For centuries Jewish cooks have told stories with their food preparation.  Two tubes of pasta or filled crepes (blintzes) placed side by side on a plate  resemble the Torah scrolls which were given to Moses on Mount Sinai and we  celebrate the giving of the Torah on Shavuot.

Manicotti with Tomato Sauce

THE SAUCE:
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
1 28 ounce can recipe ready tomatoes
1 8 ounce can tomato sauce
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil or 1 teaspoon dried
1 teaspoon or more sugar to taste

THE MANICOTTI:
1 box manicotti shells
1 pound ricotta
1/2 pound mozzarella, diced into 1/4 inch cubes
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup finely chopped parsley
2 teaspoons sugar
2 eggs, beaten
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Generous pinch of nutmeg
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1.    To make the sauce, heat a 3 quart saucepan over high heat for 15 seconds.  Add the olive oil and heat for 10 seconds.  Add the onions to the hot oil and sauté for 3 minutes.  Add the garlic and sauté the mixture until lightly golden. Do not allow garlic to burn or sauce will be bitter.

2.    Add the remaining sauce ingredients and simmer uncovered for 20-30 or until sauce is thick.

3.    Meanwhile, cook the manicotti shells according to package directions.  Drain and pour cold water over the shells.  Let them sit in the water while you make the filling.

4.    Combine all of the ingredients for the filling in a bowl.

5.    Place a large, plain (#6) tip into a 14 inch pastry bag.  Fold the top of the bag downward to create a 4 inch cuff around the top of the bag. Rest the bag in your hand with your fingers underneath the cuff and the tip touching the countertop. Spoon the filling into the bag.  Unfold the cuff up to enclose the filling.  Bring the top edges together and pleat them closed so no filling oozes out the top.  Place the bag in the crook between your thumb and forefinger and twist the bag until the cheese mixture tightly fills the bag near the tip.

6.    Holding a drained tube in your other hand, place the tip of the bag inside of the tube and squeeze filling the tube from the center out.  Turn the tube around and fill the remaining half of the pasta.

7.    Place some of the sauce in a 13 x 9 baking dish.  As you fill the manicotti, place them in the dish.  When all manicotti are filled, pour the remaining sauce on top, sprinkle with extra Parmesan cheese, and bake for 30 minutes at 350F or until bubbling.

Ingredients

• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 2 large cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 medium onion, diced into 1/2 inch pieces
• 2 carrots sliced into 1/4 inch rounds
• 1 8 ounce can tomato sauce
• 1/2 cup raisins
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 2 1/2 cups vegetable stock or chicken stock if not strictly vegetarian, divided use
• 2 yellow crookneck squash, sliced into 1/4 inch rounds
• 2 small zucchini, sliced into 1/4 inch rounds
• 1 can chickpeas, drained (about 1 cup)
• 4 Tablespoons butter or margarine
• 1 cup couscous
• finely minced parsley for garnish

Preparation Instructions

1. Heat a large frying pan for 30 seconds and add the oil. Heat the oil for 15 seconds and then sauté the garlic and onion until lightly golden. DO NOT BURN THE GARLIC.
2. Add the carrots, tomato sauce, raisins, salt, cumin and 1 cup of stock to the pan. Cover and simmer the mixture for 10 minutes or until the carrots are crisp tender.
3. Add the crookneck squash, the zucchini and the chickpeas. Cook until the squashes are tender.
4. In a large saucepan, heat the remaining 1 1/2 cups stock and butter or margarine. Add the couscous. Cover, remove from the heat, and allow the pan to sit for 5 minutes.
5. To serve, spoon the couscous in the center of a large rimmed dish, and surround with the cooked vegetables. Pour the sauce evenly over all. Sprinkle with a little parsley for garnish if you like.

Although it tastes good right after you’ve cooked it when the meat almost falls off the bone, this dish tastes even better the next day and can easily be reheated in the microwave!

Ingredients

• 3 large veal shanks, with marrow bone (each weighing about 1 ¼ pounds)
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 1/3-cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 yellow o­nion, cut into ¼ inch dice
• 12 baby carrots sliced into ¼ inch pieces
• 1 stalk celery, cut in half lengthwise and then ¼ inch dice
• 1-½ teaspoons dried thyme
• 2 cups tomato sauce from recipe below or mild purchased marinara sauce
• 2 cups chicken stock or water with 1 ½ Telma Chicken Bouillon cubes
• 2 cups dry white wine
• 8 ounces broad noodles
• 3 Tablespoons finely chopped flat leaf parsley
• Zest of o­ne medium lemon
• 2 cloves garlic finely minced

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. Season the meat o­n both sides with the salt and pepper. Seat aside.
3. Heat a 4-6 quart Dutch oven (the large, two-handled pot that probably came with your set of pots and pans!) for 20 seconds. Add the olive oil and heat for another 15 seconds. With the heat still o­n high, add the meat and brown it o­n all sides. You may reduce the heat to medium high if the oil begins to smoke. Remove the meat to a plate.
4. Add the o­nion to the Dutch oven and sauté for 3 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium and add the carrots, celery, and thyme. Sauté for 5 minutes or until the vegetables are lightly golden.
5. Add the tomato sauce, stock and wine to the Dutch oven and bring to a boil.
6. Return the meat to the Dutch oven and baste with some of the sauce. Cover and place in the oven for 3 to 3 ½ hours or until meat is very tender. Remove from oven. Let Dutch oven rest while you prepare the noodles according to package directions.
7. To serve, Place noodles o­n a large platter. Arrange veal shanks o­n top of the noodles and then spoon some of the sauce over all.
8. Lightly toss the parsley, lemon zest and garlic together with a fork in a small bowl. Sprinkle this mixture—Gremolata—over the meat and serve.

BASIC TOMATO SAUCE

• 1 small yellow o­nion, diced
• 2 cloves of garlic, sliced
• 3 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2 Tablespoons fresh lemon thyme leaves
• ½ small carrot, grated
• 1 28-ounce can recipe ready crushed tomatoes
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

1. Heat a 3-quart saucepan for 20 seconds. Add the olive oil and heat for 15 seconds more. Sauté the o­nion and garlic over medium heat until lightly golden. Do not let the garlic brown or it will become bitter.
2. Add the thyme and the shredded carrot and cook for 3 minutes.
3. Add the tomatoes and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for an half hour. Stir the pot periodically to prevent scorching. Add salt and pepper if needed.

The trick to making this sauce is allowing enough time for the cauliflower to cook so that it will be soft and mash to a smooth paste. When blended with the o­nions that were fried until golden, the flavor is reminiscent of chicken.

The inclusion of the raisins and pine nuts hints of this recipe’s Jewish origins. The use of olive oil instead of butter is also a clue because Italian Jews 500 years ago would use oil instead of animal fat to make a dish kosher or to render it pareve.

Try this dish, I promise you’ll love it!

Ingredients

• 1 head cauliflower, cut into 2-inch chunks
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1/2-teaspoon kosher salt
• ¾ pound sweet o­nion cut into 1/4-inch dice
• 1 clove garlic, finely minced
• ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
• 3 Tablespoons pine nuts
• 3Tablespoons dark raisins
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 1-pound rigatoni
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese or to taste (optional)

In Medieval times Jews would place a wish for the New Year on a piece of paper and seal it in dough. They wore this sealed dough around their necks as amulets. Serving Kreplach (triangles of dough sealed around a meat filling) in soup on Kol Nidre night is an off shoot of this practice. We all wish to be sealed in the book of life for the coming year.

The following recipe is made easier by using prepared wonton skins. The only drawback is that these kreplach will be delicate instead of chewy like your grandmothers’s!

Ingredients

• 1 4-5 pound fowl or yearling (soup chicken), roaster will do
• 5 quarts water or water to cover
• 1 parsnip, peeled and cut into thirds
• 1 large onion, peeled but left whole
• 1 turnip, peeled and cut into quarters
• 2 stalks celery with leaves cut into thirds
• 3 or more carrots, peeled and sliced into 1 inch lengths
• Fresh dill, 3 or more sprigs to taste
• Fresh parsley, 2 sprigs or more if parsnip isn’t being used
• Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation Instructions

1. Cut the chicken into pieces. Place pieces in a large soup pot and cover with water.
2. Bring the water to a boil and simmer for 30 minutes skimming the top of the liquid of all the brown foam.
3. Add the remaining ingredients and cook over a low heat until the chicken is quite tender and the vegetables are soft, about 2 to 3 hours.
4. Remove the chicken with a slotted spoon. Discard the dill and parsley. Remove the vegetables to nibble on and save the carrot for later use in the soup. Strain the soup so that it is nice and clear.
5. Place the soup in a clean pot and add the carrots and cooked kreplach and heat until nice and hot. Serve.

KREPLACH

• 1/2-pound fresh ravioli dough or wonton skins
• 2 cups cooked meat, finely chopped (meat shreds from your sliced pot roast are perfect!)
• 1 medium onion finely chopped
• 1-teaspoon chicken fat
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 egg, slightly beaten

1. Cut dough into 2 inch squares.
   Combine the meat, onion (here you are using it raw, but if you like, sautéed onion may be used instead), chicken fat, salt and pepper and egg. Set aside.
2. Place a teaspoon of filling on each square.
3. Add a little water to the dish used for the beaten egg.
4. Brush the top edges of the dough with a little egg/water wash.
   Fold the dough in half on the diagonal to make a triangle. Pinch the edges together to make a seal. Press the back of a fork around the edge to crimp and seal again.
   Cook in boiling salted water for 10 minutes or until done. Serve in the chicken soup or alternatively, fry in a little oil.

NOTE: Wonton skins will make the kreplach a little thinner than Bubbe’s!