Tuesday, April 29, 2008

Jazz Event




I just wanted to tell you about a fabulous jazz vocalist, Shiri Zorn who will be performing at Marson's restaurant in Everett on Friday May 2nd.
Show Time: 7:30 P.M- 10:00 PM
No cover charge
620 SE Everett Mall Way, Everett, Washington 98208. For reservations : 425-212-2266
For a Taste of Shiri Zorn's music, click here

Monday, April 28, 2008

Free Ice Cream

Get a free ice cream cone tomorrow at Ben and Jerry's. It's their 30th birthday!
For participating stores in Washington, click here
What's your flavor?

Whole Foods , Where the Prices Are Not That Bad!

I am addicted to Whole Foods Market. I confess. A day of relaxation for me is a stroll through the Whole, admiring all the choices and enjoying a slice of pizza.

People always give me this dirty look when I say that I buy things at Whole Foods.

Have you ever tried a recipe from Bon Appetit, Food and Wine or Gourmet? I always buy ingredients for these recipes at Whole Foods. Buying 10 different types of nuts really jacks up the price. It is so much easier to buy the nuts in bulk. I buy just one cup of cranberries or a tiny bit of a spice or even a sliver of cheese.

On my favorite food website Serious Eats, I posted my take on Whole Foods so I could hear what other foodies think?

I don't understand why people are always complaining about Whole Foods?
I have a whole list of things that are cheaper there then at other Stores.
Feta Cheese (same price as others and 100 times better)
All the whole food brand products
sour cream, buttermilk
they have a daily meat and poultry special: many times the beef is really cheap, chicken is on sale a lot.
What do you get at Whole Foods and can any store compare? Please don't say Trader Joes because the quality does not even compare to Whole Foods in my opinion.


34 comments later, people voiced their opinion on Whole Foods.
Check out the post. What do you think of Whole Foods?

Thursday, April 24, 2008

Norene's Healthy Cooking


A few months ago my mom was going through my late grandmother's belongings. Do you want her copy of Second Helpings Please? Yes! That was what I wanted most.
I wanted the cookbook by Norene Gilletz. I wanted to be part of my grandmother's marvelous cooking. These were the recipes that my grandmother called her own. My mom, my aunt, everyone in my family had a copy of this book and I wanted one too.

Every time I want some Jewish home cooking, I reach for the book.
For the Passover Speder, it was my dictionary; every recipe that I needed was there. In a recent post I told you about what I made for Passover. Last minute, I ended up making a mashed potato kugel and an apple kugel (a kugel is a kind of Jewish Casserole). I used only the ingredients that I had at home.
Norene's recipes are simple, easy and tasty in the most comforting way possible.
When I need something that will make me feel good but I don't have the patience to work for hours in the kitchen, Norene's book saves the day.

I just got a copy of Norene's Healthy Kitchen, a healthy recipe treasure chest.

A lot of Norene's recipes are Jewish recipes but by far not all of them.
Her recipes are kosher which in this case means that they don't contain milk and meat in the same recipe.
There are loads of helpful hints with the recipes, nutritional facts and health tips. Lately I have been trying to eat healthy grains and this book has so many recipes for quinoa, barley, bulgur and every other grain you can think of. I definitely recommend this book for anyone but especially for cooks who like to eat healthy but don't have the time or patience to slave in the kitchen.

Some other interesting recipes in the book.... Whole wheat Challah, Kasha (buckwheat chili) and Confetti Vegetable Strudel.

For more of Norene's recipes or to order her book, click on her website

I decided to share this recipe for Couscous Mediterranean-Style
This recipe was so easy that I made it while on the phone with an old friend. My husband and I kept sneaking back to the pot to get a little more.


Couscous Mediterranean-Style

2 tbsp olive oil
2 medium onions, chopped
1 red pepper, seeded and chopped
2 cloves of garlic (about 2 tb minced)
1 and 1/2 cups couscous
1 tsp ground cumin
3 cups of hot vegetable or chicken broth
1/2 a cup raisins or currants (I used currants)
1/2 a cup dried apricots or dates (I used dates)
salt and freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup of chopped parsley or mint
1/3 cup toasted pine nuts (I used pecans because I burnt the pine nuts that I had, while on the phone) or slivered almonds

1. Heat oil in a large, deep skillet on medium heat. Add onions, red pepper and garlic; saute for 6-7 minutes or until golden.
2. Stir in the couscous and cumin and cook for 2 minutes longer or until golden. Slowly add the hot broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 10- 12 minutes or until the couscous is tender
3. Stir in the raisins, apricots, salt and pepper. Sprinkle with parsley and pine nuts and serve
Yield: 8 servings, keeps up to 3 days in the refrigerator, reheats well. Freezes well up to 2 months.
264 calories per serving, 43.7 carbohydrates, 3.9 grams of fiber, 6 grams of protein and there is even more nutrition information in the book.

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

Cupcake Social

I found this on Craig's list... a cupcake social

Friday, April 18, 2008

Passover Cooking Recipes

I am busy getting ready for Passover this year and I thought I would pop in to tell you about my favorite Passover Recipe of all time.

(I am sorry if you read about these last year but I am so in love with them!)
The sweet and sour meatballs! These are the quickest, easiest and sweetest meatballs around. They are perfect to make ahead and freeze. They are especially amazing for kids. They are from the book called Second Helpings Please by cookbook author Norene Gilletz.
Norene is basically the pioneer of Jewish Recipes!
I just got her new book, Norene's Healthy Kitchen and will write about it soon. I have been trying recipes and I am absolutely in love with the ones that I have tried so far.

Eileen Mintz put together a bunch of admirable recipes for Passover, click here for more details.

I made this Passover Honey Nut Cake in Soaking Syrup this morning. I had to check the recipe before I made it for Passover. It came out quite thin so I will have to double the recipe. The taste is incredibly moist and sweet. I will use a lot less syrup because the syrup makes it a tiny bit too sweet.

If you have any Passover suggestions, please add them in the comments.

Tuesday, April 15, 2008

Bahama Breeze Contest

I love contests. When I saw this contest, I just had to share it. Bahama Breeze is having a contest where you can win a dream cruise to the bahamas for up to 6 people.

From the Bahama Breeze website:
Submit a short video of no more than 2 minutes that shows why you need a Caribbean escape… have fun with it, be original and creative!
Win an all-expense paid four-night cruise to The Bahamas aboard a luxury cruise line for up to six people. Includes roundtrip airfare to and from the port of departure, up to three ocean-view cabins and all applicable fees and gratuities. Grand prize winner will also receive a Flip video camcorder to take on the trip.


Deadline: May 12

For more details, click here

As I was looking at the contest, I started looking at the features on the website. There are all kinds of recipes and chef videos. This pantry is so much fun.
You can click on all the ingredients in the Carribbean pantry to get an explanation of the use and what they are.
Good luck with the contest let me know if you put together a video.

Thursday, April 10, 2008

Who the Heck Ratted on the Gypsy Chefs?

Okay, So I get this really sad email.
It goes a little like this............

Gypsy has been this magical place for many many people. New friends, new ideas, new love, a salon of creativity. But as with all things destined to touch hearts, evil waits to take it away. We have been betrayed. Gypsy as we know it was too scary a place to exist, so now it doesn't.
Someone ruined Seattle's underground dining scene. Gypsy was a private dinner club with some of Seattle's best chefs. You had to be a member. You had to be invited. It was a private experience and you had to be on the list.
Someone ended it. Someone said too much.
This makes me sad for several reasons. First of all, I never attended any of the dinners even though I really wanted too. I am so angry at myself for this.
Seattle foodies had a place to come together, a place to invest all the energies, a chance to prove to each other that Seattle has a vibrant food scene.

The email ended with a few kind words: And to the traitor to the clan we offer you this: May you never sleep well, may laughter sound bitter in your ears, and may food always taste like ashes to you...this is our Gypsy curse. You have destroyed a good thing.

I couldn't have said it better myself!

Friday, April 4, 2008

Seattle Chef in Food And Wine

I know some of you might find this annoying. I feel the need to boast anytime Seattle is mentioned in any food magazine. Does this make me a bad person? All I want is some recognition for this wonderful city. I want to run down the streets and yell " I love Seattle".
I was very excited to see that Food and Wine Magazine named the best new chefs in America 2008 and Ethan Stowell of Union, Tavolata and How to Cook A Wolf made the list.
Congrats, Ethan!

Also....This Weekend you can taste Washington...