On a breezy evening in June, Brooke Lindzon and Sydney and Laura Flatt giggled as they mixed cheese and flour.
The cousins were among the 180 women attending a hands-on cooking event at the Warehouse in Toronto. They were learning to make Ricotta Gnocchi.
The women were participating in an Evening with the Soul Food Sisters. Cookbook co-authors Julie Albert and Lisa Gnat led the demo for The House, an organization that provides Jewish programming for young professionals aged 22 to 35.
But this cooking event was geared to multiple generations of families – daughters, mothers and grandmothers were invited to participate.
Three generations of the Flatt family sat together. Phyllis Flatt offered encouraging words to her granddaughters Sydney Flatt, 18, Lindzon, 18, and Laura Flatt, 17 as they kneaded the ricotta and flour mixture and rolled it into long ropes,.
Susan Lindzon and sister-in law Ilene Flatt, said they enjoyed watching the girls do the prep work. Albert and Gnat guided the participants as they prepared the gnocchi, which they took home to cook.
Before the cooking demo started, there was wine and lots of hors d’oeuvres like tofu salad rolls with miso dipping sauce and golden edamame dumplings.
The evening was later capped by a nosh – ginger sandwich cookies with lemon filling.
The hors d’oeuvres and cookies were all prepared from recipes from Albert and Gnat’s latest book, Lick Your Plate: A Lip-Smackin’ Book for Every Home Cook.
The sisters were on hand to sell and sign copies of their books. Proceeds from their sales that evening were donated to The House.
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Ginger cookie sandwiches
with lemon filling
o 3/4 cup butter, room temperature
o 1/2 cup sugar
o 1/4 cup brown sugar
o 1 egg
o 1 tsp. vanilla extract
o 6 tbsp. blackstrap molasses
o 2 cups flour
o 1 tsp. baking soda
o 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
o 1 tsp. ground ginger
o 1/4 tsp. kosher salt
o 3 tbsp. sugar, for rolling cookie dough
Lemon filling:
o 1/2 cup butter, room temperature
o 2 1/2 cups icing sugar
o 2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
o 1 tsp. lemon zest
Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Using an electric mixer on medium speed, cream butter, sugar and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg and vanilla, beating until they’re well incorporated. Add molasses and mix on low speed until combined. Add flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger and salt, mixing on low speed just until combined.
Take 2 tbsp. of dough and roll into a ball. Place 3 tablespoons sugar on a flat plate and roll the dough ball in the sugar. Place ball on the prepared baking sheet and continue with remaining dough. Cover both baking sheets and refrigerate for 1 hour before baking.
Preheat oven to 350. Remove baking sheets from refrigerator and using the bottom of a glass, flatten each dough ball slightly. Bake cookies 8 to 10 minutes, until golden around the edges. Let cookies cool completely before filling.
Filling: Use an electric mixer to cream butter, icing sugar, lemon juice and lemon zest on medium speed until a spreadable consistency.
To assemble cookie sandwiches, use a small spoon to the place filling in the centre of a cookie bottom. Gently press another cookie on top until the filling spreads. The recipe makes 12 cookie sandwiches.
•••
Tofu salad rolls with miso dipping sauce
o 1 package (14 oz.) extra-firm tofu
o 2 tbsp. soy sauce
o 1 tbsp. yellow miso paste
o 1 tbsp. rice vinegar
o o 1 tsp. sesame oil
o 1 tsp. grated fresh ginger
o 1 tbsp. mirin
o 10 round (8-in.) rice paper sheets
o 2 medium carrots, peeled and julienned
o 2 firm, ripe avocados, thinly sliced
o 1 cup coarsely chopped fresh mint
o 2 cups baby kale
Miso dipping sauce:
o 1/3 cup mayonnaise
o 2 tbsp. yellow miso paste
o 1 tbsp. mirin
o 1 tsp. soy sauce
o 1/4 tsp. wasabi paste
Preheat oven to 400 and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Slice the tofu into 20 strips and dry with paper towels. Place tofu strips in a flat-bottomed dish. In a small bowl, whisk soy sauce, miso, rice vinegar, mirin, sesame oil and ginger. Pour the marinade over the tofu, toss and cover for 30 minutes. Discard marinade and place tofu on the baking sheet. Bake 8 minutes, flip and continue to bake 8 minutes more. Allow the tofu to cool before assembling.
To assemble the wraps, place 1 rice paper sheet in a shallow bowl of hot water until just softened, about 1 minute. Lay wet rice paper sheet on a dish towel. Place 2 slices of tofu in the middle of the wrap. Layer with julienned carrots, avocado slices, fresh mint and baby kale. Drizzle a small spoonful of miso dipping sauce. Fold in the right side, followed by the left side and then the top and bottom forming a tight cylinder. Repeat with remaining rice paper sheets and filling.
Place finished wraps under a damp cloth until ready to serve to prevent them from hardening. Slice rolls in half diagonally and serve with miso dipping sauce.
Dipping sauce: Whisk mayonnaise, miso paste, mirin, soy sauce and wasabi paste. When well combined, cover and refrigerate until the salad rolls are assembled.
• • •
Gnocchi dough
o 4 cups ricotta cheese
o 3 large eggs
o 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (optional)
o 1 tsp kosher salt
o 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
o 4 cups flour
Dust 2 baking sheets with flour and set them aside. In a large bowl, using hands or a wooden spoon, combine ricotta, eggs, Parmesan, salt and pepper. Add flour 1 cup at a time to form a soft dough. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface and knead gently for 2 minutes.
Divide the dough into 6 pieces and roll each into a ball. Roll out each ball into 1/2-in.-thick ropes. Cut each rope into 1-in. slices and gently place on prepared baking sheets. If not cooking right away, cover and refrigerate gnocchi until they’re ready for use.
To cook gnocchi, bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil over high heat. Drop pieces into boiling water and cook until gnocchi rise to the surface, about 2 to 3 minutes. Remove gnocchi using a slotted spoon and place them in a serving bowl. Top with tomato sauce or another vegetarian pasta sauce and serve. Makes 8 to 10 servings or approximately 120 gnocchi.
