Here is Orange Shrimp Cauli-Fried Rice.

Download the recipe for Orange Cauli-Fried Rice. 

The next one is a great Salad recipe. I’m working on new salad recipes for summer. Check back here for more.

Download the recipe for Vietnamese Shrimp and Noodle Salad using Shirataki noodles.

They were very eager 

There was lots of grating of Parmesan:

Colin thought that the Microplane Zester did the best job.

So they reduced some cream, added some butter, stirred in some nutmeg, Parmesan and pepper and voila! Fettucine Alfredo, tastes best when you made it yourself!

I am so grateful that my son is finally tall enough to reach the stove!

Here are the cast of characters

and the recipe:

Nut Free Charoseth for the Oraynu Congregation  - Serves 1 seder

Ingredients
225    gram    Raisins
100    grams    Figs
200    gram    Dates
50    gram    Apricots
2        Apples
2        Orange — zest and juiced
1/4    cup    Honey
1/4    tsp    Cloves, Ground
1    tsp    Cinnamon, Ground
1/2    tsp    Ginger, Ground
160    ml    Wine, Dessert, Sweet
Instructions
Chop figs, dates and apricots into small pieces. Use knife or scissors. Peel and core apples. Chop into small pieces. Using microplane zester or grater remove zest from oranges.
Cut oranges in half and juice.
Put all dried fruits into saucepan, add chopped apple, orange zest and orange juice, spices and wine. Bring to boil, then turn to low heat and simmer for 1 to 1 1/2 hours until everything coheres into a sticky mass. If your mixture seems too chunky you can put in into a food processor or use an immersion blender to make it finer.

Sorry that my recipe is bilingual (metric/imperial), it’s much easier to weigh figs than to figure out what 1/2 a cup is. The proportions aren’t really important you just need about 2 cups of dried fruit.

Here it is simmering away.

This is the recipe that you’re waiting for. I called it Chocolate Matzo Buttercrunch. It really went over well with everyone who tried it. It’s sweet, crunch, buttery, chocolatey and addictive.

Chocolate Matzo Buttercrunch - Serves 12
Recipe By: Michelle Wolfson

Ingredients
4 1/2    sheet    Matzo
1    cup    butter
1    cup    brown sugar
12    ounces    chocolate chips

Instructions
Line a cookie sheet with aluminim foil or parchment. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Fill cookie sheet with matzo, you may have to break a few. In a medium size saucepan over medium heat melt butter and brown sugar, increase heat and bring to a boil. Boil for exactly 3 minutes stirring constantly. Spread butter/sugar mixture evenly over matzo. Bake pan for exactly 5 minutes.
Take out and let cool for a  minute or so and then sprinkle the chips over the top. Wait 5 minutes or so until the heat of the matzo mixture melts the chocolate chips. Spread out choclate evenly. Put in refrigerator to harden.
Break up into pieces.

Recipe Notes

Notes:    This is one of my favourite Urban Legend recipes. Using only 4 ingredients you create an irrestitable treat that is quick to make.
Little ones can help out lining up the matzo at the beginning but some of the later steps are too close to the heat for preschoolers.
You don’t need any cooking skills to produce excellent results but you do need to pay attention and follow the timing as given.
This should yield at least 40 pieces but I have known it to disappear in about 5 minutes.

First we lay out the matzo

 Then we bring the butter and brown sugar to a boil

 Once it comes to a full boil we start timing and let it boil for 3 minutes.It will look something like this.

Pour the mixture out over the matza, use a spatula to spread it out and then pop it in a 400 degree oven and let it bake for 5 minutes.

 After baking the sugar will be more even and it will look something like this

We use the heat of the baked buttercrunch to melt the chocolate chips. Wait a minute or so for the buttercrunch to set up after you remove it from the oven. Distribute 10 to 12 oz of chocolate chips over the surface and then wait 5 minutes.

Use a spatula to spread out the chocolate and then put it in the fridge to harden.

I hope that you enjoyed making the buttercrunch. Write to me and tell me how it went.

Our day also included Matzo Ball Soup. I didn’t include the recipe earlier but I’ve had a request for our recipe (thanks Omri) so here it is:

Streit’s Matzo Ball Recipe - Serves 12

Ingredients
1    cup    Matzo meal
4    large    Egg — beaten
1/4    cup    Oil
1/4    cup    Soda water
1    tsp    Salt
1.5    litres    Stock, Chicken

Instructions
In a bowl beat eggs, add soda water, oil and salt.  Mix well.
Add matzo meal and stir thoroughly to combine. Leave to rest for 30 minutes.

Bring chicken broth to a boil, reduce to simmer. Using a small scooper, scoop matzo balls into soup and let simmer for 15 minutes. If you don’t have a scooper just use a small spoon and drop little balls into the broth.

If you don’t have any home made chicken stock President’s Choice Organic Chicken broth makes a good substitute.

The secret to good matzo ball soup is Love, throw a little into every matzo ball.

Here’s Chicken Marengo, seared chicken thighs are braised with onions, mushrooms, celery, carrots in white wine and chicken stock. 

Next up is Fresh Basa Filets in and Indian Korma Sauce. Yogurt, almonds, onions, cumin and cardamom flavour this favourite. 

Rice and Vegetable Casserole is composed of brown rice, flecks of  yummy garden vegetables (red pepper, onions, corn, mushrooms, zucchini, broccoli all in a cheddar sauce. That’s comfort food. 

Lime marinated salmon is grilled and served with a black bean and corn salsa. I know that’s a really summery menu but I’m tired of winter. 

Black bean and beef quesadillas are filled with flavour, salsa, cilantro and cheese. Serve with additional salsa and sour cream, oh we also made Mexican style rice (green peppers, cumin) to go with it. I made a couple of extra quesadillas and I gave them to my son in the car while I was driving him to his tennis lesson. He scarfed them down before I got to the first traffic light. Now he wants them for his school lunch too!

Bernstein February 2010 menu

Ginger Chicken Stir Fry -  Ginger infused chicken stir fried with fresh vegetables.
1 protein, 1 vegetable

Turkey Stew with Sage and Mushrooms - Turkey breast simmered with onions, celery, red peppers, mushrooms and sage.
1 protein, 1 vegetable

Chicken Saag - A mildly spiced Indian dish of chicken simmered with  spinach and tomatoes and finished with fat free sour cream.
1 protein, 1 vegetable misc. 1 tbsp FF sour cream

Cabbage Roll Stew (Pork)- Lean pork tenderloin simmered in an aromatic mix of sauerkraut, cabbage, onions and tomatoes flavoured with garlic, paprika, rosemary and caraway seed.
1 protein, 1 vegetable

Orange Cumin Veal Stew – Lean veal slowly simmered with onions, mushrooms and celery in an orange infused stock with cumin, allspice and garlic.
1 protein, 1 vegetable, ½ fruit

Shrimp Creole – Shrimp with tomatoes, peppers, onions and mushrooms  simmered with creole seasonings.
1 protein, 1 vegetable, 1 misc. 1 tbsp of tomato paste

Asian Vegetable Soup
Sweet and Spicy Red Pepper Soup

Bernstein January 2010 menu

Chicken Cacciatore - Chicken breast simmered with tomatoes, onions, peppers,  mushrooms and Italian herbs.
1 protein, 1 vegetable, misc 1/2 tbsp tomato paste, 1 tsp. Vegeta

Chicken Saag - A mildly spiced Indian dish of chicken simmered with  spinach and tomatoes and finished with fat free sour cream.
1 protein, 1 vegetable misc. 1 tbsp FF sour cream

Ginger Pork Stir Fry – Ginger infused pork tenderloin stir fried with fresh vegetables and served over cauliflied rice.
1 protein, 1 vegetable

Pork and Vegetable Stew - Pork tenderloin simmered with onions, celery, red peppers, mushrooms and sage.
1 protein, 1 vegetable, Misc 1/2 tsp Vegeta

Veal Stew Milano -Veal cubes in an Italian herbed tomato sauce accented with lemon and orange zest.
1 protein, 1 vegetable

Tasty Tandoori Fish filet with Indian Spiced Cauliflied rice
1 protein, 1 vegetable
1 misc serving of FF mayonnaise

Shrimp Creole – Shrimp with tomatoes, peppers, onions and mushrooms  simmered with creole seasonings. (Vegetarians can substitute tofu for shrimp)
1 protein, 1 vegetable, 1 misc. 1 tbsp of tomato paste

Peel A Pound Soup
Cauliflower Soup

Prices
6 to 23 entrees, no delivery, $10 per meal, soups $5 each with minimum 6 meal purchase
24 entrees + 6 soups includes local delivery during delivery window $250
48 entrees +12 soups includes local delivery during delivery window $450

Toronto Delivery window:  Thursday January 21st  from 6 to 9 p.m.
Friday January 22nd from 11 to 2 p.m.

Other delivery arrangements available by courier costs ranging from $25 to $35

and then I assembled the houses.

putting the chimneys on last

The troups showed up with their bags and bags of candy and started to work.

Here they are about half way through.

And here are the finished homes.

I love this yearly tradition. This year we wrapped up with home made pizza courtesy of the DH

At a recent dinner party, the hostess, my amazing partner Cheryl, made just the most delicious buffet for the kids’ table.

She put together a platter of veggies and dip, cheese & kielbassa, potstickers, shrimp and meatballs with dipping sauces. She laid the platters down the middle of the table and armed the kids with ‘frilly picks’. With this novel eating implement the kids tried everything and the food disappeared. The adults got an entire 30 minutes where the shrieks from the under 12 crowd didn’t rattle the chandelier. Note to self: next party I will have a similar buffet for the kids. (think New Year’s Eve).

Chicken
Morrocan Lemon Chicken – Fresh chicken with garden vegetables is spiced up with cumin, lemon and cilantro. -1 protein, 1 vegetable

Chicken Chili – Chicken  with tomatoes, onions, celery and chili powder
1 protein, 1 vegetable

Pork
Pork Goulash - Pork with cabbage, tomatoes, paprika and caraway seed
1 protein, 1 vegetable, 1 tbsp FF sour cream

Pork Paprikash – Pork with onions, celery and sweet red and green peppers is simmered in a marjoram and dill sauce and finished with sour cream.
1 protein, 1 vegetable, 1 tbsp FF sour cream

Pork Picante  - Pork  in a sweet spicy sauce of apricot preserves and salsa served over cauliflied rice.
1 protein, 1 vegetable, 1 tbsp ED Smith apricot preserves, 1 tbsp salsa

Veal
Veal Marengo – Veal with tomatoes, mushrooms and onions
1 protein, 1 vegetable

Fish/Seafood
Curried Shrimp Ratatouille – Shrimp with onion, mushroom, tomato and zucchini
1 protein, 1 vegetable  (Vegetarians can substiute Tofu for Shrimp)

Bengal Style Fish – Fish  in an aromatic Bengal style sauce flavoured with tomatoes, onions, celery, ginger, garlic, coriander, cumin, and fenugreek and fat free sour cream.
1 protein, 1 vegetable,  1 tbsp. FF sour cream

Soups
Zucchini and Tomato with Basil
Cream of Broccoli

Prices
6 to 23 entrees, no delivery, $10 per meal, soups $5 each with minimum 6 meal purchase

24 entrees + 6 soups includes local delivery $250
48 entrees +12 soups includes local delivery $450

Christmas Dinner Special
Traditional mushroom/celery dressing stuffed in a turkey scallopini served with faux mashed potatoes (cauli), steamed vegetables and a spicy fruit chutney.
Spiced apple cheesecake - 1 protein, 1 ½ vegetable, 2 bread, 1 fruit
1 tbsp. FF sour cream, 1 tbsp FF cream cheese, 1 tsp Splenda
$20 added to any order of 24 entrees or more otherwise -  $25 (pick up only)

I divided the mixture up into 23 foil containers and then baked them in a 350 oven with a pan of water on the floor of the oven. It took about 3 1/2 hours to cook all of these babies…my oven was really full.

Here they are after baking. Golden brown and ready to be wrapped in cheesecloth and then doused weekly in brandy.