Baking · DIY · Tutorial · Uncategorized

Tutorial: Marilyn’s Apple Pie

Are we allowed to post a tutorial for baking on our blog? Hell’s yeah. I never come empty handed to family or Shabbat dinners. Therefore I’m always looking for new creations in the kitchen. Today I’m sharing an apple pie recipe that is based on existing ones but where I’ve added my own imagination and the ultimate secret ingredient* that makes the difference. Thank you Delicatessen for the inspiration and thank you Tori Avey from TheShiksa.com for the basic recipe.

Ingredients:

  • 5 ripe granny smith apples – peeled2013-10-053
  • feel free to add 2 or more other apples
  • a bowl of dried raisins
  • 1/4 cup butter
  • 1/2 cup orange juice
  • 1/2 lemon, juiced
  • 1/3 cup white sugar
  • 5 tbsp brown sugar
  • 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 tsp (or more depending on your taste of) Cardamom*
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1/4 tsp nutmeg
1. Start with the crust. Some people buy it. Some people make it. To make your own dough, you can use this website. Once your dough is cooling off in the fridge you can turn on your oven, heat it to 175°C and prepare a preferably round oven dish with some parchment paper.
IMG_26602. Cut your apples either in small little chopped squares or just cut them in to thin slices.

IMG_26613. Meanwhile, heat the butter in a medium saucepan. Then add the apples and raisins and then the orange juice, lemon, sugars, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and cardamom. Bring them to a boil and stir occasionally until you obtain a nice mixture and a great smell. Cover the pan and cook on medium heat for exactly 8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Do not overcook. Uncover apples at the end of cooking and remove from heat and allow to cool.

IMG_2662IMG_26644. To prepare the dough – whether from your fridge or freezer – make sure it’s not too cold so you can work it. Roll out the dough with a tool or with you hand as flat as possible. Place the flattened dough in your recipient, cut off hanging borders and keep some for the top coat. You can use your fantasy for the top coat. I try to make a little apple too for those who can see. Poor in the apple mixture. Then finish with your top coat. When preparing the actual pie, I always make some tiny little individual portions to share and taste.IMG_2666

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IMG_26775. Bake pie for 45-50 minutes, until the top is golden brown and pie is cooked through. Serve warm or cold, whith some vanilla ice or not. Bon appétit.

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Food · Lifestyle · Tel Aviv · Uncategorized

Ottolenghi – food for thought

In Flemish they say ‘Liefde gaat door de maag’ – literally translated  ‘Love goes through the stomach’ – and yes you can cook your way into capturing love. Wintertime is cocooning time and that means time for new culinary challenges. As Israel’s population consists of 76% Jewish people, Christmas is not as widely celebrated as in the rest of the world. While recently traveling to New York and London, I kept seeing that same cookbook in shops and homes called Jerusalem, without giving it too much attention; until I got my own copy as a Christmas gift.

Yotam Ottolenghi is a culinary star in London, overseeing four restaurants, writing vegetarian columns for The Guardian and a familiar face on BBC tv. Born in Israel not long after the 1967 war, Ottolenghi grew up in Jewish West Jerusalem. After some time in Tel Aviv, he moved to London, took a cooking course at Le Cordon Bleu without any intention for professional cooking; and there he met his later-to-be business partner and co-chef Sami Tamimi. Tamimi grew up in the Muslim neighborhoods of East Jerusalem around the same time. What are the odds: a Jewish Israeli from West Jerusalem, an Israeli Arab from East Jerusalem, meeting in the UK, sharing a passion for the same food despite cultural dissimilarities and together manage to successfully create their own brand of Meditteranean based cuisine. Ottolenghi and Tamimi’s story is inspiring; a sign of hope and a symbol for peace.

Jerusalem: A Cookbook is their third book and was already a bestseller before it even came out. I wanted to prepare diner with a few typical Middle Eastern for my Belgian guests. So we started the preparations: it can begin with sewing your own apron first (yes maybe I’ll post a tutorial for it one day) but let’s stick to shopping for this one. We went out to the Carmel Market in Tel Aviv, where they have the best fruit & vegetables at the best prices. We also got some spices, tea and herbs like Za’atar (Hyssup), Cinnamon, Cumin and Curcuma (Turmeric). In the little streets of the Shuk (market in Hebrew) one can find great food spots for authentic Hummus, Tehina & Shakshuka like at Shlomo & Doron, to cement the stomach. And then it was time to cook; out of 120 recipes in the book I picked a few: I made roasted cauliflower & hazelnut salad (replacing some of the ingredients to my own taste). Then we had stuffed aubergines with lamb & pine nuts (I used minced beef meat instead) with Mejadra (ancient dish with rice, lentils and fried onion). I also added a plain sweet potato puree and some avocado salad. And some fruit for dessert.  בתאבון – شهية طيبة

Maybe one day, peace in the world will come through the stomach too…

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