Jewish Cuisine

A history lesson on a plate.

Jewish food is not just for sustenance. It’s a history lesson on a plate. Through old recipes we learn about Jewish history, culture and religious practices. A recipe is a window into a world, a reflection of a way of life, as important as a historical document in its way as a treaty or declaration of war. And it doesn’t hurt that it tastes good too!
   Brisket is one of those traditional standby dishes we turn to for holidays and celebrations, but it is far from exclusively Jewish. “Every country, every community, every culture, every family seems to have a brisket recipe,” writes Stephanie Pierson in “The Brisket Book, A Love Story with Recipes” (Andrews McMeel, $29,99). “Brisket isn’t some snobby dish you can’t pronounce or afford. It’s not posh—rarely has a truffle ever gone into the making of one. In a world of Rachel Zoe makeovers, brisket is as content bathed in Heinz ketchup as it is nestled in a day-after taco. It’s so simple and forgiving that even the worst cook can make a good one.”
   Because our peasant ancestors in eastern Europe could not afford the more tender cuts, they had to make do with far cheaper brisket, shank and offal, usually served only for holidays and Shabbat and stretched with other ingredients. In America cooks began using new commercially available products like onion soup mix, chili sauce, canned cranberry sauce, even Coca-Cola, which, according to legend, was the inspiration of an Atlanta Jewish family’s black cook. 
   Despite brisket’s skyrocketing prices and the current health-conscious avoidance of red meat, brisket remains a comfort food for many with frequent appearances at family gatherings. In America brisket has been prized by non-Jews as well for braising, barbecue, smoking and curing. And when it comes to any of those techniques, award-winning author and TV host Steven Raichlen wrote the book—literally—31 books in all, including the international best sellers “How to Grill,” “Barbecue Bible,” “Planet Barbecue” and “Project Smoke.” With his Slam Dunk Brisket from “Project Smoke” (Workman, $22.95) he turns shtetl fare on its head by hot-smoking it. Smoking has become the new grilling, and leave it to this Barbecue Hall of Famer to show you how to smoke everything from vegetables, cocktails, to even desserts.
   If you remember, as I do, your grandmother stretching strudel dough on a card table covered with tea towels, you tend to think of strudel as another shtetl holdover. Actually, many food historians consider it derived from Sephardic baklava and savory pastries such as borek. Shira and Rabbi Chef David Trakhtman take it back even further on Aish.com: “Over a thousand years ago, before refrigeration existed, central Asian nomads began rolling unleavened bread very thin, and without moisture, so that it could travel well under dry conditions. When it came time to eat, the dry dough was sprinkled with water and left to refresh for 10 minutes. And then, poof! The original puff pastry!” The Turks brought the technique to Europe, adding oil and fillings. Hungarians began expanding the fillings and rolling it, “and when Hungary was absorbed into the Austrian Empire the dough rolled with the times, and strudel was born!”
   The word “strudel” descends from the German word for “whirlpool,” a nod to the rolled pastry’s swirled filling. The dough is very elastic and stretchable—according to purists, you should be able to read a newspaper through it. Not your grandma’s strudel, but delightfully craveable is The Sweet Cheese and Fig Strudel from “Little Book of Jewish Appetizers,” a darling collection of 25 unique appetizers by Leah Koenig (Chronicle, $18.95). I sometimes prefer these little palate teasers to the main course. “They are like the comedian who warms up the crowd before the featured act and ends up stealing the show,” she writes. Serve the strudel as is or with a dollop of sour cream and an extra drizzle of honey.”

Slam Dunk Brisket

The secret is in the smoking.

Yield: Serves 15 to 18

 1 first-cut (flat) brisket (6 to 8 pounds) 

1/4 cup Dijon mustard (optional) 

1/4 cup dill pickle juice (optional)

Coarse sea or kosher salt and cracked black peppercorns 

Beer (optional)

Favorite barbecue sauce, for serving 

 1. Trim brisket, leaving 1/4-inch-thick cap of fat on top. Place brisket on sturdy baking sheet. Mix pickle juice and mustard, if using. Squirt or brush mixture on brisket on all sides, slathering it over the meat. Very generously season all over, including ends, with salt and pepper. 

2. Set up smoker following manufacturer’s instructions and preheat to 225° to 250°F. If smoker has a water pan, fill it with water or beer to a depth of 3 inches. If it doesn’t have a water pan, fill an aluminum foil pan with water or beer to a depth of 3 inches and place it below rack on which you’ll be smoking brisket. (Note: You don’t need to do this on a ceramic cooker.) Add wood as specified by manufacturer.

3. Place brisket fat side up in smoker. Cook until outside is darkly browned and internal temperature registers 175°F on an instant-read thermometer, 8 to 10 hours. (Don’t panic if temperature seems to stall around 165°F; this is normal.) Replenish wood as needed.

4. Remove brisket from smoker and tightly wrap in butcher paper. Return it to smoker and continue cooking until internal temperature is 200°F and meat is tender enough to pierce with a gloved finger or a wooden spoon handle, an additional 1 to 2 hours, or as needed. (You’ll need to unwrap brisket to check it.)

5. Transfer wrapped brisket to an insulated cooler and let rest 1 to 2 hours. Unwrap brisket and transfer to cutting board. Pour any juices that accumulated in butcher paper into a bowl.

6. To serve, trim off any large lumps of fat and slice brisket across grain into 1/4-inch-thick slices (or as desired). Spoon juices over slices. Barbecue sauce? Not necessary, but serve on the side if you want it.

Source: “Project Smoke” by Steven Raichlen   

Sweet Cheese and Fig Strudel

A sweet little appetizer for a dairy meal.

Yield: 8 to 10 servings. 

1 cup ricotta cheese

3 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature

1 egg yolk

2 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

3/4 cup dried mission figs, stemmed and finely chopped

1/4 cup black raisins

2 tablespoons honey

1/4 cup orange juice

1/2 cup dry red wine

3/4 cup unsalted butter

16 sheets thawed frozen phyllo dough

1. Spoon ricotta into center of clean dish towel; squeeze out as much liquid as possible. Transfer to bowl; Stir in cream cheese, egg yolk, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt until smooth. Refrigerate.

2. Meanwhile, combine figs, raisins, honey, orange juice, and red wine in small saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, turn heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally and gently mashing fruit with back of wooden spoon, until figs are tender and liquid mostly evaporates, 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from heat; cool completely.

3. Preheat oven to 400°F. Line large baking sheet with parchment paper.

4. Melt butter. Lay piece of parchment paper on flat surface and place one piece of phyllo on top. (Cover remaining phyllo with damp dish towels so they do not dry out.) Using pastry brush, brush sheet of phyllo all over with thin layer of melted butter. Top with another sheet of phyllo and brush with butter; continue until you have a stack of 8 sheets of buttered phyllo. Reserve remaining 8 sheets.

5. Spoon half the cheese mixture in a thick line along a short end of phyllo stack leaving about 1/2 inch along edge. Layer half the fig mixture on top of cheese mixture. Use parchment paper to help roll dough around filling, tucking filling inside and ending up with long, stuffed cylinder. Brush top with more melted butter; carefully transfer to prepared baking sheet. Repeat with remaining 8 sheets and butter, and remaining cheese and fig mixtures.

6. Bake until golden, 20 to 30 minutes. Let cool. Use serrated knife to cut into thick slices. Serve at room temperature.

Source: “Little Book of Jewish Appetizers” by Leah Koenig

Jlife Food Editor Judy Bart Kancigor is the author of “Cooking Jewish” (Workman) and “The Perfect Passover Cookbook” (an e-book short from Workman), a columnist and feature writer for the Orange County Register and other publications and can be found on the web at www.cookingjewish.com.