Food Friday - Pre Passover Edition

Growing up, we called the time before Passover "Passover Starvation Week". My parents were attempting to clear out the pantry from all of the foods we couldn't eat on Passover. It really wasn't exactly starvation week, more, "Weird Eats" week. As we ran out of the foods we usually ate, meals were a bit out of the ordinary with new combinations being put together. Some were sucessful and other, less so. Some, much less so.

My culinary goal for this Shabbat was to use up as much flour as possible. Our guests are vegetarian, by that I mean the kosher version of that, fishatarians. I will be cooking tilapia in a bed of vegetables. These were the guests that had forgotten to show up the last time I had made noodles, so I decided to make noodles so they could have the home made version. I seem to associate noodle making with home made cheese making, so I made another batch of soft cheese.

Since I was on a flour using kick, I decided to make cream puffs for dessert. I made custard to fill them, more flour used in that . This is one case where having the right equipment really does make a difference. I have pastry bags and tips. By just poking the tip through the cream puff It was quick and easy to fill them with the custard. Had I any chocolate left, I would have frosted the cream puffs, but since we don't have any people will have to eat them unadorned.

People who are used to making Matza Muffins during Passover will find making cream puffs remarkably similar. Working with white flour, rather than matza meal makes for a much more refined puff. The cream puffs are really easy to make. I will teach my son how to make the Passover version so he can keep himself fed during the week.

When the time came to roll out the noodle dough I must have been struck by temporary madness. I decided to make tortellini. Yes, I cut all of the pasta into rounds. I used the lid of my spray starch for that. Of course I washed it first! Yes, with soap.

It took a while to get a rhythm going, But eventually I did. Yes, it is an obsessive meal.The pasta is all boiled. My wrists hurt but it had better be good.

The fish was  easy.

Our guest is bringing the vegetable dish.