I just posted this to my website. There are about 8 pictures there, too.
FWIW.
-Barb

Monday, March 20, 2006

On Saturday at 11:00 I invited good friends over for dinner at 6:00. We
haven't seen them in a long time and I'd managed to keep the dining
table clear for nearly a week and didn't want to waste the opportunity
to feed someone else there. :-) Besides, the silver and china needed
to be used.

I initially planned the menu based on what was in-house: Wild rice
soup, pot roast, carrots, potatoes and gravy, broccoli, coleslaw,
rolls/bread, dessert. I discovered then that I had no 'real' wild rice
in house drat! I usually have at least one pound on hand. Substitute
chicken tortilla soup for wild rice. I'd make the bread and decided
that I'd make a chocolate bundt cake I haven't made in years, too. It's
a relatively low-fat cake and won second place at the State Fair the
year I entered it there. I decided to bag the broccoli since that
family was well-represented by the coleslaw. And just for the helluva
it, I opted for Kasha Varnishkes instead of potatoes seems I've read
that that is a common accompaniment to a pot roast in some Jewish
households. Besides, I wanted to finish the kasha and get those
bow-ties out of the pantry cabinet. :-)

I needed a trip to the supermarket, to the local Hispanic market, and to
the food co-op for an avocado, some chihuahua cheese, and
Dutch-processed cocoa. Planning my route and weighing it against time
available, I decided to hit Cub first. There, I bought the cheese for
the soup, a bunch of daffs for the table, and a couple other things
corn torts for the soup. I bagged the co-op stop and used regular cocoa
in the cake instead. No Dutched cocoa at Cub. Cub's avocadoes were
like rocks so I hoped to find a decent one in the Hispanic market. I'd
bought the Chihuahua cheese at the Hidalgo market a couple weeks ago --
$5 for a package. Cub had it for $4.69, so I picked it up there. When
I stopped at Hidalgo, I found an avocado and checked the cheese again.
Guess what! The chihuahua they sell is a 14 ounce package for $5. What
I bought at Cub was a 9 ounce package. I'll remember that.

I think I started first on the bread. I used my Italian bread recipe
and made half into rolls that I sprinkled heavily with some Penzeys
Salad Sprinkle to which I added some caraway, poppyseed, and coarse sea
salt. A nice topping for bread. They rolls were awesome!

I browned (more like burned) some onions in Mom's aluminum roaster,
peeled a boatload of carrots, and then browned the meat. I stuck some
garlic slivers into pockets I sliced in the roast, arranged all in the
roaster, added a cup of bouillon, and stuck it in the oven, covered, at
300 degrees at about 2:45 p.m. Low and slow until 6:00.

I made the cake and got that in and out of the oven before the meat went
in. It was perfect.

I sliced some cuke, red onion, and green pepper to add to the packaged
cabbage for slaw. The secret family recipe (Jimmy's Cole Slaw Dressing)
would be mixed with the cabbage later.

I made the soup and prepared the cheese cubes and the avocado chunks for
it so they would be ready when I needed them. I added a bit of leftover
deli chicken to each bowl at serving time; I would pour the boiling soup
over the cheese, avocado, and chicken in each soup cup.

Instead of a tablecloth, I used placemats that Rob's beloved great-Aunt
Jo gave us about 35 years ago or so. She wove them herself at the San
Francisco Senior Center where she was a regular participant in their
craft activities. Aunt Jo ruled!

Figure that everything went about as well as I would hope. Some pics
are below. When it was dinner time, I was too busy getting things on
the table and then eating it to take many pictures. And it's been
suggested by one of the foodies that some food pics posted (though he
didn't mention mine specifically) have been mediocre and uninspiring and
why would anyone take a picture of "ordinary" food anyway? I have my
reasons for doing what I do here, ok. You don't like it, don't look.

I showered at 5:30. The Jo/e/s arrived at 6:15 I'd phoned and changed
the time. The brought a wonderful bottle of a St. Emilion red wine that
they enjoyed with dinner. The table was set with the china and silver
and flowers. And all three of them wanted to hang out in the kitchen!
Oh, did I mention that Rob had been hanging out in the kitchen with me
while I was trying to do three things at once (normally, I'm quite adept
at that) in prepping for this? He wanted to chat and I wanted him TO GO
SOMEWHERE ELSE! But I didn't say so because he gets wounded easily and
I didn't want him to feel rejected. <cough> Anyway, Rob cracked a
bottle of the Slovakian Riesling my dear friend Victor gave me for my
birthday last summer, and we sat in the living room and visited for a
few minutes and drank that. No hors d'oeuvres. I flunked that course.

Cut to the chase. Dinner was swell. The gravy was thin and almost
sweet from the carrots. The beef was tender. The soup was wonderful!
I love the Chihuahua cheese it gets soft a gooshy but maintains its
shape when it is. The avocado was acceptable. The chocolate cake was
great. Joseph complimented the coffee and I laughed because I don't do
anything fancy or use anything but Folger's from the supermarket.

These are fine folks we know and it was a treat to have an evening
together. Joe entertained us with hunting stories he's from Missouri,
still has a charming accent, and explained how Dick Cheney could have
shot his hunting pal and why he should not have.

I need to prepare for the delivery of my new stove, but maybe I'll post
the recipes later probably separately.

Thanks for looking.

-Barb
--
-Barb
<www.jamlady.eboard.com> Updated 3-17-2006, The $400K Condo in the
'Hood
"If it's not worth doing to excess, it's not worth doing at all."

In article >,
Melba's Jammin' > wrote:

> Cut to the chase. Dinner was swell. The gravy was thin and almost
> sweet from the carrots. The beef was tender. The soup was wonderful!
> I love the Chihuahua cheese it gets soft a gooshy but maintains its
> shape when it is. The avocado was acceptable. The chocolate cake was
> great. Joseph complimented the coffee and I laughed because I don't do
> anything fancy or use anything but Folger's from the supermarket.

<snipped rest of cool report>

All sounds good. :-)
I've done wood grill and oven roasted meat with the garlic sliver
stuffed into stabs thing, but never tried it with pot roasts, thanks for
the idea!

And yes, I make gravy from the pot roast juice too after reducing it,
and thicken with arrowroot, and have been amazed at the sweetness added
by carrots. Last time I did it, I added some merlot too.

Thanks for the report! I enjoyed reading it.
--
Peace, Om.

"My mother never saw the irony in calling me a son-of-a-bitch." -Jack Nicholson

In article >,
OmManiPadmeOmelet > wrote:

> In article >,
> Melba's Jammin' > wrote:
>
> > Cut to the chase. Dinner was swell.
> <snipped rest of cool report>
>
> All sounds good. :-)

Thanks. It was tasty.

> I've done wood grill and oven roasted meat with the garlic sliver
> stuffed into stabs thing, but never tried it with pot roasts, thanks for
> the idea!

My mom did it all the time. With pork roast, too. I think she used
more garlic than I did, though.
>
> Thanks for the report! I enjoyed reading it.

You're welcome.
--
-Barb
<www.jamlady.eboard.com> Updated 3-17-2006, The $400K Condo in the
'Hood
"If it's not worth doing to excess, it's not worth doing at all."

On Mon 20 Mar 2006 07:43:11a, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it Melba's
Jammin'?

> I just posted this to my website. There are about 8 pictures there, too.
> FWIW.
> -Barb

Very nice, Barb! The food looks terrific. I'm glad it went so well.

--
Wayne Boatwright Õ¿Õ¬
________________________________________

Okay, okay, I take it back! UnScrew you!

"Melba's Jammin'" > wrote in message
...
>I just posted this to my website. There are about 8 pictures there, too.
> FWIW.
> -Barb
>
> Monday, March 20, 2006
>
> On Saturday at 11:00 I invited good friends over for dinner at 6:00. We
> haven't seen them in a long time and I'd managed to keep the dining
> table clear for nearly a week and didn't want to waste the opportunity
> to feed someone else there. :-) Besides, the silver and china needed
> to be used.
<snip>> -Barb

Everything looked wonderful Barb!
A couple questions: what and where are the Kasha Varnishkes? What did you sprinkle on
the rolls? Are those poppy seeds? And, the $64,000 question: Where's the recipe for
that cake?!?! (Glaze too, please )

hugs,
kimberly

In article <cdHTf.12912$Uc2.12832@fed1read04>, "Nexis" >
wrote:
(snip)
>
> Everything looked wonderful Barb! A couple questions: what and where
> are the Kasha Varnishkes? What did you sprinkle on the rolls? Are
> those poppy seeds? And, the $64,000 question: Where's the recipe for
> that cake?!?! (Glaze too, please )

>
> hugs,
> kimberly

I used Penzeys Salad Sprinkle (something like that, and I *think* it's
Penzeys) to which I added coarse sea salt, a little caraway, and some
poppyseeds. Mentioned that in the web story.


{ Exported from MasterCook Mac }

Died-and-Went-to-Heaven Chocolate Cake

Recipe By: Posted again to r.f.cooking by Barb Schaller 3/21/06
Serving Size: 16
Preparation Time: 0:15
Categories: Cakes/Cake Desserts

1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup Dutch-process cocoa powder
1 1/2 tsp. soda
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 1/4 cups buttermilk
1 cup packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs lightly beaten
1/4 cup vegetable oil canola preferred
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup hot strong black coffee
Icing:
1 cup confectioners sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract (I used more like 2 tsp, and a pinch of
salt)
1 Tbsp. buttermilk or low-fat milk (1 to 2)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly oil a 12-cup Bundt pan or coat it
with non stick cooking spray. Dust the pan with flour, invert and shake
out the excess.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, granulated sugar, cocoa
powder, soda, baking powder, and salt. Add buttermilk, brown sugar,
eggs, oil and vanilla; beat with an electric mixer on medium speed for 2
minutes. Whisk in hot coffee until completely incorporated. (The
batter will be quite thin.) Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for
35-40 minutes or until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out
clean. Cool the cake in the pan on a rack for 10 minutes; remove from
pan and let cool completely.

To make icing: In a small bowl, whisk together confectioners¹ sugar,
vanilla, and enough of the buttermilk or milk to make a thick but
pourable icing. Set the cake on a serving plate and drizzle the icing
over the top.

‹‹‹‹‹
Notes: Eating Well magazine, April 1995, page 14. Ramona Stranberg
brought it into the office, July 1997. Awesome stuff. Didn¹t use Dutch
process cocoa first time I made it. Used a cup of hot coffee with
instant coffee powder added in.


{ Exported from MasterCook Mac }

Shiksa Varnishkes

Recipe By: Posted to rec.food.cooking again by Barb Schaller, 3/21/06
Serving Size: 6
Preparation Time: 0:00
Categories:

Amount Measure Ingredient Preparation Method
3/4 cup kasha (coarse grind)
1 beaten egg
2 tbsp schmaltz
2 cups chopped onion
a few mushrooms (baby bellas)
less than a tbsp green pepper (I needed
to use it up)
1 can Swanson's chicken broth (98% fat free) (14 oz)
About 3/4 cup water (next time I'll just make the
total liquid to measure 2 cups)
1 pkg Streit's egg bows (8 oz)


Mix the kasha with the beaten egg and stir it around in a hot skillet
(I used non-stick) for 2-4 minutes, until toasted and the grains are
dried. Stir it after about the first 15 seconds. I was seeing
almost-smoke, but no harm. I did NOT burn the kasha, thank you very
much.

After the kasha is toasted, add the liquid to it and cover. Simmer for
about 10 minutes. (This is considerably less time than the SAD cookbook
says and it's less liquid, too.)

While the kasha is cooking in flavorful broth!, slowly brown the chopped
onions (I used 2 small-medium, chopped by hand), chopped mushrooms (wish
I'd had more) and the green pepper (not a necessity, IMNSHO) in the
schmaltz. No schmaltz? Use buttah. When they're nicely browned, mix
with the kasha.

While your doing the onions, boil a vat of water in which to cook the
egg bows and cook them until just done. Not mushy. Drain and mix with
the kasha/onion mixture. Enjoy.

OK, this is mucho mejor than the otro batch. (I speak Spanglish :-)

Commentary: The kasha cooks way faster than one is led to believe. I
wouldn't use more than a 2:1 ratio of water:kasha. I wouldn't. In a
perfect world, both the kasha/onions and the varnishkes would both be
hot at the time of combining them. I'm thinking that, as good as this
batch is, it will be better in reheating.

Matter of fact, I think I would re-order the procedures in this fashion:
Brown the onions and set them aside. Now, set the vat of water to
heating. Now toast the kasha and get that cooking in the liquid. The
water should be about boiling (if you've covered it and the heat is
high) so cook the bowties. Mix the kasha with the onions and set aside,
covered, until the bows are done and drained and briefly rinsed; then
mix all together. Everything should be hotter this way than it was when
I did it.

‹‹‹‹‹
Notes: From Margaret
_____


Glad you liked the sound of things, Kimberly.
--
-Barb
<www.jamlady.eboard.com> Updated 3-21-2006 Hot Stuff!

"If it's not worth doing to excess, it's not worth doing at all."

On Tue 21 Mar 2006 09:15:21p, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it Melba's
Jammin'?

> Died-and-Went-to-Heaven Chocolate Cake

That cake looks scrumptious!

> Shiksa Varnishkes

I have eaten this, but never made it. I will now!

Thanks to both you and Margaret for the recipes.


--
Wayne Boatwright o¿o
____________________

BIOYA

"Melba's Jammin'" > wrote in message
...
> In article <cdHTf.12912$Uc2.12832@fed1read04>, "Nexis" >
> wrote:
> (snip)
>
> Glad you liked the sound of things, Kimberly.
> --
> -Barb
> <www.jamlady.eboard.com> Updated 3-21-2006 Hot Stuff!

Thanks for taking the time to post
I'm going to make that cake this weekend. It sounds too good not to.
Tonight I made an angel food cake (had lots of eggs to use up) with very finely
grated chocolate flecks in it to go with the fantabulous strawberries I got this
morning. Yummy stuff.

kimberly