Cheese & Spinach {Love story}

cheese-spinach Pastry

Like all great love stories, this one had to wait for the perfect moment.
This recipe has been patiently waiting for Chag HaShavuot.
“Pastry” – that’s what we call it at home.
The name itself implies what’s inside
And how happy we’ll all be once it comes out of the oven.
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I tasted this pastry for the first time a year ago, as a guest,
but I had no one to ask to get the recipe.
So obviously, the first thing I did when I got home was to reenact the moment:
Delicate pastry dough on the outside, filled with different types of cheeses and spinach.
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Of course, I had a few very important conditions for this dish:
It had to be easy to make, not require the use of too many dishes (so it could be made for family dinners in the middle of the week), and it had to be a flexible recipe (meaning, it could be made with whatever ingredients are already in the fridge).
The dough takes three (3!!) minutes to make, the filling takes a second and a half, and there’s even a secret trick to avoid making a mess on the counter.
This pastry is already part of our family, and I hope it will be part of yours too.
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Cheese and Spinach Pastry

Ingredients for the dough:
8 tablespoons of butter
1 cup milk
2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
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Ingredients for the filling:
3 cups (approx) of soft white cheeses: cottage cheese, sour cream, ricotta, or whatever you have on hand
1/2 cup (or more) of fancier cheese: crumbled feta, shredded mozzarella, or anything else you have in the fridge
salt & pepper, according to taste
fresh spinach leaves, washed (baby spinach also works well)
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Optional:
1 beaten egg
sesame seeds
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Tools needed:
1 large bowl for the dough (microwave-safe)
1 medium bowl for the filling
rolling pin
spoon
measuring cup
3 sheets of parchment paper
1 small bowl + fork + pastry brush
1 large rectangular baking sheet
(Dairy ~ makes two elongated rolls)
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Directions:
  • Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius / 350 Fahrenheit, and cover the baking sheet with parchment paper.

 

  • Place butter and milk In a large bowl, and melt in the microwave on high heat for 1 minute. Mix well. If the butter hasn’t melted yet, keep microwaving the mixture for 30 second intervals.

 

  •  Add flour and baking powder and mix well with a spoon. Eventually, begin to knead the mixture with one hand (the other holding the bowl steady), until it forms into a smooth dough. If the dough sticks to your hand, add a tablespoon of flour at a time, but not too much — otherwise, the dough will dry out.

 

  • In a separate bowl, mix all the cheeses together.

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  • Separate the dough into two parts. Using the rolling pin, flatten one half between two sheets of parchment paper (secret trick!)

 

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  • Place half of the cheese mixture on the center of the dough
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  • Arrange the spinach leaves on top of the cheese

 

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  • With the help of the paper, fold over one side of the dough on top of the filling, and then fold over the other side. Pinch the edges together so he filling won’t spill out.

 

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  • Carefully transfer the pastry onto the baking sheet, and then repeat the process with the other half of dough.

 

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  • Brush the dough with the beaten egg and sprinkle on the sesame seeds.

 

  • Bake for 30 minutes and serve warm.
I don’t know how long this pastry stays fresh for – at our house, it’s usually devoured in a few hours or less. You can keep in a airtight plastic container in the fridge for up to four days.
This recipe also freezes well, sealed in an airtight container or plastic bag.
Enjoy!!! white patch

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Family Picture

 

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“All happy families are alike”; said Tolstoy. Well, maybe it works for Anna Karenina and her friends, but I must disagree. 

Dear Mr. Tolstoy, if you have joined our young artists class, you would learn how – if you just let kids create open-ended art – all happy families are each special in their own way. 

pebbels

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Welcome to Recyclville

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“Do you have an art class for little children?”
“Hmm… no, but I can start a class for young artists. Is that what you are looking for?”

And that’s how I’ve found myself sitting once a week around the table with a bunch of sweet little boys, building a neighborhood and solving big problems.
I had few plans for this art class, but the young builders had so many ideas – so we went with the flow and created the beautiful town of:

Recyclville.

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Bell Chanukiyah

bells-headeren

As I was wheeling my cart through my local supermarket’s aisles, thinking about the lights and meaning of Hanukkah, I met those

Teeny-tiny-itty-bitty tea lights. 

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Knowing the store’s employees might get a bit concerned if I started start my “Eureka! I found my next project” dance, I tried my hardest to keep calm and collected as I grabbed them off the shelf, before anyone else could.
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A Day at the Beach

top pictEN

The horizon. The waves. The serenity.
And the sand
sand
sand
and more sand.
Then you decide to go to the beach.
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What do you take go to the beach?
A bathing suit, towel, hat, sunscreen, food in containers, a change of clothes, and beach toys.
And what do you take home?
bathing suits coated with sand
towels dusted with sand
a bottle of sunscreen covered in sand
and toys filled with sand…
And even more:
Sand.

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Graduation • celebrating big moments

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For all the hard work you put into these past years –
Classwork, homework, assignments, charts, graphs, science projects, spelling tests, presentations, field trips –
And so much more
You are going to wear your gown and decorated cap, stand in line with all your friends, walk your last steps in the school building, and start your wonderful journey in the big world.
I’m not sure I’m going to see all that – I’m probably going to share some tears,
of pride,
of happiness
of sadness
of worries of separation,
Like you (and I,too) cried on your first day of school.
All graduates who worked so hard –
You absolutely deserve applause and celebrations!

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I Love You, Mom!

i love you momSo many words have been said about mothers.

So many hugs and smiles.

So many cards that moms keep forever. All over the world.

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Here is a cute and easy DIY Mother’s day card tutorial

for all moms,

that even little fingers can create, just to say –

 I LOVE YOU, MOM!

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Personal Mishlochei Manot, XS size

 edible flower pot

In my last blog spot I wrote that this year I am preparing our family Mishlochei Manot (Purim food baskets) ahead of time to avoid the Purim-craze traffic.

It allows me to keep calm,

knowing one big project is behind me,

and that I have more time for —

Yet another project!!!

{ Its the same story with laundry baskets that seem to fill themselves up as soon as you proudly empty it. And the sink. And the garbage. And the recycling bin. I’m sure you have no idea what I’m talking about…}

The kids started to sense that I might get bored having nothing to do, so they asked if I can help them make Mishlochei Manot for their friends.

I somehow convinced them it should be something small and symbolic, and that’s how these cute Mishlochei Manot were born:

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Paper Bag in a Costume

mishloach finish

Purim. Lets talk about it.

Actually, no time to talk, there is so much to do.

Maybe too much –

Seudah, Megilah, costumes, parties and more parties, and Mishlochei Manot multiplied by everyone on earth…

Luckily, some friends live too far to get one of those goody-bags.

{Sorry! – Well, almost…}

And it all has to be done in only same 24 hours!

{suddenly Pessach sound so doable…}

And the stress.

I don’t want to talk about the stress, but I’ve found a nice trick to de-stress the Purim preparations a bit:

pre-prepare.

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Chocolate Cake With Missing Ingredients

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Must make it clear:

This cake is filled with real chocolate,

but it requires No Baking,

it’s Gluten-free, and it contains

No added sugars,

No Food-colorings,

or Preservatives.

It’s a particularly special cake,

It stays fresh for a long, long time (years even!)

The kind of cake you just don’t meet everyday.

 The kind of cake you send a girl way across the sea.

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