Low Budget Shabbos Meal with guests

katb

Thu, Sep 24 2009, 6:11 am

Raisin wrote:

Also, instead of cholent make a pureed veg soup (carrot and coriander or carrot and orange soup is nice and economical) which usually survives well on the blech, I find.

Raisin, do you leave this overnight directly on the blech? I have never tried this but always figured it would just burn

Raisin

Thu, Sep 24 2009, 6:12 am

katb wrote:

Raisin wrote:

Also, instead of cholent make a pureed veg soup (carrot and coriander or carrot and orange soup is nice and economical) which usually survives well on the blech, I find.

Raisin, do you leave this overnight directly on the blech? I have never tried this but always figured it would just burn

I think I only tried it in the slow cooker, but a blech might work. it darkens a bit.

Raisin

Thu, Sep 24 2009, 9:46 am

katb wrote:

Sorry to bang on about this, could you give me the reciope for making it in the slow cooker? Do you make it first and then leave it on to heat or actually cook it in there?

SORRY FOR HIJACKING THREAD, HIJACK OVER!!

make it first, (any pureed soup should work) then put in slow cooker to keep warm.

Tamiri

Thu, Sep 24 2009, 11:11 am

Cheap salads (based on prices in Israel):
cucumber (equal parts vinegar, sugar plus salt pepper and dill to taste)
Cabbage with lemon juice, olive oil and salt. You can throw in scallions and a red pepper for color
Root slaw: raddish, kholrabi, carrot shredded with a vinaigrette dressing
Tomatoes cut up with canned heart of palm and a basil dressing
Roasted eggplant with mayo or tehina dressing
Antipasti: roast any veggies such as zuccini, peppers, garlic, onions in a lemon/vinegar dressing
Bean sprouts with sesame oil and soy sauce dressing

I think that will do for starters

Cheap carbs: well prepared plain rice with olive oil and salt
cold bean salad
cold chickpea salad
cold bulgur (tabouli) salad
potato kugel
carrot kugel
apple kugel if you can get apples cheap

chicken: serve whatever cut is cheapest that week.

dessert: melon or whatever fruit is on sale with parve cookies/cake

PinkFridge

Thu, Sep 24 2009, 11:35 am

OP, I just read that you don't do cholent anyway.

Here's my take: you can either make less expensive versions of what you do already (e.g. deli roll) or you can start exploring. You say that beans and pasta won't do it, but might it for your guests? Might your own family be open to change?

Liver etc. isn't so much a minhag as much as a dining choice. (Though for some people, I guess it does reach minhag proportions.) Start your own culinary minhagim. Shake it up a bit. Yom tov cooking is prime time to start.

B'tayavon and b'hatzlacha!

Tamiri

Thu, Sep 24 2009, 11:41 am

sped wrote:

Tamiri - the "root slaw" is with all raw vegetables? What aboput the beets? It sounds really nice.
What specifically do you dress it with? I am looking for just that kind of salad this week - cheap and easy.
Thanks

All raw, hard root veggies. It doesn't matter what you put in there but they should stay hard in a vinaigrette. I make a dressing out of some olive oil, lemon juice, vinegar, dried basil, ground black pepper, salt, granulated garlic. If it tastes good - it goes on the salad. Otherwise, I may add a little of this or a little of that. Parsley? Simple is the key, to get the flavor of the root veggies.
I would not use beets because that colors everything. But that reminds me that I have a great raw beet salad that I make for simanim which should be cheap and is good: http://homecooking.about.com/o.....9.htm

Another great cheap salad is to take hard veggies such as cabbage, raddish, turnip, carrots, peppers etc. and make a lemon+salt dressing. It should be the right mixture of sour and salty. Let marinate for at least overnight. Delicious, cheap, not fattening. Like pickles. Good for munching.

OldYoung

Thu, Sep 24 2009, 10:38 pm

(My mother's recipe, she can correct if I made any mistakes Wink

)
Dijon Greenbeans

4 c. greenbeans/ 1 lb
1 onion, sliced
mushrooms, sliced
2 T. margarine
1 T. dijon mustard

Boil greenbeans. Melt margarine in a large pan and saute onions and mushrooms. Stir in mustard and greenbeans. Cook until heated through.

Sweet and Sticky Greenbeans is from the KBD (maybe SOT) and posted on here- I'm pretty sure. The easy garlic (really snap peas, but I use either), and tomato and basil ones are from the Dining In cookbook. Do you need me to post those?

shirafruma

Wed, Sep 30 2009, 1:47 pm

meatballs and rice..I have a fantastic, EASY recipes that serves a LOT of people...

oven roasted potatoes...YUMMOLA! And easy and cheap..
potato kugel
onion kugel from the mishpacha magazine erev rosh hashana...YUMMY ALSO!
Franks n'blanks, hot dogs wrapped in puff pastry

meal mart sweet sausages with peppers and onions...

I have a lot of great ideas, I make shabbos for about 30 people every week on a tight budget...PM me if you want!

ra_mom

Wed, Sep 30 2009, 1:54 pm

shirafruma wrote:

Can I get your easy meatball recipe.
And the onion kugel recipe?

Nomad

Wed, Sep 30 2009, 2:24 pm

APPETIZER:
for appetizer, instead of gefilte fish here are some ideas:

1) mini sweet and sour meatballs served over pasta. stretch meat with rice
2) Take canned salmon and make a salad with it.
3) Take fresh salmon 1-2 pieces. Cut it up and sautee it with pasta or veggies and soy sauce. Good at room temp.
4) a cold fruit or veggie soup (nice in summer time)
5) A taco salad (take wraps and plop them over the top of an upside down cup. Then put cup in oven and that will make the wraps turn into shells for the salad.) serve with cut up cold cut pieces, lettuce shredded carrot, onions, avacado and taco seasoning. or anyother good dressing you can think of.
If you make this into a main just make the salad bigger and break taco chips into it.
6) buy gefilte fish when its on sale and freeze a few loafs for later

MIAN:
Instead of chicken shnitzel, check out and see if turkey breasts are cheaper in your area. You may have to cut it up into smaller pieces though.

if you have a grill pan, marinated grilled chicken bottoms are delicious at room temperature.

I actually always considered deli roll to be a main because it has meat in it. I think you can make either deli roll or shnitzel but you dont need both.
Instead, you can make a hearty salad, like one with chick peas or a pasta salad.

I make a chick pea salad called BJ salad because almost all the ingredients are from BJs wholesale

1 can chick peas
1 can black olives
1 can corn
1/2 red onion

I slice the black olives and chop up the onion small. Then I make a dressing of dried dill (lots), vinegar, mayo, sugar, salt and pepper and pour it over. Better if it sits in dressing overnight.

DESSERT:
I find that any homemade cake is pretty cheap.

Mamish Mama

Wed, Sep 30 2009, 2:53 pm

Here are two inexpensive salad recipes that are always a hit...

Canned Tuna or Salmon Salad (Instead of gefilte fish)

2-3 cans fish
1/2 - 1 can corn
1/2 - 1 can kidney beans
1/2 red onion finely chopped
dry dill weed
salt
pepper
old bay seasoning
garlic powder

Mix all ingredients together and season to taste.

By adding the veggies it makes the salad more filling, very colorful, and it goes further.

Chickpea Salad

1 can chickpeas (garbanzo beans)
1 orange, yellow, or red pepper
1/2 can israeli pickles
1/2 red onion finely minced
fresh dill
garlic powder
rice wine vinegar
salt pepper
olive oil

chop peppers, pickles, onion, and dill. Mix with chickpeas add spices and enough vinegar and oil to create a dressing.

Both are super simple, affordable, and easy.

Also, I agree with the posts about deviled eggs. Don't forget you can dress them up. I put little thin strips of yellow and green peppers sticking out of the yolks and sprinkle paprika over them when done, this always gets comments. Also you can pipe the filling into the egg using a ziploc baggie and it will look more professional.

tanachit

Wed, Sep 30 2009, 3:22 pm

Make Jumbalaya!!- it's a creole rice dish, can be reheated on shabbat because all the liquid gets absorbed during cooking, and tastes great a day later. One recipe can feed 6 hungry college boys, and me for the rest of the week
1 whole chicken- I like to quarter it first and put the carcass in cheesecloth- so that deboning is easier
1 pkg saussages (or hot dogs, whatever)
8 C water
1 bell pepper
4 spicy bananna peppers (this do to taste)
5 crushed garlic cloves
2 bundles green onions (chopped)
4 onions (diced)
salt, pepper,
4 C rice

Brown chicken and meat, add vegetables and garlic and cook down.
Add water, NOTE FILL LINE bring to boil- cook for 5-6 hours on low (like a spicy chicken stock)
when reduced, remove chicken and carcass, debone (this is a little annoying, but well worth the yummy drippings that you'll get into the food, without bones) and put all meat back in pot
slice up saussage
add water to original fill line
add rice, simmer until rice is cooked and water is absorbed
turn over/stir
it feeds an unlimited number of people!!!

shirafruma

Wed, Sep 30 2009, 5:39 pm

meatballs:

2 cups of ketchup
1 cup of water onion
1 teaspoon lemon juice (optional, I find..)
1 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoons brown sugar

meat mixture: 1 tablespoon water, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper
this is the basic recipe using one lb of ground beef, for larger quanties, use LOTS of ketchup and a larger amounts of sugar, water, and onion...

make liquid mixture, and let it boil for 5 minutes, while that starting to boil, make meatballs and drop them into the boiling water, boil until cooked throughly.

Add plain white rice AFTER meatballs are cooked..and there you go, it should serve around 8...(with a good a portion, not a small one...)

This recipe was orginally in the Breurs Cookbook..I adapted it for myself.

Onion Kugel (from Mishpacha Family First Erev Rosh Hashana, I believe...)

5 large onions cut up
3 cups oil
2 cups flour
salt
pepper

mix everything in a 9x13 pan, cook at 350 until top is brown and crunchy..

I think I changed the measurements to meet my needs, but its the basically same recipe, and I served it with 10 people and there was nothing left...