Channukah recipes

Celebrated jewish cook Joan Nathan's Channukah recipes for:

RED SNAPPER STUFFED WITH BRAISED FENNEL, LEEKS, ONIONS AND CELERY
5 tbsp. olive oil, divided use
1 fennel bulb, cut in 1-inch julienne strips
2 leeks, washed well, use white and light green parts cut in 1-inch julienne strips
1 yellow onion, cut in 1-inch julienne strips
4 stalks celery, cut in 1-inch julienne strips
½ cup white wine
Sea salt
2 to 3 whole snappers, about 2 ¾ lbs. each, gutted, but left whole
2 tbsp. lemon juice
A few grindings of black pepper
1 tsp. za'atar (see note)
1 tsp. ground sumac
1 diced preserved lemon (see note)
Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a medium frying pan over medium heat and saute fennel, leek, onion and celery strips until soft. Add wine, bring to a boil and reduce liquid for a minute or two. Add sea salt to taste.
Stuff snappers with sauteed vegetables and wrap each fish in jute or other twine. Place them side by side in a 9-by-12 inch baking pan and sprinkle with the remaining olive oil, lemon juice, ground pepper, za'atar and sumac, and toss the preserved lemon on top. Bake in preheated 425-degree oven about 25 minutes, or until cooked through. Remove jute or twine and transfer fish to a large platter for serving. Serves 6 to 8.
Note: Za'atar, a Middle Eastern spice combination of wild oregano or thyme, sesame seeds, salt and/or sumac, is available at many supermarkets and all Middle East grocery stores. A lemon can be substituted for preserved lemon.

ITALIAN FRIED ARTICHOKES
Juice of 1 lemon
2 bay leaves
1 tsp. sea salt, or to taste
Handful of peppercorns
3 large artichokes, about 1 lb. each
Grapeseed or canola oil for deep frying
Bring 3 quarts water to a boil in a large pot with lemon juice, bay leaves, a teaspoon or so of sea salt and peppercorns. Drop in the artichokes. If necessary, add more water to just cover them. Cook until they are tender but still a little firm to the touch when pierced with a fork at the stem end, about 15 minutes. Remove artichokes from heat with cooking tongs and let them cool slightly.
Remove outer leaves from artichokes, cut off ¼ inch from stem and tip ends, then cut each heart vertically into 4 pieces. Scoop out and discard the choke and the feathery fibers embedded in the center and refrigerate the pieces.
Fill a wok or deep pan with about 3 inches of oil and heat to sizzling. Deep-fry 2 to 3 artichoke pieces at a time for a few minutes. They will puff up as they cook. Serve hot, sprinkled with additional sea salt. Serves 4 to 6 as a side dish.

APPLE-APRICOT CROSTATA
3 Granny Smith or other good cooking apples (about 1 ½ lbs.)
½ cup sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
2 large egg yolks
1 ½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
Pinch of salt
½ cup apricot preserves
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Grease a 10-inch fluted tart pan with a removable bottom.
Peel, core and slice apples into crescents about ¼- to 1/8-inch thick. You should have about 24 pieces.
Put sugar, butter, egg yolks, flour and salt in a large bowl and rub everything together with your fingers or combine ingredients in a food processor fitted with a steel blade and process in quick pulses until the dough forms a ball. Either way, do not overwork the dough.
Flouring your hands, shape ball of dough into a round and pat it into the tart pan. Working with your fingers and a cake knife or wide spatula, spread dough evenly around pan and up side. The dough should be about ½-inch thick up the side and spread evenly across the bottom of the pan. Trim and flatten edges with a knife. Starting on the outside and working toward the center, lay apple slices in an overlapping, concentric circle.
Heat apricot preserves in a saucepan over low heat until liquefied. Using a pastry brush, paint the apples and the visible crust with apricot glaze. Place tart pan on a cookie sheet and bake on center rack of preheated 425-degree oven for 15 minutes. Reduce oven to 350 degrees and continue baking until crust is deep golden brown, about 45 minutes. Bring to room temperature, unmold and put on a platter or serving dish. Makes 1 tart; serves 10 to 12.