A tasty alternative

No need to survive on fried matza all week. Here are a few gourmet recipes cooked up by the head chef of the Jerusalem Cooking Institute.

By CHEF YOCHANAN LAMBIASE
Quinoa stuffed veges and pears (photo credit: Anatoly Michaelo)
Quinoa stuffed veges and pears
(photo credit: Anatoly Michaelo)
Passover is a week long and there are endless dinners and lunches to prepare.
Don’t rely only on the leftovers from the Seder night. Try a few innovative dishes for those days when matza is no longer a novelty.
POTATO GNOCCHI WITH GARLIC CREAM SAUCE Serves 4
✔ 800 gr. potatoes, washed, peeled and quartered ✔ Salt and ground white pepper ✔ 1 egg, lightly whisked ✔ 300 gr. potato flour ✔ Potato flour, to dust
Add enough water to a saucepan to reach a depth of 3 cm. Bring to a boil over high heat. Place potatoes in a metal steaming basket. Place steamer in saucepan (make sure base of steamer doesn’t touch the water). Steam, covered for 15 minutes, or until tender. (It’s best to steam rather than boil the potatoes.) Transfer to a bowl and use a potato masher to mash until smooth.
Season with salt and pepper.
Passover 5772: Click for JPost special features
Passover 5772: Click for JPost special features
Add the egg and stir with a wooden spoon until combined. Add half the flour and stir until combined. Add the remaining flour, in two more batches, until well combined and a firm dough forms. (If dough is too soft, add more flour.) Turn onto a lightly potato-floured surface and knead until smooth. Line a baking tray with nonstick baking paper. Divide dough into 4 equal portions. Roll one portion into a 2 cm.
diameter log about 30 cm. long. Use a lightly floured knife to cut into 2 cm. pieces.
Repeat with remaining dough portions.
Lightly flour your hands and roll each piece of dough into a ball. Use your thumb to roll each ball over a floured fork. Place on tray.
Bring a saucepan of salted water to a boil over medium heat. Add one-quarter of gnocchi (drop onto base of pan in a single layer, but don’t overcrowd as they can stick together) and cook for 3 minutes, or until they rise to the surface. Use a slotted spoon to drain and transfer to a bowl. Cover with foil to keep warm. Repeat, in 3 more batches, with the remaining gnocchi.
Garlic cream sauce ✔ 2 cups heavy cream ✔ 2 tbsp. chopped garlic
✔ Dash salt and pepper ✔ 1 Tbsp. butter
In a small saucepan, saute garlic in a small amount of butter until soft but not brown, for about a minute.
Add the cream, bring to a simmer. Add the salt and pepper to taste.
Let the sauce simmer, reduce and become thicker for about 10 minutes.
EGGPLANT AND BEEF ROLLATINI WITH TOMATO SAUCE Serves 10
✔ 24 plum tomatoes ✔ 2 Tbsp. olive or vegetable oil ✔ 1 medium onion, minced ✔ 1 Tbsp. salt ✔ Large eggplants, peeled and sliced 1⁄2 cm.lengthwise ✔ 1 tsp. salt ✔ Tbsp. olive or vegetable oil ✔ 2 kg. ground beef ✔ 1 large onion, minced and sautéed, if desired ✔ 8 eggs, whole ✔ 1 Tbsp. salt Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
Remove the stems from the tomatoes and using a sharp paring knife score the bottoms with an X. Blanch the tomatoes for about 10 seconds until the skin begins to fall off. Remove immediately and place in a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking.
Chop the tomatoes finely. Heat a large heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat with 2 Tbsp. oil.
Add onions and cook until they begin to soften. Add tomatoes and season with salt.
Bring to a boil and cover. Cook over low heat for 11⁄2 hours, stirring occasionally.
Place eggplant on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Brush with oil and season with salt.
Bake in a 200º oven for about 15 minutes, until soft. In a large bowl combine remaining ingredients. Work together using your hands until the meat mixture thickens and the egg is incorporated into it, about 3 minutes. Place some meat filling onto a slice of eggplant and roll over. Place seam side down in a greased baking pan.
Pour tomato sauce over rolled eggplant and bake covered in a 180º oven for 25 minutes.
Uncover and bake an additional 10 minutes.
RED TUNA WITH BROCCOLI AND SPRING ONIONS Serves 4 ✔ 1 kg. red tuna fillet, skinned and cut into 4 pieces ✔ 11⁄2 cups broccoli, divided into small florets ✔ 6 scallions, sliced into 5-cm.lengths ✔ 1⁄2 cup chopped tomato ✔ 1 Tbsp. paprika ✔ 1⁄2 tsp. hot paprika ✔ 2 tsp. olive oil, divided ✔ non-stick cooking spray ✔ 1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice ✔ 2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced ✔ 1 tsp. minced sage ✔ salt and pepper to taste
Season tuna pieces with salt, pepper and paprika. Put 1 teaspoon olive oil and non-stick cooking spray in a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the tuna fillets and sauté on both sides for a total of 6 to 8 minutes, or until the fish is opaque and it flakes with a fork.
Remove the tuna from the skillet, set aside and keep warm.
In a pot of boiling water, add the broccoli and boil for 1 minute. Add the scallions and boil 1 more minute. Drain and rinse with cold water. In a bowl, mix together the broccoli, scallions and chopped tomato.
Combine the remaining 1 teaspoon of olive oil with lemon juice. Garnish with lemon slices, garlic and sage. In the skillet in which you cooked the tuna, add the vegetables and oil and lemon juice mixture. Heat for 1 minute. To serve, set the tuna on a plate. Top with the vegetables and pour any remaining pan juices on top.
SWEET POTATO CANNELLONI Serves 6
✔ 3 medium sweet potatoes (about 450 gr.each) ✔ 3⁄4 cup low-fat cottage cheese ✔ 3⁄4 cup diced apple (skin on) ✔ 3 Tbsp. chopped fresh chives ✔ 1 piece (56 gr.) Parmesan cheese, half grated and half shaved ✔ 1⁄4 tsp. coarse salt ✔ Freshly ground pepper, to taste ✔ Vegetable-oil cooking spray ✔ 1 Tbsp. walnut oil ✔ 1⁄3 cup chopped toasted walnuts (about 30 gr.)
Preheat oven to 190º. Wrap 1 sweet potato in parchment, and then in foil. Pierce several times with a fork. Bake until tender, about 1 hour. Let cool. Reduce oven temperature to 180º. Meanwhile, peel remaining sweet potatoes. Using a mandoline or a chef’s knife, cut potatoes lengthwise into very thin slices until you have 30 slices.
Trim each to a 5 x 10 cm. rectangle.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add half the sweet potato slices, and cook until tender, for about 2 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, place slices on a baking sheet to cool slightly. Repeat. Remove peel from baked sweet potato, and puree flesh in a food processor until smooth. Add cottage cheese, and puree until smooth.
Transfer potato-cheese mixture to a large bowl. Stir in apple, chives, grated Parmesan, salt, and pepper. Coat a 23x32-cm.
baking dish with cooking spray. Place 1 heaping tablespoon filling in center of a sweet potato slice, and roll up. Place, seam side down, in dish. Repeat. (Cannelloni can be refrigerated, covered, overnight; bring to room temperature before baking.) Brush oil over cannelloni. Bake until heated through, 10 to 15 minutes. Sprinkle with walnuts and shaved parmesan.
The recipes are courtesy of The Jerusalem Culinary Institute, 6 Yad Harutzim Street, Jerusalem www.jcichef.com