So it’s officially summer though, to be honest, I wouldn’t know it. I’m knee-deep in teaching summer school health. It’s actually not as bad as it sounds. While I’d REALLY LOVE some time off, I rarely get to be in the classroom teaching students subject matter that I’m so passionate about. I mean, what’s not to love about spending 2 hours a day, 5 days a week talking to high schoolers about topics such as consent education, mood disorders, and sex education!? Fun, right!?

In the midst of all of this, my husband has been out-of-town for a week and a half (half a week to go!) and while I’m really loving having all this time with our girls, mama is in need for a little ‘me’ time. As it is, I’ve been getting up at around 5am just so I can enjoy a hot cup of coffee and a fresh episode of The Great British Baking Show before the girls get up and it’s ‘go’ time. I don’t know about you, but as a parent, I struggled with anxiety when it came to the weeks leading up to being alone with the kids for an extended amount of time. When Eden was just 4 weeks old, husband had to go to Miami for a few days in order to complete some research for his PhD and if anyone is a proponent of exposure therapy for anxiety, it is me as that time alone with an infant and a 3 year-old truly taught me that I can do it. Now that the girls are older and Eden is at one nap a day, I’m able to actually enjoy my alone time with the girls. We can get out, explore this great city with my little buddies and, dare I say it, have fun. Our absolute favorite activity is to head to the beach with sand toys and picnic in hand. I’ve been trying to up our picnic game as lately it’s been day-after-day of pb & j sandwiches and cucumbers. Therefore, I put a call out to some food blogging buddies and the result is the recipe round-up below, which is chock full of vegetarian and vegan options for your summer picnics! I hope you enjoy and don’t forget your sunscreen!

 

Kosher ‘Krab’ Cakes with Zoodles and Avocado Crema from Jewhungry

 

Broccoli Salad with Lemon Poppy Seed Dressing from The Roasted Root

Kalyn’s Tabbouleh with Almonds from Kalyn’s Kitchen

Arabic Potato Salad from Persnickety Plates

Chipotle Hummus-Stuffed Potato Bites from The Lemon Bowl

Moroccan Sweet Potato Salad from Food Faith Fitness

Mediterranean Deviled Egg Recipe with Roasted Red Pepper and Hummus from Two Healthy Kitchens

Lentil Quinoa Salad with Golden Raisins and Lemon Dressing from Noshtastic

California Cowboy Caviar from Fork and Beans

Lentil Hand Pies with Walnut Pesto from Delish Knowledge

Israeli Couscous Recipe with Chopped Veggies, Chickpeas, and Artichoke from The Mediterranean Dish

All-Natural Carrot Dogs from Healthy Slow Cooking

Falafel Feta Salad from Jewhungry 

 

Oh hey, what’s up? I’m just sitting here, editing a post and thinking about the fact that my almost 5 year-old is ‘graduating’ preschool this week. And while I’m not crying right NOW, you best believe that this has been hitting me quite intensely for a few weeks now. How is it that the years are so long and so short all at once? I’m honestly at that point where if one more person stops me while I’m trying to calm a tantrum-ing child of mine in a Target with, “Enjoy it now. Mine are so grown and I miss them”, I just might lose it on them (the stranger, not my children. Let’s be clear). In the movie of my life that is constantly playing in my head, I have responded to these well-meaning strangers with an emotionally-charged, “I got it! OK!! I KNOW! YOU ARE THE 10th PERSON THIS WEEK WHO HAS SAID THAT TO ME. I AM CONSTANTLY STRUGGLING WITH WANTING THEM TO GROW UP AND NOT ALL AT ONCE! NOW PLEASE BUY ME A LATTE AND LEAVE ME BE”! Also in the movie of my life that is constantly playing in my head, the role of ‘me’ is played by the talented and stunning Gal Gadot cause it’s my movie and I can do what I want.

 

We are all on shaky ground lately due to the change that seems to be blowing our way. As a result, my husband and I went ahead and purchased a minivan cause what better way to manage your emotions then to participate in a major purchase (so says your friendly social worker and school counselor)!? Look, I know what I’m doing, OK? OK!? But honestly, I never knew I always wanted this minivan. Like, I didn’t know I always wanted to NEVER physically have to open the side doors to my car, but I don’t. I really don’t and thanks to modern technology, I don’t have to open my car doors ever again. When husband and I bought our first car 7 years ago, we spent every penny we had on a base model Honda Fit. The only luxury that car had was the standard automatic window. Now we’re ballin’ in our swaggin’ wagon and it’s a little strange. Have we all really grown up this much!?

Speaking of ‘growing up’, the other ballin’ thing I’d like to talk about is this here recipe of crash hot potatoes with pesto and labneh. If you don’t know about labneh, let me learn ya something. Labneh (also known as kefir cheese) is a tart cheese spread akin to Greek yogurt and can be found at your local kosher grocer or Whole Foods. I used to actually not like labneh but, as I mentioned above, I’ve done some growing up and so has my palate. I now LOVE labneh and actually prefer it to Greek yogurt for a delicious and protein-packed snack or breakfast (pair it with Persian cucumber, Roma tomatoes, salt and some delicious olive oil and you’ve got my ideal snack). The recipe below is basically my idea of ‘grown up’ cheese fries. Except instead of French fries you’ve got perfectly cooked fingerling potatoes and salty, fresh pesto to bring out all the flavors. You can make this as a dip or spread it on your plate like I did so you don’t have to do SO much work (dipping food into a dip can be a lot of work).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Crash Hot Potatoes with Pesto + Labneh

Ingredients for Crash Hot Potatoes:

1 lb. fingerling potatoes
6 – 8 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 tbsp flaky sea salt (such as Maldon)
1/2 cup Labneh

Ingredients for Pesto:

2 cups fresh basil leaves, packed (can sub half the basil leaves with baby spinach)
1/2 cup freshly grated Romano or Parmesan-Reggiano cheese
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil.
1/3 cup chopped walnuts
3 garlic cloves, minced

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Boil potatoes in salted water until fork tender; about 15 – 18 minutes. Drain and set aside.

Drizzle a large sheet pan generously with olive oil. Place tender potatoes on sheet pan, leaving plenty of room between each potato. With a potato masher or large fork, gently press down each potato until it slightly mashes.  Brush or drizzle the tops of mashed potatoes with olive oil and sprinkle with flaky salt such as Maldon Sea Salt.

Place sheet pan in oven and bake for roughly 20 – 25 minutes or until edges are browned and crispy.

While the potatoes roast, make your pesto: Recipe for pesto found here.

Once pesto is complete and potatoes are perfectly baked, spread labneh on a plate and top of pesto. Top that plate with potatoes and enjoy! You could also mix the pesto and labneh into a bowl and dip your potatoes in that as well. The choice is yours!

 

 

 

 

 

If you know me at all then you know that Israel lives in my heart. I met my husband there. I fell in love with cooking there. I named my children Siona (Zion) and Eden. Our home is filled with artifacts, knickknacks and Judaica all reminding us and calling us back to Israel. For my husband, he spent 2 years in Israel receiving his Master’s Degree in Marine Ecology. My journey in Israel began in 2001 when I studied abroad during the second Intifada. I was one of 8 participants on a study abroad program that typically has 70 participants but when CNN is broadcasting bus explosions and protests 24/7, you get a few students dropping out. I had to sign a waiver stating that I would not sue my small liberal arts college should I blow up in a bus while studying in Israel via their program. But, thank Gd, nothing horrible happened and I ended up having the time of my life. Since that study abroad opportunity all those years ago, I’ve been blessed to go to Israel on 3 Birthright Israel tours (as a chaperone), studied at Pardes for a summer and then for another year. All told, I’ve probably lived in Israel for a combined total of at least 2 years. But it’s been ages since we’ve gone and we long to return.

 

I’m waxing poetic about Israel because I’m here to talk a little about the first ever Maccabi International Culinary Competition taking place on July 4, 2017 in Israel. Working with Maccabi World Union, as part of the 20th World Maccabiah Games, this groundbreaking new program is designed to showcase food as a universal language, bringing more people to Israel to immerse them in the culture, heritage and beauty of the land.

Each team will prepare a five-course meal, showcasing the flavors of their country and utilizing the freshest locally grown Israeli produce, meat, and fish. Chefs will be judged on the creativity, originality, and of course, flavor and presentation. The winning teams will be announced at a Chef’s Party that evening. The event will be open to the public following the medal ceremony, providing spectators the opportunity to meet members of the international and local professional chef teams. There will be Jewish professional chefs from all over the world taking part in this competition—-Australia, France, Gibraltar, Israel, Italy, Spain and the USA.

And if that weren’t enough of a reason to register to attend and watch, this incredible event is co-chaired by James Beard Award-winning Chef Michael Solomonov of Zahav Restaurant (and Dizengoff and Abe Fisher and Federal Donuts and Rooster Soup Co. and Goldie Falafel). It is Chef Solomonov and his beautiful cookbook, Zahav, that inspired the recipe featured in this post. I am constantly reconciling my natural inclination to make Southern food with my near-constant desire for fresh Israeli food and this dish is the representation of the two. I’m SO excited to see what the chefs participating in the competition cook-up. I wonder how much of what the present will be representative of not only their home country but also their Jewish heritage.

I am so excited to see what these chefs bring together and am dually impressed with the fact that the organizers have brought in an as-yet-to-be-announced tzedakah project that the culinary teams will participate in. There are plans tape and ‘live stream’ the competition so check back in to the blog or at the Maccabi Culinary Competition for more info. Oh, and if you don’t have to spend this summer teaching summer school health to 9th graders, like I do, then you’ll also want to check out the extreme culinary tour that the Maccabi Culinary Competition organizers have developed. It’s an Israeli foodie dream come true! The Culinary Mission runs through the Maccabi games so now only will you be exploring the dynamic culinary movement coming out of Israel at full speed, you’ll be doing it along side the chefs participating in the Maccabi Culinary Competition. More information can be found here, at the Mission’s website.

 

 

 

 

This post is sponsored by The International Maccabi Culinary Competition

Israeli Salad with Grilled Peaches and Honey Lemon Vinaigrette

Salad Ingredients:

2 cups chopped Roma tomatoes, seeded and diced
2 cups chopped Persian cucumbers, peeled and diced
1 cup cooked pearl barley, cooled
2 peaches, grilled (instructions below)
3 Tbsp chopped fresh mint leaves
1/2 cup sheep’s milk feta
Lemon honey vinaigrette (ingredients and recipe below)

Directions for Salad:

Combine all salad ingredients into a large bowl except for the mint and feta. Toss with cooked and cooled pearl barley. Add 3 tbsp of olive oil and stir. Next, add half of the chopped mint leaves and feta. Toss to combine. Top with salad dressing and rest of the mint leaves. Serve room temperature or cold.

Method for Grilling Peaches:

Cut peaches along the seam all the way around and twist halves off the pit. Discard of entire pit (be thorough — accidental pit-eating would be a bummer). Brush cut sides with olive oil. Cook, cut side down, on a hot grill until fruit has grill marks, 3 to 4 minutes.

Rotate 90 degrees to continue to cook for another 3-4 minutes or until total grill marks appear and the fruit starts to caramelize. Remove from the grill with a pair of tongs and sprinkle with a dash of flaky sea salt.

Set aside to cool.

Lemon Honey Vinaigrette Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (from about 2 small lemons or 1 large)
• 1/4 cup white-wine vinegar
• 2 teaspoons honey
• 1 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
• 1 cup olive oil

Method:

In a medium bowl or jar, combine lemon juice, vinegar, honey, coarse salt, and ground pepper. Whisk until salt has thoroughly dissolved. Gradually add the oil and whisk until thoroughly combined.