I wish we had more recipes from the Jewish divisions of our family, given how good Aunt Betty’s brisket is. The pan drippings make magnificent gravy, so we never ever ever serve it without homemade mashed potatoes.

• Flat-end brisket
• Black pepper, whole or freshly ground
• ½ onion, sliced thinly
• Celery flakes
• Bay leaf
• Lawry’s salt
• Whole allspice

Choose only a flat-end brisket for this recipe; put in a roasting pan that has a cover. Preheat oven to 275 degrees. Sprinkle black pepper, sliced onion, celery flakes, whole allspice and Lawry’s salt over the top; place one whole bay leaf on top. Place cover on pan; bake at 275 degrees for at least 2 hours or until meat is fork-tender and will shred when you poke at it.

Discard bay leaf before serving – yes, it tastes and smells lovely, but cooking won’t soften it and the sharp edges of the leaf can slice right into your tongue. Again, we want our meals to be memorable for the right reasons.

Gravy

• About 2 tablespoons of flour
• About 1/3 cup of water
• Maggi

To make the gravy, first remove the brisket and place it on a serving plate to rest. Put the roasting pan on top of at least one oven burner (two is better).* Put 1/4 to 1/3 cup of warm water into the pan, and stir with a firm hand to loosen those lovely pan drippings. If you want to, you can fish out the whole peppercorns and allspice, but we don’t usually bother. Now, mix about two tablespoons of flour with at least one cup of water and stir until you have a slurry. Add to water in roasting pan, and blend it in. Cook over medium heat.

As the gravy thickens, you may need to add more water, and that’s fine. Warm water works best, but cold water won’t hurt it – it will only delay the final outcome. When the gravy reaches the consistency you like, make sure you allow it to simmer for a few minutes to make sure the flour is cooked (raw flour tastes terrible).

Finally, do a seasoning check. This is when we add Maggi seasoning, but Lawry’s salt also works, and you are welcome to experiment. When you’re happy, it’s ready to serve over slices of brisket that are falling into shreds as you cut them and generous scoops of mashed potatoes.

Do not expect to have leftovers.

*Regrettably, glass-top and induction stovetops won’t play nice with this. You’ll have to remove as much of the pan drippings as you can, and start over in a saucepan.

from Betty Marley Labunski, our aunt, who was married to our dad’s younger brother Stephen