POTLUCK

Enjoy our specialties:

Swedish Pear Cake as composed by Lena Goeransson
Swedish Lemon Cake as composed by Lena Goransson
Tasty Cheesecakes for Shavuot:
Hilarie´s American-Swedish Junior´s Cheesecake
Cheesecake without flour as made by Manuela
Swiss Carrot Cake (Rüeblitorte) l´Pessach
Irv Wengrow´s perfect latkes
Channah´s Salad Bar
Anja´s Lentil Stew
Channah´s Humus
Ella´s Guglhupf
"Swedish" Baked Potatoe Salad
Jalda´s Pumpkin Soup
Gaby´s Pumpkin Soup
Anna´s Hamantaschen
Crumble (Recipe by Jamie Oliver)

Meat:
Channah´s Shabbes Sesame Chicken


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Isa enriched our collection of recipes with 2 delicious Swedish cakes as composed by Lena Göranson from Tovfehults Kafe. http://www.tofvehult.se/en/default.aspx

Swedish Pear Cake as composed by Lena Goeransson:
For one cake you need:
225 g butter (room temperature)
2 dl sugar
2 dl soft brown sugar
4 eggs
5 dl wheat flour
2 teaspoonful of baking powder
if you like it: cinnamon and cardamom

How to do it:
Preheat oven to 175° C.
Peel the pears and cut them into small pieces. If you like it, sprinkle the pears with cinnamon and cardamon. Start preparing the dough by stirring butter and sugar until they are foamy, add  one egg after the other and smoothen the dough.Now add all other ingredients except for the pears. Mix until smooth.Butter a round cake pan and spread bread crumbs over the butter.Pour half of the dough inside the baking pan, fold the pears into the dough and add the remaining half of the dough.Bake for 45-55 minutes in the lower part of your oven.Your cake is ready to eat when its margins start to separate from the pan. To be on the safe side check the center of the cake with a little rod. Serve the cake lukewarm with a dab of cream or vanilla sauce. Enjoy!

Naturally you may also try apples, cherries or other fruits you like instead of pears.

Swedish Lemon Cake as composed by Lena Goeransson
Ingredients for one cake:
4 eggs
2 1/2 dl sugar
2 1/2 wheat flour
1 teaspoonful of baking powder
200g melted butter
grated lemon peel and the juice of one big lemon
powdered sugar for dusting

How to do it:
Preheat oven to 175° C.Stir eggs and sugar until they are foamy. Fold all other ingredients into the foam. Butter a round cake pan and top the butter with bread crumbs. Put the dough into the cake pan. Bake for about 25 minutes in the lower part of the oven. The center of the cake is supposed to remain a little bit soft. Take the cake out of the oven and let it cool. Dust the cake with powdered sugar and serve with whipped cream and freshly brewed coffee. Enjoy!


Hilarie´s American-Swedish Junior’s Cheesecake
This recipe was supposedly developed by baker Eigel Peterson in 1950. And it comes from The Brooklyn Cookbook by Lyn Stallworth and Rod Kennedy, Jr.
This cheesecake has a buttered crumb bottom that climbs up the sides a bit and nothing on the top. It is a very dense and heavy cheesecake – not the light fluffy kind. I didn’t follow the original directions exactly. I’m not good at that, really. Following directions, I mean. So this is my version.
Cheesecakes should be made in springform pans. That’s the kind that you can take the sides off of. The pan I used is 8 ½ inches or 22 cm in diameter.
Preheat the oven to 450°F. (230° C)
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted – I use whatever I have, salted or unsalted, or even Bregott (a Swedish butter-canola oil combination) and I don’t really measure. It just has to be enough to blend with the crumbs.
Graham crackers all crumbled up. The crumbs don’t have to be completely uniform in size. Here in Sweden I can’t find graham crackers so I use other kinds of cookies, such as Swedish pepperkakor or even wheat-free cookies for my wheat-allergic friends. You can even use chocolate cookies and add chocolate chips to the batter if you want. But then, it’s not very plain anymore, is it.
7/8 cup Sugar (2dl) This is good if you don’t want it too sweet. A full cup is OK too.
3 tablespoons Cornstarch sifted so it’s not clumpy.
30 oz. Cream cheese (850 g), Take this out of the fridge in advance so it’s not too cold anymore. I try to only use Philadelphia brand cream cheese. And I never use the light version. Tried that once. Yech.
1 Extra-large egg They don’t have extra large here in Sweden, so large has to do.
1/2 cup Heavy Cream (a little over 1dl)
1 teaspoon vanilla I use the liquid kind but I guess the Swedish Vaniljsocker is OK too.
What to do:
Crush the crackers/cookies to very small crumbs. Mix the crumbs with the melted butter. I sprinkle on a tiny bit of cold water to make the crumbs stick together better but don’t overdo this. You don’t want gooey crumbs just crumbs that stick together.
Coat the pan bottom with the crumbs, pressing them onto the bottom and up the sides a bit. Don’t make it too thick but you shouldn’t be able to see the bottom of the pan. I don’t bother to bake it before adding the filling but I did put it in the fridge till I was ready for it but I don’t think you have to.
Mix the sugar with the cornstarch.
Put a package cream cheese in a bowl and start to mix it with a mixer.
Add some of the sugar/cornstarch mixture to the cream cheese.
Add more cream cheese. Add more sugar/starch mix.
Do this till all the cheese and sugar is being mixed together.
Blend in the egg and mix till its evenly blended but not on high speed.
Add the heavy cream, a little at a time, and mix. Add the vanilla.
Spoon batter into the crumb-filled pan.
Bake for approximately 40 to 45 minutes, until the top is a light golden brown. The cake can jiggle a little bit and still be done.
Put the cheesecake in its pan on a rack and let it cool till you can put it in the fridge.
That should do it.
Because not everyone likes plain cheesecake I usually bring with me some frozen berries, like raspberries or blackberries that can defrost during dinner and be eaten later with a slice of cheesecake. I, of course, eat it plain, with a cup of tea on the side.
Enjoy! Hilarie´s blog: http://justhilarie.jabana.se/



Cheesecake without flour as made by Manuela
Ingredients:
6 eggs (separate them and batter egg whites)
180 g butter
1000 g low fat curd cheese (Magerquark)
6 tablespoons semolina
3/4 package of baking powder
1 package vanilla sauce powder
2 packages vanilla sugar
1 dash lemon juice
180 g sugar
How to do it:
Carefully mix all ingredients. At last fold the battered egg whites under the mixture.
Place into buttered springform pan.
Bake in preheated oven at 180° Centigrade for 50 minutes.



Swiss Carrot Cake (Rüeblitorte) l`Pessach

We thank Rabbi Bea Wyler from Canton Aargau in Switzerland for her special recipe.
She also wrote us that in Switzerland carrot cake usually is called Aargauer Rüeblitorte because Aargau originally was an agricultural canton. The soil there was particularly suitable for the cultivation of carrots. Aargau still is called "Rüebliland". The cake contains little flour. Therefore in former times the Swiss Jews who lived mainly in Aargau adapted it for Pessach.

Ingredients:
250 g ground almonds
250 g sugar (may be less)
250 - 300 g shredded carrots (very fine)
5 eggs ( egg white and yolk separated)
2 - 3 tablespoons (50 - 75 g) matzo-flour
0,5 dl (3 tablespoons) lemon juice (freshly pressed)
grated lemon peel
0,5 dl (3 tablespoons) kirsch
dash of salt
dash of cinnamon
dash of cardamon
freshly grated ginger according to taste
(Baking powder or baking soda are unnecessary; besides, they are difficult to find in a pessachdik variant.
With so many beaten egg whites the cake will be airy enough).

Preparation:
1- Batter egg yolks with 150 g sugar until the mass is creamy and of light yellow color. (This is easiest to accomplish when the egg yolks have room temperature).
Add lemon juice, kirsch and spices.
2- Add carrots to the mixture.
3- Batter egg whites with a dash of salt until they got stiff.
Very slowly add 100g sugar, continue battering until the mixture is very stiff.
(This is best to accomplish when the egg whites are cooled).
4- Fold almonds, matzo-flour and egg white in turns carefully but briskly under the egg yolk-carrot mass.
5.Place into prepared springform pan or casserole.
Bake for 60 minutes at 170 degree centigrade.
Let the cake cool down inside the oven.
Prepare an icing of confectionars´sugar (with lemon juice or kirsch)
or just dust the cake with confectionars´sugar.
If available, garnish with marchpane(marzipan)carrots.

The cake should "ripen" for 2 - 3 days.

Chag Ssameach Pessach!


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Irv Wengrow´s perfect latkes

For 2-3 people  (you can always double or triple since the batter will last 3-4 days)
2 cups peeled and shredded potatoes – I prefer russets (baking potatoes)
1 small grated onion – about a 3-4 to 1 ratio of potato to onion based on size used
3 medium or 2 large eggs, beaten well
2 tablespoons self-rising flour ( I prefer self rising for a better crust, but all purpose is ok
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 tsp pepper
1/2 cup peanut oil
matzo meal and more flour as needed – see #5 below
optional – potato starch as needed

1. After shredding/grating, put potatoes in salted boiling water for 3 minutes until you see the starch form on the surface

2. Drain and squeeze out all water using heavy paper towels

3. Similarly, squeeze out all water from chopped onions - you can do this for the cooked potatoes and raw onions a day ahead to drain them best

4. Then mix potatoes, onions, eggs, flour and salt together

5. Get mixture to right consistency by adding matzo meal* until liquid not visible and they hold form when stirred – will still be wet but will form a ball when squeezed without moisture oozing out.

 *Since starch is important for form, and since you removed this by pre-cooking, you may want to add 1-2 teaspoons of potato starch before using matzo meal/flour since they do nothing for taste

6. In large heavy skillet, add oil and heat on medium heat. I prefer peanut oil since it works good on higher heats – test with a drop of batter – should start bubbling in a few seconds.

7.  Add a large tablespoon full and press down slightly with back of spoon to get uniform thickness about ½ inch.  Turn often to avoid burning - since potatoes are already cooked, this will go pretty fast


Enjoy!

Anja's Lentil Stew:

Ingredients:
Lentils , the orange ones
Onions
Garlic
Red or Green Thai Curry Paste
Cilantro(Coriander)  seeds, squashed together with Cardamom
Oil
Cauliflower or other fresh vegetable following the season
Coconut cream
Lemon / Lime juice
Fresh Cilantro (Coriander)

How to prepare:
Soak the lentils overnight. Boil for about 1 hour until soft.
In another pot fry the onions, garlic, Thai Curry Paste, Cilantro Seeds, Cardamom in very hot oil. Add the lentils.
In another pot boil the cauliflower or any other vegetable - but do not let them get soft.
Lets turn again to the lentil pot: add coconut cream and some water and lime juice and let it soak on little flame - add salt and more curry or chilies if you like. 5 Minutes before serving add the al dente vegetables. For serving add fresh cilantro.

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Channah’s Humus:
Ingredients:
500gr can of  chickpeas
Tahina
Olive oil
 juice of 2 lemons
 cloves of garlic
salt, paprika, ground chili
1 red jalapeno pepper (hot),
fresh mint leaves (decoration)
some black olives (decoration)
honey

How to Prepare:
Bring to simmer the chickpeas with the red jalapeno pepper and at least 2 cloves of garlic. Simmer until chickpeas are soft, pour the water off the chickpeas and save it. Scratch out the jalapeno and give the skin to trash.
Chickpeas with Tahina and  lemon juice into blender. Add olive oil and some of the saved water of the cooked chickpeas  until  a smooth mass forms.
Season to taste with salt, lemon juice, paprika and ground chilli. In case it tastes  bitter add carefully molten honey.
All in the fridge over night.
Before serving: give humus in a bowl, flatten the surface of humus and press with a spoon a little trough in the middle and fill it with olive oil. Dress the humus with some black olives and dredge it with chili and paprika (careful, not too hot). Decorate with fresh mint leaves. If wanted some slices of lemon as well.

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Ella‘s Guglhupf
Ingredients:
150 gr. Butter
1 Package dry yeast
400 gr. Flower
1 Teaspoon Sugar
2 Eggs
2 Carrots, grated
100 gr. Gouda cheese (medium age) or other aromatic type of cheese, grated
Some fresh herbs or 1 package of frozen italian herbs
6 dried tomatos, cut in little pieces
50 gr. pumpkin seeds
1 cake tin, greased

Preparation
warm the butter in order to make it liquid without burning
put in slowly while mixing the yeast, the flower, the sugar, some salt. Mix until you get a nice dough. Cover well and let it rise for 1 hour.
Afterwards mix in all the other ingredients and put the dough into the well greased cake tin. Let rise for another 30 min. Preheat the Oven on 180 Celcius. Then bake for 45-60 minutes


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"Swedish" Baked Potatoe Salad
(Ella found this recipe in a Swedish journal, however, the ingredients are rather Italian).

About 1 kg potatoes
2 tablespoons olive oil
2-3 green or red peppers, if you like

Dressing:
1 minced onion
1 handful of black olives, sliced or cut in pieces
6 sun-dried tomatoes, placed in oil and cut in small pieces
1 1/2 tablespoons of capers
1 handful minced parsley
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon balsamico vinegar
salt and black pepper

Preheat oven to 200 degrees C.
Wash and scrub (or peel) potatoes, cut them into cherrysized pieces
Wash and cut the peppers
Put potatoes (and peppers) on a baking sheet covered with baking paper into the oven
Trickle 2 tablespoons of oil over them, bake until soft (20-30 min.). Stir from time to time.

Mix all ingredients for the dressing in a big bowl

Add potatoes (and pepper) to the dressing,
season to taste with salt and pepper

May be eaten hot, warm and cold - according to season

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Jalda´s Pumpkin Soup (as created by Malka) -parve or milky

1 Hokkaido pumpkin
5 bio-carrots
1 bio-onion
fresh ginger root according to taste

Wash the vegetables and cut them into small pieces
Don´t remove the skin of the Hokkaido pumpkin, it is loaded with vitamins
and is responsible for the intensive orange color of the soup.
Heat all vegetables a little bit (2-3 minutes) on low flame with a small amount of sunflower-oil (bio quality).

Add the following spices for another minute of heating to let them unfold their flavor:
2 teaspoons full of curcuma
1 teaspoon full of cumine, pulverized in a mortar
1 teaspoon full of ground cinnamon.

Add 2 teaspoons full of bio-vegetable-broth and approximately 1 quart of water.
Heat the soup to the boiling point, then turn down the heat immediately
and let the soup cook on very low heat until the vegetables are soft ( about 20 minutes).

Turn off the heat. Blend the soup into smooth consistency.
Add 1/2 qt. of fresh orange-juice.

Taste the soup before serving: if it is too "sweet" for you add some Himalayan salt;
if it tastes too strong soften the flavor with some honey.

Spread some fresh parsley or fresh coriander over the soup.

If the soup may be milky:
Serve the dish with a spoonful of sour cream or schmand in the center of the plate.
Attention: Now the parve-soup is milky.

In winter you might want to create a heavier soup by adding some more bio-parsnips or bio-potatoes.

Note: Biological foods taste better and are in line with our eco-kashrut rules.
Natural salts like Himalayan salt are healthier than the industrial products.

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Gaby`s Pumpkin Soup (Jamaica Style)
(for 6 persons)

Ingredients:
1,2 kg pumpkin (equals 800g pumpkin pulp, best brands Nutmeg or Hokkaido)
3-4 onions
2 garlic cloves
1 big spoon of oil
400 ml instant vegiebroth
400 ml coconutmilk
0.1 g of seffron
1 pinch of nutmeg
2 teaspoons of fresh ginger
1/2 teaspoon cayennepepper
salt, sugar
2 big spoons of coconutrasp
2 big spoons of freshly minced coriander

Preparation:
1.Cut pumpkin into slices, clean and peel it.
  Cut in into not too big pieces.
  Peel garlic and onions, cut them and fry them in hot oil.
  Add pumpkin, stir shortly and extinguish with vegiebroth.

2.Add cocomilk, seffron, nutmeg, ginger, cayennepepper.
   Heat all up, then simmer for 20-30 minutes.

3.Puree everything.
   Season to taste with salt and sugar.
   Pour the soup in soupbowls and add coconutrasps and coriander.

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Anna´s Hamantaschen
Ingredients:
Biscuit dough:
150 g soft butter
125 g sugar
1 egg
3 tablespoons of milk/water
1 teaspoon extract of vanilla/ husk of vanilla
250-300 g flour
1 teaspoon baking powder

Stir butter and sugar into a smooth cream.
Add egg, milk/water and vanilla. Stir until creamy.
Add flour and baking powder.
Knead, put in a cool place for 3-4 hours.
Preheat oven to 190 degree C.
Roll out dough until 3 mm thin.
Cut circles with melon baller of 5cm diameter.

Poppy-seed and honey stuffing:
300 g poppy-seeds (whole or ground)
125 g honey
60 g light brown sugar
1/8th teaspoon of salt
30 g chopped walnuts/almonds
1 tablespoon of lemon juice
grated off peel of a lemon

Cook poppy-seeds, 125 ml water, honey, sugar and salt for 5 minutes until creamy.
Let the mixture cool down.
Add nuts/almonds, juice and peel of the lemon.
Place stuffing in the center of dough circles.
Moisten margins, pull them up in 3 places to form triangles.
Press margins together but leave a tiny gap on each side.
Bake for 14-18 minutes until golden yellow.
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Crumble (Recipe by Jamie Oliver)
Very easy and quick to prepare,
ideal for unexpected guests since the ingredients usually are stored at home
6 servings

Dough:
225 gr flour
115 gr butter
90 gr sugar (or a little bit less)
1 pinch of salt

Fruit:
400-500 gr, washed and cut in slices
3 tablespoons of sugar

Preheat oven to 180 degree C.
Mix all the ingredients of the dough -by hand or cooking machine-
until they turned into crumble.
Place fruit into a flat fire-resistent pan, add sugar and crumble.
Bake until  crumble turned golden brown (approx. 30 min.).

Suitable fruits are apples, plums, apricots, raspberries or rhubarb.
Variants: try brown instead of white sugar; spice with lemon, ginger or cinnamon.
Serve with cream, ice-cream or sauce of vanilla.
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Meat:

 









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