Being away for most of May didn’t give me a lot of time to decide what to make for Shavuot this year. I decided to keep it simple and not over do it. My menu was:
Salad of baby mixed greens with nectarines
Trout stuffed with dried apricots and pistachios
Mashed potatoes with basil
Steamed broccoli
All of the dishes were delicious. I have to admit the trout dish really caught my eye because of the unusual stuffing. I would have never have thought that apricot and pistachios should be stuffed inside of any fish, but it really married well with the trout. The sour apricots and the crunch of the pistachios lent such a nice flavour to the mild flavour of the trout. I will definitely make this again.
- 25 g/1oz white breadcrumbs
- 55 g/2oz dried sour California apricots, finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons parsley or coriander finely chopped
- 40 g/1-1/2 oz pistachio nuts finely chopped
- 55 g/2oz melted butter
- Salt and pepper
- 2 fresh whole trout gutted and rinsed
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Preheat the oven to 180C (350F).
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Place the breadcrumbs, apricots, parsley, pistachios, half the butter, salt and pepper into a bowl and mix well.
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Place each of the trout on a large sheet of buttered foil on a baking tray. Spoon half the mixture into each of cavities. Brush the trout with the rest of the melted butter and enclose the foil around each of the fish to form two parcels. Place the tray into the oven for 25-30 minutes. Remove from the foil and serve.
I know you are going to say that every French baker is going to sentence me to death for making brioche with whole wheat flour, but I have to tell you that the bread was delicious. Okay, it wasn’t as delicate as regular brioche, but it is was still very tasty.
- 1/2 cup hand-hot water
- 1 tablespoon dried yeast or 25g fresh yeast
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 6 large eggs room temperature
- 4-1/2 cups whole wheat flour or white flour for traditional brioche
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 226 g 2 sticks butter, at room temperature
- 1 cup of mixed dried fruit such as cranberries, raisins, apricots
- 1 egg mixed with 1 tablespoon milk for egg wash
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Combine the water, yeast and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment.
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Let stand for five minutes to let the yeast and sugar dissolve.
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Add the eggs and beat at medium speed for one minute, until well mixed. At low speed, add two cups of flour and the salt. Mix for five minutes. Add an additional two cups of flour and mix for five minutes. Still on low speed, add the softened butter in chunks and mix for two minutes, scraping down the beater and sides of the bowl, until well blended. Sprinkle in the remaining 1/2 cup of flour.
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Use the dough hook or knead the dough by hand for two minutes. Scrape the dough into a large buttered bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate overnight.
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The next day, allow the dough to sit a room temperature for one hour. Grease two loaf pans. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured board and cut in half. Pat each portion into a rectangle, then roll up each rectangle into a cylindrical loaf. Place each loaf, seam-side down, into a greased pan. Cover the pans with a damp towel and set aside to rise at room temperature until doubled in volume, 2 to 2-1/2 hours.
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Preheat the oven to 180C (350F). When the dough has risen, brush the top of each with the egg wash and bake for approximately 45 minutes or until the top springs back and it sounds slightly hollow when tapped. Turn the loaves onto a wire rack to cool.
Torta di Chioccolata al Forno con Vaniglia e Nocciola (Perugian-style chocolate hazelnut cheesecake)
This cheesecake is to die for! I used Israeli 5% white cheese instead of cream cheese and it was just as creamy, but with a lot less calories. I am not a big chocolate eater, but this was made with 60% bittersweet chocolate and it was just sweet enough. I really liked that this recipe did not call for a lot of sugar and the hazelnuts really make the cake. I felt like I was eating a Perugina Baci. Smacking delicious it was.
Chag Sameach everyone!
Shalom Cousin! It looks like you had a delicious hag. Oh, if only I could find such a nice-looking trout here in New Jersey… On the other hand, I am absolutely going to replicate your brioche and cheesecake around here!
Welcome back. Your menus always look so enticing. And inspiring. And delicious.