Healthy Shabbat Recipes

The Perfect Tu B'Shvat Salad!

Contributed by Chana (Felisa) Billet:

"If you want to honor the barely celebrated holiday that happens to be the most glorious herald of spring, try this sophisticated "Biblically Inspired" salad for dinner tonight.   This dish is high in flavor and strong on symbolism.  It incorporates the 'shivat haminim,' the seven species of produce biblicaly connected to the land of Israel: wheat, barley, grapes, figs, pomegranate, olives, and honey (Deuteronomy 8:8).  To add an additional reference to the 'land flowing with milk and honey' (Exodus 13:5), add crumbled feta or goat cheese.  Rashi's commentary on this phrase identifies milk as coming from goats and honey from dates and figs.

To read more about Tu B'shvat, check out an article I wrote at kosher.com.  http://www.kosher.com/articles/holidays/tu-bshvat  While you're on the site, if you want to hone your kitchen skills, check out my interactive culinary dialogue. http://www.kosher.com/articles/kosher-cooking-tips"

Aron's Avocado Salad

This is my husband's favorite salad. It's also perfect for pesach.

Here's a tip for you: My brother-in-law owns the best sushi take-out-place in town. I once asked him "Avocados go bad so quickly -- how do you make sure  they are always perfectly ripe for your sushi?"  He told me that he buys them when they are hard and puts them in the fridge, they are ready in about a week and stay ripe longer than if you leave them out.

Here's another avocado tip:  Many people think it is impossible to salvage half of an avocado. Nope! I learned the trick. With your finger, apply a thin layer of olive oil to the leftover half of the avocado.  Make sure the oil coats all of the surface. Then wrap the avocado in tin foil and place it in the fridge to use later.  The oil will protect it from the air and the foil will protect it from the light. Air and light are the two factors that make avocado spoil quickly.  You can keep it for up to a week or so this way.

Now...onto the recipe. (FINALLY)  This one is really simple.

You'll need:

Two tomatoes
Two avocados
Half of a red onion or sweet onion like vidalia.
Half of a lemon
Olive oil
Salt  Pepper

Dice the tomatoes, and red onion and set a side. Dice the avacado right before serving. Drizzle with olive oil. Squeeze the lemon over the salad, add salt and pepper to taste. Mix everything together and serve to a happy husband.

Fresh Tomato Dressing - Add Some ZING To Your Veggies

This is another recipe everyone loves. I don't serve it as a regular salad dressing. Rather, I use it to season the veggie dish for the main course.  I love it because it allows me to serve beautiful dish of assorted,colorful veggies that have been steamed till crisp-tender and leave them plain for my kids.  Then  I just put a serving dish (like a gravy boat) full of this awesome dressing in the middle, and explain that this is for the grown-ups to 'dress' their own veggies. I also enjoy the leftovers during the week over salad with tuna.

Just throw the following in a food processor and blend till liquified:

* 2 tomatoes, cut in quarters, core removed (The original recipe says to peel and seed them, but I have never found that to be necessary, it all gets liquified in the food processor and works just fine)
* 1/2 cup good olive oil
* 6 tablespoons wine vinegar
* 2 tablespoons lemon juice
* 1 tablespoon dried parsley
* 4 teaspoons Dijon Mustard
* 4 teaspoons honey or agave nectar (more to taste)
* 2 teaspoons dried basil or italian seasoning
* 1/2 teaspoon crushed garlic
* Pinch of salt

Inspired by the recipe called  "French Tomato Dressing" in The Saucy Vegetarian: Quick & Healthful No-Cook Sauces & Dressings.

Easy Moroccan Carrot Salad

This is very yummy. However, since my kids aren't into the exotic, I always cook the whole bag of baby carrots and leave some plain for them, then put the dressing over the rest.

INGREDIENTS:

    * 1/2  of a large a bag of baby carrots

Dressing:

    * 3 Tbsp. lemon juice
    * 2 Tbsp. olive oil
    * 2 cloves garlic
    * 1/2 tsp. cumin
    * 1/2 tsp. paprika

Directions:

Boil or blanch the carrots till crisp-tender.
In a small bowl, mix lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, cumin and paprika.
Pour dressing over carrots and mix well.

Optional:
Add toasted almonds for an additional crunch and color contrast