by Judith Segal
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It's always difficult to find a suitable addition to a traditional holiday menu. Say "Chanukah" to any Jewish housewife of Ashkenazic descent and the one word response certainly would be "latkas." Yet to take latkas, also known as potato pancakes, and make them into a full meal needs more than just applesauce.
Latkas themselves, made only of onions, potatoes and eggs, are "parve," and so they can be served with either meat or dairy meals. It is important to remember, however, that the single ingredient in the latka that makes it symbolic of Hanukah is the oil in which these pancakes are fried. Chanukah is a holiday celebrating oil, of course, that tiny amount of oil which barely should have made it through the night, but instead was sufficient to burn for eight days, lighting the way for the brave Maccabee warriors. And so, thousands of years later, we light our own Menorahs every night for eight nights to remember this miracle, and we eat foods cooked in oil as part of the commemoration.
Still, the potatoes that are integral to these latkas are not integral to the holiday of Chanukah itself. It simply was that the potatoes were plentiful and cheap in the area of the Diaspora in which the Jews of Europe lived during the last few hundred years. In contrast, the Israelis use that same oil to fry doughnuts. And Italian Jews use that oil to make fried chicken, Italian-style.
A great side dish to complement this Chicken Italiano would be Eggplant in Tomato Sauce. On the excellent genealogy website, www. jewishgen. org, there are many discussion forums. One particular topic addressed last year on a JewishGen forum revolved around the classic recipe for "Potlegel," an eggplant salad which had originated in Romania. Based on the enthusiasm with which this delicacy was discussed, Potlegel obviously is well-loved by Jews whose ancestors, a century ago, had resided all over Eastern Europe. Nonetheless, one participant sent an e-mail from Israel saying that, with the exception of the Romanians, no Ashkenazic Jews ever had tasted eggplant in Europe, that European Jews did not learn to eat eggplant until they relocated to Israel-and that American Jews certainly never consumed this vegetable. She then offered her mother's recipe for "Brejunes," a corruption of "Aubergine," which is the French word for "eggplant." With the addition of cheese, her recipe was exactly the same as the classic Italian "Eggplant Parmigiana." Without cheese, her version, which is parve, can be served at either dairy or meat meals. A multitude of discussion group members, however, took exception to her theory. They wrote in to inform the Israeli, politely but firmly, that Jews all over Eastern and Middle Europe had enjoyed eggplant, as do the Jews of America today.
The Eggplant in Tomato Sauce can easily be turned into Eggplant Parmigiana, a dairy main-dish, simply be covering it in cheese and baking it for a few minutes before serving. A cheese dish seems especially appropriate, since cheese, too, plays a significant part in the Chanukah story. Judith, a woman of valor, tempted the Syrian general Halifornios with salty cheese. Generously, she quenched his thirst with wine, enough wine to make him sleep. She killed him and the Maccabees succeeded in overcoming the Syrian-Greeks.
The renowned Renaissance artist, Titian, a resident of the city-state of Venice, became enchanted by the story of the valiant Judith and painted her portrait many times, showing her helping to conquer the Syrians.
Don't forget, Chanukah lasts eight nights, so there is plenty of time to try all of these recipes. Oh, and each of them would go nicely with...latkas!
All recipes copyright 2001 by Judith Segal, "The Kosher Gourmet," New York. All rights reserved.
Recipes provided for personal use only. Recipes may not be resold or included in any published collections without the express written permission of their owner, Judith Segal; recipes may not be stored in retrieval systems and/or databases, or reproduced and/or transmitted by any means whatsoever, electronic or otherwise, without the express written permission of their owner, Judith Segal.
The word "recipe" as used here is defined to include, but not be limited to: ingredients, both specficity and order, and/or language of instruction, and/or cooking techniques as recommended.
Eggplant Parmigiana is the Fried Eggplant recipe above topped with cheese. The two cheeses used are Parmesan ("Parmigiana") cheese, a hard nutty cheese similar to Swiss cheese, and mozzarella cheese, which is the melting cheese that tops pizza. Both of these cheeses are available "Cholov Yisroel." The richness of the cheese makes this dish suitable to be a main-dish. Additional ingredients: 2 cups grated Parmesan cheese 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese Use a large baking pan such as a lasagna pan. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F. Place a film of tomato sauce on the bottom of the pan. Next, place half of the fried eggplant slices in a single layer in the pan. Sprinkle with half of the grated Parmesan cheese and add half of the tomato sauce. Repeat another layer with the remaining eggplant slices, grated Parmesan and tomato sauce. Spread the shredded mozzarella over the top. Bake for about 10 to 15 minutes, until the mozzarella is golden and bubbling. Serve with a green salad with Italian salad dressing. Serves 8.
This recipe is better known as "Chicken Limone," and it really works best with skinless, boneless chicken breasts. Still, for families where the dark meat is preferred, the bone may be left in the thighs and legs, but the skin still should be removed prior to cooking. The thicker the piece of chicken to be fried, the deeper the oil needs to be. Pieces of cutlet that are not more than about 1/2 inch thick can be saute'ed in only about a half inch of oil. Thicker pieces do better being "deep-fried" in several inches of oil, which is a trickier technique for the inexperienced cook. The garlic powder in the batter is suggested because the original recipe called for grated cheese, and dairy products are not permissible in meat dishes under the laws of kashruth. This garlic powder, then, replaces some of the texture that the cheese would have added to the batter. Be sure to use only garlic powder, however, not any of the other processed garlic products such as garlic salt. 3 pounds of skinless, boneless chicken cutlets 8 eggs 1/4 cup minced parsley 2 tablespoons dried oregano 2 tablespoons garlic powder, optional 4 cups of all-purpose flour, approximately vegetable oil for frying, approximately 2 cups For Garnish: lemon slices (optional) Trim the cutlets of fat and gristle. Place on a board (preferably a dishwasher-proof board to sterilize after use) and place a piece of waxed paper over the cutlets. Using a mallet or the flat side of a small frying pan, gently pound the cutlets so that they are no more than 1/2 inch thick. Cut into pieces about 3 inches wide and 6 inches long. In a large, deep bowl, beat the eggs well. Add the parsley, the oregano and the garlic powder if desired. Mix well. Place the flour in a large, shallow bowl. Dip each piece of chicken in the flour and shake off any excess. Place into the egg batter and leave submerged. Repeat until all the chicken pieces have been used and added to the bowl of batter. Refrigerate the chicken at least one hour, or overnight. When ready to cook, take a large, heavy frying pan, about 12-14 inches in diameter. Add about 1/2 inch of vegetable oil. Over medium heat, heat until the oil shimmers. Using tongs, add the chilled chicken pieces in a single layer. Watch the pan carefully to make certain that the oil does not begin to smoke. The oil should be bubbling gently at all times. After about 3 minutes, turn the chicken pieces with the tongs. Cook 3 minutes more and remove the cooked pieces to a platter. Cut into chicken to make sure that the centers are cooked through; if not, increase the time the chicken is in the pan. Repeat until all of the chicken pieces have been used, adding more oil to the frying pan as necessary. The chilled batter will "seize"when hitting the hot oil, sticking to the chicken. The cooked pieces of battered chicken should be golden-brown. Garnish with lemon slices, if desired, and top with the sauce for which the recipe follows.
Use any good chicken stock available, whether home-made or prepared. Start the sauce before cooking the chicken. Bring it to a boil and then reduce the heat so that the sauce simmers for the whole time that the chicken is being cooked. The amount of liquid should reduce by about a half, and the sauce should be thick and shiny. By using lemon juice and grated rind, the "pith," which is that spongy white part of the lemon between the skin and the fruit, is removed. Putting regular lemon slices, including pith, into the sauce will make the sauce bitter. 4 cups of good chicken stock juice of 6 fresh lemons, approximately 1 1/2 cups grated rind of 2 lemons (optional) 12 tablespoons margarine 4 cloves of garlic, finely minced, or to taste 1/2 cup minced parsley salt and pepper to taste Combine all of the ingredients in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and allow to simmer for about 45 minutes. Serve with a green salad. Serves 8-12.
