Ellen Kassoff Gray

Meat Todd: I took the traditional Jewish braised brisket (see The Jewish Brisket, Modernized) and added techniques from my French arsenal to come up with a modern, elegant version of this beloved meat dish. It must be made a day before you wish to serve it, but there's an extra plus with that—it lets all the flavors fully develop and frees you for other things.

This recipe makes quite a bit of stock, but that's a blessing since it must cook for 24 hours. Freeze it in 1-quart containers (or smaller) so it's handy for later use. If you are pressed for time, by all means begin with a prepared version of demiglace (available in most grocery stores or online, such as Demi-Glace Gold brand), and dilute it with 2 to 3 parts water—this is a fine and practical option to making your own veal stock.

This is especially pretty made with a mix of orange and purple carrots, and even nicer if you flute the carrots lengthwise with a channel knife before slicing them—this results in slices with pretty scalloped edges. A channel knife is handy for cutting decorative strips of citrus zest, too; you can pick one up in nearly any gourmet shop.

Parve Todd: To me, gefilte fish out of a jar is an abomination, but my version, basically an interpretation of the French quenelles be brochet, is cheftastic. Choosing between the two is a no-brainer, in my opinion (see Gefilte Fish: Jarred or Fresh? below). I prefer to use rockfish, otherwise known as sea bass, for gefilte fish because it is indigenous to the Chesapeake region. I blend it with pike and flounder, but you could use any combination of the three. Any white, non-oily fish will do for that matter. I've even made them with salmon; the light pink color makes a nice change of pace. It's best to poach the fish balls a day ahead of time so they can rest in their cooking liquid for several hours. They can be eaten cold, but Ellen and I like to serve them warm—they make a great, non-meat brunch entrée.

Parve Ellen: These filled pastries, tri-cornered to mimic Haman's hat and served during Purim celebrations, were a source of conflict in the Kassoff family growing up. Mom didn't give in to her children's entreaties not to buy any filled with prunes or poppy seeds, so a grabfest would occur amongst my brothers and me to see who could get to the apricot-filled ones first.