Purim is less than one month away. Get into the spirit by taking a look at my latest tablescape in Joy of Kosher Magazine. I’d love to hear your feedback!

An unusual and wonderful combination in both color and texture. This soup is packed with fiber, is heavy enough to be a main dish, but can also be served in a smaller portion as a soup course.

Ingredients:

1 kobucha squash, butternut squash, or small pumpkin
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, chopped fine
3 cloves garlic, chopped coarsely
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons cumin
1 (15-ounce) can red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 (15-ounce) can tomato sauce
2 cups water
1-3 tablespoons of bottled and diced jalapenos or fresh sliced Anaheim peppers (optional); do not touch with hands
1/2 of a (15-ounce) can of corn, drained

Directions:

1. Remove peel of squash or pumpkin and cut into 1-inch chunks. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium-high heat in a soup pot. Add squash and onions. Cook until onions are translucent, stirring frequently.

2. Add garlic and cook for another minute. Add salt, pepper, cumin, kidney beans, tomato sauce, and water. Cook covered over low heat for 30-40 minutes. Check and stir frequently. Taste for seasonings.

3. Make sure the squash/pumpkin is cooked to your satisfaction. If not, continue to cook on low until it is tender when pierced with a fork. Add more water if the liquid level is getting too low. Add jalapenos or Anaheim chilies for the last 5 minutes of cooking time (optional). Add corn and heat through just before serving.

Parve. Serves 6.

This post contains the following:

A Savvima review of The Best of Mexican Kosher Cooking by Shifrah Devorah Witt and Zipporah Malka Heller

A Savvima giveaway of The Best of Mexican Kosher Cooking by Shifrah Devorah Witt and Zipporah Malka Heller

My kosher cookbook collection has grown over the years. I’m no longer exclusively committed to the Spice & Spirit Cookbook. Don’t get me wrong, the good ole purple cookbook has served me well through the years but there are so many new specialty kosher cookbooks which have won me over.

The Best of Mexican Kosher Cooking by Shifrah Devorah Witt and Zipporah Malka Heller is an excellent case in point. After the success of The New Asian Kosher Cookbook, Winning Recipes of Authentic Asian Cuisine,  the mother daughter duo, Shifrah Devorah Witt and Zipporah Malka Heller, have done it again. This time they take us along on a “voyage” of kosher Mexican cooking.

The book is filled with authentic Mexican recipes. Whether your family has already enjoyed the tastes of Mexican cuisine or if you have yet to try it this cookbook will serve you well. Personally, my family’s favorite dinners are Mexican. Somehow serving burritos or tacos puts a smile on everyone’s face – an instant fiesta!

I tested some recipes from the book to expand my personal Mexican cooking repertoire and the results were great:

Squash and Red Bean Soup is a hearty soup with Mexican flavor.

Cheese Enchiladas with the addition of Refried Beans were delish.

Mexican Iced Coffee was a huge hit. The kids asked for it again the next night.

The next time I opt for a Mexican dinner I hope to try the recipes for 7-Layer Bean Dip and Baja Fish Tacos.

I may be partial to melted cheese, but the cookbook also features fish, chicken, and meat dishes all with characteristic Mexican spices and flavor.

The cookbook is sold for $24.95 and features over 90 authentic Mexican recipes. To purchase a copy click here.

Are you daring enough to try home cooked Mexican fare? Leave a comment stating your favorite Mexican dish or one you’d like to try and you can win a copy of The Best of Mexican Kosher Cooking by Shifrah Devorah Witt and Zipporah Malka Heller.

Leave a comment before February 1, 2012.

One comment will be randomly selected as a winner.

Good Luck!

Print out Savvima’s exclusive Chanukah Ad lib Story here.

Here’s a quick rundown of the game:

For 2 players: One player asks the other player to contribute a word for the specified type for each blank, but without revealing the context for that word. Finally, the completed story is read aloud.

For a crowd: Rewrite Savvima’s Ad Lib onto a large oak-tag. on small rectangles of paper, write the word categories (such as “noun”, “verb”, or “place”) that correlate to the story’s word blanks. Hand out the papers and ask participants to fill in words on the opposite side of each paper. Then, tape the papers onto the oak-tag story board and read aloud!

The results will be hilarious!

Print out Savvima’s exclusive Chanukah Ad lib Story here.

Click here to download the PDF coloring pages.

Chanukah coloring pages

Juice Pouch Gelt Purses

Edible Dreidel Crafts

I tend to gravitate towards botanical-themed menorahs:

Clockwise from top left: Tree of Life menorah, by Karen Rossi; Botanical Leaf menorah, by Michael Aram; Bronze Vine menorah, Crate and Barrel; Birds in Pomegranate Tree, by Yair Emanuel;  Chrome plated menorah, New York Botanical Garden.

It’s perfectly fine but not very exciting. I thought that since I’m always transforming furniture and rooms why not try and turn this into a botanical menorah?

 

I bought some sheet moss and floral wire from Michael’s and some used some live ivy.

 

After cutting the moss with scissors, I wrapped it around the base using the floral wire.

 

I continued doing this until the entire menorah was covered in moss.

 

I didn’t bring the moss up too close to where the candles would be burning for safety reasons.

 

Next I snipped a few stems of ivy and wrapped them around the body of the menorah. I added a few tiny blue silk flowers for a bit of color against all the green.

 

Editorial note: The ivy stays fresh for a few days–I would recommend either snipping new pieces every few days or substituting silk ivy. Also, since this is not fire proof, please don’t leave the candles while they are burning!

She has worked as an art director for several well-known publications such as House Beautiful and Good Housekeeping magazine. Currently she has a home decorating business in Connecticut and blogs at designmegillah.com. She divides her time working and playing with her very cute grandchildren Moussia and Yosef.

I’ve challenged myself this Chanuka season to leave my frying pan where it belongs. Not because I’m on a diet or anything. Simply because my family will undoubtedly get their share of oily goodness from other sources, many other sources. Sources I cannot control.

And because I’m on a diet.

So I’ve come up with a great, kid-friendly recipe, everyone can enjoy. Little crunchy corn chicken fingers that won’t leave grease stains on your white and blue Chanuka-themed napkins.

They are light, crunchy, tasty, and baked!

These schnitzel-wannabes won’t take you long to make, and won’t keep you chained to your stovetop. You can pair it with a colorful salad to round off your Chanuka meal, or pack them in your children’s lunchboxes. (You’ll totally get the hard-to-earn coolest mom award from your child.)

Best of all, you’ll have more room for dessert desserts.

I wish you all a Happy Chanuka!
Enjoy your family gatherings, tap into the spirituality of the holiday, and be present amidst the craziness of the 8 days.

Have a beautiful holiday.

Crunchy Corn Chicken Fingers

Ingredients:

1 lb. chicken breast, thinly sliced

3 cups corn flakes cereal

1/3 cup parve sour cream (Tofutti brand)

1 tablespoon Ranch-style seasoning

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly spray a baking dish with oil. In a shallow bowl, place the corn flakes and lightly crunch them, add the seasoning and stir. In another bowl, pour sour cream.

2. Rinse the chicken cutlets and pat dry. Dip each strip into the sour cream and immediately firmly coat with corn crumbs. Repeat the process until all chicken strips are coated and placed in the baking dish. Bake at 350F for one hour.

1. How thankful I am to be living in a country which respects our practices and beliefs to the extent that they will do an absolute overhaul of the First Kitchen to fully accommodate guests!

2. How thankful I am that I only need to kasher my kitchen for Pesach, and not Chanukah too!

FIRST, spritz the kitchen’s stainless steel counters with disinfectant. Scrub vigorously.

Next, wrap counters in tinfoil, tight, tight, tight.

Now stretch plastic wrap over the foil and seal with masking tape.

Then repeat for every surface that could possibly come into contact with food — yes, even the hanging pot rack.

And so began the fastidious frenzy to make the White House’s kitchen kosher last week, a nearly four-hour drill that started at 10 p.m. Wednesday. A deadline approached: a truckload of kosher food was due Thursday at 10 a.m.

Read the full article here.

This recipe is also featured in Leah Schapira’s new cookbook, Fresh & Easy Kosher Cooking, which Savvima highly recommends. Read our full review here.

Ingredients:

4 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
2 1/4 tsp dry yeast (1 packet)
2 eggs
1 1/4 cup warm water
1 pinch salt
2 ounces (1/2 stick) margarine, at room temperature

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, Place the flour, sugar, yeast, eggs and warm water. Mix with a wooden spoon.

2. Add the salt and incorporate it into the dough.

3. Cut the margarine into small pieces and add them to the bowl. Knead the dough by hand (You may need a drop of flour, but use the least amount you can, a sticky dough yields a fluffier doughnut.)

4. Knead for a minimum of 5 minutes.

5. Cover the dough and let it rise 2 hours in a warm, draft-free spot. Sprinkle flour over the rolling surface, place the dough on top, and then sprinkle flour over the dough.

6. Roll the dough out in the shape of a rectangle, ½ inch thick. (At this point you may add as much flour as you need to ensure that the dough won’t stick to the rolling surface.)

7. With a knife or a pizza cutter, cut squares about 2½ x 2½ inches. Separate the squares, sprinkle with flour if necessary, and let rise, covered, for 45 minutes.

8. When there are 10 minutes left for the dough to rise, heat oil for a full 10 minutes. With your thumb, punch a hole right through the center of the doughnut and drop into hot oil.

9. Fry 3 or 4 at a time so as not to overcrowd the pot and end up lowering the temperature of the oil.