By Tori Avey, The Shiksa in the Kitchen
Continue reading below to see Tori's recipes for:
Date Honey Nut Cake
Saffron Rice
Honey Herb Roasted Chicken
Pomegranate Molasses
Here are the recipes Tori prepared at our cooking demo at Zabar's on Sunday, September 25th. Enjoy and let us know how yours turn out!
Read Tori's whole description and visit The Shiksa to view step-by-step photographs.
Ingredients
3/4 cup (6 oz) whole dates
1 cup cake flour
1 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
Pinch of nutmeg
3/4 cup vegetable oil (I use canola)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup honey
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
Nonstick cooking spray
You will also need
8- or 9-inch loaf pan
2 mixing bowls
Preparation
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Place dates into a bowl and cover them with very hot water. Let the dates soak while you prepare the cake batter.
In a large mixing bowl, sift together cake flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, and nutmeg.
In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together vegetable oil, brown sugar, honey, eggs, and vanilla.
Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir till a thick batter forms.
Drain water from the dates. Pit the dates, then chop the fruit into small chunks.
Fold the walnuts and date chunks into the batter.
Generously grease your loaf pan with cooking spray. Pour batter into loaf pan.
Place loaf pan in preheated oven. Bake cake for about 1 hour, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from oven and set on a wire rack to cool.
Saffron Rice
Read Tori's whole description and visit The Shiksa to view step-by-step photographs.
Servings: 8 side portions
Kosher Key: Meat or Pareve (use salted water instead of stock for pareve)
Ingredients
2 pinches good quality saffron threads (spice)
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 small yellow onion, minced (about 1/2 cup)
2 cups white basmati rice
3 3/4 cups chicken stock, or substitute water + extra pinch of salt
1 tsp salt
Preparation
Total Time: 45 Minutes
Take one pinch of saffron threads and put them in a spice mortar. Grind the spice with a pestle to a powdery consistency.
Add a second pinch of saffron threads to the mortar. Do not crush these threads.
Pour 1/4 cup of hot water into the mortar. Let the saffron soak for 5 minutes. This will open up the flavor of the spice.
Meanwhile, sort your basmati rice and rinse in a colander. Drain.
In a large heavy pot, heat extra virgin olive oil over medium. Add the minced onion to the pot and saute for about 10 minutes, till the onion begins to caramelize.
Add rice to the pot and saute for one minute longer, mixing the rice together with the cooked onion.
Pour the yellow saffron liquid evenly across the top of the rice, making sure to scrape any saffron that clings to the mortar into the pot.
Add broth (or water and extra pinch of salt) to the pot. Bring to a boil.
Cover the pot and reduce heat to low. Let the rice cook for 20 minutes, or until all the stock is absorbed and the rice is tender.
Fluff the rice with a fork before serving.
Honey Herb Roasted Chicken
Read Tori's whole description and visit The Shiksa to view step-by-step photographs.
Servings: 4-6 servings
Kosher Key: Meat
Ingredients
1 whole chicken without giblets (3.5 lbs-4 lbs)
1 small handful of fresh rosemary sprigs
1 small handful of fresh thyme sprigs
Peel from one small lemon, sliced
2 garlic cloves
2 large onions, peeled and sliced
Salt and pepper
1/4 cup olive oil
3 tbsp honey, divided
1/2 cup white wine
1/4 cup chicken broth
Fresh rosemary and thyme sprigs for garnish (optional)
You will also need
medium sized roasting pan, string for trussing chicken, foil, mesh strainer
Prep Time: 30 Minutes
Cook Time: 2 Hours
Total Time: 2 Hours 30 Minutes
Preparation
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Whisk together ¼ cup of olive oil, 1 tbsp of honey, and 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice. This is your basting mixture.
Assemble your chicken, herbs, lemon peel, garlic, and a few small slices of onion.
Season the cavity of the chicken with salt and pepper and brush some of the basting mixture inside the chicken (go light on the salt if you're using a kosher chicken, which will already be salted). Stuff the cavity with half of the fresh rosemary and thyme sprigs, sliced lemon peel, garlic cloves, and a few pieces of the sliced onion. Don’t overstuff the cavity; pack it loosely with room to breathe.
Truss the chicken; click here for instructions. Season the chicken with salt and pepper.
Take remaining sliced onions and place them in an even layer on the bottom of your roasting pan. Drizzle 2 tbsp of olive oil over the onions. Remove leaves from the rest of the rosemary and thyme sprigs, then put the leaves into the roasting pan and discard stems. Use a large spoon to toss and coat the onion slices with herbs and olive oil.
Place the chicken breast side down onto the bed of onions. Pour half of the basting mixture over the chicken, using a brush to coat it evenly.
Cover the roasting pan with foil. Pierce a few small vents into the outer edges of the foil with a knife. Place covered roasting pan into the preheated oven and cook for 45 minutes.
Take roasting pan out of the oven, remove the foil (reserve), and flip the chicken to breast side up. Brush off any onions or herbs that cling to the top of the chicken. Brush the rest of the basting mixture evenly onto the top of the chicken. Cover the roasting pan again with the vented foil. Place back into the oven for 45 minutes longer.
Remove foil from the top of the roasting pan and reduce oven heat to 375 degrees. Let the chicken continue to roast another 20-30 minutes until the skin is brown and crisp. The skin may get quite dark in places; this is from the honey in the basting liquid. Watch the chicken carefully, as it can go from brown to black very quickly. Blackened parts of the skin will not affect the flavor in a negative way.
Chicken is done when the skin is nicely browned, and the internal temperature reaches at least 170 degrees F as measured on a food thermometer at the thickest part of the thigh.
Take the chicken out of the roasting pan and place it on a carving board. Cover it with foil to keep the heat in and let it rest for 15 minutes before carving.
Meanwhile, use a mesh strainer to strain the pan drippings from the roasting pan into a small saucepan.
Let the drippings settle for a moment; you will see brown bits settle to the bottom of the pan and lighter fat and oil rise to the top.
Skim about half of the fat/oil from the top of the liquid. Add ½ cup of white wine, ¼ cup of chicken broth, and 2 tbsp of honey to the pan. Whisk to blend. Heat the sauce over medium to a light boil and let it simmer for about 2 minutes, whisking constantly.
Remove the honey sauce from heat and season with salt and pepper to taste.
Carve the chicken. Drizzled each serving of meat with some of the honey sauce. Garnish with fresh thyme or rosemary, if desired, for a pretty and aromatic presentation.
Pomegranate Molasses
Read Tori's whole description and visit The Shiksa to view step-by-step photographs.
Servings: About 1 cup of pomegranate molasses
Kosher Key: Pareve
Ingredients
4 cups pure 100% pomegranate juice (bottled or fresh)
2/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
Prep Time: 5 Minutes
Cook Time: 60 - 80 Minutes
Preparation
Pour pomegranate juice, sugar, and lemon juice into a small saucepan.
Heat up over medium until the sauce begins to simmer lightly. Stir to dissolve sugar. Allow the liquid to simmer very lightly for 60-80 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes, till the liquid reduces by 75% to about 1 cup of molasses.
The liquid is ready when it has a light syrupy consistency and coats the back of a spoon. Don't let it thicken too much, or it will harden when it cools.
Remove from heat. The syrup will continue to thicken as it cools. If you're unsure about the consistency, measure the reduce liquid-- it should be between 1 and 1 1/4 cups of syrup. If it's a lot more liquid than that, continue reducing.
After the syrup cools completely, store it in an airtight jar or container in the refrigerator for up to 4 weeks.
