Spinach Triangles

This weekend I decided to make a really easy and delicious recipe that can be used for snacks or h'ordervs for a party. Some of these items I always have in my freezer so it makes it easy to prepare.

Spinach Mixture
1 large tomato seeded and diced
1/2 tsp kosher salt
2 sprigs oregano

2 packages frozen spinach (10 oz packages)
2/3 cup of Parmesan cheese
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1 teaspoon garlic paste
2 egg yolks


Puff Pastry
1 - package store bought puff pasty (2 pepperidge farm puff pastry sheets they come 2 per package)
1 egg yolk beaten (to seal the dough)
1 egg beaten to brush on top of triangles before baking

Preheat oven to 400 Degree's

Defrost the frozen spinach. I did this in the microwave it took 8 minutes. Drain the spinach really well so your filling is not liquid.

Seed and dice the tomatoes. Mix with 1/2 teaspoon of salt and the two 2 sprigs of oregano chopped. I let this mixture sit for a little bit so everything has time to drain.

Combine the tomato's with the spinach mixture. Add a 2/3 cup of Parmesan cheese. Mix very well and taste to see if you need to add salt or pepper. Mix in the 2 egg yolks.

Roll out the puffed pastry into 3 inch squares and I used a 1/8 measuring cup to make sure all the filling was the same amount. Place filling on 1 corner of the triangle and put some egg yolk on 2 sides to help the dough stick together.

Use the Diagonal corner of the filling to pull over ,and then seal really well. I used a fork to make sure it was completely sealed.

Place on cookie sheet and beat 1 egg and brush onto the dough. Sprinkle some Parmesan on top.

Bake in over for 20 to 25 minutes until golden brown. Then serve. These are best served hot.

Mandel Bread for Passover

This passover I made Mandel bread for the first time ever. I made one with almonds and one with chocolate chips.
Mandel bread

• 3 eggs
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup oil
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon almond extract
• 1 1/2 cups cake meal
• 1 cup chopped almonds (or 1 cup chocolate chips)
• sugar & cinnamon to sprinkle over

In the mixer I beat the eggs and sugar until light and fluffy. The eggs will take on a pale yellow color.

Add the oil, salt, and almond extract until it is well blended. I sifted the cake meal and then slowly added it to the other ingredients while still mixing.

The stir in the chopped almonds or chocolate chips.

Let the dough rest for 45 minutes. It is a very sticky dense dough. Divide the dough into two l and then shape into two loafs on a greased cookie sheet. Sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon (I forgot the cinnamon)

Bake for 30 to 45 minutes until golden brown. The first batch I made the rack was to close to the bottom of the oven so the bottoms burned.

To try and fix the problem I raised the rack and the next two batches did not burn. After it comes out of the oven you slice it on the diagonal immediately (it looks like biscotti). Then put back into the overn for 10 to 15 minutes. Every 5 minutes I flipped over the mandel bread.

It went over very well at the Seder. The chocolate was much more popular than the almond, but both kind were delicious.

Jello Shots - Orange Slices

For New Years this year I had friends over and I know my friends can never turn down a jello shot, but this time I wanted to make them look totally different.

First you want to buy some oranges, slice them in half and scoop out all the fruit . Now you are left with 2 empty orange shells. At this point use whatever your favorite jello shot recipe or just jello and fill up the halves with the liquid jello. Below is my favorite jello shot recipe.

1. Large Packet of Orange Jello
2. 1 cup hot water
3. 1 cup vodka (this should be cold)

I mix the jello and hot water to make sure all the gelatin is dissolved. Then I add my vodka. If this is to strong. Then you could substitute some of the vodka with cold water.

Place in fridge 24 hours before you plan to serve them. They need some time to really firm up.

Right before serving slice the orange halves into orange slices and place them on a platter.

Pretzels Day 2

So I attempted making the pretzels again today and wanted to share with you the photos. This time I seemed to get a better hand at the shape!

My 1st Attempt Pretzels 101

So in my first baking attempt I decided to make home made big soft pretzels.

I got this recipe from food network Bobby Flay Throwdowns.

Soft Pretzels:
1 1/2 cups warm water
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
1 package active dry yeast
3 ounces unsalted butter, melted
2 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
4 1/2 to 5 cups all-purpose flour
Vegetable oil
3 quarts water
3/4 cup baking soda
2 whole eggs, beaten with 1 tablespoon cold water
Coarse sea salt

Line 2 half sheet pans with parchment paper and spray liberally with vegetable spray. ( I didn't have parchment paper so I used one baking sheet with a sillpad and one non spray sheet pan with cooking spray the baking sheet with just the spray worked better.

Combine the water, sugar, yeast, and butter in the bowl of a stand mixer and mix with the dough hook until combined. Let sit for 5 minutes.

Add the salt and flour and mix on low speed until combined. Increase the speed to medium and continue kneading until the dough is smooth and begins to pull away from the side of the bowl, about 3 to 4 minutes. If the dough appears too wet, add additional flour, 1 tablespoon at a time. Remove the dough from the bowl, place on a flat surface and knead into a ball with your hands.

Oil a bowl with vegetable oil, add the dough and turn to coat with the oil. Cover with a clean towel or plastic wrap and place in a warm spot until the dough doubles in size, about 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Bring the water to a boil in a small roasting pan over high heat and add the baking soda.

Remove the dough from the bowl and place on a flat surface. Divide the dough into 8 equal pieces, about 4 1/4 to 4 1/2 ounces each. Roll each piece into a long rope measuring 22 inches and shape: take the right side and cross over to the left. Cross right to left again and flip up. This is where I had the most problems. I am not great at shaping them, but I did my best.

Boil the pretzels in the water solution, 2 at a time for 30 seconds, splashing the tops with the warmed water using a spoon. Remove with a large flat slotted spatula or a spider.

Place 4 pretzels on each baking sheet, brush the tops with the egg wash and season liberally with the salt. (I should have use more salt then I did) Place into the oven and bake for 15 to 18 minutes until golden brown. 18 minutes is how long I baked them for.