Prairie Street — Culinary Kitchen Magazine, High Holidays 2023

PICTURED –Chefs on set! Kendra and Yossel bring dishes inspired by their travels into the PS Culinary Kitchen. Check out our extensive recipe library now on YouTube @PrairieStreetCo

The grills in the backyard of my South Florida home have been getting a real workout this summer. Being the new guy in the neighborhood, I had to make the right impression! I’ve made a bit of a name for myself as being “the guy with the meat.” It’s fitting.

Right now: the videos we filmed in June are rolling out weekly; this, our fourth issue of the Prairie Street Culinary Kitchen Magazine, just keeps getting better; and about a month ago we exhibited and performed cooking demos at Fleishigs Magazine’s Kosherpalooza—an extravaganza of kosher food and wine.

We are staying committed and continue to raise the bar on what high-quality kosher culinary content looks and tastes like. As we approach the great High Holiday season, we’ve got you covered.

Bete’avon!

Bon Appétit!

Elliot Moscowitz

FOUNDER + CEO | PRAIRIESTREET.CO

SIMPLY PUT –

Entertaining should be an enjoyable experience for you and your guests. Start and stay organized!

MINDFUL ENTERTAINING

The art of organization, preparation, and celebration

By: Chef Kendra

Time waits for no one and before we know it September 15 will be here bringing the High Holidays with it. Our homes will be overflowing with observation and celebrations, family and friends, food and love. As we know, it’s the leadup to an event—the organization, the preparation—that truly dictates the outcome. Whether hosting two or 50, the rules of the game are the same: stay calm, stay ahead. And one way to start and stay organized is to create lists.

While it may be common sense, a simple reminder on why and how to create lists may make all the difference in your holiday experience. We ask that you not only take what you need from the next few pages, but to also participate! Send us your tips on holiday preparation so that we can share with the Prairie Street community.

MENU PLANNING CONSIDERATIONS

In addition to preparing customary, traditional, and observant focused foods, a guest list is almost as important as the menu itself. As a host and hostess, considering the needs and likes of our guests is true hospitality. Seeing the names of your guests in writing in front of you helps trigger the following prompts…

FAMILY FAVORITES

—

Are there any traditional or family recipes that must be included?

CONSIDER OTHERS

—

Are there any very strong likes or dislikes that need to be considered?

What we are celebrating and who we are feeding helps decide what we are eating.

SPECIAL DIETS

—

Are there any special dietary needs or allergies that must be accommodated?

pro tips

from NAOMI ROSS

Recycle & reuse ideas. I have a folder of holiday menus from the past 20 years. They’re meaningful and they provide inspiration.

Pace yourself. If a few dishes are more involved, let the rest of the menu be simple. Only try one new thing at a time.

Enjoy the process. I think we have to appreciate where we are in our lives and be honest about what we can and cannot achieve without feeling guilty. As I'm getting older, I'm getting less judgmental.

Cooking instructor, cookbook author, and Prairie Street goodwill ambassador, Naomi Ross, shares some of her tips for entertaining. Read more from our conversation with Naomi in “A Sweet New Year with Naomi Ross” and pick up her new cookbook, The Giving Table, for delicious recipes and entertaining inspiration.

Simplify, simplify, simplify. There are always shortcuts to be found. I recently started doing a lot more overnight (low and slow) cooking in my oven, everything in one pan, and hands-off.

Lists are your friends! Make your menus first and then work backwards. Know your shopping list, what can be freezed, when things need to be reheated, etc, etc. I don't start cooking before I do all of that.

“It differs from your weeknight cooking when you're entertaining.”

– Naomi Ross

MENU INSPIRATION for

your holidays

Rosh Hashanah Dishes

Challah from Naomi Ross’s The Giving Table

Savory Grilled Watermelon Salad by Chef Erica

Tzimmes by Chef Erica

Yom Kippur Pre-Fast

Italian Wedding Soup with Ground Veal by Chef Kendra

Stuffed Veal Breast Pocket – Bone In by Chef Erica

Yom Kippur Break-Fast

Baja Brisket by Chef Kendra

Stuffed Cabbage by Chef Kendra

FROM PRAIRIE STREET CO. — SHOPPING LIST —

This shopping list guide is to get you started and is based on the provided recipe inspiration. Update the quantities and ingredient variations needed for your own menus.

Prairie Street Beef Short Rib Cubes

Prairie Street Veal Breast Pocket - Bone In

Prairie Street Beef Brisket 2nd Cut USDA Prime

Prairie Street Veal Premium Ground Blend

Prairie Street Beef Premium Brisket Ground Blend

PRODUCE & SUCH — FRESH HERBS —

Parsley

Rosemary

Thyme

Basil Mint

SPICES, NUTS, ETC —

Coarse Kosher Salt

Black Pepper

Ground Cumin

Ground Ginger

Ground Cinnamon

Cinnamon Sticks

Fennel Seeds

Dried Oregano

Harissa

Dried Chili Flake

Salted Peanuts

Dried Apricots

KOSHER WINE —

Cabernet Sauvignon

Eggs

Carrots

Celery

Red Onions

Spanish Onions

Garlic

Bibb Lettuce

Spinach

Sweet Potatoes

Russet Potatoes

Beets

Lemons

Limes

Chili & Jalapeno

Cauliflower

Cabbage

Honeycrisp Apples

Watermelon

Watermelon Radishes

PANTRY —

Honey

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Canola Oil

Active Dried Yeast

White Sugar

Brown Sugar

High-gluten Bread Flour

Dijon Mustard

Chicken stock, unsalted

Beef stock, unsalted

Veal stock, unsalted

Rice Pilaf

Jasmine Rice

Canned Chipotle

Canned Tomatoes, crushed

Canned Tomatoes, peeled/whole

Canned Tomato, paste

Sauvignon Blanc

Marsala Wine

STOCK 101: BONES, BROTH & BEYOND

By: Chef Kendra

If you watch our YouTube channel, you may have noticed that a common ingredient in our recipes is stock. At a very basic level, stock is a savory, flavorful cooking liquid used as a base ingredient for soups, stews, braises, and sauces, and is derived from meat, poultry, fish, game, or vegetables with aromatics and herbs.

Stock is an ancient, beloved ingredient used by home cooks and professional chefs to build body, increase

volume, and create umami in recipes. Using the right stock at the right time—whether store bought or homemade—can make all the difference in a dish.

However, what exactly is stock? Is it the same as broth? What are the benefits? Where does it come from? And, most importantly, why should we use it? The pages that follow bring you deeper into what we consider “liquid gold.” Much more than simmering kitchen scraps, stock is a lesson in history, geography, science, nutrition, and more.

THE STORY OF STOCK —

Like most dishes, the story of where stock originates is highly debatable as all cultures can easily claim some form of this long simmered, flavorful liquid as their own. In Italy, it’s brodo. In France, it’s bouillon. In Vietnam, it’s canh. In Mexico, it’s caldo. It is, however, widely accepted that stock was more than likely invented along with the discovery of fire and was used as a way for humans to squeeze every last calorie from an animal (in turn making bone broth a crucial part of today’s popular Paleo Diet). But the French can be credited for taking hold of stock — formalizing it, refining it, defining it, and applying it to cooking methods making it the base of flavor development for a wide variety of dishes. Today, we appreciate the standardization of stock and also the window of creative liberty it has opened.

Watch our video and follow my instruction as I demonstrate how to prepare two classic stocks.

— Chef Kendra

Bete’avon ! — Bon Appétit !

Brown Stock Watch Now!

NUTRITIONAL BENEFITS —

There are countless nutritional benefits of stock and bone broth which is why it is often referred to as “liquid gold.” The bones and connective tissue of all animals are made up of nutrients such as collagen. As the most abundant protein in our body, collagen is the building block for our skin, muscles, bones, tendons, and ligaments. Consuming collagen rich foods, such as stock and bone broth, helps our body repair and grow. Additionally stock is packed with amino acids and minerals that aid with digestion and help reduce inflammation within our bodies among other healthful benefits.

White Stock Watch Now!

CONCENTRATION & WATER MANAGEMENT — I consider making a stock, a broth, a sauce, or anything to do with water, a dance. It’s a play in increasing and decreasing the volume of liquid to decrease and increase the concentration of flavor. Simply put: when you start a stock, it is typicallly a mess of ingredients covered in cool water; however, after hours of simmering over low heat, magic happens. The gentle heat coaxes the flavor and nutrients from your ingredients and as time goes by and water evaporates as steam, the flavors condense. And then something else happens, water

Stocks are about coaxing delicious flavor and healthful nutrients from bones and bits with water, heat, and time.

evaporates and the flavors condense. And so the dance of flavor concentration begins! Each time you add water and then let it reduce by evaporating is what ultimately develops the intensity of flavor in your stock.

TYPES OF STOCK & THEIR USAGE —

There can be an overwhelming selection of stocks to choose from. Keep it simple: vegetarian or not, light or dark. Stock is derived from slowly simmering aromatics and herbs along with the bones of meat, poultry, fish, game, or can be completely vegetarian. The type of stock you use is determined by the recipe you are following and/or the outcome you are looking to achieve. A light (or white) stock, such as chicken or vegetable, is best for lighter dishes such as soups, rice or risotto, and some sauces. A dark (or brown) stock, such as beef, is best used for heavier stews, braises, and some sauces.

pro tips

from CHEF KENDRA

Stock Up!

If you are making your own stock (which we strongly encourage you to do) it will keep for up to six months in your freezer. We like to freeze our stocks in various amounts to help make prep a breeze. Whether you are freezing in quart containers or ice-cube trays, be sure to label your stocks with the type of stock it is and the date it was made.

Light & Dark StockS

—

Light (or white) stock is made by cooking all of the ingredients in water only. Dark (or brown) stock begins with caramelizing the aromatics among other additional ingredients.

Stock vs. Bone Broth

—

While stock and bone broth share many similarities, there are a few qualities that set the two apart. First, stock is primarily made using the bones only while bone broth will include the bones, connective tissue, and even some meat. Another difference is that stock will cook for anywhere from one to six hours, while a true bone broth can cook on a low simmer for up to two days.

Reduce Waste & Save Money

—

Stock is a great way to get the most of your groceries. Because the end result will be strained thoroughly, you can use the clean ends and peels of vegetables, stems of herbs, last drops of wine, and discarded bones from the butcher.

A NOTE ON VEAL STOCK

If you are not yet familiar with veal stock, allow me to introduce you to it. While we regularly use and adore beef, chicken, and vegetable stock, we find veal stock—both white and brown—to be fabulously versatile. The guide that follows illustrates the similarities and differences between the two classic stocks. Watch my video tutorial on YouTube for more information.

Let’s get to it!

— Chef Kendra

Succulent, flavorful, versatile, and delicious— the best way to describe Prairie Street’s Veal.

pro tip Clean Your Bones

Bones naturally have impurities. You may have noticed if you’ve boiled bones in the past that a greyish foam accumulates at the top of your bubbling pot. That foam is the impurities releasing from the bones. While it is certainly safe to just skim the foam away while making your stock, “cleaning” the bones first will help render a clearer outcome. To do this, cover your bones in cold water and then bring this up to a boil for three to five minutes to release the impurities. Turn off the pot and then drain the bones and water over a colander in your sink. Be sure to rinse any residual foam from the bones before proceeding with your stock.

the bones

BROWN STOCK — Roast your bones in the oven before building your stock.

WHITE STOCK — Clean your bones first by boiling them in water.

the chop

—

BROWN STOCK — Aromatic ingredients should be prepared in a small, uniform dice. You’ll also need these extra ingredients: extra virgin olive oil, unsalted tomato paste, and dry red kosher wine (such as Cabernet Sauvignon).

WHITE STOCK — Aromatic ingredients can be prepared in larger, rougher cuts.

pro tip

Don’t Add Salt

Because you are essentially extracting and concentrating flavor, we strongly advise to not add salt when making your stock. Even the smallest amount of salt may seem harmless, but after several hours of cooking, it will increase in potency. Some recipes may call for salt but we recommend waiting until you are completely done making your stock—if at that point you taste it and it feels a little bland, then add some. But remember: once you add salt, you cannot take it out.

The cook —

BROWN STOCK — You’ll need to first caramelize your aromatics before building your stock.

WHITE STOCK — All of your ingredients can go in together at once.

STOCK SIMILARITIES

Ingredients & Process

COMMON INGREDIENTS —

Veal Bones

Leek

Carrots

White Onion

Celery

Shallot

Garlic

Black Peppercorns

Rosemary

Thyme

Oregano Water

COMMON PROCESS —

1. Simmer your stock on low heat for four to five hours.

2. Allow your stock to completely cool before straining out and discarding the solid ingredients.

3. For easy fat removal, chill your stock in the refrigerator overnight and skim off solidified fat.

FEATURED PRODUCTS IN THIS ISSUE

Elevating the kosher meat shopping and cook-at-home experience

Prairie Street Co. consistently delivers luxury kosher products nationwide. Our premium kosher meat is USDA-certified and hand-sourced from the highest quality boutique farms and artisan butchers. Every aspect of the process is carefully curated and Star-K regulated to ensure the luxury kosher experience we’ve promised.

LAMB PREMIUM GROUND BLEND

Our Lamb Premium Ground Blend is a proprietary blend combining the highly desired lamb shoulder with sweetly rendered tallow. Always fresh and never gamey, our ground lamb is sweet, lean, juicy, and tender. As versatile as it is delicious, stock up and freeze for a simple yet decadent meal.

SKU: LCHOICE3100

Click or Scan here to Start Shopping!

PICTURED –Our Lamb Premium Ground Blend is as versatile as it is delicious. Stock up your freezer today!

PICTURED –Our Veal Premium Ground Blend is sweet, succulent, and one of our favorite go-tos. Stock up your freezer today!

VEAL PREMIUM GROUND BLEND

Prairie Street Co's Premium Ground Veal Blend is the perfect mixture of veal shoulder and fat. Reflecting the sweet, fragrant pastures our animals are raised in, this Premium Ground Veal Blend is light, juicy, and bursting with flavor.

SKU:VCHOICE4100

Click or Scan here to Start Shopping!

BEEF PREMIUM BRISKET GROUND BLEND

Prairie Street Co’s proprietary Premium Brisket Ground Blend delivers a perfectly proportioned fat to meat ratio that bursts with flavor. This unique blend of ground brisket has a fairly coarse grind that lends itself to a rich, meaty bite at the same time as being juicy and tender.

SKU: BCHOICE2300

Click or Scan here to Start Shopping!

PICTURED –Our Beef Premium Brisket Ground Blend is a perfectly balanced mixture of fat and meat.

PICTURED –

The Beef Brisket 2nd Cut

USDA Prime is highly marbled and oh-so-juicy. Easy to cook and enjoy!

BEEF BRISKET 2ND CUT USDA PRIME

The USDA Prime Brisket 2nd Cut is a highly marbled cut that yields an extremely juicy and tender bite when smoked or braised. Frequently showcased in BBQ as beefy burnt ends or in deli cases as corned beef, the second cut is also great made into chili or Barbacoa.

SKU: BPRIME1010

Click or Scan here to Start Shopping!

BEEF SHORT RIB CUBES

Prairie Street’s Beef Short Rib Cubes contain a short, single bone topped with delicious, fatty meat. Perfect for smoking, braising, or stewing, this chunky cut packs a ton of savory flavor in each and every bite.

SKU: BCHOICE2060

Click or Scan here to Start Shopping!

PICTURED –Ready for your holiday table! Our version of Tzimmes features our rich High Choice Beef Short Rib Cubes.

VEAL BREAST POCKETBONE IN

Our Veal Breast Pocket Bone In is an epicurean delight! While this large cut may seem intimidating, we assure you it is beyond simple to prepare. Typically stuffed and roasted, the Veal Breast Pocket is an incredibly moist, light, and delicious centerpiece for your holiday dinner.

SKU: VCHOICE4200

Click or Scan here to Start Shopping!

PICTURED –Prairie Street’s Veal Breast Pocket - Bone In will certainly serve a crowd and makes a delicious addition to your holiday table.

TIME

Prep: 15 min / Cook: 10 min

SERVINGS

3-4

AUTHOR

Chef Erica

INGREDIENTS

1 medium watermelon, sliced in 1-inch slices

3-4 watermelon radishes, thinly sliced in wedges

1 cup pickled red onions

1 head bibb lettuce, separated

½ cup salted peanuts, chopped

1 tablespoon fresh mint, thinly chiffonade

Extra virgin olive oil

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Click

SAVORY GRILLED WATERMELON SALAD

a new CLASSIC

FOR THE PREP — Fire up your grill!

If you want to make your own pickled red onions, do this: thinly slice a red onion and in a large mixing bowl, combine the sliced red onion, red wine vinegar, water, sugar, and salt. Allow this to sit for at least 45 to 60 minutes before using.

FO

R THE CO OK —

Pour some extra virgin olive oil into a small, wide bowl and lightly coat both sides of your watermelon slices. Right before you are ready to grill, lightly season your watermelon slices with coarse salt.

In a mixing bowl, toss your sliced radishes in with your pickled red onions. Allow the radishes to marinate while you grill your watermelon.

Place your seasoned watermelon slices on the grill (preferably the direct flame) for several minutes, just enough time to achieve grill marks. Once both sides are nicely marked, remove from the grill and set to the side.

FOR THE PLATE

—

Plate your grilled watermelon atop a bed of separated bibb lettuce leaves. To this, add a helping of your pickled red onions with marinated watermelon radish slices, finely chopped salted peanuts, torn mint leaves, and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.

Bete’avon ! — Bon Appétit !

TIME

Prep: 15 min / Cook: 20 min

SERVINGS 4 AUTHOR Chef Kendra

FEATURED

1 POUND PRAIRIE STREET

LAMB PREMIUM GROUND BLEND

INGREDIENTS

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 shallots, minced

2 tablespoons Baharat Spice Blend (recipe below)

¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped

16 oz plain hummus

4-6 pitas, warmed and cut into wedges

1 cucumber, sliced

½ inch thick and on a diagonal

Kosher salt

Fresh ground black pepper

BAHARAT SPICE BLEND

2 teaspoons ground black pepper

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground cloves

1½ teaspoons ground cumin

½ teaspoon ground cardamom

1½ teaspoons ground nutmeg

1 tablespoon paprika

ISRAELI SPICED GROUND LAMB

with HUMMUS

FOR THE PREP —

Mix all of the Baharat Spice Blend ingredients together in a small container. Cover and store at room temperature until ready to use.

FOR THE COOK —

In a large skillet, heat the extra virgin olive oil over medium to high heat. Add your minced garlic and shallot and cook until fragrant. Add a generous amount of the Baharat Spice Blend. Incorporate with the garlic and shallots and cook until they become soft, about 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and set to the aside.

In the same skillet, add your Ground Lamb and season with kosher salt. Continue to work the Ground Lamb with a wooden spoon to break it up and slowly add water as needed.

After about 5 minutes, once the Ground Lamb is browned but not thoroughly cooked, reduce the flame to medium and add the spiced garlic and shallot mixture. Combine the ingredients thoroughly and let simmer until your Israeli Spiced Ground Lamb is tender and cooked through, about 7 to 10 minutes.

FOR THE PLATE —

To serve, place your hummus in a shallow bowl and make a small well in the center. Spoon your Israeli Spiced Ground Lamb—including its juices—in the center of the hummus and top with freshly chopped parsley. Serve with warm wedges of pita and thickly sliced cucumber.

Bete’avon ! — Bon Appétit !

Click or Scan to Watch Now!

TIME

Prep: 20 min / Cook: 60 min

SERVINGS

5-6

AUTHOR Chef Erica

FEATURED

1 PACK PRAIRIE STREET BEEF SHORT RIB CUBES USDA PRIME

INGREDIENTS

1 small onion, diced

2 large cloves garlic, peeled and chopped

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon ginger, dried or fresh

1 cinnamon stick

1/4 teaspoon Harissa or another dried chili flake (optional)

2 sweet potatoes, peeled and diced

4 dried apricots, diced

1 cup dry red kosher wine, we prefer Cabernet Sauvignon

1 cup unsalted chicken stock

1/4 cup parsley, finely chopped

Extra virgin olive oil

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

TZIMMES WITH SHORT RIB CUBES

A HOLIDAY CLASSIC

FOR THE PREP —

This is a simple one-pot recipe so make sure all of your ingredients are prepped per the Ingredients List.

Using a paper towel, pat dry your Short Rib Cubes and season with kosher salt and ground black pepper. Set your Instapot to SAUTE and allow it to heat up.

FOR THE COOK —

Once your Instapot has heated up, drizzle about one teaspoon of olive oil in the pot. Add your Short Rib Cubes in small batches—being mindful to not overcrowd the pot—and allow them to sear on all sides. Once they are all browned, set them to the side.

If needed, drizzle a little more oil in the pot and add your onions, garlic, and other spices. Using a wooden spoon, gently stir the ingredients being careful to lift the browned bits, or fond, from the bottom of the pot. Next, stir in your sweet potatoes and apricots. Once all of your vegetables, aromatics, and spices are in, return your seared Short Rib Cubes along with any juices back into the pot. Deglaze the pot with your dry red wine and unsalted chicken stock. Place the lid on your Instapot and lock it in place.

Once your lid is locked, switch the setting to PRESSURE COOK and set the time for one hour. Ensure the top valve is properly set to sealing mode which allows the pressure to build. Every machine is slightly different so follow your owner’s manual to operate safely.

After one hour the Instapot will automatically begin to release pressure and switch to WARM. If opening immediately, use caution and vent manually. Once the air is completely released and it is safe to open the lid, give your Tzimmes a stir and remove the bones from the Short Rib Cubes.

FOR THE PLATE —

Ladle your Tzimmes into bowls for your guests and garnish with parsley.

TIME

Prep: 30 min / Cook: 4 hours

SERVINGS

6-7

AUTHOR Chef Yossel

FEATURED

1 PRAIRIE STREET VEAL BREAST POCKET - BONE IN, BONES REMOVED

INGREDIENTS

1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil

Dark rum

Orange liquor

Pineapple juice

2 quarts Veal stock, try our Classic White Veal Stock

1 cup fresh lime juice

½ cup brown sugar

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Click

BRAISED VEAL BREAST POCKET

Hawaiian INSPIRED

FOR THE PREP —

Preheat your oven to 350°F.

Using a paring knife, remove the bones from the Veal Breast Pocket Bone In and reserve for stock. If you need to, cut the Veal Breast in half so that it will fit in your braising pot. Before you begin to cook remove the alcohol from the rum by letting it simmer in a cast iron saucepan and reduce by half.

FOR THE COOK —

Lightly season your Veal Breast Pocket with coarse salt and ground black pepper, and then sear both sides of the Veal Breast Pocket in a hot and large, heavy bottom braising pot. Remove the Veal Breast Pocket and set aside while you build the braising liquid.

Add the reduced rum into the braising pot and, using a wooden spoon, scrape up the fond from the bottom of the pot. Add your orange liquor, pineapple juice, white veal stock, lime juice, and brown sugar. Mix and resubmerge your seared Veal Breast into the liquid. Cover with a tight-fitting lid and place in your 350°F oven for approximately 4 hours.

FOR THE PLATE —

Remove your Hawaiian Braised Veal Breast Pocket from the oven and slice it thin. Serve with fun and flavorful sides like coconut rice and grilled cabbage! This makes a great family meal for the holidays.

Bete’avon ! — Bon Appétit !

PICTURED –

Naomi Ross is a chef, cooking instructor, cookbook author, and new Prairie Street goodwill ambassador.

sChef Naomi Ross

@ naomirosscooks on Instagram

Photo courtesy Naomi Ross and Menucha Publishers

A SWEET NEW YEAR WITH NAOMI ROSS

In conversation with Chef Kendra

Her bio reads: “For Naomi Ross, her kitchen is her canvas. She believes in inspired kosher cooking, infusing meaning into the everyday kitchen experience. A cooking instructor for the past eighteen years, Naomi has taught all ages and stages, developing innovative culinary curriculums, courses, and workshops or camps, schools, and community

organizations. Naomi writes articles and web content connecting the fun of good cooking with Jewish inspiration. She is a regular contributor to Fleishigs magazine, Binah magazine, OU Jewish Action, and Kosher.com.” Her first cookbook, The Giving Table (Menucha Publishers), came out in spring of 2023.

SIMPLY PUT –The secret to successful hosting is being prepared! Naomi Ross shares her insight on entertaining.

Photo credit: Baila Gluck

The essence of the Rosh Hashanah meals is newness

We first met Naomi at De Gustibus Cooking School in New York City this past spring when she was promoting her first cookbook. I sat next to her older sister who had just flown in from Israel to attend the launch. She beamed with immense pride as her sister took center stage at one of the most prestigious cooking schools in the world. Naomi has since become a goodwill ambassador for Prairie Street Co. and a friend. The conversation that follows is an abbreviation from the deep, intimate, heartfelt Zoom call we had on food, family, and faith.

Photo Credit: Baila Gluck

KENDRA As we were plotting out the themes for the magazine, we noted that this issue really needed to focus on the start of the High Holiday season: looking ahead to Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, tips and hacks, menus and lists. And then I remembered an Instagram post you shared about getting organized for entertaining and I was like “let's ask Naomi how she prepares for the holiday season.”

NAOMI There's so much! These holidays are a mix because you have the cooking piece that is intertwined with the meaning of the holiday a lot. And I don't believe it to be the right approach to separate the two.

KENDRA Can you paint the picture of what Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur look like in your home?

NAOMI There are dishes that are special for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur that people only make for this season. The Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kipper menus are special to me because they open up the year to be pregnant with symbolism and meaning. The Talmud talks about symbolic foods that are nice to be eaten on Rosh Hashanah, it's an interesting tradition that we have. The Talmud says basically, you should eat this food because it sounds like this, and you should eat this food because it sounds like this—it’s suggestive with good omens.

For Rosh Hashanah, I have a little more flexibility with the menu and dishes, but there are definitely some family recipes that need to make the table. I do a lot of entertaining in general, but certainly for the holidays there's always family around the table—grandparents, aunts, uncles, you know, and sometimes friends that we will invite over—but it differs from meal to meal, just like it differs from year to year.

In terms of entertaining, nothing stays the same in people's lives, right? That's a universal concept that as we go through different stages of life what works for us and our families at one stage of life doesn't necessarily work for us at different stages of life. And our entertaining styles change and our needs change in terms of what we're looking to gain from our holiday meals. So I try to keep that in mind also.

KENDRA There are a lot of holidays in the beginning of the new year. How do you balance the cooking and entertaining with the celebrating and observing?

NAOMI There’s a lot for somebody who cooks for and observes the holidays. There's a lot of food, there's a lot of meals, there's a lot of preparation involved—it becomes almost like a cooking marathon. I think for people who are used to cooking moderately it can be stressful and it can be just demanding to organize all of the meals and the cooking needs.

So, first and foremost, I’m thinking: what can I do in advance? What can I freeze? What can I get a head start on to cut down on my own stress and make the experience more enjoyable for myself and my family? I tell people all the time to make their menus and make them early so they can game plan. Double and triple recipes, cook in batches. This is quantity cooking—it’s a different kind of cooking. For example, in my book The Giving Table, I have “My Family’s Favorite Challah” recipe (page 306) which yields eight medium loaves. Now, not to scare you, but again, I had a lot of people in my coming through my doors last year I think I made a total of 48 Challahs to get through the month.

Ultimately, we should enjoy the process. The High Holidays establish where God fits in our lives for the coming year—it is a very introspective season. We should enjoy the hosting and the meals that we make and not feel like, ugh, it was such a hassle.

KENDRA What if I’m not a baker?

NAOMI Not everybody has to bake so much. People are happy to buy their bakery items. I'm not judging and I'm not telling anybody to work harder than they have to. You want to organize yourself and prioritize the dishes that are important to you. If you don’t care about baking, then go buy some challah. But if your brisket is really important to you because it's your grandmother's recipe and you want it on the table, well then focus on that and make that in advance and make two or three. It's not unusual for someone to come to my house in the beginning of September and see like six pans of brisket lined up because I want to batch cook and put it away.

KENDRA And what about Yom Kippur? I understand that is a different approach from Rosh Hashanah all together.

NAOMI Yom Kippur is a fasting holiday so not actually about food, however, Jews love to eat so we make it about food! We can’t get away from being food centric. We worry about what we’re going to eat before the fast and what we’re going to break the fast with.

That is a more untouchable menu for me because if people are fasting and I'm feeding people to prepare them for a fast, then yes, I want it to be festive, but more than anything, I want it to be something that will help them fast. Fasting is a hard thing to do. I don't want serve anything too salty; I don't want to serve anything that's hard to digest. You're going be standing in synagogue for a whole day and you want to be able to concentrate. You don't want to be bloated and you don't want to be thirsty.

So, if I find what works, we stay with that. I've been making variations of my “Apricot-Citrus Chicken” (page 100) for years. It's very simple, but it's a nice fresh apricot sauce that you can make either with dried or fresh apricots. And it's easy. It digests well, it goes nicely over mashed potatoes. Mashed potatoes are very filling and you don't have to over salt them, you know. And so, as my mother used to say before we went skiing, “you want a stick-to-your-ribs meal.”

I usually will serve just like a matza ball soup or something. But the traditional food to serve before Yom Kippur, even though I don't actually do it, is kreplah. It’s a meat-filled dumpling and there's meaning in that tradition also because it's like, you know, a hidden decree.

KENDRA You have four children, how do you get them involved with the holidays?

NAOMI When my kids were little, I wanted them to be very involved and I was looking for things to keep them busy and get them excited about the holiday. Each year I would pick out a project to do with them or, really, I would appoint someone else to do the project so I could cook.

One year I had my husband pick up discs and tea light holders from a craft store. The kids then superglued the candle holders to the discs, painted them, and wrote people's names on them. These were then set at the table as place settings that were actually personalized honey dishes! That served two purposes, especially with little kids: no more double dipping in the honey and now people can choose their own variety of specialty honey as something new to taste.

KENDRA What a great and sweet idea!

NAOMI It should be a sweet new year, right?

KENDRA As the cook and entertainer, how do you keep the dishes you prepare exciting for you? Well, exciting without being overwhelming.

NAOMI The essence of the Rosh Hashanah meals is newness. I like to try and incorporate that into my meals. There’s a concept of having a new fruit and we make a blessing for new things on the second night. What I try to do specifically for Rosh Hashanah, I like to try to incorporate the symbolic foods that are mentioned in the Talmud into the menu.

I wrote a piece for a kosher magazine about 10 years ago, on doing all small plates, or tapas, that incorporate

There's no sin in picking simple dishes. But strategy, some kind of organization is helpful.

the different symbolic foods. I would do a whole spread. And I still do this. I change it up a bit, but instead of doing one appetizer or a soup course on the first night of Rosh Hashanah, what my family does is we have a large first course of lots of little tapas with the different symbolic foods.

KENDRA Oh I would give anything to be a guest at your table, Naomi! Any final words of wisdom to both new and veteran hosts?

NAOMI There's no sin in picking simple dishes. But strategy, some kind of organization is helpful. And I think the other thing is the balance between being ambitious and wanting things to look beautiful. We started our conversation with know what your goal is. The goal is to enjoy. It's about enjoying the holiday; to celebrate the holiday. Rosh Hashanah specifically is because optimistic. It's a show of optimism. It's a show of positivity that, you know, here you have what could

be a very solemn and even maybe a somber day, but that's not, that's not the Jewish way to approach the holiday. We're singing, we're happy, we're positive and we are engendering optimism with the use of this kind of accustom of saying, I don't know what's going to come in the coming year, but it's going to be a sweet year. And I have faith that God's going to make it a good year for us.

For more inspiration and to learn more about Naomi, follow her and purchase her new cookbook.

www.naomirosscooks.com

Buy The Giving Table

[ https://menuchapublishers.com/products/ the-giving-table ]

Instagram @naomirosscooks Facebook @KosherCookingConcepts

PICTURED –Naomi Ross with her beautiful new cookbook, The Giving Table.

Photo Credit: Dov Lenchevsky

The holidays should be enjoyable for both the host and their guests. It’s a time to connect over food and faith.

THE LAST BITE: On Traditions

Like most, I first learned how to cook from my grandmother. She planned our lunches during breakfast and our dinners during lunch. Her joy never dwindled but rather seemed to grow exponentially as she thoughtfully prepared homegrown ingredients into tasty dishes. From beginning to end, she wore her smile and nodded with pleasure as a table full of rowdy kids licked their plates clean with mm’s and aah’s. While her recipes were simple, I keep a mental rolodex of them in my mind when I’m planning meals for family and friends, and especially when I’m in need of a little extra comfort.

Working on this issue about preparing for the High Holidays made me reminisce about my own family

traditions. Yes, as culinary professionals we can really get into the nitty gritty of entertaining dos and don’ts, but as Naomi and I discussed in the off-recording moments of her interview: the holidays are about being present with our loved ones, our faith, and ourselves. As we get into the holiday season, I wish nothing but love and joy for you and yours—may you treasure your time together as you create new and celebrate old traditions.

With gratitude,