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Posts Tagged ‘sesame seeds’

choc full of goodies; health-food cookies

30 May

 

While on a mission to bake some filling and healthy snacks for my 12 year old son to take to school, I’ve made an awesome discovery.  You see, I got distracted while making these cookies and it wasn’t until they were baked that I realized that I had left out the sugar – with delicious results.  These cookies are so full of everything good, that the omission of sugar turned it into a salty, savory confection instead of a sweet one.  The recipe is from Maida Heatter’s Book of Great Desserts, where she writes that she made these cookies for a health-food store in Miami Beach until the demand become more than she could handle.  I will give you the recipe as it was originally written.

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 cup unsifted all-purpose whole-wheat flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon powdered ginger
  • 7 1/2 ounces (1 1/2 cups) currants or (soft) raisins (I used chocolate chips instead)
  • 4 ounces (1 generous cup) walnuts, coarsely broken or cut
  • 4 ounces (1 generous cup) pecans, coarsely broken or cut
  • 3 ounces (1/2 generous cup) pignolias (pine nuts)
  • 4 ounces (1 cup) peanuts, may be salted or not
  • 2 1/2 ounces (1/2 cup) sunflower seeds
  • 2 1/2 ounces (1/2 cup) sesame seeds
  • 1/2 cup wheat germ
  • 1 cup rolled oats or quick-cooking (not instant) oatmeal
  • 1/2 lb (1 cup) butter or margarine
  • 1/2 cup peanut butter (or other nut butter)
  • 1 1/4 cups dark brown sugar, firmly packed
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/4 cup milk

DIRECTIONS

  1. Adjust rack to top position in the oven.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Cut aluminum foil to fit cookies sheets.  Do not grease.
  2. Combine flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and ginger and use a strainer to strain into a very large bowl.  Add the raisins, and toss till they are coated with flour.  Add the walnuts, pecans, pignolias, peanuts, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, wheat germ and rolled oats or oatmeal.  Mix together and set aside.
  3. In a mixing bowl, cream together the butter and peanut butter.  Add the sugar and beat well.  Beat in the eggs and the milk, scraping the bowl with a rubber spatula as necessary.
  4. Pour over the flour-nut mixture.  Stir with a heavy wooden spoon or spatula or mix with your hand, until the dry ingredients are completely absorbed.
  5. Make these large.  Place by 1/4 cupfuls 2 1/2- 3 inches apart on the foil.  With the back of a spoon, flatten the cookies to about 3/4 inch thickness.
  6. Bake 18 minutes or until cookies are lightly browned and semi-firm to the touch.  If necessary, reverse position of cookie sheet during baking to insure even browning.
  7. Use a wide metal spatula to transfer cookies to racks to cool.

photo credit: www.vegansisters.com

     
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    Posted in baking recipes, cookies, recipes, sugar free

     

    fresh hot bagels

    03 Oct

    That’s what the neon sign in the bagel storefronts read on Thirteenth Avenue in Brooklyn, where I grew up.  On many Motzei Shabbosim (Saturday Nights) in the winter, we would go with my father to pick up some hot, mouthwatering bagels.  So, I thought – what better way to break a fast than on fresh, homemade bagels?    My bagels came out of the oven at break-fast time and were awesome!  For a crowd of 9, we polished off 15 bagels!  And they were fun to make and didn’t take all day like traditional breads.  Many years ago, when I first tried this recipe and before there were any bagel stores in Lakewood, my husband and I dreamed of opening a bagel shop.  Today, more than 25 years later, we’re both in the food business but have yet to own a bagel store…..

    Ingredients

    • 1 package active dry yeast
    • 1 1/2 cups water
    • 1 Tablespoon sugar

    Combine in a bowl.  Add:

    • 5 cups flour
    • 1 Tablespoon salt
    • 2 Tablespoons sugar

    Knead dough in a mixer and/or by hand until smooth.

    Place in a greased bowl.  Rise 15 minutes.

    Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prepare a pot of boiling water.

    Divide dough into 8 pieces.   (I made a double batch.)  Roll each piece into an 8-inch rope. 

     Shape into bagel rings by wrapping the rope around your 4 fingers, overlapping the dough by one inch.  Squeeze the overlapped dough like play dough until it is totally integrated.

    Rise another 20 minutes.

    Cook in boiling water, 3 minutes on first side and 2 minutes on second side.   Remove from water and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.  Sprinkle with seeds of your choice (poppy, sesame, kosher or sea salt, minced onion, minced garlic, or “everything” spice blend) while bagel is wet from the water.

    Bake in 350 degree oven for 30 minutes.  This will give you a soft bagel.  If you prefer a crispy bagel, bake at 450 for 20 minutes, and turn over and bake the second side, if necessary for 5-10 minutes.

     
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    Posted in bread recipes, recipes

     

    japanese kani/sushi salad

    19 Sep

    This salad is pretty and delicious and I’ve gotten rave reviews each time I’ve made it. After tasting it, my guests requested I make them this salad for their upcoming affair (Bas Mitzvah/Sheva Brachos, etc.). I must say that it is time consuming, but oh, so worthwhile. I brought it to my friend the day she moved and she told me days later that she is craving my salad! Inspired by a recent Binah Article (07/18/2011) written by Chaya Fleishman, I have made a few changes most notably in the dressing. This salad is quite versatile, as it is elegant enough for a fancy party and simple enough for a weekday dinner.

    INGREDIENTS

    1 bag (or head) romain lettuce
    2 cups raw shushi rice, cooked according to directions below
    3 cucumbers, seeded, peeled and julienned
    2 large carrots, peeled and julienned (you can use shredded carrots)
    12 sticks kani (imitation crab)*, defrosted and pulled apart into thin shreds (I bang it down with my wrist to separate)
    1 cup dressing (recipe follows)
    Tempura crunch (recipe follows)
    Avocado, thinly slied
    Toasted sesame seeds

    *Sold in grocery/supermarket freezers with the brand name Dyna-Sea. I use the long ones.

    Sushi Rice
    Ingredients:
    2 cups rice
    3 Tbsp oil
    2 1/2 cups water
    1/4 cup Nakano brand unseasoned rice vinegar
    2 Tbsp sugar
    1 1/2 tsp salt

    Directions:
    Rinse rice in a strainer for a few minutes to remove excess starch. Saute rice in oil for a few minutes, then add water and bring to a boil. Lower flame and cover pot. Allow to cook for approximately 15 minutes, until water is absorbed. Let stand for 10 minutes. Combine vinegar, sugar and salt and mix into rice. Cool.

    Tempura Crunch
    Ingredients:
    1 cup tempura batter mix*
    1 1/2 cups water
    Oil for frying

    *Sold in the sushi section under the Freund’s label

    Directions:
    Mix together tempura mix and water. Preheat oil in a pot. Deep fry the batter by dripping batter into the hot oil while holding the bowl about 2 feet above the pot. The batter will disperse immediately. Once golden brown, remove from pot and drain well. Allow to cool, then crumble by hand until you get a fluffy, breadcrumb-like texture.

    Tip: Ready made tempura crunch can be purchased at sushi bars to save time and avoid mess.

    Dressing
    Ingredients:
    1 cup mayonnaise
    3 oz water
    1 Tbsp sugar
    3 tsp hot pepper sauce or schug
    2 tsp garlic powder
    1/2 tsp paprika
    14 tspn white pepper
    1/4 tsp salt
    1/3 cup teriyaki sauce
    2 tsp wasabi powder

    Directions:
    Combine ingredients in a covered container and shake well to mix.

    PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER

    To serve the salad, put the ingredients in a salad bowl or on idividual plates in the following order. First put the lettuce on the plate (or in bowl), top with rice, kani, carrot and cucumber. Drizzle with dressing (according to salad proportion). Sprinkle with tempura crunch, put a few thin slices of avocado atop salad (in the center of plate) and sprinkle with toasted white and black sesame seeds.

     
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    Posted in recipes