Haiti and requested recipes

Alen and I are giving to the UN World Food Program to help Haiti. Click here to donate. The Jewish Reconstructionist Federation has also posted a list of Jewish organizations to donate to: click here.

Our connection: Alen's father Vlad lived and worked in Haiti for about eight years, starting when we lived in the states and continuing when we lived here. We have one of his watercolors he drew there on our kitchen wall along with a painting he bought us there. The area where he lived, Petionville, has been one of the hardest hit suburbs of Port Au Prince. His good friends, Hari and Maevan, lived there with him and are now back in Trinidad, along with their Haitian maid. She has not been able to reach her family and Vlad has not been able to reach any friends there.

Please make a donation today. It seems so unfair that the poorest country in the western hemisphere should suffer such a great loss yet again.

Here are recipes:

Chicken Apple Pot Pie - this is just so easy and delicious. The key is the pie crust you buy in the store frozen in a roll. If you live outside Israel, let me know if it can be purchased elsewhere! It's puff pastry I guess. Defrost it before you make this.

2 chicken breasts - in 1/2 - 1 inch cubes
2 potatoes - same
2 apples - same
2 carrots - smaller cubes
5 scallions - chopped
2 bay leaves

Put it all in a pot, cover with water and cook about 20 minutes. Scoop out and arrange the solids in a flat ovenproof pan (pyrex is best), about 2-3 inches deep. Take out the bay leaves. Pour about half a bag of frozen peas on top.

Pour the liquid into another container. In the pan, melt 1 tbsp margarine, add 1 tbsp or more flour, then slowly add liquid to make a roux. Now add about 2 cups liquid. (Save the rest for soup). Heat boiling until thickened. Pour over the stuff in the pan. Now roll out the pastry over the top. If the pan is too full, you will need to put it on a cookie sheet so it does not mess up your oven. Cook at about 400 for about 20-30 minutes until the crust is browned and the inside is bubbling. Kids and adults like this. With thanks to Marcus Brody who first taught me to cook this.

Lower Fat Chocolate Chip Cookies
I adapted this from a recipe by Hillary Clinton found in a Girl Scout cookbook called Recipes for Success. Mine have less fat, less sugar, and taste great.

1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
sift these together

1 cup sugar (white and brown as you prefer)
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1/3 cup oil
mix these and beat if you wish

mix the dry ingredients into the wet. Then add 1 cup of oats and some amount of chocolate chips. Craisins are also allowed. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto greased cookie sheet and bake in preheated 350 F or 170 C oven for 8-10 minutes until brown. Hillary says leave them 2 minutes on the cookie sheet before removing - definitely do not leave them longer.

Please donate to Haiti and THANKS!!!!