Rosh Hashanah is coming –
it’s hard to believe, I know – and I wish you a happy and healthy year, filled
with worthwhile experiences, and good news! We all have a lot on our plates
right now, so one way I plan to make Yom Tov easier is to cook and freeze ahead.
Here are a few tips about freezing:
1) If the dish has
a sauce, it is most likely freezable. The exception would be crunchy
ingredients; you can freeze them, but the freezing process will decrease the crunch.
2) Label each dish
that you freeze very clearly, including where you are in the cooking
process. If you have frozen it raw, that has to be on the label. (You
can very successfully prep a bunch of dishes and freeze them raw, to be
finished right before Yom Tov.)
3) Ziploc freezer
bags work very well. I like to double-wrap in freezer bags and squeeze out as
much air as you can. (Air, the culprit in freezer burn, is not your friend.)
4) When reheating
or cooking frozen foods, make sure they are completely
defrosted. Defrosting in the refrigerator takes a little more time but
gives you more control over the temperature. Fish freezes beautifully raw.
You can marinate it, portion it, and then freeze, cooking it right before the
meal.
5) My favorite “pro-tip
quip” for freezing comes from the talented and amazing Mimi Ankri, of Mimi
Boutique: “Tired of boiling water every time you make pasta? Boil a few gallons
at the start of the week and freeze it for later….”
*
* *
Slow-Cooked Corned Beef Brisket
You can buy a corned beef already marinated, but why not “corn”
your own? The word corn comes from the German kurnam, meaning a small seed. It referred to the large grains of rock
salt used in the preservation process. So, in fact, there is no corn at all in corned
beef!
6 c. water
2 c. apple juice
2 T. real maple syrup
1 tsp. sea salt
1 tsp. yellow mustard seeds
1/2 tsp. black peppercorns
(whole)
1 tsp. caraway seeds
1/2 tsp. allspice berries
4 bay leaves
Kosher salt
1 quart ice cubes
4 pounds beef brisket
1 T. olive oil
2 medium yellow onions, halved
2 T. miso paste
4 garlic cloves
3 c. sliced cabbage
2 T. chopped fresh dill
Pour water and apple juice into
a large pot and bring to a boil. Add maple syrup, mustard seeds, peppercorns,
sea salt, 1/2 tsp. of the caraway seeds, allspice berries, bay leaves, and 1/2
cup kosher salt. Boil for 3 minutes, then remove from the heat. (The boiling
allows the flavors to mix quicker.) Add ice and wait for the brine to cool to
room temperature.
Place brisket in a large container
and cover it fully with the brine. (If you have an extra-large sealable plastic
bag, this will work even better. Put the brine and brisket in, squeeze out all
the air, seal, and let sit.) Cover with a lid or plastic wrap and store in
the refrigerator for 1 week.
After a week, remove brisket
from the brine and strain the brine, saving the spices and bay leaves to be
used in the cooking. Discard the liquid. Set the brisket aside.
Preheat a large slow cooker on
low setting for at least 20 minutes. In large skillet, heat olive oil over
medium-high heat. Add onions and sauté for 15 minutes, turning once in a while
until well browned.
Place the brisket in the slow
cooker. (I like to use a slow cooker bag to aid in cleanup.) Add sautéed
onions, miso, garlic, and strained spices and bay leaves. Add enough
room-temperature water to cover the brisket by 2 inches. Cover with the lid and
cook on low setting for 8 to 10 hours, until the brisket is tender. (A paring
knife should plunge into the meat with little resistance.) Skim off any fat
that has risen to the surface.
Place a large skillet over
medium-high heat and add remaining 1 T. of olive oil. Add cabbage, remaining
1/2 tsp. caraway seeds, and 1/2 tsp. salt. Stir to combine, then let the
cabbage char for 2 minutes to develop some color. Toss the cabbage and cook for
another 2 minutes. Transfer mixture to a large platter.
Remove the brisket from the
slow cooker. Let cool completely, then slice. Cooling makes slicing so much
easier. In fact, if you can refrigerate the meat for a couple of
hours, it’ll be even easier. After meat is sliced, put the juices back in and
freeze. Garnish with the fresh dill when serving.
Pomegranate Chicken
2 lbs. chicken on the bone
1 red onion diced
2 T. olive oil
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/2 c. sweet chili sauce
1/3 c. pomegranate juice
1/2 T. soy sauce
1/2 c. red wine
1 lime, juiced
1/4 c. brown sugar
3 garlic
cloves, minced or
pressed
Pomegranate arils
Parsley, chopped
Preheat
oven to 375° F. Mix together chili sauce, pomegranate juice, soy sauce,
wine, lime juice, brown sugar, and garlic in a large bowl and set aside.
Heat a
large oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat and add olive oil. Season chicken
with salt and pepper, then place in the skillet and sear on each side until
deeply golden and brown, about 2 minutes per side. Remove chicken and place on
a plate, turning heat in the skillet down to medium-low. Add onions and sauté until
translucent. Add pomegranate juice mixture and whisk, allowing the sauce
to bubble and simmer for 5 minutes, until reduced and sauce thickens.
Place
chicken back in the skillet and turn and toss to coat. Bake loosely covered for
40 minutes, basting after 20 minutes. Remove cover and bake for an
additional 10 minutes. Serve garnished with chopped parsley and pomegranate
arils.
I like
freezing this, and other dishes, in individual portions, so when I defrost, I can
take out just what I need. You can also prepare this dish completely except for
the baking and freeze raw. Then defrost in your refrigerator and bake right
before Yom Tov.
Mashed Potatoes
Yes, mashed potatoes are freezable! You can
double or triple this recipe; freeze in small portions and pull out as much as
you need at a time. By the way, I’ve been asked if Earth Balance is worth it?
It is a little pricey, but the resounding answer I’ve heard from others (and
seen myself) is yes. It’s a good product, and I can easily read all of the
ingredients – I mean, lecithin is hard to read, but it’s from sunflowers. (This
recipe was adapted from TheKitchn.com.)
5 lbs.
2 tsp. kosher salt, divided
1/2 c. Earth Balance vegan
butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
Freshly ground black pepper
2 T. finely chopped chives
Peel potatoes
and cut into large chunks. Place in a large pot, and fill with water to 1 inch over
potatoes. Add 1 tsp. salt. Cover, place over medium-high heat, and bring to a
boil. Uncover and reduce the heat to a simmer. (Uncovering the pot keeps the water
from spilling over.) Simmer until the potatoes are tender and a paring knife
slides easily through the center, 20 to 25 minutes.
Reserve 3 cups of cooking liquid in a heat-safe measuring cup.
Drain the rest of the potatoes in a colander. Place vegan butter, garlic,
and remaining 1 tsp. salt in the now-empty pot. The heat from the pot and the
still-warm burner should be enough to melt the butter. If needed, turn the heat
to low, melt the butter, and then remove pan from the heat.
Return potatoes to the pot and mash, or rice them directly in the
pot. Once the potatoes are mostly mashed, add 1 1/2 to 2 cups of the reserved
cooking liquid and mash to desired consistency. Add extra liquid if necessary.
(Do not add all 3 cups at first, because you might not need it; it's much
harder to get the extra liquid out than to slowly put it in.) Taste and season
with salt and pepper as needed. Garnish with chives and more vegan butter just
before serving.
Oven Peanut Chews
This
recipe, shared by Batsheva Zaslow, was adapted from Bakes and Steaks. It
freezes beautifully, is a snap to make, and my kids went gaga over the results.
With the main ingredients rice and peanut butter, it leans towards the good-for-you
side. You can change the sugar amounts, use different kinds of sugar (maple
syrup) and cereals, add nuts, use a peanut-free nut butter – you get the
idea. The original recipe called for corn syrup; I substituted honey with
great results.
1 c. peanut butter
1 c. sugar
1 c. honey
5 c. Rice Krispies
Cooking spray
Topping
12-oz. bag chocolate chips
1/2 c. peanut butter (optional:
Reserve 1 T. for drizzling)
Preheat oven to
350° F. Put 1 cup peanut butter, sugar, and honey in a 9x13-inch parchment
paper-lined pan. Stir to mix. Place in the oven for 5 minutes to melt. Or melt
in a microwave (in a microwave-safe container) for 30 seconds. Stir. If not
fully melted, heat for another 30 seconds. Stir again and add the Rice
Krispies. Stir until combined. Spray a spatula with cooking spray and press the
mixture evenly into pan. Let cool.
Microwave the rest
of the peanut butter with the chocolate chips. Heat for 30 seconds at a time,
and stir until melted. If you do not have a microwave, melt the chocolate chips
then add the peanut butter to it. Pour mixture evenly over the Rice Krispie
mixture. Use your sprayed spatula to evenly coat the chews. Let set in the
refrigerator, then cut. Freeze in sealed Ziploc bags. (To make these
fancier, melt 1 tablespoon of peanut butter in microwave for 10 second
intervals until melted, and swirl onto the top of the chocolate layer before refrigerating.)
