Beef Bourguignon

Beef bourguignon is one of my favorite dishes to make. It's rich and meaty, full of wine, and requires very little effort on my part. For this, I browned some cubed sirloin, and then added in some shallots and carrots. Next, I poured in some chicken stock, a bottle of red wine, and some rosemary and thyme, and let it come to a boil. Then I turned it down to a simmer and let it cook for a couple of hours. At the end, I adjusted with salt and pepper, a little cornstarch slurry (for thickness and gloss), and the non-traditional-but-tasty-to-me spoonful of raspberry jam (currant would work too.)

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Happy Christmas!

Happy Christmas everyone! As has become our usual, and combined with the overcast, rainy day outside, our schedule was verrry relaxed--and full of good food. Brunch featured my mom's Christmas bread, or stollen, which she makes every year. We also had fresh scones (lemon-poppy seed and orange-cranberry choc. chip), creamy scrambled eggs, a variety of fruit (raspberries, strawberries, and pineapple), oven-baked bacon, and three kinds of cheese (Gouda, Manchego, and Jarlsberg). Needless to say, we were very well fed--sustenance for opening all the presents under the tree, perhaps? Many hours, and a few snacks, later we had dinner, including a small beef tenderloin, scalloped potatoes, baked tofu loaf for the vegetarians, asparagus, and a big salad. For dessert I made a tiramisu, which was creamy and coffee-y and delicious.

Marcella's Bolognese

Marcella Hazan's recipe for bolognese is fabulous, but it does take several hours to cook--which is perfect for a cold, rainy October afternoon. The rich, meaty sauce on top of spaghetti rigate really took the edge of the chilly temperature outside, and it seemed to brighten moods all around as well. I followed the recipe pretty closely, as Marcella is a stickler for details, but I did use leaner beef (93%) and organic, not imported, tomatoes.

Signs of Fall

Apple crisp, using honey crisp apples from Spring Valley Farm and Orchard, oatmeal, cinnamon, ginger, butter and brown sugar. The recipe comes from King Arthur Flour. Beef stew, rich with tender beef, sweet potatoes, carrots, rosemary and lots of red wine. Not pictured: a butternut squash lasagna that was eaten too quickly to be photographed.

Rich and Juicy Pot Roast

The weather today is cool and rainy, perfect for a long-cooked dish like pot roast. I picked up a three-pound chuck roast at the Amish market this morning, and then this afternoon, while procrastinating on some work I needed to do, I got it going on the stove. I'd never realized 'til recently that many people make pot roasts in their crock pots or in the oven, but like my mom, I cook mine on the stove, usually for 3-4 hours. The final product, which greatly benefited from a bottle of Sam Adams Octoberfest, was fall-apart tender, with potatoes and carrots that had simmered along in the pot for the last hour or so and were thus completely delicious, not overcooked at all. Kt's Pot Roast 3 lb chuck roast 3-4 Tbs flour olive oil 1 medium onion, chopped 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and left whole 32 oz chicken broth (or water) 1 bottle of beer salt and pepper thyme rosemary 2 bay leaves 1/2 lb carrots, peeled and sliced into large chunks 1 lb new potatoes, cut into large pieces 2 Tbs tomato paste Sprinkle the flour all over the meat. Heat the oil in a large French oven and then add the meat and brown all over. The browning helps to seal in the juices, and the flour helps to thicken the juices later on. When the meat is brown, add the chopped onion and the garlic and stir for about a minute. Then add the chicken broth and the beer, which should be enough to come up at least two-thirds of the way up the meat. Add the salt, pepper, thyme, rosemary, and bay leaves. Turn the heat up and bring the liquid to a boil for a few minutes. Then put the lid on, turn the heat down, and let simmer for about two to three hours, turning the meat over every half hour or so. After a few hours, add the potatoes and carrots to the pot, raise the heat to a boil again, then cover, and turn down to a good simmer for another hour or so, til the meat is fork-tender. Taste the broth and adjust for seasoning. If the broth is too thin, add a mixture of equal parts cornstarch and cold water to the simmering liquid and stir well. Optional: I also like to add a spoonful or so of currant or raspberry jam to add a little extra tartn flavor and sweetness. Cranberry would also be good, but I only had strawberry, so I skipped this step tonight.

Marcella's bolognese, the next night. It's even better reheated, served atop soft polenta with parmesan. Here's a link to the recipe, which is from Marcella's Essentials (vs. her Classic, which has a slightly different recipe.) In case you're tempted to start substituting things--don't do it. Marcella would not approve. The recipe serves four -- six would be stretching, I think. The polenta is based on a Martha recipe and uses four parts liquid to one part polenta. I used half milk and half chicken broth, with a little salt, parmesan, and butter stirred in at the end.

Marcella's bolognese. You need time to make this recipe--lots of time, and patience to follow her specific instructions, but it's definitely worth it. For more than three hours this cooked down into the rich, delicious concoction that I served over pasta--but just eating it straight out of the pot would be good too. 

More meatballs. I'll be the first to admit that meatballs don't necessarily photograph well--but they taste good, so that makes up for their being less than stellar in front of the lens. I used the same recipe I used before, but with some changes due to what was in my fridge. Somehow there was no parmesan, which was quite sad, so I used some delicious herbed chevre from Seal Cove Farm that I bought while in Maine. To compensate for the soft cheese, I added some cracker crumbs--in this case, ground up wafer crackers--to the inside of the meatball as well as on the outside. The end result was muy tasty, though generally I'd rather let good goat cheese stand on its own.

Meatballs with Tomatoes

This doesn't seem much like a summer recipe, but these meatballs are fast, versatile, and so flavorful. I ate these with just the sauce, though they'd be good in subs, on pasta, or sliced on a pizza. Based on Marcella Hazan’s Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking and my mom's recipe for meatballs/meatloaf. Thanks to my friend for reminding me of this. I used turkey instead of ground beef, and you really couldn't tell the difference (which is rare, IMO.) Meatballs with Tomatoes (4 servings) 2 slices bread (I used oatmeal bread, but whatever is fine) 1/3 c milk 1 lb ground beef (or turkey) 1 Tbs onion or shallots, grated 1 Tbs chopped parsley 1 egg 1 Tbs extra virgin olive oil 3 Tbs freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese pinch of ground sage, nutmeg, salt, and black pepper 1-2 tsp tomato paste fine, dry unflavored breadcrumbs, spread on a plate (I ground up those mini toast crackers) olive oil 1 cup fresh, ripe tomatoes, peeled and chopped (I used a 28 oz. can of crushed tomatoes with basil) 1. Put the milk and bread into a small bowl and allow to soak for at least 10 min., then mush the bread up into small pieces with your hands (or use a fork, if you'd rather not get messy yet.) 2. In a bowl put the chopped meat, onion/shallot, parsley, egg, olive oil, Parmesan, salt, pepper, nutmeg, and the bread and milk mixture. Gently knead the mixture with your hands. When all the ingredients are evenly combined, shape it gently and without squeezing into balls about 1 inch in diameter. Roll the balls lightly in the breadcrumbs. 3. Choose a sauté pan that can subsequently accommodate all the meatballs in a single layer (or do it in two batches, as I did). Pour in a small amount of olive oil, enough to cover the bottom of the pan. Turn on the heat to medium high and when the oil is hot, slip in the meatballs. Brown the meatballs on all sides. 4. When the meatballs are done, add the chopped tomatoes with their juice (or the canned tomatoes), a pinch of salt and turn the meatballs over once or twice to coat them well. Cover the pan and adjust the heat to cook at a quiet, but steady simmer for about 20 to 25 minutes. Taste and correct for salt.

Chili

Chili ... with ground beef, black beans, and three kinds of hot peppers, and corn bread with cheddar cheese and scallions