Spinach Puffs

Serving: 12 puffs

Ingredients

1. Frozen Chopped Spinach - 14.5 oz package

2. 2 Puff Pastry Sheets - 17.3 oz package

3. 2 Eggs

4. 1/4 cup of Minced Onions

5. 2 tablespoons of Olive Oil 

6. 1 teaspoon of Crushed Garlic

7. All Purpose Seasoning to taste (I used Emeril's Original Essence)

Directions

1. Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees

2. Squeeze all of the water out of the spinach in order to prevent soggy puffs.
3. In a mixing bowl, stir spinach, minced onions, olive oil, and crushed garlic.
4. Season to taste with your all purpose seasoning.
5. Mix in 1 egg.
6. Spray your 12 muffin cup tin (or lightly dab  with olive oil) to prevent puffs from sticking.
7. Slice your puff pastry into squares and place inside each muffin cup allowing the corners to stick up.
8. Fill each cup with spinach mixture.
9. Fold over the puff pastry ends.
10. Beat second egg in a bowl and brush on top of the puff pastry to give a nice gloss.
11. Put spinach puffs in the oven for 25 minutes.

~Happy Thanksgiving~

California Hot Dog

Serving: 7

Ingredients

1 (14 oz) package of Hot Dogs

1 (12 oz) package of Hot Dog Buns

1/2 cup of Alfalfa Sprouts

1 package of Sabra's Guacamole 

1/2 cup of diced Cherry Tomatoes

Sriracha to taste

Mayonnaise to taste 

Directions

1. Option One: Coat a separate skillet with cooking spray and add the hot dogs. On a medium-high heat, cook your hot dogs and constantly turn them in order that they evenly cook. 

Option Two: Place the hot dogs on the grill perpendicular to the grate and 1 inch apart. Turn the hot dogs every 1-2 minutes in order that they cook evenly. 

Your hot dogs will be ready once the outside begins to crack. 

3. Open your hot dog buns face down, either on a grill or skillet and toast for 30 seconds. 

4. Add a scoop of guacamole, diced tomatoes and alfalfa sprouts to each hot dog. 

5. Lightly squeeze a thin layer of mayonnaise over your hot dogs. 

6. For extra flavor add sriracha to taste. 

Sautéed Mushrooms and Onions Hot Dog

Serving: 7

Ingredients

1 (14 oz) package of Hot Dogs

1 (8 oz) package of sliced 'Baby Bella' mushrooms

1 small brown onion

1/4 teaspoon of crushed garlic 

3 tablespoons of olive oil

1 (12 oz) package of Frankfurter rolls

Mustard to taste

Directions
1. Dice the brown onion.
2. Lightly coat the skillet with olive oil. Place the diced onions in a skillet and sauté on a medium heat until they begin to brown.
3. Add sliced mushrooms and crushed garlic to the skillet. Sauté until the mixture is golden brown.
4. Option 1: Coat a separate skillet with cooking spray and add the hot dogs. On a medium-high heat, cook the hot dogs and constantly turn them in order that they evenly cook.
Option 2: Place the hot dogs on the grill perpendicular to the grate and 1 inch apart. Turn them every 1-2 minutes in order that they cook evenly.
(Your hot dogs will be ready once the outside begins to crack)
5. Open your hot dog buns face down either on a grill or skillet and toast for 30 seconds.
6. Place your hotdogs in the bun and add the mushroom and onion mixture.
7. For extra flavoring add mustard to taste. 

Four Ultimate Hot Dog Recipes

In honor of the 4th of July, Seven Bites will be posting 4 unique hot dog recipes to try out at your barbecue. Happy Holidays!!
1. Sautéed Mushroom and Onions Hot Dog

Sweet Ricotta Bruschetta

Serves: 12 slices

Ingredients

1 baguette bread

1/3 cup of olive oil

1 pint of mini heirloom tomatoes

1 1/2  cups of ricotta cheese

2 tablespoons of diced basil leaves

2 tablespoons of honey

Directions

1. Slice your baguette bread into 1/2 inch pieces.

2. Coat a large frying pan with 3 tablespoons of olive oil

3. Place your baguette bread in the frying pan on a medium heat. 

4. Once the bottom of your bread begins to turn golden brown flip over. Keep an eye on the bread, as it will start to burn quickly.

5. Remove the bread from the frying pan and place on a plate. Evenly spread the ricotta cheese on each piece of bread. 

6. Thinly slice the tomatoes, and place flat down on top of the ricotta cheese.

7. Sprinkle some basil leaves on top of the tomatoes, and drizzle with honey.

~You can also find this recipe on the site Joy of Kosher~

Wine for the Holidays

Passover is in 9 days, and meal preparation is coming into full swing. When planning out your dishes, a vital element to take into account is WINE. Pairing the wrong wine with a dish, can ultimately change the taste of your food. I had the opportunity of attending City Winery's Grand Wine Tasting in New York last week, and tasted many amazing wines, cheeses, dips, and sausage.

I've listed my top 10 favorite wines from the event, and paired them with Seven Bites recipes.

1. Herzog Late Harvest Orange Muscat

Grown in California, this wine carries a bold orange peel, grape and apricot flavoring. If you like any beverage with citrus, then this smooth and full-bodied textured wine should be the next bottle you open.

This wine can be paired with dessert or sharp cheeses.
Example: Strawberry 'Cheesecake' Parfait 

2. Moses Celebration Cava Brut

This Spanish wine speaks for itself. My first sip felt like a celebration. The grapes are fermented and aged for months, which gives this wine its crisp bubbly texture.

This wine can go well with any part of your Seder!

3. Moses Date Vodka 

Okay fine, you caught me. I didn't just try wines at the wine tasting. Wine tends to put me to sleep, and if it does the same thing to you as it does to me, then I suggest switching things up with Moses Date Vodka. It's made with natural ingredients, and infused with sweet red dates.

4. Carmel Moscato di Carmel

In photo number 4, the woman is holding a delicious semi-sweet wine with a hint of peach and citrus flavors. This is best served chilled and with dessert.

Example: Inside Out Chocolate Covered Strawberries

5. Recanati Shiraz 

Recanti Shiraz encompasses layers of raspberry and plum flavoring intertwined with traces of spice, nutmeg, and mocha.

This wine can be paired with roasts, grilled meats, and tuna steak.

Example: Red Wine Top of Rib

6. 2012 Malbec Reserve

If you're looking for a deep flavored wine, then Malbec Reserve has your name on it. This wine is infused with a smokiness flavoring and a hint of dark chocolate and cherry spice.

This can be paired well with a red meat.

Example: London Broil

7. Agua Dulce Cabernet Sauvignon

This complex, bold wine has a red berry fruit filled flavoring, with many additional citrus layers such as  candied fruit, and black plum.

Agua Dulce can be paired with a steak or hearty stew.

Example: Veal Stew 

8. Hagafen Cabernet Sauvignon

I love this wine for its mixture of flavors. Infused with dark berries, this Cabernet Sauvignon embodies rosemary and herb flavoring, giving this wine its rich, yet soft taste.

This wine can be paired with a bold flavoring dish.

Example: Apricot Glazed Duck Confit

9. Tura Rose Valley 'Semi Sweet Red Wine'

The aroma of this wine is all I can think about.  The deep citrus flavors made me feel as if I could individually taste each piece of fruit my glass.

Tura Rose Valley can be paired with a salty and/or meat dish.

Example: Chuck Steak

10. Gush Etzion Spring River Cabernet Sauvignon-Merlot 

This wine is a full-bodied red wine blend. Basically, everything I can ask for in one glass. This has a subtle spicy cedarwood revealing currant and blackberries.

This wine can be paired with any type of barbecued meat/poultry or sharp cheese.

Example: Sweet n' Smokey Chicken

~Happy Passover~

Lindsay

Garlic Lemon Chicken

We were very excited to work with Joy of Kosher and use Grow & Behold's, Sara's Spring Chicken to make this recipe as their products are known to be of the highest quality. In addition to being Glatt Kosher, Grow & Behold's birds are pasture raised. As soon as the birds are large enough to be moved outside, they spend their entire lives on grass. They live in spacious, movable pens that are moved each day allowing them to access a growing salad bar of natural food. The birds are also fed a special blend of non-GMO food, which enhances its flavors, giving it a fresh and pure taste. When making this recipe, we highly recommend you to order your chicken from Grow & Behold. 

You can also find this recipe on Joy of Kosher's website.

Serving: 5

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 2 hours and 30 minutes

[Kosher for Passover]

Ingredients:

1 Whole Chicken (2.5-3.5 lb)

10 Lemons

2 cans of Chicken Broth (10.5 oz, each)

1/2 cup of Thyme

1 tablespoon of Crushed Garlic

1/4 cup of olive oil

Pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Place your chicken on a baking rack inside the roasting pan. 

3. Pat the chicken dry.  Using a pastry brush, generously brush the inside and outside of the chicken with olive oil. 

4. Lightly sprinkle pepper inside and outside of the chicken. 

5. Thinly slice 1 lemon and place about 4-5 of those slices inside the cavity of the chicken. [The cavity is the hollow space of the chicken]. 

6. Add 1/4 tablespoon of thyme inside the cavity.

7. Coat the bottom of your roasting pan with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and line with an additional thinly sliced lemon. 

8. Using your pastry brush, lightly coat the chicken with crushed garlic. 

9. In a large measuring cup squeeze 1 cup of lemon juice. Add 1 can of chicken broth. Mix well. 

10. Pour mixture of chicken. 

11. Place in the oven for 15 minutes.

12. Lower oven temperature to 250 degrees and cook for 1 hour. 

13. Remove the chicken from the over. Take the second can of chicken broth and pour over the chicken.

14. Thinly slice an additional lemon and place on top and around the chicken. Add 1/4 cup of thyme and add on top and around the chicken as well.  (you can leave the thyme on the stem if you would like).  

15. Place back in the oven for 45 minutes. 

16. Remove the chicken from the oven and tightly cover in order that the chicken doesn't dry out. Place back in the oven for an additional 30 minutes. 

Mishloach Manot Giveaway

Chocolate Works and Seven Bites have teamed up this Purim and are giving away a FREE Mishloach Manot!

How to Enter?

1. "Like" Chocolate Works on Facebook
2. "Like" Seven Bites on Facebook
3. Let us know that you've entered by commenting on this post on our Facebook Page. Click here

4. All entries must be in by 2/26/2015 at 5:00 pm. 

The winner will be chosen at random and announced Thursday evening.

~Good Luck~

Chanukah House Giveaway!

Starting today until Monday, December 15th at 11:00pm you will have the opportunity to enter our Manischewitz  Chanukah House Giveaway.

How to enter: Tell us your favorite part about Chanukah in the comment section on our Facebook post, and one winner will be randomly selected to receive a free Chanukah House Decorating Kit.  Click here to view the Facebook post.

We had so much fun building our house.  You'll have a fun time putting this together with your family and friends.  This is great for any age, and if you like cookies, then this is the perfect activity for you! Manischewitz gives your everything you need to decorate this house, and sticky frosting to hold the cookies in place.

Enjoy and Happy Chanukah!

Holiday Cookie House

It's that time of year when the city lights are up, latkes are flipped, dreidels are spun and gifts are given. To make this year even more exciting, Manischewitz is hosting a Chanukah contest with a grand prize reward of $2,000!!
All you have to do is show off your crafty skills and decorate a Chanukah house using Manischewitz's Chanukah House decorating kit.

Details are as follows:
From now until December 23rd, 2014 upload a photo of your Chanukah house to the Manischewitz Facebook page. Additional materials such as sprinkles, extra frosting, cookies, candy, etc., can be used to enhance your design.

The Grand Prize Winner will receive $2,000; Second Prize $1,000; Third Prize $500.  Must be 18 years of age or older to enter, however, minors can submit their entry with parental permission, using a parent or guardian's email address.  There is a limit of one online entry per person.  For a complete list of rules, please click here.

Check out our Chanukah House below!

 

Corn Soufflé

Serving:15-20

Ingredients: 

1. 3 cans of whole corn 

2. 3 cans of cream corn 

3. 7 eggs

4. 3 1/2 tablespoons of sugar

5. 1 teaspoon of salt

6. 1 cup of non-dairy creamer or milk 

7. 3 tablespoons of margarine or butter 

Directions: 

1. Pre heat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Grease a 9x13 baking pan with 1 tablespoon of margarine or butter. 

3. Place the whole corn and cream corn in a large bowl.

4. In a separate bowl, whisk eggs and then combine with corn.

5. Add sugar, salt, and creamer to the mixture.

6. Pour mixture in a baking pan. 

7. Sliver remaining margarine and place on top of mixture. 

8. Bake for approximately 1 hour and 45 minutes or until golden brown. 

Cranberry Sauce

Serving: 6

Ingredients

1. 12 oz. of cranberries

2. 1 cup sugar

3. 1 cup water 

4. 11 oz. can of mandarin oranges (drained)

5. 2 tablespoons of fresh orange rind 

Directions

1. Wash cranberries thoroughly

2. Add water and sugar to saucepan and bring to boil

3. Once the water begins to boil, add cranberries, mandarin oranges, and fresh orange rind

4. Return to boil and let simmer for one hour, stirring occasionally
5. Let cool and refrigerate until ready to serve!  

Serve as a side dish as part of your Thanksgiving meal! 

Pecan Latkes

**We decided to develop a "Thanksgivukkah" recipe using the Manischewitz Potato Pancake Mix in response to the Manischewitz Recipe Contest.  We'd appreciate all of your votes as each one will make us one step closer to winning.  Clicking here will take you directly to the voting page.
~Happy Holidays~

Serving: 20 latkes

Ingredients

1. One 6-ounce box of Manischewitz Potato Pancake Mix

2. 1 cup of pecans

3. 2 large eggs

4. 1 pinch of salt

5. 1 cup of cold water

6. 1 cup of vegetable oil

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, beat two eggs.

2. Add a pinch of salt.

3. Add 1 cup of cold water and mix well.

4. Stir in contents of Manischewitz package and mix.  Allow batter to thicken for 3-4 minutes.  Mix again.

5. Place pecans in a blender and mix until finely chopped.  Add the pecans to the potato mix.  

6. On a medium-high heat, drop a spoon size of the potato mixture into the frying pan.  Make sure the latkes are flat and spaced out in order to evenly cook.  

7. Once the bottom of the latkes are brown, flip over and repeat process. 

8. Continue to add vegetable oil when needed for your additional batches.  

9. When latkes are ready to be taken out of the frying pan, have a plate ready to place the latkes on.  It is best to have a paper towel underneath the latkes in order for the excess oil to be soaked out.  

This dish is best served with applesauce and/or sour cream.