Splash of Sherri

manischewitz blackberry wine sangria

Posted on May 5, 2020 by Sherri

How do we sangria at my house? With Manischewitz wine of course! I guess you can call this a Cinco de Mayo – de Mani! While it’s typically our Friday night wine, tonight alongside my tacos (in their fancy egg carton holder) will sit two glasses of sangria made with Manischewitz blackberry wine. If you have never had this wine before, think grape juice with a little kick! It’s a sweet wine and truly the perfect choice as a base for sangria. Concord grape is the most popular and well known flavor of their brand, but the blackberry is my favorite.

I created this refreshing and delicious drink one Friday night when I had the wine over ice. In that instant my Manischewitz (pronounced mani-she-vitz) got a splash of apple brandy, a little fizz, and some fruit thrown in. Friday nights have never been the same at my house since.

We have it on Rosh Hashanah with lots of apples and I throw in a cinnamon stick for some spice. We have it in the summer filled with lots of peaches, berries, or both. Tonight I made it with whatever fruit I had on hand: apples, oranges, lemons, limes and lots of sweet blackberries. Whatever fruit combination you choose will be great. Just keep it simple and no bananas. Save those for your banana bread which I read is the unofficial baked good of Covid – 19. A new banana bread recipe to follow soon. In the meantime, stop baking and go make some sangria! The recipe makes 4 to 6 servings and can easily be cut in half, or doubled. Happy Cinco de Mayo everyone!

Now back to my sangria – Olé and Enjoy!

ingredients
1½ cups (½ bottle) Manischewitz blackberry wine (or concord grape is fine)
1 – 8 ounce can Izze blackberry sparkling juice (or other sparkling juice or seltzer)
3 ounces apple brandy
¼ cup orange or pineapple juice
1 medium to large apple cored and cut into ½ inch dice
1 orange cut into wedges or rings
1 small lime sliced into rings
blackberries or other fruit on hand
lemon wedge to garnish
ice to serve (optional)

directions
Place all ingredients into a pitcher except for the sparkling juice and place in the fridge for 30 minutes to an hour or overnight. When ready to serve, add the sparkling juice and serve over ice or straight up. It’s that easy.

homemade taco holder

Posted on May 5, 2020 by Sherri

Taco Tuesday + Cinco de Mayo + Tip Tuesday = a quick and easy homemade taco holder using an egg carton. When Cinco de Mayo and Taco Tuesday fall on the same day you have to acknowledge it – am I right? For me it’s a triple header because I’ve been trying to launch Tip Tuesday on my website and today seems like the perfect day to do it.

I make tacos a lot and when I do it’s impossible to get them to stand up so they look pretty and the filling doesn’t fall out. If you’re like me and don’t have a taco stand, here’s my tip: turn over an egg carton place your tacos in between the grooves and there you go! Pretty cool right? I left the top of the carton on so you can see what it looks like as a whole carton, but you can certainly cut the top off if you like.

As for the tacos, no measured recipe here – use any shell you like corn or flour, crunchy or soft, fill with shredded lettuce, top with grilled fish (or chicken or steak) seasoned with chili and lime, diced tomatoes, corn, avocado or guacamole, and finish it off with your favorite salsa. Place them in your new fancy homemade taco holder and you’ll be the hit of the party. Next up… my favorite way to sangria! Olé!

israeli salad with couscous

Posted on April 29, 2020 by Sherri

You know how sometimes when you combine two already great foods together they create something wonderful? That’s what happened when I combined Israeli salad with Israeli couscous. It was a marriage of two already pretty terrific foods and when combined they brought out the best in each other. Just like a real marriage – amiright?

First the salad
According to Adeena Sussman who wrote the cookbook Sababa, Israeli salad is the most simple and most Israeli of salads. These words could not be more true. When I was in Israel a couple of years ago I ate plenty of Israeli salad. It was on the hotel breakfast buffet every morning, at the falafel stands, hummus eateries, and many of the restaurants I went to. The freshness of the ingredients and the brightness in flavor make it quintessentially Israeli. The base is simple: fresh juicy tomatoes, crunchy cucumbers, lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper. It’s like a garden in your bowl!

My recipe is adapted from one I learned in a cooking class given by Timor Dill. He is living here in Columbus temporarily with his wife Merav who is our Shlicha* (an emissary from Israel) and their children. He’s an amazing chef and taught an Israeli street food cooking class at Local Matters. I had just come back from Israel a couple of months prior and was so excited for the class. Timor shared his recipe for Israeli salad, and I have been making it ever since. I put my own splash on it by using sweet teardrop tomatoes and I use a sweet red pepper instead of green.

now for the couscous
The addition of the pearl couscous was a happy accident. As things like this go, I happen to have both in the fridge and added them together. From there I have created endless versions adding one or more of the following: feta cheese, chickpeas, olives, tuna, grilled chicken, a drizzle of tahini sauce, pistachios, or diced rainbow carrots. It can be served as a hearty main dish over arugula, it’s perfect for vegetarians, and with the addition of canned tuna you’ll have a main dish pescatarians will love!

The secret is to toast the couscous in a little bit of olive oil which brings out the nuttiness. Once combined, the couscous absorbs the deliciousness of the dressing, the chew of the couscous with the crunch and sweetness of the vegetables is perfection. Mixed together with the Israeli salad it’s a perfect match.

I know I just shared a soup recipe with couscous but it’s Israeli Independence Day and in addition to the shawarma and falafel we are having for dinner, we are including the most Israeli salad with the addition of Israeli couscous. This is how we are celebrating – happy 72^nd and Enjoy!

ingredients for Israeli salad
1 pint sweet teardrop tomatoes cut in half (about 2 cups)
1 English cucumber seeded and diced to ¼ inch dice (about 1 ½ to 2 cups)
1 red pepper cut into ¼ inch dice
1 to 2 scallions sliced fine (optional)
juice of ½ lemon (or more to taste)
¼ cup finely chopped parsley
1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

directions for the vegetables
Add all the vegetables to a large bowl. Toss in the parsley, green onion, lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper and mix gently. Adjust seasoning as needed.

Ingredients for the couscous
1 cup Israeli couscous
1 ¼ cups boiling water (or box recommendations)
1 tablespoon olive oil
salt optional

In a small pot bring the water to a boil. In a medium size pot heat the olive oil on medium heat, add the couscous and mix it around a little bit and allow it to toast for 3 to 5 minutes. The water and the couscous take about the same time. Add the boiling water carefully to the couscous, lower the heat to low, cover and allow to cook according to directions on the package. It usually takes about 8 to 10 minutes. Keep an eye on it so it doesn’t get too dry. Stir and set aside to cool.

Once cool it’s time to make the magic happen! Bring the two together in a large bowl and mix gently serve and enjoy!

*A Shlicha is an emissary from Israel. While here she facilitates connections to Israel with Israeli programing, Israeli experiences, and is dedicated to the Jewish people, our heritage and to Israel. To learn more click here.

quick & easy vegetable soup

Posted on April 27, 2020 by Sherri

A day like yesterday was perfect for my quick and easy vegetable soup with butter beans and Israeli couscous. A day that’s 40 degrees, cold, rainy, grey, and windy. A day where you want to stay in bed to watch old movies or binge watch something on Netflix. A day that would only be made better with a nice bowl of steamy hot soup. The kind of soup my mother would say that can warm your bones. This is that soup.

It seems I have soup simmering on my stove at least once a week – because I do, reason being I live in Ohio – the home of erratic weather, I can make it last minute and it’s hearty enough to be a complete meal. Keeping with the times, it’s filled with pantry and vegetable staples, and can be made start to finish in less than 45 minutes. I always have carrots (and if lucky like today rainbow colored carrots), celery, and onion on hand which is the best start for any vegetable soup. As for my pantry staples Israeli couscous (aka pearl couscous), butter beans (aka white lima beans) and a variety of lentils are always on hand.

A few months ago I bought a couple of cans of butter beans thanks to Vivian Howard and her show on PBS called A Chef’s Life. She uses them in a variety of ways, even making a veggie burger with them. I was so intrigued I just had to get them. What I didn’t realize is they are the same as the white lima beans which I grew up eating. Who knew? Vivian and my mom both used the dry beans and soaked them overnight. I love the convenience of the canned bean, especially for soup and when you don’t have time to plan ahead. The buttery and creamy white lima beans were a staple in my house growing up and my mom added them to various soups and stews. That could be why I like this soup so much.

http://www.splashofsherri.com/2020/04/29/israeli-salad-with-couscous/As for Israeli couscous, I always have that on hand because I just love it! They are nothing like their more well known couscous cousin which has a more sandy texture – fyi, they are not interchangeable. I use this little pearl shaped pasta it in a variety of side dishes and main dish salads like my Israeli couscous with root vegetables and my newest recipe for Israeli salad couscous. The addition to the soup adds a nice little surprise.

These two simple ingredients took my ordinary vegetable soup to a whole new level and I think you’ll love it! It’s so satisfying and nutritious, making it a perfect meal when you are seeking warmth, comfort and something delicious. This recipe makes 10 to 12 servings. Enjoy!

ingredients
1 large onion diced
6 carrots sliced into rounds – about a heaping 2 cups
6 stalks celery chopped – about a heaping 2 cups
2 containers of vegetable broth
1 – 26 ounce container Pomi chopped tomatoes (or other brand)
1 can of butter beans drained
½ cup dry red lentils (sorted and rinsed)
½ cup dry Israeli couscous
1 cup haricot vert or green beans cut into 1” pieces
1 cup fresh flat leaf parsley chopped fine (leaves only/yields approx.. 1/4 cup)
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons Costco or other no-salt seasonings
2 teaspoons kosher salt or to taste
1 teaspoon pepper or to taste

directions
Heat an 8 quart pot on medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and onions. Sauté onion until translucent, about 10 minutes, and then add the celery and carrots. Cook for about 5 to 10 minutes stirring occasionally. Add the broth and tomatoes and bring to a light boil. Add the lentils and continue to cook for about 20 minutes. Then add the Israeli couscous and cook for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes add in the haricot vert or green beans. Drain and and add the beans, parsley and other seasonings to the soup. Cook for another 15 minutes or until the green beans are tender.

substitutions:
I’ve become accustomed to adding in swap outs at this time so here goes…If you don’t have lima or butter beans add in a can of cannellini beans or chickpeas. No red lentils, add yellow or green. No vegetable broth, use chicken broth or water. No Israeli couscous you can sub orzo, acini de pepe, or even alphabet pasta. But do not sub regular couscous. You can sub 1 tablespoon of dried parsley for fresh.

my mother’s noodle pudding

Posted on April 24, 2020 by Sherri

My mother’s noodle pudding was always my favorite part of our Friday night dinner. Noodle pudding, also called kugel, was a staple in our house that showed up once a week adorned one of two ways. This depended on the time she had and the ingredients on hand. One was her simple pudding with just noodles, eggs, sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla. The other was a bit fancier with what appeared to be little red jewels on top. The only difference between the two was the addition of raisins, a can of fruit cocktail, and the maraschino cherries she added in. If I asked enough times, she would add extra cherries on the top and tell me they were just for me! This one was my favorite.

There are so many different versions and ways to make a noodle pudding. They can be savory or sweet and with or without fruit. They can be made with fine noodles or extra wide noodles. You can also add sour cream and cottage cheese to make a dairy noodle pudding. If I had to compare it to anything I would say it’s like a bread pudding but instead of using bread, we used noodles.

When my youngest son was 3 years old, it was not only his absolute favorite thing to eat, but also one of the foods he associated with our Friday night Shabbos dinner. When it was time for the meal to be served he would cry out “newie, newie, newie” in excitement until a piece landed on his plate.

One Friday I didn’t prepare it for dinner. That night he didn’t cry out “newie” he just cried! He cried so much I had to quickly whip one up and hold off dinner. No one should ever cry for a noodle pudding – especially not on my watch! After that night, we never had a Friday night dinner without it ever again!

Time has sure gone by fast. He is now home from college from what should be one of his lasts weeks as a senior. He has been home for a few weeks now and I’m finding it comforting yet bittersweet making my mother’s noodle pudding every Friday night again. Comforting because it brings back so many wonderful memories of when my children were small and also keeps my mother close in my heart. Bittersweet because I really wish things were back to normal and he was on campus with all of his friends where he belongs. Since he can’t be, the least I can do is to make sure my mother’s noodle pudding shows up on our Friday night table every week just as she always did. Shabbat Shalom and Enjoy!

ingredients
1 package of wide or medium egg noodles
8 eggs
½ cup sugar
½ cup raisins (black or golden)
2 cans of fruit cocktail in juice drained (I like the very cherry of course)
2 teaspoon vanilla
1 ½ teaspoons salt (1 tsp. to boil the noodles, ½ tsp. for the pudding)
2 tablespoons vegetable or light olive oil divided (one for the pudding and one for the pan)
Cinnamon sugar
maraschino cherries (optional)

directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Boil noodles as per directions on the package, adding 1 teaspoon of salt to the water. While the noodles are boiling, prepare the rest of the ingredients.

In a large bowl add the 8 eggs, sugar, vanilla, 1 tablespoon of oil and 1/2 teaspoon of salt; whisk until well blended. Add in the raisins and fruit cocktail. When the noodles are done, rinse in cold water, drain well and add to the egg mixture. Mix together.

Oil a 9 x 13 casserole dish on the bottom and sides. Add the noodle mixture and smooth out the top with the back of a spoon. Make sure everything is well distributed. If adding the cherries, cut them in half and place on the top. Sprinkle the top with cinnamon sugar. Bake for about 40 to 45 minutes checking after 30. If it looks like it’s getting too brown, cover lightly with foil. I like to bake it just until barely set in the middle – it’s a bit more custardy that way.