Shavuot Archives - Dinner in Venice

Chocolate Cream and Strawberry Frozen Delight

May 20, 2014 By dinnerinvenice 7 Comments

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I’m pretty sure I’ve already told you that every year, comes May, I feel quite conflicted between my desire to eat more fresh fruit, vegetables and light fare, and all the temptations of Mother’s Day, my birthday, and Shavuot – plus dozens more excuses…. (just to give you a couple of examples, last year I indulged in a pink meringue cake and a pistachio and cream Swiss roll).

Chocolate Strawberry Cream Frozen Delight

Prep Time: 25 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes

serves 4 to 6

ignorance is bliss

Ingredients

1 lb dark chocolate (shavings or chips)
2 cups whipping cream
pinch of Sarawak pepper
4 tbsp sugar (or more to taste)
1 lb strawberries
2 tbsp powdered sugar
fresh mint leaves to decorate

Directions

Melt the chocolate shavings or chips on low heat in a bain marie (double boiler) with a pinch of Sarawak or pink pepper. Tape a very large piece of wax paper to your counter. Pour the melted chocolate on top and spread it into a very thin layer with a silicone spatula. Allow to cool.Wash the strawberries and cut them into small pieces. Whip the cream with the sugar until it forms stiff peaks, and incorporate the strawberries.Heat the blade of a knife over the stove, and use it to cut the chocolate into 16 rectangles.In a baking tray, arrange 4 individual desserts by alternating chocolate rectangles with layers of strawberry cream (for each dessert, 4 rectangles and layers). Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rest in the freezer for at least 1 hour. Decorate with more strawberry, mint and the powdered sugar before serving.

https://dinnerinvenice.com/2014/05/20/chocolate-cream-and-strawberry-frozen-delight/

An InLinkz Link-up

Filed Under: Comfort food, Dairy, Desserts, Jewish Italian Cuisine, Shavuot Tagged With: dessert, semifreddo, Shavuos, Shavuot, strawberries and cream

Pistachio and Cream Swiss Roll

May 14, 2013 By dinnerinvenice 41 Comments

This week my family and I will observe one of my favorite holiday traditions, that of indulging in creamy dairy treats for the Jewish holiday of Shavuot. After all, who am I to say no to extra helpings of lasagna and tiramisu, especially when our sages encourage me?

Another custom typical of Shavuot (and Simchat Torah) is eating preparations that are rolled, a visual reminder of the Torah scrolls that are read in synagogue. It may be a no-brainer to celebrate by smothering your dishes in butter and cream; however, rolling up foods can be challenging for inexperienced cooks. Take cake rolls, and raise your hand if you don’t end up buying the pre-packaged version rather than risking a disaster.

The truth is that, if you follow instructions, these guys are not that hard to make. Just don’t cheat on the pan: the only type that works is a jelly roll pan (usually a 15x10x1-inch pan, regular or disposable). This is also the kind of recipe that you don’t want to attempt if you have just ran out of parchment paper. Last, but not least, do not over-bake: the cake needs to be a bit flexible and “springy” to be rolled up.

After baking the cake, remove from the oven and loosen the edges from the pan with a knife, then turn it out the cake onto a large parchment sheet. Peel the existing parchment from the top (what was previously on the bottom of the baking pan) and discard.

Now the tricky part: starting with one of the shorter sides, roll up the parchment with the warm cake inside into a spiral. Once the cake is all rolled up into the parchment, secure it with tape or by stapling the ends of the parchment, and place it on a wire rack to cool for 30 minutes to 1 hour.

Unroll the cake, spread with your preferred filling staying within 1 inch of the edges; then roll it up again, but this time use the parchment only to lift and guide leaving it on the “outside’ of the cake roll. Place the roll in the refrigerator for a few hours before serving.

Pistachio Swiss Roll

Ingredients

6 eggs
1 1/4 cup sugar
pinch of salt
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp vanilla or ½ tbsp lemon zest
1 shot orange liqueur
1 cup shelled pistachios
whipped cream
powdered sugar to decorate

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Line the base of a 10 by 15-inches jelly roll pan with parchment, brushing the sides with butter and dusting with flour.

In an electric mixer, whisk the eggs with the sugar and salt until light and frothy, and then add the zest or vanilla extract; start sifting in the flour and baking powder, gradually, a bit at a time.

When the mixture is well combined, pour into the prepared pan, and bake in the oven for 12 to 15 minutes or until the cake is a bit springy and the edges have shrunk a little from the sides.

Spread out a large sheet of parchment on a counter and dust it evenly with powdered sugar to prevent any sticking. Invert the pan onto the parchment, and then carefully remove the pan and parchment from the cake.

While the cake is still warm but not hot, dust it with powdered sugar, cover it with another parchment sheet and roll it up in a spiral leaving the parchment sheet on the inside and outside. secure with tape and allow to cool on a wire rack for about one hour.

Coarsely grind the pistachio. Combine the whipped cream with 1 or 2 tbsp powdered sugar, the orange liqueur or extract, and the pistachios.

When the cake is cool, unroll it and carefully remove the parchment; spread the whipped cream sparingly over the cake, leaving a 1-inch border. Roll up again, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving. Dust with powdered sugar to finish.

https://dinnerinvenice.com/2013/05/14/pistachio-and-cream-swiss-roll/

Filed Under: Comfort food, Dairy, Desserts, Jewish Italian Cuisine, Shavuot Tagged With: cake roll, cream, cucina ebraica, dairy, holiday cake, jelly roll, Jewish Italian Cuisine1, Jewish Italian food, jewish italian recipes, kosher Italian recipe, pistachio cake, Shavuos, Shavuot, swiss roll

Strawberry and Prosecco Tiramisu

May 9, 2013 By dinnerinvenice 9 Comments

Tiramisu is said to have appeared for the first time at a restaurant in the Veneto region in the 1970’s, and has quickly become a world-renowned specialty.

Tiramisu is a non-denominational dessert: who wouldn’t want to eat it? Everybody can find a good excuse. For us Jews, for example, it’s the perfect Shavuot treat: layers of mascarpone cream to remind us of the sweetness of Torah, and several shots of espresso to get us through the night of learning (Tiramisu means “pick me up” in Italian!). Or what about Mother’s day? You could surprise her with something girly and new, replacing the traditional coffee with sparkling wine and adding juicy strawberries: welcome spring!

Ingredients:

2 cups (about 1 lb) mascarpone
1/2 pint whipping cream (makes about 1 1/2 cups whipped)
4 eggs*
26 Italian ladyfingers (savoiardi)
1/2 cup sugar (or more to taste)
1 1/2 lb strawberries
1 1/2 cups Prosecco or champagne (for kids, use Kedem sparkling grape juice)
Mint and small meringues to decorate

Directions:

In your blender or food processor, puree 1/3 of the strawberries with the wine or juice until smooth. Set aside in a small and shallow bowl.

Using an electric whisk, or in your food processor, beat the egg yolks with the sugar. When they become frothy, add the mascarpone; process until combined and set aside.

In a perfectly clean bowl (you can wipe it quickly with a few drops of lemon or vinegar to make sure it’s degreased) beat the egg whites (which should be clear, with no traces of yolk) with an electric whisk until they start forming soft peaks.

Gently fold the whites into the mascarpone cream with a spatula, using an upward motion. Fold in the whipped cream as well. Chop 1/2 of the remaining strawberries and add them to half of the mixture. Also add enough strawberry/wine juice to make it pink.

Dip each ladyfinger into the remaining strawberry/wine mix for 5 to 8 seconds, flipping them a couple of times (letting the cookies soak too long will cause them to fall apart). Arrange the soaked ladyfingers on the bottom of a glass or pyrex 9 x 13-inch baking dish (or two smaller square or round pans). Spread the pink half of the mascarpone mixture on top. Make a second layer of soaked ladyfingers and top with the white mascarpone mixture.

Slice the remaining strawberries and use them to decorate. You can also add some fresh mint leaves and meringues. Cover tiramisu with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving. You can also make the tiramisu in individual Martini cups: tres chic!

Notes:

Yield: 10–12 servings, or more according to serving size

*Raw eggs always carry a small risk of salmonella infection: to reduce the chance of contamination you can pasteurize the eggs prior to use. Or you can purchase pasteurized eggs – www.safeeggs.com. If using pasteurized eggs, it will be harder to beat the yolks frothy and especially to beat the whites stiff: you will need to add a touch of cream of tartar (or lemon juice or white vinegar) to the whites; about 1/3 teaspoon cream of tartar or 3/4 teaspoon lemon for 4 whites. You will also need to use an electric mixer and beat for twice as long as you would with regular eggs.

Filed Under: Comfort food, Dairy, Desserts, Jewish Italian Cuisine, Shavuot Tagged With: Birthday cake, cream, dairy, dessert, Italian dessert, mascarpone, mother's day, Mother's day cake, romantic dessert, Shavuos, Shavuot, strawberry, tiramisu

Raspberry Cake with Whipped Cream and Pink Meringues

May 2, 2013 By dinnerinvenice 17 Comments

In some areas of Central Italy, there is still a custom of going from house to house adorned with garlands on the first night of May, playing and singing merry tunes to welcome the warm season.

I’m bringing this up – kind of randomly – because this morning I woke up with a verse stuck in my head: it’s from an Italian children’s poem about the months of the year that I learned in kindergarten, and the part about May goes “Maggio di canti risuona” (May resonates with songs).

While I’m not the type to go around the neighborhood with a lute serenading strangers (my fellow Manhattanites would call the police), I am all for celebrating this beautiful month, which I associate with a variety of pleasant concepts.

At last, the sun is out, the bees are buzzing, the birds are chirping, and the flowers in Central Park are blooming…. but not only that: at the risk of sounding very self-involved, I’m excited because my birthday and Mother’s day also come this month. I’m not sure about resonating with songs – but it sure will smell like cakes!

Now, talking about birthdays, I am turning 44 and becoming a little nostalgic. I became twenty in the Eighties, and while here in the US the cake that best represents that era of excess is probably cheesecake -in some 7-layer variation -, in Italy we had Meringata, a sinfully rich dessert made of layers of meringue combined with tons of whipped cream – the Pavlova’s Italian cousin.

Meringata was the dessert of choice to share with your date in any Northern Italian piano bar or panini bar. The main downside of those types of cakes (besides the fact that they can induce a diabetic coma) is that they need to be assembled a short time prior to consumption, or the meringue will dissolve in the cream. That’s why I picked this alternative, which tastes less sugary and can be made the day before and transported easily.

Cakes made of layers of pan di Spagna (genoise) or pastafrolla (pastry dough) alternating with whipped cream and strawberries or other berries are also served in many areas of Italy for the Jewish holiday of Shavuot, which coincidentally falls in May.

In case you really need one more excuse to indulge.

Raspberry Cake with Whipped Cream and Pink Meringues

Prep Time: 35 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

1 hour

serves 8-10

serves please stop at one slice!

Fat & Calories: Ignorance is Bliss

Ingredients

Ingredients:
(Cake)
3/4 cup cake flour (or mix AP flour and potato starch)
4 large eggs
1/2 cup super-fine or granulated sugar
4 Tbs. unsalted butter, melted?
(Syrup and finish)
2 cups heavy cream
3 or 4 tsp. confectioners’ sugar
1 lb raspberries (or you can use strawberries),
1 cup water
½ cup granulated sugar
zest of 1 organic lemon
a dozen meringues, possibly pink

Directions

You can buy the pink meringues or make them with this recipe: http://www.cookingchanneltv.com/recipes/rachel-allen/pink-meringues-with-raspberry-cream.html

Preheat an oven to 360°F. Line the bottom of a 9- inch springform pan with parchment.

Whisk the eggs and sugar just until combined in the bowl of your stand mixer. Place the bowl over (not touching) a pot of simmering water, and whisk gently for about 3 minutes. Transfer the bowl to the mixer and whisk at high speed until pale, frothy and fluffy (7-8 minutes).

Sift the flour over the mixture in 2 separate additions (incorporate the first half with a spatula, before adding the second half). Add the melted butter.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 20-25 minutes or until the top of the cake is golden (do the toothpick test). Allow to cool completely on a wire rack before inverting it. Cut the cake into 2 equal layers before removing the parchment. Put the first layer (cut side up) on a platter.

To make the syrup, boil the water with the granulated sugar and the lemon zest for about 3-5 minutes. Set aside and allow to cool.

Whip the cream with the confectioners' sugar until it forms soft peaks. Place half of the raspberries or cut strawberries in a bowl, and combine them with about one-fourth of the raspberries. Brush the first cake layerwith syrup and spread with the cream/berry mix.. Top with the remaining cake layer, cut side down, and peel off the parchment. Brush the top with more syrup, spread the top and sides with the remaining whipped cream.

Arrange the remaining berries and meringues on top and around the cake. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

https://dinnerinvenice.com/2013/05/02/raspberry-cake-with-whipped-cream-and-pink-meringues-2/

Filed Under: Comfort food, Dairy, Desserts, Jewish Italian Cuisine, Shavuot Tagged With: Birthday cake, dessert, May, meringata panna, Mother's day cake, pavlova, pink meringue cake, Shavuos, Shavuot, Strawberry Cream cake

Surprise Holiday Chest

December 20, 2012 By dinnerinvenice 18 Comments

From Chanukkah to Christmas and of course birthdays, most of you will have to admit that part of the fun about giving and receiving presents lies in the packaging and wrap, which add an element of mystery and surprise to any gift. They conceal the object’s shape and any writings on the box, and increase our excitement and anticipation. For the aesthetes among us, the packaging can outshine the gift (or it can be used to hide a more metaphysical content – for more on this, you can read one of my favorite children’s books, “The Gift of Nothing”).

This rule of course applies to food, which is why chocolates seem to taste so much better when they come in a gorgeous box. The Japanese take this to the next level, cutting their vegetables into beautiful shapes and serving their kids’ school meals in lacquered bento boxes. This probably sounds like too much work and most of us would not be willing to do it everyday, but when it comes to holiday desserts, I know that we are all willing to go the extra mile.

So here is a special edible gift that your family will love! The mascarpone mousse, which will remind you of Tiramisu, is hidden in a treasure chest made of “Croccante” (Italian almond brittle). This type of candy, popular throughout Italy around the holidays and at fun fairs, is a mixture of caramelized sugar and almonds, easy to make, and easy to eat: you can break it into pieces and serve it with coffee, give it to kids in lieu of candy, or grind it up and sprinkle it over gelato. The only problem is that once you taste it, it will be hard to stop.

Happy Holidays!

SURPRISE HOLIDAY CHEST (Scrigno di Croccante)

(For the chest)

2 and 1/3 cups blanched almonds
1 lemon
1 ½ cup sugar

(for the filling)

2/3 pounds Mascarpone
1 cup heavy cream
4 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped or coarsely grated.
½ cup sugar

Grind the almonds very coarsely in your food processor, or chop them with a knife. In a saucepan, melt the sugar on medium heat with the filtered juice of half the lemon. Yum, caramel!

Add the almonds and keep cooking until the sugar has completely melted and has turned dark golden brown. Double-Yuml!!!

Cut a circle from parchment, about 9 ½” in diameter. Place it on top of a larger sheet of paper or foil. Now pour the caramel on top of the circle and spread it all over, it should be between 1/3” and ½” thick.

Carefully lift the circle and trasfer it onto a round 8 “ baking pan, lifting the sides and pressing them against the sides of the pan with a tablespoon dipped in lemon juice, until the caramel has molded to the shape of the pan. On a smaller disc of parchment, make a second disc of caramel (slightly less than 8″ in diameter), which will become the “lid’.

Whip the cream with an electric whisk, and combine it with the sugar, mascarpone, and amost ¾ of the chocolate. Pour into the caramel container, and top with the lid. Decorate with the rest of the chocolate, melted in a bain-marie, poured on top of parchment and cut into stars – or simply grated. Refrigerate until you are ready to serve.

Filed Under: Comfort food, Dairy, Desserts, Gluten Free, Holiday Food Tagged With: almond brittle, Birthday, caramel, chocolate, Christmas, cream, dairy, dessert, edible art, edible box, gluten-free, holiday, mascarpone, Shavuot

Panna Cotta alla Melagrana – Pomegranate Cream Custard

December 5, 2012 By dinnerinvenice 19 Comments

Panna cotta (cooked cream in Italian) is a traditional dessert from Northern Italy, prepared by simmering milk, sugar and cream and mixing them with gelatin. It literally takes minutes to make, but never fails to “wow” the guests. For a holiday version, I spiced it up with ponegranate seeds – a symbol of prosperity and good luck in many different traditions, not to mention a perfect contrast of color and flavor with the cream. Serve it for Hanukkah, Christmas, New Year, or a romantic anniversary dinner!

1 cup heavy cream
2/3 cup whole milk,
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 vanilla bean, cut into 2
1 package powdered gelatin
2 cups pomegranate juice
1/3 cup pomegranate seeds

Soften about 2/3 of the gelatin in a few spoonfuls the cold milk. Heat the rest of the milk with the sugar and the cut vanilla bean. Once it’s hot, stir in the gelatin mixture and mix until smooth. Allow to cool, discard the vanilla bean, and stir in the heavy cream. Pour about 3/4″ of this mixture into 4 glass cups and transfer into the freezer for a few minutes until the mixture thickens.

Soften the remaining gelatin in about 2 or 3 tbsp of the pomegranate juice. Heat the rest of the pomegranate juice, stir in the softened gelatin, mix well and allow to cool. Once the first layer of cream mixture has thickened, pour in a layer of pomegranate mixture, mixed with a few pomegranate seeds, and put the cups back into the freezer. Repeat with one more layer of cream and one of gelatin and pomegranate seeds. Top with a few more pomegranate seeds right before serving.

Filed Under: Comfort food, Dairy, Desserts, Gluten Free Tagged With: authentic Italian, Christmas, custard, dairy, easy, holiday recipes, holidays, Italian dessert, new year, northern italy, panna cotta, pomegranate, romantic recipe, Shavuot

Mount Sinai with Threaded Eggs

May 23, 2012 By dinnerinvenice 3 Comments

For years, I had been intrigued by this curious cake from Livorno (Leghorn), a dessert that features sweet egg threads on top – a sign that it was introduced by the egg-loving Portuguese Jews and marranos who were invited to settle in the city by the Grand-Duke of Tuscany in the sixteenth century. With the help of the Jewish merchants, Leghorn became one of the most important port cities in Europe (but also a center of the printing press), and became known as “the city with no ghetto”.

I was already familiar with the local cuisine, and decided to try my hand at this tart, which looked like no other. Unfortunately, the yolk threads proved to be a huge challenge: I didn’t seem to be able to control the flow through the colander (the tool of choice in all the books that listed the recipe). My Livornese friends couldn’t help either: apparently they had always encountered the same problem and ended up with a sticky blob or with burns… they said that they used to buy the cake for Shavuot and for Purim from a well-known patisserie, but that when the owner died his tricks were buried with him. I had to wait until the blogging and YouTube era to figure this all out, with the help of some non-Jewish foodies from Portugal, where threaded eggs are often featured on Christmas recipes… in particular, thank you chef Fernando Canales for teaching me that in the 21st century it would be silly to use a colander when most of us have easy access to a pastry syringe (or at least a large syringe to dispense pediatric drops)!

Mount Sinai with Threaded Eggs (Dairy)

Ingredients

Cake base:
1 1/3 cup finely ground almonds (200 gr)
½ cup sugar (100 gr)
pinch of salt
grated zest of 1 medium orange
1 large egg
3 or 4 tbsps candied etrog or lemon peel, finely chopped (optional)
Egg Threads:
1 cup + 2 tbsps water (250 ml)
2 ¼ cups sugar
8 large egg yolks
1 tbsp lemon or orange juice
1 ½ tbsps orange flower water, if liked (or 1 more tbsp orange juice)

Directions

Preheat your oven to 320 F (yes, it’s very low, but if the temperature is higher the “macaroon” will be too crunchy to cut).

Place the sugar and water for the base in a heavy saucepan and simmer until sticky (I have also skipped this step and used plain sugar instead of making the syrup, with an acceptable result). Add the almonds and zest, stirring with a wooden spoon until everything is well combined.

Allow to cool, and when it’s just lukewarm add the egg.

Line the bottom of a 9 to 9” baking pan with wet parchment (squeeze it well) and grease the sides. Pour in the cake mixture and press it down gently with your wet fingertips.

Bake for about 30 minutes and set aside.

For the egg threads, boil the sugar, water and juice in a frying pan (about 10” wide and with tall-ish sides so the syrup doesn’t splatter all over your stovetop), and simmer until the syrup is thick enough to stick to a spoon (coating it).

Slightly beat the yolks in a small bowl and then fill your pastry syringe with as much beaten egg as it can hold.

Now press the yolk out of the syringe and into the simmering syrup, starting at the center and moving the syringe in an outward circular motion so that the egg makes a long spiral thread into the syrup.

When you are done, press the thread down into the syrup with a wooden spoon or a spatula and let cook for a few seconds, until it holds together (but it should still be soft).

Remove with a slotted spoon and dry on a double layer of paper towel.

Repeat the same process with the rest of the yolks.

When all the yolks are cooked and drained, place them in a colander and rinse some of the syrup off with water.

Allow them to dry well.

Invert the almond base into a platter, top it with the candied peel and decorate it with the egg threads. It’s worth it!

https://dinnerinvenice.com/2012/05/23/mount-sinai-with-threaded-eggs-dairy/

Filed Under: Desserts, Gluten Free, Jewish Italian Cuisine, Non-Dairy, Purim, Shavuot Tagged With: almonds, cake, cucina ebraica, cuisine, dessert, gluten-free, Jewish holiday, Jewish Italian Cuisine1, Jewish Italian recipe, kosher Italian, Non-Dairy, Passover, Shavuot, tart

Crostata di Visciole (Sour Cherry Tart)

May 21, 2012 By dinnerinvenice 5 Comments

The ancient Jewish community of Rome maintains many traditions that will never fade. One of its highlights is this double-crusted tart, stuffed with ricotta cheese and sour cherry jam.

If you visit Rome, try it at Boccione’s, the famous kosher bakery in the ghetto! Theirs is made with really fresh sheep milk ricotta, and it’s worth putting up with the long lines….

Crostata di Visciole (Sour Cherry Tart) (Dairy)

Ingredients

300 gr (22oz) flour (about 2 ½ cups but it’s best to weigh)
125 gr (4 ½ oz) sugar (a little more than ½ cup)
125 gr (1 stick plus 1 tbsp) unsalted butter
pinch of salt
zest of 1 untreated lemon
1 large egg + 1 yolk (large, not XL)
for the filling:
1 pound whole sheep or cow milk ricotta
100 grams (scant ½ cup) sugar, or more to taste
(optional: 1 egg and 1 tbsp rhum or anise liqueur)
1 jar sour cherry jam such as Rigoni Asiago (or regular cherry jam mixed with little lemon juice)
OR 2 cups sour-cherries and ½ cup sugar

Directions

Place the sifted flour and salt into your food processor, add the cold butter cut into cubes, the sugar, salt, eggs, lemon zest, and pulse a few times until crumbly.

Remove from the food processor and work quickly with your hands (keep them cold by rubbing them on ice cubes) until smooth.

Wrap in plastic and allow to rest in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.

If using fresh sour cherries, cook them (pitted) for 25 minutes on low heat with ½ cup of sugar and 4-5 tbsps water.

Combine the ricotta with the ½ cup sugar (and egg and liqueur if using: I don’t).

Preheat your oven to 350 F. Grease and dust a baking pan (I also like to line the bottom with parchment as an extra precaution).

Cut the dough into 2 pieces: one should be about 2/3 and the other 1/3 of the total volume.

Roll out the larger piece on a lightly floured counter and place it on the bottom and sides of the prepared cake pan; brush the bottom with the cherry jam and follow with the ricotta filling.

Some people do the opposite and spread the ricotta on the bottom, followed by the cherry jam on top: in this case the ricotta becomes colored by the cherries while the pie is baking.

Roll out the remaining dough into a smaller disc and use it to top the pie, sealing the edges (you can also decorate with strips, but the ricotta stays moister if you “close” the pie.

I cut it into a large flower shape, which I felt was large enough for this purpose). Bake for about 45-55 minutes.

https://dinnerinvenice.com/2012/05/21/crostata-di-visciole-sour-cherry-tart-dairy/

Filed Under: Comfort food, Dairy, Desserts, Jewish Italian Cuisine, Shavuot Tagged With: crostata, cucina ebraica, cuisine, dairy, dessert, Jewish holiday, kosher Italian, ricotta pie, Shavuot, tart

Rice Cake with Pine Nuts and Rose Water

May 15, 2012 By dinnerinvenice Leave a Comment

The milk and honey are a reference to the divine love described in the Song of Songs; the rose water is linked to the tradition of Shavuot as the Feast of Roses; finally, the rice symbolizes the marriage between God and His people.

Can you find a more symbolic dish than this lovely cake of clear Sephardic origins?

Rice Cake with Pine Nuts and Rose Water

Ingredients

3/4 lb Italian rice such as Arborio, Vialone nano or Carnaroli
1/2 lb sugar
2 tablespoons honey
1/2 cups pine nuts
1 qt milk
2/3 cup butter
3 eggs
2 tablespoons of Rose Water, OR Orange Blossom water
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
(*** If you don’t like Rose Water, you can substitute the juice and zest of one orange)

Directions

Pour the milk, sugar and vanilla extract in a pot and bring it to a boil (enameled cast-iron or non-stick pots work best, if you use a steel pot the rice will tend to stick to the bottom and burn).

Add the rice, and cook for 15 to 18 minutes on low heat, stirring frequently.

When the rice has absorbed all the milk, remove from the heat and pour into a large bowl.

Once the mixture has cooled off, add the eggs one at a time, the pine nuts, the butter (softened at room temperature and cut into small pieces), and the rose water (or orange blossom water, or orange juice and zest).

Mix well with a wooden spoon until all the ingredients have blended together.

Grease a cake pan with butter and dust it with flour, and pour the mixture into it (you can use a Bundt pan, or any cake pan with a nice shape. I like to use one that looks like a flower).

Bake for about 30 minutes in a 400 F oven.

Let it cool on a rack and dust with confectioner’s sugar before serving.

https://dinnerinvenice.com/2012/05/15/rice-cake-with-pine-nuts-and-rose-water/

Filed Under: Desserts, Gluten Free, Holiday Food, Jewish Italian Cuisine, Non-Dairy, Shavuot Tagged With: cucina ebraica, cuisine, dessert, Jewish holiday, Jewish Italian Cuisine1, kosher Italian, Sephardic, Shavuos, Shavuot

Rotolo di Spinaci e Ricotta

May 13, 2012 By dinnerinvenice 2 Comments

Shavuot commemorates the revelation of the Torah on Mount Sinai, and Jewish communities around the world have developed special culinary customs to give due honor to the holiday.

Meals are characterized by dairy dishes, as the Bible itself compares the Torah to milk and honey (“honey and milk shall be under your tongue” (Song of Songs 4:11). Some commentators add that, before the revelation at Sinai, the Jews were allowed to eat meat that was slaughtered normally, but after the Torah was given on Shavuot, they became obligated to follow the rules of kasherut . Until the end of that first festival, they had no alternative but to indulge in dairy foods! Mystics also like to mention that the numerical equivalent of halav ( Hebrew for milk) is forty – the number of days Moses waited on Mount Sinai.

Another tradition is eating foods that are rolled, to remind us of the shape of the Torah scrolls that are read in synagogue. Among Ashkenazi jews, the most popular Shavuot food incorporating both customs is cheese blintzes. However in Italy, it’s all about pasta, creamy ricotta and aged parmigiano cheese! Buon appetito….

Rotolo di Spinaci e Ricotta

Ingredients

Fresh Pasta
2 pounds of spinach (or a bag of chopped, frozen spinach)
1 pound ricotta cheese (regular, do not use fat-free!)
salt and peper to taste
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
5 teaspoons grated Parmigiano cheese (grated, not shredded)
1 whole egg, slightly beaten
1/2 cup raisins, plumped in hot water and drained (optional)

Directions

Make fresh pasta (I like the recipe here http://www.lacucinaitalianamagazine.com/recipe/pasta_fresca ) and let the dough rest for about 30 minutes, wrapped in plastic.

Put two pounds of spinach in a pot with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and 2 whole cloves of garlic. Salt and sprinkle with very little water.

Cook covered for about 5 minutes, then uncovered until soft and until most water has been absorbed (about 10 minutes), stirring occasionally.

Once the spinach has cooled off, drain it through a colander (you can line it with cheesecloth if the holes are too wide), squeezing most of the liquid out.

Chop the spinach and mix it with the ricotta cheese, the egg, salt, spices and parmigiano.

If you like, you can also add raisins and pine nuts. Set aside.

Roll the pasta out into a thin sheet and cut a rectangle of at least 10’ x 20” or wider.

Lay the pasta sheet over a cheesecloth or a sheet of parchment.

Spread the spinach/ricotta mixture over the pasta and roll up tightly.

Wrap the roll in the cheesecloth and tie it with twine at both ends, like an oversized piece of candy.

Boil it for 35 minutes in a large pot of salted water, drain and slice.

Arrange in one layer in a baking tray, dress with sage butter (butter melted with sage leaves till golden brown) or a tomato sauce, and extra grated parmigiano. If you added pine nuts and raisins to the filling, sage butter is preferable.

***EASY ALTERNATIVE: if you don’t have time to make the pasta from scratch you can cook dried Barilla or De Cecco lasagna (the regular tipe, NOT the “No-boil”) sheets in salted boiling water for 5 minutes, making sure they don’t break. After draining, lay the lasagna sheets on paper towel, stuff with filling and roll up. Put in a baking pan with either marinara sauce or sage butter on the bottom and on top. Sprinkle with Parmigiano and bake at 400 F for 40 minutes (no convection or they will dry out).

Slice after baking with a sharp knife.

https://dinnerinvenice.com/2012/05/13/rotolo-di-spinaci-e-ricotta/

Filed Under: Comfort food, Dairy, First course, Jewish Italian Cuisine, Main Dish, Pasta and Rice, Shavuot Tagged With: cucina ebraica, cuisine, dairy, Jewish holiday, Jewish Italian Cuisine1, kosher Italian, Pasta roll-up, ricotta cheese, Shavuos, Shavuot, spinach

“Masconod” – Sweet Cheese Rolls

May 9, 2012 By dinnerinvenice 4 Comments

One of the most traditional Italian pasta dishes for Shavuot has ancient roots and a mysterious name: “Masconod”. The original recipe features parmigiano mixed with sugar and cinnamon (the same unusual combination used to dress gnocchi in some areas of North-Eastern Italy), although the less adventurous palates replace the sugar and cinnamon with black pepper. The pasta is rolled-up manicotti-style, but tighter, like Moroccan cigars: since Shavuot commemorates God’s giving of the Torah on Mount Sinai, it’s customary to eat some “rolled” foods, resembling Torah scrolls. This is also true of Simchat Torah (which marks the conclusion of the annual Torah reading cycle and the beginning of the next), but the rolls of Shavuot are usually filled with cream or cheese, since “Like honey and milk [the Torah] lies under your tongue” (Song of Songs 4:11)….

While Masconod is traditionally made with fresh lasagna sheets, this year I’ve tried it with crespelle (Italian crepes) and it was love at first taste! Move over, blintzes! Here are both options:

“Masconod” / Sweet Cheese Rolls (Dairy)

Ingredients

(serves 6)
fresh lasagna sheets OR crespelle (Italian crepes) (double the amount in the crepes recipe)
1/3 to 1/2 cup sugar (to taste)
1 to 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon (to taste)
3 cups freshly grated Parmigiano, Grana or Parmigianito
1 stick unsalted butter, or to taste

Directions

Make fresh pasta, cut into 25-30 5-inch squares, cook in boiling salted water a few at a time, drain and dry on an old towel.

If you prefer, make the (round) crespelle following the recipe, and cook in a non-stick skillet.

Combine the cheese with the sugar and cinnamon (or with simple black pepper if you don’t like sweet and savory combinations).

Brush each pasta square or crepe with melted butter, and sprinkle with a couple of tablespoons of cheese mixture.

Roll up like tight manicottis and arrange in one single layer in a buttered baking tray.

Brush the rolls with more melted butter, and top with the remaining cheese mixture.

Depending on the size of your baking dish, you can make a single layer or a double layer.

Bake for 20 to 30 minutes in a pre-heated 350 degree F oven.

https://dinnerinvenice.com/2012/05/09/masconod-sweet-cheese-rolls-dairy/

Filed Under: Dairy, First course, Jewish Italian Cuisine, Pasta and Rice, Shavuot Tagged With: Cheese, cheese pasta, cucina ebraica, cuisine, dairy, historic recipe, Jewish holiday, Jewish Italian Cuisine1, kosher Italian, macaroni and cheese, Masconod, pasta, Shavuos, Shavuot

Gnocchi alla Romana

May 6, 2012 By dinnerinvenice 3 Comments

Gnocchi alla Romana (Dairy)

Ingredients

(serves 4-6)
About 8 tbsps butter, or more to taste
3 cups milk
1 cup semolina flour
1 cup freshly grated Grana Padano or Parmigiano cheese
4 large eggs (use only the yolks)
salt and black pepper to taste
½ teasp of grated nutmeg (if liked)

Directions

Heat the milk in a saucepan with 5 tbsps of butter and ½ teaspoon salt.

When the milk is hot, pour in the semolina slowly, whisking continuously (use a whisk and not a spoon to prevent clumps); cook for about 15 minutes, or until cooked; as the mixture becomes too thick for a whisk, switch to a wooden spoon.

Remove the mixture from the heat, add salt if needed, and add half the grated cheese and all the egg yolks, combining well.

Pour and spread the semolina mixture onto a tray or counter lined wet parchment.

With the spatula, spread it to a thickness of about ½” to a maximum of 2/3, and allow to cool.

Cut the cold semolina into circles with a round cookie cutter.

Arrange the gnocchi in a buttered baking pan, slightly overlapping, and top with some butter flakes, the remaining grated cheese, a touch of grated nutmeg and a little black pepper.

Bake in a pre-heated 425 F oven for about 20-25 minutes, until the top is golden-brown.

You can dress and bake the trimmings in the same way; I serve the nicely round gnocchi to guests and enjoy the trimmings on my own the next day!

https://dinnerinvenice.com/2012/05/06/gnocchi-alla-romana-dairy/

Filed Under: Appetizer, Comfort food, Dairy, First course, Jewish Italian Cuisine, Pasta and Rice, Shavuot, Traditional Tagged With: cucina ebraica, cuisine, dairy, Gnocchi, Italian recipe, Italian Shavuot recipes, Jewish holiday, jewish italian, kosher Italian, semolina, Shavuot

Cassola, the Ecumenical Pancake

December 18, 2011 By dinnerinvenice 1 Comment

I couldn’t exactly put my finger on it. I had been frying for a couple of weeks already and all my Hanukkah posts were already up. Yet something just felt wrong.

OPS. I suddenly realized that I hadn’t posted anything special for all my readers and friends who are not Jewish and celebrate Christmas. I felt so awful, that I toyed with the idea of attempting a Panettone, the famous Italian Christmas Cake!

However, Panettone is really difficult to make, requiring several phases of exceptionally long rising, and the use of special Italian bread flours that are hard to find. Here is something much quicker, and just as decadent: it’s an ancient Jewish Roman dessert, kind of a cheese pancake, shockingly simple to make, which the Roman Catholic community somehow adopted as the dessert of choice to end their Christmas dinner with (maybe after one too many panettone flops)? .

The Jews of Rome still make it for Shavuot, but of course it would also work for Hanukkah (after all, according to several food historians, the original Hanukkah pancakes were made with cheese). In spite of its minimalism, Cassola is so tasty that Claudia Roden, in her Book of Jewish Food, tells that she enchanted a whole dinner party of food writers with it, at the Oxford Symposium of Food and Cookery. Cassola is sweet, creamy, and delicate (and naturally low-fat! but you could never tell). May your holiday season be just as delicious!

Cassola, the Ecumenical Pancake (not just Dairy, Very Dairy)

Ingredients

1 pound ricotta cheese (made from whole milk, without emulsifiers)
4 large eggs
1 to 1 ½ cup sugar? (depending on desired sweetness)
a pinch of salt
zest of one large organic lemon (optional)
½ teaspoon cinnamon? or vanilla (optional)
about 2 tablespoons mild extra-virgin olive oil, or butter

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400º F. With a whisk or a hand mixer, beat the eggs with the sugar until creamy.

Add the ricotta, salt, lemon zest and cinnamon (or vanilla).

Grease a baking pan (about 9 ½” and springform is easier) with butter or olive oil, dust with flour, pour the mixture in, and transfer into your pre-heated oven.

Bake at 400 F for the first 10 minutes, then lower the temperature to 350 Fand bake for another 25 minutes.

Turn the oven off and allow the cassola to set inside, with the door open, for another 10 or 15 minutes.

It should be firmer and golden brown on the outside and very soft and moist inside, like a pudding. Serve warm.

You can also cook it in a greased non-stick or cast iron pan like a frittata, on the stovetop, flipping it once (this was probably the original version), or cook the bottom on the stovetop and the top in the oven under the broiler.

Serves- 4-6

https://dinnerinvenice.com/2011/12/18/cassola-the-ecumenical-pancake-not-just-dairy-very-dairy/

Filed Under: Comfort food, Dairy, Desserts, Gluten Free, Holiday Food, Jewish Italian Cuisine, Shavuot Tagged With: Christmas, cucina ebraica, dairy, history, holiday, Italian, Jewish holiday, kosher Italian, Rome, Shavuot

Chocolate Cream and Strawberry Frozen Delight

Pistachio and Cream Swiss Roll

Strawberry and Prosecco Tiramisu

Raspberry Cake with Whipped Cream and Pink Meringues

Surprise Holiday Chest

Panna Cotta alla Melagrana – Pomegranate Cream Custard

Mount Sinai with Threaded Eggs

Crostata di Visciole (Sour Cherry Tart)

Rice Cake with Pine Nuts and Rose Water

Rotolo di Spinaci e Ricotta

“Masconod” – Sweet Cheese Rolls

Gnocchi alla Romana

Cassola, the Ecumenical Pancake

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