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Friday, December 17, 2004

Photo Friday (Vol VII)

This week’s Photo Friday selection is courtesy of mademoiselle a., the creator of ‘Ze Shtripey Original’… whose ‘nom de net’ suggests a blog overlooking the Seine… and whose persnickety personality gives a hint to her German upbringing… but whose heart and soul (and hopefully soon her person) belong only to Israel.

Her requests are:

1.  How you bribe your children into your house duties  with choco yodvata    

2.  Your salad-bowl-sized coffee mug (and maybe a pen for proportional studies)

3.  Yourself chopping up chicken liver for the week-end

The first one may be a bit of a mystery to those outside of Israel. Choko also spelled  ‘shoko’ in English) is part of Israeli childhood. It is fresh chocolate milk, but it comes packaged in a dizzying number of forms and concentrations. My children like the traditional ‘sakeet shoko’ which is basically a small plastic bag filled with fresh chocolate milk. These are found in a cold bin the local ‘makolet’s’ dairy case, and it is quite common to see kids stopping in on their way to school for a ‘lachmaniah v’shoko’ (fresh baked bread roll and chocolate milk), which they will munch/slurp as they walk.

Here is a picture of the shoko bags (Gilad actually prefers ‘moka’ [the one on the left], which is a coffee flavored milk, and Ariella likes the traditional shoko).  You drink them by biting a tiny hole in one corner and then squeezing the milk into your mouth.  Yum!  Just ask these sleepy kids if this is a nice way to wake up in the morning!!!
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My ‘salad-bowl-sized coffee mug’ is not so special for its impressive capacity, but rather for its aesthetic appeal. It is equally at home with a hot portion of cream-of-tomato soup, a king-sized hot toddy or a steaming serving of Sumatra’s best.  As requested, I have included a pen (my trusy Namiki retractable fountain pen) for scale.
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I don’t make chopped liver every week… more like once every month or two… so it took a while to honor this request. It occurred to me after I had already started to chop the liver that the request was for a picture of me actually chopping the liver… sorry. Instead I have a picture of the basic ingredients ready to be combined, and another shot of me making the final adjustments to the proportions. If there is any interest I’ll post my recipe and preparation instructions as an update:
Ingredients

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As always, I would love to hear what you have to say about any of these pictures, and would welcome any new requests for Photo Friday pictures (3 to a customer).

I hope Hanukah was enjoyable for those who celebrated it… and that Xmas and Kwanza are everything they should be (and more) for my non-Jewish friends.

Shabbat Shalom!
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Posted by David Bogner on December 17, 2004 | Permalink

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I'm very fond of David Bogner and Treppenwitz, and this post is inspired partly by his weekly "Photo Friday" feature (before I knew that he had a culinary theme this week too), and partly by the comments on this post a few months back about the ingr... [Read More]

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A shot of making chopped liver with the gun visable! You're an inspiration to us all, Mr. Bogner! I love this country.
Shabbat shalom to you all.

Posted by: Wolicki Family | Dec 17, 2004 1:00:27 PM

Mmmm..... Photo Friday always satisfies. I'm going to have to ask my Rabbi about your chocolate milk and chicken liver on the same post -- not kosher! I think I have to soak my monitor in boiling water now.

The Wolickis beat me to a comment about the most important ingredient in chicken liver: a trusty sidearm...

Shavua tov.

Posted by: Doctor Bean | Dec 17, 2004 2:10:28 PM

> The Wolickis beat me to a comment about the
> most important ingredient in chicken liver: a
> trusty sidearm...

Sometime you'll hear David telling us about the whole experience:

"It was a heck of a chicken ... that beast had me pinned up against the wall at one point and I finally decided 'It's me or the chicken and it ain't gonna be me!' So I plugged that sucker right between the eyes.

"You know how you hear about chicken's runnin' around with their heads cut off? Well, this one wasn't runnin' anywhere, no sirree Bob!

"Great liver though, and the powder-burn kashered it for us right then & there!"

Posted by: Andy Levy-Stevenson | Dec 17, 2004 2:20:01 PM

Dave -
Boy, that chopped liver (gun guarded or not!) sure looked GREAT! (Grandma Fay would be proud!) Yeah, I think a post of the recipe would be lovely to have, thanks.

Shabbat Shalom.

Posted by: val | Dec 17, 2004 2:56:03 PM

[snaps fingers repeatedly] OK people... cute kids... yummy food and drink... nice ceramics... time to focus on the subject matter! When I was putting together Photo Friday this week, Zahava caught a glimpse of the pictures and immediately pointed out that my gun was showing and suggested that I should crop it out. But did I listen? Nooooo.

Anyhoo...

Wolicki Family... Thanks, I live to inspire (or serve as a cautionary tale). :-)

Doctor Bean... You'll notice I've placed a picture between the milk and the meat so there really shouldn't be a problem. However, if you want to be on the safe side you should wait 6 hours before scrolling down the page.

Andy... Ah, you know me too well.

Val... It is mostly Grandma's Fay's recipe, but I have fooled with the proportions somewhat. I'll post an update with the recipe later (or maybe Sat. night).

Posted by: David | Dec 17, 2004 3:09:23 PM

Thank you for turning my requests into reality - nothing better than returning to daily reads after a week of absence.
Honestly, I was wondering how you'd set it all into scene, but high 5 to you!

I do favour mokka over choco, by the way. And neither have I managed to archive the recipe you have shared back for new year. My bad.

I do think you should have listened to your wife - and I stress the fact that this gun was definitely not part of my request. No siree :)

Yes, the picture between milk and meat - in analogy to "ta'am ke ikar", what would we have to call this? "byte ke ikar"? "pixel ke ikar"? Man, this really is a kosher journal!

Again, thank you!

Posted by: mademoiselle a. | Dec 17, 2004 4:24:57 PM

OK, two questions:
1. What's with the gun? (I have no problem with it, just curious.) Is that for work or something?
2. Are eggs considered meat or dairy if you eat kosher?

Oh, and cute kids.

Posted by: Alice | Dec 17, 2004 4:34:07 PM

I totally don't get the concept of milk in a bag, but it sounds fun, anyway. The kids look like "We're drinking, ok? Can we please go back to bed now?"

I've never had chopped liver, but it looks good, except maybe for the eggs. (It must be really good if you need a pistol to keep it from being stolen. *giggle*) How do you use that chopper thing? It looks like you'd need at least three hands.

Posted by: Tanya | Dec 17, 2004 4:35:48 PM

I too was amused by the gun.... you didn't think we'd notice?? lol

Anyway, I was *very* excited to see the picture of the chocolate milk! I was introduced to this Israeli treat by a friend last year on my visit. I was handed the bag, and then he demonstrated how to bite a hole and sip. I was in love with this product immediately!
*sigh* I daresay I even miss it...

Posted by: celestial blue | Dec 17, 2004 5:35:01 PM

Hi David,

You could start a new career on TV, "The Gunslinging Chef." ;)

Posted by: Jack | Dec 17, 2004 5:56:46 PM

at times, the comments become nearly as entertaining as the original blog entry itself... and this is one of those times! "gun-slinging chef", indeed!!! Love it!

Needing to guard the chopped liver from being stolen... i think your fan base is truly a treat to read! :: hats off to you all!! :::::

Posted by: val | Dec 17, 2004 6:17:26 PM

Ari and Gilad look good enough to eat!
The gun, perhaps, suggests hat you are really serious about what you do. As your father, I have no problem with it. Your mother, though, would probbly worry that you'd muck it up with oil drippings or a splash of what you're chopping. I suppose that is an issue between you and the gun authorities.
As for the heart of the matter, the chopped liver itself, I have Grandma Fay's recipe for you and the world.
The small container of chicken livers from the supermarket holds about 1-1/2 c. I use one or two eggs, hard boiled. Also, about a cup of coarsely chopped onions--about enough to cover a large, castiron skillet.
Althaough 50-60 years ago, chicken fat was the cooking medium of choice, most of us who want to live beyond the next few meals will use olive oil. I pour in enough to cover the bottom with 1/4" or so, and get it very hot. Add the onions (which should sizzle) and brown them.
Here, two schools of thought diverge. Grandma Fay (I think) and other purists, remove the browned onions and reserve for later use. I, and other slovenly mixers of things delicious, leave the onions in the skillet and add the chicken livers to the brew, cooking them until light colored on all sides. This requires some gentle mixing and turning. Look out for the splatter of hot oil.
The eggs, of course, should have been hard boiled and shelled before starting any of this.
When the livers are thoroughly cooked, remove them with as little of the oil as possible. (I use a large cooking spoon with holes in it.) Put cooked livers into a large wooden chopping bowl, add onions (from reserve or from the pan) and he hard boiled eggs. Chop with your favorite chopping knife, or mash with a large sturdy fork. the consistency of the mash should be a little oily, not dry. Here is where judixious addition of oil from the pan will bring the mixture to a proper consistency.
Add generous amounts of salt and pepper to taste. I use about 1 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper--but since it is all ad hoc, I don't really know. You must mix well and taste frequently to really know when the seasoning is right. Needless to say, it was a delight to be Grandma Fay's taster!
The entire yield will fit nicely into the plastic container that held the chicken livers, for handy storage (although the shelf-life of good chopped liver can usually be measured in hours or minutes, depending on appetite).
Enjoy!

Posted by: Delmar Bogner | Dec 17, 2004 6:37:34 PM

The chocolate milk, the kids, the gun AND the recipe too! Wow. Great blogging. Great comments. Thanks!

Posted by: Gail | Dec 17, 2004 6:51:15 PM

(with appologies to Mr. Eastwood)

Ah-ah, I know what you're thinking. Did he add six eggs or only five? Well to tell you the truth in all this excitement I've kind of lost track myself. But being this is a .44 Magnum - the most powerful hand gun in the world, you've got to ask yourself one question: "do I feel lucky?" Well, do ya punk?

Posted by: Doctor Bean | Dec 17, 2004 7:38:12 PM

Hi David,
Nice to see that kids are the same everywhere. And that products are so similar to ours. Drinking chocolate milk from plastic bags is very popular here, too.
And as I missed last week's photo friday (sad sad): your powdered donuts look like our German 'Krapfen'. They are filled with marmalade or cream and only sold during winter time. Oh, I am very much looking forward to eat tons of them during my holidays.
Thanks again for giving me all these impressions of your life.
(No, I will not ask for the gun).

Posted by: Sandra | Dec 17, 2004 11:11:00 PM

Sandra, you have to tell me where in this country you find choco in plastic bags. I must have overlooked them. Damn, so much futile smuggling...

Krapfen, I have to correct you there, are sold throughout the year. They sure are a special treat on New Year's Eve [clock midnight, with a glass of champaign], but also on carnival [Feb./March]. Maybe people are not too fond eating them in summer, but they're sold. I can say I don't like the latest addition of selling Krapfen filled with choco cream and egg punch cream. I prefer the jam-filled; plum or raspberry, with tons of snow sugar. But apart from that, they're not really the holiday food like they are for Jews on Chanukah.

Thank you, David's father, for posting the recipe!

Posted by: mademoiselle a. | Dec 17, 2004 11:35:32 PM

Not to besmirch your cooking, but could the gun be used perhaps as encouragement to clean your plate. ;)

Posted by: Jack | Dec 18, 2004 2:36:40 AM

no wait.... maybe the gun is used *after* to encourage the youngens to take their dishes back to the kitchen for cleanup.

Posted by: celestial blue | Dec 18, 2004 4:24:40 PM

I am truly indebted to all the faithful Treppenwitz readers who've proven that my oh-oh! factor is right on the money! HA!

Posted by: zahava | Dec 18, 2004 7:08:35 PM

ok I realize that I have totally missed the point of the post and all, but..... your Grandma's name was Fay???????? I am so excited whenever I hear of someone who has my name. Tell me something interesting about her.
-Faye

Posted by: Faye | Dec 19, 2004 1:14:04 AM

Stop giving me shit about the gun or the chicken gets it!

Posted by: jordan | Dec 19, 2004 1:20:50 AM

OK, Jordan wins! I like that one.

Posted by: Andy Levy-Stevenson | Dec 19, 2004 8:53:45 PM

In our next episode of The Gun Slingin' Chef we'll watch breathlessly as he whips the butter and beats the eggs. Together we'll ooh and awe over his mastery of slinging hash and even learn how to properly oil our own cutlery. ;)

Posted by: Jack | Dec 20, 2004 9:27:15 AM

Jack... Don't laugh... All my cutlery is high carbon steel (not stainless) so I have to be careful to oil everything after each use. It's wonderful stuff (Sabatier) but requires a lot of care.

Posted by: David | Dec 20, 2004 12:20:26 PM

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