Now that summer is truly upon us and our air conditioners are on full blast, I decided to prepare you a fun set of recipes that include the color yellow in honor of the bright happy sun that we welcome every morning. All four recipes are easy to make, look stunning, and taste absolutely delicious.
The first recipe is for spicy shakshuka, cooked on top of tortillas. I recently purchased mini pans so that I can prepare individual shakshuka pans for each person.
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The way to concoct this newly improvised recipe is by lining each mini pan with a tortilla and when you’ve finished cooking the shakshuka vegetables on the stovetop, you pour a bit of the mixture on top of each tortilla in the mini pans.
Next, add one egg to each pan and then bake all the pans in the oven at the same time. It’s quite impressive when you serve each person their own individual pan of shakshuka.
The second recipe is for cherry tomatoes with thyme and garlic. This is a great side dish that goes perfectly with any main dish you choose to serve, as well as with fluffy dinner rolls, which is the third recipe I’m bringing you today. These rolls are perfect for scooping up any leftover sauce on your plate.
The fourth recipe is for airy cheesecake with apricot or peach halves that are covered with jello and then topped with creamy icing. This is the perfect cold dessert to serve on a hot day.
Spicy Shakshuka with Tortillas
Serves four
- ¼-½ cup oil
- 2 spicy peppers, cut into small pieces
- 2 sweet peppers, cut into small pieces
- 8-10 cloves garlic, crushed or chopped
- 1 onion, chopped finely
- 5 medium ripe tomatoes, cut into medium pieces
- Salt, to taste
- 1-1 ¼ level Tbsp. spicy paprika
- 4 eggs
- 4 tortillas
- Olive oil spray
Heat the oil in a large frying pan over a high flame. Add the peppers, garlic, onion, and tomatoes, then mix everything and lower the flame.
Sauté the vegetables until they’ve begun to soften, stirring every so often. Season with salt and sauté for another 7-10 minutes. Add the spicy paprika and sauté for a few more minutes.
Line each of the four small pans with one tortilla, then spray them with a light layer of olive oil. Add a bit of the vegetable mixture on each of the tortillas and then flatten the mixture.
Crack an egg in the center of each pan, being careful that the yolk remains intact. Put the pans into an oven that has been preheated to medium heat. Bake for 5-10 minutes, until the egg whites have solidified, and the tortillas have begun to brown. Remove and serve immediately with fresh bread.
Level of difficulty: Easy.Time: 40 minutes. Status: Parve.
Cherry Tomatoes with Thyme
Makes 4-6 servings.
- 1 box multicolored cherry tomatoes
- 1 large head of garlic
- 2-3 sprigs thyme
- Olive oil
- Salt and pepper, to taste
Remove the stems of the cherry tomatoes, and arrange them in an ovenproof dish. Cut the garlic into 2 pieces, and add these to the pan with the tomatoes. Drizzle olive oil on top and add the thyme sprigs. Season with salt and pepper.
Cover the pan with baking paper, then a layer of aluminum foil, and bake in an oven that has been preheated to 180-190° for 20 minutes, until the tomatoes have softened. Be careful not to overcook them, so that they don’t come out too mushy. Serve immediately.
Level of difficulty: Easy.Time: 15-20 minutes. Status: Parve.
Pull-Apart Dinner Rolls
Use a 24cm or 26cm pan.
- 3 cups flour, sifted
- 1 Tbsp. dry yeast
- 1 Tbsp. sugar or honey
- ¼ cup oil
- 1 cup water, room temperature
- ½ tsp. salt
Egg wash:
- 1 beaten egg + 2-3 drops of oil
To the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a dough attachment, add the flour, yeast, sugar, and oil and begin mixing. Gradually add the water. Continue mixing for 2 minutes until the dough is smooth. Add the salt and continue mixing for 4 more minutes.
Place the bowl with the dough in a warm place to rise for 1 hour, or until the dough has doubled in volume. Separate the dough into 14 or 15 equal-sized pieces and roll each piece into a ball shape.
Place the dough balls in a greased pan so that they’re all touching each other. Place the pan in a warm place and let the dough rise for another 15 minutes. Brush generously and gently with the egg wash, then place in an oven that has been preheated to 180° for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out dry and clean. Remove and let cool on a wire rack.
Level of difficulty: Easy-Medium.Time: 1 hour (not including rising time). Status: Parve.
Apricot or Peach Cheesecake
Use a 24cm or 26cm diameter pan.
- 3 containers (75 gr.) 5% white cheese spread
- 1 container sour cream
- 5 eggs, separated
- 3 packets of vanilla sugar
- 1 Tbsp. lemon zest
- 3 Tbsp. flour, sifted
- 1 cup sugar
- 10-12 apricot or peach halves from a can of preserves, drained
- 1 package apricot flavored jello
Icing:
- 1 container (250 ml.) sweet whipping cream
- 1 package vanilla instant pudding powder
- 1 cup milk
Add the white cheese spread, sour cream, egg yolks, vanilla sugar, lemon zest, flour, and half of the sugar to a bowl. Mix until smooth.
In a separate bowl, whip the egg whites with an electric mixer at high speed. Once the egg whites begin to firm up, slowly and gradually add the rest of the sugar. Mix until stiff peaks form.
Fold one-third of the egg whites into the cheese mixture, then another third, and then the rest. Gently mix.
Transfer the mixture into the pan and bake in an oven that has been preheated to 200°, for 10 minutes. Then, lower the heat to 170° and bake for another 40 minutes, or until a toothpick stuck in the middle of the cake comes out dry and clean. Remove and let cool.
Arrange the apricot or peach halves on top of the cake. Prepare the jello according to the directions on the box. Once the jello begins to harden, pour it on top of the apricots so that it forms a layer on top of the fruit pieces.
Before adding the icing, use a knife to separate the cake from the side of the pan.
To prepare the icing, add the sweet whipping cream, instant pudding powder, and milk to the bowl of an electric mixer and beat on high speed until the cream is smooth. Transfer the cream to a pastry bag with a serrated tip, then squeeze out the icing all around the top and side of the cake, decorating the cake with whatever shapes and design you desire. Store in the fridge until serving.
Level of difficulty: Medium.Time: 2 hours. Status: Dairy.
Translated by Hannah Hochner.