Food Friday - Caveman Shabbat Edition

Son #1 returned from nine months in Israel, earlier this week. One of our family practices is that a returning child gets to choose both the guest list and the menu for their first Friday night back home. Son #1 took this responsibility seriously. Several emails went back and forth about the guest list.

The menu needed more direct communication. His choice was flanken ribs cooked in barbecue sauce. I don't know what flanken is called in English, but these are big fat beef bones with a bit of meat and fat attached. After we eat the flanken ribs our table looks like a family of cavemen has just finished a meal.

Since Son #1 also invited dear friends who are vegetarians, I had to make sure that they would not be revolted by the stacks of chewed bones that would be part of our meal. Our friends assured us that they would not be offended by our meat feast.

Our butcher had only a small amount of ribs on hand yesterday, so I have added meatballs to the meal. Son #1 and I made both the ribs and the meatballs this morning. he sampled the meatballs when they were done, and proclaimed them delicious. Despite how tempting the ribs looked, he decided not to nibble one before tonight.

I love my circa 1940's roasting pan. It makes me laugh each time I use it.

Son #1 has been describing a delicious pre-packaged eggplant in mayo that he had enjoyed while in Israel. My friend Alma Lou who lives in Jordan, sent me some recipes she thought I might enjoy. Today's eggplant was inspired both by Alma Lou's eggplant and the one my son had adored. I decided to stick the eggplant on a carving fork and cook it over the gas flame until the skin blistered. My eggplant was fat and needed a bit more cooking in the microwave. A minute or two in the food processor with mayo and spices and a bit of lemon. I don't know if it tastes either like Alma Lou's eggplant or like the one that Son #1 loved, but it does taste really good.

Kale roasted with onions in olive oil and sea salt.

Our meal will be rounded out with a salad, roasted crispy kale, couscous and blueberry pomegranate sorbet.

Comments

Connecting with the past

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