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Articles by Renee Muller
Oven Roasted Sweet Potatoes
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe This is most probably the best way to eat a sweet potato. I received a phone call from a family friend. She didn’t really want to “bother me” because she knows that all my recipes are either on the website, in Dinner Done, or in one of the cookbooks I have worked on in the past. “Well, I checked everywhere. I can’t find your sweet potato recipe” “Which one?” “The good one” She hit a nerve there. “They are all good!” came my immediate reply. Our recipes are all amazing.
Small Changes for Joy and Better Aesthetic to Your Home
It might be just surface, but often pretty surroundings help us enjoy being at home all the more. It’s simpler than you expect, and can be easily attained. We all have trouble zones in our homes. It might be the spot where papers simply accumulate out of thin air, or the counter that just doesn’t look right no matter how many pretty soaps you add. Perhaps it’s the night table, where you need those tissues handy. Here are some ways to fix those trouble zones so they aren’t an eyesore.
What Type of Knives Do I Need?
Whether you’re buying a new knife for Rosh Hashanah, or simply gearing up for the cooking marathon ahead, the right knife will come in handy. There is a minhag, found mostly in the Chassidic community, of purchasing a new knife for Rosh Hashanah. It is said to be a segulah for parnassah, so it can only be a good thing! Also, we can all use a new knife once in a while, so why not buy it in time for the biggest cooking marathon of the year?
Stir Fry Chicken
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe This dinner is comfort in a bowl…and yes, you can eat it outside. Yes, some of us are back in school. New shoes, new backpacks, new pencils. Exciting, but also, there’s homework. Remember homework? We all magically forgot. Here is a delicious new dinner, one that is exciting to eat, and can be eaten, in a bowl, outside, while soaking in the last days outdoors of the season.
Puff Pastry Hot Dogs on a Stick
These are not your typical “franks n blanks.” They’re definitely more fun! We do things a bit differently in the summer. We tend to be less scheduled, more spontaneous, definitely more relaxed. Late nights, big plans, alarm clocks that are barely used and to-do lists that get pushed off to tomorrow. Is it worth arguing about bedtimes? No, we have learned to save that energy for the school year. With all that, meals or snacks oftentimes take a turn as well.
Grilling Vegetables For Your BBQ Is Easy!
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe You simply need the right grill basket to easily add that veggie side dish to your BBQ menu. You already know what’s on your menu for your next BBQ, because it’s usually the same. This kid likes the hot dogs or burgers, the girls like the grilled chicken that has that yummy marinade, the older boys want a steak, if possible. But what about the side dish? Sure, this purple slaw is a barbeque favorite, but, sometimes, we crave those grilled veggies.
9×13 Branzino: Baked In The Oven With Tomatoes And Olives
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe This summery dinner is the perfect way to enjoy your protein: Light, fresh, and delicious. Every time I stand at the fish counter, I remind myself that there are many fish in the sea, not just salmon and tuna. And then, once again, I buy tuna. Or salmon. So when a friend mentioned that she was trying a new recipe using branzino, I listened.
The 9×13 Life Just Got Real
It was always real, we know. What got real is the 9×13 pan. We all love a good 9×13 recipe. Make it a BCP 9×13 life recipe and you know you are onto something worthwhile. These recipes get us, they are for real people living real lives (insert here whatever it is that makes your life “real.” We have an idea or two ourselves). So what got real, just now? The pans, of course. Yes, we love relying on the disposables. But, there are quite a few reasons to invest in the real thing.
Farmhouse-Style Shavuos Flowerscape
From simple to stunning: Style a light and airy farmhouse style Shavuos flowerscape without needing to spend a lot. Yes, you can get that wow effect without buying or spending a lot. Sometimes, we stand in front of the flower selection, either at our grocery store, florist, or Trader Joes and we feel a bit lost. Been there? It could be that we feel uncertain, intimidated, or simply uninspired. Or also, it could be that the selection is lacking. No matter what the reason is–we have a perfect solution.
Set An Inviting Shavuos Table with a Soft Farmhouse Feel
These small touches bring a sweet, whimsical feel to your Shavuos table. You don’t need to start from scratch to create a beautiful tablescape. Sometimes the best foundation is something you already own. Like this floral tablecloth I have for years. Start with a tablecloth you have on hand. It could be a simple neutral, a soft pattern, or even something slightly worn that still has good texture. Instead of replacing it, elevate it by layering a table runner down the center.
Lemon Cream Cheesecake
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe This cheesecake is our new absolute favorite. It’s so wonderfully decadent but also light and airy. The lemon cream + rich cheesecake is so perfect together! Get baking today. Many of us like to patchke for Shavuos. I know I am not alone when I say this–I like to pull out old and new recipes and try those dairy dishes that caught my attention throughout the year and were stored away in the “try for Shavuos” archives.
Apple and Celery Root Salad
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe This Apple and Celery Root Salad is so refreshing and the perfect dish alongside your Yom Tov meal. Ever tried eating a celery root, raw? It’s quite delicious. Aromatic and firm, it’s the surprisingly perfect vegetable to shred and turn into a coleslaw salad. Growing up, at my grandfather’s Seder table, we ate root celery for karpas–a tiny little piece that tasted so divine dipped into the saltwater. We were very hungry at that point in the Seder, I am sure of it.
Homemade Tomato Sauce
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe When using minimal ingredients on Pesach, tomato sauce can be a great way to add flavor. Pesach is a time when we get creative in the kitchen. For those who use minimal or no processed products, it’s also a time when we appreciate the year-round conveniences of canned tomato sauce and tomato paste, and store-bought ready-to-use sauces and spices. I know, by now, many if not most people use many of the products readily available on the market. But some don’t. Like me.
Açaí: A Trend That is Here to Stay
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe Learn how to prepare a gorgeous açaí board yourself. It’s the perfect thing to send on any occasion. Yes, we have seen the boards. They are popular and practically everywhere. But, that said, we can also agree that at any family gathering it’s the açaí board that gets finished first. Refreshing, delicious, customizable and…kinda, healthy too. All you need is a nice label and you’re ready to go.
Basics: Pancakes
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe When it’s time for a special breakfast, it’s time to whip up a batch of these pancakes. The “Kid’s Favorite Pancakes” in Dinner Done (#1) is probably the most used page in my copy. Because while we make pancakes all the time, we still don’t know the recipe by heart! It’s our go-to breakfast every time we are “Oh no, we are almost out of eggs!” because it only needs one egg and feeds everyone.
These Taco Plates Will Inspire Your Party Menu
Sometimes all you need is a fun plate to reinvent family favorite dinner. When I was hosting some friends last year Chanukah, I included tacos on my menu because tacos are a crowd favorite, especially when kids are present. The tacos can be customized to each person’s taste and therefore, it makes for a great party food option. I imagined my guest helping themselves at my tacos buffet and wondered how they would fill the tacos while holding a plate, standing, in front of all the options.
The Cranberry Galette
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe This Cranberry Galette is so delicious, we might even prefer it to the original version with plums. For years now, pretty much since Dinner Done (the first one!) came out, I have been keeping galette dough in my freezer. It’s the perfect thing to throw together as a quick dessert, a side dish, or when company is coming and you want the house to smell amazing and something pretty and delicious on your counter. I don’t remember ever making a single recipe of the dough.
Müesli. (A Great Way To Start Your Day.)
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe Prepare it once and have breakfast to grab and go (almost) all week. I grew up eating muesli. We actually put the two dots on the “u” of the müesli (like this). And we called it Birchermüesli, but I don’t expect you to try to say that. Although I grew up in the southern region of Switzerland, closer to Italy, land of pasta and sauce, some of the central Swiss dishes made it to our cuisine too–like this breakfast favorite.
Elegant Chicken With Green Beans and Roasted Peppers
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe This chicken dish is so pretty to bring to the table, and even more so, it’s delicious Sisters spend lots of time on the phone, sharing news, sharing laughs and sharing…recipes. My sister Esti told me she had this chicken recipe that she prepares very often for Shabbos, and I knew I had to try it. It did not disappoint–and as a bonus, it looked so pretty and elegant on the table. That’s very unlike my usual chicken dishes, if I might add.
Coffee Meringue and White Chocolate Cream Cake
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe It tastes even better than it sounds. This light and airy meringue cake is layered with the best white chocolate cream filling. Add fresh fruit and it’s the perfect dessert. I have been preparing this cake, or dessert, if you will, every Shavuos, for years. Some of you might remember it was featured in the Whisk magazine about 10 years ago, or more.
Basics: How To Make Matzah Balls.
Whatever you call them, you need a recipe. It’s one of the most basic Jewish foods we know, top 5 at the least, but do you know how to make them? Without a box mix, that is? Yes, we mostly rely on the ones that come from a mix, with the the recipe right on the box. They are also delicious, convenient and….nice and fluffy. Pesach kneidlach though, the ones made out of shemura flour, or shemura matzah meal, are a different animal.
The No-Salting No-Frying Eggplant Hack
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe You don’t need to salt, rinse, dry, and fry to get great eggplant. All you need to do is learn how to bake your eggplant slices properly. Remember the days when preparing any recipe that involves an eggplant meant salting the slices first, and then waiting, and then rinsing? Well, those days are over. We have discovered that if done correctly, these steps are not necessary. Also, you don’t need to fry the eggplants to achieve that texture. Baking works too. Here is how.
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe Did you know that you can cook your sweet and sour salmon in the oven? You’ll never use a pot again and never have to deal with the fish juice. I was visiting my sister one Friday night, and as she started preparing for the meal, I noticed how she stored her sweet and sour salmon in a 9 x 13-inch pan. “Don’t you prefer to use a Pyrex for fish?” I asked. “Yes,” she replied, “but I actually cooked this fish in a 9 x 13.” I was intrigued.
Grilled Strip Steak
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe You might also know this steak as “”Delmonico Strips” or “NY Strip Steak.” I have been noticing this nicely marbled cut of meat on the shelf at the butcher’s lately. Sometimes called “delmonico strips” sometimes “NY style strip steak,” and they are intrinsically the same thing. It’s a French roast cut into strips which makes it very manageable to cook and to prepare quickly. This can be served as a main, an appetizer, or a chol hamoed dinner.
Grilled Chicken Salad with the Best Nuts
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe With minimal ingredients and maximum flavor, this is the only grilled chicken salad you need this Pesach. Sometimes we put our minds together and create a recipe, together. Whenever we do that, magic happens. We did that when we came up with the Berry Coulis (which we even created a Pesach version since it was so popular) and we are doing it again now, with this salad. Renee wanted a pretty (!), delicious and not fried appetizer that EVERYONE in the family would eat.
Nina’s Pesach Cookies - Between Carpools
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe These cookies are the first thing you should bake for Pesach This is the cookie that I look forward to on Pesach each year. It’s absolutely perfect and not in any way “Pesachdig” tasting. It’s crispy, delicious, and tastes like coconut and almonds, the perfect addition to your coffee (or tea) break. We have been baking these for over 10 years now and we never tire of them. In a bowl, whisk together potato starch, sugars, nuts, and coconut.
Which Spatulas Are Our Favorites?
They’re super convenient and are a great help in the kitchen. Learn what these types of spatulas can do for you. Editor’s Note: While many of these spatulas are used for chametz purposes, many will also be very helpful for you over Pesach (i.e. when your food processor gets tons of use, or when you’re making lots of eggs and blintzes), so you may as well enjoy them now and keep for later.
Chocolate Cheese Muffins
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe These Chocolate Cheese Muffins are an absolute favorite for Pesach. You may be baking them on repeat. Ever since this recipe by Faigy Cohen was featured in the Whisk’s Pesach Edition of 2022 (Ami Magazine’s Food Magazine), I have been adding 3-4 tubs of cream cheese to my Pesach grocery list. Because, these muffins are something that you bake once, and they go so fast, so then you bake some more. And more.
Kosher Kopycat: Tuna Carpaccio
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe A refreshing and surprisingly different way to serve your tuna crudo. At our house, the girls have a bit of an obsession with raw fish. The boys at the table have learned to look the other way and stick to their chummus with garlic confit and sourdough, while the girls polish off another form of crudo. We still love this tuna ceviche, we prepare it weekly. We also love this salmon crudo salad which makes more of an appearance during the summertime as a light dinner.
Garlic Toasted Rice
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe How to make rice that’s so good, you’ll want to taste it straight from the pot. I have been cooking rice like this for….a long time. I don’t remember a different way of preparing rice. Actually, I didn’t know there was a different way to prepare rice, unless you were tossing a Trader Joe’s bag into the microwave, which is very practical at times. And, of course, there’s the 9×13 rice dishes like Fabulous Rice and other specialty types like Wild Mushroom Rice.
Best Ever Date Bark
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe It’s a surprisingly satisfying and healthyish treat Do you love a good candy bar? My favorite is a Smirk bar (the kosher version of Snicker’s) but, whenever I indulge in one, I get that sugar high that leaves me feeling kind of “eh” after. Then my daughter showed me this fun date bark idea, and casually mentioned “it tastes like a Smirk bar, in a weird way.” So I had to try it, and guess what, I have to admit I did not expect to love these so much. But I really do.
Peanut Butter and Chocolate Mousse Cups
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe It’s decadent, rich, and delicious. These Peanut Butter Mousse Cups are a special occasion dessert that you can prepare in advance and simply pull out of the freezer when it’s time to indulge. This is the type of dessert that my whole family looks forward to. It is also the type of patchka that I do not look forward to, at all. Hence the reason it only makes an appearance on Chanukah or Sukkos.
The 9 x 13 Life: The Amaretto Cake (or, the Orange Juice Cake)
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe We skipped the Amaretto, but added convenience. This cake is probably the oldest one in my handwritten cookbook. Do you remember those binders, with flashcards for writing down recipes? I know, I’m dating myself here, and that’s ok. I’m sure that most of you here do not know what I’m talking about unless your Mom still owns a binder like that. My binder was (is? I still own it) really cute.
Oats and Honey Muffins
Oats and Honey Muffins YIELDS 12 MUFFINS 11⁄2 cups whole wheat flour or spelt flour (I’ve tried it with both 100% whole wheat flour and white spelt; both came out yummy!) 1 cup quick-cooking oats 1⁄2 cup honey (I use sugar-free silan) 2 Tbsp brown sugar (I omit this) 11⁄2 tsp baking soda 2 tsp baking powder 1 egg 1⁄3 cup oil (I use applesauce) 3⁄4 cup orange juice (in Israel it’s hard to find Tropicana-type OJ, so I substitute it with apple juice) 1 tsp vanilla 1⁄2 cup chocolate chips (we use...
Oats and Honey Muffins
Oats and Honey Muffins Make the batter the night before and bake in the morning, or bake and keep in the freezer for breakfast on-the-go. However you decide to use these, you’ll be sure to enjoy them. YIELDS 12 MUFFINS 11⁄2 cups whole wheat flour or wholespelt flour 1 cup quick-cooking oats 1⁄2 cup honey 2 Tbsp brown sugar 11⁄2 tsp baking soda 2 tsp baking powder 1 egg 1⁄3 cup oil 3⁄4 cup orange juice 1 tsp vanilla extract 1⁄2 cup mini chocolate chips Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C).
CRUSTLESS WILTED SPINACH AND FETA CHEESE QUICHE
Food And Prop Styling By Renee Muller Photography By Moshe Wulliger CRUSTLESS WILTED SPINACH AND FETA CHEESE QUICHE This dairy delight is simply sensational! Serves 8 2 Tbsp butter 1 large onion, diced 4 cloves garlic, crushed 8–10 oz (225–280 g) fresh baby spinach leaves 8 oz (225 g) farmer cheese 4 oz (110 g) feta cheese, grated or crumbled 3 eggs, slightly beaten 1 tsp lemon juice 1 tsp kosher salt ¼ tsp pepper ¼ cup saltine crackers, crushed Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C).
Yes, You Can Be Kosher And Keep The Ketogenic Keto Diet
In recent years, dietary fat has been vilified and classified as unhealthy, artery-clogging and disease-causing. As a result, “low-fat” labels are slapped onto products and they’re marketed with aggressive campaigns, touting them as healthier and better-for-you—even when that’s not actually true. However, more and more emerging research has come to the same conclusion: eating fat does not make you fat.
10 Soups And Stews For A Storm
Just when we were starting to fantasize about fresh spring menus, we learned that we were being hit with a whopper of a blizzard. This required a change of mindset — and menu. Clearly, some warming, cozy soups and stews were in order, so we collected a few of our favorites here. Liza Schoenfein is food editor of the Forward. Follow her on Twitter, @LifeDeathDinner The Forward's independent journalism depends on donations from readers like you. Give Now
6 Portable Jewish Snacks to Make for a Protest March
Here are some high-energy, easy-to-eat-en-route, sustaining snacks to make and share along the march route. So fill a thermos with hot soup, a baggie with spiced nuts or good granola, or a small sac of cookies packed with nutritious, delicious ingredients. For a more substantial meal to eat with one hand while holding a sign in the other, there are cheese-filled bourekas and feta-and-spinach arayas. And please don’t forget to drink plenty of water. Liza Schoenfein is food editor at the Forward.
Butternut Squash Cream Soup
This soup is always in our rotation. We never tire of it. Thick and silky, it’s forever a favorite. 2 tablespoons oil 4 onions, diced 3 garlic cloves, minced 2 large butternut squash, peeled and diced 1 large knob celery root, peeled and diced 3 carrots, peeled and diced 1 tablespoon salt OR Lawry’s seasoned salt ¼ teaspoon pepper ½ teaspoon garlic powder ½ teaspoon paprika 1 (15-ounce) can tomato sauce 1) In a large pot, heat the oil. Add onions and garlic; sauté until onions are softened.
Spectacular Silan, Lemon and Mustard Salmon
This recipe dates back to the days when silan was something you schlepped back from Israel wrapped in two sweaters and one towel in an already overweight suitcase. What? You don’t bring spices, cheeses and amazing ingredients back from the Holy Land? For those who do, this is how silan graced our tables for many years. Thankfully, silan is now widely available here. I use it anywhere honey is used, as it adds depth and interest to so many dishes.
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