Grandma Karash’s Raisin Bread – updated recipe 2026

Great Grandmother Theresa Karash’s Raisin Bread

Ingredients:

1 packet yeast (which is about 2.25 teaspoons)

1 1/2 cup milk

1/2-3/4 cup sugar

1/8 lb butter (1/2 stick)

5 1/2 cups flour

2 eggs, at room temperature

1 tsp vanilla

salt

1 box of raisins. Steam these to soften them.

Kitchen stuff:

saucepan

big bowl

two loaf pans

Directions, as recorded by Sandra Karash… and updated by Ann Karash

First, proof the yeast

Start yeast in a little warm water with 1 tsp sugar. [1 packet of yeast +1 tsp sugar + warm water]. Let it sit and bubble, i.e. proof the yeast.

In a saucepan, get the wet ingredients together

Warm 1 1/2 cup milk in pan on stove.

Add 1/8 lb butter (1/2 stick) to milk in pan.

Heat until butter melts.

Add 1/2 cup sugar (Maybe 3/4 cup, depends how sweet you like it.)

Add 1/2 tsp salt to the pan.

NOW, work the dry ingredients in a big bowl

Put 5 1/2 cups flour in the mixer bowl.

Add yeast and water to flour.

Beat 2 eggs with 1 tsp vanilla, then add to flour.

Add the proofed yeast to the flour in the mixer bowl

Mix this with the dough hook.

Add the steamed raisins. Mix in by hand. (There must be a better way!)

Bake!

Grease two loaf pans well!

Put dough into pans, filling 1/3 full.

Cover with warm lid. Let rise until 2/3 full.

Bake at 400 degrees about 20 minutes.

Then, bake at 375 degrees for another 20 minutes.

The internal temp should be 200-210.

Take bread out and place on soft surface (pillow) after removing from pan.

Marinated White Beans

from thekitchn.com

INGREDIENTS

• 1/3 cup olive oil
• Finely grated zest of 1 medium lemon
• Juice of 1 medium lemon
• 1 medium shallot, diced (about 1/4 cup)
• 1 clove garlic, grated or minced
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more as needed
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 2 (15-ounce) cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
• 1/3 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh oregano leaves

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Place the olive oil, lemon zest and juice, shallot, garlic, salt, and few generous grinds of black pepper in a large bowl and whisk to combine. Add the white beans, parsley, and oregano and toss to combine. Taste and season with more salt and pepper as needed.
2. Cover and refrigerate for at least 20 minutes or overnight. Let come to room temperature before serving.

RECIPE NOTES

Make ahead: These beans get better with time, so feel free to make them up to 2 days ahead of time and store in the refrigerator.

Serving suggestions: The beans can be enjoyed as is, piled on toast, tossed with cooked grains, or served over salads.

Storage: Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

New England Baked Beans

New England Baked Beans

By: JESSICA BATTILANA from tastecooking.com

Ingredients

2 C (1 pound) dry yellow eye beans

½ C molasses

⅓ C maple syrup

2 TSP kosher salt

2 TSP dry mustard powder

½ TSP freshly ground black pepper

1 SM onion, diced

¼ LB salt pork or pancetta, diced

6-8 SERVINGS

1. Put the beans in a bowl and add cold water, enough to cover them by a few inches. Soak at room temperature overnight, then drain and transfer to a large saucepan or Dutch oven and add fresh water to cover. Preheat the oven to 250°F. Bring the beans to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat so the water is simmering and simmer until the beans are tender—when you blow on a spoonful, the skins should peel back. With a slotted spoon, transfer the beans to a bean pot or Dutch oven; reserve the cooking liquid.
2. In a small bowl, stir together the molasses, maple syrup, ketchup, salt, mustard powder, and black pepper. Pour over the beans, then stir in the onion and salt pork. Add about 2 to 3 cups of the bean cooking liquid to the beans (the water should just cover the beans but not swamp them—they should look like they’re sitting in a bathtub), and stir well to mix.
3. Cover the pot and transfer to the oven. Cook until the beans are very soft and creamy, about 3 to 4 hours. Uncover the pot, increase the oven temperature to 325°F and continue cooking about 45 minutes more, until the cooking liquid has reduced and a crust has formed on the surface of the beans.
4. Stir the beans and season to taste with additional salt. Depending on the dimensions of the pot you use, your beans may be more soupy or less so. If you want to thicken the beans, remove 1 cup of the cooked beans and transfer to a bowl. Mash with a potato masher, then return the mashed beans to the pot and stir to combine.
5. The beans can be eaten right away, or cooled to room temperature and refrigerated—eat them cold, sandwiched between two slices of white bread, or reheat in a low oven or in a saucepan on the stove top over low heat.

Boulangerie Beans and Leeks

Boulangerie Beans And Leeks

Prep time

30 mins

Cook time

1 hour 30 mins

Total time

2 hours

Author: Adapted from Mark Bittman

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 2 cups chopped leeks
• 2 tsp dried thyme (or two tbsp fresh)
• 3 cups white beans, drained (two 15-ounce cans)
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 3 medium starchy or all-purpose potatoes, peeled
• 1 cup low-salt vegetable stock
• 4 tablespoons butter

Instructions

1. Heat the oven to 325°F.
2. Saute the leeks in 1 tbsp butter, about 20 minutes, until very soft.
3. Stir a teaspoon of the thyme, and salt and pepper to taste into the beans. Spread the beans into the bottom of a large baking dish and set aside.
4. Spread the cooked leeks on top of the beans.
5. Halve the potatoes lengthwise and slice thinly into half-circles. Lay the potatoes in overlapping rows to cover the beans. Pour the stock over the top, dot with pieces of butter, and sprinkle with salt, pepper, and the remaining thyme.
6. Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking until the top is browned and glazed, another 45 minutes or so. Serve immediately or let rest for up to an hour and serve at room temperature.

Notes

Be careful how much salt you add to the beans if you are not using low-salt broth. The broth reduces during the long slow bake and you can end up with a very salty dish if using regular canned stock.

Slow Cooker Red Lentil and Sweet Potato Curry

from Forks over Knives favorite recipes #48. page 49

Ingredients

• 32 oz vegetable broth

• 4.5 cups sweet potatoes

• 1.5 cups dry red lentils

• 14.5 oz can of diced tomatoes, not drained

• 1 cup chopped onion

• 1/2 cup chopped green or red bell pepper

• 2 Tbsp tomato paste

• 3 garlic cloves minced

• 2 tsp grated fresh ginger

• 2 tsp curry powder

• 1 tsp ground cumiin

• 1 tsp ground coriander

• 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper (or add hot sauce to your serving)

• 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Serve on couscous or brown rice if you want.

Directions:

1. In a 5-6 quart slow cooker, combine broth and 2 cups water. Add the next 12 ingredients (through crushed red pepper). Stir to combine.
2. Cover and cook on low 9-10 hours (or high 4 hours). Stir in 1/4 cup cilantro. (I usually forget this.) Season with salt and pepper. Serve on couscous, quinoa, or brown rice.

If you don’t slow-cooker this, it goes fine on the stovetop, leave a comment for how long it cooked, but I would guess 30 min to an hour max.

Moroccan Raw Carrot Salad

Ingredients

• 1 pound carrots, coarsely grated (about 4 cups)
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil or extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 to 4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro or parsley
• 2 to 4 cloves garlic, mashed or minced
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin or 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin and 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
• Pinch of salt
• About 1/2 teaspoon harissa (Northwest African chili paste), 1 tablespoon minced green chilies, or 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon cayenne (optional)

In a large bowl, mix together all the ingredients. Cover and let marinate in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours or up to 2 days to allow the flavors to meld and permeate the carrots. Served chilled or at room temperature.

For variations, visit Epicurious.

Chickpea, Lentil, Harissa soup

From: https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/spiced-moroccan-vegetable-soup-with-chickpeas-cilantro-and-lemon-harira

INGREDIENTS

• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large onion, diced (about 2 cups)
• 3 stalks celery, diced (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 3 large carrots, peeled and cut in rounds
• 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 to 1 teaspoon harissa or dried red chile flakes, plus more for serving
• Salt to taste
• 1 bunch parsley, chopped (about 1 1/2 cups/75 grams), divided
• 1 bunch cilantro, chopped (about 1 1/2 cups/75 grams), divided
• 1 (15-ounce/425-gram) can tomatoes, crushed, or 2 cups (450 grams) tomato sauce
• 7 cups (1 2/3 liters) chicken or vegetable stock
• 1 cup (200 grams) dried chickpeas, soaked overnight and cooked or 1 (15-ounce/425-gram) can chickpeas, drained
• 1 cup (370 grams) green lentils
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose unbleached flour
• 1 large egg
• Juice of 2 lemons (about 1/4 cup)

PREPARATION

1. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat and sauté the onion, celery, and carrots until the onion turns translucent and begin to brown, about 5 to 10 minutes. Add the turmeric, cumin, harissa or chile flakes, 1 teaspoon of salt, 1 cup each of the parsley and cilantro, tomatoes, and the stock or water and bring to a boil. If using the soaked chickpeas, drain them and add to the pot. Simmer uncovered for 25 minutes, then add the lentils, another teaspoon of salt and a teaspoon of pepper and continue simmering until the chickpeas and lentils are cooked, about 20 minutes more. If using canned chickpeas omit the first 25 minutes of simmering and add with the lentils.
2. Whisk the flour, egg, and lemon juice into 2 cups (470 ml) of water. Stir into the soup. Simmer the soup about 5 minutes more and serve, sprinkled with the remaining cilantro and parsley. And don’t forget to have some extra harissa in a plate on the side.

NoteThis, like most soups, is such a flexible recipe. Whereas Meme adds chicken and noodles to her broth, I prefer to serve it as is. But sometimes I replace all or some of the lentils with whole grains. If using whole farro, barley, freekeh, or wheat berries, put them in with the chickpeas, as they take about 40 minutes to an hour to cook. But do keep in mind that pearled farro and barley as well as cracked freekeh take about 25 minutes to cook.

NOTE: This is excellent. I did not use the lemon swirl, but added some kashk that I had left from making persian soup previously. Made this Feb 2021. Really good.

Curried French Lentil & Butternut Squash soup

from WeightWatchers magazine, March 2018
1/2 tsp olive oil

2 c chopped onions

1 Tbsp minced garlic

1 Tbsp minced ginger

2 tsp curry powder

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp ground fennel

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

4 c veggie broth

2 c water

1.5 c dried French lentils

4 c diced butternut squash

15 oz can of chickpeas, rinsed and drained

10 oz baby spinach

2 Tbsp lemon juice

2 Tbsp fresh cilantro (garnish)

1 lemon, cut in 8 wedges

Heat oil in large soup pot. Add onion, 1 tsp salt, cook about 5 min. Stir in garlic, ginger, curry powder, cumin, coriander, fennel, cinnamon. Cook about 1 minute Add broth and water. Bring to a boil. Reduce to medium-low. Simmer. Stir in lentils. Cover. Cook until lentils are tender 35-40 minutes.

Add squash. Cook until fork tender (about 5 min). Stir in chickpeas and spinach. Cover and cook until spinach wilts (2-3 min). Stir in lemon juice and 1 tsp salt.

Serve garnished with cilantro and lemon wedges.

Chili Lime Black Bean Soup

Ingredients

olive oil
1 Tbsp, extra-virginuncooked onion(s)
1 large, choppedjalapeño pepper(s)
1 medium, seeded, mincedminced garlic
1 Tbspkosher salt
1 tspdried oregano
1½ tspground cumin
½ tspchili powder
1 tsp, ancho varietycayenne pepper
⅛ tspcanned black beans
60 oz, rinsed and drainedreduced-sodium chicken broth
2 cup(s)fresh lime juice
2 Tbsp, (Juice of 1 lime)plain lowfat Greek yogurt
3 Tbspcilantro
¼ cup(s), choppeduncooked scallion(s)
¼ cup(s), chopped

1. Heat oil in a large nonstick soup pot over medium heat. Add onion, jalapeno, garlic and salt; cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are softened, about 5 to 10 minutes. Add oregano, cumin, chili powder and cayenne; stir and cook 1 minute. Add beans and broth to pot; bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered, for flavors to blend, about 10 minutes; stir in lime juice.

2. Remove from heat and puree soup in pot using an immersion blender (or puree in a regular blender in batches). When serving, stir 1/2 tablespoon yogurt into each bowl and garnish with cilantro and scallions. Yields about 1 cup per serving

Carrot Sweet Potato Soup

from savoryonline.com (the Stop & Shop magazine handout)
made this April, 2020. Excellent. Easy.

4 large shallots

1 lb carrots

2 lb sweet potatoes

1 tbsp olive oil

2 Tbsp butter

1 tsp dried thyme

6 cups water (or veggie stock)

1 tbsp apple cider vinegar

2 tbsp finely chopped fresh parsley (optional)

1. Thinly slice shallots. Peel and chop carrots and sweet potatoes
2. Heat oil and butter on medium (in small skillet or instant pot). Add shallots and thyme. Cook 4 min., until shallots are golden, stirring often. Transfer to a slow cooker bowl. (or continue in instant pot) Add sweet potatoes, carrots, and water/broth. Season with salt. Cover and cook on low 3-4 hours, until sweet potatoes are very tender.
3. Use blender or immersion blender to puree the soup. Stir in vinegar. Season with salt & pepper to taste. Garnish with parsley if desired.