Sharing our Stories Through Food: Sukkot Special

Submitted by Chaya Leah Bruk

Here are a few special succot recipes to enhance your chag! These are the perfect dishes to serve as fall starts to come in and we take advantage of the seasonal delicacies. I hope you enjoy!

The maple cake in specific is one of my favorites. When I was in Israel I stayed by an amazing family over the chag and the hostess served this amazing maple cake. My friend and I fell in love with it. She told us we could take as much as we wanted…bad idea, we finished the whole pan. It was just THAT good. Luckily, she had 3 other loaves in the freezer so we didn’t feel as bad. This is now our all-time favorite cake for the chaggim.

Pomegranate Apple Salad

Ingredients:

Dressing:

• 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar, or unseasoned rice vinegar
• 6 tablespoons sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, or sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard, or prepared Dijon mustard
• 1/4 to 1/3 cup chopped onion, from about 1/2 small onion
• 1/2 cup canola oil, or other neutral-flavored oil such as grapeseed oil, or extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 3/4 teaspoons poppy seeds

Salad:

• 1 large head lettuce, or 1 (5-ounce package) mixed baby lettuce, rinsed and spun dry
• 1 pomegranate, seeded
• 1 large green apple, cored and sliced or chopped

Directions:

1. In a blender or mini food processor, combine the vinegar, sugar, salt, mustard, and onion. Pulse several times until well blended. With the machine running, slowly add the oil in a thin stream and blend until emulsified.
2. Pour dressing into a jar or cruet. Add the poppy seeds and shake well to combine. Store in the refrigerator, shaking well before serving.
3. Place the lettuce in a large bowl or arrange on a deep, wide serving platter.
4. Sprinkle with the pomegranate seeds and add the apple slices or cubes. 
5. Just before serving, drizzle with about 1/4 of the poppy seed dressing and toss gently. Serve the remaining dressing on the side so guests can add more if desired.

Stuffed Peppers

Ingredients:

• 4 large red, orange or yellow bell peppers
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 cup finely chopped fennel bulb (about ½ a small bulb) or celery
• 1 cup finely chopped yellow onion (about 1 small)
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• ½ teaspoon red-pepper flakes
• 1 pound ground beef (at least 15 percent fat), turkey, chicken or pork
• ¾ cup dry white wine, chicken broth or vegetable broth
• 1 (14-ounce) can diced fire-roasted tomatoes
• 1½ teaspoons kosher salt, plus more to taste
• ½ teaspoon black pepper, plus more to taste
• 1 cup cooked white or brown rice
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley, plus more for serving (optional)

Directions:

1. Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Cut the peppers in half lengthwise and carefully remove core, seeds and ribs using a paring knife. Arrange the peppers, cut-sides up, in a 9-by-13-inch pan or other baking dish in which they fit snugly.
2. In a large (12-inch) skillet, heat the olive oil over medium. Add the fennel and onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, 6 to 8 minutes. Stir in the garlic, oregano and red-pepper flakes, and cook until the garlic is fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the beef and cook, breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon, for 3 to 5 minutes, until no longer pink.
3. Add ½ cup wine, increase the heat to medium-high and cook, scraping the bottom of the pan, until the liquid in the pan is reduced by about half.
4. Add the tomatoes and their juices, salt and pepper, and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat and stir in the rice and parsley, if using. Taste and adjust seasonings.
5. Divide the mixture among the peppers. Pour the remaining ¼ cup wine into the bottom of the dish, wrap tightly with foil and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until a paring knife easily pierces the peppers. Remove the foil and spoon any juices that have accumulated in the bottom of the pan onto the peppers.
6. Allow the peppers to cool for 5 minutes, sprinkle with parsley, if using, and serve hot.

Maple Cake

Ingredients:

• 3 eggs
• 1/2 cup oil
• 1 1/4 cup sugar
• 3 tsp vanilla extract or vanilla sugar
• 3/4 cup orange juice
• 1 1/4 cup flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• Dash of cinnamon
• Drizzle of maple syrup

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Mix all ingredients together EXCEPT syrup, until well blended
3. Grease two loaf pans
4. Pour batter into pans and bake for 20-30 minutes
5. Once removed from oven, drizzle with maple syrup and enjoy!