Savory Cheese and Herb Babka
Breads Appetizer Israeli cuisine Ashkenazi cuisine Buffet Brunch Vegetarian Shavuot Egg-free Jewish cuisine Make-ahead Batch cooking

Savory Cheese and Herb Babka

Have you heard of babka? Some people also call it Krantz cake. It’s the famous Ashkenazi twisted brioche that has taken Israel, and pretty much the whole world, by storm. After its success in previous years, I’m bringing back this twist on babka in a savory version.

Minina (Tunisian Chicken Frittata) - Savory Egg and Chicken Cake
Kemias Jewish cuisine Tunisian cuisine Chicken Eggs Buffet Make-ahead Kids Batch cooking Passover Rosh Hashanah Yitro

Minina (Tunisian Chicken Frittata) - Savory Egg and Chicken Cake

Here is a specialty of Tunisian Jewish cooking that goes wonderfully with your chicken broth. Minina is a kind of savory egg and chicken cake, cooked in a water bath, which gives it an unmatched tenderness. I’m sharing our family recipe for a classic Minina.

Mhamar - Tunisian Stuffed Vegetables with Ground Beef
Jewish cuisine Tunisian cuisine Ground meat Eggs Batch cooking Make-ahead Eggplant Zucchini Potatoes Passover

Mhamar - Tunisian Stuffed Vegetables with Ground Beef

Mhamar are a Tunisian Jewish specialty of vegetables stuffed with meat. It’s a complete meal and a nice change of pace for using ground beef. You can make them ahead and eat them warm or cold with a squeeze of lemon juice! They’re also traditionally made for Passover, swapping the breadcrumbs for matzo meal.

Fritèches (Sfériès) - Passover Matzo Meal Fritters in Honey Syrup
Tunisian cuisine Algerian cuisine Small cakes Passover Jewish cuisine Kids

Fritèches (Sfériès) - Passover Matzo Meal Fritters in Honey Syrup

With Passover just around the corner, I’m sharing this traditional treat of Passover week again: fritèches (or sfériès) are little fritters that are incredibly light and melt in your mouth, then get their sweetness from a coating of honey syrup. An express recipe with just 2 ingredients!

Gazelle Horns (kaab el ghzal) - Almond Paste and Orange Blossom Cookies
Dairy-free Jewish cuisine Algerian cuisine Moroccan cuisine Festive Make-ahead Rosh Hashanah Sukkot Purim Freezable

Gazelle Horns (kaab el ghzal) - Almond Paste and Orange Blossom Cookies

A lovely addition to your platter of sweets, gazelle horns are little pastries filled with almond paste; some people even add hazelnuts. They are easy to make, though a bit time-consuming. The upside is that they freeze very well.

Light Passover Bouscoutou - Tunisian Sponge Cake Without Matzo Meal
Cakes Snack Breakfast Dairy-free Make-ahead Tunisian cuisine Jewish cuisine Passover Gluten-free

Light Passover Bouscoutou - Tunisian Sponge Cake Without Matzo Meal

After a first Passover version of the famous bouscoutou, our Tunisian sponge cake, here’s another one that got eaten so fast I just had to share it with you. The texture is very light, with no matzo meal, airier than the first one, and it disappears before your eyes! It’s truly one of those easy cakes with just a few ingredients to add to your Passover recipes and gluten-free recipes.

Loubia - Tunisian Beef Stew with Onions and White Beans (Bsal ou Loubia)
Tunisian cuisine Jewish cuisine Meat Stew Beef Make-ahead Batch cooking Freezable Shabbat Fall Winter No oven

Loubia - Tunisian Beef Stew with Onions and White Beans (Bsal ou Loubia)

Bsal ou loubia (also spelled psal ou loubia), which means “onions and beans,” is a traditional slow-cooked dish from Tunisian cuisine. Delicious and essential, it is made with beef, onions and white beans in a rich, reduced sauce. Here is my family recipe for Bsal ou Loubia.

Moroccan Chicken Pastilla (Bastilla) with Almonds and Cinnamon
Moroccan cuisine Jewish cuisine Festive Chicken Shabbat Purim Meat Rosh Hashanah Tu BiShvat

Moroccan Chicken Pastilla (Bastilla) with Almonds and Cinnamon

Chicken pastilla is a classic and without a doubt one of the best-known dishes in Moroccan cooking. It takes a little while to make, but the filling can be prepared the day before. I’m not a big fan of sweet-and-savory cooking, and yet I really love this dish, as does everyone who has tasted it! If you’re like me, give it a chance, you might just fall in love with it!

Krupnik - Polish Pearl Barley Soup
Soups & creamy soups Ashkenazi cuisine Polish cuisine Jewish cuisine Make-ahead Batch cooking Freezable Winter Fall Vegetarian Meat Tu BiShvat Shabbat Barley

Krupnik - Polish Pearl Barley Soup

Here’s a rustic, traditional soup that’s part of our winter menus and also of our Tu BiShvat menu, when it’s customary to eat barley. Pearl barley soup, Krupnik, is a Polish Ashkenazi specialty that warms both body and heart. It’s a lovely way to cook pearl barley, if you have some sitting in your pantry without knowing what to do with it. You can make it with or without meat; both options are given in the recipe.

Vegetarian Kreplach Soup (Krepler) - Mushroom and Potato Dumplings in Vegetable Broth
Soups & creamy soups Vegetarian Jewish cuisine Shabbat Purim Yom Kippur

Vegetarian Kreplach Soup (Krepler) - Mushroom and Potato Dumplings in Vegetable Broth

Kreplach (or krepler, as we call them at home) are Ashkenazi filled dumplings, German in origin, that come in both cheese and meat versions. The best-known kreplach are usually filled with chicken or beef and served in chicken soup, but today I’m sharing a vegetarian (parve) version that’s every bit as tasty!

Stuffed Cabbage Rolls - Ashkenazi Gefilte Kroyt
Ashkenazi cuisine Polish cuisine Jewish cuisine Hungarian cuisine Russian cuisine Winter Meat Shabbat Ground meat Batch cooking Cabbage

Stuffed Cabbage Rolls - Ashkenazi Gefilte Kroyt

Stuffed cabbage is a charming, old-fashioned dish, one of those comforting family meals. I discovered it in Israel, where it is firmly rooted in home cooking, a recipe inherited from the Ashkenazi tradition. It has plenty of cousins, since stuffed vegetables of every kind are part of the Jewish culinary tradition.