It always seems unusual to focus on food for the outdoor festival of Sukkot, the Feast of Booths, before the start of Yom Kippur. It’s somewhat of a culinary conundrum to be considering menus when fasting is at the top of the list.
Nevertheless, Jewish households are preparing for the week-long holiday that begins after sundown on Friday, Sept. 25, and ends at nightfall on Friday, Oct. 2, when it turns into Shabbat.
During 40 years of wandering the desert after the Exodus from Egypt, the Israelites lived in makeshift booths. To remind ourselves of the temporary nature of dwellings at that time, Jews build and eat in outdoor booths (sukkahs) that adhere to halachah (Jewish law) in cities, towns and remote areas around the world.
Note that there must be at least two full walls, plus a third partial wall, strong enough to withstand normal wind, though items like bed sheets or quilts should not be used; the roof (sechach) must be made of bamboo, tree branches, wooden planks, palm fronds, detached plants or other natural items grown from the ground; the roof must provide more shade than direct sunlight, yet allow stars to be visible; and the sukkah must be under the open sky, not under a tree branch, permanent roof or balcony overhang.
By all means, decorate your sukkah with paper chains and fresh flowers, drawings and dried noodles. Kids can and do like to help. Just watch anything sugary that might draw bees or bugs; it is the great outdoors, after all.
I searched for different dishes to make this year, keeping in mind that they be easy to carry from the kitchen to the sukkah or when transported to friends. There shouldn’t be anything that requires last-minute assembly.
Moving through the corners of my kitchen, I found a little enamel file box stuffed with dog-eared index cards not looked at for years. Intrigued, I pulled out faded recipes for some long-forgotten dishes—tasty and fail-proof.
Items include a heartwarming mushroom-barley Soup; krupnik, a mainstay in Ukraine; tuna noodle casserole, complete with frozen peas and carrots stirred into the creamy concoction. The cookbook Love and Knishes (1956) by the late Sara Kasdan includes directions for piquant meatballs, once reviewed by The New York Times as “irresistible.” Served over fluffy rice, it may become a family favorite.
My friend, Gloria Spitz, a superb cook, shares her recipe for Apricot Chicken, which has been in her culinary repertoire for 40 years. “And I still make it,” she tells me.
For dessert, try an oldie but goodie: ambrosia. Head down the canned-fruit aisle in your market for the components. Just drain the canned fruits, fold in the remaining ingredients and chill. Add that to the No-Bake Cheesecake—a recipe cut from the back of a package of Philadelphia Original Cream Cheese. Top with fresh berries and serve.
Chag Sameach!
Mushroom Barley Soup (Pareve)
Serves 8-10
Cook’s Tips:
*Rinse sliced mushrooms in cold water before use
*Chop vegetables in a food processor. Buy shredded carrots from the market.
*In winter, add a package of Manischewitz Split Pea and Barley soup mix and increase water to 13 cups.
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 (8-ounce) package sliced white mushrooms
½ medium onion, coarsely chopped
1 large potato, coarsely chopped
2 ribs celery, coarsely chopped
1 cup grated carrots
1 teaspoon bottled chopped garlic
8 cups water
4 rounded tablespoons pareve onion consommé powder
¾ cup pearl barley
1 teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon white pepper or to taste
chopped parsley to garnish (optional)
Directions:
In a large pot, heat the oil over medium heat.
Add the mushrooms, onion, potato and celery. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add the carrots, garlic, water and consommé powder. Stir to mix.
Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Remove the layer that floats to the top. Season with salt and pepper.
Reduce heat. Simmer for 1 hour, or until the barley becomes very soft.
Garnish with parsley (optional). Serve hot.
Tuna Noodle Casserole (Dairy)
Serves 6-8
Cook’s Tips:
*Stir in a half-cup of chopped mushrooms sautéed in 1 tablespoon olive oil.
*Use panko instead of breadcrumbs.
Ingredients:
1 cup breadcrumbs
3 tablespoons butter, melted
1 can (10.5 ounces) of cream of mushroom soup
¼ cup water
2 teaspoons hot sauce
1 can (12 ounces) tuna, drained and flaked
3 cups cooked noodles of choice (elbow and penne noodles work well)
salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Grease a 9x9 inch baking dish with nonstick baking spray.
Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir in the breadcrumbs. Cook, stirring, for 2 to 3 minutes until the mixture begins to brown. Set aside.
Combine mushroom soup, water, hot sauce and seasoning.
In a prepared baking dish, layer half the tuna and half the noodles. Cover with the mushroom sauce. Repeat with remaining tuna and noodles. Top with buttered crumbs.
Bake in a preheated oven for 30 minutes or until bubbly and nicely browned.
Serve hot.
Note: Instead of canned mushroom soup, make a white sauce. Melt 3 tablespoons butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Stir in 3 tablespoons flour. Cook and stir until golden, 5 to 7 minutes. Whisk in 1½ cups milk and ½ cup chopped mushrooms. Cook and stir until bubbling and thickened.
Gloria’s Apricot Chicken (Meat)
Serves 8-10
Cook’s Tips:
*May substitute Thousand Island or French dressing for Russian dressing.
Ingredients:
2 chickens, each cut into 8 to 10 pieces
1 (12-ounce) jar apricot preserves
1 (1-ounce) package dry onion-soup mix
1 bottle (16-ounce) Russian dressing
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Place the chicken pieces in a large baking dish. Set aside. Combine the remaining ingredients.
Pour the mixture over the chicken, brushing evenly.
Bake in the preheated oven for 1 hour or until juices run clear when pierced with a knife.
Piquant Meatballs (Meat)
Serves 6-8
Cook’s Tips:
*Substitute beef for ground chicken or turkey.
Ingredients:
2 pounds ground beef
1 large egg
3 tablespoons bread crumbs or matzah meal
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
12-ounce bottle of chili sauce
6 ounces grape jelly
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
Directions:
In a large bowl or food processor, combine the beef, egg, bread crumbs, salt and pepper. Shape into balls the size of a walnut. Set aside.
Heat the chili sauce, grape jelly and lemon juice in a heavy pot over medium heat. Stir to blend.
Add the meat balls. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove cover and simmer for 5 minutes longer, stirring frequently to prevent sticking.
Serve hot over noodles or fluffy rice.
Old-Fashioned Ambrosia (Dairy)
Serves 8-10
Cook’s Tips:
*Substitute whipped cream for whipped topping.
*Toast coconut to garnish for 1½ minutes or until lightly browned. Watch carefully; it can scorch quickly.
Ingredients:
1 (20-ounce) can pineapple chunks
1 (15-ounce) can mandarin orange segments
1 (10-ounce) jar maraschino cherries
1 cup shredded coconut
1½ cups mini-marshmallows
½ cup sour cream
2 cups whipped topping
1 tablespoon sugar or to taste
toasted coconut for garnish (optional)
Directions:
Place the pineapple, mandarin oranges and cherries in a colander in the sink to drain. Let it sit in the colander for 5 minutes to drain well. Transfer to a large bowl.
Add the coconut and marshmallows and stir gently.
Fold in the sour cream, whipped topping and sugar to taste. Garnish with toasted coconut (optional).
Chill at least 2 hours before serving.
Philadelphia No-Bake Cheesecake (Dairy)
Serves 8-10
Cook’s Tips:
*New in supermarkets: a prepared pecan-pie crust displayed next to the graham-cracker crust.
Ingredients:”
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 cup sour cream
⅓ cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 (8-ounce) container whipped topping
1 (9-inch) graham-cracker crust
strawberries for topping
Directions:
Beat together the cream cheese, sour cream, sugar and vanilla to a smooth mixture.
Gently fold in the whipped topping.
Pour into the pie crust of choice. Smooth the top and cover with plastic wrap.
Refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight.
Before serving, decorate with fruit such as kiwi slices or halved strawberries, cut-side down.
Ethel G. Hofman is a widely syndicated American Jewish food and travel columnist, author and culinary consultant.
