Charoset Stuffed Honey Cake, by Diane

We made this cake for Rosh Hashanah this year- it was originally planned for Passover but we never got around to making it then. It wound up being a good thing, because the Passover recipe used alternate flour, so for Rosh Hashanah we were able to combine the charoset cake recipe from @jakecohen with a traditional honey cake recipe from @dianemorrisey to get this amazing deliciousness! This cake was so good, the flavors were really reminiscent of the Jewish holidays, and it was easy to make. The only changes we all agreed on were that we would cook the cake for less time, as the honey cake layers weren't as moist as we would have liked. The cake was actually better the second day around, because the charoset filling had penetrated the honey cake layers with some extra delicious flavor. We will definitely be adapting this for Passover using Jake's original recipe, and this will likely be a Rosh Hashanah staple from here on out!

Ingredients:

Cooking spray or butter (enough to grease the pan)

3/4 cup white sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

2 eggs

3/4 cup honey

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 1/2 cups AP flour 

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

3 apples, chopped into bite size pieces (we used gala)

1 cup walnuts, chopped

1/4 cup golden raisins

3 tbsp honey

2 tbsp cornstarch

Directions:

1. Grease a bundt pan heavily and set aside, preheat oven to 350.

2. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon in a small bowl and set aside.

3. In a larger bowl, beat sugar and oil until combined, then add eggs in one at a time until well mixed. 

4. Stir honey and vanilla into the sugar mixture.

5. Add the dry ingredients in and mix very well. The mixture will be thick and you'll need to make sure everything is combined.

6. Combine apples through cornstarch in a separate bowl and set aside.

7. Build your cake by spreading half the cake batter on the bottom, then a middle layer of the entire charoset mixture, then remaining cake batter.

8. Bake for 40-50 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. (Note: we did 50 minutes and think this is what made the cake dryer, so I'd go for 40!). Let cool before serving (we left it uncovered, but when covered overnight the cake softened so we are going to try and cover it next time!)

Hamentashens, by Cheryl

Yay for Purim season! What a fun Jewish holiday... too bad the typical carnivals and parades can't happen this year, but we are prepared for a lot of zoom celebrations! Last night I went to a hamentashen baking zoom class through our temple. I actually have never made hamenatashens before. They were always just around and I never felt the urge to, and to be honest I don't LOVE hamentashens. I always find the dough to be too dry. BUT, this dough is delicious, soft, and sweet! I was eating it before I even baked it. There's a tad of orange juice in the dough and I really think that adds to its flavor. And my first batch came out great! No oozing of the insides and no breaking apart of the dough. Definitely put these on your list to make! 

Ingredients: (recipe from a temple member)

3 cups flour

3/4 cup sugar

1 cup butter

1/4 orange juice

2 eggs

2.5 tbsp baking powder

Fillings: chocolate chips, apricot jam, raspberry jam, nutella, etc. 

Directions:

1) In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the orange juice. Mix in the baking powder, and then gradually stir in the flour until the dough forms a ball. If the mixture is too sticky add some flour. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours or overnight. 

2) Preheat oven to 350. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

3) On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out to 1/4 inch thickness. Cut into 2.5 inch circles using a cookie cutter or a glass. Place circles on prepared cookie sheets. 

4) Spoon 1/2-3/4 teaspoon of filling, or 4-5 chocolate chips onto the center of each circle. Pinch the sides of each circle to form a triangle, covering as much of the filling as possible. (They may be frozen on the cookie sheets if desired to help retain their shape while cooking).

5) Bake for 10-15 minutes (mine took 14) until the edges are golden brown. 

Makes approximately 2 dozen. 

Apple Cake, by Diane

We made this cake for Rosh Hashanah this year, and it was really good! Unlike other apple cakes, it wasn't too sweet or heavy. We chose a vegan recipe due to some allergies in the family, and so this cake does not contain eggs or butter. Very easy to throw together, and would be fantastic as muffins in the morning!


Ingredients:

1 medium sized apple, peeled, cored and chopped
2 cups flour
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp cinnamon powder
¼ tsp nutmeg powder
¾ cup powdered sugar
a pinch of salt
¼ cup oil
1 cup water
1 tsp lemon juice
½ tsp of vanilla extract or powder




Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Sieve together flour, soda, powder, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a large bowl.
3. Add the chopped apples and sugar.
4. Stir in the oil, water, lemon juice, and vanilla one by one until mixture is uniform.
5. Pour into a greased cake tin and bake for 45-50 min until a tooth pick inserted in the cake comes out clean.

Blintzes Souffle, by Diane

This is a recipe I've made more than 20 times since we've started this blog, and I've never thought to post it! Blintzes Souffle is a family tradition in our house during most of the Jewish holidays, but we especially love to eat for breaking the fast on Yom Kippur. It was created by my great grandmother, Fannie, and it is the best way to eat blintzes EVER. It's easy to make, and a definite crowd favorite. We like to use a combo of blueberry, cherry, and cheese blintzes, and we always buy the frozen kind in the grocery store to make it even easier. YUM.

Ingredients:

1 stick butter
12 blintzes, any kind
6 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1/4 cup sugar


Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 300, and while the oven is preheating place a stick of butter in a 9x13 casserole dish and place in the oven to melt.

2. In a large bowl, mix the eggs, sour cream, and sugar together with a blender or whisk until smooth. Bubbles are ok, they make this souffle airy! Set aside.

3. Once the oven is preheated the butter should be melted, if not leave it in until it is. You don't want it to burn!

4. Place the blintzes, 6 on each side, into the casserole dish. Pour the egg mixture over top.

5. Bake for 45 minutes and remove from oven. If butter remains on the top of the casserole, you can pour it off.

Noodle Kugel, by Cheryl

I barely had time to take a picture before it was just about gone!

Jon and I decided to host our first "Break-the-Fast" dinner to end Yom Kippur at our new home in Chapel Hill. There are quite a few other Jewish fellows and residents working at Duke so this worked out perfectly... we went over to other people's houses for Rosh Hashanah dinner so why not return the favor and make new friends while we're at it? Even though not many people were fasting (one of the plusses of being pregnant right now... hey I need some positives at this point!) we held a traditional break-the-fast meal with bagels, lox, whitefish salad, tuna salad, cream cheese, and kugel. I had never made it before, but decided to give it a try with a recipe I found on the Food Network. Not only was it super easy, but it was fantastic!!! The entire dish was gone in minutes and people were looking for more! I will definitely be making this again for other Jewish functions! Yum!

Modified from here

Ingredients:

1 package (12 oz) medium egg noodles
1/2 stick butter, melted
1 pound cottage cheese
1.5 cups sour cream

6 eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1/2 raisins

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 375.

2) Boil the noodles in salted water for about 4 minutes. While noodles are cooking, combine all remaining ingredients together in a large bowl.

3) Strain the noodles and combine with the bowl mixture. Mix.

4) Pour into a greased 9x13 inch baking dish. Bake until custard is set and top is golden brown, about 45 minutes.

Chicken Noodle Soup, by Cheryl

Today felt like a chicken noodle soup day. Thankfully no one is sick in the Roth household, but chicken noodle soup is so comforting it will make you feel better even when you feel fine! This is a basic chicken noodle soup recipe so even a novice cook like me won't mess it up! We were eating this for lunch and dinner for a couple of nights so you may want to reduce the servings by half. Yum!!

Ingredients:

8 cups chicken broth, homemade or store bought (I used store bought)
1 cup cooked chicken, shredded or chopped
1 onion, chopped
3-4 garlic cloves, minced
4 carrots, diced
2 celery stalks, diced
2 tablespoons dried thyme
about 250g egg noodles cooked
oil
salt & pepper to taste

Directions:

1) Heat oil in a pan and add onions and garlic. Cook for a couple of minutes.

2) Add the carrots and celery. Cook for 5 minutes so they are slightly softened.

3) Add the chicken broth and thyme. Cover and simmer for 40 minutes until vegetables are tender.

4) Add the cooked chicken and egg noodles. Simmer for another 10 minutes. Add the salt and black pepper to taste.