Knishes The Old Fashion Way Food

KNISHES

Steps:

• Place potatoes into a pot with enough water to cover them. Bring to a boil, and cook for 5 to 10 minutes, or until tender. Drain and set aside if onions are not yet ready.
• While the potatoes are boiling, heat 1/2 cup of oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onions, and cook until soft and translucent. Mix the onions and their oil into the potatoes, and mash until smooth. Season with salt and pepper, and set aside while you make the dough.
• In a large bowl, mix together eggs, 1/2 cup of oil, warm water and 1 teaspoon of salt. Gradually mix in flour until the dough is stiff enough to remove from the bowl and knead. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead for about 5 minutes. Let rest for a few minutes to relax the dough.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease a cookie sheet.
• Cut off a piece of dough about the size of an egg. Roll the dough out into a long narrow strip about 3 inches wide. Spread the potato mixture over the dough leaving a 1 inch strip along one of the long sides. Roll the dough around the filling towards the exposed strip, and gently press to seal. If you've done this step correctly, the dough will be shaped like a snake filled with potato filling. Repeat the process with remaining dough and filling.
• Place the potato filled rolls onto the prepared cookie sheet, and cut into 1 inch pieces using a pizza cutter.
• Bake for 30 to 45 minutes in the preheated oven, until nicely browned.

KNISHES THE OLD FASHION WAY

Steps:

• 1. Tip 1: Make the fillings first, even a day or so ahead so they will be all ready to put into the dough. Tip 2: These are even more delicious after frozen at the point before baking. Bake them when they are fresh or while still frozen. Tip 3:Do not thaw them after freezing. Bake them frozen. Tip 4: Anything too good to throw away can be made into a filling. Note: Schmaltz is rendered chicken fat, but olive oil works especially if you add some good dry chicken soup mix to it for extra taste. PASTRY: Sift dry ingredients together. Add rest of ingredients. Mix thoroughly. Dust a bowl with flour lightly. Turn it upside-down to remove excess. Put dough in and covery with damp dish towell, cloth or plastic wrAp. Let stand 15 minutes. Knead in mixer with dough hook JUST UNTIL ELASTIC. Work with 1/4 of the dough at a time keeping remainder covered. Fill one part of dough before rolling out nex part. Roll out (with rolling pin) and stretch dough into rounds about 20 inches in diameter, or as rectangular as possible.Make them as thin as possible. (The thinner the better tasting and the more knishes you can make.) Brush dough with oil, or melted butter or margarine. Put line of filling 1 to 1 1/2 inches from edge (and one inch thick) across width. Roll envelope style twice. Cut away this part from remainder and repeat untl used up. Brush with oil, or butter or margarine. Place seam-side down on liberally oiled (or my preference is to use parchment lined pans). Mash each roll with the palm of the hand to make it slightly flatter on top. Cut slits on top of the log about 1 1/2 inches apart to indicate where to finish slicing (and to make it easier to slice) once the logs are finished baking. Bake in preheated 350 degree oven about 45 minutes, or until golden brown. May turn once during baking, if desired. Serve as an appetizer or as a soup accompaniment or even with a salad as an entree. This pastry dough yields about 60 knishes so make plenty of filli
• 2. Potato: Saute onions in fast or olk until golden. Blend with rest of ingredients. Yield 30
• 3. Beef: Saute onions in choice of fat or oil until golden. Combine all together. Yield 30
• 4. Chicken: Combine all ingredients. Yield 30
• 5. Hot Dog: Just use them as is.

KNISH

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. In a mixing bowl, combine the onions, potatoes, egg, and parsley together. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside. For the pastry: In a mixing bowl, combine the oil, water, vinegar, and salt. Add the flour, 1 cup at a time and knead into a ball. Shape into 4 balls and let rest, covered with a cloth, about 30 minutes. Roll each ball of dough out as thin as possible into a flat rectangle. Sprinkle the dough with flour and cover with parchment paper. Let the dough rest for 15 minutes. Using your hands, spread the dough out very thin. Spread 1/4 of the filling onto one third of the dough, leaving a one inch border. Holding the parchment paper, roll up the dough like a jelly roll, brushing oil across the top a couple of times as you roll. Using the side of your hand like a knife, divided the roll into 2-inch knishes. pinch the open ends shut. Repeat procedure with remaining balls and dough. Place the knishes, flat side down, 2 inches apart, on a greased baking sheet. The knishes will need to be baked in batches. Brush the knishes with the egg wash. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until the pastries are golden brown. Place the knishes on a platter and garnish with Essence and parsley.

CONEY ISLAND KNISHES

Steps:

• Whisk flour, salt, and baking powder together in a bowl. Make a well in the center. Add egg, vinegar, oil, and warm water. Mix by hand until dough pulls together. Turn dough out onto the counter and knead until soft, smooth, and elastic. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
• Place potatoes into a large pot and cover with salted water; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until tender, about 20 minutes. Drain; transfer to a mixing bowl. Mash and set aside.
• Chop corned beef and cabbage into fine pieces.
• Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add onion, kosher salt, corned beef, and cabbage. Cook and stir until onions are soft and golden brown and beef fat is rendered, about 10 minutes.
• Transfer beef mixture into the bowl with the mashed potatoes. Season with salt, pepper, and cayenne. Mix until combined and let cool to room temperature.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Line two baking sheets with silicone mats.
• Divide dough in half; flatten one half into a rectangle on a floured surface. Roll out into a larger rectangle about 1/8-inch thick, pulling the corners as needed.
• Place 3 cups filling over one long end, about 3 inches away from the edges. Beat egg with water and brush over the opposite end and a little on the sides. Stretch the dough to cover the filling, then roll up toward the egg-washed side. Fold the last 3 or 4 inches on top. Press in the filling; roll over so seam-side is on the bottom.
• Trim off excess dough from the ends if desired. Mark, but do not cut, dough into 8 equal pieces. Flour the side of your hand and press into the marks. Rub back and forth against the counter to separate each piece. Position each piece with one cut end facing down and the other facing up. Squish down the top and tuck everything into the center to form a round knish.
• Repeat with remaining dough and filling. Brush bottoms with olive oil and place on the prepared baking sheets. Brush leftover egg wash on top.
• Bake in the preheated oven until lightly golden-brown, about 40 minutes. Let cool until just warm or room-temperature.

NEW YORK CITY KNISH

Steps:

• Peel, halve and boil potatoes until tender, 15-20 minutes.
• Mash in a large bowl.
• Sauté onion in 1 1/2 tablespoons butter until translucent but not brown.
• Add to mashed potatoes with broth, salt, pepper and spices.
• Stir well.
• Melt remaining tablespoon of butter.
• Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees.
• Layer 3 sheets of phyllo dough and cut in half.
• Repeat with remaining 3 sheets.
• Spoon 1 cup of potato mixture on each section of phyllo, mold into a large ball and position off-center at one end of strip of dough.
• Roll ball along the length of phyllo, folding dough over bottom of filling and leaving some filling poking through the top.
• (Trim and discard excess dough.) Brush melted butter over edges of knish to seal the seams and press down onto an ungreased baking sheet.
• Repeat with other knishes.
• Bake 30-40 minutes, until golden brown.
• Makes four knishes.

BLINTZES

Steps:

• 1. Beat egg with salt and liquid (water or milk) until smooth.
• 2. Add flour gradually until the consistency of heavy cream. You do not need a mixer. A whisk will work as well.
• 3. Add more liquid or flour as necessary. The batter will thicken as it sits.
• 4. Spoon 1/3 cup of batter into a greased, preheated crepe or crepe size fry pan.
• 5. Tilt pan until entire bottom is covered with a thin, even layer.
• 6. When the blintz is browned underneath and dry on top (1 to 4 minutes), turn out onto waxed paper (browned side up).
• 7. Cover with waxed paper and continue to stack blintzes and paper until all of the batter's used.
• 8. Mix filling ingredients.
• 9. Spoon some of the mixture into each blintz.
• 10. Roll up once.
• 11. Fold in ends.
• 12. Continue rolling into a cigar shape (like a Chinese egg roll shape). Chill until ready to cook.
• 13. To cook, heat a large skillet to medium-low and melt 2 teaspoons butter.
• 14. Fry blintzes, turning occasionally.
• 15. Add more butter as necessary.
• 16. Serve with warm applesauce, sour cream (as is the tradition). Can easily increase quantities if you are cooking for a crowd.

POTATO KNISH

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400.
• Boil potatoes in salted water for 15-20 minutes till soft.
• Drain and mash.
• Measure out one cup of the potatoes and reserve the rest.
• In a bowl add the oil and salt to the 1 cup potatoes and mix.
• Then add in the flour and baking soda in stages.
• Then add the cold water and knead dough until in forms a firm ball, then cover and let rest.
• In a medium skillet place the butter and heat, add the onions and cook them at medium temperature as to not brown them .
• Cook till soft, then pour the onions into a mixing bowl then mix them with the rest of the mashed potatoes and salt and pepper.
• Mix till combined. Do Not Overmix!
• Roll out dough on a floured surface till 1/4 inch thick.
• Cut dough into 4 rectangles.
• Place filling in the middle of the dough and fold them over till ends meet then fold the opposite ends over with some of the beaten egg to hold it closed.
• Brush beaten egg over the top of the knish and bake till golden brown approximately 20 minutes.
• Make 4 large knishes you can use the dough recipe with the other fillings like spinach and cheese.