At least once a month we try to come together as a family to take a slow meal by the Sabbath lights.  Laughter and song fill the air and we take joy in just being together.  Last night happened to be one of those special nights.  For the occasion, I made a delicious Apple-Brandy Roasted Chicken {an idea that came to me after my Dad gave me his insanely yummy Thanksgiving turkey recipe several years ago - more to come on that}, Roast Potatoes and Apples with Tarragon {Mom's ingenious idea to toss apples into the mix} and Chocolate Cinnamon Walnut Mandel Bread {or Mandelbrot - basically Jewish Biscotti}...

Note:  If you plan on replicating this whole menu, start with the Mandel Bread either earlier in the day or even the day before.

p.s.  forewarning - this recipe is not exactly kosher - but neither are we...

Recipes:

Apple Brandy Chicken {serves 6}

~ 4-5 lb. organic whole roasting chicken

~ 8 oz. butter

~ 1/2 c. apple butter {jarred or your own - recipe for this coming soon}

~ 1/2 c. brandy

~ sea salt and fresh cracked pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Combine apple butter, 4 oz. of butter and brandy on stove top to melt or in microwave - heat until just melted and whisk until combined - set aside.  Season the chicken with salt and pepper rubbing all over the skin.  Gently slip hand near neck cavity of the chicken and begin to slowly and carefully separate the skin from the body - you are not removing the skin, just creating a pocket to add flavor.  Work the entire topside of the bird including the leg area  - be very careful not to tear the skin. 

Place a large pot on your strongest burner - melt the remaining 4 oz. of butter over the heat.  Stand the chicken up on it's legs and pour about 3/4 of the apple brandy mixture into the envelope you have created.   Once the bird is full and the butter has melted, place the bird topside down into the pot.  The butter should be hot enough that this contact results in delightful sizzling and popping sounds.  Brown each side for a few minutes {3-5 min}.  When all sides have been browned, baste the bird with some of the remaining sauce and place the entire pot into your oven uncovered.  Due to the sugar content in the brandy and the apple butter, it will brown {sort of caramelize} quite quickly.  Keep an eye on it and cover the pot with tin foil once it has achieved your ideal for color.  Baste every 20 minutes or so - roast for 1 hour 40 minutes or until a meat thermometer reads 160.

Roast Potatoes and Apples with Tarragon {serves 6}

~ 5 large red potatoes {washed and chopped into large chunks}

~ 3 Gala apples {cored and sliced}

~ 2 t. cinnamon

~ 1 T. finely chopped tarragon

~ sea salt and fresh cracked pepper

~ 2 T. olive oil

Preheat oven to 375 {or add to oven while chicken is roasting}.  In one bowl, combine potatoes, 1 T. olive oil, tarragon, salt and pepper.  Toss well until potatoes are completely and evenly coated.  In another bowl add apples, 1 T. olive oil and cinnamon - toss until evenly coated.   Pour potatoes onto a baking sheet and roast in oven for 15-20 minutes {until they just begin to soften}.  Remove from the oven and place in large bowl, add apples to this bowl and toss everything together until well combined {potatoes should now have a bit on cinnamon on them - apples of bit of tarragon}.  Pour entire contents of bowl back onto the baking sheet and return to oven.  Bake for additional 25 minutes or until golden.

Chocolate Cinnamon Walnut Mandel Bread

~ 3/4 c. sugar

~ 1/2 c. canola oil

~ 2 eggs

~ 2 t. vanilla

~ 1 1/2 t. baking powder

~ 2 c. flour

~ 1 T. cinnamon

~ 1/2 c. walnuts {finely chopped}

~ 2/3 c. semi-sweet baking chocolate {chopped}

Note:  I prefer to use chopped baking chocolate as opposed to chocolate chips as the varying sizes of the chopped chocolate lend themselves beautifully to the dough - some are so small they dissapear into chocolate ribbons in the cookie - others remain as tempting chocolate chunks.

Preheat oven to 350.  Whisk sugar, oil, eggs and vanilla in bowl.  In another bowl combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.  Combine and mix thoroughly - fold in walnuts and chocolate.  On a baking sheet covered with parchment, create a long log shape with the dough - flatten it slightly.  Place in oven for 25 minutes.  Pull from oven and let cool for 15 minutes and turn oven down to 325.  After the cookie has cooled a bit, carefully lift the parchment paper from the baking sheet onto a large cutting surface.  Place a new sheet of parchment on the baking sheet.  Using a serrated knife, cut the log into pieces - carefully sliding each one on the knife {as not to break} and returning to the baking sheet.  Once all pieces are on the baking sheet, return to oven for 7 minutes.  Pull from oven and carefully turn each cookie over - bake additional 7 minutes.  Let cool for at least 30 minutes before eating or 1 hour before storing.  Absolutely delicious dipped into espresso and cappuccino. 

Comments

[Denise Levy]

Thank you for sharing the mandel bread recipe. My husband's grandma used to make it and I miss it!