Add some flash to your Shabbat: Recipes

My friends at Hebrew University my junior year abroad anointed me "the one who can cook." I mastered the art of making Shabbat dinner on the stovetop and can still manage to come up with something to serve on short notice. So here are my recommendations for a nice and easy meal this Shabbat.

Zoooh!chini

Cut the zucchini any way you like it. Chop a LOT of fresh garlic (I am partial to the Christoper Farms pre-peeled garlics from Costco. You can never have too much garlic). Stirfry the garlic in a little bit of olive oil. Add the zucchini. Sprinkle on some chicken soup mix/consomme. When it is all done (translucent) add a small handful of chopped spearmint. Surprise!!

Pure-ree

If you think that mashed potatoes are the be-all end all, but have too many calories/carbs, etc., do this. Boil up a head of cauliflower and 2 small potatoes. Or some parsnips and turnips. Or sweet potatoes, yams and carrots. Or even (G-d forfend) rutabaga. All till very very soft. If you want to be gutsy and more nutritiously sound, leave the skins on some of the vegetables. Boil up some garlic (see above) with it. Put it in the food processor (or hand mash) with some (you guessed it) chicken soup mix/consomme. Serve it and don't tell anyone what it is, they'll be pleasantly surprised.

Moroccan Tomato Chicken

Cut up some chicken breasts into biggish chunks. Put into a shallow baking dish (best for lazies like me would be one to put directly from the oven onto the table). Cover with a can of whole peeled tomatoes and juice (if you are making lots of breasts, use 2 cans of tomatoes). Pop the tomatoes with your hands and tear them into 2-3 pieces. Stir in a bunch of honey and some cumin (at least half a teaspoon, preferrably ground). Bake in the oven at a temperature that won't make your kitchen feel like a steam bath but will get it cooked in due time (let's say 375 for 45 minutes?). If you are in a HUGE hurry, do this on the stovetop and boil the whole mixture in a saucepan, but be careful not to overcook the chicken.

Savta Jeni's Schnitzel

Pound the heck out of some breasts of chicken, or buy them presliced. Coat them in a mixture of breadcrumbs (I'm still using the kosher for passover variety) with some cinnamon and cumin sprinkled in. Bathe them in egg and coat them again in breadcrumbs. Fry or cook in a non-stick frying pan with Pam. Meanwhile, Savta Jeni is not even my relative.

Not Your Typical Green Side Salad

Chop cucumbers (I like the persian kind or the hothouse kind, thin skinned). Chop scallions. Chop granny smith apples. Dice up some avocado. Squeeze a lime over the top and add some salt.

Dessert

Buy some grapes, strawberries and watermelon. And parve cookies or a Mrs. Greene's Babka. Sorry, I don't bake.

Shabbat Shalom!