Passover

Last week was Passover in the Jewish religion. The holiday, which lasts 8 days, commemorates the story of the Exodus in which the ancient Israelites were freed from slavery in Egypt. Seli is Jewish (compared to me who is Catholic), and since he wasn't able to spend any of the holiday with his family I thought I'd at least attempt to make some traditional Passover food for dinner. Then our good friends Mia and Mark decided to come over and celebrate with us as well, so it turned out to be a really fun night! I made brisket, which was delicious (although I'd probably put a little less brown sugar in it next time and a little more cayenne pepper - but that's just a personal preference). Seli made a traditional Sephardic dish of boiled eggs, and Mia made a delicious baked cheese and onion dish which I unfortunately don't know the name of. It was similar to a frittata I guess - or at least there was a lot of discussion on whether it was like a frittata. Anyway, I found the brisket recipe on foodnetwork.com, but then it turns out that a colleague of mine who is also Jewish uses the same recipe so I was encouraged that it was good. It was a recipe by Emeril, which made me even happier since it was a combination of Seli's Jewish culture and my Cajun culture!!

Emeril Lagasse's Passover Brisket

Ingredients
8 to 10 pound brisket
Garlic cloves
1 quart beef stock (unsalted or low salt)
3 large onions, sliced
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons Emeril's Original Essence, recipe follows
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 cup ketchup
1 cup chili sauce
1 cup brown sugar

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 500 degrees F.
2. Using a paring knife and your finger, stuff brisket all over with garlic.
3. Place brisket in a baking dish or casserole and bake until browned on top, remove from oven, turn brisket and return to oven until browned on both sides.
4. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F.
5. Add enough beef stock to casserole to come up 1 inch on sides, cover with foil and bake one hour.
6. While brisket is cooking, heat a large skillet over medium high heat and saute onions in vegetable oil, stirring occasionally, until caramelized and most liquid has evaporated, about 20 minutes. Set aside.
7. Remove brisket from oven after one hour and add caramelized onions and all remaining ingredients, moving meat around to combine ingredients.
8. Cover and continue to bake until very tender but not falling apart, another 2 to 3 hours.
9. Remove brisket to a carving board and slice.
10. Strain reserved cooking liquids and pour over sliced brisket. Brisket may be returned to casserole dish and allowed to cool, then served the next day. (Reheated in oven.)
**Brisket is better if made a day in advance.

Essence (Emeril's Creole Seasoning):
2 1/2 tablespoons paprika
2 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons garlic powder
1 tablespoon black pepper
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon dried leaf oregano
1 tablespoon dried thyme
Combine all ingredients thoroughly and store in an airtight jar or container.
Yield: about 2/3 cup


I forgot to take a picture of the full brisket, so this is just a picture of the brisket on my plate! As I said...delicious!!


Seli's boiled eggs (they were boiled in onions and other delicious spices, so they tasted like more than just a boiled egg)