Ingredients
1/2 cup fresh parsley
4 cloves garlic
1 slice ginger (about 1 Tbsp. minced)
1/2 head of cauliflower
2 medium carrots
2 stalks celery
1 red onion, halved and sliced
1 broccoli stalk, trimmed
2 cups mushrooms
2 red bell peppers, quartered and thinly sliced
2 Tbsp. oil
2 large eggs, lightly beaten (optional)
Salt and pepper to taste
1 teaspoon instant pareve chicken soup mix
1/2 cup toasted sliced almonds (optional)
Process the parsley on the steel blade of your food processor until finely minced. Remove it from the bowl and reserve to use as a garnish. Drop garlic and ginger through the feed tube while the machine is running; process until minced. Set aside.
Wash and drain the cauliflower thoroughly; cut into large chunks. Grate, using medium-firm pressure on pusher. The grated cauliflower is your “rice.” Grate carrots, using medium pressure. Set aside.
Cut celery, onion and broccoli to fit feed tube. Slice, using medium pressure. Slice mushrooms and red peppers, using medium pressure. (Veggies can be prepared in advance, covered and refrigerated for several hours or overnight.)
Heat oil in a large nonstick wok or skillet on high heat. Stir-fry garlic and ginger for 30 seconds. Add onion, celery, broccoli, mushrooms and red peppers and stir-fry for 2 to 4 minutes longer. Add grated cauliflower and carrots. Stir-fry for 3 to 4 minutes longer, until tender-crisp. Do not overcook veggies or they will get too soft. If adding eggs, push the entire mixture to one side of the wok. On the empty side, add beaten eggs and scramble for 2 minutes or until they are just set. Mix the eggs into the “rice.” Season with salt, pepper and soup mix. Remove from the heat and transfer to a serving platter. Sprinkle with parsley and almonds at serving time. Best served immediately.
This keeps for about two days in the refrigerator; reheats well in the microwave. Don’t freeze.
Variation: To make this into a main dish, add cut-up cooked chicken or turkey the last two minutes of stir-frying.
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This next salad is something that can be quite economical. Seder night is over already? Take all that chicken you used in the soup, cut it up into small chunks and look what a great salad you can make out of it now…
Chrein Chicken Salad
Photo by Sharon Bentov
Serves 4
Ingredients
2 cups cooked chicken, cut into small chunks
1 hard boiled egg, cut into tiny pieces, optional
2 stalks celery, diced
1 scallion, diced
1 small carrot, peeled and shredded
4-6 tablespoons mayonnaise + 2 tablespoons chrein, mixed together
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 cup crushed almonds, toasted first
In a large, dry skillet over medium heat, toast the almonds for 5-8 minutes until lightly browned. Turn off the heat.
Place the cut chicken pieces, egg, celery, scallion and shredded carrot into a large bowl. In another small bowl, mix together the “chreiyonnaise”, olive oil, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Pour this over the chicken mixture and mix it together well, by hand.
Add in the toasted almonds and serve in scoops over a piece of lettuce, with a cherry tomato in its center.
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For our next and final recipe, I’d like to focus on dessert. At the end of a full meal, this refreshing and light gluten and matzah meal free pie will be a welcome treat…
Meringue Fruit Pie
Serves 4-5
Ingredients
6 egg whites
1 & 1/4 cups sugar
2 cups (450 grams) mango, fresh or frozen
2 tablespoons powdered sugar
1 teaspoon lemon juice
2 cups berries of choice, or slices of fresh kiwi
Preheat the oven to 175°F. This is a low oven temperature, which is what you need to bake meringues.
Beat the egg whites on high until they begin to stiffen slightly. Without turning off the beaters, add the sugar gradually and continue beating until the egg whites are stiff and have peaks. Turn off the mixer.
Take out a 10-inch (about 22-24 cm) round preferably glass pie dish and pile the meringue into it. Try to build up the edges somewhat while smoothing the center so you will have a pie shape with a slight indentation in its center. Bake for an hour to an hour and a half, until slightly browned. Turn off the oven and let it remain inside, with the oven door ajar, for another half hour. Carefully remove from the oven and let it cool.
