Why do you make what you make?

jelibean

Thu, Nov 05 2009, 8:39 pm

I love to know what others are cooking up for Shabbos, and some of you really go all out, with so many dishes -- too bad we're all scattered about -- it would be fun to do a Shabbos meal house hop so we could all enjoy these menus offline!

I'm wondering why you select the menus you prepare. For those who make many dishes (I.e., 3 salads or more, a few mains, several sides, several desserts), do you do so because you love cooking, you grew up that way, or you feel obligated (I.e., keeping up with the Joneses)? As a BT who grew up without Shabbos, it took me awhile to get into the whole Shabbos cooking frenzy, and I've scaled back because of the stress it consistently created for me.

For those who make 'less', is it because you don't enjoy cooking, your family doesn't eat much, you can't afford to make so much, or some other reason?

Just curious about the psychology behind Shabbos menu planning and cooking.

louche

Thu, Nov 05 2009, 10:05 pm

why do you do the things you do/why do you do these things? Music

Because they're nutritious, easy (mostly), tasty (usually), fast (relatively), and inexpensive (for the most part); because I know them by heart and can do them on autopilot; because everyone likes them; because they're someone's favorite; because I have the ingredients; because I'm showing off; because I saw the recipe and it sounded nutritious, easy, tasty, fast, inexpensive and I had the ingredients; the list goes on and on.

Cooking is a chore, so anything I cook must be worth the effort. That does not mean it has to be fancy, expensive, impressive and blow the socks off the whole neighborhood. it means it has to be something I can make in sufficient quantity to see us through all of Shabbos and Sunday night, and if pareve, halfway into next week, AND ideally freeze well so it can be made in advance.

Oh--and NO PATCHKEREI. I hate patchkerei. If I wanted to be an artiste, I'd have majored in fine art.

mandksima

Thu, Nov 05 2009, 10:12 pm

louche wrote:

why do you do the things you do/why do you do these things? Music

Ditto.

But I AM an artist and I still don't like patchkerei! Except once in a while for a special reason (doughnuts for chanukah, hamentashen on Purim, etc.)

Nowadays, I cook quickly with super easy delicious recipes. Without guests, my menu is small and simple. With guests, I prepare much more in quantity of each item as well as variety. I'm always afraid they won't like things and their plates and tummies will be empty. I LOVE leftovers and I freeze a ton.

Seraph

Thu, Nov 05 2009, 10:56 pm

I make lots of courses because shabbos doesnt feel like shabbos unless its many courses. Because I don't make set traditional shabbos dishes (like weekly chicken soup, farfel, kugel, cholent, etc), what sets my meals apart from during the week meals is the many courses. Having just one course doesnt feel like shabbos to me.
I make lots of salads/dips because a) its a way to help get enough challah (2 kizeisim) in me to bentch. I don't like challah plain and otherwise wouldnt eat enough to bentch. b) its a cheap way to fill up people so I need to spend less money on the main dish.
What I serve varies from week to week and I make those things each week depending on:
Current prices
My mood
The weather
What I have in the house
Things I was given
Etc...

This week, for example, we're having swiss chard quiche because my mother showed up at the door with tons from her garden and this is a good way to get it used up. We're also having cole slaw left over from my friend's son's upsherin, because she dumped it on me as otherwise it would get thrown out.
Sometimes I make a cold shabbos because I can't bear the thought of hot food when its too cold.
This week, we're having a spread with raw garlic to help boost our immune systems because the weather here has turned wintry.

sunny90

Fri, Nov 06 2009, 3:27 am

Raisin wrote:

I make less courses because thats what my dh prefers! And me. Less washing up. I do sometimes serve lots of food -- but all at once.

Ditto Raisin! When its just us I just make fish (along with salads and spreads that we buy/I make) and chicken soup because for dh it's not shabbos without chicken soup. I usually don't make a main course because we're stuffed after the soup, but if we have guests besides for my SIL and BIL who I know also are full after the soup and don't need anymore food, I'll just throw a few pieces of chicken in the oven in case they do want and offer it as an option.
I do love making dessert though!

drumjj

Fri, Nov 06 2009, 3:28 am

if its me and my husband on friday night we have soup and chicken and potatoes bec its quick and easy and sometimes dont even manage that. I dont like cooking, dont like the mess and I find I dont get appreciated so why make too much effort. if I have guests then I add a fish and dessert course. on shab morning if its just my family we have one course and maybe ice cream for the kids with guests we also have a salad/fish course.

Mrs.K

Fri, Nov 06 2009, 3:50 am

When my Dad was a kid, they would keep the fish in the bathtub until shabbos and then kill it, and they'd go down to the chicken house to watch the man kill the chicken. Ever since then he would not touch any sort of fish or poultry, only meat. Mom, on the other hand, wasn't really a meat eater. This resulted in several different mains being served each shabbos. In all my years at home, there was never a shabbos without chicken, meat, etc. etc.

Now I usually do the same, and it's absolutely ridiculous, and I admit that. But it really doesn't feel like shabbos without it....though lately I've really been trying to tone it down due to lack of time and energy and an ever expanding waistline.

ozfest

Fri, Nov 06 2009, 4:03 am

I love cooking and creating original menus, my dh prefers a simple meat and potatoes meal...my compromise - the weeks when it's just us I make a straightforward soup, chicken and kugel meal - no fish, no salads, not even cholent. anything more and I'll be eating leftovers alone til the next shabbos...
on weeks when we have guests, I go all out - it's my only chance to try out new recipes and eat the foods that I love!

oodlesofnoodles

Fri, Nov 06 2009, 4:26 am

I also love cooking and making yummy food, but HATE the mess afterwards Smile

When we are having guests, I am afraid that people will leave my table hungry and I do my best to prevent that.
I can't tell you how many times (as a guest in someone's house) I leave after the meal and am completely starving, or else I fill up on challah and soda, which is not a good solution, because there is nothing there I want to eat. I want to do my best to make a lot of different kinds of food, including salads, fish, mains, sides, desserts- even though we have tons of leftovers Smile

My DH thinks I'm crazy for making so much food Smile

I guess I learned from my parents to have a big salad and to cook healthy- we never had greasy food and never had a meal without a big, fresh, green salad first
Seraph, how do you make the swiss chard quiche?

Raisin

Fri, Nov 06 2009, 4:40 am

I was just thinking about this. It's much much easier when you are cooking for 2 or 3 people you know very well to make a smaller meal (ie your family) Say you know everyone loves chicken and kugel. so you make chicken and kugel and everyone is happy. When its a large crowd you might worry that some people don't like chicken, don't like kugel, are vegetarians, etc so you make a few more dishes just in case.

Raisin

Fri, Nov 06 2009, 4:41 am

sunny90 wrote:

Raisin wrote:

I make less courses because thats what my dh prefers! And me. Less washing up. I do sometimes serve lots of food -- but all at once.

for me it's not shabbos without meat or chicken...I skip either the soup or fish course. if its just us I'll just make one course with meat, chicken, kugels, dips, salads, etc.

louche

Fri, Nov 06 2009, 6:29 am

So here's my fairly typical Shabbos when I'm neither showing off nor trying to get off easy by using only stuff that's already in the freezer:

Challah
Fruit cup, mostly fresh in summer, mostly dried or canned in winter, sometimes skipped if it's just family and I'm tired or lazy
Soup , except on Shabbos day in the summer, when it's too darn hot for soup
Chicken, very plain, sprinkled with everything in the spice rack or marinated with whatever condiment I want to use up, and baked in the oven
Cholent (sometimes) on Shabbos day, more likely if we have guests, sometimes instead of kugel, and depending on whether or not I remembered to soak the beans ahead of time
A variety of salads or cooked veggies, depending on when I last shopped for produce, what was on sale, how much time I had, how much space there is in the fridge, and whether or not I'm showing off
One kugel, usually; sometimes baked sweet potatoes instead
Dessert usually something like applesauce or a slice of cantaloupe if I have it and feel like serving it, or if guests brought something, otherwise skipped.
Cake, if a guest brought it, otherwise sometimes homemade cake, sometimes store-bought cookies, sometimes nothing, depending on whether I have it, whether I feel like serving it, and whether I'm dieting.
Tea, if anyone wants and I remember to offer, otherwise skipped

The menu I grew up with:

Challah
Chopped liver or gefilte fish (I don't like either one very much)
Chicken Soup with rice or noodles (I omit the starches b/c we have challah and kugel)
Chicken
One kugel
One salad and sometimes a cooked vegetable
Dessert, usually canned fruit in syrup or applesauce (I stopped buying fruit in syrup b/c who needs the sugar?)
Cake, sometimes homemade and sometimes bought
Tea --with sugar cubes!