No! Don't take out that
box of "Quick Dinner Fix
Up" and "Inflatable
Mashed Potatoes." Skip
the dehydrated stuff,
forget about your favorite
restaurant, and give these
kosher delicacies a try.
POLYNESIAN RICE
3 green onions, sliced
2 T diced pimentos
2 T chopped parsley
2 T margarine
2/3 cup uncooked rice
1/2 cup crushed
pineapple
1/2 cup water
1 cup pineapple juice
1/4 cup chopped
toasted almonds
salt to taste
were the minor problems of
yesterday's kosher chefs.
Today's culinary artists
must deal with the added
dilemma of how to match
dietary restrictions with
the desire for fancier,
lighter meals.
Many of the caterers say
they turn to the old depen-
dable: the cookbook.
Albert Rosenberg has
more than 700 cookbooks,
including a 100-year-old
gem called Queen of the
Household.
"Of course, you'll find
recipes (in the older books)
that call for 'one shell size'
of some ingredient," he
says. "You wonder, 'What,
a pecan shell? A gun
shell?"
Magazines and trade
shows provide ideas. Some
culinary schools are will-
ing to share their favorite
dishes. Another source of
recipe wisdom is the diners
themselves.
"Customers really do br-
with such delicacies as
pareve sour cream, bacon-
flavored beef strips and
even pseudo shrimp, made
from white fish.
Paul Kohn grimaces at
the very thought.
"No fake shrimp," he
says resolutely. "I don't
want to go ersatz. It will
never be as good as the real
thing, so why do it?"
"Anything can be done,"
Mr. Tewel says. "But that
fake shrimp is pretty
atrocious to those used to
eating the real thing."
Pareve sour cream,
however, gets thumbs up
from the experts and is a
valuable tool in many of
their recipes.
"As good as the real
thing," Mr. Tewel says.
The key, the men agree,
is in being flexible. Ever
eager to please the
customer, the caterers say
they'll try just about any
recipe that can be adapted
to the laws of kashrut.
and offer it to friends," Mr.
Linker says. The next stop
may be serving the new
creation as an appetizer or
at a small gathering.
Though the vast majority
of Sperber's clientele are
chicken lovers, even the
most adventurous chicken
fan may raise an eyebrow
at the thought of bird cook-
ed in hazelnut liqueur, a
Sperber specialty. Mr.
Linker urges them to give
each new taste sensation a
try anyway, "and they
seem to come around."
What none of the caterers
need worry about is dragg-
ing out reactions from their
customers.
"Let me tell you about
our Jewish people," Mr.
Rosenberg says. "They are
not shrinking violets."
The Rosenbergs' office
wall at Adat Shalom Syn-
agogue is covered with
photographs of satisfied
customers, both the
average Joe — or Yoseph —
taste so good."
ing in recipes," Jeff
Rosenberg says.
"We do a lot of experi-
menting," Mr. Tewel says
of his innovations. His re-
cent creations have includ-
ed saffron rice and grape
leaves and lentil soup for a
Morroccan-style buffet.
At some point, all great
kosher chefs must consider
the most perplexing of all
questions: to fake it or not
to fake it? The kosher food
market today is flooded
"What we don't do is say
`no' to anything," Jeff
Rosenberg says. Among
the Rosenbergs' latest spe-
cialties: snow cones and
vegetarian chili.
"It's a question of inter-
pretation," his father adds.
"You name it; we serve it.
It's all in the flavoring."
The employee is often the
first to experiment — for
better or worse —on a new
dish.
"We try it out on the staff
and the famous dinner
speakers.
There's singer Barry
Manilow, who requested a
takeout order of egg rolls
for the band, and
Evangelical minister Billy
Graham. Photos show
columnist George Will —
"he got a big crowd,"
Albert Rosenberg recalls —
and Sen. Edward Kennedy.
Winston Churchill's
grandson is pictured, too.
One of the elder
Saute onions, pimento
and parsley in margarine
for 2 minutes. Add rice,
crushed pineapple, water
and pineapple juice. Cook
until rice is done (about 6
minutes). Salt to taste and
top with almonds. Serves
four.
— From Sperber's
Kosher Catering
BROILED
HONEY CHICKEN
2 broiler chickens split
juice of 2 lemons
or 6 T lemon juice
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/2 cup honey
1/4 lb. margarine
1 tsp. ground
rosemary leaves
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
Sprinkle both sides of
broilers with lemon juice,
salt and pepper. Brush
both sides lightly with
honey. Blend margarine,
rosemary and garlic
powder. Place chicken,
skin side down, on broiler
pan. Spread half the mix-
ture over the chicken and
broil for 20 minutes. Turn
and spread remaining
mixture on the other side
of chicken. Broil an addi-
tional 20 minutes or until
done. Serves 4-6.
— From Farmington
Meadows Kosher
Catering
HALIBUT
PACIFIC COAST
4 oz. boneless
cured halibut
cut into 1 oz. pieces
1 4" twig of rosemary
2 sprigs
rosemary leaves
Skewer halibut on
rosemary twig.
CURE FOR HALIBUT
1 oz. salt
1 tsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. ground bay leaf
1/2 tsp. ground allspice
1 tsp. paprika
1/2 tsp. ground clove
1 tsp. ground
white pepper
Mix together. Rub over
halibut. Wrap in clear
wrap for two hours.
GARNISH
1 T tomato 1/4" diced
peeled and seeded
1 T pineapple
1/4" diced
1/2 T minced rosemary
2 T cooked black beans
BLACK BEAN
SAUCE
1/2 cup cooked
black beans
1/2 cup halibut stock
2 minced shallots
2 cloves minced garlic
2 T lime juice
1 T tomato puree
1/4 serrano chili
minced
1/2 tsp. curry powder
1/4 tsp. cumin
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
Saute shallots and
garlic until golden. Add
chilis, spices, lime juice
and tomato puree. Heat 2
minutes. Process with
black beans until smooth.
Adjust seasoning. Add
bean broth to pouring
consistency.
Put halibut skewers in
preheated 375-degree
oven for 5-7 minutes.
Place sauce on bottom of
plate. Put skewer in
center. Add rosemary
sprigs to top of skewer.
Sprinkle tomato, pine-
apple and beans around
skewer. Add chopped
rosemary.
— From Quality
Kosher Catering
BROILED
DUCK BREASTS
WITH APRICOT
MUSTARD GLAZE
2 whole ducks
about 4.5 pounds each
salt
freshly ground pepper
1 clove garlic slivered
Apricot Mustard Glaze
1/2 cup apricot jam
3 T mustard
3 T soy sauce
3 T honey
1 clove garlic minced
Wash ducks and pat
dry. Remove innards, and
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
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