Lentils, Dried Beans, and Rice (Makhluta) with Kale

I like picking up cookbooks from random church groups or organisations at sales. Some of them are new, but a great many are ones that just happen to have come up for sale at thrift stores or yard sales. They come with a great diversity of recipes depending on the participants, and they usually cover everything from appetisers to desserts. Some even come with anecdotes or jokes (like the one that had the recipe for Elephant Stew... prepare 1 elephant and 1 hare, add to pot with some water, salt, and pepper. Serves 500 or so, depending on the size of the hare.)

The Lebanese Kitchen: A celebration of Lebanese Cuisine is a very high quality version of this type of cookbook. It wasn't until I checked the publisher and date before writing this post that I realised that it was actually written in 1990 to provide building funds for St. Elijah's Orthodox Church, by their Ladies Society. It looks like these went to convert an older church to a residential building in Ottawa.

I was looking for a rice and bean recipe, and this certainly fit the bill. I used a can of 6 mixed beans, and brown rice to make it a bit different. The can held roughly 2 cups, so I doubled the recipe. I probably didn't need to do this since the cooked beans would likely have made up the extra cup, but I pressed on. I guessed at the amount of water I would need after adding the rice, adding 3 cups to be safe. I used just enough olive oil to sautee the onion, maybe a tablespoon worth. As far as I can tell it didn't affect the quality of the dish.

After cooking, it was clear I'd added too much water. I took the lid off to let it boil down, then decided I might as well add the kale I had been thinking about steaming as a side. 

This is a really nice dish that could be used as a main or a side, and the kale went along with the beans and rice very nicely. The cumin was quite pleasant as a flavouring. It could easily accommodate different bean types, and would even be a great way to make a quick and filling supper. 

Lentils, Dried Beans, and Rice (Makhluta)

Serves 6

1/4 cup dried lentils

1/4 cup dried chickpeas

1/4 cup dried lima beans

1/4 cup dried kidney beans

7 - 8 cups water, as required

1 Tbsp cumin (optional)

1/4 cup rice

1 large onion, coarsely chopped

1 tsp salt

1/2 cup olive oil

Wash all dried beans, lentils, and peas. Soak in water overnight.

Drain and place in a large saucepan. Cover with water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and cook for 30 minutes.

Saute onion in oil until brown; add to beans. Add rice, salt, and pepper.

Cover and cook until tender, 20 - 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Variation: Canned beans may be substituted. Reduce cooking time accordingly.

Curried Fish Casserole

I love old cookbooks. I've picked them up at various yard sales, thrift stores, used book stores, church sales... The random sources mean I sometimes get random items. This card came in a bag of recipe books, calendars, and miscellaneous from a yard sale. A woman was clearing out her mother's house, and when I become excited over some handwritten recipes in notebooks, she insisted I take the whole box.

Usually I'm not so much of a fan of recipes from the 70s. The era tended to have some odd food combinations. This is definitely an example. I'd picked up fish from a local grocery store on sale, and had everything else on hand. It seemed a bit unusual, but why not?

The fish was haddock, and I used a pear instead of an apple to use what was on hand. I have some very spicy Thai curry powder that worked really well in this. I was a bit worried when I was staring this down in the pot, but the end result is very flavourful and interesting. I would definitely make this again.

Curried Fish Casserole

McCall's Greatest Recipe Card Collection, 1977

Yield: 4  servings

1 tbsp     margarine

1.5 cups     sliceed onion

1 to 2 tsp     curry powder

1 pkg (1 lb)     unthawed frozen fish fillets (haddock, halibut, or sole)

1 large     apple - cored and thinly sliced

1 can (8 1/4 oz)     tomatoes, drained

1/2 teaspoon     salt

1/8 tsp     pepper

     Chopped parsley

In hot margarine in large, nonstick skillet with tight-fitting cover, saute onions until soft -- about 5 minutes.  Add curry powder.  Cook, stirring, 5 minutes longer.

Cut frozen fillets crosswise into 1-inch strips.  Arrange fish fillets in bottom of casserole.  Place onions on top of fish; top with apples and tomatoes.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Cook over medium heat, covered, 10 minutes.  To serve, sprinkle liberally with parsley.

Sausage in Batter aka Toad in the Hole, 1974

There's a joke going around Facebook. It goes something along the lines of taking so much time to compose a response to a text message in your head that you think you've actually texted it even though you haven't.

Chicken Casserole with Vegetables (Joy of Cooking, 1974)

Everyone has the Joy of Cooking on their shelf at some point, don't they? It's been the go to cookbook for the home for ages. It tells you everything from how to make bread to how to skin a squirrel and prepare it for cooking (at least my copy does. Do these instructions disappear in newer printings?)

Golden Bread, Watkins Cookbook (1935)

When I first showed this to my husband, he asked "How is this different than French toast?"

Chicken Stew with Dumplings (1944)

One of the reasons I want to do this project where I cook from a cookbook I own every week is that I have a very bad habit of winging my meals.  Which, in itself, isn't terrible, really. It does mean that my cookbook collection is sadly neglected most of the time, which makes me wonder why I have one if I'm not going to use it.

For the last few weeks I've been guilty of not looking at my books at all. It's been busy, it's been cold, we've been sick... so many reasons to skip the research, throw everything into a pot, and call it dinner.

This week I am hoping to make up for the deficit by making a recipe that is actually 3 recipes combined from one cookbook. It's Chicken Stew with Dumplings, from The Good Housekeeping Cookbook (Oxford University Press, Toronto, 1944).

The preface tp this book declares that it "is concerned with plain cooking. But with good plain cooking". This recipe appears to be the ultimate in plain, simple, quick, easy dinner to throw together. Put everything in a pot, cook for a long while, then mix some dough and drop it into the same pot before eating.

With modern cooking shows, books, and chefs emphasizing browning meat and onions before throwing them into a pot, just adding everything in without preparation was a bit unnerving, but delightfully simple.

Frankfurter Goulash a la Walter Slezak (The New York Times Cookbook, 1961)

A book that's in good enough shape to still have it's frontispiece with copyright date! This is a pleasant change.

It does beg a couple questions though. Firstly, if I have a bit of a critical attitude towards 1960s cooking, why do I seem to have so many 1960-era cookbooks? Secondly, why do I have so many books in bad enough shape that I have to do research to figure out their ages?

The answer is the same for both questions: I get the majority of my cookbooks second hand. They come from thrift stores, garage sales, and book sales, with a few purchased new if they strike my fancy. Some are in great shape, and some are held together with tape and ingredients from recipes made by former owners. Some I check the dates before buying, and others I don't.

I had picked this New York Times Cookbook because it is in immaculate shape; the previous owner was either a neat freak or didn't actually cook. I didn't realise it was from the 60s until after I had browsed through it and selected the recipe. Even in eras with inedible food, there are the odd moments of yummy genius.

Frankfurter Goulash a la Walter Slezak wasn't necessarily the best recipe in this book, but it certainly looked the most interesting. I love German frankfurters (as opposed to hot dogs which are a different beast entirely), and new recipes to use them in are always welcome. This also looked like it would easily make enough for several lunches for the week.

Walter Slezak was a German actor who was in over a hundred American movies, including The Inspector General with Danny Kaye in 1949.  I believe I've seen a couple of his films, but now that I've had one of his family recipes, I feel I should check out more of his work.

This recipe is being modest when it says 6 generous servings. I tried to take into account that produce now might be larger in size than that available in the 1960s, and I used a can of whole tomatoes. I discovered that there are twelve frankfurters in 2 pounds. With each measuring about a foot, this is a lot of frankfurter. Add in the suggested potato and salad, and 6 people would be extremely well fed with this dish.

I did not use 1/4 cup oil. I ended up using about 2 Tbsp worth, that that sufficed. I thought I had caraway seeds, but couldn't find them. I decided to go with rosemary instead. The tomatoes were no salt added, and I didn't add any additional - I think this could end up very salty. With just the frankfurters it seemed enough. If you make this with hot paprika (which I did), it ends up with a nice kick. I had this for lunch with a bit of leftover mashed potato. A very filling and delicious lunch for a cold, wintery day.

Frankfurter Goulash a la Walter Slezak
6 generous servings
1/4 cup vegetable oil or shortening
6 large onions, coarsely chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
10 large green peppers, cut into 1 1 /2-inch cubes
1 1/2 tablespoons caraway seeds
2 1/2 cups canned tomatoes, undrained
2 tablespoons paprika
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 pounds frankfurters, sliced 1/2 inch thick

1. In a large heavy kettle, heat the oil and add the onions and garlic. Cook over moderate heat, stirring with a wooden spoon, until the onions begin to take on colour. Add the green peppers and cook, stirring, five minutes longer. Cover and continue cooking twenty minutes, stirring occasionally.

2. Add the caraway seeds, half the tomatoes and the paprika and cover again. Simmer twenty minutes longer, stirring occasionally. Add the remaining tomatoes, if necessary, to prevent the vegetables from becoming dry.

3. When the goulash has thickened slightly, add the salt and pepper and frankfurter slices. Cover and heat thoroughly. Serve with plain boiled potatoes and a crisp green salad.