Hamentashen

Without an oven this year, I thought homemade Hamentashen would NOT happen.  Luckily I have LOTS of good friends.  My friend, Jenny, didn't know how to make them, and offered her oven, if I taught her how to make them.

I have wonderful memories of making them as a child, and then as a young married woman and then as a woman.  Of course, I would love to teach someone.  When I student taught in New Salem, MA, I taught an entire class of fourth graders.    They had just read "The Night Journey."  A little nervous too, because I am a slob when I bake.  And I was going to have to let that cover be blown at Jenny's house. 

Yesterday I made the dough in the food processor, in my make shift kitchen in the dining room, and then let the dough rest overnight.  I then carted over some of the supplies we would need (filling, such as chocolate chips, peanut butter, raspberry, poppy seed and apricot), extra flour and some other items.  And of course the recipe.

Jenny was ready for me!  One trick that I taught her was that I make smaller round circles, instead of larger ones.  Because you have to have more than ONE when complete, and I would rather offer three small ones to my kids, and look generous, instead of one large one.  Also taught her that you can flip over a glass and use the rim as the cookie cutter!

We made a few ourselves, and then invited three girls and a boy to help us out.  I was very impressed at how well the kids did with the actual filling and shaping and rolling.  Even more impressed that no one was whining, and was impressed by the unique flavor palate (like putting chocolate chips into the raspberry).  And hearing how one family puts in lemon filling (must try that next year), and how one wanted butterscotch chips for next time or chocolate mint chips (girl scout thin mint meets hamentashen sounds delicious).

Because I made a double recipe, there were tons to take home.  And as Naomi reminded me, we can't eat them all before Purim.

And I can't wait to do another Hamentashen making festival next year!

Hamentashen

-Makes a ton!  Make the dough the night before, and let it rest in the fridge.

3 eggs

1 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup vegetable oil

2 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract

1/2 cup orange juice

5 ½ cups all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 cup fruit preserves, any flavor

Preheat oven to 350˚. Grease cookie sheets.

In a large bowl, beat the eggs and sugar until light and fluffy. Stir in the oil, vanilla and orange juice. Combine the flour and baking powder, stir into the batter to form a stiff dough. If the dough is not stiff enough to roll out, stir in more flour. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough out to 1/4 inch thickness. Cut into circles using a cookie cutter or the rim of a drinking glass. Place cookies 2 inches apart onto the prepared cookie sheets. Spoon about 1 teaspoon of filling into the center of each one. Pinch the edges to make 3 corners.

Bake for 15 minutes in the preheated oven (watch out, and make sure you know your oven well), or until lightly browned. Allow cookies to cool for 1 minute on the cookie sheet before removing to wire racks to cool completely.

 Photos taken by Cheryl Stober!

This House Has No Kitchen - But I Still Cook Nightly

So, as you know our house is missing half of it.  We have finally started the BIG construction project that we have been talking about for 13 years.  So right now we have no kitchen, no half bath on the first floor and no third bedroom (Naomi's).  We also have a blue tarp flapping in the New England wind!

And as you know, I love to cook, and my family loves to eat.  So we have a kitchen sink in the living room, with a shelving unit of food (cereal, soups, spices, etc) and our dining room has our fridge, electric skillet, microwave, coffee machine, toaster, food processor, waffle maker and bread machine.  We do have a hot plate, but I haven't used it.

So, how are we managing???  Well, thank goodness for the Morningstar Crumbles.  I have used it as taco meat and Sloppy Joe filling in the electric skillet.  I have made a broccoli tofu dish.  I have made waffles (one of my favorites).  Tonight, I made Plum Good Chicken Thighs.  They were so good that Naomi had THREE helpings of chicken.  I have been using the frozen steamers for vegetables (not our favorites, but we must have veggies), and tonight I made microwave rice from a bag (again, not our favorite, but it was easy).

Here is the recipe for Plum Good Chicken Thighs

2 pounds skinless boneless chicken thighs
Chinese five spice powder
salt
pepper
3 scallions
1 T. olive oil
1/2 c. veggie broth
1/2 c. plum jam
2 T balsamic vinegar

On a plate, season the thighs with salt, pepper and the Chinese powder.  Take the green part of the scallion, and chop 2 T, and put in a separate bowl for later.

Cut the remaining scallions into 1 inch pieces, and save for later.

In skillet, heat oil on medium high, until hot.  Add thighs.  Cook approximately five minutes on each side, and make sure that there is no pink.  Put on plate, and cover with foil.

In skillet, on medium, with drippings, cook the 1 inch pieces of scallions for 5 minutes.  Stir in broth, jam and vinegar.  Heat until boiling.  Reduce to medium and cook for 4 minutes, and then place thighs into skillet and turn to coat with sauce.

When serving, sprinkle with the small scallions.

My Roles

Who am I?

What do I do?

What do I want to do?

Well, I tried to answer this recently, and came up with lots of questions.

Mom
Wife
Daughter
Daughter in law
Granddaughter
Granddaughter in law
Sister
Aunt
Friend
Neighbor
Client Service Associate
Teacher
Care giver
CFO of the Weitzman House
Cleaner upper
Chef at the Weitzman House
Picker Outer of Clothes
Grocery shopper
Social Director for those under 18
Social Director for those OVER 18
Errand organizer
Sweet Heart
Lover
Community Member (neighborhood, Village, PTO, synagogue, state, US)
American
Jewish
Woman
Chief Homework overseer


What do I want to be?

Wife and Mother
Traveler
World Learner
Lifelong learner
Baker
Friend

What do I want to do when I grow up?

Day Five of Construction

So, the week is over.  The back mudroom is gone.  Good thing, since there was old termite damage!  We knew it was old and needed to be rebuilt.  The foundation piers are set.  There is now a dumpster and a porta potty in the backyard (home prices around us are plummeting).  The framing will start on Monday.  There will be a large load of lumber coming our way on Monday.  For the next THREE weeks there will be alot of hammering during the days.  Once that has started, we will be able to see progress.

Here is a photo from this morning.

Seems so strange to see that as the back of the house!

The Old Kitchen

So the first day of construction (prep) was yesterday.  It was NOT smooth.  But I don't want to talk about that  . . . . today.  I want to talk about the ol' blue kitchen.  I hated it.  When we bought the house, in 1998, it was okay.  Nothing terrific.  The flow was bad.  But the kitchen treated us well.  Adam and I enjoyed many homemade meals from the kitchen.  I remember when Mark was born . . . . and how he was in the basket, and then the bouncy seat, watching us eat at the kitchen table.  I remember feeding him rice cereal for the first time in the kitchen. 

I also remember when Naomi was born . . . and was in the same basket and bouncy seat. . . . and high chair.  When we had the high chair, things were REALLY crowded in the kitchen.  With the four of us, it is still crowded, since it is small.

When I came home from work last night, the kitchen was boarded up.  No more entry for any of us.  A wall separates us . . . . and it is very strange coming home, and not walking into the kitchen.  It was my central control area - food prep, phone messages, homework, meal time, calendar and many other things.  And now we are spread out.  The living room and dining room all have more "stuff."

I look forward to 15 weeks and 4 days when I can step inside my brand new kitchen.

The Skinny Beet

So, back in October, I saw a GROUPON, that I thought would be fun.  A cooking demo for the family.  Snatched it up, booked a date in January and waited, and waited and waited.  Last year at this time we had MOUNTAINS of snow, and I was desperate for activities to do with the kids. 

My kids love food.  Both kids have eclectic tastes.  We remind Mark often that when he was 18 months old, we took him to LUCA in Denver, where Aunt Rebecca was working.  Mark demolished the white bean pate with truffles.  I mean DEMOLISHED IT.  I don't think the rest of us had more than a taste.  Last year he tried Aunt Rebecca's octopus, and loved it.  The kid likes food.  The kid DOESN'T like chicken nuggets or Kraft mac and cheese.

Tonight he was a bit skeptical at first of the menu.  But was willing to give it a try.


Chef Richard made this AMAZING white bean hummus with homemade pita.

Then Chef Richard started on amazing ratatouille.

Then Chef Katie made homemade pasta.  She put a well of flour on the kitchen table, broke three eggs into the middle, and put some salt and olive oil.  And then the kids watched, as this pile of a mess turned into PASTA!

Then she kneaded it, and kneaded it.

Then the kids had to do some work of separating the pasta.

And then the final course - dessert.  She made a free form pear tart.

I don't think the kids will forget this meal!  And I was amazed that we all fit IN the kitchen while this was happening.

Thanks Chef Katie and Chef Richard!

Kitchen Redesign

So, Adam and I both had this week off. . . . and my parents were gracious enough to watch the kids for part of the time, so we could start shopping for the new kitchen and Naomi's room.  I have been really excited about this project for 14 years. . . . . and I have been waiting and wishing.  On a bonus note, we are moving the door of the main floor bathroom from the kitchen to our living room (which we use as a family room).

We meet Victoria at our first stop Splash. . . . and I have to tell you that Victoria has patience!!!!  First she arranged with each vendor ahead of time, our style and wants, and our budget.  This was amazing.  We were very good with picking out a new bathroom toilet and sink; kitchen faucet and sink.  That part went quickly.

Side Note - Look up NUMI toilet. . . . on google.  We saw one of them at Splash.

Off to Wolfer's Lighting, and this is where I started to think . . . I am in over my head. . . lights and lights and more lights.  Sooo many decisions.  We made some good head way.  Not all decisions have been made.  I learned ALOT about lighting though!

Then off to Moynihan Doors and Windows.  I had no idea how many choices I had for interior and exterior doors.  Luckily we only need one of each . . . . . and new windows. . . for the whole house.  We made decisions about the doors, and left the knobs for later (another amazing array of choices).

On Friday, we started off with cabinets.  I have to say things went well. . . . until Adam said he likes knobs and I said I like pulls. . . . we have a bit of work to do on that front!  Who knew.  I really liked the woman from the cabinet store.  Again, she knew our style and budget, thanks to Victoria.

Then, off for bathroom floor tile.  The decision for bathroom floor was super easy.  We picked out the same tile as our upstairs bathroom.  The backsplash for the kitchen was a bit more daunting. . . . I really like the glass tiles, but the salesperson said it could be too over powering.  We narrowed the backsplash down to two choices.

Then  . . .. APPLIANCES  . . . YALE APPLIANCE, which is an amazing store, with huge amounts of stuff!!!!  Google it!

Of course, our price range narrows down the choices. . . . . dishwasher and fridge - easy.  Double oven . . .well we have it down to two. . . . and now, this is where I start falling apart.

Right now our stove is against the wall, and we have a simple range hood.  Well, in the new kitchen our cooktop is over the "island" and Adam and I are not liking the prices of the island hoods or the idea of the hood in the way.  But neither of us are sold on downdrafts for the ventilation either.  Sooo, we emailed Dave, the architect, and asked what the options are. . . can we move the sink to the island, and the cooktop to the window. . . . and make changes to the window.  I hate changing things, however (1) this is why we hired a team . . . .  and (2) construction hasn't started so it is okay.

Stay tuned! 

And thanks to Cory, Dave and Victoria of New England Design and Construction.

PS - made some blueberry muffins and chocolate chip mondelbret today, just to keep up with the baking!