How to choose the best cuts of meat? An exclusive with Le Marais

I was really beginning to question my sanity. The streets of NYC were covered in snow and frozen slush, and at every curb there were ice-filled puddles that looked like they were at high tide. Yet there I was, leaping over them, trying to get to one of my favorite restaurants, Le Marais , to learn “How to Choose the Best Cuts of Meat” – and on a Friday no less! Anything for my readers and a good story; at least that’s what I told myself. And, as I turned the corner on 46th Street (right into a gust of Nordic blast), I saw the famed iconic sign for Le Marais and all thoughts of turning back disappeared. I’m glad I hung in there, because the frigid weather outside was no match for the warm greetings awaiting me as soon as I walked in the door and was greeted by chef and owner, Jose Meirelles, and the butcher, Dominique Courbe. After offering me a cup of tea, Jose and Dominique sat down to talk to me and tell me their secrets to consistent great food.

Jose, pronounced Joe-say, now a very successful chef and restaurateur came to the United States from Portugal over thirty years ago. His first job in America was as a private driver for a family in NY. It turned out the family also needed someone to cook for them so he began cooking their meals and discovered that he was not only a good cook but that he enjoyed it. Jose then pursued his culinary passion at the French Culinary Institute. He has subsequently owned a number of successful restaurants in the non-kosher world. With all the challenges that come with opening a kosher restaurant, I asked him what made him explore the kosher option.

He had been approached many times to consider opening a kosher restaurant, he explained, but he resisted. The tipping point came when he discovered that kosher butchers were not aging the meat properly (or at all), creating meat cuts that were tougher and had less flavor. That was more than he could bear and gave him the opening he needed. If Jose knew anything, it was how to age meat and what that meant to the flavor of a meal. The second ingredient in creating success at Le Marais was partnering with Dominique, his butcher extraordinaire. Dominique comes from a large family of butchers and uses French techniques in cutting each piece into the gorgeous cuts you see behind the counter at Le Marais (GKC can’t wait to share the video we created with Jose and Dominique on cutting the perfect pieces of meat and selecting the right type to prepare- it’s coming soon).

Le Marais uses both dry and wet aging techniques to intensify the meat flavor and ensure a perfect texture. I got to see first-hand the stages of aging that the large racks of meat rest on. The longer the meat is aged, the more intense the flavor. In the aging process, the outer parts of the meat become extremely dry creating a cocoon for the flavorful piece on the inside. The dried exterior becomes the most amazing beef jerky you have ever had (buy it at Le Marais and taste for yourself) and the interior is cut into extraordinary pieces ready for grilling, braising, pan-searing, or any easy preparation. Jose recommends simple pan-searing with olive oil, garlic and kosher salt or very slow braising in wine, shallots, and chicken stock.

Another secret I learned…well, you’ll have to tune in to next week’s blog to discover it! In the meantime, try the recipes from Le Marais at www.gourmetpassovercooking.com

What to do with leftover Purim candy? If hiding it, consuming it all in 24 hours, or sending it with your husband to work are not your strategies, then we have a few ideas to help make good use of the ingredients. (Remember the local schools love wrapped, marked candy donations to use as treats for the kids – check with your local school. In New York, JEP (the Jewish Enrichment Program) collects the wrapped, marked candy at many of the schools in the tri-state area to use for their kiruv programs. If you do not have a collection at your school you can mail it to them at JEP 110 Rockaway Turnpike, Lawrence, NY 11559.)

If your pantries are too full and you would like to make good use of some of the candy, try these recipes.

Candy Bar Blondies
Tootsie Roll Cheesecake
Hershey Bar Banana Treat
Potato Chip Baked Chicken

1 cup butter or margarine
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
6 (1 3/4 ounce) chocolate covered candy bars, chopped and divided (any kind of candy bar is fine, or m & m’s)

Beat margarine or butter and sugars in large bowl with electric mixer at medium speed until light and fluffy. Blend in eggs. Mix in flour, baking soda and salt.
Reserve 1/2 cup chopped candy for topping; stir remaining candy into flour mixture. Spread into 13 x 9-inch baking pan; sprinkle with reserved 1/2 cup candy.
Bake at 350 degrees F for 25 to 30 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool in pan on wire rack. Cut into squares.

1 2/3 cups graham cracker crumbs
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar, divided
1/4 cup butter, softened
32 ounces cream cheese, softened
6 eggs
1 cup dairy sour cream
Juice of 1 lemon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
8 ounces Tootsie Rolls
1/3 cup whipping cream

Combine graham cracker crumbs, 1/4 cup of sugar and the butter; mix well. Lightly butter a 1O-inch round, 2-inch deep cake pan (do not use spring-form pan as the batter is too thin). Press crumb mixture evenly into bottom of pan.

Beat cream cheese with remaining 1 1/4 cups sugar until smooth, scraping sides of bowl often. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add sour cream, lemon juice and vanilla extract, beating well until smooth.

Melt Tootsie Rolls in top of a double boiler; stir in cream, then add to cream cheese mixture, mixing well. Pour over crust. Place cake pan in another large, deep pan; pour water around cake pan to a depth of about 1 1/2 inches. Bake in a 300 degree F oven for about 2 hours or until center is set and a wooden pick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool, then chill several hours or overnight.

To remove from pan, heat outside of pan slightly and cake will drop out. Re-invert onto serving platter.

1 banana
1/2 Hershey candy bar
2 large marshmallows
Aluminum foil

Cut bananas from one end to the other but not all the way through the bottom skin. Cut marshmallows in half and put into the cut banana. Put the half of candy bar in between the marshmallows. Wrap with aluminum foil and place in oven (or on hot coals in a barbecue for about 5 minutes).

Serve with a spoon and eat right out of the peel.

1 chicken, cut in 1/8’s
1/2 cup margarine
Garlic salt
Potato chips, crushed

Melt the margarine in a baking pan and add the garlic salt. Roll the chicken pieces in the margarine and place in a baking dish. Sprinkle with crushed potato chips (fully coating the chicken). Bake uncovered for 1 hour at 350 degrees.

It wouldn’t be Purim without hamantashen, the three-corner pastries shaped like the evil Haman’s hat. They are an expression of our wish to completely “consume” our enemies – and fun for the kids to boot. We are always searching for the best hamantashen recipes (Let us know which one you prefer or sent in yet another!) We have listed a variety here – some of our favorites and some contest entries – for you to try. Rolling out the dough is a bit of an effort so it’s wise to try to make them in advance – but be sure to save some for Purim!!
These cookies are traditionally filled with prune, poppy or fruit fillings (see recipes below) but can be filled with any preserve or filling of your liking. Be creative; try peanut butter and marshmallow fluff for your kids, or homemade applesauce with cinnamon for the apple pie lover)

3 cups flour
½ cup finely ground almonds
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup sugar
Zest of 1 lemon
½ pound unsalted margarine or butter
1 egg
2 tablespoons cold water
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Hamantashen Fillings: (recipes follow)
1 egg white, lightly beaten

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl of an electric mixer, combine the flour, almonds, baking powder, salt, sugar, and lemon zest. Blend or cut in the butter until the mixture resembles very fine crumbs.

In a small bow, beat the egg, water and lemon juice until well blended. Add to the flour mixture and beat until completely blended and the mixture begin to form a dough. Do not over mix.

Transfer to a floured board and knead the dough into a ball. Divide the ball into 6 equal portions for easier handling. Flatten each portion with the palms of your hands and roll it out to ¼ inch thick. With a scalloped cookie cutter or the top of a water glass, cut into 3 ½ inch rounds. Place 1 heaping teaspoon of filling in the center of each round. Fold the edges of the dough toward the center to form a triangle, leaving a bit of the filling visible in the center. Pinch the edges to seal them.

Place the hamantashen on a lightly greased foil-lined baking sheet and brush with egg white. Bake fro 20 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool and eat.

Hamantashen Fillings
Apricot-Coconut
2 cups apricot preserves
½ cup shredded coconut
½ cup chopped nuts like walnuts, toasted
Grated zest of 1 lemon

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.

Prune Filling
1 ¼ cups pitted prunes
½ cup raisins
Sweet wine or water
½ cup sugar
Juice and zest of 1 lemon
Zest of 1 orange
½ cup walnuts, toasted

In a large bowl, soak the prunes and raisins in enough wine to cover for 3 hours or overnight. Drain well. Chop or mince the prunes and raisins. Add the sugar, lemon juice and zests, and walnuts and mix well. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.

Poppy Seed Filling
4 ounces poppy seed
½ cup pareve milk
1 tablespoon unsalted margarine or butter
¼ cup seedless raisins
¼ cup walnuts, toasted
1 tablespoon honey
½ teaspoon vanilla extract

In a medium saucepan, combine the poppy seeds, pareve milk, margarine, raisins, walnuts, and honey. Bring to a boil and stir over medium heat until the pareve milk is absorbed and the mixture thickens. Cool. Stir in the vanilla.

Chocolate Filling
½ cup cocoa
½ cup sugar
¼ cup pareve milk, pareve cream or coffee
1 cup nuts, toasted

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and blend thoroughly.

The next recipe was submitted by Sarah Faygie Berkowitz. I think I’m going to try it this year.

Easy Hamentashen w/ Gourmet Fillings
Ingredients:
1 Duncan Hines Cake Mix (lemon, chocolate, butter golden, yellow strawberry,etc…)
1 cup white whole wheat flour (or regular)
2 eggs
2 tablespoons water
(Note the absence of oil, margarine or butter!)

Gourmet Filling Options:
Apple Pie: chopped apples and walnuts, cinnamon and sugar

Cappucino: Nestle’s Iced Jave syrup and a few chocolate chunks or chips Strawberry Daiquiri: Strawberry Preserves (or cut up fresh strawberries) and a shot of Strawberry Daiquiri Syrup Peanut butter and Jelly: A 1/2 spoonful of each side by side Lemon Zest: a small spoonful of lemon pie filling and grated lemon zest Cranberry Pecan: A scoop of whole cranberry sauce (chopped fresh or frozen cranberries optional) and chopped pecans

Cooking Instructions:

Mix all ingredients well with an electric mixer. Roll out dough to desired thickness. Cut out circles using a yartzheit glass or other round shape.

Place spoonfuls of filling, pinch corners together, place on parchment paper or greased cookie sheet and bake 12 – 15 minutes, depending on desired firmness and oven accuracy.

Other Tips/Notes:

TIPS:

This dough really needs to be mixed in a kitchen aid. I tried by hand and only got crumbs and thought it was yet another defective recipe. The mixer made a perfect dough of my crumbs in about 4 seconds. The trick is to try to roll it out evenly on a floured surface (thick or thin – however you like it). One of the beauties of this dough is that you don’t have to pinch it to death to keep the filling contained. It doesn’t open up and ooze out like some other recipes I’ve tried.

Note:

I’ve waited my whole life for this recipe. I’ve made dozens over the years and none of them were what I wanted. I got the fillings down pat (anything but prune) but the great dough eluded me. Back in Atlanta, I suddenly remembered tasting a hamentash a neighbor had made years ago. I called her, and here it is in all its simple glory (if you’ve seen it before and everyone and her sister knows this one, don’t burst my bubble. Just be happy for me.)
This one is from Shoshana Ohriner
Recipe : Cranberry White Chocolate Hamentashen

Ingredients:
1/2 cup margarine, cut into 8 pieces
1/2 cup shortening, cut into 8 pieces
3 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup chopped nuts
1 teaspoon orange zest
2 beaten eggs
2-4 tablespoons orange juice
1 egg + 1 tablespoon water, lightly beaten

Cranberry White Chocolate Filling
1 12 oz bag cranberries, fresh or frozen
1/2 cup orange juice
6 tablespoons sugar
4 oz white chocolate chips

Cooking Instructions:

Pulse the dry ingredients in the food processor until well combined. Add the margarine and shortening and pulse until mixture resembles a coarse meal.

Add beaten eggs and pulse until combined.

Remove the from the food processor and pour into a large bowl. Sprinkle with two tablespoons of orange juice and mix until it comes together into a ball.

If the dough seems dry add the remaining orange juice.

Divide the dough into two disks, wrap each disk in plastic wrap and refrigerate for one hour.
While the dough is chilling make the filling. Place the cranberries, orange juice and sugar in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat and simmer, stirring frequently, until all the cranberries have popped.

Remove from heat and add chocolate chips. Stir until they are melted. Let filling cool to room temperature.
Roll out dough and using a round cutter, cut into circles. Fill each circle with a small amount of filling. (For 2 inch circles use about a teaspoon of filling). Brush each circle with the egg wash and fold two sides together, pinching tight to make a corner. Fold up the remaining side to make a triangle with the filling showing in the middle and pinch the other two corners well. It is important that they are well pinched, so that they do not come open in the oven.
Bake at 350 until they are slightly firm to the touch, about 11 minutes.

And here is Rochel Lieberman’s submission:

Recipe : American Embassy Hamentashen
Ingredients:
Dough:
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup shortening
2 cups flour, sifted
1 egg, beaten
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 tablespoons Orange Juice
1/4 teaspoon salt

Filling:
(either prepared or home-made)

Cooking Instructions:

Sift together sugar, flour, baking powder, and salt. Work the shortening in by hand (you can also do this in a food processor). Add the egg and orange juice, mixing until a dough is formed. Chill overnight, if possible, or at least 2 hours. Prepare Filling.

Roll out dough ~ 1/8th inch thick on a lightly floured surface. Cut into 3″ circles, and place 1 heaping teaspoonful of the filling on each. Pinch 3 edges together, leaving a small opening in the center. Place on a greased and floured cookie sheet, cover with a towel and let rest for 1/2 hour. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and bake for 20 minutes, until delicately browned on top. Transfer to cooling rack until completely cool. Can be frozen, but don’t expect to find too many left for Purim!
Other Tips/Notes:

When we lived in Mexico in the 1980’s we became close friends with a giyores tzedek who was on diplomatic post in the American Embassy, She often brought us “treats” from the commissary, including her own baked goods that used “American” (i.e. unavailable to us) ingredients. This is her recipe, which we have enjoyed making for years afterwards, now that we are back in the US and have access to kosher ingredients. Enjoy!

You asked and we responded (Isn’t that what all the magazines say?!). We are very excited to introduce GKC’s health and nutrition section. Dr. Simone Stromer will be writing about the health benefits of different food trends – this week we focus on red wine (I hope it will be chocolate next week!) – and soon all the heart-healthy or weight-watching recipes will be marked with an appropriate icon. If you have great healthy recipes to share, please send them in. And if you have other ideas on how we could improve our site, we welcome those also. So enjoy our new section but don’t worry – we will continue to have some great Shabbos (and weekday) indulgences!

Living in NY and running Gourmet Kosher Cooking (with my Bff Emuna) has many perks besides thinking about food and being in touch with all our terrific readers. Last Monday night at Chelsea Pier was a big one.

As readers of GKC know, the “Kosher Restaurant and Wine Experience” produced by GKC’s friends at Royal Wines, arrived in NY on Monday and by Tuesday Gotham needed to go on a diet! Seriously. Tevere’s baby artichokes greeted you at the door and by the time we made it to our first glass of wine, yours truly had eaten foods from three different continents and that was at just the first table. A very special thank you to Gary Landsman, our wine contributor at Royal Wines for inviting GKC to what was by all accounts a wonderful night for those of us who love delicious food and great wine.

Royal wines showcased all of the wines that they produce (what don’t they produce??) plus other labels that they distribute. It was amazing. We tasted wines from around the world, and with loving advice from GKC’s best friend at the Wine Spectator, Miriam Laufer, we were directed to the newest and best wines to try. From Spain we fell in love with the Capcanes Peraj Ha’abib, (I know, try and say that ten times fast) and from Napa the Covenant label has emerged with three new wines. Our favorites were the Chardonnay and the Red C Cabernet (this is what kosher wine is meant to be). Other wine favorites to keep in mind were the new Reserve from Alexander, the Herzog Clone #6 Edition and the Carmel Mediterranean, savory, rich and not too overwhelming. Most of these wines were bottled in limited quantities so they may be hard to find over time. GKC was also happy to see their friends from Flegman’s wines carrying on the tradition of their father who started making wines a century ago in Hungary. (You can buy any of these wines at a discount here, through www.onlinekosherwine.com (use coupon code DFXJQW).

In addition, to fantastic wine there were a few restaurants that stole the show. I am so excited to introduce Chef Moses Wendel who is opening a new restaurant in Crown Heights in three weeks called Basil. His food was beautiful to look at and tasted divine. He served a Tuna Tartare with Saffron, Smoked Paprika, and Green Olive Puree and Chocolate Truffles with Cocoa Nib and Rum, Skewered with Coconut Anglaise Pipette. Fumio, a restaurant in Livingston, NJ served some delicious short ribs. The meat just fell off the bone and was layered in subtle flavors of tomato, garlic and soy. People waited on lines for the warm Pastrami by Pomegranate Market. Their homemade hummus is worth traveling to Brooklyn for. A special treat turned out to be a new surprise called My Brother Bobby’s Salsa from the Hudson Valley. If you want it fresher than Bobby’s you’re going to have to pick the ingredients yourself. The cantaloupe salsa was delish! It was great to see one of the legends of the kosher dining world Chef Jeff Nathan, serving some of my favorites from Abigael’s. And finishing the gastronomic extravaganza with a flavored coffee and light biscotti by NoiDue made for a perfect evening. Don’t miss the event next year. GKC will be sure to give you plenty of warning… You’re going to want to be there!!

It’s that time of year when we get the blahs. It’s the middle of winter, Chanukah is long gone and Purim isn’t quite in sight. We all need a little pick-me-up. And I can think of nothing better than jewelry to do the trick!! Ester Shahaf has earrings for all ages – some are good Bas Mitzvah gifts, some suit your older teens and some you may like yourself. She also has some beautiful and fun necklaces. Check out our SHOP necklaces; you can help Israeli artists and yourself at the same time. Her bright colors will certainly help chase the blues away!