First timer!!

Last night was Rosh HaShana, which is the Jewish new year. It is now the year 5771 according to the Jewish calendar.  My family celebrates with a big dinner so I was in charge of the cooking and baking.

The Menu:
-round challah, which is customary for the new year instead of a braided one.
-gefilte fish with sliced carrots (yuck, i've never been a fan)
-romaine salad with a homemade vinaigrette
-herb-roasted Chicken
-roasted carrots and baby red bliss potatoes

Dessert: 
-sweet noodle kugel
-rugelach

-chocolate babka
-& of course apples and honey!

I was only able to take picture of the rugelach on my cell as i was taking them. In the future I promise to remember to use my digital camera. Recipes & pictures after the jump!




This is a noodle kugel, a very traditional jewish dish. They can be sweet or savory.  and it's basically a noodle custard casserole. This one is my grandma's recipe, which i'll post below.

Ingredients:
-1/2 lb egg noodles
-1/2 stick butter, melted
-16 oz cottage cheese
-2 cups sour cream
-1/2 cup sugar
-1 tsp vanilla
-6 eggs
-1 tsp cinnamon
-1/2 tsp nutmeg
-1/2 cup raisins

Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Cook pasta in salted water according to packaged directions
Meanwhile, combine the rest of the ingredients in a large bowl and mix thoroughly until all combined.
When the pasta is ready, toss with the custard mixture and pour into a 13x9 greased baking dish.
Bake for 40 minutes or until the custard is set( not jiggly when lightly shaken). Cool in fridge for a couple of hours before serving.

See? pretty simple!

Next, I made rugelach which is a traditional Jewish cookie. I made two flavors, apricot walnut (traditional) and chocolate raspberry. This too, is my grandma's recipe with the exception of the chocolate raspberry filling with is my own.

Ingredients
- 8 oz block of cream cheese
- 2 sticks of butter, softened
- 1/4 cup white sugar, plus another generous 1/2 cup for the filling & sprinkling
-1/4 tsp salt
-2 tsp vanilla extract
-2 cups AP flour
-1/4 cup brown sugar
-1 tsp cinnamon
-1 cup walnuts, chopped
-1/2 cup apricot jam, warmed in microwave for 20 seconds to thin it out
- 1 egg plus 1 tsbp milk or water, beaten well for eggwash

Directions
( Sorry I do not have pictures of the process of making the acutal dough)
In a standmixer or handheld, beat cream cheese and butter for a couple of minutes until smooth and fluffy. Add 1/4 cup of the sugar, salt, and vanilla and beat another few minutes. Turn speed down on mixer to low, and slowly add flour and mix just until combined.
Turn dough out onto well-floured surface and roll into a disk, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate at least an hour.

Make the filling in the meantime:
for traditional: Combine most of the 1/2 cup of sugar (reserving 2 tsbp for sprinkling), brown sugar, cinnamon, and walnuts into a bowl. Use apricot jam for this filling.
chocolate raspberry: 1 cup mini semi sweet chocolate chips, and 1/2 cup vanilla sugar*. Use seedless raspberry jam for this filling. 

Once dough is chilled, roll it out on a floured surface into a circle with about a 10 inch diameter.  Take 2 tbsp of the jam ( that has been microwaved) and spread a thin, even layer on the dough. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup of the chocolate-raspberry mixture OR 1/2 cup of the apricot-walnut mixture.
 

this is with the chocolate raspberry mixture

Next, take the circle and cut into quarters, and cut those quarters into thirds. This will leave you with 12 "slices"

Roll up each "slice" starting with the wider side and place on a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silpad.  Brush the tops with the egg wash and sprinkle with that extra 2 tsbp of sugar.
Bake for 17-20 minutes, until the tops are golden brown.

on the right is a silpad, these are awesome for baking b/c nothing sticks to them!

 Let rest on baking sheet for a few minutes after coming out of the oven and then cool on wire rack and enjoy!

*vanilla sugar-  whenever i use a fresh vanilla bean, I never throw out the pod. I put it in a small holder with about 8 cups of sugar, and the sugar slowly becomes vanilla scented. It is great to use as a sprinkling sugar or in a dish that needs an intense vanilla flavor