Bubbes are magical, and luckily, not mythical, creatures. Long before J.K. Rowling created Bert Bott’s Every Flavor Beans or Butterbeer, bubbes were creating matzoh ball soup to fill your stomach and warm your soul. We might not have lightning bolt scars, but we have kneidlach.

Everyone has their own version of the dish. Some make it with noodles, others like their matzoh balls the size of bowling balls, and then there are those who prefer more vegetables then liquid. Let’s not forget the timeless debate over floaters and sinkers—the question of whether matzoh balls should be fluffy and float above the soup or dense and sink to the bottom of our bowls.

Ultimately, it doesn’t matter what side of the argument—there’s a reason why Jewish delis may not abide by the traditions of kashrut, but observe the tradition of matzoh balls with the utmost strictness. While it is often served on Passover, the cold winter days are prime matzoh ball soup season.

Growing up, my mom would ask my sister and me each week what we wanted featured on the Shabbat menu, and matzoh ball soup was always on the top of the list. During the winter months, we told our mom that we wanted soup to warm us up. During the summer months, we claimed it was hot outside so we wanted it to be hot inside too. That’s because matzoh ball soup is magic. When you eat it in the winter, it transfers you to a better place, like your bubbe’s kitchen perhaps. So why not become her favorite grandchild and take her and that soup on an exotic vacation—like the Caribbean!

That’s exactly what this recipe does. By adding some traditional Caribbean ingredients like coconut milk and cinnamon, you’ve boarded the plane. This recipe is a play on your bubbe’s traditional soup served Friday night and a pumpkin chicken soup served in Jamaica every Friday afternoon. It has matzoh balls much like the ones you remember eating at the Seder but the ginger and fresh coriander leaves help create a new memory. Instead of just having chicken in your pot, this recipe adds some fresh pumpkin, a handful of spices, and coconut milk in order to create a refreshing new chicken broth.

The flavors in this dish are much more powerful than the traditional bland chicken soup, and show just how much can be done with a timeless classic in the modern kitchen. Caribbean food is big on strong spices that can sometimes be a bit intense for some, the coconut milk not only helps cool down the soup but also provides an interesting flavor not often found in matzoh ball soup. The soup emits a powerful aroma that will fill your kitchen not only with its scent, but with hungry customers.

Not Your Bubbe’s Caribbean Matzoh Ball Soup
Serves about 8

Ingredients:
Spiced Matzoh Ball
1\2 tsp ginger
1\2 cup unpacked cilantro, diced
4 large eggs
1\4 cup seltzer
1 1\2 tsp salt
1\4 tsp black pepper
1 cup matzoh meal

Caribbean Chicken Soup Broth
1\2 tbsp allspice
1\2 tbsp turmeric
1\2 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp ginger
4 shallots, thinly sliced
5 garlic cloves, chopped
2 cinnamon sticks
2 bay leaves
1 1\2 lb pumpkin, cut into bite sized pieces
3 cups coconut milk
5 cups of chicken bouillon
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. To make your matzoh balls, whip all your ingredients, except your matzoh meal, together in a medium bowl.

2. Once the ingredients are combined well, add the matzoh meal. Be careful to mix your batter evenly in order to prevent clumps of matzoh meal sticking to the sides.

3. Refrigerate your batter for at least 1 1/2 hours.

4. Once you are ready, boil a medium pot of salted water. After it reaches a soft boil, continue by creating balls out of the batter in the palm of your hand.

I recommend wetting your hands in order to prevent the batter from sticking. The balls should be no bigger than a ping pong ball in order to prevent you from serving your guests beach balls with their soup.

5. Let your matzoh balls cook in the boiling water for about 40 minutes or until they have nearly doubled in size and are floating above the water’s surface.

6. While you wait for the matzoh balls to cook, start preparing your soup. Set a large pot over a medium heat and toast your spices until they become fragrant.

7. Add the shallots and garlic to the pot. Cover the pot and cook them covered until they begin to soften.

8. Add the rest of the soup’s ingredients to the pot and allow your soup to reach a soft simmer.

9. Add your spiced matzoh balls to the pot in order for them to absorb some of the soup’s flavors.

10. Cook your Caribbean chicken soup broth for about 40 minutes, until the pumpkin has softened.

Also try:

Not Your Bubbe’s Tu B’Shevat Seder

Not Your Bubbe’s Downton Abbey Viewing Party

Not Your Bubbe’s Recipe: Almond Olive Oil Cake

The post Not Your Bubbe’s Recipe: Blizzard-Friendly Caribbean Matzoh Ball Soup appeared first on Jewcy.

Maybe you haven’t heard, but it is officially the time of year when we are bombarded by pumpkin-flavored seasonal treats. While this is a largely seasonal phenomenon, in certain Jewish circles the reach of squash pie knows no bounds.

I had never heard of this dish until I got to college. Our first week there, we were all trying to make friends and play nice, so when a few girls decided to put together a Shabbat dinner in the dorm, somehow it became a 50-person meal. A few people pitched in to make chicken, I made a ton of green beans (which became my assignment for the rest of the year); there was challah and grape juice. But as I looked around the room checking out people’s food so I wouldn’t have to remember their names, I noticed that squished onto paper plates between the chicken and the green beans was a slice of something bright orange.

The mystery food, of course, was squash pie. I’m still not sure if it’s because my home was too traditional or not traditional enough, but as far as I could tell pies were—and still are—dessert foods. My dad grew up in a meat-and-potatoes household, where every dinner had at least two vegetables complementing the plate. My mom’s home cuisine was a fusion of her varied heritage—Cuban with dashes Hungarian and Romanian.

My childhood was basically a mix of both—we always had two vegetables and something green, but not quite so “all-American” since instead of meat loaf the entree was usually albondigas or chicken paprikash. In other words, squash pie did not factor into weekly menu plans. While the dish is made from vegetables, these veggies are loaded up with margarine and brown sugar and plopped into a graham cracker crust. Last time I checked, sweet potato pie was a dessert—so why isn’t squash pie? We’ve already covered how we feel about serving dessert as a side dish.

But that’s not to say you can’t have a little sweetness with your meal. And certainly the idea of a baked custard or pudding side dish has a long history at Jewish dinner tables. To make this dish fit in with the main course, eliminate the crust (or at least replace the graham cracker with your favorite savory crust). Next, the margarine and sugar have to go. In order to appease those of you who are certainly cringing at the desecration of this sweet treat, this recipe takes squash pie in an entirely new direction by giving it a Mexican spin and placing it squarely in “side-dish territory.” Honey is commonly used as a sweetener in Mexican cuisine and here it is used to provide smoothness and balance to the final product. The recipe also calls for a variety of traditional Mexican spices, such as cumin and oregano. This warm and whole-heartedly fall food is now ready to share a plate with your chicken. If you want to carry the theme out, pair the squash dish with a chicken cooked in mole sauce. Or, if you really need to have a pie, put it in your favorite crust and serve it for dessert.

Not Your Bubbe’s Squash Pie
Serves 6

Ingredients:

2 pounds winter squash, peeled and cooked
2 eggs, beaten
½ cup whole wheat pastry flour
¼ cup honey
1 teaspoon cumin
½ teaspoon chili powder
¼ teaspoon dried oregano
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. Heat the oven to 350F. Spray a 9-inch baking dish with nonstick spray.

2. In a medium bowl, mash or blend the cooked squash.

3. Add eggs, flour, honey, cumin, chili powder, oregano, cinnamon, salt, and pepper. Mix until combined.

4. Pour batter into the prepared baking dish. Sprinkle with cinnamon and a drizzle of honey.

5. Bake uncovered for 30-40 minutes until the mixture has set and it is beginning to turn gold/brown.

Also try:

Not Your Bubbe’s Kasha Mac and Cheese

Not Your Bubbe’s Honey Chiffon Cake

Not Your Bubbe’s Kibbeh Agemono

The post Not Your Bubbe’s Recipe: Squash Pie appeared first on Jewcy.