Breadcrumb Eggs and Spinach

This is from MilkStreet - I haven't nailed this yet but want to try again, since it's such a quick and nutritious meal.

~1 c. bread crumbs - run stale challah through the food processor, works great
~ 1/4 c. grated parmesan
thyme, smoked paprika

sherry vinegar - 1/2 T or so
salt, pepper
olive oil
fresh spinach
3 eggs (best if they're from Arcadia Farm!), scrambled (unless you prefer sunny side up)

grated cheese if you want

In a large skillet, add the breadcrumbs. Add seasonings, parmesan, and olive oil and stir until lightly toasted, a few minutes at medium heat.

Make 3 holes, and put 1/3 of the beaten eggs in each. Cover with fresh spinach and optional grated cheese. Put the top on and steam at 2 or 3.

Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Chickpea Spinach and Avocado Crema

This is artful, delicious, and fun to make. The recipe calls for stuffing the potatoes in individual servings, but I did it with a deconstructed approach. You need to think ahead - make sure you have a few ripe avocados. And roasting the potatoes in advance makes it easier. This is a forgiving recipe - change amounts, add vegetables. I served it with fresh artichokes first and brown rice - a beautiful meal.

6-8 sweet potatoes, roasted at 425 for about 45-50 minutes
3 T olive oil

one onion, chopped, or shallots
4 cloves minced garlic
3 cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
6 oz. chopped sun-dried tomatoes. A scissors works better than a knife.
1 container fresh spinach (quantity is fungible)
1 lime, zested and juiced
salt, pepper

Heat olive oil until shimmering and add onions or shallots. Cook about 3 minutes and add garlic for another 30 seconds.

Add the chickpeas and cook for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add the spinach until it wilts.

Add salt, pepper, and zested lime along with its juice.

In the meantime, work on the Avocado Crema.

3 ripe avocados

1/2 c Greek yogurt

1 lime, zested and juiced into the mixture

red pepper flakes or Aleppo pepper

salt, pepper

Peel and dice the avocados, a messy job!

Drop them in along with the yogurt, and process them until they're smooth. 

Add the zest and lime juice, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes.

It discolors if you leave it open. There are methods for avoiding this - us a plastic top adhered directly to it, and refrigerate.

Serve a platter of the sweet potatoes, the chickpeas, and the avocado crema separately.

Red, White & Blue Ricotta Cake

I found this on a YouTube video, in metric measures. It incorporates much of what I like in baked goods: not too sweet, fruit added -- in this case, cranberry and blueberry, an uncommon combo -- and lemon zest. I suspected the large amount of ricotta plus the yogurt or sour cream would give it the taste of a Danish, and yum. I was right!

Bake one larger, flatter cake in a spring form, and one smaller. A bundt pan would be fine, too. The picture is the mini-cake I baked for Eyal and Nadav. When I come to take care of Noa, I make sure there's a treat for the boys when they get home from school. You can't see the blueberries, which are the lower layer.

2 eggs

1/2 c sugar

Lemon zest to taste

1/2 c natural yogurt or sour cream

1/3 c neutral oil

1 1/2 c flour (can be half whole wheat)

1/2 t. salt

Scant T baking powder - seems like a lot, but it came out fine

1//4 c. cranberries, currants, or raspberries

 

Topping: 

1 c. ricotta - 8 oz

1 t. vanilla 

1/4 c sugar 

1 egg

1 T coconut

1/2 c blueberries, dusted with flour or cornstarch

Optional- Powdered sugar when you serve it.

 

350 / 35 min.

In a large bowl, whisk the eggs, sugar, and lemon zest. 

Add and whisk the yogurt, oil, flour(s) and baking powder.

Pour it in the greased baking pans, and drop the red berries on top. No need to mix, as they sink.

Mix the topping ingredients, except the blueberries. Place dollops of the ricotta mixture on the surface. Add the blueberries across the top.

Bake about 30-40 minutes until golden brown and the ricotta topping is solid. Dust with powdered sugar when you serve it.

This is a nice breakfast cake. Not very desserty.

 

Eyal particularly loves this cake. He inhales it!

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6l8IiRxkr8Y

Peanut Butter Cookies

I have baked peanut butter cookies exactly three times. I once made them when Dick and Rochelle visited, and Dick ate them with such gusto that it made a big impression. When I went to visit when Ram was a baby, I baked them to bring with me (though with SunButter), and Thaer liked them so much they were gone in an evening. I just went for Dick's 80th and Ram's 2nd birthdays, and you guessed it. I brought them peanut butter cookies.

I took two to Eyal and Nadav before my trip, so they could taste test, and they gave them big 👍👍.

1 1/3 c flour
1/2 t baking soda
1/4 t salt
1/2 c unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
1/2 c packed light or dark brown sugar,
1/4 c regular sugar + [1/2 c. sugar for rolling later]
1 egg
3/4 c creamy peanut butter (spray the measuring cup first!)
1 t vanilla

In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt.

In a mixer, or a large bowl with a hand beater, beat the butter for 1 minute on high til creamy. Add in the sugars until incorporated, about 2 minutes. Add in the egg. Add the peanut butter and vanilla until mixed.

Add the dry ingredients and beat until combined. Dough is creamy and soft. Chill the cookie dough for an hour or two, or up to a few days.

Heat oven to 350. This will fill two greased cookie tins.

Put the extra 1/2 c sugar in a bowl. Roll each cookie, a scant tablespoon (think, large grape) in the sugar, and put ot on the tin, leaving space for expanding during baking. Using a fork, make criss-cross tops. 

Bake for 10-12 minutes until edges are set and browned. 

Cool for about five minutes before removing with a spatula onto a cooling rack.

This is from Sally's Baking Addiction.

Eyal and Nadav's Toast Crowns with Chocolate Pudding Dip

Nadav with toast crowns and dip in
Chestertown, Hanukkah 2025

Eyal and Nadav and I like to discuss breakfast at sleepovers.

Since I often make them Chocolate Sweet Potato Pudding when they visit, and also Toast Crowns for breakfast (both recipes are on this blog), they had a great idea.

Toast Crowns with Chocolate Sweet Potato Pudding Dip!

It's especially fun when the dip is in a fancy glass!

Cranberry Brie Pull Apart Loaf

We don't have parties very often, but I just made this for a winter tea. It's appropriate anytime, but lovely for the Thanksgiving to New Years holiday stretch. It is beautiful and delicious. A bit of a technical challenge, but not much in the way of complexity. Quantities are flexible.

1 round or oval boule or sour dough loaf
1/3 c whole cranberry sauce (could be apple slices for RH) [I just made a small amount with equal parts water, sugar, and cranberries]
5 T butter

1-2 T honey
8-10 oz Brie (it's easy to find kosher brands now, for whatever reason) - sliced thin.
a few sprigs of rosemary, chopped, plus a few sprigs for garnish

Thyme - chopped or ground, maybe a teaspoon.

Preheat oven to 350.

Cut the loaf in a criss-cross grid, leaving the bottom intact. Make sure the knife is sharp - if the bread is dense, this is hard. One recipe said to do is diagonally, which might be easier.

Melt the butter with honey, rosemary, and thyme.

Setting the sliced loaf on a tin foil base, on your baking tin - pour about half of the melted butter in the crevices and over the top so it soaks in.

Poke the brie slices in the cuts, in both directions. It's going to melt, so don't worry about it being perfect.

Pour, or by hand, stuff cooked cranberries in the slots. Pour the rest of the cranberry sauce and the butter over the top.

Bake until the brie melts, about 15 minutes. Don't overbake or it's really hard to cut the bottom. 

It's nice on a pedestal cake server. Garnish with rosemary sprigs.

Use a serrated spatula and pull!

This is gorgeous! And delicious!

There was a lot leftover and I served it room temperature at a kiddush, and people enjoyed it that way, too. But hot and gooey is the goal.

Comfort Food Cabbage & Noodles

 

This really isn't a recipe, it's a lovely, flexible combination. I am always looking for ways to eat more vegetables, and cabbage is great cooked. This was done in less than 10 minutes.

Butter and/or olive oil for sautéing
1 large sliced onion
8 oz or so of cooked flat noodles (egg are good)
1/2 head small cabbage sliced thin, or a bag of shredded

Nutmeg, salt, pepper

Shredded parmesan cheese

Cook the pasta. Then slice the onions and melt butter in a big skillet. Start sautéing on medium in a big pan. Stir frequently, while chopping the cabbage into slivers, and add to the pan. Cook and stir, for about 7-8 minutes until the onions start to brown and the cabbage releases its liquid. 

Season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg.

Drain the noodles and add them, still a little wet is fine. 

Serve with parmesan cheese. A little chopped parsley would improve the looks! 

It's called halushki, and is a Central and Eastern European staple. Recipes call for a lot more butter than I used. You could add cottage cheese or other protein, too. 

Here's a video:

Fig Spread

Our fig trees produced a lot of figs this year.

Putting up preserves is a big deal, if you want to store them and eat them later. I just cooked the batch up, and will keep it in the refrigerator.

Chop the figs in quarters. In a sauce pan, add a little wine, sugar to taste, cinnamon and thinly sliced lemons. Ginger would be good too.

Gently boil, stirring frequently. Keep it at a low flame (1 or 2 on the induction top) and stir frequently to prevent burning. 

At some point, you can use the immersion blender.

It turns amber and eventually cooks way down. The second batch I made, I didn't cook at as high a temp (as described above) and it didn't burn, but it also didn't turn amber. Each kind of fig will have a different color palette.

Put the spread/jam in a glass jar so you can admire the contents!

Vietnamese Spring Rolls

I made these for a June shabbat when we were all together in Chestertown when Noa was a wee one. Big hit, and Zach asked for them a few weeks later. I happily obliged.

Once you assemble all the ingredients, which is a bit of a scavenger hunt, these are fun to roll. They make a delicious and beautiful presentation. This is based on https://cookieandkate.com/fresh-spring-rolls-recipe/ , this guy https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pUO2PuGu9DQ&ab_channel=AGlobalKitchen, and https://natashaskitchen.com/fresh-spring-rolls/ but watch a few videos to get different ideas of the basic techniques.

You'll need about a 12-16 rice paper wrappers, found in the Asian section of big supermarkets. The sauces keep, so you don't have to make the whole package. 

Cook the rice noodles -  just submerge them in boiling water for a few minutes, and drain. While they are cooling, prep your fillings. You can lay them in piles on a tray.

• Herb leaves: basil, mint, or other herbs of choice. Be generous.
• lettuce leaves. I found mini-romaine, which was perfect. Spinach would be good.
• grated carrot, either a bag, or use a cool tool. I actually have one, called a julienne peeler. You can also just slice thin.
• purple cabbage, sliced very thin
• English cucumber, seeded and sliced thin
• avocado, sliced thin, if you have a ripe one
• thin sliced daikon or red radish
• slivered jalapeno if you like more heat
• rice vermicelli or plain rice
• strips of spiced tofu are a good addition to amp up the protein.

We liked having two dipping sauces. Be sure to put dips out in a few smaller bowls.

Peanut Hoisin Sauce:

In a big jar, add

100g or 1/3c hoisin sauce (vegetarian)

30g -  2 T peanut butter

3-5g/1 small clove grated garlic 

3-5g about1/2 T grated ginger

30g or 2 T rice vinegar

5g or 1 t sesame oil

30g or 2 T water

Whisk to combine.

Traditional Fish Sauce from Natasha.

• 1/3 cup water
• 1/4 cup fish sauce
• 1/4 cup sugar, or to taste
• 2 Tbsp lime juice
• 2 tsp rice wine vinegar
• 1 to 2 tsp chili garlic sauce
• 1 garlic clove, grated or minced
• 2 tsp sesame oil
• 1 Tbsp shredded carrot

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl. For serving, pour into a few smaller bowls. This makes a lot.

Assembling:

Rice Paper needs just a quick dip in a curved plate of water. Then move it to a tray, and add the rice noodles and the other ingredients. Try to get some of the pretty herb leaves on what will be the bottom so when you roll each one, you can see them. Best to watch a video.

Do not stack them. They stick to each other! You can leave them at room temperature for an hour or two.

 Figure on folks eating 2 or 3, or even 4, depending on what else you are serving.

Naomi Klayman's Layered Fruit Salad

I often suggest to people, when they ask what to bring to a meal, to bring fruit salad. It's a lot of work to make!

Naomi brought this, and it was ingenious. The colors and contrast obviously make it beautiful, but the stripes are extra pretty.

She came up with the technique of holding the bowl horizontally, and layering it that way.

If you use a flat or slightly curved bowl/platter, you can do it directly. But her technique is a lot of fun.

I like "pretty food". This presentation qualifies! 

Ricette Fresche's Potato Spinach Cheese Tortilla

Stuffed Potato Cheese Thing!

For vegetarian meals, I miss the dinner entrée being a focal point. This one is beautiful. It requires many steps, but not hard ones, and is an elegant presentation. I haven't come up with the right word in English. Ricette Fresche is an Italian YouTube channel; she calls it an omelet, along the lines of a Spanish Tortilla, also made in a fry pan on the stovetop. This one doesn't have onions, but you could add them. It's pretty flexible.

She doesn't have a website with the recipes, so you need to watch her videos and follow the steps. Not very efficient, so I've narrated the process here.

2+ pounds potatoes (a kilo, basically)
1 lb fresh, washed spinach

fried onions (optional) - to be layered in with the spinach, or caramelized and added on top
clove garlic
2 eggs
1 oz parmesan, grated
4 oz grated hard cheese (I used Gouda, but can be most any kind.)
* ~1 c breadcrumbs (can be less, it's to taste - stale challah is good!) Note that you spread the  breadcrumbs at three different times, so don't put it all in the mixture at the first step
olive oil
salt, pepper, nutmeg

hot sauce for eating

Boil the potatoes very thoroughly. When they're cool, hand peel them - the peels slip off.

Meanwhile, chop the spinach. Add oil to a large frying pan, and add the spinach and garlic, stirring until it wilts. Remove the garlic and put it in a strainer and push out the excess liquid.

In a large bowl, mash the boiled potatoes. Add two eggs, pepper, salt, and nutmeg. Stir, add parmesan and and about half the breadcrumbs.

In the large fry pan that the spinach was in, place a parchment paper disk, spread it with olive oil, and sprinkle with bread crumbs. Spread half the potato mixture on it, using your hands to smooth it down. Layer the spinach on top, with the grated cheese [and fried onions]. Spread the second half of the potato mixture, evening with wet hands. Add oil on top, and the rest of the breadcrumbs.

Cover and cook on low for 15 minutes. On the induction, I used 4.

Uncover, set a plate in, and invert. This is tricky! Pull the parchment off the top, set it in the pan, and slip the omelet on it, cover, and cook for another 10 minutes.

Get a nice round tray ready! This is Shabbat dinner material.

Goose Foot Cookies

From 2025 New Years: Steinrichs, TeutschRosens,

and WeisbEnnens

We do have a lot of geese in Chestertown, but not sure I know what their feet look like.

This recipe calls for 8 oz of farmers cheese (1/2 package) and egg yolks, some things that pop up occasionally and need to be used. No need for a mixer. They are kind of a cross between kichel and rugelach. 

Perfect with coffee. 

Found it at Olga's Flavor Factory. 

1 c butter (chilled) - that's 2 sticks!
7.5 – 8 oz farmer’s cheese (ricotta or cottage cheese can be substituted)
2 c all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 egg yolks

Lemon zest to taste
2 T(cold or chilled)
1/2 c granulated sugar

Over a large bowl, grate the chilled butter on a box grater.
Add the farmer’s cheese and mix to combine. Add the flour and salt.
Whisk the eggs yolks and water slightly, then add to the dough. Use your hands to quickly knead the ingredients together. 
Form the dough into a disc, cover, and refrigerate for at least an hour.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. No need to grease, with all that butter.

Let the dough sit for 10-15 minutes and cut the dough into quarters, then, working with one portion at a time, roll it out thinly on a well floured surface. Take the time to roll it thin as you can.

Use a biscuit cutter (about 3 inches), or an overturned cup or glass (preferably with thin edge) to cut through the dough and press out as much circles from the dough as possible.

Put the sugar into a saucer and press one side of the circle of dough into the sugar.

Fold it in half to form a half moon shape. Press one side into the sugar again, fold it in half and press one of the sides in the sugar. Also dip the folded edges into the sugar.

Place the cookies sugar side up on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 20 – 25 minutes. Check 2/3 of the time
and flip, if the bottoms are burning. Bake the cookies till they are puffed up and golden brown. 

Oven-Baked Latkes

These were decent latkes, and had some unique features.

The first is they were made with potatoes that Micah dug up, literally, from his garden here.

Second, you don't need to peel the potatoes. That's a great hack.

These are oven baked, and tasty, but much lighter than pan-fried. A plus or a minus, depending on your tastes.

And, the parchment paper is brilliant. There is a similar version up at King Arthur. It preheats the oil on the baking sheet, with no parchment paper. Worth trying heating the oiled parchment paper, I think. I doubt it would burn.

Heat oven to 350.

3 large potatoes (you could make one a sweet potato)
1 onion
3 T. flour
1 t. baking powder
1 t. salt
1 egg

Line a large sheet pan with parchment paper. Pour some olive oil on it, and spread with a brush.

Wash but don't peel the potatoes. Grate with a box grater, into a strainer colander. Do the same with the onion. Squeeze as much liquid as possible, pushing it through the mesh. (You can do this in a regular bowl, but the mesh is much easier!)

In a large bowl, mix flour, baking powder, and salt. Drop the potato mixture in with an egg, and stir till well mixed.

Drop by flattened large spoonfuls onto the baking sheet. This made 12. Bake at 350 for fifteen minutes. Turn up to 425. Flip and bake another 15 minutes. They do brown and crisp.

They definitely smell like latkes!

Pramila Jayapul's Tofu Satay

This fall during Kamala Harris and Tim Walz's fabulous campaign (which sadly did not result in their getting into office) Washington Rep Pramila Jayapal had a fun fundraiser - if you contributed, she'd send you her recipe, which I couldn't resist doing. It's the best tofu recipe I've tried. 

"I spent 10 years growing up in Indonesia and one of my favorite things was the peanut satay.

Recently, I found a super easy recipe for peanut tofu satay – and I have been obsessed with it since! This peanut satay is great served with brown rice or even a quick fried rice that you can make with day old rice and frozen veggies.

This recipe reminds me of growing up and has been some quick comfort food after long days – which are getting more and more common in this heated election year."

It's not easy - searing the tofu is a lot of effort, but once you have all the oddball ingredients in hand, the sauces are fast.

 

Peanut Tofu Satay

 

3 heaping T peanut butter

 

2/3 c coconut milk (you can freeze the remainder)

 

2 T maple syrup

 

1-2 T sriracha

 

1 T sesame oil

 

3 T soy sauce

 

1 to 2 T grated garlic

 

1 T grated ginger

 

1 lime, juiced - or use lime juice.

 

2 blocks extra firm tofu, drained, dried and cut into 16 evenly sized cubes

 

Oil, salt and pepper as needed

 

1 handful chopped cilantro

 

1/2 c crushed peanuts

 

1 t white and black sesame seeds

 

1 T chili crisp oil

 

Rice for serving

 

In large bowl, whisk together first nine ingredients (peanut butter, coconut milk, maple syrup, sriracha, sesame oil, soy sauce, garlic, ginger and lime) along with large pinch of salt and black pepper to taste. Set aside.

Put 3-4 T neutral cooking oil in a cast iron pan on medium high heat and sear the tofu. Season tofu in the pan with large pinch of salt and black pepper to taste. Sear on all four sides about 1-2 minutes per side or until each side is golden brown. (They don't need to be deep brown, as you pour sauce on them and it colors them nicely.)

Pour half the peanut sauce over tofu and continue to flip tofu for another 1-2 minutes per side or until desired texture and color.

 

Serve over rice, finish with remaining peanut sauce, cilantro, sesame seeds and chili crisp oil as well as salt and pepper to taste.

 

 

This campaign would not be possible without supporters like you — together we are building a stronger future.

Thanks again,

 

Pramila

Blueberry Sour Ceam Lemon Cake

This is similar to the cake I baked for Sender's bris. It is richer, and easier - no weird ingredients. I bake this in two cake pans, and it's a showstopper. So delicious. It's straight from the internet, by Nellie Bellie. You will need lots of lemons!

2 3/4 c flour (part whole wheat flour is fine) + 2 T for mixing in with the fresh blueberries

1 1/2 t baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 c butter (2 sticks)
2 c sugar
4 large eggs
3  T lemon juice (about 2 large lemons)
2 T lemon zest (about 2 large lemons)
1 t vanilla
1 c sour cream (8 oz)
3 c blueberries (1 1/2 pints)

Icing

1 T butter, melted
1 1/2 C powdered sugar

Zest of one lemon

Juice of one lemon
pinch salt

Thin sliced almonds (thin, oval shape, not matchsticks)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Grease and flour two cake pans, bundt and/or tube pans. I use Bakers Joy spray.

In sufficient size bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. (You will add this to the bigger bowl.)

In a large bowl, or stand mixer, beat the butter and sugar on medium-high for about 3 minutes.

Add eggs 1 at a time, beating after each addition.

Continue beating, adding a bit of the flour mixture to the egg mixture in intervals, a little at a time.

Add the lemon juice, zest, vanilla, and sour cream. Gently stir these into the batter with a spatula or wooden spoon.

Gently fold in the floured blueberries.

Spread the batter into the prepared bundt/tube pans.

 
Bake for 55 minutes, check for doneness. If a toothpick in the center doesn't come back clean, put the cake back in for another 10-15 minutes. You can cover it with an oven-proof vented glass lid or tin foil.

Icing

Beat the powdered sugar, lemon juice, salt, and zest together.
Slowly beat in the melted butter into the sugar and lemon combo. Beat until combined well. If it's too thin, add more powdered sugar.
Let cool a bit until the desired consistency for pouring.
Pour over your cake, sprinkle the almond slices, and let cool.

S'more Meringues

Shula had this idea and we found a fun recipe by Jamie Geller. It worked perfectly. We did have leftover melted chocolate and graham cracker crumbs, which we combined and spread out thin. Here's our double recipe.

4 egg whites
2/3 c sugar
1 c graham cracker crumbs (smash in a bag if you don't have them already ground.) - for Passover, sugar and matzah meal would probably be good
6 oz Hershey's chocolate bars

Heat oven to 215 degrees. Spread a large cookie sheet with parchment paper. These don't spread much at all, so just leaving a little space is enough.

Beat the egg whites, slowly adding the sugar, until stiff an glossy.

Drop a tablespoon of batter and pull up the spoon so it has a nice twisty top. Shula took a butter knife and made shapes and designs.

Bake for 90 minutes. Leave in the oven overnight if you do these in the evening.

Melt the chocolate on the induction burner set at 2. Stir while melting; it goes fast.

Set the cracker crumbs on a small plate. It's fine if there are some bigger pieces. Dip each meringue in the melted chocoate and then set it on the crumbs. Put them on their sides to harden. You can refrigerate.

For Passover, just leave off the crumb layer, or try sugared matzah meal for some crunch.

Very pretty! 

Blackberry Cobbler

I predict we'll be making this often. Micah's blackberry bushes are producing prodigious amounts of lucious blackberries, and their ripening is staggered throughout the summer. It's pretty quick to pick a quart of blackberries in this orchard!

It's from a The HIllbilly Kitchen, a very simple concept!

Spray a flat ovenproof dish. I use a Dansk round metal casserole or a ceramic casserole.

Preheat oven to 375.

Lots of 1s in this recipe.

1 quart berries - splashed with 1 t. vanilla
1 egg
1 stick of butter, melted
1 cup flour/s (any combination - you can include some oats)
1 cup sugar

Place the berries in the pan, splash the vanilla on them.

In a bowl, combine the flour, egg, and sugar until it's crumbly, with a big fork or fingers.

Drop it on the berries.

Pour the melted butter over the top. Sprinkle a little sugar on top (optional).

Bake for about 30 minutes.

Norwegian Crepe Pancakes

These were inspired by my going to NetCost, a super store in NE Philly specializing in Russian and Eastern European foods. They had a huge section of "preserves", many from Israel with Hebrew and Russian. They are a genre of fruit somewhere between what we call jam and pie filling. I brought some cherry preserves and then tried to figure out what to do with them. Rolling them up in a crepe is perfect. Three or four make a very nice meal.

These remind David of the thin pancakes his Aunt Ruth made in Salt Lake, rolled up with fruits. Happily so!

It's from How to Feed a Loon, two guys with a blog and lots of YouTubes. I have modified it, using more whole wheat, natch.

3 eggs
1½ c whole milk (up to 1/3 can be buttermilk)
1 c all-purpose flour (half white, half whole wheat)
¼ t salt
1 t sugar
¼ t cardamom ground, optional
1 t vanilla 
2 T butter melted, plus more for the pan
Preserves or jam, for spreading and rolling. Optional: ricotta cheese.
For a savory crepe: chop an onion, saute, and throw in a lot of fresh spinach. Add a little grated cheese. Yum!

Use a blender, mixing the eggs and milk til smooth. It’s easier to pour the batter from the blender.

Add the flour, salt, sugar, cardamom, vanilla extract, and melted butter, and continue mixing until most of the lumps are gone.

Heat a large griddle/skillet , and a second smaller fry pan ( perfect for kid sized crepes) over medium heat and coat with a small amount of butter (about 1 tsp). Swirl the pan until the pan is fully coated.

Scoop about ⅓ cup of the batter and then pour into the center of the skillet, immediately swirling the pan until most of the batter has been distributed along the bottom of the pan. You can do this with the bottom of a 1/3 c measure.

Cook until the edges begin to curl up slightly and some bubbles begin to appear, usually about 2 minutes. Carefully slip a rubber (or silicone) spatula under the side of the pancake and flip.
Cook for another minute and then transfer the pancake to a serving plate. I put the tray in the Breville, without heat, closed - the steam keeps them warm.

This makes about 8-12, depending on size. Serve with fruit preserve, jam, or fresh fruits and yogurt.

 They go pretty fast!

If desired, roll the pancakes, or serve flat with toppings on the side.

Persimmon Picking & Pulping + Persimmon Bread

Micah spotted persimmon trees on the trail to the Gesher Tsar Meod, and in 2023 Jo, Micah, and I picked a bunch. Then he found an even bigger tree and I went with Jennifer Paget and we picked a half a pot full.

In 2025, on a day Micah spent doing chores and exploring in fall, he counted 17 persimmon-bearing trees along the trails! And, he brought home a huge collection, and learned that they continue to ripen, called climacteric fruits.

Today, I stopped by Fredi Cooper's house, which she is moving out of shortly, and she gave me a beautiful Nordic Ware loaf pan, with a pumpkin vine pattern. It would be perfect for baking a persimmon bread! Can't wait to try it.

in 2023, I purchased a vintage Foley Food Mill on Ebay and it worked wonderfully, though it's slow. Eventually you collect pulp, which you can eat as a kind of cross between jam and sauce. It's a beautiful color. The dark flecks in it are completely edible.

We baked three loaves with this recipe. It's dark and moist. Nice with cream cheese. You can use pumpkin pie spice in lieu of the cinnamon/nutmeg/cloves.

This recipe is from Feast Magazine, doubled.

2 1/2 c (175g) flour (1/2 each whole wheat and white is fine)
1 t baking soda
1 t  salt
1 t ground cinnamon
1/2 t fresh ground nutmeg
1/2 t ground cloves
1 1/3 cup  sugar
4 eggs
2 t vanilla 
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
2 c (260g) persimmon pulp

Preheat oven to 350˚F and spray pans. 

Whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves in a medium bowl; set aside. 

In a larger bowl, beat sugar, eggs and vanilla together until combined and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes. With mixer running, stream in melted butter; continue to beat until incorporated, scraping sides of bowl down with a spatula as needed. Fold in persimmon pulp and mix until incorporated. 

Fold flour mixture into butter mixture just until combined, then fold in persimmon pulp until incorporated and no streaks remain. Divide between your pans.

Bake on middle rack of oven for 45 to 50 minutes, rotating pan after 20 minutes of baking. Bread is done when a wooden skewer comes out clean or with a few crumbs. Set on wire rack to cool completely.

In 2025, I used Fredi's loaf pan and two pumpkin layers. Nordic Ware calls it the Great Pumpkin pan. They came out of the pan very easily. So pretty.

Main trick is using a lot of Bakers Joy spray, which is flour and oil already combined.

 

Sweet Potato Gnocchi

Sweet potatoes are more nutritious than white potatoes, and prettier, so I decided to give Sweet Potato Gnocchi a whirl. They are fun and delicious. Could be a side, or a main. The ingredients are pretty flexible.

2 medium/large sweet potatoes
3 T (or so) grated parmesan
3 T (or so) ricotta, or 1 egg
1.5 c white flour
1/2 c. whole wheat flour
salt to taste
dash of nutmeg

For frying:
10 leaves or so fresh sage
2 T. butter + olive oil

For topping: parmesan, + chopped walnut or hazelnuts

Optional: spinach, to fry along in the pan with the gnocchi

Microwave or boil the sweet potatoes til cooked. Let cool. Peel and if you have a ricer, process them with it, or scoop into a large bowl and use a potato masher. You want some texture, not a puree. Add the other ingredients. This is easiest to work by hand. 

On a large board, cut the dough in quarters. Roll each quarter into a log and cut pieces about the size of a small grape. Smaller is better. You can flatten the log and cut it laterally and then in 1/2" pieces.

Flour a gnocchi board, or just the back of a fork. Press your thumb to flatten the dough and roll it from the top. This creates a hollow, ridged gnocchi.

Repeat with each quarter. This makes a lot of gnocchi. I froze half for another meal. 

Boil a large pot of water and then drop the gnocchi in a few at a time. They pop up pretty quickly.

In a large skillet, add some olive oil and butter. Fry the sage leaves. When they're crisp, remove them, and add a few dozen gnocchi. Brown on both sides. Yum!

Serve with grated parmesan, chopped nuts, pesto, or whatever you like.

If you throw some spinach in the pan with the gnocchi, it will be even more nutricious and colorful.