Matzo Ball Soup or "Trayf" Matzo Balls the Forbidden Matzo!

I'm not trying to offend anyone, nor are the matzo balls that I make normally Forbidden. You see I've been sick this past week, and my son has had the the sniffles. So we've had a lot of chicken soup. Ever since Husband Person and I have jumped the broom, I've adapted to add the good ol' matzo ball along with the already super yummy bowl of chicken soup.

Now I know you're asking, "How are the matzo balls forbidden?"  Well here's how... Your normal matzo ball contains some sort of fat, whether its chicken fat, or oil. The matzo balls I made today had bacon grease, yeah I said it. Bacon grease! Boy oh boy were theses fluffy, soft, cloud like balls of goodness a hit. You see Husband Person may be Jewish, but the man will kill a hog to get him some bacon.  That ain't no lie either. So Husband Person came up with the name "Antisemitic Matzo Balls" and I learned from my dear friend Marcey (Who happens to be one of the coolest people to ever travel to a developing country with) that they were not in fact antisemitic just "trayf" or forbidden. (Heart you Marcey!)

I can't say that I'll make my matzo balls like this all the time in the future. It just so happened that I started the chicken stock this morning after making breakfast and thats when the light bulb went off. When you're in the mood for your favorite chicken soup, try these cute little morsels to go along with it. How about you make them when someone in your house has a cold or it's a chilly day. I promise you won't need to call your Bubbie for help. Oh, and please for the love of bacon don't use the boxed matzo ball stuff.

Chicken Stock
1 whole chicken cut up
2 parsnips scrubbed (whole)
2 large carrots scrubbed (whole)
2 celery stalks with leaves intact
1 med onion peeled and cut in half (leave the stem part intact)
4 large cloves of garlic
2 large sprigs of thyme, one small sprig of rosemary, 2 bay leaves bundled together

In a large stock pot brown the chicken parts skin side down first. Then add enough water to cover the chicken and let boil on med high for about 1 hour.

Add the remaining ingredients and more water to cover veggies and herbs if needed. Simmer for 2-4 hours. Strain the stock into another pot and allow chicken and veggies to cool. I then shred the chicken and reserve it for the soup.

Matzo Balls
4 eggs beaten
2 tbsp of chicken fat, or oil, or bacon grease (the bacon grease makes it trayf or forbidden)
1 tsp of kosher salt
2 tbsp of chicken stock or water
1 cup of matzo meal
2 tbsp of parsley
1 tsp of granulated garlic

beat eggs and fat, oil, or bacon grease with salt parsley and garlic, add matzo meal and stock. Mix well. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator. Here is the trick, if you like dense matzo balls allow them to rest for about 30mins if you like fluffier ones like we do, let the mix rest for 2 hours.

bring a pot of salted water to a boil, drop in one inch size balls gently into the water. I use a small ice cream scoop, it makes them all even and pretty. When forming the balls wet your hands periodically with cold water it makes the whole process easier. When all your balls (I know, I know) are in the water cover the pot with a lid and turn the heat down to a simmer, set your timer to 20mins.

While the matzo balls are cooking I usually chop up the carrots and add them to the bowls along with some of the shredded chicken. At this point I salt my stock to taste and add egg noodles. Some people like them with their matzo ball soup, some don't, to each their own..  When the matzo balls are done I place 2 balls in each bowl (lol) and ladle the noodle soup mixture on top!

See! Warm, yummy,  fluffy, goodness, that will help you feel so much better.

Provecho Kittens!

NashVegas Y'all

Have you ever made the choice to live apart from you partner? Regardless what the reason may be? Husband Person and I lived apart from one another for a good portion of our marriage. First being him landing a internship soon after we got hitched that took him to Boston for the summer, then about 2 weeks before he was to return I landed a job to work on an excavation at Teotihuacan Mexico. Lets just say it took me to get knocked up with our little man for us to stay in the same zip code. We're now happy and content and love have time together... But thats all about to change again.

You see my hubs is a man on mission! His mission is to change education here in this land we call America. He's a Charter School guy and believes that we should expect more from not just students, but from teachers, parents, and well everyone! The catch is this, we now live in Kentucky which is 1 out the 10 states who do not have Charters. I don't know why these 10 states think they are the Devil but they do. Apparently the other 40 state have caught on that its okay to have other options in education to offer their citizens.

This takes me to my point. Finally I know... Husband Person and I have been busy going back forth from Louisville to Nashville because he has taken the job as a Charter School Administrator. The catch being the school is a failing metro school and he has the task of turning the school around. Talk about daunting.

We move him into his small apartment away from me and the kiddo next week, then the following week is Thanksgiving . Boy oh boy do we have a lot to be thankful for. But this transition of him working in Nashville and me and little man being in Louisville is going to be tough. But we will make the best of it and we'll make it work. I'm scared and worried, yet proud and elated all at the same time. I know that in the beginning its going to be difficult because we're both going to be so worried about one another. But most of all we'll worry about how our son will handle it. Him driving home on the weekends, me driving there some of the week. All while he tries his damnedest to get this school turned around, and I try to get into a graduate program.

We'll trudge through like we always do, and with the support of our friends, family and most of all each other... Its going to be... Okay.

A New Day

So much has happened in the last 6 months! We moved back to my home town of Louisville Kentucky. We're currently under a massive project of renovating our home. A slow and tedious process I assure you. Our son has learned to walk and has taken on quite a personality. He's no longer eating baby food and has graduated to eating everything I make (for now.) We're still working around his dairy intolerance somewhat, but all in all it seems he's growing out of it. All in all, we're happy and loving life. Taking on new challenges and still eating together as a family.

Sorry I've been away for so long, but thats going to change. My sabbatical is over :)

Roasted Vegetables

Roasted veggies are so simple to make and are oh so good for you! They can be used in so many dishes. This past weekend we had dinner at a cousin's house, she served roasted veggie tortas. Man oh man were they so good! I'm a huge fan of roasted veggie soups and simply making them to accompany a main dish, like how I'm making them for tonight.

You can pick any combo of veggies you want. I suggest that you cut the veggies you do pick into similar sizes for even cooking. I had red bell peppers, brussle sprouts, broccoli and garlic cloves on hand. Mix and match your own combo and use up those veggies you have in you fridge!

Ingredients:
1 pound of various veggies
2-3 tablespoons of olive oil
generous pinch of kosher salt
fresh cracked pepper

preheat your oven to 375 degrees.

In a baking pan coat veggies with 2- tablespoons of olive oil. Place in the oven and roast for 30 mins. Halfway through make sure to stir them so they don't burn. When finished and cooked through season with salt and pepper.

There you have it Folks! Simple and easy.

Baking Bread In A Dutch Oven

Baking bread is a job that is considered a labor of love in my book. I love to make various types of bread and breads that are baked in a dutch oven come out with a soft crumb and a crisp crust that crackles when you take it out of the oven. For this particular photo tutorial I used a basic recipe that consists of flour, salt, water and yeast. I added 6 cloves of garlic sliced and a large sprig of rosemary chopped.

I'll show you some different bread recipes from beginning to end in the near future, so keep a look out for them soon.

Take your dutch oven and place on the bottom rack and preheat for about 20 mins. On a piece of parchment paper, punch down and round out your dough after the initial rise. Cover with a cloth and allow to rest for half and hour.

When the dutch oven in heated place the dough parchment paper and all into the dutch oven, cover immediately and place into the oven and bake covered for 15 mins.

Remove the lid and lower the temperature of the oven to 450 degrees and bake for 15 mins longer.

When finished remove from dutch oven immediately and place on a cooling rack. Allow to cool for at least 1 hour.

Here it is, a loaf that has a crispy exterior and a soft crumb. Hope you try it soon!

Chicken Lettuce Wraps

As I mentioned in my recipe for shrimp lettuce wraps, I am the queen of them. They are fast and easy to make and they taste yummy. You can serve these for and appetizer or a main course.

Ingredients:
1 pound of ground chicken or turkey, you can also use boneless skinless chicken breast diced up.
1 tablespoon of canola oil
4 cloves of garlic minced
2 scallions cut on a bias
on serrano pepper diced 
1 teaspoon of fish sauce
1/2 cup sweet chili sauce
1 tablespoon of siracha
1 tablespoon of brown sugar
2 tablespoons of rice vinegar

 Brown chicken on med/high heat with a tablespoon of canola oil.

Grate 4 cloves of garlic into the pan with the chicken.

Add hot pepper.

Then the fish sauce.

Chili Sauce along with the sugar.

And the Siracha

Finally stir in the scallions at the very end.

There you have it. I like to serve it with cilantro and shaved red onion as well.

Provecho!

Mel's Meatloaf

My Husband is a huge fan of meatloaf, we don't eat it that often but when we do its a night where we really don't talk during dinner if you catch my drift.  There is something to be said about a loaf of meat that is seasoned to perfection and topped with a tangy ketchup based glaze, its almost as if you are having a party in your mouth.

Now this isn't your Momma's meatloaf. No sir, this is MEL'S meatloaf. Its tender and moist and full of flavor. If you happen to have some leftover you can make a meatloaf sandwich that will make you smile when you take a bite into it. So go on ahead and make meatloaf!

Ingredients:
1 pound ground beef
2 slices of thick cut bacon chopped very small 
1 slice of bread crumbled (I use multigrain)
1/4 red bell pepper minced
1/4 spanish onion minced
3 cloves garlic minced
1/4 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon pepper

glaze:
1/2 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1/4 cup of brown sugar
1 tablespoon Saracha or a few dashes of your favorite hot sauce


Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.

 Mix all ingredients for the glaze and set aside. 

 Mix all the ingredients for the meatloaf and allow to sit for 20-30 mins.

Mold beef mixture in a baking dish or in a loaf pan, then top with ketchup glaze.

Bake for 45 mins. to an hour until cooked through.

Serve it with your favorite side and ENJOY!