Faigy Erdan

Wife and Teacher 

Brooklyn, NY

Cooking for 2

@FaigysFood

When I first got married, I found myself without a job for nine months. That was nine months of sitting at home, day in and day out, with nothing to do but cook and bake! Of course, my husband didn’t mind taste-testing all the cookies, brownies, and elaborate dinners I made for him. However, once I finally did find a job, I didn’t have all that time or energy anymore. Suddenly, the menu included only quick and easy dinners.

These days, I have my schedule down pat: Take chicken out of the freezer in the morning before work; come home at 4 p.m.; relax for a while and ignore any sense of responsibility; start preparing dinner for my husband at 5 p.m. But after enjoying dinner with my husband, I’d just take a look at the pile of dishes and pots, and get tired all over again. But — lucky me — one thing I never need to even ask is if he can wash the dishes. He does so every evening without hesitation and it truly helps take the stress out of cooking dinner.

I’m really fortunate to have a husband who has few food preferences, but he does have a severe sweet tooth. That’s why I try to always have some freshly baked cookies and muffins (aka mezonos, as he calls them) for him to munch on. To counteract all that, every meal I serve includes either a salad or roasted veggies. I don’t enjoy having all those unhealthy foods around because they tempt me as well, so recently I’ve been trying to find healthier versions of the goodies my husband enjoys. And he’s none the wiser for it; he doesn’t even realize when I switch regular white flour for almond flour.

To liven things up a bit, I invite my in-laws or some friends to eat by us, for either Shabbos or weeknights. I love cooking up a storm, as long as my husband will always be there to help out after I’m done. Sheet-pan dinners are all the rage recently, and I love them especially because there’s so little cleanup afterwards. It’s such a good feeling to put an appetizing dinner on the table, and not see the sink piled high with pots.
And I know that a family with kids will definitely enjoy this!

What’s your new best recipe and where did you get it from?

We like Healthy Chocolate Chip Cookies from NoWayThatsHealthy.com.

Do you ever dress up dinner for your husband? What’s your go-to dress-up tactic?

I always try to make his plate neater than mine, with food in it's place and not crowding one another.

Do you have a supper-in-a-bottle/half-homemade supper hack?

Pour a boc of pasta into a 9*13-inch (20*30-cm) baking pan, then pour in a bottle of marinara or vodka sauce and 2 cups of milk bake covered for 1 hour at 350F (175C). Creamy goodnesss!

What are five ingredients that you always turn to as a default?

I’m always using fresh garlic, potatoes, chicken cutlets, olive oil, and salt.

How do you camouflage leftovers?

I try to cook just what we need, so we don’t have too many leftovers. When I do, I either put the meat or chicken into a salad, or I put it into a wrap or bun.

(Originally featured in FamilyTable 645)

Click below for the Dinner Hour Recipe

ROSEMARY CHICKEN SHEET PAN DINNER