Matcha Challah

I love playing with new challah creations. All it takes is a few tweaks to my staple challah recipe. 

For this weeks challah, and the first shabbas of the new year 2021, I wanted something festive with sprinkles and maybe a little healthy and green. That’s where matcha comes in. Matcha green tea lattes are so delicious! The matcha gives the challah a green hue and you can taste the earthy green tea. Plus, matcha has many health benefits, like antioxidants, but that’s not why I chose it for this week. 

What you will need:

2 tbsp yeast

1/2 cup sugar

1 1/3 cup warm water

1/3 cup oil

2 eggs

1 tsp salt

1 tbsp matcha powder

4-4 1/2 cups flour

Rainbow sprinkles

Directions: 

In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the yeast, sugar, and water, stir to combine. Add the 2 eggs and mix the eggs with a beater attachment. Then add the oil and mix together again. 

With the mixer on the lowest speed, add flour cup by cup until the dough starts forming a ball and pulling away from the sides of the mixing bowl. At this point, swap out the beater attachment for a dough hook and add the salt and matcha powder. Keep adding flour cup by cup until the dough is no longer sticky to the touch. In total this should be roughly 4 cups of flour. 

Knead the dough together by hand to make sure everything is incorporated together. 

Place the dough back in the bowl and cover the top of the dough with a thin layer of oil and cover with a wet towel. 

Let the dough rise until it doubles in size, this should be about an hour, or in the fridge up to 24 hours. 

Punch the dough down and let it rise for another hour. 

At this point, you are ready to form the challahs. I like to do simple 4 strand braids. 

Once all of your challahs are formed, let them rise for an additional half hour, or up to an hour in colder weather. 

Top each challah with egg wash (one egg with a little bit of water) and some rainbow sprinkles. 

Bake at 350°F for 30 minutes.

 

Enjoy!

Pumpkin Challah

I love everything pumpkin! I also love playing with new challah creations. All it takes is a few tweaks to my staple challah recipe.

I have been on a challah kick and a pumpkin kick lately. Who said pumpkin is reserved just for Fall? Not me! I love pumpkin all year, whether it’s a savory dish like pumpkin soup or pie or sweet like pumpkin ice cream, cake, cookies...I could go on and on.

You can definitely used can pumpkin purée, just make sure it’s one where it’s just pumpkin on the ingredients, not a pie filling that has other ingredients added in. I use pie pumpkins that I roast and purée my own, check out my how to here. 

What you will need:

2 tbsp yeast

1/2 cup sugar

1/3 cup warm water

1 cup pumpkin purée {make your own here}

1/3 cup oil

2 eggs

1 tsp salt

2 tsp pumpkin pie spice

4-4 1/2 cups flour

Directions: 

In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the yeast, sugar, water, and pumpkin purée, stir to combine. Add the 2 eggs and mix the eggs with a beater attachment. Then add the oil and mix together again. 

With the mixer on the lowest speed, add flour cup by cup until the dough starts forming a ball and pulling away from the sides of the mixing bowl. At this point, swap out the beater attachment for a dough hook and add the salt and pumpkin pie spice. Keep adding flour cup by cup until the dough is no longer sticky to the touch. In total this should be roughly 4 cups of flour. 

Knead the dough together by hand to make sure everything is incorporated together. 

Place the dough back in the bowl and cover the top of the dough with a thin layer of oil and cover with a wet towel. 

 Let the dough rise until it doubles in size, this should be about an hour, or in the fridge up to 24 hours. 

Punch the dough down and let it rise for another hour. 

At this point, you are ready to form the challahs. I like to do simple 4 strand braids. 

Once all of your challahs are formed, let them rise for an additional half hour, or up to an hour in colder weather. 

Top each challah with egg wash (one egg with a little bit of water) and some pumpkin seeds and cinnamon sugar if you want it sweet. 

Bake at 350°F for 30 minutes.

Enjoy!

Gingerbread Loaf

Every year around this time I like baking something pepperminty, or warm and satisfying with spices in it. And this gingerbread loaf is just that! While I enjoy my pumpkin, fall spices, and peppermint all year round, everyone is baking a lot more this time of year!

This loaf is easy to prepare and comes together pretty quickly, which means you will be smelling the warm and delicious spices sooner.

What you will need: 

GINGERBREAD LOAF 

2 cups all-purpose flour 

½ cup granulated sugar 

1 tsp baking soda 

½ tsp salt 

1 tbsp ground ginger 

2 tsp cinnamon 

½ tsp ground nutmeg 

½ cup (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted or oil

½ cup molasses 

2 large eggs 

1 cup buttermilk (sub with milk + 1 tbsp lemon juice or vinegar)

2 teaspoons vanilla extract 

VANILLA GLAZE 

1 cup confectioners' sugar 

1 tbsp milk (more, as needed) 

2 tsp vanilla extract 

Directions: 

GINGERBREAD LOAF 

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour a 9x5-inch loaf pan. 

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, and ground nutmeg. 

In a separate bowl, whisk together the melted butter and molasses until incorporated. Beat in eggs until combined, then buttermilk and vanilla extract. Beat until thoroughly combined. (Mixture may look curdled.) 

Stir wet mixture into the dry ingredients until combined, do not over mix. 

Pour batter into prepared pan, and bake until a toothpick inserted into center of the cake comes out clean, about 50 minutes. Allow the cake to cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto cooling rack to finish cooling. 

VANILLA GLAZE 

Mix all ingredients together until smooth. Add more milk or confectioners' sugar as needed for desired consistency. Drizzle cooled cake with glaze.

Enjoy!

Miso Maple Glazed Delicata Squash

I love butternut squash, but I just can’t deal with the work of prepping it for a regular weeknight meal when I need to get food on the table fast. Those guys are big and can be a pain to peel, chop and seed. That’s why, if you haven’t yet, you should this lovely and thin-skinned Delicata. Their skin is edible, and quite yummy and slightly crunchy like a fry when roasted. 

Like butternuts, they have a deep, creamy flavor that is delicious when roasted. They are nice and sweet, almost like a sweet potato. 

This dish is so easy to make and is sweet, salty, and you may just eat the whole tray before the table is set!

What you will need:

2 Delicata squashes, halved lengthwise, seeded, and cut into ½-inch inch thick pieces 

2 tsp sesame oil 

1 tbsp white miso 

1 tbsp maple syrup (or honey) 

1 tbsp unsalted oil 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425ºF 

Add the sliced squash to a bowl, toss with sesame oil to coat. 

Spread the squash in a single layer on a well-greased baking sheet and roast for 30-35 minutes, turning over once halfway through, until lightly golden on both sides. 

In a small bowl; mix together the miso, maple syrup and oil. 

After the squash has roasted for 30-35 minutes; brush one side of the roasted squash with the miso-oil mixture and roast for another 10 minutes until squash is glazed and brown. 

Remove to a platter and enjoy! Can also sprinkle with sesame seeds and scallions for garnish.

Marinated Grilled Flank Steak

This recipe is so easy to make, which is why I love it so much! Once you mix the marinade together and set it in the fridge, it does all of the work for you.

What you will need: 

1-2 lb flank steak (have also done with London broil) 

1/2 cup coconut aminos or soy sauce 

1/4 cup toasted sesame oil 

 2 tsp garlic powder 

1 tbsp honey 

1 tsp umami seasoning blend 

Salt & pepper to season 

Directions: 

Whisk together soy sauce, toasted sesame seed oil, garlic powder, honey, umami seasoning, salt, and pepper. 

Marinade overnight (or at least 4-6 hours) in a ziploc bag. 

Preheat grill pan in high heat. 

Pat down the meat to make sure there’s no excess marinade and grill about 5 minutes per side.

Allow the meat to rest 10 minutes before slicing. 

Transfer reserved marinade to a small saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Lower the heat and cook over medium heat until reduced. 

Once the meat has rested, cut thin slices against the grain, plate and drizzle with marinade.  

 Enjoy!

Honey Cookies

Every Rosh Hashana {Jewish New Year} I bake up something made from honey. Honey is used in cooking and baking around the New Year to symbolize a sweet new year. These honey cookies are sweet, moist, and chewy! And, in my opinion, tastier  and easier to make than the traditional honey cake. 

What you will need:
⅔ cup oil 
1 cup sugar 
¼ cup honey 
1 egg 
1 tsp. vanilla extract 
2 cups flour 
2 tsp. baking soda 
½ tsp. salt 
Turbinado or powdered sugar, for rolling

Directions: 
Preheat the oven to 350°F. 
In a stand mixer, beat the sugar, honey, and oil until smooth. 
Add in the egg and vanilla and mix until combined. 
Mix in the flour, baking soda, and salt. 
Refrigerate for 15-30 minutes until firm. 
Shape the dough into balls {I use a cookie scoop for equally sized cookies} and roll in the turbinado or powdered sugar, making sure to coat the whole cookie. 

Bake on a baking sheet for 7-9 minutes until the edges are light brown in color. 

Happy New Year!

Apple Butter

This apple butter is so easy to make! I always love to go apple picking as fall rolls around, and there is always an abundance of apples. This apple butter would be good on toast, as a dip, stuffed in challah, or inside of babka as I did for this Rosh Hashana!

What you will need:
3 apples peeled, cored, and cut into cubes
1 tbsp honey or sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp cinnamon
4-6 tbsp water 

Directions:
Cook the apples, honey, vanilla, cinnamon, and water in a small pot on medium-low heat stirring occasionally. If the mixture gets too thick before the apples brown, can always add more water midway. 
Cook until the apple butter is thick and has darkened to a nice caramel color. 
Can purée or leave with chunks in it which I prefer. Store in a jar in the fridge up to 2 weeks!

Here it is in place of my chocolate lava babka, and added cinnamon and a honey drizzle to the crumble. 

Enjoy!

Easy Fig Jam

This fig jam is so easy to make! I love figs, they are sweet and have a delicate flavor that is often compared to honey, and when made into a jam their natural and fragrant qualities intensify, making them great at complementing savory dishes like chicken, lamb, cheese plates, charcuterie spreads, sweet and savory flatbreads, and my new favorite as stuffed inside of challah for the new year!

What you will need:
3 pounds figs in quarters 
2 cups sugar
1 lemon zested and juiced

Directions:
Combine all 3 ingredients in a saucepan. 
Bring to a simmer over medium-low heat and stir constantly. Cover the pan and let simmer for 1 hour, stirring occasionally. 
Let cool and place in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. 

Fig jam filled challah:
Start with my challah dough
Portion out about half the dough and cut the ball into 8 equally sized pieces, roll into balls and flatten slightly. 
Fill each disc with about a tablespoon worth of jam and seal in. 
Arranged the balls into a greased round or loaf pan. 

Let the dough rise according to your challah dough recipe, or my recipe mentioned above!

Enjoy!

Crockpot Sweet Beer Chicken

There’s nothing better than the smell of warm dinner slow cooking all day as the weather starts to cool down! This chicken is nice and juicy from cooking in the beer mixture all day. 

What you will need 
1-2 onions, cut into rounds 
3-4 carrots cut into chunks
4 medium russet potatoes peeled and cut into chunks
1 small bunch celery cut into pieces
1/2 cup brown sugar 
1 and 1/2 tsp salt 
1 and 1/2 tsp chili powder 
1 and 1/2 tsp paprika 
1 tsp garlic powder 
8 pieces bone-in, skin-on chicken
12 oz beer

Directions
Oil the the crockpot and place onion rounds on the bottom of crockpot, then add the potatoes, carrots, and celery. 

In a bowl, mix together brown sugar, salt, chili powder, paprika, and garlic powder. 

Rub mixture all over each piece of chicken. Place chicken on top onions.

Pour beer over the chicken. 
Cover and cook on low for 8 hours. 
The chicken can also be made in the oven in a pan covered tightly at 350°F for about 2 hours. 
Enjoy!

Blueberry Muffin Tops

These muffin tops are so easy to make and can be made with different variations of fresh {or even freeze dried} fruit. They are the best part of the muffin!

What you will need
1 1/2 sticks butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp baking soda
3/4 cup buttermilk (add 1 tbsp vinegar to milk to make buttermilk)
2 tbsp orange juice
1 cup blueberries
1 cup confectioners' sugar

Directions
Preheat oven to 425°F.
Line 2 baking sheets with parchment.
Cream together the butter and granulated sugar in an electric mixer. Add the egg and beat. add the flour to the butter mixture and mix until combined.
In a separate bowl, dissolve the baking soda in the buttermilk. Add the buttermilk mixture to the batter and mix well.
Toss 1 tbsp flour with the blueberries in a bowl.
Using a spatula, fold the blueberry mixture into the batter until combined.
Scoop about 1/4 cup of the dough onto the lined baking sheets, spacing them 2“ apart. Bake until lightly browned, about 11 minutes. 

Transfer the muffin tops to a rack set over a baking sheet to cool completely.
In a small bowl, combine the confectioners' sugar and orange juice and mix well. Drizzle the glaze over the cooled muffin tops and let set. 

Enjoy!

Apple Cinnamon Streusel Topped Challah

Now that summer is almost over, it has me thinking about all the fall flavors I love! I absolutely love apples, pumpkin, and warm spices. This challah recipe is great for Rosh Hashana or any fall Shabbos. It can be made as a round challah like I made, or a regular braided challah in a loaf pan. The streusel topping is sweet and crunchy, with apple chips crumbled into it. 

What you will need:
Challah dough {recipe here}
Streusel Topping:
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup flour
1/4 cup oil or margarine
1/2 tsp cinnamon
Handful of apple chips {recipe for homemade chips here}

Directions:
After the challah dough is made and rested, braid a round or log challah, or even into a muffin tin for challah bites!

To prepare the topping- combine the flour, sugar, oil, cinnamon, and crumbled apple chips in a small bowl with a fork until coarse crumbs form. 

Sprinkle the apple cinnamon topping over the challahs.

Bake at 350°F for 30 minutes, or until golden brown.