Story submitted by Toby Siegel who was born and raised in Cleveland. She has many affiliations with the Jewish community as well as the art and musical worlds in Cleveland.
The Story Behind the Recipe:
This recipe is from the beautiful cookbook I received in 2000, from my mother, May Lefkof, "The Book of Jewish Food," by Claudia Roden. The book contains 800 recipes from Jewish communities around the world that are of Ashkenazi and Sephardic origin and contains a lot of postcards and personal stories. From people throughout China, India, Bukhari, Greece, and Israel. Even if you hate to cook, reading the book, as my husband did as I cooked, is a real treat!
Recipe:
Ingredients:
6 chicken quarters
4 T sunflower or peanut oil
2 large onions coarsely chopped
2 T cinnamon
1/2 T nutmeg
2 T honey
1/2 LB pitted dates
Juice of 1 lemon
Pinch of saffron
1/2 cups of toasted almonds
Instructions:
In a large roaster sautee chicken in oil.
Add onions, cook until soft.
Add 1 cup of water and all spices. Stir and add honey.
Add salt + black pepper to taste.
Simmer for 30 minutes, covered.
Add dates and bake at 325 degrees for one hour.
Add optional cup of Kosher sweet wine or merlot.
6 chicken quarters
4 T sunflower or peanut oil
2 large onions coarsely chopped
2 T cinnamon
1/2 T nutmeg
2 T honey
1/2 LB pitted dates
Juice of 1 lemon
Pinch of saffron
1/2 cups of toasted almonds
Instructions:
In a large roaster sautee chicken in oil.
Add onions, cook until soft.
Add 1 cup of water and all spices. Stir and add honey.
Add salt + black pepper to taste.
Simmer for 30 minutes, covered.
Add dates and bake at 325 degrees for one hour.
Add optional cup of Kosher sweet wine or merlot.