I am cutting it close! But last night I finally laid in my bed and thought I probably should plan our Jerusalem dinner for Thursday night. Gotta be as simple as possible, and one my kids will eat. So combining what I've already tried in years past:
Main Dish - Chipotle Ranch Chopped Chicken Salad (in the past I have done chicken noodle soup, substituting matzah balls for the noodles)
Side Dish - Homemade Matzah
Beverage - Grape juice cocktail
Dessert - Matzah-Almond Chocolate Bark (a favorite from year to year!)
Recipes Below!
And for the first time I got us this Seder plate, which we will talk about at dinner:
That makes it official, right?
And of course, we will dine with oil lamps in dim light. Just for ambiance. Enjoy your Jerusalem Dinner!
RECIPES:
Our all time favorite recipe for matzo is here: http://zelittlechef.blogspot.com/2010/04/egg-and-onion-matzah.html
and here is another that gets rave reviews:
and here is another that gets rave reviews:
Basic Recipe for Matzo from allrecipes.com, but here it is in case the link is broken:
INGREDIENTS:
1 teaspoon all-purpose flour for dusting*
1 cup all-purpose flour*
1/3 cup water, or more if needed
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, or as needed
(optional)
1 teaspoon olive oil, or as needed
(optional)
DIRECTIONS:
1. Move an oven rack near the top of oven and preheat oven to 475 degrees F (245 degrees C). Preheat a heavy baking sheet in the oven.
2. Dust a clean work surface and a rolling pin with 1 teaspoon flour, or as needed. Place 1 cup of flour into a mixing bowl; set a timer for about 16 minutes (18 minutes maximum). Start the timer; pour the water, about 1 tablespoon at a time, into the flour. Stir the water and flour together with a fork until the dough forms a rough ball, remove the dough to the prepared work surface, knead rapidly and firmly until smooth, about 30 seconds to 1 minute.
3. Divide the dough into four equal pieces; cut each piece in half again to get 8 pieces total. Swiftly roll each piece into a ball. Roll each piece of dough out into a 5-inch pancake, dusting the top and rolling pin with flour as needed. Gradually roll the pancakes out to a size of about 8 inches, increasing the size of each by about 1 inch, then letting the dough rest for a few seconds before rolling again to the finished size. Roll from the center out. The bread rounds should be very thin. Using a fork, quickly pierce each bread about 25 times, all over, to prevent rising. The holes should go completely through the bread. Flip the bread over, and pierce each piece another 25 times with the fork.
4. With at least 5 minutes left on the timer, remove the hot baking sheet from the preheated oven, and place the rounds onto the baking sheet. Place the baking sheet onto the rack near the top of the oven, and bake for 2 minutes; turn the breads over and bake an additional 2 minutes, until the matzot are lightly browned and crisp.
5. Transfer to a wire rack to cool. Lightly anoint each matzah with olive oil, using a brush, and sprinkle generously with salt.
SALAD: Chipotle Ranch Chopped Chicken Salad
The Salad:
Grilled chicken breasts or rotisserie chicken breasts, chopped
Grilled chicken breasts or rotisserie chicken breasts, chopped
Oranges, 2 *or can of mandarin oranges, drained
1/2 green pepper (or yellow works too), diced (my kids will eat if cut really small)
Cherry tomatoes, 1 pint, halved
1/4 c Fresh cilantro, coarsely chopped
Romaine hearts, 4 cups, sliced (we love Costco's artisan romaine hearts sliced fairly thin)
Large avocado, 1, peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces
Optional: my family loves mexican food, so any time I get the chance, we make it. To make this salad with Mexican flair, add a cup of corn and pinto beans. Yum!!
In a large bowl, combine the oranges, tomatoes, and cilantro. Add the romaine and your dressing of choice (make sure it is kosher!) and toss to coat. Season the salad to taste with salt and black pepper. Gently fold in the avocado and serve right away.
The Dressing:
Chipotle-Ranch Dressing:
1/2 c or mayo ***homemade kosher recipe follows
1/2 c. sour cream
Taco seasoning (add as much to your liking)
1/2 c or mayo ***homemade kosher recipe follows
1/2 c. sour cream
Taco seasoning (add as much to your liking)
- Mix all ingredients together until smooth.
Homemade Kosher Mayo (if you want)
1 1/2 c oil
1 egg
1/2 garlic clove (optional)
Juice of half a lemon
1/4 tsp. salt
freshly ground black pepper
Use a tall jar, add all ingredients and mix with an immersion blender.
Dessert: Matzo-Almond Chocolate Bark
Photo: Martha Stewart (hers does not have the crushed almonds but sea salt, which should be good too!)
5 to 6 pieces plain matzo
1 cup unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
12 oz. semisweet chocolate bits (we use milk)
1/2 cup slivered almonds, crushed
Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil and lay the matzo in a single layer so that it completely covers the bottom of the sheet. In a saucepan, melt the butter and sugar over low heat. Raise the heat and boil the mixture for 3 minutes. Pour the butter and sugar mixture over the matzo and spread it with the back of a spoon. Place the matzo in the oven for 5 minutes. Remove the cookie sheet from the oven and immediately pour the chocolate bits over the matzo.
Return the sheet to the oven for 30 seconds to melt the chocolate. Remove the sheet from the oven and smooth the chocolate evenly over the matzo with a spatula. Sprinkle the crushed almonds over the top. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour or overnight. Break into pieces and serve. Serves 12.
