Turkish Lamb Shanks with Eggplant & Mushrooms Sephardic Dish

Turkish Lamb Shanks With Eggplant and Mushrooms
6 lamb shanks
1 large white onion, chopped
2 pounds white mushrooms, sliced 3 medium eggplants, cut in 1/2-inch thick slices
10 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced
2 teaspoons paprika 1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 8-ounce can tomato sauce
1 teaspoon chicken bouillon

Place lamb shanks in heavy sauce pan. Cover with water and cook on medium-low flame for 2 hours. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Peel every other slice of eggplant so that the final dish looks like stripes. Fry eggplant in olive oil until it is light golden brown and tender. Put eggplant on top of lamb so that it's completely covered. Fry onions and garlic until golden brown. Add mushrooms, garlic, paprika, salt and pepper. Combine tomato sauce and chicken bouillon with 2 cups water. Bring to boil; mix to combine ingredients; turn off heat. Place lamb shanks in roasting pan. Place eggplant slices on top of lamb. Spoon sauce over eggplant so that lamb is totally immersed in sauce. Place in oven for 1 hour. The sauce will be a golden color. Serve with white basmati rice. Serves six.

Source: Eti Cohen, chef-owner of Maxim's in Cherry Hill, Pa."

Lebanese Hummus with Marinated Lamb a Sephardic dish

Lebanese Hummus With Marinated Lamb serves 6

For hummus:
2 cups dried chickpeas
1 cup tahini
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
11/4 teaspoons salt
11/2 tablespoons lemon juice
5 cloves garlic, ground in food processor
2 to 21/2 cups water

For meat:
1/2 pound lamb chops, first or second cut, meat sliced from bone
2 medium red onions, peeled and chopped
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon sumac (fruit-based Israeli spice, see note)
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons pine nuts

For garnish: 1 cup chopped parsley
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon olive, or more if needed

To make hummus, sift through chick peas, rinsing well and discarding pebbles or broken or discolored peas. In a large bowl, soak peas for 8 hours or overnight. Rinse chick peas; place in heavy soup pan with 2 quarts of water. Bring to boil; lower heat and simmer for about 11/2 to 2 hours or until very tender. Drain well, reserving cooking liquid. Cool slightly. Grind peas in food processor until smooth. (At this point, you can place chick peas in a freezer bag and freeze until ready to use. To defrost, take them out of freezer in the evening; in the morning, add rest of ingredients and proceed to make hummus.)

Place chick peas, tahini, ground garlic and spices in an electric mixer or food processor. Add 1 cup water and blend until very creamy. If it seems too dry, add more water.

Marinate lamb with onions, spices, pine nuts and olive oil and let sit overnight. Saute marinated meat, and cook until tender.

To serve, spoon hummus on a serving plate, spreading it so edges are thicker than center. Scoop out a circle in center of hummus. Place meat in center, sprinkle with parsley and pepper flakes. Drizzle with olive oil.

* For vegetarian dish, substitute mushrooms for lamb. Also, if sumac is unavailable, substitute an equal amount of finely grated lemon zest.

Source: Adapted from chef Ariel Kars and co-owner Patricio Felsenstein, Naomi Grill, Madrid, Spain, and Eti Cohen, chef-owner of Maxim's in Cherry Hill, Pa.

Chicken Tajine

Chicken Tajine
a thousand year old dish it's sweet & savory stew
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 cups sliced Spanish onions
2 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
11/2 teaspoons ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1 cinnamon stick
1/4 teaspoon saffron threads
2 teaspoons brown sugar
11/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 3-pound chicken, cut in quarters
2 teaspoons honey
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
3/4 cup pitted prunes
3/4 cup whole blanched almonds
Oil for sauteing
1/2 cup Spanish green pitted olives

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a large skillet with a heat-proof handle, heat the oil.
Add onions, garlic, coriander, cumin, ginger, cinnamon stick, saffron, sugar, salt and pepper. Cook over a medium flame until onions are light golden brown. Add chicken; turn to coat with onion mixture. Continue cooking until chicken is golden. Add honey, lemon juice, prunes and 1 cup hot water.

Cover; place in oven. Cook 45 minutes until chicken is cooked through and sauce has a honey-like consistency. Saute almonds in oil. Drain most of oil from pan; add it to the sauce. Place chicken in a serving tagine (or other covered dish), pour sauce on top of it and top with almonds. Serves four. Source: Adapted from chef Ariel Kars and co-owner Patricio Felsenstein, Naomi Grill, Madrid, Spain.

Tandoori Fish Kebabs

Tandoori Fish Kebabs 4 servings

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons plain low-fat yogurt
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh garlic
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger or 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh green chili pepper
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric (optional)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 pounds firm-fleshed white fish, cut into 1-inch pieces; large shrimp, shelled and deveined; or sea scallops or cod, halibut, or monkfish
• 1 medium onion (8 ounces), cut into 1-inch wedges
• 1 medium red bell pepper (6 ounces), cored, seeded, and cut into 1 1/2-inch squares

1. Combine lemon juice, yogurt, garlic, ginger, chili pepper, cumin, coriander, turmeric (if using), and salt together in a large bowl. Add fish and/or shellfish, tossing to coat. Cover and marinate in the refrigerator 30 minutes.

2. Heat broiler, setting oven rack 5 inches from heat. Lightly grease four 12- or 14-inch metal skewers. Thread fish alternately with onion and bell pepper on skewers and arrange on rack of broiler plan. Broil kebabs 3 minutes on each side, until fish is firm but still springs back when touched. When kebabs are done, transfer to a warm serving platter and garnish with cilantro and lemon wedges, if desired.

Optional garnishes: Minced fresh cilantro, Lemon wedges
Tips:Serve with sliced cucumbers topped with a dressing of low-fat yogurt and dill.

Freezer Safety

• With summer's bounty here, how about a basic course in freezer management. Ruthlessness is paramount: a year is the maximum life for most items, and a freezer isn't a long-term storage unit. In theory, freezing preserves food indefinitely. In fact, for home cooks with residential-grade refrigerators, freezing is a stopgap that slows the aging of food but does not halt it.
• Home freezers should stay well below freezing, at zero or below. Most home freezers, especially those inside refrigerators, are at least 10 above. For every 5 degrees above zero, the life of food is cut in half. Freezer temperatures can be checked easily with an inexpensive refrigerator thermometer from a hardware store.
• Freezer temperatures should be checked every few months. Even if you don't change the setting, a freezer can be 20 degrees warmer in summer than in winter. During a blackout, a home freezer full of food will stay safely frozen for about two days if the door is not opened. (A half-full freezer will last about half as long, and so on.) Food that has visibly thawed should be used or tossed out, but as long as the freezer temperature has not risen above 32 the contents can safely be refrozen.
• Even food that is frozen under ideal conditions does not last forever. Most of it can last a few months at the most before the taste changes. As long as it stays at zero, it's safe, but that doesn't mean it's going to taste good.
• Often, food that has been frozen once can safely be frozen again. But by the time you lift these products from the refrigerated case, they may have already been frozen and thawed at least once, so do not expect fresh flavor or succulent texture if you refreeze them. The Agriculture Department says it is safe to eat meat that has been refrozen, as long as it has never risen above 40 degrees (refrigerator temperature), even during defrosting.
• Chicken, especially, suffers from "drip," the food industry's term for the juices that ooze out of food as it thaws. Unappetizing as it sounds, drip contains the liquid, salts and minerals that give chicken its flavor, and once the thawing releases that liquid, no amount of marinating or brining can bring it back.
• Chicken, pork and fish are best used within six months; they are far less resilient in the freezer than red meats, which can be frozen for a year. Anything more than a year old, except large roasts of meat, should be considered inedible and thrown out.
• SUMMER FRUIT and vegetables can last all winter in the freezer, especially cooked -- recipes with lots of liquid, such as corn chowder, tomato sauce, bean soup and berry compote, are ideal. But raw produce has a more fragile texture that can be ruined by freezing. Vegetables, whether frozen at home or in an industrial plant, can be protected by a quick dip in boiling water, to set the texture and color. Cut them into bite-size pieces beforehand. They should barely cook: The time can range from 90 seconds for spinach and bok choy to three minutes for carrots and Jerusalem artichokes. Next, plunge the vegetables into a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking. Drain well, and freeze.
• Fruit should also be cut up before freezing, though berries can be left whole. Toss each cup of fruit with a scant tablespoon of sugar to reduce browning. (To reduce it more, pack the fruit covered in sugar syrup, made by dissolving sugar in an equal quantity of water until clear.) Fresh herbs do not freeze well, except stick herbs like rosemary and thyme.
• When you plot additions to the freezer, remember that stackable containers, not bags, are the most efficient storage units. When freezing liquids, leave at least half an inch of space at the top of each container -- water expands as it freezes. Freezer bags and containers are worth the extra cost, because their thickness makes them much more airtight than regular plastic products.
• The Agriculture Department insists that for safe defrosting, food must be thawed slowly in the refrigerator, or while tightly wrapped and immersed in cold water. (Microwave defrosting is so variable that the department does not offer guidelines, other than to specify that microwave-defrosted food should be cooked immediately.)

IDEAL FOR FREEZING
Red meat
Butter
Fresh berries
Pesto (without cheese)
Cookie dough
Nuts
Coffee
Whole-grain breads and flours
Soups, stews and pasta dishes

DON'T FREEZE
Mayonnaise
Raw vegetables
Bananas and pineapples
Potatoes, raw or cooked
Sour cream, heavy cream or cream cheese
Fried food
Food with cooked egg white (includes quiches, souffles and meringues)

South of the Border Guacamole

South of the Border Guacamole

Ingredients
* ½ Cup chopped white onion
* 4 (or to taste) serrano chilies, chopped
* ¼ Cup chopped cilantro
* 1 tsp salt
* 4 California Avocados
* 2 Tbsp fresh lime juice
* ¾ Cup tomato, seeded and well drained

1. In a food processor, combine onion, chilies, cilantro and salt; reserve. Coarsely mash (DO NOT PUREE) California avocados. Fold in reserved onion mixture, then tomato. Serve with tortilla chips.
2. Guacamole is best made as close to service as possible. Store in an airtight container with plastic wrap against the surface of the guacamole.

Linguine & Clam Sauce

LINGUINE AND CLAM SAUCE from the Grand Central Oyster Bar (NYC)

24 cherrystone clams
1 medium onion, minced
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 to 4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 cup dry white wine
Salt
1 pound linguine
Optional: 1/2 pound steamed rock shrimp, 1/4 cup minced fresh basil, 12 little-neck clams, steamed open

1. Place cherrystone clams in wide-lidded pot with enough water to cover the bottom. Cover pan, turn on heat and bring to a steady simmer. After 5 to 7 minutes, start checking on the clams: you'll want to remove each one as soon as it opens. Every minute or so uncover the pot and, with tongs, remove any clams from shells that open. After 10 minutes or so, all the clams should have opened. Discard any that have not. When clams are cool enough to handle, roughly chop.
2. Strain the clam broth through a fine mesh sieve lined with cheesecloth or 1 ply of a 2-ply paper towel, tilting pan gently to leave most of sand behind.
3. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil for the pasta; you'll want it to be boiling before you finish the dish. While water heats, continue with recipe: Wipe pan clean and add minced onion and olive oil. Saute over medium heat for about 2 minutes, until onion softens and begins to turn translucent, then add garlic. Saute another minute and add crushed red pepper and black pepper. When garlic just starts to brown, add wine and reserved clam juice. Bring to a lively simmer and taste for salt; adjust seasonings.
4. At this point, put the linguine in the boiling water.
5. Add clams and steamed shrimp to the broth mixture and stir until they are warmed through. Turn off the heat, add basil and mix. When linguine is al dente, drain and place in serving bowl. Pour clam sauce over pasta and garnish with optional littlenecks. Makes 4 servings.