Norwitz Notions

My favorite seller was at the Petaluma Farmer’s Market the other week, Chris the peach guy.  Chemical-free, great prices, and amazing flavor.  He had a “rejects” box he was selling at $1/lb (half the usual price)–mostly ones with small blemishes that most people wouldn’t even notice.  I was picking through it when he said, oh […]

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Popsicles are an easy summer treat that feels like dessert but can be very healthy if made with the right ingredients.  I always use whole fruit, never juice.  And I don’t sweeten them either.  But you can make them any way you wish.
The basic recipe is:
Pureed fruit
Liquid to make them pourable

For this batch, I used […]

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If you ask an Ashkenazi Jew (of Eastern/Central European origin, most American Jews) the recipe for charoset, you will generally get one answer: chopped apples, honey, wine, nuts (walnuts and pecans are popular), and (often) cinnamon. This version is so popular that many Haggadahs list it as such and I’ve had Jews tell me […]

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I made this lovely torte (or is it a tart? or maybe a cheesecake?) for Passover this year. It was a gamble, since we had never made it before, and didn’t have much of a recipe to go on, but it came out wonderful. Many thanks to Jessica of Foodlab for the […]

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When I was at the Marin County Fair on July 4th, 2007, one of the booths was promoting healthy eating for kids and they had samples of a blender drink. All fruit (no juice) and no added sugar. It was fabulous on that blindingly hot day (about 100*F).
Their slushie recipe:
Ice cubes (between 1/3 and 1/2 […]

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Miriam has been planning her birthday party all year. When we would ask what she wanted, all she would say was: “Carrot cake and all my friends to be there!” That would be the same carrot cake we had last year, for her 2nd birthday party. Fortunately, she loves it.
When you’re dealing with food allergies, […]

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My daughter adores Lara Bars, which are raw (dehydrated) bars of a very smooth date paste mixed with finely minced nuts and various flavorings. Unfortunately, they’re not organic and they’re expensive. Even the Costco box (only 3 flavors) is still nearly a dollar a bar. Other flavors cost $1.20/bar and more.
I’ve tried my hand at […]

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Who says you need dairy or sugar to enjoy ice cream? Though I make lots of sorbets and ice milks, this one is full cream.
Recipe
3 cups pureed strawberries
1 can coconut milk (lite works better but regular is fine)
A couple tsps vanilla extract
Squeeze of fresh lemon
Pinch salt
Stevia to taste
If you have an ice cream maker, […]

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This was a huge hit at the Thanksgiving potluck I went to last November. My pie (and all the cream) was devoured. The other pumpkin pie (homemade with traditional ingredients) still had half of it left.
Because I couldn’t find one perfect recipe, I used the crust from one and the filling from another. Actually, Michael […]

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This is a very simple recipe but it can be difficult to get the consistency just right. You need a good blender for this one.
I made the cashew cream to go with a vegan pumpkin pie I took to a Thanksgiving Potluck.
I started with raw cashew pieces (I keep them in the freezer), about […]

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One of my favorite recipes but one I can’t have any more (I can cheat with the dairy, but not the eggs).
Recipe adapted from Joy of Cooking by Michael Norwitz
For the regular versions (with sugar) see cheesecake and pumpkin cheesecake
Ingredients:
2 well-beaten eggs
3/4 lb to 1 lb firm cream cheese (softened to room temperature)
3/4 to 1 […]

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This cake came from a mix:
Sylvan Border Farm
Gluten-Free Products
Lemon Cake Mix
1 lb, 10.7 oz (762.6 g)
Mendocino Gluten-Free Products, Inc.
P.O. Box 277, Willits, CA 95490
(800) 297-5399; Fax: (707) 459-1834
http://www.sylvanborderfarm.com/
INGREDIENTS: Sugar, Potato Starch, White Rice Flour, Brown Rice Flour*, Aluminum-free Baking Powder, Amaranth Flour, Quinoa Flour*, Xanthan Gum, Lemon Juice Powder, White Cornmeal*, Garbanzo Bean Flour*, […]

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Why is this recipe listed under Chanukah? Because my daughter can’t have chocolate and I wanted an alternative for dreidle gelt. I promised her we’d made cookies for Chanukah (we eat very few traditional sweets). The cookies are gold like gelt with golden raisins and jeweled cranberries.
It was too messy to actually use cookies for […]

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