Jerusalem Day: Israeli Recipe Roundup

Today is the 28th of Iyar. Also known as Yom Yerushalyim or Jerusalem Day. Have you heard of this special day? We celebrate Yom Yerushalayim or Jerusalem Day to commemorate the reunification of Jerusalem after the Six Day War. So today, we honor the soldiers who lost their lives in the war and spend the day talking about Jerusalem and what it means to us. We share memories, we sing and we dance.

Chummus

For those of us not in Israel today, we can also celebrate with food. Israeli food. What’s your favorite Israeli food? Falafel or Sabich? Shakshuka or maybe some Sachlab? When you think of Jerusalem, what food comes to mind?

In honor of Jerusalem Day, I want to share with you a roundup of Israeli recipes and restaurant reviews from both my site, and from around the blog world.

Do you have a favorite recipe that makes you think of Jerusalem? Post them to the comment box or send them to me at hindyg@confident-cook.com.

Thanks to The Jewish Federations of North America for sparking the idea for this blog post; they’ll be featuring it on their Jerusalem Day website as a way to build buzz for their annual General Assembly, a major gathering of leaders from Jewish organizations in North America and Israel which will be in Jerusalem this November.

Hummus, Tahini and Other Dips
Babaganoush
Homemade Hummus
Hummus with Zaatar
Lemony Hummus
Matbucha
Matbucha Madness
Roasted Eggplant Dip
Schug
Tahini
White Bean HummusOther Vegetarian Treats
Malawach Cheese Pastries
Roasted Eggplant with Israeli Salad
Sabich
Israeli Couscous with Cinnamon Roasted Sweet PotatoSalad
Cabbage Salad
Israeli Salad
Tabouli
Beet SaladMeat Recipes
Lamb Kebabs
Turkey Shawarma

 

Breads
Pita

 

Desserts
Chocolate Falafel
Halva
Halva and Pistachio Ice Cream
Limonana Bars
Limonana MarshmallowsShakshuka Recipes
Green Shakshuka
Matbucha Shakshuka
ShakshukaJerusalem Restaurants
Dining on Emek Refaim in Jerusalem
Kosher Vegetarian Restaurants
Kosher Sushi in Jerusalem

VeganMoFo: Vegetarian Stuffed Eggplant

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There’s a farmer’s market in front of my office twice a week – on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I get so excited with anticipation as to what veggies will show up on any given day. I love being surprised as the seasons change. I especially love the colors that await me as I climb out of the subway station and over to the booths.

I recently came upon this beautiful pink eggplant. If you haven’t tried this variety, I highly recommend you do. It is more tender and has a softer eggplant flavor than other varieties. It lends itself to more recipes and doesn’t need to be treated prior to cooking to remove bitterness.

And the colors of the eggplant…love it!

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Vegetarian Stuffed Eggplant
Ingredients:

4 small pink eggplants
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 onion, chopped
5 garlic cloves, chopped
1/2 package of extra firm tofu, drained and crumbled
1 red pepper, diced
5 oz. cremini mushrooms, chopped
2 plum tomatoes, chopped
2 cups quinoa, cooked (I used the tri-color blend)
3 tsp. vegan Worcestershire sauce.
3 tsp. salt
3 tsp. ground pepper flakes
3 tsp. dried thyme
2 tsp. red pepper flakes
3/4 cup Daiya Vegan Cheese (mozzarella or cheddar would work in this)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375.

Wash the eggplants. Slice them down the middle lengthwise.

Scoop out the eggplant leaving a 1/2 inch skin all around. Chop up the scooped out eggplant.

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Heat up a large saute pan. Add the olive oil.

Add in the onions and cook for a few minutes. Add in the chopped garlic and crumbled tofu.  Cook for a couple of minutes.

Add chopped eggplant to the pan and the other chopped veggies. Cook for 5 minutes.

Stir in the quinoa, spices and Daiya cheese. Make sure everything is incorporated well together.

Taste the mixture to see if it needs additional salt or other spices.

Place the eggplant shells in a large baking pan.

Place a heaping amount of the eggplant/veggie/quinoa mixture back in to the eggplant shells.

Drizzle with olive oil and a sprinkle of sea salt.

Bake in oven for about 30-40 minutes.

Enjoy!

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