Foodie Fun with the Vasta Vegetable & Fruit Sheet Slicer- and RECIPES!

Thanks to being a member of Tryazon, the great sampling program, I was selected to do a Facebook Live Party for the Vasta Vegetable and Fruit Sheet & Noodle Slicer! The Vasta is an inexpensive, fun, and easy-to-use kitchen tool that enables you to make “sheets” from both fruits and vegetables, as well as “Fettuccine”-style noodles, and Chef Dan and I have been having a lot of fun making some delicious dishes with it for dinner guests at the Elkhorn Inn, as well as ourselves! 

RECIPES BELOW!

Here is a link to my Facebook Live Vasta Cuisine Party, where you can see me demonstrating the Vasta, and showing some of the things we made with it, including Cucumber “Maki” rolls filled with Tuna Ceviche, Apple and Potato Puff Pastry Roses, and Zucchini "Fettuccine" Agli Olio! At the end of my presentation I did a giveaway, and raffled off a Vasta to one lucky attendee!  https://www.facebook.com/ElkhornInn/videos/10158563561804730/

The Vasta is different from a Mandoline or a Spiralizer, in that it makes thin sheets of your fruits and veggies, not slices, and it makes flat “fettuccine” style veggie noodles, rather than spirals. So if you're on a Keto or Vegan or Vegetarian diet, and looking for new foodie ideas, or just trying to get your kids or grandkids to eat more veggies, the Vasta gives you lots of new ways to enjoy your fruits and veggies! 

With the Vasta you can make fruit and vegetable crepes, burritos, lasagna, noodles- all sorts of things! So far, we've used it with cucumbers, zucchini, apples, and potatoes, but you can use it with pears, squash, and lots of other things, too! I love to make Apple Roses for Rosh Hashonna (Jewish New Year) which is coming up shortly, and the Vasta makes it fun and easy to do!

As you can see in my Facebook Party Video, the Vasta is really easy to use, and SAFE, too, as the blade is protected. If I can demonstrate it live while watching Facebook at the same time, you know it's REALLY easy and a safe to use!

 

There are lots of recipes on the Vasta website: https://www.getvasta.com/

Vasta also has tutorials on YouTube: How to make Veggie Noodles with the Vasta Veggie Slicer: https://youtu.be/fOblP2NHYXI 

How to make veggie sheet noodles using the Vasta Veggie Slicer: https://youtu.be/GGsbfvzrVlI

My step-by-step on making Cucumber Roll Appetizers with the Vasta:

https://www.facebook.com/events/677509623110760/permalink/685631542298568/

     

First you cut the cucumber to size, using the guide notch on the skewer. TIP: You want cucumbers or zucchini that are as straight and even as possible, so you get even sheets. Then you place the cucumber on the Vasta, insert the skewer in the top, and push it down through the cucumber until it locks into place. 

  

Then you turn the Vasta on its side and snap in the handle. Then you start turning the handle...

  

  

And out comes your thin sheet of cucumber!!  You can then used the smaller pieces of cucumber you cut to make additional strips. 

 Here you see the two sheets of cucumber I was able to get from one cucumber. I then cut the sheets into 1" strips, approx. 5" long, and rolled them around circles of Mozzarella cheese and secured them with toothpicks. I then topped each one with a dab of Basil Pesto and a small roll of Prosciutto. I used this same technique to make the cucumber rolls I filled with Tuna Ceviche - recipe below.
 

My Vasta Recipes:

Vasta Cucumber Rolls filled with Tuna Ceviche, served with a spicy Asian-Style Dipping Sauce  (Adapted from Chef Ruth Van Waerebeek, Mapuyampay Gastronomic Hotel, Chile)

Ingredients:

6 cucumbers, as straight as possible

Kosher Salt

Paper towels

¼ cup red union, finely chopped

1 tablespoon fresh ginger, finely grated

½ lb. sushi-quality fresh tuna

½ cup pink grapefruit juice (approx. one grapefruit, squeezed)

3 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, finely minced

Kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

Toothpicks

Dipping Sauce:

2 tablespoons hot chili sauce (Chinese chili sauce, Sriracha, or similar)

3 tablespoons brown sugar

3 tablespoons rice vinegar

2 tablespoons dark sesame Oil

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 tablespoon black sesame seeds

1 tablespoon white sesame seeds, toasted

¼ cup red, green and yellow bell peppers, very finely diced

1 tablespoon fresh cilantro, finely chopped

Directions:

Slice the cucumbers into sheets using the Vasta.

Lay the cucumber strips on paper towels and sprinkle with Kosher Salt, and let sit for a max. of 30 minutes.

Prepare the Ceviche: Dice the tuna into ¼ inch cubes and place in a non reactive bowl (glass or ceramic). Add all the other ingredients. Mix to combine, and place the bowl in the refrigerator to marinate. (The lime juice "cooks" the tuna, so it has the taste and texture of cooked tuna!)

Make the Dipping Sauce: Mix all the sauce ingredients in a bowl and whisk to combine.

Rinse the salt off the cucumber sheets and dry them with paper towels.

Cut the cucumber sheets into strips approx. 1” wide and 5 inches long, and roll them, securing each one with a toothpick.

Set the rolls on a serving plate. Fill each roll with the Tuna Ceviche.

Spoon the dipping sauce on top & drizzle it around the rolls, or serve it in a bowl on the side.

Appetizer: Cucumber Rolls with Mozzarella, Basil Pesto, & Prosciutto

Ingredients:

Cucumber - as straight as possible

Mozzarella Cheese - the good stuff! 

Basil Pesto

Prosciutto, cut into small pieces and rolled, as in the photo

Toothpicks

Directions:

Use the Vasta to make cucumber sheets. Cut into strips into pieces approx 1” wide and 5” long.

Cut the mozzarella into 2” circles.

Roll the cucumber strips around the mozzarella circles and secure each with a toothpick.

Top each one with a dab of pesto, and then a small roll of prosciutto.

Vasta Apple (or Potato) Roses in Puff Pastry - 12

I love to make Apple Roses for Rosh Hashonna (Jewish New Year) which is coming up shortly, and the Vasta makes it fun and easy to do!

Ingredients:

One package of Frozen Puff Pastry (Pepperidge Farm)

3 Apples or 3 Potatoes (I used Adirondack Blue Potatoes, and they came out great!)

Apricot or other fruit preserves if you are making Apple Roses

Pesto or other savory spread if you are making Potato Roses (or you don't have use anything)

2 tablespoons of lemon juice if you are making Apple Roses

Melted butter or vegetable oil and a brush, or vegetable oil spray

Cinnamon-Nutmeg Sugar for Apple Roses

Chopped herbs of your choice for Potato Roses

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 F.

Butter 12 porcelain baking ramekins or a muffin pan. (Or spray them with vegetable oil spray).

Remove Puff Pastry from the freezer and thaw according to package directions. It should be cold.

Use the Vasta to slice the apples or the potatoes into long strips:

 

If you are using apples, put the apple sheets into a bowl of water with the lemon juice, so they don't turn brown.

I then used the Vasta to slice an Adirondack Blue Potato into long sheets for potato roses.

Place one sheet of puff pastry dough on a floured surface and roll it out a little thinner with a floured rolling pin.

Cut the dough into 6 even strips.

Spoon the apricot preserves or pesto onto the bottom half of each dough strip.

If you are making apple roses, remove the apples from the lemon-water and bot them dry with paper towels.

    

 

Place the apple (or potato) strips on the dough, sticking up above the edge of the dough:

  

You can fold the bottom over the edge of the apple or potato strip if you like. I didn't here, and they turned out fine. Then roll each strip up into a “rose” and place into the buttered ramekins or muffin pan.

Do the same with the other sheet of puff pastry dough.

Brush each one with melted butter or vegetable oil spray. You can sprinkle the apple roses with cinnamon-nutmeg sugar if you like. 

Place a pan of water on the bottom rack of the oven so the bottom of the pastries don't burn.

Bake for 40-50 minutes at 375 F until the pastry is golden brown.

Sprinkle the apple roses with cinnamon-nutmeg sugar, and the potato roses with chopped herbs, and serve!

Zucchini Fettuccine Agli Olio (with Garlic and Oil)

Make “fettuccine” noodles from zucchini using the Vasta!

Heat olive oil in a pan with chopped fresh garlic.

Saute the zucchini “noodles” in the oil for a max. of 2 minutes and serve!

These “zoodles” are delicious served with shrimp scampi, or with Asian sauces as pictured above- or 100 other things!! I tossed them with tomato sauce, sausage, and minced, fresh herbs, and they were delicious! Pasta without the carbs!

Have you tried the Vasta yet?

 Have any great recipe ideas for the Vasta? 

Please share them in the comments!

Happy Purim! And a Hamantaschen recipe!

Add caption

Happy Purim! 
This year the Jewish holiday of Purim (see below for links to the history of Purim and how to celebrate it) was Feb. 9 -10, and I decided that, for the first time, I would make Hamantaschen! (Or Hamentaschen, depending on how you choose to spell it!) I think that the last time I had Hamentaschen ("Hamen's Pockets" in Yiddish; they're called "Oznei Haman" אוזני המן in Hebrew, meaning "Haman's ears"- read the story of Purim below to understand why...) on Purim, they were in a "Mishloach Manot"- a traditional foodie gift parcel I was given when I was in the IDF... They were a fun holiday treat, but they weren't terribly good: heavy cookie-dough, with very little nondescript filling, they weren't exactly a delicacy... These, while not Pinterest-Gorgeous, were VERY good- a buttery, thin, and flaky dough, with lots of tasty filling! They are also fast and easy to make! Hamantaschen are are delicious with a cup of coffee, a glass of milk, or a glass of wine! Google and you will find a thousand Hamentaschen recipes out there; having never made them before I used Jamie Geller's "classic" Hamantaschen recipe, (she has at least 10 on her website), because her recipes always work! :-) I did half of them with the traditional poppy seed (Mohn) filling in the recipe, and half with Bonne Maman Four-Fruit Jam: https://jamiegeller.com/…/hamantaschen-with-easy-poppy-see…/ Chef Dan gave them his seal of approval and we ate them all up before Purim had ended! :-)
These Hamantaschen are really delicious little cookies, and can be made any time, not just for Purim!
And now, on to the Hamentaschen Chronicles!
NOTE: if you make this recipe there are several things not mentioned in the recipe which I put in bold below: soften the butter, flour the board and the rolling pin... do not overfill them, or they will fall apart or leak while baking... and grease the cookie sheet you bake them on!
As you will see in the recipe, you mix the sifted flour and and ground almonds (you can make ground almonds by putting sliced almonds in a food processor, and processing them until they are ground) in a bowl. Then you beat the softened butter with the confectioners's and granulated sugar in another bowl. You add the eggs, and then the flour and almond mixture, baking powder, and salt. You mix it into a dough, and wrap the ball of dough in plastic wrap and put it in the fridge for at least an hour. Now you make the poppy seed filling: Cook the orange juice, sugar, and poppy seeds for 15 minutes, add the honey and lemon zest, and cook for another 5 minutes. Let it cool- it will thicken. If you are using jam or another filling (there are many possibilities- "Google" Hamantaschen Recipe!) get it ready. Grease a cookie sheet. Preheat the oven to 375 F degrees. Take the dough out of the refrigerator, flour your board and rolling pin, (you will have to do this several times, as the dough will stick to the table and pin otherwise), and roll the dough out very thinly. Cut 3" diameter circles with a cookie cutter or a drinking glass as shown in my photo. Put about 1/2 a teaspoon of filling in the center of each circle, as in my photo. Do not overfill them, or they will fall apart or leak while baking!! Fold the dough up on three sides as in my photo into a triangle as in my photo, and pinch the edges closed. Place the Hamantaschen on the greased cookie sheet and bake them for about 10 minutes in the 375 F degree oven. They will be pale golden; do NOT over bake them!

How to make Hamentaschen...

How to fill Hamentaschen...

On the cookie sheet...

Hamentachen, ready to eat! 

For more delish Hamantaschen recipes- savory and sweet!- see Jamie Geller's Ultimate Hamataschen Recipe Collection :  https://jamiegeller.com/holidays/ultimate-hamataschen-collection-41-recipes/

The carved, wooden Megillah Esther in the top photo- an Esther Scroll with the story of Purim hand-written on parchment- is the only piece of Judaica I have from my family, besides my father's Bar Mitzvah Talit & prayer books. Everything else was either lost or stolen; I have no idea. My uncle David, my mother's brother, gave me this Megillah many years ago, telling me that he was giving it to me as I was the only one in the family who would care about it. Due to intermarriage, I am the last Jew on both sides of my family...  

For lots of great information on the holiday of Purim and how to celebrate it, check out Chabad: https://www.chabad.org/.../default_cdo/jewish/Purim.htm

Here is the "condensed" version of Purim, the Megillah Esther, or Esther Scroll:  https://www.chabad.org/holidays/purim/article_cdo/aid/3602036/jewish/What-Is-the-Book-of-Esther-About.htm 

What dishes do you make for Purim, and how do you celebrate? Let me know in the comments! 
Hag Samay'ach- Happy Holidays!

Recipe: Fun #Halloween Floating Cocktails!

"Black Magic" Cocktails

 In honor of some Very Special Guests at the Elkhorn Inn & Theatre I wanted to make some fun Halloween Cocktails, and "Googling" I found dozens of them (see links below)... and all the Really Cool ones seemed to use Blavod Black Vodka... which I have been trying to find here for years... Blavod is made in the UK, and gets it's cool black color from being infused with the South East Asian herb Black Catechu, extracted from the bark of the Acacia Tree. No one I know has Ever been able to find it in the USA, and putting food coloring in clear vodka did NOT work... so this year I decided to go all OCD about it, and I finally found a few liquor stores in the USA that have it online, but only ONE would deliver to West Virginia! And that one is M & D Fine Wines and Spirits:  https://www.mndfinewine.com/
Although Blavod is a relatively inexpensive vodka, at $22.99 a bottle, the shipping literally doubled the price! But I said wotthehell and ordered it anyway, had it in two days, and so was able to make some VERY cool Halloween cocktails for us and our guests, the first one being the "Black Magic", floating the Blavod Black Vodka over a mix of OJ and Triple Sec. I wet the rim of the glasses with orange juice and then dipped them in orange sugar (sugar with red and yellow food coloring), and topped it with an orange slice, and they came out so good first time around and were such a hit, that I decided to make a little "tutorial" here to prove that you CAN do this, too! Once you learn the trick of "layering" alcohol over a spoon, the Mixology World will be your oyster!
When I was a kid, I remember my family making layered cocktails with different liqueurs in tiny glasses at a family reunion; they were called "Pousse Cafes", and were so pretty to look at, as well as fun to make! The "trick" is knowing the "specific gravity" of different alcohols (i.e. which ones are heavier, and which ones are lighter), so you will know what to put in first and what to layer on top, so it will float! (If you put the heavy liqueur on top it will sink right into the lighter one...)  In the 1990s when the "B52" shot arrived in bars, that was the first time I'd seen a "layered cocktail" since the family reunion Pousse Cafes of my childhood! Now there are Dozens of layered cocktails out there, and just having a spoon and knowing heavy from light booze will enable you to create your own Mixology Masterpieces! Here are some cool websites for Mixology Inspo: 

• Specific Gravity Chart for Layering Drinks and Shots:  https://www.thespruceeats.com/layering-drinks-and-shots-gravity-chart-760326
• Over 30 Spooky Cocktails for Halloween:  https://www.aol.com/article/lifestyle/2018/10/23/over-30-spooky-cocktails-that-are-perfect-for-halloween/23569709/
• Bloody Great Cocktails: https://gowiseproducts.com/blogs/gowise-blog/bloody-great-cocktails
• 15 Haunting Halloween Cocktails https://www.thespruceeats.com/haunting-halloween-cocktails-759881

"Black Magic" Cocktail

Ingredients:
Blavod Black Vodka
Orange Juice (NOTE: Thick orange juice with pulp works better than thin "regular", thin OJ)
Triple Sec (clear orange liqueur)
1 Orange, sliced, for garnish
Sugar
Red and Yellow Food Coloring (NOTE: you can make Black Sugar using red, green, and blue food coloring...)
Tools: a spoon; a small plate for the sugar; small jar to make the colored sugar; a small pitcher with a pouring lip (optional)

Instructions:
1. Slice the orange and cut the slices in half, as shown, for the garnish. Set aside.
2. Put the sugar in a small jar. Add a couple of drops of red and yellow food coloring, close the jar, and shake vigorously until the sugar is evenly colored. Add more drops of food coloring until you get the color you like. Put the sugar on a small plate.
3. Mix the OJ with Triple Sec in a pitcher. No measurements, as you do this to taste...
4. Dip the rim of each glass in orange juice and then in the colored sugar.
5. Pour the OJ/Triple Sec mixture into each glass.
6. You can pour the Black Vodka directly from the bottle, but it may be easier to pour it into a small pitcher with a pouring lip...
7. SLOWLY pour the vodka, over the back of a spoon, into the glass, so it floats on top of the OJ. See photo.
8. Slice the orange slice half-way so it will hang on the rim of the glass, and perch it on the rim as shown.
9. Serve!

Pouring the vodka over a spoon so it floats on the OJ

"Black Magic" Cocktails!

"Elkhorn Inn Wild Berry Magic" Cocktail

The next night, now back in full Bartender Mode (yes, I was one, a couple of times, in Israel, many moons ago- but in "Dive Bars" where we did Not make "layered cocktails" LOL), I decided to make another fun Halloween Cocktail, this one my of own creation: I call it the "Elkhorn Inn Wild Berry Magic"! I mixed Cranberry Juice Cocktail with the Wild Blackberry Puree that we had made from the wild blackberries we picked in the summer and froze. You could use any fruit juice or puree that strikes your fancy! The only trick is to have a juice that is heavier than the vodka, so the vodka will float on it.
1. Wet the rims of the glasses and dip them in red sugar, made the same way as above, only with red food coloring.
2. Mix Cranberry Juice Cocktail with Blackberry Puree (or other fruit juice or puree).
3. Pour the juice into each of the sugar-rimmed glasses.
3. Slowly and carefully float the Blavod Black Vodka on the juice in each glass, using the "over the spoon" technique described above.
4. Top each one with a Maraschino Cherry on a toothpick!

THEN- now in TRULY "Full Bartender Mode"- I created a cocktail in honor of our Italian guest, Mike: the "Elkhorn Inn Italian Magic": Blavod Black Vodka floating on Italian Pistachio Liqueur, with a black sugar rim!

The "Elkhorn Inn Italian Magic Cocktail"!

Have you made any cool "floating" cocktails? Let me know in the comments! 

Happy Halloween!

Recipe: EASY #Halloween "Mummy" Jalapeno Poppers!

Jalapeno Popper Mummies!

I now have a series of posts I am calling "Recipes That Work!" because when I find one that does, with minimal adjustments, I get ALL excited! Others in this series are my posts on making Apple Roses, Zucchini Roses, Tamales, Vietnam Summer Rolls, and Tamarind Paste. 
The other night, for Very Special Guests at the Elkhorn Inn & Theatre I made Halloween "Mummy" Poppers for the first time, and they turned out great, and were a BIG hit! I also made some fun Halloween Cocktails, and my next post will be about them. 

But first: Mummies!

The recipe I started off with was this: https://www.aol.com/article/lifestyle/2018/10/24/best-bites-happy-halloween-jalapeno-popper-mummies/23570460/
I read it 14 times, LOL, and it looked like something that even I could do without it becoming a #PinterestFail disaster, so I got Chef Dan to get me the ingredients- but I changed a few things, as I am wont to do...

Ingredients:
10 Jalapeno peppers
Shredded Mozzarella Cheese (or the melting cheese of your choice)
Chives
1 roll of Pepperidge Farm Crescent Roll dough
A bit of flour or Bisquick, for rolling out the dough
1 egg
Eyes: You can use candy eyes, or cream cheese and olive bits, or plastic eyes (that is what I used)
Tools: Rolling pin; sharp, flat knife or pizza cutter; brush for the egg wash; bowls; baking sheet

Instructions:
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

2. Shred the Mozzarella in a bowl (or use pre-shredded Mozzarella), and mix with chopped chives. You can add salt and anything else you like to the filling at this point. The cheese needs to be soft so you can stuff the jalapenos. (The original recipe called for cream cheese, but we prefer Mozzarella...)

3. Slice the jalapeno peppers in half lengthwise. Leave the stems on some, as it's cute!

Halved jalapenos

Crescent Dough cut into strips

4. Flour your rolling surface and rolling pin lightly, and roll out the crescent roll dough. Push the dough together to close up the perforations.  Make rectangles from the dough. You will get 4 rectangles from one roll of dough.

5. Using a pizza cutter or a sharp flat knife (pictured), slice the dough into thin strips. You will get about 10 strips from each rectangle.

Cheese-stuffed jalapenos

6. Fill each Jalapeno half with the cheese mixture, as shown. (The softer the cheese, the easier it is to do this).

7. Wrap each jalapeno with the dough strips like a "mummy", leaving a place to put the "eyes", as shown. You may have to piece together dough strips- it's easy!

Mummy-wrapped jalapenos

Brush with beaten egg...

8. Beat the egg in a small bowl. 

9. Brush the "mummies" with the the beaten egg wash, and place them on a baking sheet.

10. Bake in the oven at 400F for about 10 minutes until they are golden brown.

11. Add the eyes, and serve immediately! (Remove the plastic eyes before eating. Duh!)

Jalapeno Popper Mummies!

They were delicious- and VERY filling- and a BIG hit, and we will definitely be making them again and again! 

Let me know in the comments if you've made them, and any special things you added, or if you changed anything!

Jalapeno Popper Mummies!