Posts tagged ‘holiday meal planning’
Recipe of the Week – Baked Tenderloin of Beef
(From the Beef Entrée Collection at emealsforyou.com)
Baked Tenderloin of Beef
We had a request for Beef Tenderloin from one of the kids for our family Christmas dinner. With all the high energy activities around opening gifts and catching up on the latest news, I wanted a meal that was great but also one that would not require constant attention. My mother-in-law has always told me that she just bakes the whole beef tenderloin, regardless of the weight for 30 minutes at 400 degrees. This will produce a moist and medium rare roast; perfect.
Who doesn’t love a recipe that requires very little work and produces the above results, not to mention tons of compliments. Remember to allow the roast to rest for 20 minutes after cooking and before carving. We did twice baked potatoes, another do ahead and forget trick and peas. Dessert was the Cranberry Cake from our website at emealsforyou.com.
Baked Tenderloin of Beef
| Complexity: | Easy |
| Serves: | 8 |
| Category: | Beef Entrée |
| Meal: | other (General) |
| 4 | lb | beef, tenderloin, whole |
| 3 | Tb | salt, kosher |
| 3 | Tb | pepper, fresh cracked |
| 5 | cloves | garlic, chopped |
| 3 | Tb | olive oil, divided |
Remove all fat and silver skin from the tenderloin. Have at room temperature. Sprinkle the salt and pepper generously over the entire tenderloin. Spread chopped garlic on top of tenderloin. Sprinkle 2 Tb of olive oil over tenderloin. Allow to marinate for 2 hours. Remove as much of the chopped garlic as possible, discard. Heat remaining olive oil in a large oven-proof pan. Brown tenderloin on all sides. Place in a pre-heated 400 degree oven. Cook for exactly 30 minutes ( for medium rare; 120 degrees ) remove from oven and allow to rest for 20 minutes prior to slicing. The tenderloin will continue to cook to 125 – 130 degrees while resting.
These recipes and more at emealsforyou.com.
Recipe of the Week – Meatball Sandwiches
(From the Cooking for the Kids Collection at emealsforyou.com)
Meatball Sandwich
Okay, so you know you are making turkey with all the fixings but what about the other meals for your extended family weekend. We are having the full Thanksgiving dinner here. One son and family is coming from Chicago and another is living down here. The turkey is the easy part, now what do I serve when they get here and what about the rest of the weekend. As of this writing we still don’t know what time the Chicago group is scheduled to arrive. As meal planners we like to anticipate and plan meals; our guests on the other hand, wing it. We thought about the meatball sandwiches for the night of their arrival as it is something you can keep warm in the oven and serve at a moment’s notice accompanied by a salad; besides the kids will eat it.
The 22 lb turkey awaits its turn as the main act in the frig until Thursday. I’m not much for leftover turkey so Friday’s meal looks like ribs.
Meatball Sandwiches
| Complexity: | Easy |
| Serves: | 6 |
| Category: | Cooking for the Kids |
| Meal: | other (General) |
| 3 | Tb | olive oil, divided |
| 1 | medium | onion, minced |
| 1.5 | lb | beef, ground |
| 0.75 | lb | pork, ground |
| 2 | Tb | garlic powder |
| 1 | tsp | oregano, dried |
| 1 | Tb | salt, kosher |
| 1 | tsp | pepper, fresh ground |
| 1 | slices | bread, day-old |
| 0.25 | cup | milk, 2 % |
| 32 | oz | tomato sauce |
| 1 | medium | bread, Italian |
| 2 | Tb | cheese, Romano, grated |
Heat 1/3 of the oil in a sauté pan, add onions and sauté until slightly golden. Remove and cool. In a large bowl mix the ground beef and pork, adding in the garlic powder, oregano, salt and pepper. In a separate bowl place the day old bread and the milk. Allow to sit for 3 minutes. Squeeze the bread of excess milk, break into small pieces and add to the meat. Add in the onions and mix thoroughly to combine. Using a 1/8th cup ice cream scoop form the meatballs. Heat the remaining oil in the pan and add just enough meatballs to allow movement. Sauté until brown and remove to an oven-proof pan. Repeat until all the meatballs are browned. Add the tomato sauce to the oven-proof pan and place in 350 degree oven for 1 hour. Cut bread lengthwise and place meatballs on bread, cover with sauce and sprinkle the Romano on top and serve.
Note: Sprinkle 2/3 cup of grated mozzarella on top; place in broiler, open-faced, until cheese melts for a special treat.
More Cooking for the Kids at emealsforyou.com
Recipe of the Week – Pan-roasted Sea Scallops
From the Fish Entree Collection at emealsforyou.com)
Pan-roasted Sea Scallops
The big question that always comes up around Thanksgiving is not about the turkey. It is “just what do I feed the out-of-town relatives when we are not eating turkey.” I admit it, I am not a huge turkey fan, once or twice a year and maybe a sandwich after the big event, but my “turkey tolerance” is limited.
Speaking with a friend this morning he told me that he had just made the Pan-roasted Sea Scallops on the site (emealsforyou.com) and they were really good. Bingo, a timely reminder of another great meal that I can serve during the week. The good news is this is a very quick and easy to cook meal that will keep the family talking halfway to Christmas. Christmas is another story, lots of options for the Christmas meal; I can tell you it won’t be turkey.
Pan-roasted Sea Scallops
| Complexity: | Easy |
| Serves: | 2 |
| Category: | Fish Entrée |
| Meal: | Dinner in the Round (Distinctive Dinners) |
| 8 | large | scallops, sea |
| 1 | pinch | salt and pepper to taste |
| 4 | Tb | Panko breadcrumbs |
| 1 | pinch | salt and pepper to taste |
| 1 | Tb | oil, olive |
| 1 | Tb | butter, salted |
| 8 | leaves | sage, fresh |
| 2 | Tb | butter, salted |
| 0.5 | medium | lemons |
Note: This recipe takes very little time to make and therefore be sure to have the rest of the meal ready to go before starting the scallops.
Dry scallops thoroughly on a paper towel. Salt and pepper both sides of the scallops. Place Panko breadcrumbs in a shallow dish, salt and pepper breadcrumbs. Dip one side of scallop in breadcrumbs. Place butter and olive oil in pan; heat pan until oil begins to smoke. Place scallops, breadcrumb side down in pan and cook until light brown (about 3 minutes); flip scallops and cook for three minutes on reverse side. Remove scallops to a side plate. Lower heat to medium, place sage leaves and butter in pan and swirl, cooking for three minutes. Plate scallops and drizzle brown butter sauce over scallops, serve with a lemon wedge on the side.
Shown here with baby Yukon Gold potatoes and peas.
More holiday ideas at emealsforyou.com
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