Favorite Erev Shabbat Meals

My erev meal preferences change with the seasons of the year and the seasons in our life. The season we are in now is food that is simple and delicious. Preparation Day is full chores and communications and tieing things up from the week's work (ideally any way!). So I find that I most often prepare meals that are simple, delicious, fail safe, familiar and take little thought for me. I use my seasoning mixes to deliver the flavor. (See my Seasoning links for recipes.) I like to have dessert for the meal whenever possible, which adds an extra step in preparations, yet another reason why a simple meal is ideal. Challah and special table setting with bread and wine, also set this night apart and are extra steps. I also like to have the dishes and counters as empty and clean before the sun goes down for my peace of mind as well. (When on week days, dishes are often scraped and stacked until morning.) Simple grilled or baked meats go very nicely with fresh salad, bread, dessert. (I usually keep homemade dressing on hand -so that is usually taken care of.) I may bake some fish and sprinkle it with my Fantastic Fish Seasoning (which is also tasty on chicken BTW). If I did have time ahead I will bread or marinate some chicken and have that "waiting in the wings" to be popped in the oven about an hour before the sun sets.

In the summer time, I often grill veggies with the meal and we eat outside most rev's that the weather permits. In the summer, we will do burger, beef hot dogs or chicken sausage on the grill alot more too. I rarely bake challah in the hot months (We don't have AC and live in the south!) However, I will make buns ahead in the summer kitchen for those grass fed burgers and organic beef franks. :-)

In the winter time we eat a lot more cooked greens and those are handy to saute with olive oil, garlic and ginger for a delicious side dish to baked or grilled meat. Or we will roast potatoes or veggies in the oven. Or I will do a one pot meal in the crock (or now - in a pot on the wood stove) and let it slow cook all day and bread and wine goes nicely with that. Or let a pot of pasta sauce simmer all day - my family loves pasta and that is easy. I usually skip the challah when I make italian and make a crusty bread or garlic bread instead.