Skip to main content

a few degrees of freedom

Nice week.  I hit the triple 16 birthday.  Now I feel older.  Hard to believe I've been around this long, but I am reminded of it at work every day.  I'm definitely the grampa of the group.

The other new of the week is that the Hebrew University finally agreed that I had fulfilled all of the requirements for a Phd.  It took them more than 10 months to review my thesis, which would have been painful if I hadn't been working already.  So with that past me, I am now recognized as a Doctor of Philosophy.  Of course, my diploma will not arrive until the graduation ceremony next May!

I had fun in the kitchen today.  We are trying our one course meals for Friday night.  We usually have a smaller number of guests for dinner, so its nicer to have a simple meal.  I started out thinking about a soup and ended up making Yellow Curry Chicken (see recipe below).  Then a friend brought over some mushroom barley soup, so we'll use a single bowl but have both dishes with rice.

For lunch, I make a honey mustard chicken, a roast chicken and a moussaka (also see recipe below).  We have a vegetarian for lunch, so I made a simple tofu stir fry dish with zucchini, leeks and tofu. It looks nice and will go well over rice.

If you happen to be in the area the weekend, stop by for kiddush from 8:30 to 10am.  I bought Herring and I'm going to open a bottle of port!

Shabbat Parshat Ki Tavo
Dinner - 8
Mushroom Barley soup
Yellow Curry Chicken
Rice
Steamed Brocolli
Prepared Shnitzel (for those with less varied tastes)

Lunch - 13
Moussaka
Honey Mustard Chicken
Roast Chicken
Stir Fry Tofu
Rice
Israeli Salad
Carrot Kugel
Potato Kugel

Yellow Curry Chicken -- Serves 8
3 Chicken thighs, 4 drumsticks, chopped up into one inch pieces without skin
3 tablespoons yellow curry mix
1 can coconut milk
three kolrabi cut into bite size pieces
2 cups of fresh Pumpkin cut into bite size pieces
1 hot green pepper
2 cups water

In a large pot, heat the coconut milk.  Add the yellow curry mix and stir until its evenly distributed.
Add the vegetables and water.   Cook covered for 10 minutes.  Add the chicken pieces and cook for another 30 minutes on low heat.    Serve over rice or in bowls.  Its pretty much a soup.

Moussaka -- Serves 8
3 large eggplants sliced the long way into 1/4 inch slices
2 pounds ground meat
1 large can crushed tomatoes
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 cut chopped parsley

Fry the eggplant until its light brown on both sides.  I used a deep fried because it was available, but I have also just used a frying pan.  Brown the beef until its no longer pink.  Mix the tomatoes, garlic, parsley, add salt and pepper.

In a baking dish, put a layer of eggplant, half of the beef, and half of the sauce.  Make another layer the same way and finish if off with a final layer of eggplant.  Drain as much of the liquid as you can and bake for 30 minutes at 350.

If you plan on serving it for Shabbat lunch, drain the liquid and discard.




Comments

Arica said…
Mazel tov Doctor and happy birthday! I hope the banana cake was good!

Popular posts from this blog

A change of pace (Kidney Failure)

I have been trying to keep this blog focused on hospitality and food.  God though has other plans for his creations and I find now that I will have to expand the scope to cover new topics.  I'll try to continue blogging about my menus and our guests, but expect more posts that have little or nothing to do with food. In February of this year, My second oldest son, Asaf was diagnosed with Chronic Renal Failure. Simply put, both his kidneys are damaged and scarred from some infection or defect that happened years ago.  They will likely cease to function sometime within the next six months. The good news is that there is no immediate danger to his life.  Kidney Dialysis is a viable option and can maintain his health for up to ten or more years if necessary.  Unfortunately, the process is not easy and there are potential side effects. Given Asaf's generally excellent health and age, Kidney Dialysis is considered only a stop-gap measure and not a long term solution. The best solutio...

Pesach 5768 (2008) Overview

Pesach is just around the corner and preparations are already underway.  Our current guest list includes 7 gentlemen from a post-high school yeshiva program and two young ladies.  Our total count stands at 17 for all five meals. My wife and family are already working on cleaning the house.    Some of the dry goods purchases have been completed, and now we are looking at the protein purchase (butchers bill) and the fresh produce.  To get the process started off on the right foot, we are making menus.  In the general way of things, I expect these menus to change over the next 10 days.  Yet, I want to keep them online and get your input.  Do you think they are too light, too heavy, or just plain not enough for our hungry guests?  Let us know! There are five major meals that we need to prepare. Friday Night Dinner Early Shabbat Lunch (which must be eaten before 9:30am and that needs to include bread) Shabbat Lunch (around 1:30pm, that cannot include bread or matzoh) Seder Dinner First Day ...

B"DE Clark Evenchick

B"DE = Baruch Dayan Emet, Blessed is the truthful judge. This is the traditional jewish response to hearing that someone has passed away. My friend Clark Evenchick passed away last night. He suffered for a number of years from ALS. His passing is both a loss and a blessing. We will miss his wit and his powerful presence. On the other hand, ALS is a terrible disease for both the patient and their family. As the body becomes less responsive, the family and caregivers need to spend more and more time providing physical and mental support. Clark's passing frees both himself and his family from this disease. Clark built our house. At one time, he ran a construction company. Clark was not only an honest contractor, but also a joy to work with. At a time when most houses took up to two years from ground breaking to residence, Clark built our house in 7 months. Whenever there was a problem, we were more than comfortable telling him to find his own solution. I believe that...