EST. 2011 BY LIZ RUEVEN
Cooking Heart Healthy Foods & Salmon Burgers

Cooking Heart Healthy Foods & Salmon Burgers

Invite me to a cooking class?  I am in!
 I love them all: demos, hands on, famous chefs, home-style cooks … I am eager to be inspired by some unfamiliar flavor or technique.
But with the steep cost of these classes,  I need to choose carefully.
For me that means honing in on classes that focus on using health conscious, vegetarian or kosher ingredients. While perusing the online schedule for the JCC in Manhattan, I ran into a class being taught by Jennifer Abadi called Delicious Heart-Healthy Foods.
When I saw the menu, I knew I needed to attend.
I have turned to Abadi’s cookbook/memoir, A Fistful of Lentils: Syrian Jewish Recipes from Grandma Fritzie’s Kitchen, since I received it as a gift about 10 years ago.
The instructions  are clear and succinct. The recipes are supported by cultural and holiday references along with pairings and serving suggestions.
It is timeless.
There is a highly personal introduction, filled with bits of culinary color and Abadi’s rich family history.
Her Grandma Fritzie came to America from Aleppo, Syria in 1923.
 Abadi tells the story in loving detail through anecdotes that help the reader to know her family:
“For both my Aunt Essie’s and my mother’s weddings, Grandma Fritzie did almost all of the cooking by herself, preparing months in advance and freezing whatever she could ahead of time. For the first wedding, Grandma miscalculated and there was not enough food for all of the guests. So, for my mother’s wedding, my grandmother made even more. There were 250 people crammed into their Upper West Side apartment.” Fritzie continued, “I stood and prepared so much for so long for your wedding,” she told Abadi’s mother, “that I ruined my feet and they have never been the same.
”Did someone ask for the definition of Jewish Guilt?
A convivial group of five students met in the strictly kosher, state of the art culinary studio  at the JCC on the upper west side for Abadi’s class last week.
 Recipes and ingredients were laid out in neatly organized piles along the stretch of work counter. We jumped in and selected a recipe to prepare.  Abadi and two capable assistants guided and demonstrated throughout the two hours, after Abadi gave a brief intro to the menu.
An Egyptian spice dip called DO’A involved dry roasting sesame, coriander and cumin seeds along with hazelnuts, cashews, chickpeas and peppercorns. These ingredients were crushed in a food processor and then served alongside olive oil and pita.
 This was totally unfamiliar and the group loved it.
I made the Red Lentil Soup with Garlic, Coriander and Lemon. It was delicious, simple to make and tangy with chunks of lemon wedge in the bowl, a familiar Syrian way of serving, we learned.
Fresh Salmon Burgers with Scallions, Fresh Ginger and Garlicky Dressing was another favorite.
Our group enjoyed eating our efforts after we completed the recipes.  Abadi went through them all, one last time, to highlight any specific techniques or sources for difficult to find ingredients.

If hands on cooking classes are your thing, I suggest you take a look at the fantastic offerings at the JCC in Manhattan’s Patti Gelman Culinary Arts Center and consider finding a class that entices you.

Note: The Heart Healthy class was cleverly offered in February, Heart Awareness Month.

The schedule of classes at the JCC, Manhattan range from one time events to culinary boot camps for varying levels. The seasons and holidays offer a rhythm for the themes so take a look at the schedule if you want to prepare for something in particular.
Jennfer Abadi’s next class is “Mouthwatering Make Ahead Seder” presented on March 19 at 7 PM.  She will share recipes for Seder items that can be prepared in advance and stored in the refridge or freezer. Items like Moroccan charoset “truffles” with dates, raisins and walnuts, Syrian Meatballs with tomato and cumin sauce and Italian ground almond and pignoli nut macaroons will be be taught.
Let me know if you want to attend and I’ll try to meet you there!

15 Comments

    • Hi Shelly,
      You can substitute fresh tuna in place of the salmon. However, if you use canned salmon or canned tuna, you might need to adjust the egg/breadcrumbs ratio as the texture will be a bit different. Grilling on a barbeque might be difficult since the can be delicate and hard to flip over. Also, pieces may fall into the grill. If you try to put on the grill, make sure it is well greased and hot to prevent sticking.

      Reply to this comment

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SIDE DISH
Photo by Jerri Graham Photography

Hi. I’m Liz and I welcome you to Kosher Like Me.

When I’m not caressing fruits and veggies at my local farmers’ market you’ll likely find me chatting with like-minded eaters, probing the scene in NYC or seeking inspiration in my spice cabinet. Life outside of this blog is all about my family, tasty travel adventures and power walks deep in the CT woods or along the shore.

Please brew a fragrant cup of tea, grab a nosh and stay a while.