Paul Bass Photos
Bellin; her signature salads.
This time of year turns Revital Catriel Bellin’s mind to Israel, two huge palm trees, and Yemenite soups and salads.
This is the time of year when Jews celebrate the holiday of Sukkot. Though less well known in this country than, say, Chanukah, it’s actually a more important (and fun) week-long harvest-themed holiday, in which Jews take off some time from work and have their meals (and sometimes sleep) in an outdoor temporary “sukkah.”
In Even Yehuda, the Israeli town where Bellin grew up, members of her extended family celebrated together. Usually at her grandmother’s house, where they erected a sukkah by those two huge trees. They needed enough room for over 30 grandchildren, not to mention all the adults.
Revi and her sister helped their grandmother prepare the soup and all the different vegetable salads that formed a key component of the festive family meals. She learned how to blend cinnamon, garlic, cumin, and other local flavors into distinctly Yemenite dishes. From neighbors and school friends, fellow Sephardic jews whose families hailed from Morocco or Iraq or Tunisia, she learned about regional recipes.
Decades later, in the New Haven area, we’re all reaping the benefits of that education.
Bellin has rolled out some of those recipes to launch a new prepared-salads company called Revi’s. She caters and distributes her signature salads — which happen to be both vegan and kosher — through local stores such as Edge of the Woods, P&M on Orange Street, and Thyme & Season.
Bellin continued refining those recipes after moving here in 1988 to study business at Southern Connecticut State University, then while raising her children and hosting Shabbat and holiday dinners for friends. Those friends told her she ought to form a business so more people could enjoy the food; over the past year she has taken the plunge. She’s borrowing space at a Woodbridge kosher catering company to prepare the salads, then marketing and delivering the product herself.
The matbucha.
Her four signature dishes are an eggplant salad, a beet salad, a Moroccan carrot salad, and spicy tomato-based “Matbucha Salad,” the item that exploded like a revelation during a recent taste test at Edge of the Woods, which led me to invite Bellin to discuss her budding business on an episode of WNHH radio’s “Chai Haven” program.
Click on or download the above sound file to listen to the full episode of “Chai Haven” feature Bellin, who also discusses the dilemma of exploring expansion (like a potential deal with Whole Foods) while seeking to avoid “losing the flavor and the uniqueness” of her salads.
Meanwhile, Revi shared these recipes in time for the holiday:
Revi’s Signature Salad
Contributed Photo
Ingredients:
• 1 cup of romaine lettuce
• 1 cup of mixed greens
• 1 cup of arugula
• 8 oz. of Revi’s Moroccan Carrots
• 8 oz. of Revi’s Beets
• 3 tablespoons of olive oil
• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 pinch of Kosher salt
• ½ cup of cheese and handful of walnuts, optional
Recipe:
Wash and chop your romaine lettuce, mixed greens, and arugula. Place leafy greens into a large bowl. Add Revi’s Moroccan Carrots and Revi’s Beets. Drizzle olive oil and lemon juice. Sprinkle salt. Add your favorite cheese and walnuts, or other favorite nuts, for a more hearty salad. Serve and enjoy! This easy-to-make salad, bursting with flavors, is perfect for a dinner party or a simple meal for one or more. Serves 2 – 3 people. Increase proportions as needed for more.
Middle Eastern Fish
Ingredients:
• 4 tilapia fillets
• 2 large red peppers, sliced in strips
• 12 oz. of Revi’s Matbucha
• 8 tablespoons of olive oil
• 1 teaspoon of cumin
• 1 teaspoon of paprika
• 1 teaspoon of turmeric
• 1 pinch of Kosher salt
• 2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
• 1 pinch of hot pepper flakes
• ½ cup of cilantro
• 3 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice, optional
Recipe:
Spray a baking dish with non-stick cooking spray. Rinse the tilapia fillets under cool water, and pat dry with paper towels. Marinate the fillets in 4 tablespoons of olive oil, and add your cumin, paprika, turmeric, and any other of your favorite spices if you wish. While your fish is marinating, slice the peppers into thin strips and sauté in 4 tablespoons of olive oil. Next, place fillets in baking dish. Pour peppers, Revi’s Matbucha, and cilantro over fillets. Sprinkle with garlic, salt, and hot pepper flakes for extra kick. Bake in oven on medium for 15 minutes until the fish is golden brown. Flip the fish and cook for another 10 minutes. Drizzle lemon on top and serve. Bon appetit!
Revi’s Eggplant Sandwich
Ingredients:
• ½ ciabatta roll or 1 pita bread
• 8 oz. of Revi’s Eggplant
• 8 oz. of hummus
• 2 hard-boiled eggs
• ½ avocado
• 1 roasted pepper
• 1 cup of arugula
• 1 pinch of Kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons of olive oil
• 2 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice
• 8 oz. of tahini, optional
• 1 pinch of hot pepper flakes, optional
Recipe:
Split the ciabatta roll or pita lengthwise, and toast. Spread Revi’s Eggplant and hummus on the toasted bread. Spread tahini for extra flavor, optional. Fill the bread with a bed of arugula, sliced hard-boiled egg, avocado slices, and roasted pepper strips. Drizzle olive oil and lemon. Sprinkle salt and add hot pepper flakes for more flavor. Cut in half and enjoy!
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