The Weiser Kitchen

Passover is usually a hectic time for cooks, and when you throw in varying dietary needs and lifestyles, what suffers so often is desserts. For most hosts, dessert is simply something you just pick up from the store. You can make do with canned macaroons and plethora of chocolates, you say to yourself. I think otherwise. I like desserts. In my house everyone who has drifted away from the table will gather together again for the array of desserts I like to serve—as if I rang a Pavlovian dinner bell. Yes, my spread includes silly amounts of chocolate candies, but you’ll also find a cake, an ice cream—something homemade is always on the table. Here’s a bunch of recipes for dessert, all Passover friendly, that will make your dessert display... Read More

I am ready to put away the heavy winter stews in favor of the freshness of spring dishes. A handful of greens from the store and a pot of rice can fix that.

I cook in rather large quantities for a living, but no matter who I am cooking for or why, I always aim to create flavor-intense layers. That often—in fact almost always—takes time. There are few hacks and shortcuts worth the compromise in taste. Even if the cooking time itself is quick, making good food simply takes some time. Time to think about what to make, time to shop, time to prep, and time to cook and clean up. I want to get the most out of my time, and I want you to, as well, so when it comes to making my chicken soup (my version of real-deal, old-fashioned Jewish bubbe-approved chicken soup that satisfies and lingers in memories), I know I will need some serious time. It’s not all... Read More

Is your sweetie someone who doesn't eat chocolate? These marzipan date truffles are the perfect "alternative chocolate" confection.

Winter’s been with us officially for only a couple of weeks now, but I’m already craving hearty, warming soups, chock full of savory vegetable goodness. I have a particular soft spot in my heart for soups that satisfy my cravings without relying upon meat—I was a vegetarian for many years. This satisfying soup does it all and then some. It’s got an amazingly true corn flavor—in winter, no less!—due to the hominy (dried corn), plus lots of aromatic veggies and a sweet finish. Eat up, everyone! Winter is here.

Looking for cookie recipes for your holiday cookie swap? Let me help with some suggestions. Cookies are one of my favorite things to create!

This year I when it comes to latkes, I have free reign at my holiday party catering gig, so I am serving globally-inspired, flavor-packed latkes aplenty!

Brown sugar is a foundation of my kitchen pantry. It’s handy in savory dishes and essential in baking. During the busy holiday baking season, which in my world runs from September through December, I go through dark brown sugar and light brown sugar like crazy. Here are my top three reasons why I use brown sugar in my pies and tarts. 1. It adds flavor depth and complexity all in a single ingredient. Allow me to step back a minute and explain what brown sugar is. Today, commercial brown sugar is sugar with some molasses added back to it. Molasses is a product of the process of refining sugar. The amount of the dense, sweet and earthy syrupy added back to the processed sugar, varies, as does the taste and... Read More

(Sing to the tune of Nickelodeon’s theme song) Dip da dip da dip dip dip, dip-along-with-me. Dips are my favorite secret recipes for Thanksgiving meals or any really large gathering. While the soup and apps are cooking or being plated and the mains and sides are lined up and getting finished, guests are looking for something to do. It’s time to eat and drink. No matter how fancy the meal, or how busy I am, I keep no one waiting for either, from start to finish. When I am entertaining for a gathering that lasts many hours and folks come before mealtime, I find that the easiest thing to do is to set up dip stations with different vegetables and crackers, breads and fruits. Here’s how I make it work... Read More

The days around Thanksgiving can be more than a little chaotic, even for mad planners like me. Desserts, my favorite part of the meal, can easily turn into an afterthought or even grabbed from the back of a grocery store shelf at the last minute. Thanksgiving desserts are worth the time and effort, and many can be made days in advance, freeing up oven space on the Big Eatin’ Day. Many baked goods are better the day they are baked, it’s true, but the ones listed here are sturdy enough to last a day (or two or three). A word of caution, however: please don’t refrigerate them (except cheesecakes, of course!). Breads and cakes actually get stale faster in the fridge. Baked apples and poached pears and such, of course,... Read More

This time of year, when the air outside is a little crisp and my kids are coming home from college soon, I think about making breads and bread recipes. To me, there is nothing like serving or enjoying a basket brimming with hot winter holiday breads. So I get a little bread crazed and read my way through some great cookbooks, watch some videos, and develop some bread recipes of my own, often testing them out on my gracious catering clients. I throw them in as a little something extra, which they love, and I also get their feedback, which I love. My kind of win-win. I’ve thought—nay, dreamed—about going back to culinary school, this time to study bread making, and I’ve even spoken to the head of the programs... Read More

Looking for new thanksgiving side dishes recipes that are vegetarian or vegan? I got you covered this year!

Smoothies are nothing new, goodness knows. There must be a dozen machines just for making smoothies for sale at every drug store at this point, but even so, I still love a creamy, sweet smoothie. I wasn’t thinking about smoothies when I was reading through Nicholas Stavroulakis’ The Cookbook of the Jews of Greece, recently. (Yes, I am a geek. I read and re-read cookbooks all the time.) Then I came across a Yom Kippur break fast tradition that sounded great. Smoothies for the break fast? It sounded like genius, really. You are pretty tired and worn out from a long day of fasting and services. A cool refreshing drink, not too heavy, sounded just right. Most Jewish Yom Kippur break fast dishes tend to lean heavily on dairy, but... Read More

I'm really proud of this filled challah I created for the Valley Fig Growers for their website. It's just about the perfect challah for Rosh Hashanah