Wednesday, May 24, 2006

Knish

I used a recipe from the good ol' New Farm Vegetarian Cookbookto make knishes for lunch today. A knish (kuh-NISH) is an Eastern European/ Jewish pastry with a savory filling like mashed potatoes or kasha. These little knishes are filled with mashed potatoes, grated carrot, and peas.

Above the knishes are orange slices and some blanched yellow wax beans. For dessert I baked another batch of muffin-sized Vegan Chocolate Babka. I hadn't forgotten my promise to post the recipe in honor of Double Helix (and vegan bakers everywhere!) but wanted to make them again first to make sure I had the recipe quite down. My husband thinks I should bake babka several dozen more times, just to make really, really sure.

Verdict: "Give Me A Little Knish, Will Ya Huh?" Hee. Shmoo ate all the beans first, but only finished three of his knishes. The babka didn't even live to see lunchtime -- it was eaten up at morning snack time. 4 stars.

22 comments:

NorCalMrs said...

Looks yummy! I was so excited to come across your blog. I have just become a vegetarian, thinking about becoming vegan as well. Your blog actually makes me excited about it, rather than overwhelmed at the thought of a whole new lifestyle!

Thank you!!! Keep up the great work!

NightOwl said...

That lunch looks fabulous--as always! Those little knishes are so cute. And that Babka--YUM!!

Eat Peace Please said...

This looks absolutely amazing! I love the filling you put in the knishes and I love how everything is tucked into one! And that dessert, well... I would have gobbled it up right away as well. It looks awesome!

tanvi said...

Were the babka hard to make? Ever since I had chocolate babka in New York, I've been itching to have more but none of my local bakeries sell it. I like your version, since they're all muffin-sized

PS. The knishes look great!

Pixie said...

*Bookmarks Page* I came across this from another blog. I have so much trouble finding nice things to eat in the US . The UK is full of veggie products, and everything is clearley marked "suitable for vegetarians" from sauces, to potato chips to baked beans and soups. I had to get used to reading labels here. They often put chicken broth in vegetable soup here. Whats the point!

Everyday Superhero said...

The knish look so wonderful. Great job!

Suzanne MacNeil said...

oh thanks so much for posting the babka recipe! You're my hero!

Perfect weekend project!

Marnely Rodriguez-Murray said...

yummy. those knish look yummy...do u put any type of seasonings in the fillings? and those oranges...i dont know...the color is amazing. yum yum.

funwithyourfood said...

I used to work at a kosher bakery and we had great knishes.. I've always wanted to try an make some. Thanks for the recipe. : )

Teddy

Mia said...

Your blog has helped me make sure that I eat more veggie based foods. I am even actually even considering make the switch over to a total veg diet. When I do cook veg, most everything I make is actually vegan.

Jennifershmoo said...

I find we get tired of eating the same thing if it's served more than once and I love to cook, so I do usually halve large recipes. I only made a half-batch of the knish, for example.

I made a full batch of the babka and gave some of the mini-loaves as gifts. I find gifting is a nice way to keep our dessert consumption under control.

selena said...

hey heather,
check out the FAQs in the sidebar. the soy issue is thoroughly addressed.

Tere said...

Hi Jennifer!
Wow, that lunch looks so good. You have a great way of putting things together. I was wondering about the Knish pastry, and the pastry you use to make similar "pocket-like" things--is there are name to this kind of pastry?
Tere

Rachael said...

my list of cookbook "must haves" just keeps growing, mostly thanks to this blog. thanks for all the good suggestions and great meal ideas! i'm looking for easy to make and easy to eat food ideas and every day, the lunchbox is full of them!

Adv. Blogger said...

Thanks for new good recipe! Knishes look delicious. And other yummy stuff with tomato is
Tomato Garlic Soup with Tortellini!

Jennifershmoo said...

>>I was wondering about the Knish pastry, and the pastry you use to make similar "pocket-like" things--is there are name to this kind of pastry?

It really depends. This particular pastry was made with mashed potatoes, flour, oil, and baking powder. It was light, chewy, and tender. Other stuffed hand pies have used yeasted pizza-type dough, like the Italian calzones. Many others have used a regular pie crust, like the Cornish pasties and empanadas. These were more flaky, buttery, and crisp.

Jennifershmoo said...

>>They are called srazy: much like pirojki, but with a mashed potato dough instead of the traditional dough

Thanks! That sounds a lot like the dough for these knishes, too -- lots of mashed potato. I love the tenderness of potato dough.

funwithyourfood said...

Have you ever made samosas? I'd assume it's similar to a knish with different spicies. I'd LOVE to try a recipe if you've got one!


Teddy

Sion Barry said...

Hi Jennifer

Honestly, do you ever get days when don't have the energy to create a new dish to amaze us with?

A lunchbox cousin.

KleoPatra said...

Oy vey! :o) Looks good as always.

Sarah said...

knishes!!! kasha is my fav but potato is good too :)

1/2 portions are a great idea! my dh doesn't do leftovers (weird)

Sam said...

check out www.savetheknish.org Be a part in saving these precious furry creatures being slaughtered to make tasty pastry!!!