Jewish Fusion

This delicious recipe comes courtesy of Manischewitz and Jacques Pepin.

Tapenade

• 1 cup mix of pitted olives, black oil-cured olives, Kalamata olives, and green olives
  1 small garlic clove, peeled and sliced
  2 dried apricot halves, cut into small pieces
  1 ½ teaspoons drained capers
  2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts, about 6 ounces each
  3 tablespoons good olive oil
  ½ spoon salt, plus extra to taste
  ½ n freshly ground black pepper, plus extra to taste
  1 ½ cups baby Bella mushrooms, washed and cut into 3/4-inch pieces
  ½ cup chopped onion
  ½ cup Manischewitz Chicken Broth
  2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives or parsley

For the tapenade:

• Put all the tapenade ingredients in the bowl of a food processor, and pulse to make a coarse puree. Cut a horizontal slit in each chicken breast to create a pocket, and stuff with the tapenade. Set aside until serving time.
• When ready to cook the chicken, preheat the oven to 180 degrees. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet, and when hot, season the stuffed breasts with ½ spoon each salt and pepper, and arrange them side by side in the skillet.
• Cook over medium heat, covered, for about 3 minutes on each side, and then transfer to a platter, and keep warm in the 180-degree oven. Add the mushrooms and onion to the skillet, and sauté for about 2 minutes. Add the Manischewitz Chicken Broth, and reduce the contents by boiling for 2 minutes. Add additional salt and pepper to taste.
• Serve a chicken breast on each of four hot plates, and add any juice that has accumulated around them on the platter to the mushroom sauce in the pan. Divide the mushrooms and sauce among the servings, spooning it over the chicken breasts, and sprinkle the parsley or chives on top. Serve.

Yield: 4 servings

Courtesy of Manischewitz and Jacques Pepin.

“This recipe, made with chicken thighs (instead of fish), kielbasa sausage, and potatoes, gets its inspiration from the original and contains all its classic seasonings, including saffron, made from the pistils of crocus flowers. This is an expensive spice, but essential to this dish, and the best saffron, in my opinion, comes from Spain . I’ve also added a little tarragon at the end; although not absolutely essential, tarragon has a slight “anise” taste that I like and grows plentifully in my garden. To reinforce this licorice flavor, I always add a splash of Pernod or Ricard at the last minute, although this ingredient is optional. I serve my chicken bouillabaisse with a traditional rouille, spooning it directly onto the plates of the guests. There are a lot of ingredients in this recipe, but it is a fast, easy dish to assemble, and it cooks in about 30 minutes. It is practically a meal in itself.”

- Chef Jacques Pépin

Ingredients:

• 4 chicken thighs (about 1 3/4 pounds), with skin and fat removed
• 1 tablespoon good olive oil
• 1 tablespoon coarsely chopped garlic
• ½ teaspoon saffron pistils
• 1 teaspoon grated lemon rind
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• ¼ teaspoon fennel seeds
• ¼ teaspoon herbes de Provence
• ½ cup coarsely chopped onion
• ¼ cup coarsely chopped celery
• ¼ cup coarsely chopped carrot
• ½ can (14 ½ ounces) diced tomato (about 1 cup)
• ½ cup dry white wine
• 1 cup Manischewitz Chicken Broth
• 5 potatoes (about 3/4 pound), peeled and halved
• 1 piece kosher-type sausage (about 10 ounces), cut into 4 pieces
• 2 teaspoons Pernod or Ricard (optional)
• 3 teaspoons chopped tarragon, chives, or parsley

Ingredients for the Rouille:

• ½ of one of the cooked potatoes (see above)
• ¼ cup liquid and solids from the soup
• 2 large cloves garlic
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• ¼ teaspoon paprika
• 1 large egg yolk
• ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
• Dash of salt, if needed

Directions:

• 1. Mix the first 12 ingredients together in a bowl, cover, and refrigerate until ready to proceed. (Assembly can be done just prior to cooking or up to half a day ahead.)
• 2. At cooking time, transfer the contents of the bowl to a stainless steel pot, and add the tomatoes, wine, Manischewitz Chicken Broth, and potatoes.
• 3. Cover, bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to low, and boil gently for 25 minutes. Add the sausage, and cook for an additional 5 minutes.
• 4. Serve the bouillabaisse in warm soup plates with a spoonful of the rouille drizzled on top.

Directions for the Rouille:

Put the cooked potato half, ¼ cup soup liquid and solids, garlic, cayenne, and paprika into the bowl of a food processor, and process for 10 seconds. Add the egg yolk. Then, with the processor running, pour in the oil, and process for a few seconds, or until incorporated. Taste for salt, and add, if needed.

Adapted from a brisket recipe by Marlene Sorosky Gray, a Danville cookbook author and authority on Jewish holiday cooking. Brisket is much easier to slice when cold, so plan to make this at least one day ahead.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup dry red wine
  1 cup beef broth
  1/4 cup pure cranberry juice (unsweetened)
  1/2 cup water
  1/4 cup honey
  3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  1 onion, halved and sliced
  4 cloves garlic, minced
  2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary
  4 pounds beef brisket, trimmed of fat
  Salt and pepper to taste
  6 ounces portabello mushrooms, thickly sliced, then cut in thirds
  1 cup dried cranberries

Instructions:

• Preheat oven to 300º. In a roasting pan, whisk together the wine, broth, juice, water, honey and flour until the flour has fully dissolved.
• Stir in the sliced onion, garlic and rosemary. Season the brisket with salt and pepper.
• Place the meat in the pan, fat side up. Spoon some of the sauce over the top.
• Cover tightly and bake for 4 hours, basting every hour until tender when pierced with a fork.
• Remove from oven. Transfer brisket to a sheet of heavy-duty aluminum foil.
• Cool to room temperature, then wrap in foil and refrigerate for up to 2 days.
• Pour sauce into a bowl, cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days.
• About an hour before serving, preheat oven to 375º.
• Slice the cold brisket thinly and on the diagonal against the grain.
• Overlap slices in roasting pan.
• Remove any surface fat from the sauce, reheat the sauce and pour it over the meat.
• Add mushrooms and dried cranberries, pushing them into the sauce.
• Cover and bake until meat is heated through and mushrooms are tender, about 1 hour.

Serves 6 to 8

Try these other great brisket recipes:

Five Spice Brisket

Brisket with Apricots

This chicken dish is very popular in South Africa. There are many fast food restaurants that specialize in peri peri (piri-piri) chicken. If you’ve never tried this famous marinated chicken, get ready for a flavor sensation.

Preparation Time: 20 minutes, cooking time: 24 minutes

Ingredients

• 3 lb. whole chicken
• Olive oil, to grease
• 1 T olive oil, extra virgin
• Lemon wedges, to serve
• Peri peri marinade (bottled or made at home)
• There is an excellent bottled South African peri-peri sauce available at many American supermarkets, brand name Nando’s. It is available in mild, spicy and extra spicy. Alternatively, you make your own marinade. I recommend you use peri peri seasoning rather than hot chili flakes as peri peri is a very flavorful chilli.

Peri-Peri marinade:

• 4 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
  2 inch piece ginger, peeled, coarsely chopped
  2/3 cup olive oil
  2/3 cup fresh lemon juice
  1 T dried hot chili flakes or peri peri powder (available from South African importers)
  ½ cup chopped fresh Italian parsley

Directions:

To make the peri-peri marinade, place the garlic, ginger, oil and lemon juice in the bowl of a food processor and process until finely crushed. Transfer to a medium bowl. Add the chili flakes and parsley and stir until combined.

Place the chicken, breast-side down, on a clean work surface. Use kitchen scissors to cut along either side of the backbone. Discard backbone. Turn over the chicken and open to lie flat. Use your hands to press the chicken to flatten.

Wash the chicken well and pat dry. Place in a large sealable plastic bag. Add the peri-peri marinade to the bag and seal. Rub the bag to coat the chicken in the marinade. Place in the refrigerator overnight to develop the flavors.

• Place a large non-stick skillet on the stove top on high heat. Lightly oil the pan.
  Preheat oven to 450°F. Brush a baking tray with olive oil.
  Remove the chicken from the bag. Discard the bag and excess marinade.
  Place the chicken, skin-side down, on the skillet. Season with salt and pepper.
  Place two very clean, or foil covered bricks on the chicken to flatten it.
  The chicken should begin to sizzle immediately. Cook for 12 minutes.
  Drizzle over the extra olive oil and season again with salt and pepper.
  Transfer the chicken to the baking tray, skin-side up.
  Roast in the oven for 12 minutes or longer if necessary.
  Set aside for 10 minutes to rest before cutting into 8 pieces.
  Serve immediately with lemon wedges.