Extra Schmaltz!

It's our 200th recipe! (Or at least the 200th post). Things have slowed down a bit since our family doesn't have as much free time at the moment, but I think that with the winter weather the blog posts will pick up again. Here's an easy, flavorful, and inexpensive recipe that deserves to be part of our family's canon. This is Filipino dish based on soy- and vinegar- and garlic-marinated meat (not the Mexican seasoning blend also known as 'adobo'). You can use any meat you like and it works especially well with cheaper cuts, like chicken leg pieces or pork shoulder. You can also alter your technique for how much time and patience you have--it's kind of like choose-your-own-adventure. 3-4 lbs of meat (bone-in chicken or pork chunks work well) 1 c. light soy sauce 1/2-1 c. water 1/2 c. white vinegar 1 entire BULB garlic, chopped 3 bay leaves 2 Tbsp. ground black pepper 2 Tbsp. salt Combine all the ingredients in a shallow dish. If the marinade doe...

This is Mom's standard dumpling recipe, excellent with chicken soup. Drop them in, put the lid on, and enjoy. Ingredients: 2 cups flour 4 teaspoons baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 scant cup milk or water Preparation: Mix the dry ingredients, stir in the milk or water gradually to make a soft dough. Drop by spoonful into boiling salted water or simmering stew. Cover tightly, cook 10-15 minutes before lifting cover. Test for doneness, drain. Serve at once. Well, once they cool off so you don't burn your tongue. PS - This is post 199! Hope someone does something special for #200!  

I recall making this very simple recipe many times as a young'un, when Mom was really busy working and herding us kids around. It was a bit of a standard, along with noodle kugel, that was easy enough for kids to make (and explains why it is not quite as complicated most of the recipes on this blog.) I just made it now, and remembered why it was great - you can go from zero to dinner in about half an hour. It's a bit of an operation ice box recipe - you use more or less the cans you have around, and you can replace some of the ingredients. I'm just giving a basic idea below. It always turns out deliciously, but I'm sure you could do some other things to make it even more delicious (add pork products, beer, etc). Ingredients: 1 onion 1 green bell pepper 2 cloves garlic 1 pound ground beef (optional for vegetarian style) 2 cans stewed tomatoes (not drained of liquid) 2 cans beans (one should be chili beans, but you could have black beans as well) (don't drain these) 1...