The sweet crispness of watermelon combined with salty feta cheese, a dash of cumin, lemon juice, salt and pepper takes this fruit to a whole new level.I was very skeptical about this salad and was in for a pleasant surprise.

This salad really needs no recipe.

• Cut half a watermelon into wedges.
• In a small bowl, whisk  a teaspoon of vinegar, ½ tsp of extra virgin olive oil, salt, pepper, ½ a tsp lemon juice and 1 tsp of cumin powder . Drizzle over watermelon
• Crumble feta cheese over and if you have some roasted pumpkin seeds, sprinkle a few and serve chilled.

Try this salad and you will definitely want more. Make sure you use good quality olive oil for this salad. I am coming almost to the end of cooking my way through Marlena ‘s cookbook, next Sunday will be the last of the two recipes.

Eileen and Mel have something special for you as well

I found that  sky is the limit when it comes to flavoring couscous. You can make a simple salad to something elaborate like pilaf. Here is what I did, this was basically cleaning up my pantry kinda dish.  Israeli couscous look like tapioca, and should be cooked like we cook pasta.

Israeli Couscous – 1 cup

Olive oil – 1 T

Vegetable stock – 2 cups

Cranberries – 1 T

Roasted Almonds – 2 T, chopped

Salt & pepper to taste

• Heat a sauce pan with olive oil and toast the couscous until it changes color (just a slight change)
• Add the stock, when it comes to a boil, reduce to simmer and close the pan with a lid for roughly 12- 15 minutes.
• Test to see if it cooked, and add more liquid if needed.
• Fold in the almonds and cranberries, add salt & pepper if needed and serve.

The nuttiness of the toasted couscous compliments the nuts and cranberries. For the next round, I wilted some spinach and added that in the end.

Sunday with Marlena Spieler

Cholent is a long simmered dish with beans, grain, meat, vegetables and seasonings. A healthy and yet tasty soup like dish in a bowl. This is a Shabbat dish, a day that no cooking is done in the kitchen. Cholent is put together on Friday and allowed so simmer overnight, such that it is ready for lunch on Saturday after one comes from the synagogue, the house will be filled with the aroma of the dish being simmered. I decided to use a slow cooker for this recipe and also substitute chicken for beef.  On reading the history of cholent, we found that it was traditionally made with garbanzo beans, barley, chicken and vegetables. Here is my version

Oil – 1 T

Onions – 1 cup, chopped

Garlic – 10 cloves, minced

Chicken thighs – 1 lb

Garbanzo beans – 1 cup, dry soaked overnight

Barley – ½ cup

Wild rice – ½ cup

Red Potato – 2 , each chopped in 4

Celery – 3 sticks, cut in large chunks

Carrot – 2, peeled and cut in rounds

Tomato – 14 oz can, chopped tomatoes

Paprika – 1 T

Cayenne- 1 T or to taste

Salt & Pepper to taste

Water- 4- 5 cups

• Heat a skillet with oil and saute the onions until it translucent and add garlic and cook for 30 – 45 seconds
• Rinse the garbanzo beans before adding it to the slow cooker
• Transfer to a slow cooker and add the rest of the ingredients and give it a stir.
• Set the slow cooker on high for an hour and then change the setting to low and let it cook for 6-8 hours.
• Check for seasonings and serve

Please check what Mel & Eileen have for us.

Variations: You can add fresh herbs right in the end.

Add a dash of ground cumin before you serve.

Sunday with Marlena Spieler

I have heard a lot of folks mention that they do not like beetroot and always wonder why? I love beetroot salads, beetroot halwa and beetroot steamed and seasoned with mustard seeds and a tiny bit of coconut. This recipe is a lot different from what I am used to and was surprised at how delicious it tastes with simple ingredients that you will most definitely have at home. We used pomegranate flavored balsamic vinegar for this salad.

Beetroot – 4

Balsamic Vinegar – ½ tsp

Olive oil – ½ tsp

Mint Leaves – 3 T, cut thinly

Salt & pepper to taste

• Cut the beetroot in half and steam for about 20 minutes.
• Peel and cut into small dice.
• In a small bowl, whisk  balsamic vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper
• Pour the dressing over the beetroot and mix it well.
• Garnish with mint leaves and serve chilled.

If you want add a kick to this, you can finish with a dash of harissa. Mel has a recipe for harissa. Eileen also  has an awesome salad.

The earliest memories I have of Barley is my dad asking amma to make him Barley water. As kids, we would shun away from it. My mom would incorporate barley water in vegetable soup and I would slurp on it happily clueless that it had barley water. But now, I embrace it. I have made chicken Barley soup and this is the next one I made. It is a rustic soup, kinda.

I made a few variations to the soup depending on what I  had in the pantry. It was pouring heavily and the day called for soup, but not venturing out of the house to go grocery shopping. I have used the split peas, left over wild rice and barley in this soup. Feel free to use some of your left over beans in the pantry that you have very little of and don’t know what to do with them. Beans and barley slow cooked with mire poix and garlic, garnished with parsley is just what you want on a rainy day.

Olive oil – 1 T

Onion – 1 chopped

Celery – 3 sticks, chopped

Carrots – 2 , peeled and cut in rounds

Potato – 1, peeled and cut in big chunks

Garlic cloves – 3, minced

Wild rice – ¼ cup

Barley – ¼ cup

Green Split peas – ¼ cup

Yellow split peas – ¼ cup

Water – 4 to 5 cups

Canned cranberry beans – 1 can (14 oz)

Salt and pepper to taste

Parsley – 1 tsp, finely chopped

• Heat oil in a Dutch oven and when the oil is hot, add onions, carrot and celery.
• Saute for 3-4 minutes and then add the minced garlic and give it a quick stir.
• Add all of the grains, salt, pepper and water and bring it to a quick boil, reduce to medium low and cover it with a lid
• Let it cook for about 40- 45 minutes or until the peas, barley and rice are well cooked
• Open the lid, add cranberry beans and let it simmer for 10 more minutes.
• If the soup is too thick for your taste, add another additional cup of water and adjust seasonings
• Garnish with parsley and celery leaves and a sprinkle of cayenne.

Variations:

• Marlena’s recipe calls for dried mushrooms. Use dried or fresh mushrooms
• I think this can easily be made into a slow cooker recipe.
• Use vegetables that are in season.

Check  what Mel and Eileen have cooked for you

Salad Dressing

Sesame Oil – 1/2 cup

Juice of 1 clementine

Ginger – 1/2 tsp, minced

Soy sauce – 1 T

Chilli garlic sauce – 1 T

Peanut Butter – 3 T

Sherry Wine Vinegar- 1 T

Honey – 1 tsp

Sesame seeds – 1 tsp, toasted

• Whisk all of the ingredients in a bowl or pulse a couple of times in a blender
• Taste and check for seasonings and adjust to suit your taste
• Garnish with toasted sesame seeds.

If you don’t like sesame oil, use vegetable oil and add just a tablespoon of sesame oil for flavor.

We added orange segments, chopped almonds, a few dried cranberries (just because it was staring at me in the pantry, crying to be used) to our greens along with thinly sliced mushrooms. Add shredded chicken too if you like.  This took exactly 10 minutes to put together.

Variations:

• Reduce the amount of oil and increase the peanut butter a little bit for an Asian inspired vegetable dip.
• Marinate your meats in it and grill, basting with the sauce

Sunday with Marlena Spieler

The first time I ever had coleslaw was at KFC. After eating some really gross oily chicken, coleslaw was a welcome diversion.  I have later had some really kick ass coleslaw and wondered how I liked the other one. Ah well, I guess it was not as gross as the chicken.

This was the first time we have made coleslaw at home and boy we were happy with the results. Rajesh made some spicy hot wings as well. The wings were wickedly good and the coleslaw complimented it very well. If you are very lazy you can always buy a bag of coleslaw mix (cabbage & carrots grated). But it really does not take too much time. If you have a food processor that you bought thinking you will use it and never did, now is the time to take that baby out.

Cabbage – 1 cup, thinly shredded

Carrots – ½ cup, grated

Red Bell Pepper – ¼ cup, finely chopped

Celery Sticks – ½ cup, finely chopped

Raisins – 3 T

White Vinegar – 1 T

Sugar – 2 T

Mayonnaise – ¼ cup or less

Salt & Pepper to taste

A dash of tobasco (optional)

• Place the cabbage, carrots, bell pepper, celery and raisins in a salad bowl.
• In a small bowl whisk the vinegar and sugar, salt & pepper together.
• Pour that over the salad and toss well. Set it aside for an hour or so.
• Stir as much Mayonnaise as you need, just enough to bring it all together.
• Add a dash of tobasco and check for seasonings.
• Drain any excess liquid before you serve.

The recipe called for green bell peppers, onion and celery seeds. If you are not a big fan of mayonnaise, use yogurt with a dash of lemon juice instead.

Eileen and Mel have some interesting recipes for you as well.

Sunday With Marlena Spieler

You either love cabbage or you hate it. Can you tell we love it? We cooked braised cabbage with apples in class yesterday and that was one of my favorites.  We had white and red cabbage at home. With one we made coleslaw and the other this salad. Coincidentally, the Jewish also love their cabbage and was almost the vegetable the Ashkenazim says Marlena. Garam masala gives it a kick we liked, it gives it a little bit of heat and the tanginess from the vinegar balances the dish very well.

Red Cabbage – 2 cups, thinly shredded

Red Bell Pepper – ½ , finely chopped

Red wine Vinegar – 1 T

Sugar – 1 T

Greek God Yogurt (plain) – ½ cup

Garam Masala – 1/8^th tsp

Raisins – 1 to 2 T

Salt & pepper to taste

Optional

Mayonnaise – ½ cup

Red onion – ¼ cup, thinly sliced

• Place the cabbage and bell pepper in a salad bowl
• In a small pan heat the vinegar and sugar until the sugar melts completely
• Pour over the salad and allow it to cool
• In a small bowl, whisk rest of the ingredients and combine well with the salad
• Chill the salad and serve cold.
• Before you serve strain the excess liquid.

You can make a sandwich or a wrap using this salad too!

Mel & Eileen have some tasty delights for you.

You ask how in the world does Candied lemon peel get incorporated in this recipe? Read on . This  journey of cooking through Marlena’s cookbook is a truly a world tour. We travel through different countries and our kitchen now smells of foods from all over the globe.

The recipe called for a teaspoon and sugar and rind of one lemon. What does one do when we don’t have fresh lemons in house? So the candied lemon peel came in handy. This salad has just the right balance with a pinch of heat.

Diced Tomatoes – 14 oz

Onion – 2 T, finely chopped

Green Chilly – 2 ( add less if you want it less hot)

Garlic – 1 T, finely chopped

Carmelina Cannelini Beans – 2, 14 oz cans.

Olive oil – 3 T

Lemon juice – 1 T

Cider Vinegar – 1 T

Candied lemon peel – 1 T, finely chopped

Salt & pepper to taste

Parsley for garnish

• In a  large bowl, whisk the olive oil, lemon juice and cider vinegar with salt and pepper.
• Add rest of the ingredients and fold it well, so that the dressing is well incorporated.
• Serve chilled or at room temperature.

Variations:

• We used Meyer lemon infused olive oil which gave it a really lemon flavor.
• Omit the onions in the recipe, if you are not a big fan of raw onions.
• Add basil instead of parsley for a different flavor.

While we are @ The Fancy Food show, Carmelina had a stall and we got to taste their beans and was surprised that it tasted so fresh. The  nutritional label answered the question – a mere 1.5% sodium and 45% dietary fiber. This brand is available @ Whole Foods.

What a difference in taste, try it and you wont be disappointed.

And take a peel @ Eileen and Mel’s blog for sure.

We have been repeatedly asked by our friends and students at class where to buy Whole Mung beans- it is available in bulk at Whole foods,any Indian store or Asian markets will have it.

When we added the coconut milk, we wondered if it will have a strong flavor. The coconut milk taste is really subtle and delicate.