Wishing You a Sweet New Year!

Frances Maggin's Applesauce Cake - the recipe comes with a great story!

Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, begins at sundown on Wednesday. It is a time of joy and anticipation, as well as an opportunity for consideration and reflection.

It's traditional to usher in the new year with apples and honey and other treats, in hopes of a sweet new year. So here are some of my favorite holiday recipes, which I hope you'll enjoy - for Rosh Hashanah, for breaking the fast after Yom Kippur, to celebrate fall, or just 'cause ... :)

Shanah Tovah! [shah-NAH toh-VAH]


Frances Maggin's Applesauce Cake

Pomegranate Molasses-Glazed Carrots

Helen's Apple Cake (Craig's mother's recipe)

Southern Honey Cake

Apple Almond Kugel (one of my most requested recipes)

Challah

Cider-Braised Chicken (Jeremy's favorite chicken dish)

Quince-Glazed Baked Yams

Honey Cakes with Caramel Frosting

Sauteed Apples a la Mode

Applesauce Bars

Vanilla Cakes with Caramelized Bananas (pictured above)

Sugar Cookies

Banana Oatmeal Pie

Grilled Brie with Cherries and Almonds

Orange, Date and Almond Salad

Oatmeal Date Walnut Bars, for when a craving strikes

Ye olde sweet tooth was calling last night. So I used some pantry staples and soon found myself with a lovely treat in less than an hour - gather ingredients, mix batter, bake, enjoy ... :)

Oatmeal Date Walnut Bars

1/2 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup brown sugar
1 egg
generous sprinkling of cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
generous pinch of kosher salt
1 cup flour
3/4 cup quick-cook oats
1/2 cup date bits
1/3 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease an 8"-square baking pan.

In a large bowl, mix together butter and brown sugar; stir in egg, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Stir in flour and oats. Stir in dates and walnuts.

Press batter into prepared pan and bake 30 minutes or so, until bars are golden and a tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool, then cut and serve.

Makes 9-12 bars, depending upon how you cut them.

Peanutty Macaroons

Most people think that macaroons are chewy spherical cookies made with coconut.  But this is only one variation on the theme.  Macaroons are actually more generic - they're cookies made with beaten egg whites and sugar, with either ground nuts or coconut stirred in before baking; they don't usually contain flour.

And don't even start the "macaroon" vs. "macaron" debate, as the latter are an entirely different confection of great delicacy!  Macaroons are simple cookies, but much loved.

Today, I'm offering macaroons ... but they're not quite like any you've eaten before, I'm sure.  Because I made these as an entry for Project PB&J - a contest for food bloggers which is being hosted by my friend Cindy of Once Upon a Loaf and her friend Christina of She Runs, She Eats.  The competition is in honor of National Peanut Butter and Jelly Day, and required preparing a sandwich and/or a baked good with a nut butter and a jelly/jam or fruit.

So, because I made these for Project PB&J, they include peanuts rather than either almonds or coconut; and they also have a little dollop of fruit - the charoset I offered in yesterday's post.  I met the basic requirements, and then found that the end result more than transcends its simple ingredients: these cookies are so, so good!

They're chewy, and there is an intense peanut flavor since ground peanuts provide the bulk of the cookies' substance; the sweetness of the date-fig fruit mixture complements the nuts perfectly.  And I have to admit that I eat them by nibbling along the perimeter, before finishing off the last center bite with an enormous proportion of fruit-to-cookie.

These macaroons may seem simple and plain, but they are such a fabulously addictive treat!

Peanutty Macaroons

2 eggs, separated
1/4 cup peanut butter (smooth or crunchy)
1/3 cup sugar
1 cup dry roasted peanuts, ground
1/2 cup date-fig charoset (see yesterday's post)

Preheat oven to 350F.  Line a baking sheet with lightly greased foil.

In a medium bowl, stir together the egg yolks, peanut butter, sugar, and ground peanuts.  In a large bowl, beat the egg whites until they hold stiff peaks; fold them into the peanut mixture.

Place the batter into 12 mounds on the baking sheet.  Place a generous teaspoon of charoset into the center of each mound.  Bake for 15-20 minutes until the macaroons are set and just golden along the edges.

Carefully remove the macaroons from the foil and cool them on a rack.

Makes 12 macaroons.

Charoset

I know it's a little bit early to be offering a recipe for charoset [hah-ROH-set], which is a fruit mixture served at Passover; it represents the mortar used by the Jews during their enslavement in Egypt, and is an integral part of the Seder which commemorates the flight to freedom.  But although it's early, giving this to you today serves two purposes:

1. You'll have the recipe for next Friday evening, when Passover begins at sundown, without thinking "Gee, if only she'd provided that a few days earlier, I could have bought the ingredients and had it ready!"

2. You'll have this at your disposal when you see tomorrow's cookie recipe, which uses the charoset as a thumbprint filling.  The cookies are an entry into Project PB&J, a food bloggers' competition, so it was necessary to post them - and thus the charoset - this week.

This is a variation on a recipe which was a co-winner at the Charoset Throwdown held at a local synagogue in 2008; I've simplified it here.  It had originally called for several more ingredients and extra steps that can be saved without losing quality of taste or consistency.

European-style (Ashkenazi) charoset tends to feature apples and wine, while Middle Eastern (Sephardi) varieties often employ dates and figs.  And just as each family has its own special recipes for other holidays, every family serves a different type of charoset for Passover; some have one favorite, others serve an assortment, and still others try a new one each year.

At the Throwdown, I was thrilled to have someone tell me that my charoset "tastes just like candy."  And another woman suggested that it would make a lovely filling for hamantaschen at Purim, which it most certainly would if I ever remembered to use it as such instead of only thinking of this as a Passover dish!

Whether you schmear this onto matzah, use it as a filling, or just eat it with a spoon, I hope you enjoy it ... and tomorrow's cookies featuring this delicious fruit mixture, too.


Fig and Date Charoset 

2 tablespoons butter (or pareve substitute)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup ginger ale
2 cups chopped dates
2 cups dried Black Mission figs, chopped

Melt the butter and sugar together in a small saucepan over medium-low heat.  Stir in the connamon and ginger ale; bring to a boil over high heat.  Add the dates and figs; cook over low heat for 2 minutes, until fruit softens.  Mash the mixture together until the liquid is absorbed and the charoset is glossy.

Makes 2 cups.


Here are some other recipes for you to enjoy at Passover:

Chocolate Caramel Matzah

Custard with Strawberry Sauce

Vegetable Cheese Mina

Roasted Radishes

Orange, Date and Almond Salad

Tu B'Shevat [TOO bay shuh-VAHT] - the Jewish New Year of the Trees - began at sundown last night and continues through today.  It is traditional to celebrate the holiday by having a tree planted in Israel; by eating a new fruit; or by holding a seder in which specific fruits are eaten in a particular order, along with the recitation of blessings.

It is also customary to enjoy dried fruits and nuts - such as figs, apricots, pecans, walnuts, etc. - although eating any type of fruit is a lovely way to acknowledge the beauty and bounty of trees.

According to MyJewishLearning.com: "The Bible expresses a great reverence for fruit trees as symbols of God's ... beneficence. Special laws were formulated to protect (them) in times of war and ensure that the produce of trees would not be picked until the trees were mature enough and tithes were given from them."  Respect for trees and care for the environment are deeply ingrained in Judaism.

Just because the recipe for today's salad is ridiculously simple and only requires 4 ingredients, don't underestimate the impact of its taste!  The brightness of the oranges, the sweetness of the dates, the tartness of the pomegranate molasses ... it's an intensely flavorful combination.  And the almonds contribute a lovely crunch to contrast with the softness of the fruits.

In honor of Tu B'Shevat, you can serve the Orange, Date and Almond Salad featured below which showcases the glorious produce of trees.  You could also offer some other dishes which feature a variety of delicious fruits and nuts, such as olives, lemons, cherries, chocolate, oranges, quince, bananas, hazelnuts, and more:

Braised Chicken Thighs in Lemony Olive Sauce

White Chocolate and Cherry Brownies

Lemon-Glazed Cherry Pasties

Chocolate Cherry Kugel

Zesty Lemon Spaghetti

Chocolate-Glazed Orange Cake

Quince-Glazed Baked Yams

Banana Nutella Cake

Triple Orange Brownies


Don't forget to read about my "Chopped" challenge: dare me to use ingredients you suggest, and I'll post about my creations!  Click here for the terms ....


Orange, Date and Almond Salad

4 large oranges
3/4 cup pitted dates, chopped
1/3 cup almonds, lightly toasted, chopped
3 tablespoons pomegranate molasses

Cut the ends off the oranges, then stand them upright and slice off the peels.  Turn the oranges on their sides and cut into thick slices, then place onto a serving dish.

Sprinkle the dates and almonds over the oranges.

Drizzle the pomegranate molasses over everything.

Serves 4.