Nectarine Salad with Balsamic Dressing

To make this a full meal, add feta cheese, thinly sliced chicken breast, or grilled tofu.

• 3–5 cups shredded romaine lettuce or arugula
• 1 small kohlrabi, julienned
• 1 cup snap peas, sliced through midline
• 1 small hard nectarine, thinly sliced
• toasted sliced almonds, for topping

Balsamic Dressing

• 2 Tbsp maple syrup or coconut sugar
• 1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
• ½ tsp salt
• ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
• ⅓ cup oil

Combine dressing ingredients in a small bowl. Layer salad ingredients in a salad bowl and drizzle with dressing. Top with toasted sliced almonds.

—Rivki Rabinowitz, Family Room editor

Easy Peach Cobbler

This recipe is from Recipes.com. Try it; it’s unreal.

• ½ cup unsalted butter or margarine
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 cups sugar, divided
• 1 Tbsp baking powder
• pinch of salt
• 1 cup milk (or pareve milk)
• 4 cups fresh peach slices
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• ground cinnamon or nutmeg (optional)

Melt butter or margarine in a 9×13-inch (20×30-cm) baking dish.

Combine flour, 1 cup sugar, baking powder, and salt; add milk, stirring just until dry ingredients are moistened. Pour batter over butter (do not stir).

Bring remaining 1 cup sugar, peach slices, and lemon juice to a boil over high heat, stirring constantly; pour over batter (do not stir). Sprinkle with cinnamon, if desired.

Bake at 375°F (190°C) for 40–45 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm or cool.

—Michal Frischman, recipe contributor; chief of staff, US office

Quick and Easy Fruit Bake

When I’m lazy and don’t feel like peeling fruit, I take apples or pears and wash them. Cut off the tops and core out the pits and tough center. Add a dollop of cranberry sauce and whatever crisp topping you like to each fruit. Put them into a pan with a shallow level of water and bake. Talk about fruit being a base…

—Chaia Frishman, columnist

Nectarine-Feta Tossed Salad

I first tested this recipe during a real heat wave when nobody felt like eating. I served it as a light supper, estimating that it would feed 6–8 people. It was so good that three of us finished the entire bowl! It’s sweet, salty, crunchy, and soft, and the dressing and topping are literally bursting with flavor. I know what you’re making for lunch/supper today!

SERVES 4 AS A MAIN; 6–8 AS A SALAD

Salad

• 1 pkg cut-up Romaine lettuce
• 2 firm nectarines, sliced
• ½ large green apple, unpeeled, cubed
• 4 oz (110 g) crumbled feta cheese (I used 5% Chermon)

Dressing

• 3 Tbsp flour
• 1 cup pineapple juice
• 1¼ cups good-quality orange juice
• ⅓ cup sugar
• 3 Tbsp honey
• 2 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp orange zest, optional
• 1 Tbsp orange brandy (I used 777)

Crunch

• 1 Tbsp butter
• ½ cup pecan halves or pieces
• ½ Tbsp sugar
• salt and pepper, to taste

To make the crunch: In a small skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the nuts; sprinkle with sugar, salt, and pepper. Stir until well coated. Reduce heat and continue toasting for approximately 8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and set aside.

To make the dressing: In a saucepan, combine the flour, pineapple juice, orange juice, sugar, honey, lemon juice, and orange zest, if desired. Whisk together. Bring to a boil, whisking as it cooks, to keep the mixture smooth and lump free. Continue stirring for 2 minutes or until thickened and bubbly. Cool. Add orange brandy when cooled. (You’ll have enough dressing for two large salad bowls. Refrigerate the rest, or even freeze it for another time.)

Toss together salad ingredients. Drizzle with dressing and sprinkle with seasoned pecans.

Note: Dressing may be refrigerated for up to a week or frozen and defrosted before using.

—Brynie Greisman, recipe columnist

Acai Bowl with All the Toppings

This acai bowl comes together in two minutes and hits all the right fruity notes. I don’t have exact measurements, but whenever I make it, any amount works.

I buy the acai packets from the freezer section of the supermarket, let one slightly defrost, and throw it into a blender with about half a container of Greek yogurt and a drop of sweetener. Sometimes I’ll also throw in frozen strawberries/blueberries if I have them. Blend for a few minutes until smooth, pour into a bowl, and then top with any or all of the following toppings: slivered almonds, granola, Nutella, shredded coconut, sliced fruit, warmed peanut butter, drizzled honey, chocolate chips… The sky’s the limit!

Eat immediately, and savor every refreshing bite.

—Shana Halpert, proofreader

Plum Season Cake

This classic recipe is one of those that’s been in my family for generations.

• 2 lbs (910 g) Italian prune plums, halved and pitted
• juice of 1 lemon
• 2½ cups sugar, divided
• ½ cup (1 stick) margarine (trans-fat free) or butter
• 1 cup oil
• 3 cups flour
• 1 Tbsp baking powder
• 6 eggs
• 1 Tbsp orange juice
• 1½ tsp lemon extract
• 1 tsp ground coriander seeds

Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C).

Combine the pitted plums, lemon juice, and ½ cup sugar in a bowl and let sit for half an hour. Meanwhile, in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with beaters, beat margarine or butter with remaining 2 cups sugar until it’s the texture of grainy sand. Add the oil and beat on high for 3 minutes, until pale and smooth. Lower speed and add the flour, baking powder, eggs, orange juice, and lemon extract. Beat until pale and smooth, about 4 minutes.

Grease three 9-inch (23-cm) round pans. Add the coriander to the plum mixture and mix to coat all the plums. Divide the batter among the three pans. Press the plums into the batter cut side down, around the perimeter of the cake, then do a second row of plum inside this row and place one plum in the center. The plums should be close together, but not touching each other. Bake for 55 minutes.

—Estee Kafra, recipe contributor

Baked Chicken with Pineapple

This recipe was inspired by a Kosher by Design recipe for turkey breast, in which you slide sliced pastrami between the skin and meat of the turkey. You can do that with this recipe too, which makes it even more delicious, but it’s more time-consuming.

• 3–4 lbs (1½–2 kg) chicken pieces
• 2 Tbsp olive oil or cooking oil
• ½ tsp turmeric
• salt, pepper, garlic powder, thyme, parsley, paprika, to taste
• 2 15-oz (425-g) cans pineapple chunks with juice

Heat oil in a saucepan and swirl in the turmeric (gives the chicken a nice color). Brown the chicken on both sides in the hot oil, sprinkling with the other spices as they brown, and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet.

Add the pineapple chunks with the juice to the saucepan and let it boil 5–10 minutes until the pineapple turns a more amber color. Pour it over the chicken and bake at 350°F (175°C) for about an hour and a half, until tender and golden.

—Barbara Bensoussan, columnist

Blueberry Pie

In our house we love anything blueberry. Here’s a quick and easy pie recipe that we all enjoy! You can sub frozen blueberries for fresh ones when not in season.

• 2 cups flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ⅔ cup sugar
• 1 egg + 1 egg yolk
• ¼ cup orange juice
• ¼ cup oil
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 egg white
• crystallized sugar, for sprinkling

Filling

• 5 cups frozen blueberries
• 1 cup sugar
• 6 Tbsp cornstarch
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• zest of 1 lemon
• ⅛ tsp cinnamon

Combine flour, baking powder, sugar, egg and yolk, orange juice, oil, and vanilla in a bowl until it forms a dough.

Press half the mixture into a 9×13-inch (20×30-cm) baking pan. In a large bowl, gently toss the blueberries with the sugar, cornstarch, lemon juice and zest, and cinnamon. Place blueberries on top of dough in pan. Use other half of dough mixture to decorate the top of the pie with a lattice design. Brush with egg white for glaze and sprinkle with crystallized sugar.

Bake at 350°F (175°C) for 45 minutes to one hour.

—Chavi Feldman, recipe columnist

(Originally featured in Family Table, Issue 744)