier because there are strict family traditions involved.  Some Kosher markets can cater the entire menu, creating even better versions of tsimme  - a sweet stew of carrots and dried fruit and charoset - the sweet paste of apples, cinnamon, and raisins, symbolizing the mortar used in building the pyramids. Many caterers will offer such traditonal dishes as kugel but with a hip twist such as broccoli and spinach added.The main courses could be an entire brisket or roast chicken or both if you're hosting a crowd. caterers can also supply chopped liver and gefilte fish too. yet there is something in making decades old family recipe too.Relatives may want the family version of charoset which is not only rich in flavor but also stories too. They also make want just your matzoh ball soup, because of the way you make the balls or because you add scallions for bite and color. Unlike Easter, Passover lasts  a week and you could easily cook one night and have the second night seder catered. It's up to you and what you can handle.

Catering or home cooked? What makes for a better holiday meal. It's up to you and what you want.