Help! I Have A Fire In My Kitchen

As readers of Help! I Have A Fire In My Kitchen know, I love meeting new people through this blog. It is often a great experience and certainly expands one's horizons. Barbara sent in these two recipes below. She is a fairly well known blogger with quite an interesting background. So let me first introduce you to Barbara (Don't call her Barb though, only Barbara or B!) through the two blogs I know she runs. (Pictures below are from Barbara's blogs.) Her first blog is " Barbara's Tchatzkahs ". Now before you go off to your dictionary trying to figure out just what a "Tchatzkah" is it is a Yiddish word that can mean many different things. However it is usually used to denote - "an inexpensive trinket or a toy". When someone saves a million little different things, you say, "What are all these Tchatzkahs for?" "It can also be spelled as "Tchotchka".) The word has other meanings as well. It can also refer at times an...

I was musing on the Thanksgiving Dinner, when this submission came in, so it actually saved me a great deal of work! There are quite a few full recipes in this posting, and some links, so pick and choose what you like. Thanksgiving Dinner From Paula who submitted this full Dinner Menu: Some are intimidated with the thoughts of making a complete meal for a holiday such as this. My niece asked me to give her a menu plan for her first attempt at making Thanksgiving Dinner. I share the following with you as well. I start a few days before and prepare what can be made ahead. Items such as Cranberry Relish can be made weeks in advance. Some vegetables can be made a day ahead as well as desserts. The best way to approach is to start with a meal plan. Figure exactly what you want to serve your guests. Go through your list and see what can be made ahead. The Turkey Keep in mind, if your turkey is frozen, you will need to allow enough time for it to thaw. Depending on the number of guests ...

Sometimes we just no longer have the patience to think and plan and cook. A million things happen and the kitchen is just way way in the background. However, during the past month, when holidays abound in the Jewish calendar and everyone is eating some festive meal somewhere, you just have to plan something for the family and guests. Well I got lazy! Yeah ME! So I went and purchased a piece of rib roast and figured it would cook itself. O.k. just kidding.. but that was my mindset. No more kitchen! No more cleaning and dishes and just plain thinking about food. So my roast is like 5 pounds (little over 2 kilo). Simple Roast Meat with Sweet Potatoes Ingredients: Rib Roast 2-3 medium onions Honey (take a jar but you wont use all of it) (Tablespoons would be 3-4) 1-2 Teaspoons of Basil 1 -2 Teaspoons of ground Hawwaj - this is cardamom . (I thank Keren who posted this is comments on the recipe " The Magic Of Cholent - Preparation & Ingredients "). Hawwaj comes in many differ...

Paula sent this one in. She Writes: This is yet another chicken dish…. But it is an inexpensive meal. You mentioned you would be looking for cheap meal ideas. Sweet potatoes are a healthier alternative to white potatoes. Chicken Drumsticks & Sweet Potato Wedges Ingredients: 1 Cup Balsamic Vinegar 10-12 Chicken Drumsticks 2 -3 Sweet Potatoes (washed and sliced into wedges) 3/4 Cup Honey 3/4 Cup Brown Sugar 1/2 Cup Low Sodium Soy sauce 6-8 Sprigs Rosemary 2 Cloves Garlic (minced) 1/4 Cup Fresh Parsley 1/4 Cup Olive Oil You will need: Baking Sheet Baking Dish (9 x 12) Pastry brush 1 Large Bowl 1 Medium Bowl Variations: Various chicken pieces Leave off spices you don’t like Add spices you like Directions: Combine balsamic vinegar, honey, brown sugar, soy sauce, rosemary and garlic in large bowl. Mix until well blended and sugar is dissolved Divide into two portions Place chicken in one bowl of mixture, turn to coat chicken and refrigerate for two hours Reserve the remaining mixture fo...

Paula sent in this side dish. She writes: This is a great side dish. It goes with anything and is fairly easy and inexpensive. Served over rice as a side to chicken, fish or beef. Potato and Eggplant Ingredients: 5 Medium to Large Potatoes , cubed 1 Medium Eggplant, peeled and cubed 2 Medium Onions, diced 2 Medium Tomatoes, diced 1 Clove Garlic, minced 1/4 Teaspoon Ginger 1/4 Cumin 1/4 Teaspoon Turmeric 1/4 Teaspoon Coriander 1/2 Cup Cilantro , chopped (Coriander is commonly called cilantro in North America) Olive Oil for sauté , Plus 4 Tablespoons Utensils You Need: Large skillet Directions: Heat olive oil in skillet Add onions, garlic and sauté for about one minute Add ginger, cumin, turmeric and coriander Mix well and continue to cook for two minutes Add potatoes and eggplant and continue cooking for 20 minutes Stirring occasionally Add tomatoes and cook for three minutes and sprinkle with cilantro AllPosters *Paula calls for both Coriander and Cilantro. These are basically the sam...

How do we even go about defining what "Kugel" is? Well I am going to borrow from the entry in Wikipedia for this, and if you like you can read their full entry on Kugel here . Kugel (Yiddish: kugl pronounced koogel or kigel {being that the "u" takes on an "i" sound in eastern european Yiddish}, also often referred to in the diminutive kugele, kigele) is any one of a wide variety of traditional baked Jewish side dishes or desserts. It is sometimes translated as "pudding" or "casserole". Kugels may be sweet or savory (salty). The most common types are made from egg noodles or potatoes and often contain eggs, but there are recipes in everyday use in modern Jewish kitchens for a great diversity of kugels made with different vegetables, fruit, batters, cheese, and other flavorings and toppings. Kugel-making seems to be continually changing and evolving. There are indeed noodle kugels, potato kugels, carrot kugels, veggie kugels - you name it...

Grandma (Bubby) Sarah Video Series Of Passover Recipes In continuing our " Grandma (Bubby) Sarah Video Series Of Passover Recipes ", originally sent to us by Michael Schreiber, (Production Director of tv360.tv , which seems to be a new Internet startup. The videos are served from realmeals.tv , part of tv360.tv, which also owns realhealth.tv which is about healthy lifestyles and living.) we now have the great Potato Kugel . This recipe is a gem! Use it! (What is quoted below is the recipe in the video. To see my changes look at Teddy's Note Below the recipe) Grandma (Bubby) Sarah's Potato Kugel Click here if the video above will not play in your browser (You do require Flash Player Installed) Utensils Required: Food Processor or KitchenAid. Aluminum Pan Ingredients: 3 Large Onion 10 Idaho Potatoes 6 Eggs 1 1/2 Cups of Matzah Meal Salt Pepper Oil ***Directions: Rough Cop 2.5 onions Fry them in Oil Cut the Potatoes and then Grind them in the food processor Grind the ...

Paula sent this one in last week, just got around to it. In the United States, corned beef is also associated with Saint Patrick’s Day when many Irish Americans eat a traditional meal of corned beef and cabbage. Corned beef was originally a substitute for Irish Bacon in the late 1800s. Irish immigrants living in New York City’s Lower East Side sought an equivalent in taste and texture to their traditional Irish bacon (similar to Canadian bacon), and learned about this cheaper alternative to bacon from their Jewish neighbors. A similar dish is the boiled dinner, consisting of corned beef, cabbage, and root vegetables such as carrots, turnips, and potatoes, which is popular in New England. Corned beef is also used to make the cold cut of Pastrami. http://www.katzdeli.com/ made the Pastrami Sandwich famous. Here in Boston, it is said that everyone is Irish on St. Patrick’s Day. The following meal is done in one pot. I have friends of non Irish descent tell me when they have tried a boi...

In my recent post, Honey-Garlic Chicken With A Few Other Tidbits , I told readers of Help! I Have A Fire In My Kitchen the story of the almost-not-done chicken on Friday. What I did not mention is that in the morning I made two dairy dishes. I was kind of stupid. I did not think of taking pictures of the Mac & Cheese one, (which I should have - cause it came out SO PERFECT...sheesh!) but I did think of taking a picture of my potato madness Quiche. Now this is not really a Quiche... so I am cheating... pfffffttttt. Hell, it kind of looks like Quiche! So I am taking a literary license on this one! It is actually almost the exact the same recipe as the one I gave in, Mr. Potato Head - The Good Ole' Potato Recipe , but it is worth its own post, me thinks. There is a bit of a change nothing drastic mind you, but if you rather make a dish and not start with the muss and fuss of nice looking potato halves, this will fit the bill quite nicely. (I did try to make the picture come out n...

Here is the story behind this recipe: As you know Friday is a hectic day when you have to get ready for the Sabbath. I have explained this before. Yesterday was particularly hectic. I woke up thinking I would not have to cook a thing as my synagogue was having a community lunch. I at first turned it down, but after a few phone calls asking me if I was coming, I got the hint and gave in. But that is a good thing because I would not have to cook for Saturday (Shabbat) lunch. Unfortunately, the father of a close friend of mine just underwent fairly difficult heart surgery. Since he is 85 any surgery at that age becomes very scary. She asked me to come with her to visit her father and also asked if it would not be too much of a problem if she ate Friday night Sabbath meal at my house. Of course I said fine, but then my day which started out as free, became fairly stressed for time as I had to go with her to visit her father and then cook up something. For whatever reason I could not face t...