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The Raw and The Cooked

Simple Meals + Honest Book Reviews + Practical Living

Deuteronomy 3:23 – 7:11 | Va’etchanan | “And I Pleaded”

This past week was one of those weeks that went by in the blink of an eye. The highlight was a perfect Wednesday summer morning, spent with our best friends, at one of our best playgrounds, which has this hidden stream behind it (photo above). We also did two (!) trips to the Science Center, swim lessons, our annual family photoshoot, and of course, a trip to the library. I finished Same As It Ever Was by Claire Lombardo — loved it so much! Oh, and I stepped on a bee last week, and got a gnarly bee sting on the bottom of one of my toes, which meant I had to sit out that afternoons gym session. What can you do!

For the record, I’m writing today’s post late on a Monday afternoon during a heatwave (heat index of 114-degrees), from the comfort of my bed. The A/C is doing its best, but it’s having trouble cooling our home lower than 74-degrees. All four children are already changed into their PJ’s. It’s 4pm. And they fashioned elaborate magic wands / guns for themselves out of K’nex, capes made of throw blankets. Lots of summersaults, running, and screaming. It’s hard to concentrate, and it’s my fault for not getting this done before Shabbat (of last week). There will probably be a lot of typos and terrible grammatical sentences today. At least there is no crying. Welcome to “Va’etchanan.”

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Twenty-Seven Days That Changed My Kitchen

The cooktop that we inherited with this house we purchased in 2023, unbeknownst to us, was installed in 1999. It was working perfectly, until it wasn’t. It died during a routine cleaning. From there, it took half a week to get a proper diagnosis, because in a majority of situations, the problem resolves itself within a few days. Ours did not resolve itself. So we had a technician come out, only to learn that it required replacement parts. Joke was on us, because parts from gas cooktops manufactured in 1999 are no longer in existence – not even on eBay! We were going to have to purchase a new one. At first I panicked, this was going to take so much time and so much energy, I’m stretched thin, and oh, if only you knew how often I use my cooktop!

Luckily, this happened in summer. When grilling naturally happens 2-3x per week, anyway. Also, my oven still worked. And let’s not forget about the ace up all our sleeves: a slow cooker with a sauté function. My cousin kindly drove over her InstaPot to loan us, so we could have rice. We go through a lot of rice. By the end of the first week without a cooktop, I knew we’d be fine. Did I love hauling out a slow-cooker to sauté scrambled eggs in the mornings? No. Did I love using an InstaPot to make rice? Definitely not. But I learned that I was able to do almost everything I wanted and needed, and it didn’t feel like such a handicap to not have a cooktop.

I learned that I much prefer the taste of rice cooked on a stovetop than rice cooked with an InstaPot. I learned that you can actually boil bagels in water that was heated up in a slow-cooker on sauté mode — and they’ll still taste great. I learned that between those two appliances, plus the grill, and the oven, that we were able to keep up with our regular rotation. The only meal I didn’t attempt to try was pasta, and maybe that was for the best, absence makes the heart grow fonder, and all that. And though we were fine for those twenty-seven days without a cooktop, I was very relieved to finally get the new one installed. The first two things I cooked: chicken noodle soup and pasta bolognese. Not to be eaten together, those are simply my staples, and it just felt right to break in the cooktop with my top two dishes.

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Deuteronomy 1:1 – 3:22 | Devarim | “Words”

We had another really great week of summer. My dad booked a last minute trip to visit the children, and got to be camp counselor at “Camp Pop.” Which included a lot of swimming, fishing, a trip to the zoo, hotel sleepovers, and very few home cooked meals for the children. But, Camp Pop! We also wrapped up our big kitchen refresh this week (floors, lighting, shelving, backsplash), so I am a very happy camper as well.

I’m also very much looking forward to our journey together in Deuteronomy. I find it absolutely fascinating that the entire book has almost no narrative, and instead, is essentially a compilation of decrees given by Moses. Moses, addressing Israel, and recounting the entire story in his own words, and going over the laws, again.

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Why Abby Jimenez Has Become My Official Summer Author ☀️📚

Every summer, without even realizing it, I start craving the exact same kind of book: a light, breezy rom-com. Bonus points if it’s actually set during the summer.

I want something I can toss into my bag for the playground, read on the deck while the kids play outside, or sneak in ten pages before dinner. Summer and romantic comedies just belong together. They’re light without being shallow, hopeful without being cheesy, and easy to pick up whenever you have a few spare minutes.

For years, Emily Henry and Katherine Center filled that role for me. But now? I think Abby Jimenez has officially taken the crown. I recently finished Say You’ll Remember Me, closed the book, and thought, “Well… that was another really good one.” Then it hit me. I’ve genuinely loved every Abby Jimenez novel I’ve read. These days, that’s surprisingly rare.

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Homemade Mini Pita Bread

Once you realize how easy homemade bread is, I swear, there is no going back. I’m adding another bread product to my ever growing, “we don’t buy this at the grocery store anymore” list, and if you couldn’t guess by the title of this post, it’s homemade pita bread.

Like almost every other homemade bread recipe, this one uses fewer than a dozen simple ingredients. In fact, it only calls for four: flour, salt, yeast, and a touch of sugar. This pita recipe comes together with two quick rises, a little shaping, and a few minutes on a hot, lightly oiled griddle. I hope you’ll give this easy, almost foolproof recipe a try!

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Summer Salad Idea: Balsamic Marinated Chicken with Strawberry Feta Salad

This is one of those meals whose flavors screams summer! I enjoy it because I love the taste of chicken from the grill, the marinade couldn’t be easier, and the salad and vinaigrette comes together in the time it takes the grill to heat up. Pretty low effort, high reward. And that is the type of summer dinner I’m on board for. It’s also a great meal to make when hosting a summer get-together, mainly because of the flavors. It tastes like you know what you’re doing in the kitchen, and isn’t that what we all want?

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