RECIPES

You don't have to take our word for it that Lévana's cooking is the best you've ever tasted – as well as the easiest to make; here are a selection of recipes to back it up. Check back regularly for new recipes to whet your appetite.

Bulghur Tomato Soup
Kale, Carrot, Beet and Hijiki Salad
Black Sea Bass En Papillotte with Miso Sauce
Chicken Cacciatore
Blueberry Cake with Almond Streusel
Zucchini Bread
Lamb Shanks Dry Fruit Stew
Beer-Braised Wild Mushroom Tempeh Tajine
Roasted Tomato Soup
Cider Roasted Capon with Root Vegetables
Tiramisu
Chicken Tandoori

SOURCES

Looking for the best place to buy your kitchen staples? Not sure where to get an ingredient Lévana used in class? Trying to find a specific kitchen tool? We can help. This listing is mostly New-York-centric, but we'll try and help you any way we can. Looking for something that's not listed? Send us your questions.

Tools & Utensils
The Food Processor
I often say at my classes (only half in jest!) that the advent of the food processor, twenty seven years ago, finally clinched my decision to get married: I found my partner in life at just about the same time I found my partner in the kitchen. Although I am very reticent about mentioning brand names, I make an exception for the Cuisinart. This food processor is a veritable workhorse, its performance exceeding by far that of almost all others. I promise you will amortize it in the preparation of less than a half dozen meals. I cannot tell you how many students of mine bought it after they saw what magic I do with it. There is almost nothing I do without its assistance. It will do your slicing, chopping, grating, mixing. If you can, treat yourself to the 14 cup model, available in any housewares stores or online.

Microplane Grater

This unassuming little gismo won an award last year for its performance. No more bloody knuckles, as it is very narrow and accommodates only the item you are grating. It has hundreds of tiny razor-sharp blades, which make short work of grating nutmeg, cheese, ginger, garlic, citrus zest and much more. It fits snugly in any drawer and cost around $15.00. You will never look at any other grater. Find it at Bed Bath & Beyond, or online.

Ingredients
Chocolate
I used to think that a brownie is a brownie and a chocolate bar is a chocolate bar, and could simply not understand all the fuss about chocolate, let alone the veritable chocolate cults that regularly form around the world. But of course this was eons ago, before I tasted good chocolate and became a groupie and a chocolate chemist myself.
Let’s start by the chocolate not to buy: as a kindness to my fellow merchants, I will not name the brands not to buy, but simply tell you what to stay away from, and you will identify them easily enough: all brands listing sugar first in their ingredient list (a promise that there will be hardly or very little chocolate), all brands listing “chocolate-flavored drops” (shudder! What’s that???), all brands listing artificial ingredients such as vanillin, a nasty chemical that drives all confections to the ground. None of the above brands could be serious about providing good chocolate.

What are we left with? Plenty, I assure you: all brands listing chocolate or cocoa as the first ingredient, real flavorings, real chocolate, cocoa butter etc… All the wonderful imported brands that come out of the woodwork around Passover (where do they hide the rest of the year, I always wonder): Noblesse, Poulain, Schmerling, Suchard etc… Hershey and Nestle brands are delicious but alas, quite often dairy, making them off limits to Kosher diners looking for Pareve treats as well as to the dairy-intolerant community. Believe it or not, price club brands are quite good, and most often pareve, so next time you are at Sam’s Club, Shoprite, Costco, Trader’s Joe, go for them. Same goes for the Callebaut brand, my great favorite: well-priced, extensive and about two third pareve selection.

Garlic
I am always crusading against the use of all forms of garlic ersatz, especially ever since one of my demo guests asked: “If I ever run out of garlic powder, can I settle for fresh?” ! So, I was at it again, at my last demo, and someone who apparently wasn’t listening, or who had just walked in just as I had finished exhorting the crowd, asked at the top of her lungs: “shouldn’t we at least put on some garlic powder or something, just to give it taam?” She seemed nothing short of G-dsent, just to prove my point. After the general hilarity subsided, we clued her in: NO garlic powder. Period!!!

Coconut Milk

Not to be confused with cream of coconut. Coconut milk is not a dairy product at all, and gets its affectionate name from looking just like milk. It is obtained by combining grated coconut and water, and straining the mixture, discarding the solids. Delicious in cooking and baking, you will love it in curries, puddings, smoothies, creamed soups etc... Coconut milk doesn’t require any Kosher Supervision, so go for it. If you are closely watching your calorie intake, settle for “lite” coconut milk.

Saffron

Saffron gets its infamous reputation for being the most expensive spice in the world because the only way to harvest it is by hand. Saffron threads are the stamen of the lovely crocus flower. Indispensable in Mediterranean and Middle-Eastern Cuisines, it imparts a wonderful, delicate aroma and a vibrant rich orange color to rice dishes, fish dishes, even some desserts. The good news is that a little goes a very long way. It doesn’t need any Kosher Supervision, so ignore the little vials they sell at gold prices, and go for the ounce box, which costs around $30.00, and which will last you a year and beyond.

Capers

The flower bud of a bush native to the Mediterranean and parts of Asia. The small buds are picked, sun-dried and then picked in a vinegar or salt-and-water brine. They give many tomato-based dishes and drinks that incomparable zing. Try to find the giant elegant long-stemmed caper berries for your Bloody Maries, or as a garnish on gravlax hors d’oeuvres.

Green Peppercorns

The peppercorns you normally place in your pepper-mill are actually a berry. Green peppercorns are packed in brine, vinegar or salt soon after they are picked. They are prized for their delicate-sharp taste, and will flavor your pates, terrines and dips. If left to dry after harvest, green peppercorns harden and become the familiar black peppercorns.

Anchovies

These tiny cured fish are normally found canned in oil, or packed in salt, even ground into a paste in tubes. Be sure to thoroughly rinse them before adding them to your dishes. If I could think of any food that tastes infinitely better than it looks, anchovies would be it. Let them remain unseen by blending them into Caesar’s dressing, pasta sauces, pizza toppings or mixed into butter. A low calorie fun treat!

Miso

Miso is a thick paste made from soybeans or any other grains (chick peas, brown rice, barley, etc...), that has been fermented and left to age for up to three years. The darker the paste, the more intense the flavor. Miso is a staple of Oriental cooking. Very nutritious and low in calories, it provides such bulk and flavor that you can consider substituting it anytime for any recipe calling for stock (only, keep in mind it is salty, so do not add salt to your dish until you taste it: it might not need any). Unpasteurized miso can be found in the refrigerator at well-stocked health food stores, and must be stored refrigerated. Pasteurized miso will be found in sealed bags, and will last a long time if kept in a ziplock bag. For a quick and nutritious treat, mix a tablespoon of the paste with a cup of boiling water, and enjoy as a hot drink.

Lemon grass

No other seasoning quite replaces this intriguing stalk, whose delicate fragrance is reminiscent all at once of verbena, ginger and lemon. It is quite popular in Asian dishes, and in tea. Remove the outer leaves, then use about six inches of the base, discarding the top and the very bottom. Availability varies by season, so when you find a good batch, pounce on it: grind the useable parts of the stalks in the food processor, then freeze it.
Whenever you need some, scrape off what you need from the frozen block and return the rest to the freezer. Great news, though: I just saw at Kalustyan’s powdered lemon grass, ground from dried lemon grass. Expensive, but a little will go a long way. Fabulous!

Orange Flower Water

A distillation of bitter-orange blossoms, it smells heavenly and is indispensable in many Mediterranean and Middle-eastern dishes and pastries, and many French desserts.

Where to Shop
You will find shopping for the above ingredients, and much much more, quite fascinating, a little like going to a museum, with one major difference: you get to take the stuff home. You may never go back to supermarket prices again! Share the larger containers with a friend! Of course you will find the counterpart of the stores listed below in your own neighborhood: Sephardi stores, Israeli stores, Italian stores, Indian stores, etc… I am only listing the ones I am most familiar with.

Kalustyan’s. Indian food heaven. Dozens of kinds of rice, lentils, grains, spices, nuts, dried fruit, loose teas, flours, Israeli pickled products, frozen doughs (with Kosher supervision), cookbooks, etc... Alas, a very poor selection of chocolate. Located at Lexington avenue and 29th street. Telephone 212-685-3451.

Ninth Avenue International Foods. Same as above, but with a greater emphasis on Italian products, and more chocolate than Kalustyan’s. Located on 9th avenue at 40th street. 212-279-5514. You will find a wonderful fish store right across the street.

Fairway. 75th street and Broadway. Look for me there first! I think I counted 75 kinds of olive oils! Lots and lots of kosher products, organic grains and produce, fish and even a respectable selection of kosher meats, breads and pastries. And the greatest coffees! Don’t bother calling them, it is a mad house. Just go and get ready to use your elbows to get by. There is another Fairway location at 12th avenue and 133rd street, larger and more civilized, but with a smaller selection of kosher packaged products, although they are working on that part too.



Zabar’s. 80th street and Broadway. We New Yorkers couldn’t possibly live without Zabar’s! A cook’s heaven. Hundreds of bottled condiments, jams, flavorings, appetizers, olives. Lots of it Kosher. Upstairs it gets even better, with every imaginable kitchen appliance and baking needs. Don’t bother calling either, you will only get frustrated. Go and treat yourself to the tour, it is a must. A large selection of coffees, although I recommend the Fairway coffees first, they are amazing. I think Zabar’s has the largest selection of cheeses in the world, it is a good thing we keep kosher, or else how could we resist, they look so luscious!