Charcoal v. Gas Grill – You Make the Call
(From the Beef Entrée Collection at emealsforyou.com)
Grilled Strip Steak
Yesterday, being the 4th of July, it was predicable that at some point I would find myself standing in front of a grill doing the caveman thing and cooking over an open fire. Our neighbor invited us over for a cookout, she planned steak, salmon and shrimp cooked on her Weber grill, along with all the accompaniments. She is a, grilling means charcoal, person as many of my neighbors are. I am the impatient type, turn a knob, push a button and viola, the perfect fire. I like controlling the temperature, up and down, depending on what I am cooking. Weber type people tend to have all the time in the world to build the fire, and just when you are ready to cook the fire is just about dead.
Grilling to me is all about grill marks, grill marks are all about flavor. Slow “baking” food, even on a Weber is slow baking, not burn the hair off your arm grilling. Bottom line is the food came out just fine, maybe not as flavorful as a flame kissed steak but pretty good anyway.
BTW – Salt, pepper and olive oil is all you need to make a good piece of meat or fish great. Save the marinade for salads.
Grilled Strip Steak
| Complexity: | Easy |
| Serves: | 4 |
| Category: | Beef Entrée |
| Meal: | Other (General) |
| 2 | lb | steak, strip |
| 1 | Tb | salt, kosher |
| 1 | Tb | pepper, fresh cracked |
| 1 | Tb | oil, olive |
The keys here are to have the fire very hot and the steaks at least 1 thick. Have the steaks at room temperature, brush olive oil on both sides of steaks, add pepper and salt. Grill about 5 minutes on one side and 4 on the other. (depending on how you like your steak and the thickness of the steaks) remove steak from grill and let sit for 10 minutes. It will finish cooking on the platter; so take it off just before it is done as you would like.
Add comment July 5, 2010
Recipe of the Week – Pesto ( hold the pine nuts)
(From the Misc Collection at emealsforyou.com)
Basil Pesto on Pasta
Pesto is a wonderful thing. You can make it with almost any herb or vegetable. You can serve it as an appetizer, a dip or a sauce on pasta or meats and fish. Basically you add cheese, garlic, olive oil and your herb or vegetable and some nuts together in a food processor, process until you get the consistency you wish and voila! you have it; all in about 30 seconds.
We have been making assorted pesto for years; combining sun-dried tomatoes and toasted pecans or spinach and hazelnuts, and of course basil and pine nuts. (see our selections at emealsforyou.com). The problem and reason for this post is that there seems to be a shortage of pine nuts on the market. Usually readily available in the grocery in pound bags, you are lucky to see a couple ounce jar in the Italian specialty aisle for about $5. Don’t let this dissuade you from making pesto. Use toasted walnuts in place of the pine nuts and you will not notice the difference. The texture will be the same and you will get the same “sweetness” that the pine nuts provided. Basil is flourishing in the bright sunshine, plant some or buy some but give pesto a try for a great meal.
Basil Pesto
| Complexity: | Easy |
| Serves: | 6 |
| Category: | Misc |
| Meal: | other (General) |
| 0.5 | cup | basil leaves, whole |
| 0.75 | cup | pine nuts, toasted |
| 0.75 | cup | cheese, Romano |
| 1.5 | cloves | garlic, chopped |
| 0.75 | cup | oil, olive |
Toast pine nuts lightly. Place basil, pine nuts ( or any other nut you choose), garlic and romano in food processor, process until a paste forms, add oil slowly until you reach the consistency you desire. Should be spreadable, like peanut butter.
Note: Great on sandwiches, may be used on pasta. I spread it on toasted French bread, sprinkle with romano and basil and broiler slightly.
Shown here on pasta.
Add comment June 28, 2010
Recipe of the Week – Panzanella Salad
(From the Salad Collection at emealsforyou.com)
Panzanella Salad
We have a salad with just about every dinner meal, so making different salads is important. We are on our second planting of lettuce in the garden and the tomatoes are just now turning; but I found some great plum tomatoes at the market. So when my wife asked if we could have a Panzanella salad for dinner; I was more than ready.
Panzanella salad can incorporate any number of ingredients. Make it with fresh veggies, grilled yellow squash or even substitute canned tomatoes. Add capers, olives or just about anything else in the fridge. Toast the bread if it is too soft or fresh. This works well when you forget to put the bread in a bag after dinner the night before and now you have all this stale bread laying around. Need to fill those teenage boys up, this is the thing; using inexpensive ingredients and they will be eating veggies without complaining.
Give this a try and I bet you will come back for more.
Panzanella Salad
| Complexity: | Easy |
| Serves: | 4 |
| Category: | Salad |
| Meal: | Thursday Comfort Food (Quick Meals Planner) |
| 6 | slices | bread, Italian |
| 3 | cloves | garlic, chopped |
| 1 | 16 oz can | tomatoes, diced |
| 0.25 | small | onion, red |
| 2 | Tb | oil, olive |
| 3 | Tb | vinegar, red wine |
| 1 | Tb | capers |
| 1 | small | squash. yellow |
| 2 | Tb | cilantro, chopped |
| 2 | Tb | cheese, Romano, grated |
| 1 | pinch | salt and pepper to taste |
Slice bread in ¾” slices, then into cubes. Place in bowl, add tomatoes, thinly sliced onion, capers, and garlic. Dice yellow squash and add to bowl. Add oil, vinegar, romano cheese, cilantro and salt and pepper to taste. Let sit for 15 minutes before serving.
1 comment June 21, 2010
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Add comment June 21, 2010
Recipe of the Week – Stuffed Pork Roast
(From The Other Meat Entrée Collection at emealsforyou.com)
Stuffed Pork Roast
We were planning a Sunday night dinner party for a friend and his family, as his parents were visiting, but the weather required a change to Saturday instead. As we arrived at the grocery a cloudburst was taking place. We ran into the store only to remember the shopping list for the party was still on the printer at home. Under the heading, practice what you preach, I was able to use my BlackBerry Curve to access my meal plan and the shopping list while in the grocery.
I made a minor change to the menu as I planned Artisan bread and due to moving the dinner up a day settled on French bread, which could be made in hours with no over-night rising process. The sign of a good meal plan is one that you can adapt quickly; ‘course it does make it easier if you are nimble on your feet and able to juggle all the tasks required. I think my best helper in the kitchen was the ability to prioritize what to prepare in what order; finishing everything just in time to sit down and converse with our guests over appetizers.
The menu was assorted crustini and dipping sauces, stuffed pork roast (recipe below) with gingered carrots and mashed potatoes, the above mentioned bread and carrot cake and a corn meal cake for dessert. I substituted oven roasted tomatoes for the sun-dried tomatoes in the recipe. Throw a little currant jam into the gravy to give it an interesting taste.
Stuffed Pork Roast
| Complexity: | Medium |
| Serves: | 6 |
| Category: | The Other Meat Entrée |
| Meal: | other (General) |
| 3 | lb | pork, boneless roast |
| 1 | tsp | salt, kosher |
| 2 | Tb | pepper, fresh cracked |
| 1 | lb | spinach, fresh |
| 0.25 | cup | sun dried tomato |
| 1 | small | onions, diced |
| 8 | cloves | garlic, minced |
| 1 | pinch | salt and pepper to taste |
| 2.5 | oz | hazelnuts, toasted |
| 1 | package | cotton cooking string |
| 2 | oz | mushrooms, sliced |
| 1 | 10.5 oz can | beef consommé |
| 10 | oz | wine, dry red |
| 2 | oz | butter, salted |
Butterfly the pork roast. This is easier than you think. Start at the top make a cut down one side about 1/3 of the thickness of the roast. Cut down stopping the same thickness from the bottom; repeat on the other side. (think of an envelope with two flaps) Cover with plastic wrap and pound with a rolling pin to flatten the roast. Salt and pepper both the inside and outside of the roast.
Sauté spinach, onions, sun-dried tomatoes (chopped) and garlic in a pan until spinach is wilted. Salt and pepper to taste. Add hazelnuts and cool.
Spread the cooled spinach mixture on the pork roast. Roll the roast back to its original shape. Tie with cotton string in several places to hold it together. (see picture)
Brown in an oven-proof pan. Place pan in a pre-heated 350 degree oven for 45 minutes or until a thermometer registers 160 degrees. Remove from oven, remove meat to a platter to “rest”. Place mushrooms in the pork pan on medium, cook for 2 minutes. Add consommé and red wine. Cook for 3 minutes. Shirl in butter and pour over pork.
Add comment June 14, 2010
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Add comment June 11, 2010
Recipe of the Week – Homemade Italian Ice
(From the Dessert Collection at emealsforyou.com)
Lemon Italian Ice
It has been a couple of crazy dessert weekends around here lately. Last weekend I made dessert for the local Memorial Day picnic; Croissant Bread Pudding and Hazelnut Cheesecake. This weekend the friend, who had the Memorial Day party, called and asked if I could help out with some desserts for her mom’s Red Hat Ladies meeting; dessert for 20 or so. No problem; I made a huge Mary’s Special Birthday Cake and a Brenda’s Favorite Lemon Tart, both travel well and both feed an army.
The thing I had forgotten was the dinner party we were having on Saturday night for our new neighbors to meet our old neighbors and our “before the old neighbors” neighbors. What to make for dessert. The new neighbor stopped by as I was icing the Red Hat Ladies chocolate cake and it became immediately obvious he was a big fan of chocolate icing. That solved part of the equation, make a Flourless Chocolate Cake, but what to make that was lighter and easier on the waistline. I baked some pears to serve with honey and blue cheese but the winner was the Lemon Italian Ice.
As I was a little busy in the kitchen I welcomed a dessert that basically requires mixing frozen lemonade with water and placing it in an ice cream freezer. This is the perfect dessert when you are looking for something different, not expensive, easy to make and always a crowd pleaser.
Give this a try on a hot summer’s night.
Lemon Italian Ice
| Complexity: | Easy |
| Serves: | 6 |
| Category: | Dessert |
| Meal: | Easy Comfort (Quick Meals Planner) |
| 1 | 12 oz can | lemonade |
| 20 | oz | water |
Place frozen (but softened) lemonade in an ice cream maker, add water and turn on for about 20 minutes until fluffy and white. Serve immediately or re-freeze in a separate container until needed, Thaw sightly before serving, Scape lemon ice with a spoon and layer in a bowl or glass.
5 comments June 7, 2010
Is your temperature really what you think it is? – A Helpful Rant
As frequent readers will know we moved just before the New Year. Setting up the new kitchen, getting things where I want them, getting a “good flow” of movement has been a building process. Sometimes it’s the little things we miss.
This weekend I was responsible for the desserts at a neighborhood picnic. I settled on Croissant Bread Pudding and Hazelnut Toffee Cheesecake, as both are great and serve a ton of people. Baking the desserts seemed to take longer than it should have. I should have looked into the reason why but rushed through and they came out great, although taking longer and requiring me to constantly check on them.
I should have remembered installing a new oven for my mother-in-law a few years ago. Visiting months after the install she said her recipes were taking a longer time to bake. I cooked some David Lee Shrimp ((From the Appetizer Collection at emealsforyou.com) and they seemed to take forever to bake. Pulling an oven temperature gauge from her closet I found her oven to be off by about 25 degrees. The fix was an easy one, the manual instructed me to push these buttons in sequence then that button to raise the temp and it is fixed.
Back to my problem. When the light bulb in my brain went off I simply checked the real oven temp, hence the picture of the gauge above, and found my oven was off by 10 percent. That means that my desserts, requiring 350 degrees, were baking away at only 315 degrees. The bottom line is for a few bucks you can check your oven and perhaps save time when baking or at least have piece of mind that what you set your temp to is actually the temperature in the oven.
Here’s the Hazelnut Toffee Cheesecake recipe.
Hazelnut Toffee Cheesecake
| Complexity: | Easy |
| Serves: | 12 |
| Category: | Dessert |
| Meal: | N/A |
| 0.5 | cup | sugar, brown |
| 1.5 | cup | hazelnuts, ground |
| 2 | oz | bourbon, Jack Daniels |
| 8 | Tb | butter, salted |
| 8 | large | egg |
| 4 | large | egg, whites |
| 2 | cup | sugar, white |
| 2 | tsp | vanilla |
| 48 | oz | cream cheese |
| 2 | cup | heathbar bits |
Have everything at room temperature. Combine brown sugar, bourbon, nuts and butter, spread evenly on bottom of spring- form pan. In a food processor mix everything except the toffee together until very smooth. Stir in toffee. Pour into spring form pan, place on cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour. Turn off oven and let cheesecake sit ( in oven) for 1 hour.
This is best if made the day before and refrigerated over night.
This recipe serves at least 12.
Add comment June 1, 2010
Recipe of the Week – Hot Roast Beef Sandwich
(From the Beef Entrée Collection at emealsforyou.com)
Hot Roast Beef Sandwich
Pot Roast when the weather outside is in the 80′s? Sure, why not. I originally posted about pot roast in November of 2008. (Recipe of the Week – Pot Roast ) I know, a winter month, but why do we relegate some of our favorite foods to certain times of the year. Pot roast falls under that comfort food category in my mind. Should we only seek out comfort foods when the weather is cold? Doesn’t it taste just as good in May as it does in November?
I made pot roast Saturday, just because I felt like it. One of the benefits of making a pot roast is having leftovers to make another meal of a few days later. I was working hard on a “home project”, temperature 86, humidity 86 when I found myself faced at 6 PM with a decision on dinner. Then I remembered the leftover pot roast. Bingo! Simple, deluxe diner food. I added some fries and a fresh salad from our garden. A meal Guy Fieri would be happy with. The only thing lacking from a great diner meal was the rice pudding. Ummm, maybe tomorrow.
Pot Roast
| Complexity: | Easy |
| Serves: | 6 |
| Category: | Beef Entrée |
| Meal: | Weekly 3 (Quick Meals Planner) |
| 3.5 | lb | beef, roast |
| 1 | tsp | salt and pepper to taste |
| 2 | Tb | oil, olive |
| 6 | cloves | garlic, chopped |
| 3 | medium | bay leaves, whole dried |
| 3 | medium | onion, yellow ,quartered |
| 1 | 12 oz can | beer |
| 1 | 10.5 oz can | beef consommé |
| 1 | Tb | Worcestershire sauce |
| 4 | Tb | water |
| 2 | Tb | cornstarch |
Spread salt and pepper over entire roast. Heat oil in a large, oven-roof pot. Brown roast on all sides. Add onion and onion browning slightly; add garlic and immediately add beer, Worcestershire sauce, bay leaves and consommé. Cover and cook on low on stove top or place in a 300 degree oven for at least 3 hours, until meat is fork tender. When done remove meat to a platter and cover. Mix water and cornstarch to make a slurry. Add to pan juices, bring to a boil, stirring constantly until thickened. Reduce heat, Cut meat cross grain and pour gravy over. Serve extra gravy on side.
Shown here with oven-roasted veggies.
1 comment May 25, 2010
Recipe of the Week – Philly Soft Prezels
(From the Bread Category at www.emealsforyou.com)
Philly Soft Pretzels
Growing up just outside of Philadelphia we often took trips into the city for shopping and sightseeing as kids. One of the highlights of the Philly excursion was to buy a hot, soft pretzel from the street vendors. These were always freshly bakes, still warm, soft, salty and delicious. A squirt of yellow mustard and you were all set for that late afternoon snack .
Pretzels continued to be a big part of the Philly culture but became a commodity and began to be baked in mass quantities; substituting ingredients that allowed them to be kept longer ( supposedly fresher) but took both the special texture and taste out of them. They became the cardboard offering that we now get everywhere you look. I have been searching for that old-fashioned recipe that brings back the flavor and textured I remember. Making Capt. Jim’s Tomato Focaccio the other day I realized that the dough was exactly what I was looking for. Moist and tasty, with a hint of sweetness, these brought back all the memories of those trips to Philly.
I have to say that actually twisting the pretzels reminded me a Lucy and Ethel skit, but once I got the hang of it, it was easy. If you are looking for something special for a party or movie night give these a try; you will never go back to those frozen, cardboard things in the grocery freezer again.
Philly Soft Pretzels
| Complexity: | Easy |
| Serves: | 8 |
| Category: | Breads |
| Meal: | N/A |
| 1 | package | yeast, dried |
| 4.5 | cup | flour, all-purpose |
| 1.25 | tsp | salt, kosher |
| 1 | cup | water |
| 1 | cup | milk, 2 % |
| 2 | Tb | oil, olive |
| 0.5 | cup | baking soda |
| 8 | qt | water |
| 0.25 | cup | egg wash |
| 1 | Tb | salt, kosher |
Heat 1 cup of water and milk in microwave for 2 minutes, until warm but not hot. Place in a mixing bowl and add yeast. Let stand for 3 minutes then add the flour, salt and olive oil. Mix until a ball forms. Place dough in an oiled large bowl and cover, allow to rise until doubled in size. Cut dough into 16 even strips. Roll each piece into a long rope. Holding one end in each hand twist the dough to form a figure 8 and place on a sheet of parchment paper. Heat water and baking soda to a boil. Carefully drop a few pretzels at a time into the boiling water, Allow to cook for about a minute and remove to parchment paper on cookie sheets. Repeat with remaining pretzels. Brush egg wash (water and egg) on each pretzel and sprinkle kosher salt on top. Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. Bake pretzels for 12 -18 minutes until brown. Serve warm with mustard or cheese dip.
1 comment May 17, 2010
