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I have been doing a bit of cooking lately. As I mentioned already, it is really no fun to cook here; I have very little space in my so called "kitchen" and being kosher most certainly does not help! I have those two small electric "rings" which are temperamental and cook when they feel like it and they stop without any warning at all! But the food which the Home sends up here, plentiful and well prepared as it is, is bland and the L&M needs something spicy now and then! Like fried frankfurters! Why not?... You slice a couple of frankfurters into rounds and fry those rounds on both sides in a bit of oil. Smash a couple of eggs and when the franks are nice and crispy on both sides, pour the eggs and mix well until the eggs are set. Heaven!
Someone sent me a wonderful recipe for chicken breast in a peanut butter sauce; it somehow stayed on my desk for quite some time and the other day I found it by chance and decided to make it. You first fry the chicken breast, I had four, in some oil and mix the sauce by taking 2 tablespoons of peanut butter... Would you believe that when I wrote this down, I went looking for the peanut butter jar and somehow had to check the ingredients! I mean a crazy thought, but these two words - chicken and butter - got to me and I had to check the jar! So, to reasure us all, there is NO butter in peanut butter! Anyway! Mix the 2 tablespoons of peanut butter with the juice of a large lemon and the zest of it as well. Add 4 well chopped garlic cloves, salt-pepper and some water (or I had some banana liquor so I added that!). And a good, very large handful of well chopped peanuts! Let this heat up, mixing it well and when the breasts are fried on both sides, pour the sauce on top, close the pan and hope for the best! It really was very good and the L&M was pleased.
Next, I did chicken thighs; I went into chick-parts lately! Somehow I came into the market just after the butcher finished his display window of all chicken parts and it all looked so fresh and appetizing, I had to buy! They were clean of fat and skin and all one size; the butcher had nothing to do, so he played with them for quite some time until he looked up, smiled handed them nicely wrapped to me, and said: "enjoy!". So the thighs went into a pan of hot oil. I collected quite a lot of mushroom stems, so they went into the processor with three large cloves of garlic and quite a lot of dill and a couple of spring onions. Onto the chick it went, mix-mix, salt-pepper. I did not add any liquid to it, just covered it and left it on a... Well, if I had a proper stove, I would just leave it on a small flame, flip them over after half an hour and give them another half an hour... But here, I just had to leave it on "whatever" and kept checking it every few minutes and flipping it over... And they were delicious and yes, another success.
And I had another success which I had with chicken "parts" were with wings! I very seldom make them because it is such a mess and in a way such a frustration to eat them! But one day, there was a shelf in the market, piled high with boxes upon boxes of chicken wings. Now how can you walk by without taking at least one? And, they were clean! I have an utter fear of chicken feathers and usually wings are full of them and very difficult to clean! But these were clean, which was a pleasant surprise... Into a very hot pan they went. I mixed half a cup of honey, juice of a lemon, some soy, grated ginger and grated garlic...I poured it over the wings, covered the pot and wished them good luck! If I had an oven they would go into that for an hour; but as I do not...they were delicious and we loved playing with them! Just shows you! Is old age making children out of us again?... NO! Do not answer that!
Send your questions to The Wacky Cook: email: debbiemorgenshtern@gmail.com
Debbie Morgenstern is the author of "My Life in Israel" and other short stories.
"My Life in Israel" can be purchased by accessing this link: "My Life in Israel"