A girl (or any person for that matter) can find herself eating alone from time to time—it’s normal, right? Having a set of hubby+kiddies, family in general, and friends promises no guaranties that there will be company at the table at any given breakfast, lunch or dinner.

I work at home and most days I have breakfast and lunch by myself. I don’t eat breakfast with the kiddies+hubby since I’m usually still in my PJ peeling, cutting and serving them fresh fruit (I really must shove it under their noses for them to eat it) and packing lunchboxes and… You know, it’s pretty much the same routine every day. Don’t you just love it?

Besides, I’m not a big fan of breakfast. My breakfast is a slice of toasted bread with something, or half a bagel with cream cheese, or scrambled eggs—so boring. Although lately I do treat myself to freshly squeezed orange juice or, more recently, fresh grapefruit juice—it’s SO refreshing!—every morning after the kiddies+hubby leave the house. (Shoosh, don’t tell them.)

For lunch, I usually don’t bother much since it’s a company of only one, me, so I end up making myself a sandwich (Or heat up leftovers from dinner. That is if I don’t plan on serving them a second time as dinner—lazy me.) Rarely, I pamper myself with something with a bit more kick/wow to it, like my fav sandwich with truffle oil. And now, now I have these swordfish tacos with an S—I had two. It was really, really good.

I love tacos. Don’t you?

Now, I can hear the squeaky noises of the gears in your brain… You must be thinking, “But isn’t a taco a type of sandwich?” I believe you make a good point.

I think they are, sorta. What would a Mexican say? I have no idea.

Well, you got “bread” on both sides with (hopefully) good stuff in the middle.

Broiled swordfish tacos

* 1 lb. of fish steak was enough for 3 servings + leftovers for 1

For the fish:

1 swordfish steak (about 1 lb.)

salt, pepper

olive oil

some sort of rub like BBQ rub or chicken rub

1 Tbs. butter, cut to pieces

Rub the fish with salt, pepper, some olive oil, and spice rub on both sides. Spread the butter cubes on top. Let sit for about 15 minutes in a baking pan lined with aluminum foil. In the meantime preheat the broiler and set the rack in the top 1/3 shelf.

Broil about 8 minutes. The butter will brown and the fat might cause some brunt-like smoke in the oven. If this bother you, grill it outdoors.

For the tacos:

1-2 tortillas/taco (flour or corn, doesn’t matter) + add what you like: avocado is always good, cilantro, grated cheese, a dollop of sour cream, corn, diced veggies, a splash of lemon/lime, etc etc

Enjoy your lunch! Enjoy the company!

OK, I’ll be honest with you, it only felt like it took 10 minutes when in fact it took about 20 minutes. Or maybe 18 min (20 min – 2 minutes I took to tell/yell at the kids over and over to go wash hands before dinner.)

But it felt like 10…

And it was goooood—my fav kind of mish mash dish.

What’s in it?

a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil

Heat the oil in a big skillet. Add,

1/2 onion, diced small

2 carrots, peeled and diced small

Fry those two until they soften, over medium heat. Then, add

2 cloves garlic, minced

Cook for 1 minute. Add,

2 cups cooked brown rice (I use the frozen, precooked one)

2 cups frozen corn, cooked in the microwave

1-2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon sesame seeds

salt and black pepper

Cook until heated through. Add,

1.5 cup cooked chicken, diced small

1/3 cup toasted pine nuts

2 eggs, scrambled, cooked in a separate skillet

a drizzle of toasted sesame oil

Mix it all up and serve.

If you have any on hand, add some cilantro, or parsley… Scallions?

Any leftovers from this meal, made mostly from leftovers, makes an excellent lunch the next day. Double leftovers!

You might want to add another scrambled egg to top that… and something green…

It’s been…… 4-5 years since the last time I made lasagna. So why all of a sudden did I make it now?

Recently, my kid was on a mid-winter break from school and I had continuous exposure to The Garfield Show and that did it! (In case you don’t know, Garfield is a fat, lazy cat who lives to eat and his favorite foods are pizza and lasagna.) After hearing “lasagna”, “lasagna”, “lasagna”, “lasagna”, “lasagna”, “lasagna”, “lasagna”, “lasagna”, “lasagna”, “lasan-ya”, “lasagnnnnnnnya”, repeatedly, over and over for days—it was like brain wash—I’ve just had it. “Must make lasagna!” “Must make lasagna!” is all I could think of.

Oh, and what’s the lasagna lesson? Don’t ever, ever make a lasagna recipe that has no Béchamel sauce in it!

Béchamel sauce is a milk sauce that is cooked and thickened by a roux (Cooked butter and flour). I’ve made several different recipes in the past years that didn’t include the sauce in the layers. Hmm, maybe that’s why I didn’t miss lasagna so much, now that I think about it… The béchamel makes the whole thing so much smoother and silkier. It’s really fantastic! I will never, ever make lasagna without béchamel again. Never, ever.

It might look like a a lot of work but it really isn’t.

The meat cooks in 10 minutes—not much effort there.

The ricotta only gets to be mixed with the eggs—easy peasy.

The marinara is store bought. Pfff.

The pasta doesn’t have to be cooked, only soaked in hot water for a few minutes to soften.

You layer them all,

and the dishwasher does the rest.

Ta-da. Lasagna, assembled ahead, ready to get baked later before dinner.

And here’s dinner…

Classic  lasagna

My recipe is based on this recipe by Giada De Laurentiis.

For a 13 x x9 inch pan; serves 8-10 people

Béchamel Sauce:
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups whole or 2% milk
Pinch freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
Black pepper
__

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 pound ground beef
Salt and pepper
1 1/2 cups (store-bought) tomato/marinara sauce
1 1/2 pounds ricotta cheese
3 large eggs
1 pound lasagna sheets, soaked in boiled, salted water for 2-3 minutes*
3 cups shredded mozzarella
1/4 cup grated Parmesan

Béchamel sauce: In a 2-quart pot, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk until smooth, about 2 minutes. Add the milk and nutmeg, whisking constantly to prevent any lumps from forming. Continue to simmer and whisk over medium heat until the sauce is thick and creamy, about 10 minutes. (The sauce should be thick enough to coat the back of wooden spoon.) Season with salt and pepper and set aside to cool.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (unless you plan to bake the lasagna later that day).

In a large sauté pan, heat extra-virgin olive oil, add the ground beef and season with salt and pepper. Cook the meat, breaking any lumps and continue to cook until it is browned and some of the juices had evaporated. Remove from heat and mix in the marinara sauce. Set aside.

In a medium size bowl, mix the ricotta and eggs. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.

Assemble the lasagna:

Into the bottom of a 13 by 9-inch baking dish, spread 1/3 of the béchamel sauce.

Arrange the pasta sheets side by side, covering the bottom of the baking dish.

Spread 1/3 of the ricotta mixture, 1/3 of the meat-marinara blend, spoon béchamel on top, and 1/3 shredded mozzarella. (Save the parmesan for the final, top layer.)

Arrange another layer of pasta sheets and repeat the other layers.

Arrange the final layer of pasta sheets and repeat with what’s left of all the layers, plus the Parmesan cheese.

Place the lasagna dish on a large baking sheet, put it in the middle rack of the oven and bake for 45 minutes, or until the top is golden and bubbling.

NOTE:

You can assemble the lasagna ahead, cover and store in the fridge. If you do that, you might need to add 10-20 minutes to the cooking time.

* To soak the lasagna sheets: 1) do this in batches, not all at once, 2) drizzle some oil on a baking sheet, lay the softened, soaked pasta sheets on the greased baking sheet to prevent it from sticking.

Some dishes, I think, are just too predictable, too obvious to even be mentioned to others—“Hey! Guess what I cooked today?”—and certainly they are not to be blogged about! Talk about roasted chicken. Or even braised chicken. They just seem to be too… (Fill in the blank), because I/we assume that everyone knows how to make them. Well, we know that this is isn’t so. Some people out there do need exactly those types of recipes.

However! What if I/we could make three meals out of one predictable, too obvious dish? It sure can save a lot of people a lot of time and get three dinners done!

It starts with chicken thighs roasted in tomatoes and herbs. Simple.

You have that for dinner,

… and you take the leftover sauce the next day and buzz it in the food processor to make the ever-predictable pasta with tomato sauce as a second meal (using 1-2 cups of the sauce). Easy, simple. Everyone can do that.

… and the third time around, you eat any leftover sauce as a soup, ooooor you can make shakshuka! How very simple.

Now, what do you say about that?

I say this is efficiency at its best.

Simple and predictable roasted chicken with tomato sauce and herbs

Serves 4-6

4 whole chicken legs, (split to thigh and leg, optional)
1 can 28 oz. diced/crushed tomatoes
4 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
1/2 to 1 onion, peeled and chopped
1 handful fresh herbs such as parsley and thyme (or use 1 teaspoon dried herbs)
1/4 cup white wine, optional
A good drizzle of extra virgin olive oil
Salt and black pepper

Put all the ingredients in a 9 * 13-inch baking dish, season well and roast at 375 degrees F for 50-60 minutes.

For pasta sauce, soup, and/or shakshuka:

Put everything that is left in the pan besides chicken in a food processor bowl and pulse till smooth. (I didn’t measure how much sauce was left. Will do next time…)

Use some of the sauce for pasta and some to be eaten as tomato soup or use it to make shakshuka.

Mr. Husband cooked this recipe for the first time a few months ago. The kids and I returned home late in the evening after a play date at our friends’ house to find the house smelling heavenly from this dish. The aromas hit my nose the second I stepped out of my car in the garage… Mr. H did a fine job!

Last Sunday, when we planned our meals for the upcoming week—we’re trying to be more efficient—that recipe jumped into my head. It’s fairly easy to make and quick, and it tastes gorgeous. The pork tenderloin is sliced instead of being cooked whole, and this makes it cook in 3 minutes. Then it is bathed in a creamy sauce with a splash of cognac… I’ll let your imagination do the rest of the work and leave you at that…

Pork tenderloin stroganoff

The recipe below is based on one from Gordon Ramsay’s cookbook “Cooking for Friends“.

I made a few minor changes: I had more pork and less mushrooms than what the recipe calls for, I used less onion and cognac instead of brandy. I added a little of butter, and I cooked the mushrooms with the onions, side by side, because I needed a short cut. I cooked the dish ahead of time—it doesn’t have to be served “immediately”—and will reheat it tonight. (And I changed some of the wording in the recipe.)

I’m going to serve it tonight with buttered pasta and roasted Brussels sprouts. Mmmmmmm…

Serves 4-6

1 to 1 1/2 pounds pork tenderloin
Salt
Black pepper, freshly ground
1 teaspoon sweet smoked paprika
4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1/2 onion, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
6-7 ounces cremini mushrooms, sliced
1 tablespoon butter
2 tablespoons cognac/brandy
1/2 cup sour cream or heavy cream
1/2 lemon, juiced
Handful of fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves, chopped

If you have time, trim off any fat or sinew from the pork tenderloin (I skipped this step). Then, slice it to about 1/2-inch thickness medallions. Season with salt, pepper and sprinkle with paprika.

In a large skillet over medium, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil, add onion and sauté until soft and translucent, 6 to 8 minutes. (If you are in a rush, like I was, push the onions to the side, add the mushrooms and start cooking them too, side by side).

Add the garlic, mushrooms, and butter, and fry until mushrooms are tender, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove the contents of the pan into a bowl and set aside.

Add remaining oil to the pan and fry the pork over high until golden brown, 1 1/2 to 2 minutes per side. Return the onions-mushrooms mix back to the pan. Add the brandy and let it boil until most of it is reduced.

Stir in cream and bring to a gentle simmer. Season with a bit more salt and pepper, then the lemon juice. Throw in chopped parsley and remove pan from heat.

Serve immediately or cool and reheat for dinner.

I love mishmashed pasta dishes like this one. With Israeli couscous, bacon, artichokes, corn, mushrooms, fresh herbs, some lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil… What’s not to like?

Or how about this one with kale, toasted pine nuts, a bit of cream, and parmesan? Simple. Clean. (Recipe here)

I love to take my big skillet out and toss some pasta with leftovers like roasted vegetables, sausage, chicken, crème fraiche,  and such. (Recipe here)

Or to make a fresh batch with wild mushrooms, some heavy cream, kale, and tomatoes.(Recipe here)

With only kale and cream, it’s good stuff too!

(We do like kale in this household. Recently, we’ve been eating it raw. Good, good.)

Here we have orzo, tomatoes, feta, black olives, green olives, mint, oregano, pine nuts… (Recipe here)

And here we have corn, cauliflower, kale, pesto, tomatoes, and parmesan.

In this one: farro, garbanzo beans, roasted peppers, steamed cauliflower, Israeli couscous. All good stuff!

But my children… The ones that grew inside my body… The ones who carry my genes… (Well, 50% of them), they like pasta… plain.

They like Mac and cheese too, of course.

There is no punch line to this post.

***

Chicken with cream and tarragon… I believe I was a B.A student the last time I made this dish. Pheeeww, that was a long time ago!

How can it be that I let 10-15 years slip by without cooking this divine dish? Jeez.

I was cooking a lot of French and Italian dishes back then, my early years of cooking. I sure roasted and braised a lot of chickens back at that time too. One of the first cookbooks I bought at the university’s book store was dedicated to chicken recipes (no, no chicken desserts). I did not know how to handle any other type of meat or fish and chicken was easy. It also cost less and was pretty hard to screw up, especially the thighs—you can’t go wrong with chicken thighs. (Well, unless you are really, really “talented”, you know, the type that burns water.)

Back then I was living in a rented apartment with two roommates. It was a holiday and they went home to their families but I stayed. Luckily, I had some friends who stayed too so together we planned a potluck dinner party at my place—my apartment had a huge living room. We attached a few tables together, friends brought chairs from their homes, each person/couple (I was boyfriend-less) brought a dish to share and we had a fabulous time with good food and wine. We were all students, singles or married without kids, in our early twenties. We all struggled to work for a living and study after work, but we did find time to party. I remember the feeling I had at the time, at that dinner, I felt so free, and independent, and happy about living on my own, doing whatever I wanted, being responsible for my own choices—the essence of freedom.

These friends are long gone—some are no longer friends, some live far away (I moved!)—our friendships have faded. Some couples split or got divorced. We all moved on with our lives. But the chicken… the chicken will always be on my mind and the memories of those years and those friendships too.

So why have I made this cream and wine-braised chicken now?

I’ve been speaking of inspiration, and searching for it, and my tarragon plant has started growing faster in the past month. It was right there, under my nose, so pretty and fragrant. In my mind, tarragon will always be associated with that holiday dinner shared with friends in my then-rented students’ apartment.

I know that the plant will be dormant in winter (but, hopefully, will come back in summer. I took it back inside the house last winter with other herbs in pots) so I had to use it immediately.

It’s pretty amazing the effect that food and its aromas have; this power they posses to make me travel back in time. The first perfumed scents of the French tarragon—too unique to describe—made me feel… (10-15 years younger? Naaa) It simply reminded me of good times and the feeling of freedom I owned that magical weekend, sitting around a table with friends who appreciate good food, all laughing, smiling… Purely happy.

Chicken braised with cream and tarragon

Serves 6

5 whole chicken legs, separated to legs thighs
salt and pepper
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 lb. crimini mushrooms, washed, dried, and sliced
1 small onion, peeled and thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup white wine
1 cup heavy cream
3-4 sprigs of tarragon

Season the chicken with salt and pepper on both sides. Set aside.

Melt butter and olive oil in a big pot over medium-high heat. Sauté the mushrooms, onion, and garlic until they are golden brown. Remove to a plate.

Add more butter and oil to the pot, if needed, and fry the chicken, skin side down, until it browns. Using tongs, turn to the other side and cook to brown the second side.

Add the wine and shake the pot to release the brown bits that got stuck to the bottom. Return the mushroom-onion mix to the pot, add cream and the tarragon, and season with more salt and pepper. Bring to a boil and then lower the heat to a gentle simmer. Braise on the stovetop, with the lid on, over low heat for 45-60 minutes, or place in a 350 F degree oven (for the same amount of time).

Serve with a side dish that will absorb and complement the creamy sauce like potatoes, rice, or noodles, and/or leafy greens, like kale.

OK, so we had a few distractions between the No-roll quiche crust post – because we visited Mount Rainier National Park, Blueberry Hills farm, and Lake Chelan – to the actual finished product, that is the mushroom quiche post.

I’ll be honest with you… For me, making – and eating! – a mushroom quiche is merely an excellent excuse for devouring mushrooms soaked in heavy cream. I mean, it’s mushrooms… sautéed in butter and simmered in heavy cream… Besides heavy cream made desserts, what could possibly be richer and more decadent and sinful than this??? Mushrooms with cream…

OK, OK, you twist my arm. A steak seared in butter and simmered in heavy cream with pasta and mushrooms to finish it off – soaked in heavy cream themselves – is indeed better than a mushroom quiche. But, if you seek a vegetarian alternative – for lunch or dinner, and even brunch – that’s the way to go.

Mushroom quiche

I used crimini mushrooms this time but feel free to use any kind you like, or a mix of them! (But I do not recommend using dried mushrooms. I made this quiche once before with rehydrated dried porcini (in addition to fresh ‘shrooms) and I didn’t like how it tasted; it tasted like fake mushrooms soup or one from a powdery mix or something… Not good.)

1 small onion, thinly sliced (about 2/3 cup)
12 oz. fresh mushrooms, washed, dried, thinly sliced (stems removed)
a few sprigs of fresh thyme or lemon thyme
1 fat garlic clove, minced
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
salt
freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup milk
1 cup heavy cream
3-4 oz. gruyere cheese, grated
3 eggs, lightly beaten
1 quiche crust, arranged in the pan and chilled

Preheat oven to 360 F degrees.

In a medium size skillet, melt the butter with olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté until it softens. Add the mushrooms, garlic, a touch of salt, black pepper, and thyme (Add a drizzle of oil or another knob of butter if needed) and sauté until mushrooms and onion are browned and soft. Remove to a bowl and let cool a bit.

To the bowl with the mushrooms, add the milk and cream and stir. Then, add the cheese and eggs and mix well. Pour the batter over the chilled crust and bake for 45-50 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and the custard is set. Let cool for 15 minutes before slicing and serving.

Cook till brown

This is what you end up with. Chill before adding the rest of the custard ingredients (so the eggs won’t curdle).

Take the chilled dough our of the fridge

Pour the batter

… it’s so easy

Ta-da!

Now, how do you take the quiche out of the pan, ha???

Run a toothpick, or one of those thin “thingies” like that red one in the photo, around the edges to loosen them from the side of the pan (If you greased the pan well, the dough will pull away from the pan as it cools).

Then, place the pan over a plate or bowl that is taller than the pan

… and there you have it

And we’re done

No, no beer-braised squirrel in that pasta dish. Don’t worry.

I told you about my snail, beer, and a beer stealing squirrel problem. And I have received some advice. Thanks!

Crystal commented that what I have are slugs and not snails and suggested “A tried and true method I have used to make a beer trap is to get a used margarine or butter tub. Cut slug-sized holes on the side of the container near the top around the perimeter of the container. Fill it with beer and snap the lid back on. Then take it to your vegetable bed and bury it so that the soil comes up to where the holes are. The slugs will smell the beer and slither right on in to meet their drunken deaths! The lid will keep the neighborhood animals out. Good luck – the beer really works! We would grow pristine strawberries year after year using this method.”

Lo wrote “Oh, gosh! We’ve totally used the beer trick with our slugs (usually shallow lids filled with beer work nicely — though I love the butter tub concept), and it really does work! But, we’ve never had squirrels pilfering our beer supply “

Tamar had another problem and solution “We don’t have slugs but we have caterpillars eating our tomato leaves. Supposedly mint water irritates them out of the pot. We shall see…” In an e-mail she sent me later she reported back “… we boiled the water and added mint.  I don’t think it works.  We ended up buying caterpillar killer spray and 5 of them dropped off dead.  5!!! That’s so many!”

Lara added “… a length of copper around the whole thing will keep new ones out.”

Snails or slugs, they are snacking on my leafy greens!

So…with a new and improved trap, I went out again; I dug a little dent and placed the beer trap in the veggie bed right under the slugs’ nose!

Man, it was so hot that day; the second I took the beer container out, I could smell its sweet aroma. That made me very optimistic about achieving some serious results!

37.5 hours (or so…) have passed.

This is what I found this morning.

Someone is messing with the beer and it ain’t no slugs…

I took a pick inside. Found only a few dead gnats(?) Someone has been trying to steal the beer.

To save what’s left until I get rid of the pesky, slimy slugs, I harvested me some greens. That’ll show ‘em!

I picked green kale, red kale, and chard

Soaked them in water and rinsed them well a few times. Pulled the leaves off the stems, torn them to pieces and put it all in a big bowl.

How lovely is that?!

The leaves are so much tender compared to the bunches I buy at the grocery store. And much sweeter.

I blanched them in boiling salted water for 4-5 minutes, cooled them in icy cold water and then squeezed them dry.

The big bowl was reduced to only two handfuls of cooked green stuff. (Twice the amount you see below.)

I used one handful to make an omelet and the other handful to cook a simpler variation to my wild mushroom ravioli with kale and cream recipe.

Creamy orecchiette with leafy greens

1/2 box orecchiette
1 handful blanched leafy greens, chopped
1/2 cup heavy cream
salt
pepper
extra virgin olive oil
grated parmesan
a handful toasted pine nuts (Toast in 350 F oven for a few minutes)

Cook the pasta according to the instruction on the package. Drain.

Return it to the pot with the blanched greens, heavy cream, salt, pepper, and a drizzle of olive oil. Mix and heat over medium heat until it is warm.

Serve with grated parmesan and pine nuts.

***

Next we’re going to have peas… I see some good looking ones on the vines. Those are Suburban Cowboy’s babies. He is cultivating them very gently and lovingly.

In the meantime, can someone tell me what do you do with so much lettuce?

I must tell you about this stew.

Because even if you believe that you will never ever make it, you must know of its existence!!! And so, you will make a conscious, knowledgeable decision whether you make it or not.

I don’t want the responsibility lying on my shoulders knowing that (some of) you are walking around completely unaware of this stew.

Now, close your eyes and imagine this:

A Saturday morning (OK, it can be a Sunday too). You wake up in your warm bed with the fluffy down comforter covering you from ears to toes. The minute you wake up and regain your senses, a sweet honey, amber-like aroma amuses your nose. That sweet smell had penetrated every corner of your house, got absorbed in your pillow and your pajamas, and had sweetened your dreams while you were sleeping.

You get out of bed and put on your homey old robe on (You have one of those, right?!), and slip your feet inside your slippers, and then drag yourself to the kitchen to make coffee, or tea.

While you wait for the water to boil, you yawn as you lean against the countertop. You feel so happy and proud of yourself for loading a big pot, the night before, with beans, and potatoes, and meat, and eggs, and all kinds of good food, and putting it in the oven to slowly simmer overnight, letting the 15 hours of low heat take care of the rest…

In a few hours you will be able to enjoy this stew, this Cholent, for lunch. You have invited 14 guests but you don’t have to lift a finger.

You take a deep breath. You smile.

Ding. The button of your water kettle signals your morning coffee water had boiled.

You make coffee. You smile. You’re happy.

Now open your eyes.

And go get dressed! Your guests are arriving SOON.

Have you set the table the night before as well? Go, go go.

Do you really want to open the door when your guests arrive wearing that old robe?

(On second thought, it might be time to buy a new one.)

And, actually, I’m not sure that “stew” does this dish justice. It is plain “stew” if it has been cooking for… let’s see, it was placed in the oven at 10 PM and consumed at 1 PM the following day… That makes it… 15 hours, and it can be cooked even longer. So, I think a better word than “stew” should be applied to it. Any suggestions?

So, what is “Cholent”?

A quote from an article: “Just think of concoctions as the French cassoulet, Boston baked beans, chili con carne.” And I just want to add, “It can be all those combined!” So aren’t you convinced yet that you must try it?

I rest my case.

By the way, the article is fascinating and discusses the history, the tradition, the different ingredients and techniques, and so on of Cholent. Really interesting stuff! So go to this web page to read more about so I won’t have to reinvent the wheel all over again. Thanks.

***

It’s supposedly spring but the weather here is sort of crazy, and indecisive, and cooold, and rainy. Bottom line, it resembles winter more than it does spring. And I made Cholent only once this winter, so I thought, “Hey, why not? Here’s my second chance.” And there you have it.

Due to a full-day of food writing workshop – which I will tell you about in the next post – I had to send Suburban Cowboy to the grocery store the day before the Cholent making day.

Onions, garlic, prunes, potatoes, garbanzo beans, white beans, barley, chicken, beef, and barley.

Instead of barley he came back with… oats! And this is the second time this had happened! To his defense, he claims that the store put a label “Barely” under the oats’ container. But between us, we know, girls, it’s always the guys’ fault, right?! (Wink.) So there was no barley in this Cholent. So sad. It adds sweetness and chewiness to this dish.

And he didn’t soak the beans in the water because I wasn’t home to tell him and he didn’t read the recipe… So Junior and I had to go to the store that night and buy canned beans because a Cholent with no beans at all is just unthinkable.

And it still turned out great.

The guests licked their fingers.

Nah, no they didn’t. They’re too polite.

But I did get lots of compliments.

It also makes a great leftovers lunch the next day.

I packed leftovers for Suburban Cowboy’s lunch at work. My finger unintentionally touched the food and stuck to my finger as I filled the Pyrex container with the good stuff.

I licked it.

Oh, yes, I did.

Yum yum.

***

So, back to the morning after the night that you started the process.

You wake up in the morning, and after you’ve had your coffee, you take a peek to see how’s your Cholent is doing so far.

This is what it looked like at 9 AM (I’ve got lil’ kids, early birds, so I don’t get to sleep until 20 minutes before lunch time/the guests are coming. And I don’t have an old robe either. Just in case you wondered).

3-4 more hours to go.

From a closer look you can see how the potatoes, prunes, chicken, and beef pieces turned all brown. It’s a totally brown food.

But, oh, I wish you could smell it.

You’ll just have to make it if you want to smell it.

At 9 AM I added the canned beans and hard boiled eggs (I must have been really tired. There’s no other way to explain why I put the eggs in a separate pan. They should be placed in the pan with the rest of the ingredients.)

But it turned out just fine.

Finger-licking good.

And the smell… Oh. The neighbors knocked on my door and asked for some.

Nah, they didn’t.

They’re too polite.

***

Saturday Cholent

I hear you’re supposed to put the ingredients in a big, tall pot – not in a big, wide pan like I did – and then layer the ingredients on top of one another as follows: onions and garlic go in first, then the beans, then the potatoes, next the meat and chicken, and the eggs on top. Then you cover it with boiling water only to the potatoes’ height.

As for the eggs, some people just wash ‘em well before adding to the pot. I like to bring them to a boil, drain and rinse with clean water, and only then add to the pot. (Why? I don’t know… Maybe to be sure they are clean of bacteria, salmonella, and all those words we hear that scare me.)

As for the beans. Use any variety you like, or even better, use a few different kinds. Soak them in water a day ahead or, at the latest, the same morning you will be cooking them. Change the water 2-3 times.

I used to add marrow bones as well… Pre The crazy cow disease years… So sad.

As with old recipes, all possible variations, combinations, adaptations, and compilations develop through the years. Here’s how I usually do it. You can easily cut the amount in half or multiply by as many guests as you have, or the size of your pot.

As a general rule of thumb I estimate, per person: 1 chunk beef, 1 piece chicken, 1 small potato, 1/2 cup mixed beans, 1 egg.

Oh, and don’t forget the Challa…….

Start time: The night before the day you want to eat it
End time: Lunch time
Makes 12 servings + most likely, leftovers

extra virgin olive oil
2-3 onions, chopped large
1-2 tablespoons sugar
2 heads of garlic, cloves separated, left whole and unpeeled
2 lbs. beef chuck, cut into large cubes
12 chicken thighs or 20 chicken drumsticks
12 small potatoes, peeled
1 cup garbanzo beans, that was soaked in water
1 cup white beans, that was soaked in water
1 cup barley, that was soaked in water (unless your husband brought you OATS)
about 12 prunes
12 eggs
salt, black pepper

In a pot, or tea kettle, boil about 2 quarts of water.

In a big, tall pot (or big, wide pan), fry the onions with some oil over medium heat. Sprinkle sugar on top and cook, stirring from time to time, until it starts to soften. Throw in the garlic cloves and fry another 2-3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

If you’re in the mood/have time, brown the meat cubes. If not, just add it to the pot. Season with salt and pepper.

Next, add the chicken, potatoes, beans, barley, and prunes. Season with salt and pepper.

Scatter the eggs at the top.

Add boiling water to about 3/4 of the height. Cover with a lid or with aluminum foil (the thick kind works best).

Bring everything to a boil.

Now you have 2 options:

1) Simmer on the stovetop for 45-60 minutes, or
2) Bake in an oven that was preheated to 350 F degrees for 45-60 minutes.

Next, set the oven temperature to 225 F degrees. Place the pot/pan in there, covered, and go to bed.

The next day, in the morning, check the level of liquids. If it’s too dry (which probably won’t happen), add more boiling water. If there’s too much water, makes holes in the foil, or open a crack with the lid, or remove it altogether so some of the water will evaporate and the sauce will thicken.

That’s pretty much it.

A very special dish for a very special day.

And don’t forget the Challa…

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Other appealing recipes on the web:

Cholent by Claudia Roden

Another recipe to try on Epicurious by Joan Nathan

More about Cholent on Wikipedia