With the high holy days around the corner, we've decided to share a sneak peek recipe from our book.
If you decide to make it, please do let us know how it comes out, either through twitter or via e-mail (check bottom of page). Enjoy!
Savory Chile & Vegetable Kugel
Serves: 10. Spiciness: 1.
(On our scale, a 2 indicates spicy, and a 1 indicates mildly spicy. These numbers take an American palate into consideration.
For a Mexican palate, a 2 would be considered "average.")
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Traditional Ashkenazi Jewish cooking contains many main courses that are sweet. For example, tsimmis, a stew
of dried fruit, carrots and cinnamon; gefilte fish sweetened with sugar; or noodle casserole with pineapple, cream
cheese and sugar. In Mexico, sweets are saved for dessert.
Kugel is a wide ranging Yiddish term for casserole. My Chile & Vegetable Kugel is made lasagna style with cheese,
though it can be topped with vegan cheese and made pareve (neither meat nor dairy).
- Susan
The Mexican and Jewish cultures intersect in this recipe in a way that I love — complete hatred of waste. This recipe
makes use of an ingredient that often gets thrown away — jalapeño juice! Use the jalapeños themselves to make our
challah-peño, or in sandwiches or tacos.
- Alex
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Ingredients:
2 carrots, peeled and finely chopped
1 white onion, finely chopped
1 celery stalk, finely chopped
1 Poblano pepper, finely chopped
3/4 cup canola oil
1 cup matzoh meal
2 tablespoons juice from pickled jalapeño jar
6 eggs, beaten
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
3 bunches of Swiss chard, white bottoms of stems removed and chopped into very fine strips horizontally (about 1/4
inch)
Queso Fresco to garnish
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Add oil to a deep heavy-bottom pot or wok and heat over medium flame. Place carrots, onion, celery, Poblano chile into pot and sauté mixture thoroughly for 5 minutes.
Remove from heat and add matzoh meal and jalapeño juice to vegetables. Mix in beaten eggs and salt and pepper,
then add chard and mix until thoroughly combined.
Place mixture in an ungreased 9 x 13 glass baking dish and bake for 30-40 minutes or until lightly golden. Garnish
with grated cheese and serve immediately.
