Imberlach Recipes

IMBERLACH

Steps:

• Mix the flour, ginger, and eggs to make a dough. Set the dough aside until it dries.
• Boil the honey and sugar until it gets a reddish color.
• Beat the dough into the honey, set back on stove, stirring constantly.
• When the mixture is thick and has a reddish color, place on the board to cool.
• Roll and cut into two-inch lengths.

KREPLACH

Steps:

• Mix together the flour, eggs, and salt, as if making pasta. You will probably need to add about 5 to 6 tablespoons of water to reach the desired elasticity in the dough. Work it on a floured board, kneading for about 10 minutes. When it's smooth and elastic, pull it into something resembling a square. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature for about 20 minutes.
• Place the chicken fat in a heavy saute pan over high heat. Add the onions and saute until the onions are medium-brown, about 10 minutes. Place the onions in the work bowl of a food processor, and add the sliced beef and allspice. Puree until smooth. Taste, and season well with salt and pepper.
• Roll out the kreplach dough into a large square, about 1/4-inch thick. Cut into smaller squares, about 2-inches each. You should have about 24 squares. Divide the beef mixture among them, placing a tablespoon or so of the beef mixture on the center of each square. Triangular kreplach are traditional; fold each square once to form a triangle, then pinch the edges with your fingers. You could also make square or rectangular kreplach, depending on how you fold and pinch.
• To cook the kreplach, drop them in a pot of boiling chicken soup. Traditionally, they are cooked for half an hour or so, until the noodle is soft. An alternative, giving the noodle a more AItalian@ bite, is to cook them for 15 minutes. Serve the kreplach in soup, 3 to 4 to each bowl.
• Note: Though it is traditional to serve these kreplach in chicken soup (3 to 4 per bowl), they can also make a terrific Jewish Apasta@ dish. For authenticity's sake, you can't use dairy products in the sauce but a thickened saute of mushrooms (in a vegetable oil, of course) would be a great topping
• Drink: Seltzer

RUGELACH

Steps:

• Cream the cheese and butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until light. Add 1/4 cup granulated sugar, the salt, and vanilla. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour and mix until just combined. Dump the dough out onto a well-floured board and roll it into a ball. Cut the ball in quarters, wrap each piece in plastic, and refrigerate for 1 hour.
• To make the filling, combine 6 tablespoons of granulated sugar, the brown sugar, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, the raisins, and walnuts.
• On a well-floured board, roll each ball of dough into a 9-inch circle. Spread the dough with 2 tablespoons apricot preserves and sprinkle with 1/2 cup of the filling. Press the filling lightly into the dough. Cut the circle into 12 equal wedges?cutting the whole circle in quarters, then each quarter into thirds. Starting with the wide edge, roll up each wedge. Place the cookies, points tucked under, on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Chill for 30 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Brush each cookie with the egg wash. Combine 3 tablespoons granulated sugar and 1 teaspoon cinnamon and sprinkle on the cookies. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until lightly browned. Remove to a wire rack and let cool.

RUGELACH

Steps:

• Cut cold butter or margarine and cream cheese into bits. In food processor pulse flour, salt, butter or margarine, cream cheese and sour cream until crumbly.
• Shape crumbly mixture into four equal disks. Wrap each disk and chill 2 hours or up to 2 days.
• Combine sugar, cinnamon, chopped walnuts, and finely chopped raisins (may substitute miniature chocolate chips for raisins).
• Roll each disk into a 9 inch round keeping other disks chilled until ready to roll them. Sprinkle round with sugar/nut mixture. Press lightly into dough. With chefs knife or pizza cutter, cut each round into 12 wedges. Roll wedges from wide to narrow, you will end up with point on outside of cookie. Place on ungreased baking sheets and chill rugelach 20 minutes before baking.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C).
• After rugelach are chilled, bake them in the center rack of your oven 22 minutes until lightly golden. Cool on wire racks. Store in airtight containers...they freeze very well.
• Variations: Before putting the filling on the dough, use a pastry brush to layer apricot jam as well as brown sugar. Then add the recommended filling. You may also make a mixture of cinnamon and sugar and roll the rugelach in this prior to putting them on the cookie sheets.