Homemade Gefilte Fish

Passover has been wonderful so far. The greatest accomplishment of the Seder was the homemade gefilte fish. My mother and I had a lot of fun preparing this recipe. We also learned a lot in the process. We were worried if the fish would smell bad (it did not), if we would have to deal with fish heads (we did!), and how difficult the process would be. It took under 45 minutes of active preparation. Mothers, aunts, and grandmothers preparing gifilte fish for days is part of Jewish legends. I've heard stories about ladies who kept the fish in the bathtub to make sure that it was fresh! With the help of a fish counter and food processor, ours did not take the same amount of time-- but it was fantastic. Try it yourself and serve with horseradish. Don't be scared, it was fun. I will definitely be doing it again next year.

Sweet Style Gefilte Fish (Polish Style) (Adapted from Kosher Express)

What You Need (Broth and Gefilte Fish)

- Fish Bones from fish store
- 3 Carrots
- 2 celery ribs
- 3 small onions
- 3 teaspoons salt
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1 pound carp, ground
- 1/2 pound whitefish, ground
- 1/2 pound pike, ground
- 2 eggs
- l medium minced onion
- l large minced carrot
- l stalk minced celery
- 1/3 cup matzo meal, about
- 2 1/2 tsp. salt
- 3/4 tsp. black pepper
- 3/4 cup sugar (I didn't use this much this time, but next time I will)

What You Do

1. Start with making the fish stock by covering the fish bones, carrots, celery, and onions with water.

2. Add about 1/3 cup sugar and 3 teaspoons salt into the water.

3. Bring to a boil and then simmer while you prepare the remainder of the gefilte fish.

4. Ground the fish if it is not ground. The fish counter prepared the fish (we actually had a pound of each fish) but they would not grind it for us. Also, I had to take off some of the remaining skin. I then cut the fish up and used the food processor to grind the fish. Recipes call for adding water during this process to make sure that the fish remains the right consistency- I didn't need to.

5. Mince the carrots, onion, and celery.

6. Mix together the ground fish and vegetables.
7. Add the eggs, matzoh meal, salt, pepper, sugar (don't be scared, use it all!).

8. Chill, for easier handling, then shape into balls, using wet hands (re-dip as necessary) to form balls.

9. Add fish balls to the fish stock (with all the goods in the stock-- including the fish bones and heads!) and simmer covered for 2 hours.

10. Chill well.

11. Enjoy with boiled carrots and horseradish.
This is me looking "smug" (as my mother said) with a great sense of accomplishment-- homemade gefilte fish!

Oven Braised Barbecued Brisket

Although I'm cutting meat out of my daily life, I decided that I do not want to extend that practice to holiday celebrations. There is something very special about brisket on Passover. I am not ready to let go of that tradition (at least not yet). Here is the recipe my mother and I will be using this year for our Passover Seder on the first night.

Oven Braised Barbecued Brisket (from Gourmet Today)

What You Need
- 1 (4 pound) beef brisket, preferably second cut
- 1 tablespoon salt
- ¾ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons veggie oil
- 1 large onion (halved lengthwise and thinly sliced lengthwise)
- 1 cup beef stock (reduced sodium)
- 1 cup tomato sauce
- 1/3 cup cider vinegar
- 1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- Parchment paper

What You Do
1. Put a rack in middle of oven and preheat oven to 325.
2. Pat brisket dry and rub salt and pepper all over it.
3. Heat oil in 12 inch heavy skillet over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking.
4. Add brisket and cook, turning once, until browned on both sides, about 10 minutes.
5. Transfer brisket to a 13-by-9 inch baking dish.
6. Add onion to skillet and cook over moderate heat, stirring frequently, until browned 7 to 8 minutes.
7. Add stock and deglaze skillet by boiling, scraping up browned bits for 1 minute.
8. Stir in remaining ingredients and bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally.
9. Pour sauce over brisket.
10. Cover meat with a sheet of parchment and cover pan tightly with foil.
11. Braise in oven turning meat once, until fork tender 3-3.5 hours.
12. Transfer brisket to a cutting board and slice across the grain.
13. Skim off and discard fat from surface of sauce. Serve sauce spooned over meat.

Passover Planning

I'm getting very excited for Passover (beginning Monday night this year). My mother and I are going to be taking a very big step this year and making our own Gefilte Fish. This will be the first time that we do not use a frozen loaf.

Our menu is as follows:
- Chopped Liver, Hummus, and Matzah
- 2 varieties of Charoset
- Chicken Soup with Matzah Balls
- Homemade Gefilte Fish
- Spring Salad with Red Wine Vinaigrette Dressing
- Veggie Stew with Dumplings
- Oven Braised Barbecued Brisket

Passover this year is going to be a great start for spring. After returning from the holiday, I am looking forward to getting lots of different varieties of seeds going and making plans for some container gardening!

Easiest Soup Ever

It was a beautiful day in DC. I went to the farmers' market today and picked up some leeks and potatoes. I made the easiest soup (but still yummy) from Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything Vegetarian.

I am in the process of re-evaluating my diet and beginning the spring with a fresh start. I'm reducing my consumption of meat and eliminating high fructose corn syrup from my diet. I'll post more about my thoughts on the new changes in the coming weeks. For now, here is the soup recipe:

Potato and Leek Soup

What You Need
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 3 leeks
- 3 medium potatoes
- 4 cups water
- Salt and pepper to taste


What You Do
1. Peel the potatoes and cut into cubes.
2. Wash the leeks very well and slice the whites and the light green parts into thin slices.
3. Heat butter.
4. Saute the leeks and potatoes in butter for 2-3 minutes.
5. Add water and cook until potatoes are very tender, about 20 minutes.
6. Salt and pepper to taste.

Enjoy!

Also, I am out of town the next week, but when I get back I am going to start planting seeds for the season. Stay tuned for news on what I'm going to be planting and (hopefully) harvesting in 2010!