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Message: <br /><br /> If you are having trouble reading this email, you may view this article online at: http://www.jweekly.com/41013/full/41013/the-special-foods-of-times-past-dish-out-magical-memories/ <br /><br /> <b>The special foods of times past dish out magical memories</b> <br /> Thursday, January 14, 2010 | by louise fiszer <br /><br /><p>My readers know that most of my columns concentrate on food that is easy to prepare, time saving and healthy. We are always on the go, paying attention to daily exercise, so that is how our lifestyles dictate us to eat.</p> <p><img alt="fiszer" class="left" height="200" src="http://www.jweekly.com/images/uploads/column_pics/cook/fiszer.jpg" title="fiszer" width="126" />However, every now and then I get a request from my readers for a recipe still lingering in their memories that was served at a special occasion and prepared by a generation of cooks that no longer exists. They sometimes have strange-sounding ethnic names like makagigi, gugl-mugl, kichel, majadra and mamaliga.</p> <p>No amount of research that I do to recall that dish will make it taste as remembered, because the time, the place and the special cook are all ingredients that can’t be duplicated. The Jewish holidays and the Sabbath are very much tied to those special foods of our childhood, and these reflections stay with us forever.</p> <p>Here are the recipes for some traditional favorites in answer to requests that have come across my desk. Please keep them coming as I love to do the investigations.</p> <p><br /><strong>Sweet Potato Kugel</strong></p> <p>6 medium sweet potatoes, preferably Garnet or Jewel, peeled and grated</p> <p>1 large onion, finely chopped</p> <p>1⁄2 cup minced chives</p> <p>    (optional)</p> <p>2 eggs, lightly beaten</p> <p>1⁄4 cup potato starch</p> <p>1⁄4 cup matzah meal</p> <p>1⁄2 tsp. salt</p> <p>1⁄2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper</p> <p>1⁄4 cup melted chicken fat or oil</p> <p>Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 9-by-13-inch baking pan. Combine all ingredients until well blended. Pour batter into prepared baking dish. Bake until golden brown, about 1 hour. Let cool and cut into 12 squares.</p> <p><br /><strong>Carrot Tzimmes</strong></p> <p><strong>Serves 6</strong></p> <p>6 carrots, peeled and sliced</p> <p>2 Tbs. margarine or vegetable oil</p> <p>1 tsp. flour</p> <p>1 Tbs. grated fresh ginger</p> <p>1⁄2 cup fresh orange juice</p> <p>2 Tbs. fresh lemon or lime juice</p> <p>1 Tbs. honey or to taste</p> <p>1⁄2 cup golden raisins</p> <p>salt and pepper</p> <p>chopped parsley</p> <p>Cook carrots in boiling salted water until crisp tender, about 6 minutes. Drain and set aside. In a large skillet heat margarine. Stir in flour until it disappears. Add ginger, orange and lemon juice and honey. Cook until mixture thickens slightly. Stir in carrots and raisins and simmer about 2 minutes. Taste for salt and pepper. Sprinkle with parsley and serve.</p> <p><br /><strong>Kasha Varnishkes</strong></p> <p><strong>Serves 6-8</strong></p> <p>11⁄2 cups kasha</p> <p>2 eggs, beaten</p> <p>1⁄4 cup vegetable oil or chicken fat (shmaltz)</p> <p>2 large onions, chopped</p> <p>3⁄4 lb. bow-tie noodles (varnishkes), cooked and drained</p> <p>salt and pepper</p> <p>Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix kasha and eggs thoroughly, spread in a shallow pan and bake 20 minutes. Heat oil in a large skillet and cook onions until brown. Remove to a bowl.</p> <p>In a large pot cook kasha-egg mixture in 6 cups of boiling water for 15 minutes, or until all the water has evaporated. Break up kasha lumps with a fork. Combine kasha with bow-tie noodles. Taste for salt and pepper and serve.</p> <p><strong><br />Louise Fiszer</strong> is a Palo Alto cooking teacher, author and the co-author of “Jewish Holiday Cooking.” Her columns alternate with those of Faith Kramer. Questions and recipe ideas can be sent to j. or to <a href="mailto:loufiszer@aol.com">loufiszer@aol.com</a>.</p>

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