This Is The Best Recipe For Passover Spinach Pie Or Passover Spanikopita!

Last year, our wonderful friends, the Slotnicks, invited us over for a Passover Seder.  I wanted to bring a main course dish that my daughter and her husband, who are both vegetarians, would enjoy.  My daughter loves the Greek dish called spanikopita or spinach pie, so I decided to create my own Passover version of it.  It turned out delicious!  And it only took about 30 minutes to prepare.  We’re getting very close to Passover, and I definitely plan to make this Passover spanikopita for Seder or just for a light dinner this year!

• about 6 matza boards
• 5 extra large or jumbo eggs (3 for filling, 2 for pouring over the top)
• 1-10 ounce box of frozen spinach, defrosted and drained well
• 8 ounces of feta cheese, crumbled
• 1/2 of a medium onion, chopped finely
• about 1/2 teaspoon of fresh ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon of dried dill or 2 tablespoons of fresh chopped dill
• about 2-3 tablespoons of butter or margarine, plus extra for greasing the pan

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Grease sides and bottom of  a 9 x 13 pyrex or ceramic baking dish well with butter or margarine. 

In a medium mixing bowl, gently mix the drained spinach with the crumbled feta, the chopped raw onion, 3 eggs the pepper, and the dill; set aside.  

Soak about 3 matzas in warm water in another 9 x 13 baking dish.  When the matza starts to soften, gently squeeze the water out, very carefully, so that you don’t crumble the matza.  Then place the matzas in the bottom of the pan to cover it.  Do not overlap the matza; just lay it side by side covering the bottom of the pan the way you would if you were making lasagna. 

Spread the entire spinach mixture evenly over the matza, covering the matza completely.  Then soak another 3 matzas in warm water, gently squeeze out excess water, and place the matza over the top of the spinach, covering the spinach completely.  Beat the remaining 2 eggs and pour over the matza.  Dot with butter or margarine.  Bake covered for about 30 minutes till hot and bubbly. 

Note #1:  You can prepare this in advance and refrigerate this up until the step where you pour the 2 beaten eggs over the matza.  Then when you wish to bake it, let it come to room temperature for about 30 minutes, pour the 2 beaten eggs over it, dot it with butter or margarine and bake covered, for about 30 minutes or until hot and bubbly. 

Note #2:  You may substitute 1 pound of fresh spinach for the frozen, but you will need to saute it (very briefly) in a little oil, butter or margarine, just until it wilts and turns a dark green before you mix it with the feta, egg, onion, pepper, and dill. I like to use the frozen spinach, because 1-16 ounce box of frozen spinach is equivalent to much more than 1 pound of fresh spinach.

Learn To Make This Outstanding Pineapple Kugel For Passover!  

I adapted this recipe from a recipe I got from my friend Ellen Wachstein.  Ellen is an amazing person and a wonderful friend! I have so many memories of the happy times my family spent over the years with Ellen, her husband Bobby, and her three great children, Toby, Steven, and Alexa. My favorite memories are of the many days our two families spent together at the Phillips Avenue Beach Pavilion in Deal, New Jersey, or of the many times our two families just hung out together at their house or our house.  Anyway, my family was lucky to be invited over to the Wachstein’s for a Passover Seder one year.  Bobby Wachstein does a fabulous job of leading the Seder!  Of course, I was very into the food.  One of the dishes Ellen made for the Seder was her Passover pineapple kugel.  I loved it.  I got the recipe and I make it every year for Passover.  Whenever I am invited to anyone’s home for a Seder, I always bring this dish, and it  gets rave reviews.  I know if you make this pineapple kugel for Passover once, it will become a favorite of yours, too!

• 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) Fleischmann’s unsalted margarine (use unsalted margarine to make this dish pareve, otherwise you can use salted margarine or butter)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt (you only need salt if you are using unsalted butter or margarine)
• scant 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 2- 15 ounce cans crushed pineapple in natural juice, strained but not dry at all (you will not be using the juice)
• 6 extra large eggs, mixed in a small bowl
• 4 cups of dry matza farfel
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon, plus extra for sprinkling on top

to make the kugel:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Put the margarine into the oven.  When it is melted take out the pan, swirl the margarine around in the pan to make sure that the sides and bottom are well greased.  Pour the melted margarine into a large mixing bowl and set aside.    

Place a colander in the sink.  Put the 4 cups of matza farfel in the colander.  Run warm water over the matza farfel.  When the matza farfel starts to soften, turn the water off.  The pieces of farfel should be soft, but not mushy.  This is the tricky part.  Because if you have let too much water soak into the matza farfel, it will turn into one glob of mush, and you will have to throw it away and start all over.  Hold the colander with both hands and shake the excess water out, the way you would if you were draining pasta.  Dump the matza farfel into the large mixing bowl with the melted margarine.  Mix the farfel gently with the melted margarine using a rubber spatula.  Pour the sugar and the drained pineapple into the mixing bowl and mix gently with the rubber spatula.   Pour the beaten eggs in, and mix gently to incorporate well.  Add the cinnamon, and mix in. 

Pour into prepared pan.  Sprinkle the top with additional cinnamon.  The cinnamon on the top is what is going to make the kugel look pretty, so be generous.  Bake about 60 - 65 minutes until kugel is browned on the sides and the bottom.  Serve.

Hint #1:  You can bake this in advance, then cut up into 24 pieces, place in heavy duty aluminum foil, and then heat up later either in the oven or in the microwave (If you are heating this up in the microwave, take it out of the aluminum foil, and place it on a microwave safe plate).

Hint #2:  I like to bake this in a clear glass baking dish so I can see if the sides and the bottom are browning.  If you bake this in a ceramic baking dish, it will be harder for you to know if the kugel is done.

This Chicken Is Wonderful To Make For A Friday Night Shabbat Dinner!

My ex-husband Joe Kahn has two wonderful aunts, his Aunt Francine Shure and his Aunt Helene Caplan.  They were welcoming and loving to me when Joe brought me to their homes in the suburbs outside of Baltimore, Maryland.  I spent the most time at Aunt Francine’s and Uncle Richard’s house.  I loved going there because they were loving, fun, and warm people.  (I really miss those times!)  I also loved going to Frannie’s house because she was (and still is, I’m sure) a fantastic cook.  This recipe for broiled chicken and potatoes was often served when Joe and I were invited over for dinner.  Joe has told me many times about the wonderful Friday night (Shabbat) dinners that were held at his house hosted by his mother Bernice Kahn.  Joe remembers that Aunt Helene was in charge of the chicken.  She prepared it at her house and brought it over because there just wasn’t enough room in Bernice’s oven to cook all the chicken for the 18 or so people who were going to be eating.  Joe has unbelievably wonderful memories of those Friday night dinners.  A memory I have of eating this meal in Richard and Francine’s dining room is how much Richard enjoyed Francine’s cooking, and how complimentary he was about everything she put on the table. It was just fun to be with them!  Please try this recipe - it is a foolproof recipe for delicious chicken!

• 1 or 2 whole chickens, cut up in eighths
• kosher salt *(optional- see note below)
• pepper, garlic powder, and paprika
• dried onion flakes OR 1-2 onions, minced                 
• 1 or 2 large cans of whole baby white potatoes
• light olive oil or schmaltz (chicken fat)

for the chicken:

Preheat oven to broil.  Cover a half sheet pan with heavy duty aluminum foil.

Season the cut up pieces of chicken with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and paprika on both sides.  Place on prepared pan so the bottom of the chicken is facing up.  Broil until the top of chicken is nicely browned, 5-10 minutes.  Then turn and broil until the skin side of the chicken is nicely browned, about 5-10minutes.  Then cover with aluminum foil and cook at 325  degrees for about 45 minutes to an hour more. the cooking time will depend on the size of your chicken pieces.

for the potatoes:

Take the potatoes out of the can and rinse them well in cold water.  Put a little oil or schmaltz in a cast iron skillet or any type of frying pan.  Fry the minced onions, seasoning them with a some paprika and some salt.  When the onions are starting to brown, throw the potatoes in with the onions.  Season the potatoes generously with paprika and a little kosher salt (optional).  Toss the potatoes with the onions as the onions brown.  When the onions are really browned, place the potatoes and onions in a serving bowl.    

OR

Rinse the potatoes with cold water as above.  Pour a few tablespoons of oil  on the bottom of the casserole dish.  Put the potatoes in the dish.  Sprinkle the potatoes generously with paprika, and place the casserole in the oven uncovered while you are broiling and baking the chicken.  Just be sure that you put the casserole underneath the chicken so that the potatoes don’t burn while you are broiling the chicken.  Toss the potatoes and the onions a few times during the cooking.  If the potatoes don’t have enough color, add a little more paprika.  The potatoes will be ready to serve when the chicken is done.

*Note:  The original recipe calls for NOT USING any salt when you season the chicken.  That’s because Kosher chickens were being used, and Kosher chickens are already salted.  So if you are using Kosher chicken, OR if you are trying to cut down on salt, just eliminate the salt from the recipe.

Learn To Make This Delicious Fried Veal Or Chicken Cutlets With Fried Potatoes!>
I have many wonderful memories from my childhood associated with the Linder family. Chippy and Dave Linder and their children Meryl and Michael were very, very close friends of our family, and I loved being with them. What a wonderful family they were! I especially loved being around Chippy. She had (and still has) a quick wit. She just had a unique way of saying things; I never wanted to miss one word. Everything that came out of Chippy’s mouth seemed to have a touch of common sense and wisdom, tinged with humor. A memory I have is sitting in her beautiful kitchen on Buttfield Drive in Plainfield, New Jersey and just enjoying being there and listening to her talk. Anyway, I’m pretty sure that Chippy got this recipe from her wonderful and legendary mother in law, Rose Linder. This recipe calls for veal cutlets, but when I have made it, I have used chicken cutlets. If you try this recipe, you will not be disappointed!

• 1 pound of veal or chicken cutlets
• matzoh meal
• corn flakes crumbs
• 2 pounds of potatoes
• 2 eggs
• fresh cracked black pepper
• kosher salt
• paprika
• corn or light olive oil for frying

Parboil about 2 pounds of small red or small yukon gold potatoes until they are just starting to get soft. (If you are using red potatoes, you can leave the skins on. If you are not, then peel the potatoes before you parboil them.) As soon as you can pierce the potatoes with a fork or a knife, drain and run under cold water to stop the cooking. Slice into 1/4 inch thick slices, and sprinkle with a little kosher salt (if you are using salt) and paprika, and set aside.

Crack 2 eggs into a bowl and mix with 2 teaspoons of water, some kosher salt, and some fresh cracked pepper. Then pour equal amounts of matzoh meal and cornflakes crumbs onto a plate. Dip the cutlets first into the egg mixture on both sides, and then into the matzoh meal and corn flakes crumbs mixture on both sides. Then sprinkle some paprika on top of the cutlets. Pour some oil in a large frying pan, only about 1/8 of an inch high. When the oil is hot, place cutlets in. Toss the sliced potatoes in with the veal or chicken. As you fry and turn the cutlets and the potatoes, the potatoes will start to brown and pick up some of the crumbs too. Fry the veal or chicken and the potatoes until they are beautifully browned. Serve.

Note: I recommend that you use a really big non-stick frying pan (industrial size) which you can purchase at Costco or at a restaurant supply store.

Delicious, Broiled Flounder In 30 Minutes!

When I was growing up, this was one of my mother’s standard dinners.  It was healthy and delicious, and I loved it.  Even though I have some really good recipes for making flounder, this old standby is still my favorite recipe for flounder.  My kids like it too which is great, because it is really healthy.  This flounder has plenty of good flavor, without using any salt!  You can serve this with a baked potato, spinach, and a salad.  Another great side that goes with this is homemade macaroni and cheese casserole, or in a pinch, some Kraft Macaroni and Cheese. 

Four 2 people:

• 1 pound fresh flounder fillets
• about 2 tablespoons butter or margarine
• paprika
• juice of 1 lemon or 1-2 tablespoons Minute Maid pure lemon juice from concentrate

For 4 people:   use 2 pounds of flounder fillets, 4 tablespoons of butter or margarine, lemon juice, and paprika.

Preheat your oven to broil, and place oven rack about 4-6 inches from the heating element or the flame.  Cover a half sheet pan with aluminum foil, or use a disposable aluminum pan.  Place flounder fillets on foil.  Sprinkle a little fresh lemon juice over the flounder fillets.  Then sprinkle the flounder with paprika; don’t be skimpy with the paprika!  Dot the flounder fillets with butter or margarine.  Broil for about 7-10 minutes until browned and cooked through.  Cooking time will depend upon the thickness of the flounder.

Serve with additional wedges of fresh lemon, some tartar sauce or cocktail sauce.

Warning:  Anytime you broil, be sure to keep an eye on the food to make sure nothing catches on fire.

paprika