this week for dinner

i kind of been in a rut since we got back from our vacation. nothing appealed to me.  "i'm tired of my own cooking!" as how my grandma would say it.  and i admit, i was lazy.  it was hard to get back to the normal routine.  in the last two weeks that i rarely cooked, much money was spent on eating out and buying ingredients on a whim.  i bought a lot of steaks (they were on sale) and froze them for future use. for those nights when i need to come up with something quick.  we are carnivores over here.  we eat grilled steaks about once or twice a week.

meal planning is not my strong suit but in my effort to reduce our food expenses i've been kinda sorta doing it.  it's on and off, one because it is hard to keep up with it.  it is difficult to come up with food ideas in one sitting.  a dish that sounds good today may not be as appealing when the time comes to actually make it.  and then there's the weather to consider.  something like i'd plan on roasting a chicken and when the day comes it's too damn hot to be turning on the oven. that sort of thing happens a lot with me.

this week i planned mostly for grilled dinners.  since the weather has been warm we have been using the grill outside and we have been eating our dinners on our teeny tiny balcony.  before i started simplifying, i invested on a small bistro table from bed bath and beyond to match the wicker chairs my mother in law bought us a couple of years ago.  it fits exactly 3 people, which is all we need, and the perfect size for our narrow balcony.  sophia loves it. for her eating outdoors is like having a party.

so on the menu this week are the following:

DINNERS

Monday, 5/21 : grilled chicken thigh & pasta primavera

Tuesday, 5/22 : grilled carne asada tacos (carne asada recipe follows)

Wednesday, 5/23: grilled ribeye steak, mushroom and asparagus saute, prosciutto e melone

Thursday, 5/24 : grilled hot dogs, celery & carrots in ranch dressing, watermelon

Friday, 5/25 : dinner with my sister-in-laws

Saturday, 5/26 : grilled halibut with cilantro sauce and orzo artichoke salad

Carne Asada Tacos

for meat & marinade
1.5 pounds flap or flank steak
3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup light soy sauce
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 lime, juiced
1/4 cup olive oil
1 pinch chipotle chili powder
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

for pico de gallo

2 roma tomatoes, chopped

1 lime, juiced

1/2 teaspoon sugar

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

1 teaspoon tabasco sauce

1/4 cup chopped onions

salt to taste

other
1 (32 ounce) package corn tortillas
1 limes, cut into wedges
1 avocado, seeded, peeled and cut into wedges

1 cup grated mexican cheese (optional) 

1 cup black beans (optional)

sour cream (optional)

shredded lettuce (optional)

Directions

Place meat in a large zip lock bag.  In a lidded jar mix together the rest of the marinade.  Shake vigorously and pour inside the bag with the beef.  Close bag and distribute the marinade on the meat.  Refrigerate for 1 hour to overnight.

The next day, bring the beef to room temperature and cook on the grill over high heat for about 2-3 minutes on each side.  Let the meat rest for at least 5 minutes.  Cut meat thinly across the grain. 

In a small bowl (i like to use a lidded jar), mix together the ingredients for the pico de gallo. Set aside.

Warm tortillas on an oiled skillet, on the grill or microwave to make them pliable. Arrange tortillas on a plate, and lay a generous amount of beef over them.  Top with pico de gallo, avocado, beans, cheese, shredded lettuce, etc. 

Beef Stracotto

In a nutshell, cotto means cooked and stracotto just means extra cooked. I like to make things sound a little more complicated, don't I? :)

This dish was a nice remedy for the spring chill we had in Los Angeles last week.  I suppose it is an Italian version of beef stew, which is adopted from a new cookbook purchase, Italian Home Cooking by Julia della Croce.

The sauce is divine!  I specially liked the light flavor of lemon and cinnamon, and how it has just a tad of sweetness.  Make sure to eat it with mashed potatoes.  The photo above does not show much of the sauce because I took the picture after the sauce was gone.  Talk about food photography fail!

I used what I think is a decent bottle of Chianti from Trader Joes.   Choose a wine you like, something you'd want to drink with it.

The cooking process takes a long time so make enough for plenty of leftovers to have the next day.  Also, do not make this on a weeknight.  I repeat, do not make this on a weeknight.  Don't be like me and make your poor starving husband wait for dinner until 8PM.  The beef needs its sweet time to cook.  That's how you get that melt in your mouth tenderness.  If you speed up the process by increasing the heat, the beef will get cooked but you'll give your jaw a real work out. So plan to make this dish on the weekends.  Let it simmer while you do the chores, do laundry or watch a movie on the couch. Hey, that last one sounds like a great idea ;)

Beef Stracotto

3 pounds stewing beef, cubed
5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 slices bacon, cut into small pieces
1 onion, chopped
5 cloves garlic, smashed
2 bay leaves
½ teaspoon dried marjoram
1 cinnamon stick
3 carrots, diced
3-inch strip of lemon peel
sea salt, or to taste
freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons tomato paste
¾ cup good quality, full-bodied dry red wine, such as Chianti
1 tablespoon unsalted butter

Preheat oven to 325F.

Heat a Dutch oven over medium heat on stove top.  Add the bacon and saute until crisp.  Using a slotted spoon transfer it to a dish and set aside.

Using the rendered fat from the bacon, brown beef on all sides about 2 minutes each side.  Cook in batches, do not over crowd the pan! Add olive oil if there is not enough oil in the pan to brown the meat.  Transfer browned beef to the dish with the bacon.

Drain all but 2 tablespoons of oil then stir in the onion, carrots, garlic, lemon peel, bay leaves, marjoram and cinnamon stick.  Saute until vegetables are soft and aromatic , about 5 minutes.

Return beef and bacon back to the pan, then season with salt and pepper.  Sprinkle flour over the meat and stir to combine, coating all of the ingredients.  Add tomato paste and smear on the ingredients.

Add the wine and enough water to barely cover the meat.  Cover and bring to a simmer then transfer it to the oven to cook for about 2-3 hours.  Check and stir occasionally.  Check for seasoning as you go along.  Add water as needed maintaining a liquid level half the height of the meat.  

When meat is tender to your liking, remove from heat.  Omit bay leaves, cinnamon stick and lemon peel.  Serve over mashed potatoes.

My Heart is Full

Another Valentine's Day has come and gone.  How was yours? No matter which way yours was celebrated I hope it was something heartfelt.  

Ours was nothing over the top.  Just an exchange of thoughtfully written cards and lots of hugs and kisses in between.  And that's good enough for me.  I am not really the pink/red heart shaped balloon and chocolate  kind of girl.  And a fancy dinner is nice (heck, I love to eat!) but I wouldn't bat an eye on a prix fixe dinner that is overpriced for the day and where I would have to battle traffic to get to it.  I prefer a simple dinner at home and a rather less fraught celebration of romance.  It just feels more romantic for me like that.

Don't get me wrong.  If you are into Valentine's day and you went all out, that is a good thing.  What matters really is that at the end of the day your heart is full.  Mine just takes less effort to fill than those of others I suppose. On Valentine's day its the equivalent of a written-from-the-heart card.  My husband is good at that.  I like that he always choose cards that are almost blank and he writes his own words on it.  The message always make my heart melt.  They are so much more beautiful and touching than those cheesy wordings Hallmark make.

The idea of a special day for lovers is nice, but any day really is a good day to celebrate love.  Actually,   celebrate it everyday.  Don't pigeon-hole all that romance in one day.  In all 365 days (well, 366 days in 2012) do something heartfelt - a random hug, a kiss in the middle of doing chores, a note written on a whim, a "thinking of you" text message when you are apart, lots of I-love-yous (trust me, the feeling does not diminish even if you say it often), flowers for no reason, and many more.

   

P.S.  If you are jealous of the Louis Vuitton your friend got from her husband it does not mean anything other than that they have more money.   For some, Valentine's day is like a competition of who can be the most  romantic.  Get over it.  That is so high school.  

Now brace yourselves.  The forecast is that it is going to rain today.   It is dark outside as I write this post.  

This is my very first beef barley soup.  I never cooked barley before.  I never had celery root before.  I was a bit nervous of the outcome but something made me confident that this concoction was going to be good.  

And it was.

Make this soup today if you can.  It's perfect for the weather.  Then get the couch, the bed or anything comfy ready and sink in food coma with the one you love.

Beef Barley Stew with Mushrooms and Celery Root

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
2-3 pounds beef (chuck or tri tip), cut into chunks
1 large onion, chopped (about 2 cups)

3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 pound cremini mushrooms, quartered
3 14oz can beef broth or chicken broth

1/2 cup red wine
2 cups water
2 teaspoons dried marjoram
1 teaspoon dried thyme
3/4 cup pearl barley, rinsed very well

1/2 cup frozen corn

1 14oz can diced tomatoes

2 bay leaf
1 cup roughly chopped carrot
2 celery roots, peeled and chopped into 1 inch chunks
Freshly ground black pepper

Sea salt or kosher salt

Sour cream

In a Dutch oven heat olive oil in medium heat.  Add butter and melt.  Sprinkle salt over beef.

When butter stops bubbling add enough pieces of beef  and brown on all sides.  Do not crowd the pan.  Set aside browned pieces.

After browning the beef, remove all but 1 tablespoon oil being careful not to discard the browned pieces at the bottom.  Add the onions to the pan and cook about 5 minutes.

Add the mushrooms and increase the heat to high. Cook the mushrooms until they release their juices, about 3 minutes.  Add garlic and cook 1 minute.

Lower heat and add wine  Scrape the bottom of the pan making sure to get all the browned bits at the bottom.  Add the beef back to the pot, then the marjoram, thyme, bay leaves, broth and water.  Bring to a boil then lower heat.  Cover pot and simmer in low heat for 1 hour. 

Stir in rinsed barley, celery root, carrots, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper and the tomatoes with its juices.  Stir well to combine and increase heat  to bring to a boil.  Then cover and simmer over low heat for about 45 minutes to an hour.  Add corn in the last 15 minutes of cooking.

Ladle soup into bowls and top with a dollop of sour cream.

Beef Osso Bucco

Last night's dinner was later than usual.  I could have waited for the weekend to make this dish but I got too excited I didn't want to wait another day.  I was hopeful dinner will be ready by seven but with the time it takes to prepare, plus the time for browning the meat cooking ended up to be a total of three hours instead of two. And it could have braised for another thirty minutes to an hour but I know my poor starving family can not wait any longer.  The meat was tender, good enough to eat but it could be a little bit more tender.  So note to self, next time allow at least 3.5 hours for cooking this dish.
Osso bucco traditionally calls for veal but I took a chance on beef shanks because it is cheaper and more accessible.  It was a success! My husband said it was worth the long wait (whew!) and for me the flavors sent me back to Rome, in that restaurant near the Piazza Navona called La Scaletta Degli Artisti where I had tasted Osso Bucco for the very first time.

ingredients
6 1-inch thick beef shanks - about 3-31/2 pounds
3 strips of bacon, diced
Flour for dredging
1/2 cup diced celery
1 cup diced carrots
1 medium onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 teaspoon thyme
1 cup dry white wine
3 cups chicken or beef broth
1 sprig fresh rosemary
1 dry bayleaf
1 tablespoon tomato paste
Seasalt and freshly ground black pepper

for the gremolata
3 tablespoon fresh flat parsley, chopped
1 tablespoon lemon zest

Preheat oven to 325F.
Heat a dutch oven on stove top over medium heat and cook bacon until crispy.  Set aside bacon.
Season beef on both sides with salt and pepper then dredge with some flour shaking off any excess.
To the hot bacon fat in the Dutch oven, brown the beef over medium high heat, about 3 minutes per side.  Set beef aside to a plate.

Drain off all but 1 tablespoon of the fat and add celery, carrot, and onions to the pan.  Season with salt to help draw out the moisture from the vegetables. Saute until soft, about 5 minutes.  Toss in the garlic and thyme and cook for 2 more minutes.  Add the tomato paste and mix well.
Pour in the wine and deglaze, then add back in the bacon and beef.  Bring to a boil and simmer for about 3 minutes. Add rosemary sprig, bay leaf and broth and bring to a boil.

Cover pan and put it in the oven until meat is tender. Check every 30 minutes, turning shanks and adding more stock as necessary.  The level of cooking liquid should always be about 3/4 the way up the meat.

Serve shanks with the sauce poured over it and garnish with the parsley and lemon zest.

Serve with asparagus risotto or mashed potatoes.

Roast Beef

Last night I cooked the most perfect roast beef  I have ever cooked.  In my attempt to lower our meal budget  I bought a top round roast on a whim when I saw they were half-off at Ralph's.  I have been buying meat on sale these days and just rely on almighty Google afterwards to find a recipe for it.  I find it easier to plan our meals this way and at the same time save money.  Thanks for the internet it has never been easier to find recipes.

In my research on roasting beef I learned a few key points:
1) To help the roast cook evenly, take the roast out of the refrigerator and let it get to room temperature, at least an hour before cooking.

2) Quickly sear on very high heat then lower to 250F.  Roasting at low temperature result in even cooking, almost all meat cooked in medium-rare .

3) Use a meat thermometer, do not wing it.  Better to error on the rare side  Set thermometer for 130°F for a medium-rare roast (125°F for rare; 145°F for medium)

4) Let the roast rest and redistribute its juices for at least 15 minutes before slicing into it.

For ribeye roast, sear at 500F for 15 minutes then lower to 250F.  For medium-rare, allow for 15-17 minutes per pound total cooking time.

Roast Beef
Cook time: 2 hours 30 minutes

INGREDIENTS
3 to 3 1/2 lbs of Top Round Roast (pick a end cut with a lot of fat marbling)
Olive oil
8 slivers of garlic

1 teaspoon chopped rosemary

Lawry's seasoned salt
Freshly ground black pepper

You will need a meat thermometer

METHOD

1.  Preheat the oven to 375°F.

2.  Preferrably start with the roast at room temperature (remove from refrigerator 1 hour before cooking) and stick to following Elise's method for cooking time.  I on the other hand was pressed for time so I cooked mine straight out of the fridge.

3. With a sharp knife make 8 small incisions around the roast. Place a sliver of garlic into each incision. Coat roast with olive oil then sprinkle with the rosemary and a little seasoned salt.  Generously sprinkle with sea salt and fresh ground black pepper.

4.  Place the roast directly on an oven rack (in middle of oven), fatty side up, with a drip pan on a rack beneath the roasting rack. 

Note: This arrangement creates convection in the oven so that you do not need to turn the roast. The roast is placed fat side up so that as the fat melts it will bathe the entire roast in its juices.

5.  Brown the roast at 375°F for 30 minutes then lower the heat to 250°F.  The roast should take somewhere from 1 hour 45 minutes to 2.5 hours additionally to cook. (When I checked the temperature on my 3 lb roast  after 1 hour and 45 minutes, it was at 135° to 140°).

6.  Pull the roast from the oven when the inside temperature of the roast is 135° to 140°F. Let the roast rest for at least 15 minutes, tented in aluminum foil to keep warm, before carving to serve.

7.  Cut thinly across the grain and serve with Au Jus and creamy horse radish.

Steak with Creamy Morel Mushroom Sauce

The sauce in this recipe is divine! Need I say more?  Keep an eye out for fresh or dried morel mushrooms, give this sauce a try and you'll know what I mean. It's an oh-em-gee moment at first bite.

I am a big fan of mushrooms so it was mushroom heaven when I saw this stall at the West Hollywood farmer's market on Memorial Day.  I was like a kid at a candy store!

I've had dreams about morel mushrooms ever since I read Hank's post about venison and morels.  So immediately my eye scoured for morels. Forget maitake.  Forget porcelini. I want morels!  And though I did not have the budget for it that day, it seemed too good to pass up on.  So I handed over my hard earned $10 to the vendor for a 4oz bag of fresh morel mushrooms.

If you do not plan on using it right away, store the mushroom in a cool dry place.  Better to keep it in a brown bag so it can breathe.  For my case I used it a couple of days after since I had other dish on the line for our dinner menu.  In those two days that I waited I searched all-knowing google for the perfect sauce.  There were several of them but I opted for a creamy based sauce.  

Jimmy, whoever you are, thank you for duplicating this sauce and allowing your sister-in-law to share it on food.com.  This mushroom sauce is a winner!

Steak with Creamy Morel Mushroom Sauce
2 steak cut of your choice
1 cup chopped fresh morel mushrooms (or 2 ounces dried, dehydrated)
1 large shallot, minced
1 tablespoon butter
1 cup heavy cream (or 1 cup whipping cream plus 1 tablespoon flour)
1 tablespoon or to taste Bouillon Beef (or chicken) base or demi glace
black pepper
3 tablespoons red wine
1 tablespoon finely minced parsley (optional)

Rub both steaks with olive oil then season with salt and pepper and any steak rub of your preference.  Grill steak and set aside.  While steaks are resting make the sauce.

Prepare the sauce.

In a large skillet, heat butter and saute shallots until they are clear.

Add minced morels and bee (or chicken base).  Stir well, then pour cream.  Add freshly ground black pepper and wine.  Simmer and stir constantly until sauce is thick.

Spoon sauce over grilled steaks, lamb, grilled or poached chicken or pasta.

Beef Stew with Ale

On Valentines day I did not know what to make for dinner.  I did not feel like going out because I hate Valentine's Day crowd, the overpriced menu, and the long wait.  I thought of something easy and quick like steak, but I just made steak the day before so it was out of the list of choices.  Well actually there was no list of choices, come lunch time and still I had no clue what to serve my family.  I needed to come up with something special.... something to make my family feel the love.  I was feeling lazy and unadventurous that day but in the midst of my usual blog hopping I was able to get some inspiration which led to a spur of the moment decision to make stew.  That day I drove like a maniac, went to the market to buy the ingredients and hoped I would have enough time to do a 3-hour beef stew.  I was inspired by Elise's stew over at Simply Recipes and also the Pioneer Woman's stew.  I sort of cross referenced both recipes, I do that a lot.

But before proceeding,

first let me show the Valentines card my husband gave our 2 year old daughter.  Man, that's sweet!

Our daughter flashed the card to me with excitement when they got home.  At first I thought it was mine so I snatched it from her (I know, shame on me!).  Then my husband handed me mine.  Sorry I am not posting that, it's for my eyes only.

Now this.....

from me, for the loves of my life - a hearty beef stew cooked with lots of love!

The original recipe called for beef short ribs but I decided to use Trader Joe's tri-tip meat instead. I figured it would get tender quicker.  I used every short cut I know to cut down the cooking time. I am trying to serve dinner by seven thirty, you know.  So I browned the beef in big chunks then cut them afterwards.  I also added the vegetables right away so they get tender along with the beef, which shortened the time by about 30 minutes.  I actually like it when the potatoes gets mushy, and thickens the stew a little bit.

Beef Stew with Ale

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup flour
2 Tbsp paprika
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1 teaspoon cayenne
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
3 pounds beef (tri-tip, stew meat, or beef short ribs)
4 strips thick-cut bacon, cut in 1 inch strips
1 medium onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 bottle (12 oz.) brown ale
1 can (14.5 oz.) diced tomatoes
2 pounds red potatoes, unpeeled
1/2 pound baby carrots
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1 cup water
1/2 Beef Bouillon cube
Minced Parsley (optional)


METHOD

Preheat oven to 350°. Combine flour, paprika, smoked paprika, 1 teaspoon of salt, and 1 teaspoon of black pepper in a large bowl. Dredge the beef in the flour mixture.

In a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat, cook bacon until fat renders. Transfer bacon to a plate and set aside.

Pour off all but 2 Tbsp of the bacon fat from pot then add beef. Notice the beef were in huge chunks. I was trying to save time in the browning process.

Brown beef on all sides.

Transfer browned beef to the bacon plate and reserve. Cool beef for a little while then cut them into smaller pieces.


Add the onion and 1/2 teaspoon of salt to the pot and cook, stirring, until softened, about 3 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute.

Add the ale and, using a wooden spoon, scrape up any browned bits on the bottom of the pan. It is called deglazing, the process of dissolving all the flavorful food particles stuck at the bottom of the pan.

Add tomatoes and their juices, tomato paste, brown sugar, reserved bacon, beef, carrots, potatoes, bouillon cubes and water. Increase heat to high and bring mixture to a boil. Cover and put in the preheated oven, and cook two hours. Make sure to check how it taste like and adjust seasoning as desired.  A lesson from Top Chef - always taste your dish!

This is how it looks like after 2 hours.  Next, do your best to spoon off any excess fat on top.

I also bought these pre-baked mini baguettes from Trader Joes which I thought would be perfect to serve with the stew. They only need about 5 minutes to crisp in the oven.

Serve the stew in bowls along with crusty mini French baguettes.

This is what they call comfort food.

And yes, dinner was served before seven thirty.

L.O.V.E.

This picture says it all.

When I was single I did not like Valentines day too much.  When you are single Valentines day makes you feel lonely.  (Blame it on the heart balloons everywhere and to the girls who parade their bouquet of flowers.)

Now, for me Valentines Days is about FAMILY.  After all, love begins at home.

However I do welcome a bouquet of flowers from my beloved any day, Valentines day or not.  In fact the more unexpected it is the better. I got these last week ... I was thrilled!

And speaking of love, this past week I've been glued to the computer reading the online love story between The Pioneer Woman and her husband a.k.a. The Marlboro Man entitled Black Heels to Tractor Wheels.  It is  a beautiful love story.  And her blog, oh goodness! I love it! It's my new addiction.

In celebration of Love day, I am sharing Ree's Steak with Burgundy Mushroom sauce recipe.  It's elegant and tastes absolutely divine.  And did I say mushrooms are my favorite?

Ingredients
4 whole Steaks (sirloin, Ribeye, Etc.)
½ cups Butter
1 pound White Mushrooms, Sliced
4 cloves Garlic, Minced
3 whole Green Onions, Sliced
1-½ cup Red Wine: Burgundy, Merlot, Cab, Etc.
Salt And Pepper, to taste
1 Tablespoon Butter
Fresh Parsley, Minced, To Taste

Preparation Instructions
Heat a large pan and dry saute the mushroom first, just on their own with no added liquid or fat.  Stir often. The mushrooms will squeak and just when you think they are going to burn they will release their water.  Stir so that the mushrooms are coated with their own juice. Keep cooking until it absorbs back the water.

Add the butter, garlic, and green onions and cook, stirring occasionally until mushrooms are nice and golden. Pour in wine and stir, scraping bottoms of the pan. Allow to cook for several minutes or until liquid is reduced by at least half. At the end, add 1 tablespoon butter and stir into sauce. Add parsley and stir together. Don’t be afraid to splash in a little more wine if needed.

For the Steak:
Remove steak from fridge, allow steak to warm to room temperature. Drizzle olive oil on steak then sprinkle generously with salt and pepper.

Heat a skillet over high heat and fry steak to desired doneness (about 5 minutes per side for medium rare, 10 minutes a side for well done), only flip the steak once.  When done, allow the steak to rest about 10 minutes.

Spoon mushroom sauce over the top of the steak.

Hello 2011!

Today is the first day of the year 2011.  But, my daughter woke up this morning not thinking much about the new year. Well she is not thinking much about the past year either. She woke up today with the same enthusiasm as she does everyday.  She just lives.  Fully.  In the present.  That is what I am learning today from my child -- not to worry too much about what this year brings but that I just live each day.  FULLY. Of course, in faith that the Father will take care of it all.

Our 1st family Christmas tree surrounded with new toys

New Year's eve was quiet for us.  Ok, my eyes were shut by 11:15PM as I was t-i-r-e-d.  My daughter and I have been sick since Christmas day with cold and cough, so we have to have the much needed rest before the holiday ends.  I skipped the usual tradition of having food and champagne at midnight to welcome the new year but at least I had a bowl full of round fruits on the table for good luck.  I also skipped carrying coins in my pocket and didn't scatter any on the windows this year (supposedly for prosperity).  Yet daughter and I wore yellow shirts (for prosperity) and put on my polka dot red pajamas.  Red for love, the dots for money.

To make up for not making preparations for last night I made today's dinner special.  After all, today is the first day of the year, right?!  So it may be the start of a tradition that I will be making this dish every January 1st.  It entails a lot of work so that it will be exclusive to this day only. It was divine and really, it was worth a half day making it. Thanks to you Julia Child -- we now have a family tradition.

I followed Julia's recipe to a tee.  So, as much as I love the flavor of bacon and that I did not understand the reason behind boiling the bacon first before browning it, I obediently followed the procedure.  Honestly though I think next time I will skip boiling it and keep the smoky flavor.  I strongly believe it will make it taste even better. 

Julia Child's Beef Bourguignon

ingredients

One 6-ounce piece of chunk bacon
3 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
3 pounds lean stewing beef, cut into 2-inch cubes
1 carrot, sliced
1 onion, sliced
Salt and pepper
2 tablespoons flour
3 cups red wine, young and full-bodied (like Beaujolais, Cotes du Rhone or Burgundy)
2 1/2 to 3 1/2 cups brown beef stock
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 cloves mashed garlic
1/2 teaspoon fres thyme
A crumbled bay leaf
18 to 24 white onions, small (or defrosted frozen pearl onions)
3 1/2 tablespoons butter
Herb bouquet (4 parsley sprigs, one-half bay leaf, one-quarter teaspoon thyme, tied in cheesecloth)
1 pound mushrooms, fresh and quartered

Remove bacon rind and cut into lardons (sticks 1/4-inch thick and 1 1/2 inches long). Simmer rind and lardons for 10 minutes in 1 1/2 quarts water. Drain and dry.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Sauté lardons in 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a flameproof casserole over moderate heat for 2 to 3 minutes to brown lightly. Remove to a side dish with a slotted spoon.

Dry the boiled bacon in a paper towel, then brown lightly

Dry beef in paper towels; it will not brown if it is damp. Heat fat in casserole until almost smoking. Add beef, a few pieces at a time, and sauté until nicely browned on all sides. Add it to the lardons.

In the same fat, brown the sliced vegetables. Pour out the excess fat.

Return the beef and bacon to the casserole and toss with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.

Then sprinkle on the flour and toss again to coat the beef lightly. Set casserole uncovered in middle position of preheated oven for 4 minutes.

Toss the meat again and return to oven for 4 minutes (this browns the flour and coves the meat with a light crust)

                

Remove casserole and turn oven down to 325 degrees.

Stir in wine and 2 to 3 cups stock, just enough so that the meat is barely covered.

Add the tomato paste, garlic, herbs and bacon rind. Bring to a simmer on top of the stove.

Cover casserole and set in lower third of oven. Regulate heat so that liquid simmers very slowly for 3 to 4 hours. The meat is done when a fork pierces it easily.

While the beef is cooking, prepare the onions and mushrooms.

Heat 1 1/2 tablespoons butter with one and one-half tablespoons of the oil until bubbling in a skillet.

Add onions and sauté over moderate heat for about 10 minutes, rolling them so they will brown as evenly as possible. Be careful not to break their skins. You cannot expect them to brown uniformly.

Add 1/2 cup of the stock, salt and pepper to taste and the herb bouquet.

Cover and simmer slowly for 40 to 50 minutes until the onions are perfectly tender but hold their shape, and the liquid has evaporated. Remove herb bouquet and set onions aside.

Wipe out skillet and heat remaining oil and butter over high heat. As soon as you see butter has begun to subside, indicating it is hot enough, add mushrooms.
Toss and shake pan for 4 to 5 minutes. As soon as they have begun to brown lightly, remove from heat.

When the meat is tender, pour the contents of the casserole into a sieve set over a saucepan.

Wash out the casserole and return the beef and lardons to it. Distribute the cooked onions and mushrooms on top.

Skim fat off sauce in saucepan. Simmer sauce for a minute or 2, skimming off additional fat as it rises. You should have about 2 1/2 cups of sauce thick enough to coat a spoon lightly.

If too thin, boil it down rapidly. If too thick, mix in a few tablespoons stock. Taste carefully for seasoning.

Pour sauce over meat and vegetables. Cover and simmer 2 to 3 minutes, basting the meat and vegetables with the sauce several times.

Serve in casserole, or arrange stew on a platter surrounded with potatoes, noodles or rice, and decorated with parsley.

Melt-In-Your-Mouth Goodness

I have been meaning to braise beef ribs for sometime now but I have not find the time needed to actually do it.  Most recipes call for 3 hours of braising and with my work schedule, it is impossible to get it all done before dinner.  But I was craving for it that I even asked my husband to buy me the book All About Braising hoping to find a quicker, less complicated way to make a delicious one.  The book had a recipe for a mouth-watering Short Ribs Braised in Porter Ale, but I find it hard to find a Porter Ale so I dismissed the intention of cooking it.  Anyway,  I hope to make the dish one day...

Then I stumbled on a recipe over at Simply Recipes.  The writer raved so much about her father's Braised Beef Short Ribs and her readers who have tried raved about it as well.  I was easily convinced, besides the ingredients were minimal and the process was relatively easy.  Although the entire process is time consuming ( spans over two days), I deemed it workable since hands-on cooking time is only about an hour on each day.

On the first day, you brown the beef and vegetables, then braise for hours.  You can pretty much do other things while you braise - cook dinner for the night, do chores, watch TV, read a book, paint your toe nails, etc.  After braising, refrigerate and go to bed.  Easy peasy, right?   Well, the second day is also not that bad of a process.  At this point it is only as if you are reheating a meal off the stove.  You simply remove the fat and boil the beef for about an hour until the sauce is thickened.  

The result is superb.  Very much worth the long time it took to make it.  It is a melt-in-your-mouth kind of goodness.  To be honest I felt guilty to have served it with a microwave baked potato.  It deserved something better - like good home made mashed potatoes and maybe some beautifully sauteed brussel sprouts.  But I had no choice as my husband was in a hurry to go somewhere with a friend - I actually had doubts about finishing the dish on time.  But surely I would make it again.. and again... and next time it would be with better side dishes and a good bottle of wine to complement it. 

Braised Beef Short Ribs

10 beef short ribs, bone-in

salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon brown sugar

1/4 cup grapeseed oil or olive oil

1 yellow onion, chopped

1 stalk celery, chopped

1 carrot, peeled & chopped

1 750-ml bottle good dry red wine (I used a Incanto Chianti Classico Reserva 2005)

1 quart veal stock (or beef stock, but I used beef broth)

water

Day One:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.  Season ribs with salt & pepper.  Heat oil in a large heavy bottomed overproof pan (I used a dutch oven) over high heat.  Add ribs and brown on all sides.  Work in batches so that the ribs do not get crowded - for better browning.
2. Transfer ribs to plate and pour off all but 1 tablespoon of fat.  Add the onions, celery and carrots and saute, stirring often, until lightly browned, about 5 minutes.
3. Remove the vegetables from the pan and set aside.  Add the wine to the pan, and deglaze, scraping off any browned bits from the bottom of the pan.  Boil for about 15 minutes over medium heat, until wine is reduced by three-quarters and slightly syrupy.
4. Return the ribs to the pan, add the stock and enough water to cover the ribs.  Bring to a boil, cover with foil, and place in the oven.  Braise in the oven at a gentle simmer, until the meat is fork-tender, 2 to 2 1/2 hours.  Check after the first 10 minutes to see that the liquid is not simmering too aggressively; if it is, lower the oven temperature by 10 degrees.  During the last 1/2 hour of braising, add back in the vegetables.
5. Remove from oven and allow the ribs to cool in the liquid, then cover and refrigerate overnight (or upto 2 days).

Day Two:

1. Remove the excess fat that has solidified at the top from the chilling.
2. Remove the ribs from the liquid and set aside.  Using a blender, puree the liquid and vegetable mixture. Then return ribs and mixture back to the pan.  (This step is optional, I find that pureeing the vegetables give a thicker consistency in the sauce.  If you like you can also strain the liquid after pureeing).
3. Place the pan with the ribs & cooking liquid over medium heat, uncovered.  Add brown sugar and boil until the liquid has reduced by three-quarters, about 1 hour.   Spoon the sauce over the ribs as you cook, until the sauce is thick and ribs are glazed.  Take care not to burn the glaze, move the ribs around in the pan to keep them from burning.
4. Serve over baked potatoes, egg noodles, mashed potaoes, or rice.

Note to self : If cooking for a group of people, allot 2 ribs per person.

Cost:
Beef Short Ribs : $12.00
Mirepoix : $1.00
Beef Broth : $2.50
Chianti : $9.00

Beef Shiitake and Snow Pea Stir-fry

Traffic was pretty bad today so I got home later than I thought.  On my way home, I had to stop by the market to buy my groceries for the week.  I was supposed to marinade some meat and grill it for dinner but I  knew the meat will not have enough time to marinade.   Good thing that I had this prinout from Bon Appetit to the rescue - I was supposed make it for another night.  It looked very easy and I have a meat in the freezer which can be easily thawed for the dish.  I am so happy how it turned out that this will be now an addition to my go-to dinners.   It is very flavorful and perfect over steamed white or brown rice.  I specially like that the sauce have a good consistency without calling for flour as other stir-fry do.

Beef Shiitake and Snow Pea Stir-fry

yield: Makes 4 servings

active time: 30 minutes

total time: 30 minutes

1-2 pound beef chuck steak, cut into  1/4 inch thick strips

1 10 ounces snow peas (or asparagus, baby broccoli, or baby bokchoy)

4 green onions, sliced

1/2 cup fresh cilantro,  coarsely chopped 

12 ounces fresh shiitake mushrooms, stems removed and thickly sliced

1 tablespoon sesame oil

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon fresh ginger, peeled and minced

5 tablespoons Hoisin sauce

2 teaspoon chili-garlic sauce

1/4 teaspoon Chinese 5-spice powder

Note:  I find it easier to cut the meat into thinner pieces when it is a little frozen.

Sprinkle beef with salt and pepper.

Heat a large skillet over medium heat.  Add sesame oil and heat.  Add ginger and mushrooms; stir-fry until mushrooms are wilted & tender, about 3 minutes (add a tablespoon of olive oil if mushrooms dry out and starts to burn).  Add beef to skillet; and stir constantly over high heat.  Cook until beef browns but is still pink in center, about 2-3 minutes.  Add snow peas, green onions and half of cilantro; stir-fry 1 minute.  Stir in hoisin, chili-garlic sauce, and five-spice powder.  Saute until peas are crisp-tender, 3-5 minutes.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  

Serve over brown or white rice. Sprinkle with chopped cilantro and green onions if desired.