Brisket Two Ways

I bought too much brisket for Passover.  I tend to do that.  I get nervous that I won't have enough.  My family tends to eat a lot of it, and though I have been known to invite extra people for Seders last minute, this year was different. I only had family over, and so I was stuck with a lot of uncooked brisket still in the freezer.

I wanted to come up with a new way to make brisket - and the leftovers - since it was just the two of us (and the baby).  Having lots of vegetables on hand from the CSA (community supported agriculture) that I belong, I had an abundance of vegetables that I wanted to incorporate.  For Shabbat, I made a brisket, with a little Asian flare, and then Saturday night, I took the leftovers and made lettuce wraps.  The brisket was delicious. And the lettuce wrap was a great way to make use the leftover meat to have a lighter, quick meal. 

Duck Sauce Brisket
Ingredients:
3-4 lbs Brisket
1 cup Gold's Duck Sauce (I used the regular, but the spicy version would probably make it better)
2 Tbsp rice vinegar
1 small onion, sliced
1 pint mushrooms, sliced
2 bell peppers, sliced (any color)
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
Scallions, chopped for garnish (optional)

Directions:
Combine all ingredients in slow cooker, set on low and cook for 6-8 hours or set on high and cook for 4 hours.  Alternatively, you could cook in the oven, using a Dutch oven. 

The next day....

Asian Brisket Lettuce Wraps
Ingredients:
Leftover cooked brisket, shredded
1 cup cooked brown rice
2 Tbsp soy sauce
Large lettuce leaves
Sriracha sauce, optional

Directions:
Combine leftover brisket and vegetables with rice and soy sauce in a skillet to heat.  Place on lettuce wraps.  Serve with Sriracha spicy sauce for a spicy kick. 

Even if you don't make this recipe in particular, I encourage (and challenge) you to make something unique and fun with your leftover brisket.  Share your creation in the comment section here.

My Lighten Up Brisket

This blog is titled Brisket and Beyond.  It is about time that I actually cook a brisket!  I normally only make brisket for Rosh Hashanah and for Passover.  However, I had a small brisket in the freezer and I had my Lighten Up dinner to host, so I thought it would be a perfect time to try a new recipe.

Lighten Up is our community engagement program where host families invite other members to their home for an informal Shabbat dinner.  The program promotes building relationships and friendships between member families.  Hosts are asked to invite one or two families to their house and have an opportunity to befriend new members through the warmth of the Shabbat table setting.  This is the third year that we have done this program.  Each year, I love getting the feedback from families. 

One family just wrote, "We had a lot to talk about and the kids played together nicely, so we actually had time to chat." 

A different family responded, " I don't think I would have gotten to know these families if it wasn't for this event.  What a great way to meet families and make a large synagogue feel smaller!"

This year we invited a new family over.  They also have a baby son!  It was so nice to meet them and bond over being new parents and connect.  And of course, eat brisket.  This recipe is very delicious and so easy! 

Sweet BBQ Brisket
Ingredients:
3 - 4 lb brisket
3/4 Cup BBQ sauce
1/4 Cup soy sauce
2 teaspoon worcestershire sauce
1 Cup water

Directions:
 Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Take very large piece of heavy duty aluminum foil and place into roasting pan.  Place brisket onto foil.  Mix all above ingredients in a bowl and pour over brisket.  Wrap the foil over the brisket, making a pouch.  Leave a small opening in the foil to allow steam to vent.  Bake brisket for about 4 hours, until tender.  Cut and serve.

I served mine with kasha and asparagus.  Enjoy!

Slow Cooker Chicken and Fennel

When I bought my first slow cooker, its sole purpose was to make cholent, the traditional stew that cooks all night to be served during Shabbat lunch.  Growing up, my mother never made cholent, so for me, eating cholent was a real treat; I love the warmth and richness of this humble stew.  Until recently, the only action my slow cooker had was in the winter when I made the occasional cholent. 

However, now that I am a working mom, I am finding that the slow cooker can really help me get dinner on the table mid-week as well as on Shabbat.  I have been reading a lot of slow cooker recipes in magazines and on Pinterest (did you know you could even bake a cake in one!?!).  I got inspired to try something new. 

This dish is a perfect one pot meal.  It has a protein (chicken), a starch (brown rice), and a vegetable (fennel).  It works great as a weeknight meal, as a Shabbat dinner entree, or as a cholent replacement for Shabbat lunch.  Don’t be scared away by the fennel.  This licorice tasting vegetable gets very sweet and tender when cooked.   In fact, it is quite child friendly: my one year old son gobbled up the fennel faster than I could get it on his plate!

Slow Cooker Chicken and Fennel

(This recipe is an adaptation from Real Simple magazine)

Ingredients:
2 lbs chicken thighs and legs, bone-in, with as much skin removed as possible
1 cup dry brown basmati rice
2 fennels, sliced.  Reserve some fronds for serving
½ onion, sliced
2 ½ cups water mixed with 1 scant Tablespoon bouillon (alternative could be 2 ½ cups low sodium chicken broth)
1 Tablespoon paprika, divided

Directions:

Place chicken in bottom of slow cooker.  Sprinkle some of the paprika on the chicken.  Pour dried rice on top of chicken and layer onion and fennel on top.  Sprinkle remainder of paprika over vegetables.  Pour water/broth into the crockpot.  Cover.  Cook on low for about 7 hours or high for about 4 hours.  Garnish with fennel fronds.  Serve with a green vegetable or salad.

Roasted Parsnip and Mushroom Soup

Baby, it's cold outside! 
While most American's are listening to this Dean Martin song to get into the Yuletime spirit, for us, it is just cold outside!  Nothing warms you up better than a hot, rich soup.

This past Shabbat I was feeling like soup was in order.  I wanted to do something different - I always feel the need to make something unique when I have guests.  This roasted parsnip and mushroom soup was perfect.  It is rich and creamy (without cream - it's parve!).  I happen to love parsnip and I am always looking for new ways to use it; and when it is all blended together, the parsnips create a thick creamy texture to the soup.  I roasted the parsnip first to release all of its sweetness and the mushrooms complement the earthy taste.  My husband, who does not like mushrooms, loved this soup - and went for seconds! 

Roasted Parsnip and Mushroom Soup

Ingredients:
4 medium parsnips, peeled and cut into rounds
1 onion
1 package sliced button mushrooms
1 package sliced crimini mushrooms
4 - 5 cups water
3 - 4 tbsp. chicken flavored bouillion
1 - 2 tsp. oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Chopped parsley for serving

Directions:
Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees.  Peel and slice parsnips.  Arrange on baking sheet and roast in oven for about 30 minutes, until soften and sweet smelling.  Meanwhile, chop and sauté onion until translucent, add mushrooms and continue to sauté until browned and the mushrooms reduce in size.  Add roasted parsnip and sauté briefly to blend the flavors.  Add bouillion to boiling water to dissolve and add to the mushroom and parsnip mixture (alternatives are to use prepared chicken broth or vegetable broth.  I find the bouillion to be salty which is why I use more water and less bouillion than recommended on the package).  After vegetables have cooked in the water for a few minutes, turn off heat.  Using an immersion blender, blend soup to a thick puree. 

If you prefer more texture to your soup, remove some of the cooked mushrooms before adding broth.  After pureeing, add the mushrooms back to the pot. 

Top with a generous amount of chopped parsley to serve.  The parsley give the soup a burst of freshness that cuts through the richness of the soup nicely. 

My "Lighten Up" Dinner

During November and December, 60 Beth El families generously volunteered to host other Beth El families for a warm Shabbat dinner for a program called "Lighten Up: Friday Night Invites."  Last week, we hosted our own Lighten Up dinner.  We invited two other families and we sat around my dining room table and talked and laughed and ate until very late at night.  Before the end of the evening, we even made plans for all of us to get together at another couple's home for another Shabbat dinner together. 

When I host people at my home, I use it as an excuse to try out new recipes.  I also like to theme my dinners.  It makes it more fun for me as I plan the dinner.  For this Shabbat, I went Sephardic.  I made roasted lamb, homemade babaganoush (eggplant puree), roasted peppers with sumac, and saffron rice.  It was delicious!!

Lamb with Red Onion and Tomatoes
(This recipe is an adaptation from Susie Fishbein's Kosher by Design: Entertaining)

Ingredients:
For the marinade -
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon paprika
2 teaspoons olive oil

2 lbs boneless lamb cubes
cherry tomatoes
1 red onion, cubed

Instructions:
Place all ingredients for the marinade into a large ziplock bag.  Add the lamb, mix around and let sit for a few hours.  Pre-heat oven to 375.  Spray a 9x13 pan with cooking spray and pour in the lamb mixture.  Add cherry tomatoes and cubes of red onion sporadically throughout.  Cook in the oven for about 25 minutes.

Babaganoush

Ingredients:
3 large eggplants
2 tablespoons of thaini
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon of cumin
1/2 teaspoon of ground coriander
3 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
Salt to taste

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350.  Cut the eggplants in half, lengthwise.  Place, flesh-side down on large baking sheet.  Bake for about 1 hour, or until very soft.  When eggplants are cool enough to handle, scoop out the flesh into a mixing bowl.  You can discard the skins.  Add remainder of ingredients and mix.


Roasted Peppers with Sumac

Ingredients:
6 multi-colored bell peppers
1/2 teaspoon sumac
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1 tablespoon of olive oil

Instructions:
Pre-heat oven to 375.  Slice peppers and place on cookie sheet.  Pour oil on peppers.  Sprinkle spices on peppers.  Bake for 15 minutes.

 

 

I hope you enjoy the recipes and think about using them in your next Shabbat dinner!  If you want to learn more about Lighten Up, let me know!