The Coconuts Recipe Corner: Ukrainian-style Passover Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

 

Ukrainian-style Passover Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

Stuffed cabbage is popular in Ukraine and is known as holubtsi, which literally translates as “little pigeons”

By CHANIE APFELBAUM/JTA, Jerusalem Post, MARCH 15, 2022

https://www.jpost.com/food-recipes/article-701300

Stuffed cabbage is popular in Ukraine and is known as holubtsi, which literally translates as "little pigeons".  (photo credit: CHANIE APFELBAUM/JTA)

Ingredients

1 head of green cabbage

1 lb ground beef

1 heaping cup leftover mashed potatoes

1 small onion, grated

1 egg salt and pepper, to taste

For the sauce:

2 15 oz cans tomato sauce

1 Granny Smith apple, peeled and grated

1 large tomato, finely chopped

1/3 cup sugar

Juice of 1 lemon

salt and pepper, to taste

Directions

1. Place the cabbage in the freezer overnight (about 12 hours). Remove and place in a colander in the sink to defrost. This makes the cabbage pliable for rolling and stuffing.
2. Remove the outer leaves of the cabbage and discard. Peel the remaining large leaves, taking care not to tear the cabbage as you go. Set the whole leaves aside and chop up the remaining cabbage for later.
3. In a bowl, combine the ground beef, potatoes, onion, egg, salt and pepper. Set aside.
4. Set up a stuffing station with your whole cabbage leaves and ground beef mixture. With a paring knife, trim the thick part of the stem off the base of the leaves, taking care not to cut through the rest of the leaf. Place the leaves upright so that they are curling upward like a bowl.
5. Place a small handful of filling towards the base of each leaf and fold over the leaf from the left side. Roll the cabbage leaf up and using your finger, stuff the loose end of the leaf inward, pushing it into the center. Rolling the cabbage this way ensures that they hold together nicely during cooking.
6. Continue with remaining leaves. If you have any leftover filling, simply roll them into meatballs to place in the pot alongside the cabbage rolls.
7. Place the stuffed cabbage rolls in a large pot and cover with sauce ingredients. If you had any leftover cabbage or meatballs, add them to the pot as well.
8. Bring the sauce to a gentle boil over medium heat and reduce to a simmer. Cover the pot, leaving it slightly open so that the steam does not force the cabbage rolls to open. Cook for approximately 2 – 2 1/2 hours, until cabbage is tender and sauce has thickened.

VARIATION: for unstuffed cabbage soup, shred the cabbage and roll the meat into balls. Place everything into a pot and continue as above.

This article first appeared on The Nosher.

Enjoy

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Chick-fil-A a may be declared a 'public nuisance' in California

 

This looked pretty amusing. Source: https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2022/03/santa-barbara-california-may-declare-chick-fil-public-nuisance-due-long-drive-thru-lines/

Santa Barbara City in California is considering declaring the Christian-owned restaurant, Chic-fil-A, a “public nuisance” due to long drive-thru lines that goes all the way to nearby streets, which causes traffic problems.

According to the city, “There is a chronic adverse traffic impact caused by the operation of the drive-through restaurant facility.”

The Santa Barbara City Council started a public hearing about the issue on March 1st and will continue the public hearing until June 7th.

Fox5 San Diego reported:

A California city is considering declaring its local Chick-fil-A drive-thru a public nuisance – not because people dislike it, but because they seem to like it too much.

The last several years, Santa Barbara says it has received several complaints about cars in the drive-thru line backed up onto nearby streets, which has caused traffic problems, including collisions and cyclist safety issues.

“State Street is one of the City’s most important streets for moving people and goods,” city transportation engineer Derrick Bailey told the Santa Barbara Press News earlier this month. “It was never intended to operate with significant blockage.”

A report conducted by the City’s Public Works Department stated that on weekdays, cars lined up for the Chick-fil-A drive-thru can block one of the lanes on State Street for up to 91 minutes. That number grows to 155 minutes on weekends.

“They are so successful, they have outgrown their site. It’s possible they were oversized for that site to begin with,” the S.B. Press-News reports Council Member Kristen Sneddon as saying.

For now, the city council has postponed the nuisance designation and granted Chick-fil-A additional time, until June 7th, to find and present solutions.

However, if the city council is not happy, and declares the restaurant a public nuisance, Chick-fil-A could lose its nonconforming use status for the drive-thru facilities.

“On behalf of myself, Chick-fil-A and the many team members, we sincerely regret that this traffic situation has come to this point and heartily wish to work in good faith with the City to resolve this matter once and for all,” Santa Barbara Chick-fil-A owner-operator Travis Collins told the S.B. Press-News.

 

Jill Biden Corrects Joe Biden After He Calls Kamala Harris the First Lady

First lady Jill Biden corrected her husband, President Joe Biden, on Tuesday after he mistakenly referred to Vice President Kamala Harris as the first lady.

The president confused the two women in his life during a speech at a Women’s History Month celebration at the White House.

“[T]here’s been a little change in the arrangement of who’s on the stage because of the first lady’s husband contracting COVID,” Biden said.

Biden was meaning to refer to Vice President Kamala Harris, whose husband, Doug Emhoff, currently known as the “first gentleman,” tested positive for the coronavirus earlier in the day. Harris dropped out of the event after learning her husband tested positive for the virus.

(The first lady’s husband is actually Biden himself)

After Biden’s blunder, first lady Jill Biden interrupted the president to point out his mistake.

“Pardon?” Biden replied.

“You said the first — anyways,” his wife began before giving up as the crowd started laughing.

“That’s right. She’s fine. It’s me that’s not together,” Biden continued as the crowd laughed.

“The Second La- — the First Gentleman,” he said finally as the crowd laughed again. “How about that?”

Biden reminded the crowd of the number of women he appointed in his administration.

“One person I’m particularly proud of is — was going to be introducing me — is Kamala Harris,” he said, noting again that her husband had coronavirus.

“He’s fine, but out of an abundance of caution, she decided she wasn’t going to join us today,” Biden said. “But let’s send her our love because she’s something else.”

https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2022/03/15/jill-biden-corrects-joe-biden-after-he-calls-kamala-harris-the-first-lady/

The Coconuts Recipe Corner: Almond Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

 

Passover Desserts: Almond Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Finding desserts that are both tasty and Kosher for Passover can be tricky, but these almond butter chocolate chip cookies

By SHANNON SARNA/JTA,  MARCH 15, 2022

https://www.jpost.com/food-recipes/article-701302

Passover-friendly peanut butter cookies are a super tasty, chewy cookie that is good enough to enjoy all year. (photo credit: SHANNON SARNA)

This article first appeared on The Nosher.

I love it when people taste my pareve desserts and say, “Wow—this is pareve!?” ( non-meat & non-dairy )

It’s the same rule with Passover dishes and desserts. Which is why I am on a never-ending search for the perfect Passover desserts that are good enough to eat all year and just happen to also be Passover-friendly.

In one of my searches I came across this recipe for Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies which I realized could easily be made Passover-friendly just by swapping out the peanut butter for almond butter. I adjusted a few ingredients and the result is a super tasty, chewy cookie that is good enough to enjoy all year. Your guests are sure to ask incredulously, “Are you sure these are kosher for Passover?” Truly the ultimate compliment.

HAVING BEEN purified from Egypt, the nation was ready to celebrate the first Passover in the Promised Land. (credit: PIQSELS)

Ingredients

1 cup almond butter

1 egg

1 cup packed brown sugar

1 tsp vanilla

1 cup chocolate chips

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

thick sea salt (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Mix together almond butter, egg, brown sugar and vanilla.
3. Fold in chocolate chips and walnuts.
4. Spoon out tablespoon-sized mounds onto ungreased cookie sheet. Sprinkle with pinch of thick sea salt on top if desired.
5. Bake for 11 minutes, and then allow to cool for 5 minutes while cookies remain on the baking sheet. Transfer to baking rack to cool completely.

Enjoy

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Giant Asian Invasive Spider Likely to Spread Along East Coast: Study

Giant Asian Invasive Spider Likely to Spread Along East Coast

The Joro spider, a large spider native to East Asia, is seen in Johns Creek, Ga., on Oct. 24, 2021

The Joro spider, an invasive arachnid species that is native to eastern Asia and first spread across Georgia in 2013, is expected to “colonize” through most of the East Coast, according to a new study.

The good news is that the bright yellow spider, which is about the size of a child’s hand and has blue-black markings, is mostly harmless to people and pets due to their fangs often being too short to puncture human skin, researchers at the University of Georgia (UGA) said. They also normally don’t bite unless threatened.

“People should try to learn to live with them,” Andy Davis, a research scientist and one of the authors behind a recent study about the invasive species told UGA Today, a publication by the university. “If they’re literally in your way, I can see taking a web down and moving them to the side, but they’re just going to be back next year.”

Benjamin Frick, a co-author of the study who works as a researcher in the School of Ecology, recommended people not to be violent toward the spider as it isn’t necessarily bad that they are spreading along the East Coast.

“There’s no point in excess cruelty where it’s not needed,” Frick said. “You have people with saltwater guns shooting them out of the trees and things like that, and that’s really just unnecessary.”

Davis pointed out that the spiders, which predominantly hail from Japan, appear to not have much of an effect on local food webs or ecosystems and they also may serve as an additional food source for native predators like birds.

According to the study, Joro spiders—or Trichonephila clavata—colonize much of Japan, which has a similar climate to East Coast regions and is a contributing factor to the spider being able to survive and spread.

Researchers explained that, unlike its closely-related species, the “golden silk spider,” which has already successfully invaded the same region over the last 160 years—the Joro spider has about double the metabolism and a 77 percent higher heart rate, making Joros capable of spreading further north and withstand brief freezes that would kill off its cousins.

A “golden silk spider” (Nephila-clavipes) is seen at Juan Diaz mangrove in Panama City, Fla., on March 9, 2022.

“It looks like the Joros could probably survive throughout most of the Eastern Seaboard here—which is pretty sobering,” Davis said.

Joros also have a unique way of travel, called ballooning or kiting, a process in which spiders use their silks to carry them across the wind to new locations. This ability has enabled them to spread fast across the state of Georgia, but it isn’t the only reason, as humans also factor into the equation.

“The potential for these spiders to be spread through people’s movements is very high,” Frick said, noting that the chances of the spiders climbing into a car or into luggage is quite high.

“Anecdotally, right before we published this study, we got a report from a grad student at UGA who had accidentally transported one of these to Oklahoma,” he added.

It is unclear how the spiders exactly traveled from east Asia, but researchers say the first Joros likely arrived in the United States via stowaways on shipping containers. The presence of the Joro spider’s golden web was hard not to notice in Georgia, as it took over yards all over the state last year, unnerving some residents.

https://www.theepochtimes.com/giant-asian-invasive-spider-likely-to-spread-along-east-coast-study

Irresistible Traps for Giant Asian Murder Hornets Looking for a Queen to Mate

Murder hornets leave distinctive sex pheromones in their wake - and detecting them could allow us to bait and trap the terrifying insects, scientists say

• Asian giant hornet (also known as 'murder hornet') is the world's largest hornet
• Queens of this species are known to reach lengths of more than 2 inches (5cm)  
• It can decimate entire colonies of honey bees, threatening production of crops
• Now, a study says tracking its chemicals could stop the species dead in its tracks 

By JONATHAN CHADWICK FOR MAILONLINE 

PUBLISHED: 11:00 EDT, 14 March 2022 | UPDATED: 11:05 EDT, 14 March 2022

 
 
 
 
 
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It's the largest hornet in the world and one of the most invasive species threatening American crops today.

Now, scientists in California claim they know how the Asian giant hornet, also known as the 'murder hornet', can be stopped dead in its tracks.  

The researchers say the deadly species (Vespa mandarinia) leaves secreted chemicals called 'pheromones' on surfaces during its attempts to attract a mate. 

These pheromones can be tracked as part of efforts to bait and trap the insect, known for its painful and toxic sting that can kill humans through kidney failure.   

The Asian giant hornet is most common in Japan, although it's also found in China, Thailand, South Korea, Vietnam and other Asian countries. 

It also has an expanding footprint in North America, where it's considered 'invasive' – although experts can't say for sure how it arrived there.  

The species threatens North American bee populations and millions of dollars worth of crops. Thankfully, it's not present in Europe – yet. 

Scroll down for video 

Described as the 'murder hornet', the Asian giant hornet (Vespa mandarinia) is the world's largest hornet. Queens are known to reach lengths of more than 2 inches (5cm)

A Washington State Department of Agriculture workers holds two of the dozens of Asian giant hornets vacuumed from a tree in Blaine, Washington 

The Asian giant hornet has an expanding footprint in North America – although experts can't say for sure how it arrived there. Here, multiple Asian giant hornets attack a honey bee colony

The fearsome species is known for its size – queens are known to reach lengths of more than 2 inches (5cm), while males and the female workers are smaller (1.3 inch to 1.5 inch/3.5 to 3.9 cm)

Dramatic moment huge 'murder hornet' kills mouse

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MURDER HORNET: FACTS AND STATISTICS 

Scientific name: Vespa mandarinia 

Adult length: 1 3/4 inches

Wingspan: Three inches

Sting length: Quarter of an inch

Description: Yellow face and large black and yellow striped abdomen. Large jaws and a noisy flier. 

Natural habitat: Across Asia

Venom: It administers seven times more venom than a honeybee when it stings. This acts as a neurotoxin and can lead to seizures and cardiac arrests. The sting is described as incredibly painful.

Behaviour: Insect emerges in April and nests in the ground. It predates on many insects, but particularly targets honeybees.

Risks Has a habit of sacking bee hives, decapitating the workers and stealing the young. The European honeybee has no defense against the invader. Its stings could also prove fatal to Americans.

The new study has been led by Professor James Nieh, a bee researcher at the University of California San Diego, and published today in the journal Current Biology. 

'They [the Asian giant hornet] don’t belong in North America and harm our critical bee populations, so we should remove them,' he said. 

The fearsome Asian giant hornet is known for its size – queens can reach lengths of more than 2 inches (5cm), while males and the female workers are smaller (1.3 inch to 1.5 inch).

Scientists are not clear how the species first came to North America, although it's thought they were unintentionally shipped over somehow. 

In recent years it's has been seen in British Columbia and Washington state, while modeling simulations indicate the insects could rapidly spread throughout the eastern US. 

To learn more about the Asian giant hornet's chemical signature, Professor Nieh and his colleagues placed traps near the species' nests in the Western US. They captured only male hornets, but no females.

During their experiments the scientists tested the hornet's neural activity and found that male antennae were highly sensitive to pheromones released by females. 

'The males are drawn to the odours of the females since they typically mate with them near their nests,' said study author Professor Nieh. 

'In two field seasons we were able to rapidly collect thousands of males that were attracted to these odours.'    

Using gas chromatography and mass spectrometry, they identified the three major components of the Asian giant hornet queen's sex pheromone –  hexanoic acid, octanoic acid and decanoic acid.  

These compounds can be readily purchased and deployed immediately in the field, meaning they could be used as bait to trap and track the insects from distances of a mile or more.  

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A sample specimen of a dead Asian Giant Hornet from Japan, also known as a murder hornet, is shown by a pest biologist from the Washington State Department of Agriculture on July 29, 2020 in Bellingham, Washington

A view inside a Asian giant hornet nest that was destroyed by Washington State entomologists in 2020

A dead Asian giant hornet (bottom), a sample sent from Japan and brought in for research, next to a native bald-faced hornet (top)

Scientists have found a new way to trap terrifying hornets

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Video: Asian giant hornet virgin queen (centre) mating with a male in a cage, with another male on her back 

ASIAN GIANT HORNET: SIGHTINGS IN THE US 

Sightings of this species in North America, thousands of kilometres from its native range, have been causing concern. 

In late 2019, two sightings of Asian giant hornets (Vespa mandarinia) were reported in North America - in British Columbia in September, and Washington State in December.

Researchers don't yet know how far the species might have spread since its arrival on the continent.

Source: Natural History Museum   

'Because these pheromone-based traps are fairly inexpensive I think they could be readily deployed for sampling across a large geographic range,' said Professor Nieh.

'We know where they have been found, so the big question is whether they are expanding. Where is that invasion front?'

Instead of patenting the identification of the sex pheromone, the team decided to publish their findings as quickly as possible in hopes of providing a possible solution to help slow the hornet's spread. 

As more pheromone bait traps are deployed, a map could emerge along with predictive models to assess where and how rapidly they are spreading in North America. 

'We hope that others, especially in invaded areas, will take the protocol we have established and test this method,' said Professor Nieh. 

'We've described the chemical blends needed for these traps, which could reduce the number of males available to mate with females to help depress the population but primarily would help us figure out where they are.'       

The Asian giant hornet feeds primarily on larger insects, colonies of other eusocial insects, tree sap and honey bees.   

The Natural History Museum explains: 'When these wasps attack the bees, they will chew off the head, abdomen and legs, then transport the protein-rich thorax back to their nest. 

In photo provided by the Washington State Dept. of Agriculture, an Asian Giant Hornet wearing a tracking device is shown Thursday, Oct. 22, 2020 near Blaine, Washington

Honey bees  offer minimal protection against attacks, leading to quick destruction of entire bee colonies. This image shows the considerable size difference between the Asian giant hornet (left) and they honey bee (right)

'But the giant hornets have an additional trait – they specialise in eating honeybee broods.

'When they invade a honeybee colony, the hornets can enter a 'slaughter phase', where they will serially kill bee after bee. 

'Within a few hours, a small group of hornets can decimate an entire honeybee colony. 

'Once the bee workforce has been depleted, giant hornets will then spend days or weeks predating the honeybee pupae and larvae.' 

Because they co-evolved in the same country, the Japanese honey bee (Apis cerana japonica), has an effective strategy, called heatballing, against the Asian giant hornet.

Video shows asian honey bees heating ball hornets when too close

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This is when several hundreds of honey bees mob the much bigger hornet by forming a ball around it. 

The heat created by this ball of honey bees cooks the unlucky predator to death.   

The problem is that this technique is specific to the Japanese honey bee, and not other honey bees like the western honey bee (Apis mellifera), found in Europe, North America and many other parts of the world. 

Therefore, the Asian giant hornet can decimate entire hives of these honey bees, which are already under siege from mites, diseases, pesticides and loss of food.  

HOW DOES THE HONEYBEES ’HOT DEFENSIVE BALLS' DEFENCE STRATEGY WORK?

Honeybees should have no chance against the ferocious Japanese hornet - the predators are an inch (2.5 cm) long.

But the tiny creatures can actually triumph by swarming over their foes in such numbers that hornets are 'cooked' inside a ball of bees, a technique first discovered in 1995.

The defence mechanism is known as a 'hot defensive bee ball'.

When hornets attack, they kill all the worker bees, before 'looting' a nest for larvae and food. To prevent this, Japanese honeybees developed the defence mechanism to stop the predators.

The bees swarm over the hornets in groups of up to 500, and start vibrating their wings until the temperature reaches 46°C (115°F). The heat is fatal for the hornets.

It's vital that this happens quickly, or the hornets can release pheromones to call for assistance. 

In one study, conducted in 2012, researchers in Japan watched the bees as they assaulted an inch-long hornet - pulling them off the ball as they attacked and scanning their brains to see how they coordinated their attacks.

The scientists, Takeo Kubo of the University of Tokyo and Masato Ono of Tamagawa University sampled bees at different points during the assault - and found that bees engage higher brain functions as they swarm into the ball.

The bees coordinate their attacks, sharing information about heat in the ball - which could be a trigger for the bursts of brain activity.