A few years ago I started making sephardic-style charoset for Passover... and I never stopped. Although it is not the classic apple and walnut dish of my youth, I like the flavors better and I find it easier to manage on a piece of matzah with horseradish.

This year, I discovered this Serious Eats recipe, which I found not only tasty but also easy to make. Win win!

Courtesy of Cowgirl Creamery. Could easily be made vegetarian.

Ingredients
1 lb. Andouille Sausage - small diced
1 medium Onion - small diced
3 stalks Celery - small diced
1 lb. Cremini Mushrooms - small diced
1 Tbsp. Garlic - minced
2 Tbsp. Thyme - chopped
1 lb. Stale Bread - large diced
6 Eggs
2 cups Heavy Cream
1 cup Chicken Stock
4 oz. Cowgirl Creamery Crème Fraiche (plus more for serving)
8 oz. Cowgirl Creamery Wagon Wheel - grated
Salt & Pepper - to taste
1/8 lb. Butter
1 bunch Chives - thinly sliced

Via http://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/carrot-tart-with-ricotta-and-herbs

2 cups ricotta
¼ cup heavy cream
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 small onion, thinly sliced
4 large carrots (about 8 ounces), scrubbed, thinly sliced into coins
1 package frozen puff pastry, thawed
1 large egg, beaten to blend (optional)
¼ cup coarsely chopped fresh chives
2 tablespoons small dill sprigs

Preheat oven to 425°. Whisk ricotta and cream in a small bowl; season with salt and pepper.

Via Dorie Greenspan, these quick blender savory pancakes could be used in many interesting ways. Combines nicely with this avocado and cucumber salad for a meat-free, heavy protein meal.

Pancakes
1 cup home-cooked or canned no-salt-added chickpeas, drained, 1/4 cup of their liquid reserved
1/2 cup tahini
2 cloves garlic, cut in half lengthwise (germ removed)

Batter

1 cup rice flour
½ teaspoon ground turmeric
½ teaspoon kosher salt

Assembly

5 tablespoons (or more) vegetable oil, divided
4 oz. small shrimp, peeled, deveined
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 scallions, thinly sliced
4 oz. mung bean sprouts (about 1 cup)
Large green-leaf or Bibb lettuce leaves and mixed tender herbs (such as mint, cilantro, and Thai basil; for serving)
Nuoc Cham (recipe below)

My goodness was this delicious. You have to give Martha credit where credit is due.

8 oz smoked salmon, roughly chopped, divided
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup mayonnaise (for texture; can be omitted if you don't like mayo)
2 Tbsp diced red onion
1 Tbsp capers
1 tsp prepared horseradish
Juice of half a lemon

From M. Egan via S. Camfield

2 sticks (1c) butter, softened
2c flour
1.5 cups sharp cheddar, shredded and at room temperature
1/2 t cayenne
1/2 t salt
2c rice krispies

Cut butter into flour until texture resembles chunky cornmeal. Mix in cheese, spices. Fold in rice krispies.

Mold small pices, place on ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake at 350F for 45 minutes

No real recipe here; we used, from the bottom up:

1. leftover refried pinto beans
2. Shredded cheese
3. guacamole
4. sour cream
5. pico de gallo
6. Olives (optional)

...and layered them in a flat-bottomed glass dish. The pico counts as two layers. Really.

Audrey was really excited about this recipe. Unfortunately, it sucked.

1 cup shelled fresh peas (from about 1 pound pods)
1 teaspoon kosher salt plus more
3 large eggs
1 cup low-fat cottage cheese
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons vegetable oil plus more for skillet
4 scallions, thinly sliced, plus more for serving
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) salted butter, melted

Optional: If using fresh peas, cook in a small saucepan of boiling salted water until tender, about 3 minutes, Drain

Rémoulade

1/2 cup loosely packed flat-leaf parsley leaves
1 celery stalk, coarsely chopped
1 small shallot, coarsely chopped
1 garlic clove, peeled

1 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons whole grain mustard
1 tablespoon prepared horseradish
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon Worchestershire sauce

Pulse the first four ingredients in a food processor until finely chopped. Add mayonnaise, mustard, horseradish, lemon juice, paprika, and Worcestershire sauce; process until smooth. DO AHEAD: Can be made 3 days ahead. Cover and chill.

Shrimp

Ingredients:
2 large eggplants
3 gloves garlic, minced
Grated zest of 1 large lemon
Juice of 1 lemon
4 Tbsp olive oil

To finish:
2 tablespoons parsley
2 tablespoons mint leaves, chopped
Seeds of 1/2 pomegranate
Salt and Pepper to taste

Optional: top with smoked salt.

Char eggplants on a stove top (~20 minutes), grill or on a broil mode in the oven (~45 minutes, turning twice). Turn around so it is very charred all around. If broiling, piece the skin in multiple places.

1/2 pound fresh padron, shishito, seranno, small Hatch, or hot banana peppers, washed and thoroughly dried
1 tablespoon olive oil
Coarse sea salt, such as fleur de sel or Maldon

Place the peppers in a medium bowl, add the olive oil, and toss to coat; set aside.

Heat an indoor sautee pan or outdoor grill to medium high.

When the grill is ready, place the peppers on the grill in a single layer, making sure they’re not touching; reserve the bowl they were in. Grill the peppers uncovered, turning them occasionally, until they start to char and blister, about 6 to 8 minutes total.

These three sauces go great with naan, chana chat, and ragda patties.

Mint Chutney

Adapted from The Santa Monica Farmers Market Cookbook.

Makes 10 large crabcakes or as many small ones as you can roll

1 lb lump crabmeat
1/3 cup panko breadcrumbs (can sub regular)
2 eggs, beaten
4 Tbsp mayonnaise
2 Tbsp lemon juice
Few drops hot sauce (like Tobasco)
Generous dash of Old Bay seasoning
Generous dash of Garlic Powder
Generous dash of Onion powder
Salt and pepper to taste

... with just a little tweaking.

Serves 8.

Ingredients:
2 medium-large eggplants
1.5 cups breadcrumbs (panko or regular)
1/2 cup freshly-grated parmesan cheese
Spices from your pantry (such as garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, basil, oregano, salt, and pepper)
2 eggs
1/2 cup or more of all purpose flour
Vegetable oil
[Note: halve these proportions for a medium-sized eggplant]

Pre-prep:

Yield: 5 pints

~12 medium sized beets (ideally, your beets are the same diameter as your jars)
1 cup water
1 cup white vinegar
1 cup sugar

Wash beets well. Trim roots, but leave attached to vegetable so the beet doesn't bleed too much when cooked.

Put beets in boiling water for 30-45 minutes (until they peel easily).

Peel beets. Put in cold water to cool.

While beets are cooling, mix water, vinegar, and sugar. Warm on stovetop until hot, but not boiling.

Meanwhile, warm jars and lids. Use mandolin to slice beets ~1/8-1/4" thick.

Adapted from a recipe we found online, this flatbread or pizza is easy to make and tasty. Cut it into small squares to serve at a party.

Yield: abt 2.5 pints

2.5 lb shallots
.75 c salt
6 c white wine vinegar
4 c granulated sugar
for the spice bag:
4 cardamom pods
2 cinnamon sticks
3 strips lemon rind
1 Tbsp caraway seed
1 Tbsp cloves
.5 bird's eye chile

Blanch and peel shallots. Make sure root ends stay intact, or shallots will disintegrate during cooking.

Place peeled shallots in large glass bowl. Cover with cold water and add the salt. Mix until dissolved.. Weight shallots down (with a plate works) and leave for 24 hours.

When I was a little kid, my mom and I once made dumplings/potstickers with this neat white foldy press (that helps crimp them together). There's a really cute picture of me at about 3 years old, standing on a step-stool, wearing an apron, and proudly holding up a potsticker.

Anyway, on a recent visit to Los Angeles, I saw the potsticker crimper sitting in a drawer (probably unused by my mother since that day in the photo), and asked if I could take it home. (I subsequently saw the exact same crimper for sale at Hill's Kitchen about a week later, but oh well.) With the proper implement in hand, and having just acquired a "Cook's Illustrated" recipe for perfect potstickers (compliments of Jon's mom), we went to making potstickers.

The recipe that follows is a combination of the Cook's recipe and the handwritten one my mom had from an Asian cooking class she took long ago. No doubt that is the recipe I followed at age 5.

I never met a yogurt dip I didn't like. Seriously. If there's ever one on a menu, I order it. I will slather it on everything, especially middle eastern and mediterranean foods.

Instead of proliferating pages and pages of yogurt dip recipes, I've decided to collect them all here. In most cases, the dips will be better on the second day once the flavors have had a chance to marry.

This recipe combines a few other recipes. We've made this twice now, and continue to tweak the balance; if anything, go lighter on the potatoes, and the cheese may or may not actually work well in conjunction with easy flipping of the tortilla. Nevertheless, it's hearty, tasty, just-oily-enough. Bonus: it's one of those wonderful dishes that's possibly even better as leftovers the next day.

... or you could just buy falafel mix and add water. We didn't actually follow this recipe, but it looks good.

http://mideastfood.about.com/od/maindishes/r/falafelrecipe.htm

This is a great fresh chutney that could go with most carribean or indian dishes. Vary the size of the mango chunks to taste.

Adapted from a blog that apparently isn't public anymore.

This is a recipe created by Jon's Mom based on the amazing brunch tart from A Priori Thé in Paris, hidden in the Galerie Vivienne nearish to the Bourse. It is absolutely worth the effort to squeeze into a booth here, if only for this tart. The original has a dry cheddar-like cheese (Cantal) melted on top, but we find that unnecessary, given the massive amount of cream cheese and chèvre already being used. This dish is amazing in its simplicity.

For the tart's pastry
10" tart pan:
1½ cups flour
¾ tsp salt
½ cup butter (freeze)

SALVADORAN PUPUSAS By Graciela Fortin-Magana

Preparing the dough
There are different brands of tortilla flour to make the dough. MASECA, which can be found in most large supermarkets in the international section, is one of them but there are others. Follow the instructions on the bag and make as much dough as needed. Once the dough has been prepared set it aside while you prepare the filling.

Three Fillings
CHEESE
3 cups of shredded cheese (use hard and cream cheese mixed together; you can mix frying cheese, mozzarella and ricotta)
3 or 4 tablespoons of heavy cream

From delicious magazine. Difficult to form, but tasty! Freeze (and reheat) leftovers for an easy weeknight meal.

2 tbsp butter
1 cup assorted wild or chestnut mushrooms, wiped clean and sliced
1 onion, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed
1.5 cups arborio rice
1/3 cup white wine
3 cups vegetable stock, hot (approx - make more if needed)
1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
4 oz buffalo mozzarella ball, cut into 12 pieces
4 tbsp plain flour
3 tbsp vegetable oil