The Second Avenue Deli Cookbook (38 page)

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Authors: Sharon Lebewohl

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Matzo Brei
SERVES
1
OR
2
This is probably the world's simplest recipe. You can, however, get creative with it. For instance, try adding grated onions or finely chopped scallions and ¼ teaspoon pepper to the matzo-egg mix. Or add ½ teaspoon cinnamon, omit the salt, and serve your matzo brei with a side dish of peach or apple slices sautéed in butter. Nuts (we've tried almond slivers and pistachios) are another possibility. And you might also want to sift some powdered sugar on top.
2 slices matzo
1 egg, beaten
½ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons corn oil or butter
Applesauce, jam, and⁄or sour cream
1. Crumble matzos to pieces no larger than 1¼ inches in a colander, and run under cold water until softened. Press out excess water.
2. Transfer matzos to a large bowl, and mix well with egg and salt. Let mixture sit on counter for 5 minutes.
3. Heat oil or butter in a skillet (don't use too large a skillet, or you'll end up with nothing but crust). Pour in matzo mixture, and cook on low heat until the bottom is golden brown and the matzo brei turns easily. Brown the other side. Alternatively, you can use a bigger pan, and scramble the matzo brei like eggs.
4. Serve with applesauce, jam, and/or, if preparing a dairy meal, sour cream.
Note:
Increase all ingredients proportionately for additional servings.

W
E'D AS SOON EAT
an entrée without a vegetable and starch as a stack of pancakes without butter and syrup. Here you'll find diverse side dishes to complement your meals, from the Deli's famed farfel and mushrooms to golden vegetable latkes and croquettes.

Farfel and Mushrooms
SERVES
6
Dishes made with egg barley, or farfel, are generally eaten at Rosh Hashanah; the grain-shaped pasta symbolizes the seeds of an abundant harvest in the year ahead.
3 tablespoons corn oil
2 cups chopped onions
2 cups scrubbed mushrooms, chopped into ¾-inch slices, about
3
⁄
16
nch thick
2 cups uncooked egg barley
3 cups clear chicken soup or stock
Salt (the amount will depend on how much salt is in the chicken stock you use; if it's salty, you may not need any)
¼ teaspoon pepper
1. In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of the corn oil, and sauté onions until lightly browned. Remove with a slotted spoon to a bowl. In remaining oil (add a bit more if needed), brown the mushrooms, stirring occasionally. Add to the bowl with onions, and set aside.
2. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Pour egg barley into a baking pan (approximately 10 by 12 by 3 inches high), add 1 tablespoon of corn oil, and mix well. Place pan in the oven, and bake for 20 minutes, stirring at 10 minutes so that it browns evenly. While egg barley is baking, put the chicken soup in a pot with salt (if needed) and pepper, and warm on the stove.
3. Remove the baking pan from the oven. Stir in the onion-mushroom mixture and add the soup.
4. Lower the oven to 300 degrees, and bake for another 30 minutes or until all soup is absorbed. Stir after 15 minutes. Remove and serve.

Kasha Varnishkes

Kasha Varnishkes
SERVES
6
AS AN ENTRÉE
Kasha—today a classic of Jewish cuisine—was a mainstay of poor nineteenth-century Russian and Polish Jews—the hearty grain that provided sustenance in the long, cold winter months. For holidays, it was stuffed with fried onions into kreplach or eaten with shell- or bow-tie-shaped pasta noodles.
1½ cups uncooked kasha
2 eggs, beaten
¼ cup corn oil or schmaltz
5 cups chopped onions
¾ pound bow tie noodles (varnishkes)
2½ teaspoons salt
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix kasha and eggs thoroughly, and bake mixture in a shallow pan for 20 minutes.
2. Heat corn oil in a large skillet, and sauté onions, stirring occasionally, until well browned. Remove to a bowl, retaining cooking oil with onions.
3. Boil 6 cups of water in a large stockpot. Remove kasha from oven, stir into the boiling water, and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes (until all water has evaporated). When you're through cooking the kasha, break up clumps with a fork.
4. At the same time you're cooking the kasha, in a separate pot, boil bow ties for 15 to 20 minutes, until fully cooked. Drain and rinse.
5. Mix everything together, including salt, and serve.

T
WO-TIME
O
SCAR WINNER
and six-time nominee Dustin Hoffman was a very young-looking thirty-year-old in 1967, when Mike Nichols discovered him, Mrs. Robinson seduced him, and his shy smile turned on all of America. After
The Graduate
(his first Best Actor nomination), he went on to star in a mind-boggling number of first-rate Hollywood films. A noted stage actor as well, Hoffman made his first Broadway appearance in 1961 (a walk-on part in
A Cook for Mr. General
). He returned to the Broadway stage in 1984 (playing Willy Loman in an award-winning revival of Arthur Miller's
Death of a Salesman
), and in 1990, he received a Tony nomination for his portrayal of Shylock in
The Merchant of Venice.
Though everyone thinks of Hoffman as the archetypal New York actor (and as a Deli habitué, he is, of course, an honorary Gothamite), he actually grew up in Los Angeles.
The Second Avenue Deli is where I ordered nonprescription remedies for myself, family, and friends. If one of us became ill, we didn't call a doctor, we called Abe Lebewohl and asked for a container of chicken soup with matzo balls. If the illness persisted, a potato knish or a noodle pudding was immediately called for.
On one occasion, I recall curing my brother-in-law, Leeroy, of a migraine headache by having a pastrami sandwich, coleslaw, potato salad, and sour pickles delivered to him.
Abe didn't allow me to pay for anything. He always promised to “send a bill.” It never arrived.
We all miss Abe greatly and think of him often.
Grandma Blanche Salter's Macaroni and Cheeses

SERVES 4 TO
6
AS A SIDE DISH
The following dish was submitted by Lisa and Dustin Hoffman.
2 tablespoons butter
8 ounces elbow macaroni, cooked and drained
8 ounces mozzarella cheese, grated
8 ounces Swiss cheese, grated
8 ounces Gouda or Edam cheese, grated
Pepper
Parmesan cheese
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt butter in a casserole (use a flat Pyrex for a crispy dish, a deep casserole for a gooey one).
2. Mix together macaroni and grated cheeses, season with a small amount of pepper, and top with Parmesan cheese. Bake for about 45 minutes.

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