Butternut Squash and Caramelized Onion Burekas

This is a seasonal twist on classic burekas that I wrote up for alma. (check out their site for the full article). The caramelized onions are the key ingredient in this dish; they always take longer than you think to caramelize, but the resulting flavor is worth the work. This makes a great side, appetizer, or snack during the holidays. 

Butternut Squash and Caramelized Onion Burekas

Makes 24 burekas

INGREDIENTS

• 2 sheets puff pastry (10” x 15”), defrosted in the refrigerator overnight
• 1½ lbs. butternut squash (1 large squash), halved lengthwise and seeds removed
• 1 large yellow onion, medium diced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil or butter
• 1 big fat clove of garlic or 2 medium-sized, minced fine
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 2-3 sprigs thyme, leaves removed from stems
• Pinch of cayenne pepper
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 1 large egg yolk
• Black and/or white sesame seeds, to garnish

DIRECTIONS

Preheat the oven to 375°F.

Drizzle the halved butternut squash with oil, then place it cut-side down on a sheet pan. You don’t need to peel the squash. Roast until the squash is fully cooked and tender, about 35-45 minutes.

While the squash is baking, caramelize your onion by putting a few tablespoons of butter with a drizzle of olive oil in a sauté pan over medium low heat. If keeping the dish non-dairy, use just olive oil. Add the diced onion to the pan, and sauté over low or medium low heat until starting to soften, about 5 minutes. Season with a generous pinch of salt and then continue to let the onion cook and caramelize, stirring occasionally so the onion doesn’t burn; make sure to keep the heat fairly low. This is where patience comes in, beautiful caramelized onions can take 30-45 minutes to make. You want your onions golden and sweet, you don’t need to caramelize them until they’re a deep brown. This is a good tutorial if you need it.

Add the minced garlic to the caramelized onions, and sauté for another 2-3 minutes or until the garlic is fragrant but not at all browned. Turn off the heat.

Once the squash is cooked and slightly cooled, scoop the inside of the squash into a bowl and discard the peel. Add the caramelized onion to the squash. Mix together. The mixture should be soft and not too lumpy.

Mix in the ground coriander, thyme, and cayenne. Taste, and then season with salt and pepper as desired. Allow the squash mixture to cool before assembling the burekas. You can make this filling up to two days in advance and store in the fridge.

To assemble the burekas: roll out a sheet of puff pastry until rectangular and just slightly thinner than when it comes out of the package. Divide the dough into 12 squares: cut the dough in half widthwise, and then cut each half into half again. Next, cut the dough into thirds lengthwise. Put a spoonful of the filling into each square. Fold over the dough to form a triangle shape, and press the edges together. There’s no need to crimp or press too hard, the filling will stay put, and you want to ensure there are layers of flaky pastry.

Transfer the formed triangular burekas onto a baking sheet, place each bureka about an inch apart, 12 will fit on each baking sheet. At this point, you can freeze the burekas and reserve them for when you’re ready to bake.

Before baking, combine the large egg yolk with a small splash of water. Beat well. Brush the tops of the burekas with the egg wash. Sprinkle with sesame seeds.

Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown and flaky. Transfer to a wire baking rack, and allow to cool for at least 10 minutes before serving. Burekas are best served warm or at room temperature.

Deep Fried Matzo Balls

Why do matzo balls need to be confined to soup? In the spirit of freedom, these matzo balls are let go from their usual broth home, and instead,they're dunked into hot oil, fried until golden, and served with a spicy herbaceous schug dip.

These matzo balls are more hush puppy than airy donut. You have to expect denseness with matzo meal. Once you get over the absence of soup, and the slightly unexpected texture, you find yourself halfway through a second matzo ball... they are delicious and addictive.

Schug is a spicy cilantro and chili sauce, that is commonly found throughout the Middle East. I love the recipe from Zahav, by Michael Solomonov (brought to my attention by friend and collaborator Ellie Bowman), but there are many other recipes out there. You can often even pick up this stuff pre-made at your favorite Israeli restaurant or Middle Eastern market. 

And we've been putting these recipes into motion over at the Assembly Line.

Deep Fried Matzo Balls with Yogurt Schug Dip

for the matzo balls-

• 1 cup matzo meal
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
• ½ teaspoon ground cumin
• 4 large eggs, beaten
• ¼ cup oil schmaltz or oil (vegetable or safflower)
• vegetable oil, as needed for frying

for the dip-

• 1 cup plain Greek yogurt
• 1-2 tablespoons Schug (spicy herb sauce*)
• Salt and pepper, to taste

Combine the matzo meal, salt, baking powder, and baking soda together in a large bowl. To the matzo meal mixture add 4 beaten eggs, ¼ cup of oil, and spices. Stir until just combined. Chill the dough for at least 1 hour. Once chilled, formed the dough into even-sized balls.

Fill a Dutch oven or heavy bottomed pot with 3 inches of oil. Heat until hot, about 350°-375°F when tested with a candy thermometer.

Drop the matzo balls into the oil in batches. Be careful not to crowd the pot, add 6-8 matzo balls at a time. Fry until golden brown on all sides.

Once cooked transfer to a sheet pan lined with paper towels and fry the next batch. You can can keep them warm in a warm oven if necessary. The fried matzo balls are best served hot and fresh.

for the dip-

In a bowl, combine the yogurt and schug. Mix until incorporated.

*Schug (also spelled Zhug or Skhug)

Schug is a spicy green sauce that originated in Yemen and is commonly eaten across the Middle East. It can be purchased in some Middle Eastern markets, or from Israeli restaurants. Michael Solomonov has a great recipe in his cookbook, Zahav:

Schug

• 20 serrano chiles, stems removed
• 1 cup parsley leaves
• 1 cup cilantro leaves
• 4 garlic cloves
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon ground cardamom
• 1 tablespoons ground coriander
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 cup canola oil

In a food processor, combine all of the ingredients except the oil. Once processed into a coarse paste, transfer to a bowl. Whisk in the oil. The sauce will appear chunky, not smooth. Store in a container in the fridge for up to 1 month.

Warm Marinated Olives

It feels like it's officially the beginning of entertaining season. Between now and New Year's, and all of the holidays in between, there always seems to be a lot of getting together and sharing meals with friends.

When hosting parties big or small, I love to follow Ina Garten's entertaining advice. She always advocates serving appetizers or small bites that involve very little time to prepare and very little cooking. She recommends planning and hosting parties in a way in which you can actually enjoy the party without stressing about the food. Within this framework there are still lots of ways that you can satisfy your guests (and impress them - if that's what you're going for :) Ina will serve antipasto platters loaded with great store bough charcuterie and marinated vegetables of different sorts. I've seen her go as simple as serving up shards of good Parmesan cheese. For me, I am always a fan of a cheese plate. I like crudités and dips. I'll even keep it really simple and just do GOOD quality tortilla chips and great salsa. I might spend a little more money on a few very good items, as opposed to buying and making a wide variety of things.

One of my favorite appetizers are warm marinated olives. They take very little work, but still involve a small amount of special preparation and care, which makes them taste like something special.

Start by getting your favorite kind of olives. I like to get them from an olive bar as opposed to canned or jarred, if possible. Then you add them to a skillet with a little olive oil and your favorite flavorings. It doesn't take much - a clove of garlic, zests of lemon, a few chilies, thyme, a pinch of fennel seeds, a little rosemary... there are a lot of possibilities. I make them just before guests arrive and they can be served warm or room temp. The marinade brightens up the olives and takes some of their store-bought dullness away. The oil that's left over is great to dip a crusty baguette into, too.

Warm Marinated Olives

• 1-2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 big sprig fresh rosemary
• 2 large strips of lemon zest (removed with a vegetable peeler, avoiding the bitter white pith)
• pinch of chili flakes (optional)
• 2 cups olives

Over medium-low heat, slowly heat up the rosemary, lemon and chili flakes in a sauté pan. After a few minutes, or once you can start smelling the lemon and rosemary release their oils, add the olives to the pan. Gently toss or stir the olives in the pan, and heat them completely through, about 6-8 minutes. Transfer to a bowl or serving dish. Serve warm or at room temperature.