Brisket, April 25, 2016

Since the kids are moving away at the end of the week, I expect most of our dinners will be with them---and y'all should have seen Pie devour the fruit kugel I made last night! We weren't sure the kids, who both tend to like very basic food, would like last night's dinner, which was brisket, fruit kugel, tzimmes, and a romaine salad. Jeannene was very careful, when asked what those dark things in with the carrots were, to avoid the word "prune," but she wasn't being quite accurate when she told Bubbles they were a kind of date. I supplied, "Plums! They're a kind of plum!" I didn't notice whether or not she ate them. She said her favorite thing was the meat, but Pie said he really liked "the sweet noodles," and proceeded to go back for two more giant helpings. It wasn't the best kugel I've ever had, but I liked it pretty well, myself. I am not a big fan of sweet cooked carrots, but this version was better than any other I've had. They were a bit too tart for Jeannene and Pie, who are the big sweet carrot people of the family. I like my regular brisket recipe better, but this was also quite good and had the added bonus of not requiring my presence in the house during the long cook time.

Slow Cooker Brisket

1 onion, sliced

3 cloves garlic, smashed

3-4 lb. brisket, excess fat trimmed

Salt & pepper

32 oz. beef broth

Place onions and garlic in slow cooker. Season brisket with salt and pepper. Place atop onions, fat-side up. Add broth. Cover and cook on high 6-7 hours, until tender. Serves 4-6.

Fruit Kugel

8 oz. egg noodles, cooked and drained

2 tbsp. butter, melted (this can be omitted)

2 eggs, beaten

A small handful of raisins (I like golden raisins for this dish)

7 oz. cinnamon applesauce (cinnamon optional, but delicious)

7 oz. crushed pineapple

1 jar apricot preserves

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Toss noodles with butter. Mix eggs with fruit. Stir gently into noodles. Turn noodles into a greased 8x8 baking dish. Spread the preserves over the top (it helps to microwave them for about 30 seconds before spreading). Bake about 45 minutes. Serves 4-6

Carrot Tzimmes

1 1/2 c. tangerine juice (or use o.j., if you like---I had tangerine on hand)

1 lb. sliced carrots

1/2 c. prunes

3 tbsp. honey

Heat juice on medium heat and add carrots. Cover and cook 1/2 hour. Add prunes and cook, covered,  another half hour. Stir in honey just before serving. Serves 4-6.