This 8-August post at JewishIndy.com tells of a new Kosher culinary school which opened last month in Jerusalem. The main, year-long course combines study of Halacha (Jewish law), hospitality management, and cooking by renowned culinary and rabbinic staff. A gourmet yeshiva, sign me up!Links:

• Kosher Culinary Academy
• God and Gravlax
  The Jewish Week
• Training Tomorrow’s Kosher Chefs
  JewishIndy.com

A favorite pre-Kosher dining spot of mine was Legal Sea Foods, now with locations along the eastern seaboard. Since I missed their fish chowder so much, I found their recipe, which is entirely kosher without alteration. The fish stock it requires, though, made it a bit too difficult, so I’ve substituted vegetable broth (try Imagine Organic No-Chicken Broth) and water. I also added some potatoes (peeled, pre-cut Yukon Gold) and sage. It’s not as thick as I remember, but it is delicious.

New England Fish Chowder

Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 40 minutes
Yield: 1.5 quarts

Ingredients
1/4 cup butter
1 1/2 cups diced onions
1/8 cup finely grated carrots
1 teaspoon minced/crushed garlic
1/4 cup flour
3 cups vegetable broth
2 cups diced Yukon Gold potatoes
1 pinch ground sage
3 cups water
2 pounds white fish (e.g. cod)
1 cup light cream
1/4 cup finely grated Monterey Jack cheese
kosher salt, to taste
freshly ground black pepper

1. Heat the butter in a large pot, and saute the onions, carrots, and garlic in it, stirring frequently, about 5 minutes.
2. Remove from heat and slowly stir in the flour. Return to the heat and cook, stirring, for about 4 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, combine the vegetable broth and the water, and heat in a large pot or in the microwave.
4. Whisk the stock into the flour mixture. Add the potatoes and sage.
5. Bring the stock to a boil, whisking constantly, then reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes.
6. Add the fish, whole or in chunks, and simmer about 10 minutes longer.
7. Stir in the cream and the cheese, and simmer until the cheese melts, about 5 to 8 minutes. (You won’t distinguish the cheese as such, it is incorporated into the chowder.) Reheat the chowder slowly so the cream doesn’t boil.
8. Season with plenty of kosher salt and black pepper. Serve with crusty bread, or in a bread bowl. Can be refrigerated for a few days, or frozen indefinitely.

From the Great Timesavers Dept.
Noticed these in the vegetable section of my grocer’s freezer: Dorot Crushed Garlic Cubes. The frozen package contains 20 cubes of garlic (grown on Kibbutz Dorot), and each one pops out easily for quick kitchen use. Plus, since it’s a frozen product (unlike the jarred, chopped garlic) its flavor stays extremely fresh. It’s just like using fresh garlic, without getting your hands smelly.

Browse your typical supermarket tomato-sauce aisle, and you’ll find a handful of products called “pizza sauce.” Typically, they’re loaded with sugar or corn syrup, and they taste nothing like what you get at your favorite pizzeria.

Luckily, an area restauranteur posted online his recipe for pizza sauce, and after a simple modification (water instead of chicken stock), I had my perfect no-frills sauce recipe.

Two months ago, I’d have posted that tried-and-true recipe on its own. Since then, I’ve found an ideal alternative, from a very modest source: Hunt’s Basil, Garlic, and Oregano Tomato Sauce (O-K pareve). Now, it’s the only sauce I use on my homemade pizzas.

This recipe “conversion” rose out of my desire to duplicate the Sweet Potato Pudding served at my cousin’s (unfortunately non-kosher) restaurant, Firefly’s. I found the original recipe by Emeril Lagasse at FoodTV.com. It has been altered slightly to be pareve, and thus makes a great shabbos dish. If you’d like it to be more of a kugel, use a shallower baking dish and adjust the baking time appropriately.Sweet Potato Pudding

Preparation Time: 20 minutes
Cooking Time: 45 minutes
Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients
2 pounds sweet potatoes, roasted in oven or microwave
3 eggs
1 cup pareve soy milk
1 pinch grated nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup pecan pieces
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
2 tablespoons pure cane syrup
1 pinch salt
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons bourbon, optional
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup flaked coconut
4 tablespoons pareve margarine, softened

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Peel and mash the potatoes in a mixing bowl, until smooth.
3. Stir in the eggs and soy milk.
4. Add the nutmeg, cinnamon, 1/2 cup of the pecans, 1/2 cup of the brown sugar, syrup, salt, vanilla, and bourbon. Mix well.
5. Pour the mixture into a 1 1/2 quart greased round baking dish.
6. Combine the remaining pecans, remaining brown sugar, flour, coconut and margarine. Using your hands, quickly mix the ingredients only until the mixture resembles a coarse texture.
7.Spread the mixture over the pudding and place in the oven.
8. Bake for about 45 minutes, or until bubbly. Serve hot.

Seven years of keeping kosher may have numbed my taste for treyf, but it hasn’t eliminated it. Thankfully, Morningstar Farms can keep me on the right track with their Veggie Breakfast Bacon Strips product. In terms of taste and texture, it’s leaps and bounds above Litelife’s Smart Bacon. Smart Bacon, however, is pareve (Breakfast Strips are dairy), so they still have a place in my pantry.

Every kosher market sells chicken broth (Rokeach, Manischewitz, etc.), but what about beef broth? The closest I’ve come is pareve beef boullion, which isn’t close at all, in my opinion.

I have discovered, however, a company in NJ that makes kosher “soup bases” (i.e. chicken/beef/vegetable broth) for commercial/industrial customers. Sent an e-mail asking if they offer any retail products.

While trying to learn whether my favorite hard ciders are kosher, I found this interesting tidbit on the Green Mountain Cidery website (makers of Woodchuck hard ciders). All the ingredients look kosher (jury’s still out on the champaigne yeast they use), and they’re considering getting OU certification.