Against My Better Judgement

Although the annoying screech of Rachael Ray's voice usually sends me running the the opposite direction, I have to give her props for this quick and tasty meatloaf recipe. I won't be subscribing to her magazine anytime soon, but I will certainly put this in our dinner rotation.

Mini Meatloaf Muffins
adapted from Rachael Ray

1 2/3 to 1 3/4 pounds ground sirloin
1 medium onion, cut into chunks
2 ribs celery from the heart of the stalk, cut into 2-inch pieces
1/2 of a red and orange pepper, cut in chunks
1 large egg plus a splash of milk, beaten
1/2 cup 4 cheese bread crumbs
1/2 cup panko
2 tablespoons grill seasoning
1 cup barbecue sauce (we used raspberry chipotle)
1/2 cup tomato salsa
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

Put ground beef into a big bowl. Put onion and celery into a food processor. Cut the bell pepper in half, rip out the seeds and throw them into your garbage bowl. Cut the pepper into a few pieces and add to the food processor. Pulse the processor blades to finely chop the vegetables into very small pieces then add them to the meat bowl. Add egg, beaten with milk, bread crumbs and grill seasoning to the bowl. Next, mix together the barbecue sauce, the salsa and the Worcestershire sauce. Pour half the sauce mixture into the bowl with the meatloaf mix. Mix the meatloaf together with your hands. Wash up. Brush a 12-muffin tin (1/2-cup each) with vegetable oil or extra-virgin olive oil. Top each meat loaf with a spoonful of extra sauce. Bake about 20 minutes. Cut open 1 muffin to test that the middle is cooked through.

Barefoot Bloggers Pot Roast

Ina's Company Pot Roast

Ingredients

1 (4 to 5-pound) prime boneless beef chuck roast, tied

nocoupons

• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• All-purpose flour
• Good olive oil
• 2 cups chopped carrots (4 carrots)
• 2 cups chopped yellow onions (2 onions)
• 2 cups chopped celery (4 stalks)
• 2 cups chopped leeks, white and light green parts (2 to 4 leeks)
• 5 large garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
• 2 cups good red wine, such as Burgundy
• 2 tablespoons Cognac or brandy
• 1 (28-ounce) can whole plum tomatoes in puree
• 1 cup chicken stock, preferably homemade
• 1 chicken bouillon cube
• 3 branches fresh thyme
• 2 branches fresh rosemary
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, at room temperature

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Pat the beef dry with a paper towel. Season the roast all over with 1 tablespoon salt and 1 1/2 teaspoons pepper. Dredge the whole roast in flour, including the ends. In a large Dutch oven, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat. Add the roast and sear for 4 to 5 minutes, until nicely browned. Turn and sear the other side and then turn and sear the ends. This should take 4 to 5 minutes for each side. Remove the roast to a large plate.

Add 2 tablespoons olive oil to the Dutch oven. Add the carrots, onions, celery, leeks, garlic, 1 tablespoon salt, and 1 1/2 teaspoons pepper and cook over medium heat for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tender but not browned. Add the wine and Cognac and bring to a boil. Add the tomatoes, chicken stock, bouillon cube, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper. Tie the thyme and rosemary together with kitchen string and add to the pot. Put the roast back into the pot, bring to a boil, and cover. Place in the oven for 2 1/2 hours, until the meat is fork tender or about 160 degrees F internally. Turn the heat down to 250 degrees F after about an hour to keep the sauce at a simmer.

Remove the roast to a cutting board. Remove the herb bundle and discard. Skim off as much fat as possible from the sauce. Transfer half the sauce and vegetables to a blender or a food processor fitted with the steel blade and puree until smooth. Pour the puree back into the pot, place on the stovetop over low heat, and return the sauce to a simmer. Place 2 tablespoons flour and the butter in a small bowl and mash them together with a fork. Stir into the sauce and simmer for 2 minutes, stirring until thickened. Taste for seasonings. Remove the strings from the roast, and slice the meat. Serve warm with the sauce spooned over it.

**This was a delicious dish! We had it last weekend, since we would obviously be having turkey for dinner today. We especially loved the sauce, as it seemed the meat was a little on the fatty side. Not sure if it is normal for the cut or just an issue for the piece we bought.

Barefoot Bloggers Blue Cheese Souffle

This weeks selection comes to us from Summer of Sexy Apartment. I have never taken myself to task to make a souffle, but I must say that I am so happy to have that culinary milestone under my belt!
I think this dish would be the star for your next luncheon with the ladies, or a light supper paired with a salad of mixed greens and some fresh fruit. It went together quickly and despite my stressing about how it would actually turn out, I was pleasantly surprised.
The blue cheese flavor wasn't overwhelming, but simply provided some tanginess to compliment the eggs. I will definitely be making this one again!

Crispy Tacos Picadillo & Fresh Salsa

Although I really enjoy looking through the glossy pages of the Martha Stewart Living magazine, I have to admit it is rare that I make one of her dishes. I have had good success with a few of them over the years, but sometimes the daunting list of ingredients forces me in a different direction.
However, in the recent issue, I was drawn to the Crispy Tacos Picadillo. This recipe called for homemade taco shells, so we decided to give it a go. I normally am not at all interested in frying in the kitchen, but I threw caution to the wind and despite the fact that I need another shower because of my oily stench, I was happy we went through with it. Since the package of corn tortillas had many more than we would use, we decided some chips would be the perfect solution. I must say the chips turned out fabulously. Matt did most of the frying and he just added a sprinkle of kosher salt after he transferred them to the paper towel to drain. The taco shells were a different story all together. For the amount of work that went into the shells, the result was mediocre in our opinion. I will say neither one of us has much frying experience under our belts, but the shells were too greasy and limp in no time flat. Because of this, we decided that next time around we will fry the chips and make nachos. Crisis averted!
We scoured the internet for a good tomato salsa recipe and thanks to Cha and T, we found it with our new online subscription to Cooks Illustrated. I can't post a link to the recipe because you need to be a member, but I will give a list of the ingredients:

vine-ripe tomatoes
red onion
jalapeno
cilantro
garlic
lime juice
salt
sugar

This, for me, was the highlight of the meal. It had a little kick of heat, but not so much that it overpowered the salsa. It was a fresh accompaniment to the tacos and delicious along with the homemade tortilla chips.

Sausage Fest '09

I know I said in an earlier post that we would be cooking a "challenging" dish with our friends Timm and Faith once a month, but when there is sausage to be made, who am I to argue? Timm and Faith have made sausage previously, but this was a first for Matt and I. Timm and Matt were brainstorming at the grocery store when shopping for ingredients when they thought of a grand idea!! Why not stuff these casings with themed meat goodies? Thus, the ideas started flowing. We made the following sausages:

1. Shepherd's Pie (ground chuck, carrots, leeks, celery, onion, garlic, potatoes, salt, and pepper)
   
2. Buffalo Chicken (ground chicken, fat, celery, Frank's Red Hot, bleu cheese, salt, and pepper)
3. Sweet and Savory Chicken (ground chicken, fat, apple, bacon, salt, and pepper)
4. Triple P (ground pork, pineapple, pepper-green and red, salt, and pepper)
5. Plain (ground pork, mace, salt, and pepper)

My only question is: Why haven't we done this sooner!? The sausages were delicious, and we all felt good about the fact that all the ingredients were fresh and we had complete control over the flavors. It was nice to know there were no artificial additives, and you could certainly tell the difference. We had good success with all the sausages except the Triple P. Unfortunately, the casing began to break down when they were chilling in the refrigerator and even when they were transferred to the hot part of the grill, they completely fell apart. We think this was due to the moisture of the pineapple and peppers, but since none of us had ever used those ingredients in sausage, we can't be sure. All in all, it was a great experience, and I have already priced the food grinder attachment for the Kitchen Aid! In addition to the sausage, Timm requested that I make my mom's recipe for Confetti Coleslaw. You can see the picture below, but you should check out her adorable blog for the recipe and just to poke around:)

Pork with Rhubarb Chipotle Sauce

I have perused many a Williams Sonoma catalog with drool coming off my chin, but I have not previously paid much attention to their website. It is a great tool to find all the cooking gear you lust after and can't afford, but I have also found it to be a good resource for all the tasty recipes they print on the pages of their glossy catalog. That said, I have had some rhubarb in my freezer for some time and found a recipe on the WS that inspired this dish. M picked up some pork loin the other day and we had some bacon in the fridge, so I figured that more pork is always a better, tastier option. I simply seasoned the loin with salt and pepper, wrapped it in bacon, and drizzled with maple syrup. I have learned that with pork, if you remove from the oven a few degrees prior to doneness, cover with foil, and let rest, you have a juicier piece of meat. The rhubarb sauce was quite a good addition to the pork, but I really deviated from the recipe with this. I started with some sauteed onions, added the rhubarb, a little apple cider vinegar, brown sugar, salt, pepper, and finished it off with a heaping helping of adobo sauce. The adobo added a smoky bite with just the right amount of heat on the finish.
You'll notice that we have been eating a bit of starch with our meats, and last night was no exception. I gained inspiration for the potatoes at the WS site, as well. I often have an aversion to measuring when I am cooking (not baking!!), so I was very loose with the ingredients. I used the Idaho's I had on hand, mashed them with the half-n-half, and added the cheese, butter, and chives. In addition, I threw in a little sour cream and seasoned them with salt and pepper. Into the oven alongside the pork for the last 15 minutes and we had a great meal that finally used up some of the ingredients sitting in our freezer!

Steak and Potatoes

I have watched Giada numerous times on the Food Network, but I have never tried one of her recipes. Typically when the weekly ad for our grocery store debuts, I check the ingredients that are on sale and then search for recipes that feature said ingredients. This past week steak and potatoes were on sale, and since I love red meat, I knew I had to find a new way to prepare steak. Giada's recipe for Filet Mignon with Balsamic Syrup and Goat Cheese came up in my search engine, and those flavors immediately grabbed my attention. No we didn't have the filet, but the less expensive cut of beef we used worked well for the recipe. I also didn't have the full amount of balsamic, so I improvised with raspberry vinegar...also a decent substitution. For a steak cooked on the stove and finished under the broiler, I was impressed. Normally we would only use the grill when beef is involved, but this was a nice alternative on a snowy April night.
As for the potatoes, I simply cut some Idaho's in chunks and layered them-skin side up-on a bed of melted butter, fresh grated parmesan cheese, salt, and pepper. I drizzled a little olive oil and a bit more parm on top and baked at 400 degrees until tender. Mmmm! Crispy goodness sprinkled with fresh chives.

Gołąbki

Problem: Once again, we here in Michigan have been fooled by Mother Nature. Yesterday she brought us temps in the mid 60's and today we are back to the frigid, windy garbage we have lived with all Winter.

Solution: Fix Emeril's cabbage roll recipe to warm your tummy and transport you back to Grandma's kitchen when you were but knee-high to a grasshopper. OK, so my Grandma isn't polish, but maybe yours is??

The only change I made was to puree the sauce slightly with my stick blender since Matt isn't big on tomato chunks. Although it is a very time consuming recipe with lots of prep work, the result is a hearty dish that is very satisfying on a cold day. And you know what I say to that? BAM!

*Note: If you want a tangy compliment to the cabbage rolls, serve with a dollop of sour cream.

Final Cake

Tonight was the final class in Course 1, so we were able to decorate our cake however we wanted. I chose Spring colors and was actually really pleased with the result. We did learn sweet peas tonight, but since they were pretty easy, I stuck with roses to get a little extra practice. I think I will enroll in the next course so I can learn more flowers and borders, but I am still deciding. I have posted a picture of the cake prior to smoothing so you can see what a difference it makes. I just used a fondant smoother and placed some parchment paper on the cake and lightly smoothed my way over the cake.

before smoothingafter smoothing
final product

When we head home this weekend I am going to make a cake with my mom so I can show her some of the techniques I learned throughout the course. She just celebrated a birthday, so we'll have to pretend it is her birthday cake!
After arriving home from class, I found Matt had already started shredding cabbage for dinner and he had a salad put together. I jumped in and finished off the cabbage and carmelized some onions for the polish sausage. All in all, it was quite a productive day and dinner was delicious!

New Projects

Lots of things have been going on since my last post. Leah the adultress got booted from Top Chef, and we are nearing the end of another season. I am happy to see who is left, but I hope Carla is not the dark horse she thinks she is.
Matt and I went to GR this weekend to meet Cha and Bro, and I suggest if you are in the near vacinity of a Texas Roadhouse, steer (no pun intended) clear. Maybe we caught them on a bad night, but the food was salty, the waitress was full of silly remarks, and the staff (much to my dismay) did a line dance way too close to our booth.
When we got back we decided to go to Allen to check out the antique outlets and we were pleasantly surprised. Picked up a few goodies for the guest room and a trip back is in our future.
The last few days I have worked on updating the guest room by making a new headboard and pillow covers, sewing curtains for the dining room, and sewing valances for the kitchen window.

We also managed to have a tasty dinner last night. We put a rub on some pork tenderloin fillets and I whipped up a mango salsa for the top. Pair that with some pan fried, herbed potatoes, and we had a fresh meal to cap off the sunny day.

Well, I suppose I better get busy reading...I have a deadline to keep up with!!
**More on that in another post:)