Kosher Greek Chicken and Potatoes

I'm on a crockpot kick right now. Crockpots are more than just an easy way to make shabbat meals. They're also great for weeknight dinners when I want to have something hot waiting for me the minute I get home from the gym.

For those of you who don't own a crockpot, they're dirt cheap (the low end starts around $15 these days) and incredibly easy to use. You put in the food. You put on the lid. You turn it on. That's all.

• 1 whole roaster chicken
• 1 pound baby new potatoes
• 3 tbsp oregano
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 3 tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice (2 small lemons or one big one)
• 1 tsp kosher salt

Put the potatoes at the bottom of your crockpot. Mix the oregano, olive oil, lemon juice, and salt into a paste. Loosen the skin of the chicken and smear the paste underneath. Trust me - you want it under the skin instead of over it. The flavor difference is incredible.

Put the chicken on top of the potatoes. This way, the juices will drip down and season the spuds. If there isn't enough room in your crockpot, then put the chicken in first and stuff in as many potatoes as you can wherever they'll fit.

Cook on "low" for 4 - 6 hours. I usually make this at lunchtime and come home to a hot dinner. I've never tried making this before work and coming home to it in the evening, so I don't know how the meat will react to 8 - 9 hours of cooking time. I suspect it'll be fall-off-the-bone tender. If you try, please let me know.

Variations:

• Add 1 tsp minced garlic to the spice mix.
• If you have an open bottle of white wine, pour 1/2 cup over the top of the chicken after the chicken and potatoes are arranged in the crockpot. Always cook with what you drink.
• Slice up 1 white or yellow onion. Spread the potatoes at the bottom of the crockpot, add the onions on top of the potatoes, and the chicken on top of the onions.

Kosher Passover Irish Beef and Beer Stew

Impress the family next Passover with a "Guinness" stew. No kidding. I'm not much of a beer drinker, but I love using it as an ingredient. It does wonders for any kind of beef in a crockpot. All of Ramapo Valley Brewery's beers are kosher, but their award winning HB Brew is also kosher for Passover (and, incidentally, drinkable by people with celiac disease. Some days, I really love modernity.) The tricky part of this recipe is finding the kosher for passover spices. One alternative is to buy fresh, refrigerated spices. If you can't find anything more than salt and pepper, use them liberally and trust the beer to provide the rest of the flavor.

• 2 pounds stew beef
• 2 large onions
• 4 large carrots
• 4 medium potatoes
• 1 bottle kosher for passover beer
• 1/4 cup brown sugar (or honey)
• 1 tbsp dried thyme
• 1 tbsp dried parsley
• 1 tbsp minced garlic (or 2-3 cloves)
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp fresh black pepper
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 cup leftover mashed potatoes

Dice the onions, carrots, and potatoes into large chunks, at least two inches. Add them to the bottom of the crockpot. Next add the meat. On top of that, sprinkle all the sugar and spices. Top it all off with the bottle of beer.

Cook on "low" for six to eight hours. Don't worry about over cooking. If you throw this in the crockpot before leaving for work, it'll be fine if you get home nine or more hours later.

When ready to serve, add the cup of mashed potatoes. Without this, the liquid will be tasty, but the flavors won't stick as well. The potatoes thicken up the stew and bind the flavors together. Like most stews, this one is even tastier after sitting in the fridge overnight.

WARNING

Resist the urge to make this stew too busy. You'll see Guinness Beef Stew recipes with rosemary, basil, marjoram - pretty much any western European kitchen herb. Don't do it. The simpler you keep this recipe, the better it turns out.

FOR THE REST OF THE YEAR

You can substitute 1/4 cup cornstarch well blended with 1/2 cup cold water instead of mashed potatoes. Both perform the same function as thickening agents.

Kosher Meatballs

I've recently rediscovered the joy of meatballs. I can make a big batch one night then have all kinds of easy leftovers for the rest of the week - spaghetti, meatball sandwiches, crushed over rice - they're just so versatile!

• 1 pound of the leanest ground beef available
• 1/4 cup "Italian" style breadcrumbs (if the only spiced ones you can find are dairy, add 1 tsp "Italian" blend spices to plain breadcrumbs)
• 1/2 cup yellow onion, diced fine
• 1/4 cup bell pepper (red, yellow, or green), diced fine
• 1 tbsp worstechire sauce
• 1 tbsp minced garlic (about 3 cloves)
• 1 tsp basil
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp ground mixed peppercorns

The real key to these meatballs is texture. If you like a meatball with a little interior crunch, dice the onions and peppers by hand. If you prefer a smooth texture in your meatball, dice the onions and peppers in a food processor until they're very, very fine. If you want a buttery smooth texture in your meatballs, use a food processor on the vegetables first, then once everything is thoroughly mixed together, put meat mix into the food processor again and process until smooth.

However you prefer to do it, thoroughly mix all ingredients until they're well blended. Once you have the texture you prefer, roll the dough into golfball sized balls.

Heat your largest skillet to medium/medium low. Do not add any oil. Arrange the meatballs in the skillet so you still have a little space for maneuvering room. Allow each side to brown, about five minutes, then use a tablespoon to turn. Mine usually need to be turned 3 - 4 times before they're finished.

These freeze very well. You can put 3 - 4 between a couple papertowels and microwave them from frozen in just a couple minutes (depending on your microwave.) They're great for fast, low-fat meals.

Kosher Persian Inspired Beef and Yellow Split Pea Stew

This is a dirt simple recipe, perfect for stuffing into the crockpot on your way out the door to work. It works equally well with beef or lamb, depending on your preference, but use a cheap, tough cut! Otherwise, the meat will fall completely apart after cooking for 8 hours. If you use cheap stewing meat, it'll be deliciously tender without falling to pieces.

• 1 pound inexpensive stew beef or lamb, cubed
• 1 cup yellow split peas
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 fourteen point five oz can stewed or diced tomatoes
• 3 (newly emptied stewed tomato) cans of water
• 3 tbsp tomato paste (about half a 6 oz can)
• 1 tbsp minced garlic (about 3 cloves)
• 1 tbsp tumeric powder
• 1 tsp paprika powder
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1 lime, juiced

Mix everything BUT the time in your crockpot. Stir thoroughly. Leave the crockpot on low for at least 6 hours, preferably at least 8. Just before serving, juice 1/2 of the lime into the crockpot. Taste, and if it needs a little more lime, squeeze in the other half.

Don't put the lime in while cooking! The cirtus acids don't play nicely with the meat.

Serve with hot rice and/or pita bread.

Variations:

• If you can find them, use 2 - 3 dried persian sour limes instead of a single regular lime. Ethinic groceries might have them. If they're not available where you live, don't worry.
• Most versions of this recipe call for eggplant. I've never developed a taste for it, so I leave it out, but if you like eggplant, chop up a medium one and add it to the crockpot along with the rest of the ingredients. Eggplant lovers tell me it's a very tasty addition.
• A bay leaf added to the crockpot adds nicely to the flavor.

Kosher Tzaziki Sauce - Turkish and Persian

Since I'm lactose intolerant, this is something of a sin food for me. It can be made with soy yogurt, but to be honest with you, it's just not as good. I'm a big fan of cucumber, so I like the Turkish style Tzaziki best, but a lot of my friends prefer the mintier Persian, so I thought I'd include them both. The Turkish is delightful with falafel while the Persian is a fantastic accompaniment to salmon. Turkish Tzaziki

• 2 cups plain yogurt (fresh if you can get it)
• 1/2 cup finely chopped cucumber
• 2 tbsp finely chopped onion
• 1 tbsp chopped garlic (about 3 cloves)
• 4 tbsp dried mint
• 1/2 tsp salt

Persian Tzaziki

• 2 cups plain yogurt
• 1/4 cup dried mint
• 2 tbsp dried parsley
• 2 tbsp dried dill
• 1 chopped garlic clove
• 1/2 tsp salt

The instructions for both are the same. Thoroughly mix all ingredients in a bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit overnight. If you eat it too early, it'll taste like lumpy yogurt, but if you let it sit overnight, the flavors will mingle and it'll be to die for. Stir again before serving. Serve chilled with falafel, salmon, a fresh vegetable tray, or whatever cries out to you. Stays good in the fridge for several days, though mine never lasts that long.

Kosher Vegan Banana Ice Cream

I made 2 ice creams this weekend - one with Lactaid milk, one with Soymilk. My husband raved over this one and said the Lactaid milk experiment was okay, but nowhere near as crack-a-licious. This is also so easy it's almost criminal. No scalding of milk or melting of cocoa - just mix and pour. In a couple hours, it's ready to eat. I can picture making it every weekend this summer.

• 2 cups vanilla soy milk (8th Continent or Sun Soy preferred)
• 3 ripe bananas
• 1/2 cup sugar

Mash the bananas until they're paste. The blacker the skins, the easier this is. Mix in the sugar. Mix in the soymilk. Keep mixing until relatively smooth. Pour into your ice cream maker and follow your manufacturer's instructions.

Variations:

I think 1/2 cup of mini chocolate chips would be a tasty addition.

Kosher Cinnamon Apple Chicken

I've finally made a chicken dish with no garlic or onions! Be impressed. Of course, I personally think a teaspoon of minced garlic and a small sliced onion would mingle beautifully with the rest of the flavors, but I've been outvoted on this one.

• 1 tsp rubbed sage
• 1/2 tsp ground coriander
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp coase ground peppercorns
• 4 four oz boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 4 medium granny smith apples, cored and sliced thin (1/4 inch slices)
• 1 tbsp brown sugar
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon

Mix sage, coriander, salt, and pepper. Dampen chicken then rub the spice mix onto both sides. If you have a George Foreman Grill, cook the chicken there. If not, spritz a nonstick skillet with cooking spray and cook the chicken on both sides until done (usually 7 minutes per side, though always cut your chicken open to make sure).

Set cooked chicken aside. If you used a skillet, keep using the same one. If not, get out a skillet and put it over a medium heat. Add the olive oil, brown sugar, lemon juice, and cinnamon. Mix until smooth. Now add the sliced apples and stir until they're evenly coated with oil mix.

Cook apples over a medium heat for about five minutes, or until tender. Turn off the heat and add the chicken back to the pan, stirring until it gets a nice glazed coat of the sugar/oil mixture.

One serving is a single chicken breast and about 3/4 cup of apples. It comes to 6 Weight Watchers points per serving.

Variations:

• Add 1/2 tsp minced garlic to the oil, sugar, lemon juice and cinnamon mix.
• Add 1/2 tsp anise seeds to the oil, sugar, lemon juice, and cinnamon mix. This will add a sort of licorishy flavor which goes well with fruit.
• Substitute 2 medium white onions for 2 of the apples. Yes, I love onions. I promise, a nice mild white onion would go beautifully with these flavors. If you do it, I'd also add the garlic.