Sweet and Sour Cucumber with Fresh Dill and a Kugel ....

This evening, SB and I are headed to the regional Ahavas Achim Temple to celebrate at a potluck and interfaith discussion of Spring festivals - specifically Easter and Passover. The potluck is a vegetarian affair, so I'm playing by the rules and trying a couple recipes from my Jewish cookbook ... the cucumber pickle is completely tasty and I've paired it with Russian Pumpernickel slices for an appetizer/salad offering.

... simple fresh green crunchy ingredients ... perfect for waking up the taste buds ...

The Kugel Yerushalayim is a complete stretch for me. My niece, Beth is always raving about a kugel that she makes for her family celebrations, so I was encouraged to try this recipe. It smells fantastic ... but the jury's out until I see just how many folks actually chow down on it. I'm actually having doubts about it as the sugar content is quite high and it has this funky cooked sugar and olive oil component that just feels wrong to me, but one must follow the recipe when one is in unknown territory ... and I have never made this classic of Jewish cuisine.

Sweet and Sour Cucumber with Fresh Dill

Ingredients:

4 small cucumbers, tipped and sliced thinly

1/2 large sweet white onion, sliced into thin half-moons

a generous pinch of kosher salt

3 tbsp. sugar

5 tbsp. white wine vinegar

2 tbsp. cold water

3 generous tbsp. fresh chopped dill

fresh pumpernickel bread, sliced into thin half slices

1. Combine the cucumbers and onion slices and toss with your hands to separate the slices and mix the two.

2. Sprinkle the salt and toss again. Set aside for ten minutes in a cool spot.

3. Mix the sugar, vinegar, and cold water, stirring to dissolve the sugar.

4. Pour the brine over the vegetables and add the chopped dill. Toss to coat all the veg and distribute the dill.

5. Cover and chill for a few hours.

6. Serve the pickle with slices of fresh pumpernickel bread, as a salad or appetizer.

... time machine ...

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Should have left the kugel at home ... it was too thin, sticky and too crisped -a complete fail. However, I've NEVER met a more gracious group of people who assured me that it was just fine! Haha! Guess I'll be taking lessons from Elaine, who brought the most luscious apple kugel that it made me close my eyes and smile! It was truly a revelation!

Oh well ... the pickle was totally tasty!