Leftover Challah Casserole

After almost every Shabbos we are left with those last few pieces of challah that no one wants to eat.  I used to save them and hope that someone would want it for lunch during the week, but usually they just turned stale (and sometimes moldy) and had to be thrown out.  I hate throwing out food, so I was super excited when I came across the French toast casserole recipe from Organized Jewish Home (OJH).  This site has great practical advice and I just couldn’t wait to try this out.

Basically, all you do is put these leftover pieces of challah in the freezer until you have enough for the casserole.  Then you defrost it, cut the challah pieces into cubes, add a few ingredients and you’ve got a meal.  Make sure to click on the link above for the original recipe.  I didn’t add as much sugar as indicated, but made sure to include the vanilla.  The combination of the cinnamon and vanilla made my house smell soooo good while this was in the oven.

I saw this dish on OJH’s dinner menu plan, but I decided to cut my casserole into pieces, put them in baggies and into the freezer for easy lunches.  Now my kids can have a nice French toast lunch and we don’t have to throw out any food.  It’s a win-win for all!

Cooking With Honey

I used to always avoid recipes with honey. Here are some of the complaints I had, along with the tricks that got me over my fears:

1. It’s so sticky. I couldn’t stand how sticky it was and how hard it was to get out of the measuring cup
• Tip: Spray your measuring cup with non-stick spray before putting the honey in. The honey just slides right out!
2. My honey crystallized and I can’t pour it out. You know how your honey sometimes turns hard with little sugar granules in it. It just doesn’t look right.
• Tip: When your honey looks like this, it is not spoiled. It just needs to be placed in a pan of warm water. The honey will then turn back into liquid. You can also heat your honey in the microwave, but don’t leave it in there for too long or else your plastic container can melt. Try it for about 15 seconds at a time until you have enough liquid honey.
3. It’s too sweet. Usually sweet is good, but too sweet is just not good.
• Tip: Honey is almost twice as sweet as sugar. When substituting, replace one cup of sugar for half a cup of honey. Because honey is hygroscopic (attracts water), reduce the amount of liquid in the recipe by 1/4 cup for each cup of honey added.

Now when you see a recipe with honey in it, there’s no need to run away. If you follow these small tricks, there’s no saying what you’ll do next!

What's for Dinner?

Since it 's not always possible to cook for an entire month on your cooking day, you'll need to come up with some quick and easy dinners to put on the table.  Here are some ideas I came up with that work for our family.

• Breaded fish- I buy the frozen kind.  Makes dinner's easy for me.
• Chicken-less nuggets from Trader Joe's
• Falafel- it's really easy to make your own falafel balls, or you can go with the frozen ones.  Either way, this is a great dinner!
• Fritatta
• Morning star burgers
• Pancakes- who said you can't have breakfast for dinner?
• Pasta
• Pizza
• Salmon
• Salmon/Tuna croquettes
• Scrambled eggs/ omelets
• Stir fry with rice
• Tuna noodle casserole
• Vegetarian chili- Tabachnik's is really good.  Just make a plate with rice, layer cheese and then the chili and you have yourself a really yummy dinner.

For sides to serve with these dinner ideas, see my post on Supplement with Sides and click here to see more main dish ideas and recipes.

Supplement With Sides

During the week I don't usually have time to patchke in the kitchen, so I have a list of side dishes that I choose from when those last-minute guests appear. These side dishes are great supplements to your KOAMC freezer meals.

Roasted Veggies- basically you just cut, sprinkle with olive oil, salt and pepper, put in a pan and then into the oven. Some ideas include:

• Acorn squash
• Butternut squash
• Asparagus
• Potatoes
• Sweet potatoes
• Zucchini

Steamed Veggies- fresh or frozen, steamed in microwave. Some already come in the steamer bags, making this super easy without any prep. Some ideas include:

• Cauliflower
• Green beans
• Broccoli
• Edamame
• Any medly that comes in a bag

Kugels- throw all ingredients into a bowl, mix and put into oven. Some of my go-to kugels include:

• Broccoli corn kugel
• Broccoli kugel
• Butternut squash kugel
• Cauliflower kugel
• Sweet Noodle kugel- two steps, since you have to boil the noodles first, but still pretty easy.
• Spinach kugel
• Spinach Noodle Kugel- also two steps.
• Zucchini kugel

Other Easy Ideas-

• Corn on the cob (or just a can of corn if it's not in season)
• Couscous (try the 5-minute Near East varities)
• Kasha- takes a little more time, but the results are worth it!
• Mashed potatoes
• Rice
• Sesame noodles

To see more side dish ideas and recipes click here.

What are your go-to easy side dishes?