Joliet Jewish Congregation - Printer Friendly Recipes

2 or 3 Leeks
2 or 3 Potatoes
2 cups water
2 Tbsp Vegetable Oil
2 cups chicken or vegetable broth
salt and pepper to taste

Cut the leeks in half lengthwise. Rinse out all the soil from between the leaves. Trim off the green part, leaving the white part of the leeks. Cut into 1/4 inch slices.

If you want a white leek soup, peel the potatoes. Otherwise, cut out the eyes and bad spots. Cut into thin slices.
Saute the leeks until they are translucent. Add the potatoes, water and broth. Let cook until the leeks and potatoes are soft.
Using an immersion blender, hand mixer, or potato masher process the mixture until it is as smooth as you like.
Add salt and pepper to taste. If you want a white soup, use white pepper. Garnish with parsley, cilantro or chives.

1 Head Cabbage
1 lb. Ground Beef
1 Small Onion, finely chopped
1 Tbsp. Olive Oil
1 Carrot, shredded
1 Parsnip, shredded
1 Celery Stalk, finely sliced
1/2 Cup Rice, uncooked
2 Tbsp. Tomato Paste
4 Cups Tomato Sauce

Boil about 4 cups of water. Cut the core out of the cabbage and fill the hole with tap water. Turn the cabbage upside down over the sink to allow debris to go down the drain. In a large bowl, place the cabbage with the hole pointing up. Fill the hole with the boiling water and let this set while the meat is prepared, but no longer than 15 minutes.
In a large saute pan, heat the oil and cook the onions until they are translucent. Add the carrots, parsnip, and celery. Saute until they are soft. Add salt and pepper to taste.
In a large bowl, pour the contents of the saute pan. Add the rice and tomato paste. Mix well. Mix in the hamburger. Adjust seasonings.
Drain the head of cabbage. Cut out large veins. Very large leaves may be cut in half. Pat the leaves dry. Put 1/4 to 1/3 cup of filling into the cabbage leaf and roll it up. Place into the large saute pan. When the bottom of the pan has been covered with the stuffed cabbage rolls, pour in enough tomato sauce to cover them. Bring to a boil. Cover and allow to simmer for 45 minutes.

Butternut Squash Soup

Taken from the Joliet Jewish Congregation Cookbook

2 Tbsp olive oil
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
1 onion, chopped
Salt and white pepper to taste
4 cups water
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2-3/4 lb butternut squash, peeled, deseeded and cubed
1 piece fresh ginger, peeled and chopped

Garnish ideas:
Sour cream, soup will then be considered diary
Small garlic and onion croutons
Sunflower or pumpkin seeds

Pour olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Cook onion for a few minutes. Add ginger, garlic and squash. Cook, stirring occassionally, for about 10 minutes. Stir in 4 cups of water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 20 minutes or until tender. To puree the soup, either put the soup in in a blender (careful with hot soup) or use an immersion blender right in the pot. After blending, stir in juice and add salt and pepper to taste. Serve hot with a garnish. Serves 4, but can be easily doubled or tripled.

1 cup dark honey
1/2 cup strong brewed black coffee or tea
2 1/2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
2 teaspoons finely grated orange zest
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
Confectioners' sugar

Preheat the oven to 300°F. Grease and flour a 9x5-inch loaf pan.

In a small saucepan, over medium heat, stir together the honey and coffee until combined. Allow to cool to lukewarm.

Sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, allspice, ginger, and cloves.

In a separate mixing bowl, beat the eggs and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Gradually add the oil and beat until thoroughly blended. Add the orange zest. Alternating the flour mixture and the honey mixture, add to the mixing bowl, mixing just until incorporated into the batter. Fold in the nuts. Pour the batter into the pan.

Bake for 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.

Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then turn out of the pan and cool completely. Wrap in aluminum foil or plastic wrap and allow the flavors to combine overnight. Sift confectioners' sugar over the top of the cake and cut into thin slices.

3 pomegranates, halved
6 chicken thighs
6 chicken drumsticks
1/4 tsp poultry seasoning
1/6 tsp pepper
1 tsp salt
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 onion, chopped
1 Tbsp tomato paste
1-1/2 cups chicken broth
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp sugar (optional)
1-1/2 tsp cornstarch, mixed with 1 Tbsp water
orange slices
parsley sprigs for garnish

Save 1/4 cup pomegranate seeds for garnish. Squeeze pomegranate halves using a juicer. Strain and measure the juice to get 3/4 cup. Add water, as needed, to get 3/4 cup liquid.
Rub chicken with poultry seasoning, salt and pepper.
Heat oil in a skillet and brown the chicken well. As each piece browns, place in a covered baking dish.
Drain the drippings out of the pan, saving 1 Tbsp. Add the 1 Tbsp. drippings back into the pan along with the onion. Saute' until the onion translucent. Blend in the tomato paste. Add chicken broth, lemon juice, pomegranate juice and cinnamon. Bring the liquid to a boil and then reduce the heat. Simmer uncovered for 10 minutes. Add sugar to taste.
Pour sauce over chicken pieces which were arranged in the baking dish. Cover and bake in 350 F oven for 30 minutes; then uncover and bake for 10 minutes more.
Into a small saucepan, pour the sauce from baking pan and stir in cornstarch mixture. Stirring constantly, cook until thickened.
Spoon thickened sauce over the chicken and garnish with orange slices, parsley sprigs and pomegranate seeds.