After celebrating the new jobs of two of our friends at Jumbo Seafood in Newton MA (I am already thinking of excuses to eat there again in the near future), I had to turn my attention back to the Spoon. I had been meaning to cook this recipe during the week, but it never seemed to happen. As with most slow cooked meats within this recipe collection SS tells us to brown the meat in oil on all sides. After doing so, I added a healthy portion of red wine, some vegetable stock, mustard powder, cloves, pepper, and sugar to a sauce pan and waited for it to boil.
While waiting for the sauce to boil in an extremely tippy copper bottomed pan, I chopped up two green apples and added them to the pork pan. Once the sauce was boiling I combined it with the pork and apples and put the whole thing in the oven. I baked it at 400 degrees for twenty minutes, and then lowered it to 350 degrees for 45 more minutes. It smelled great but I just wasn't hungry. My fiance and I let it sit longer than we should have because of our lack of hunger and it was a little dry. I served it with a green salad and home made dressing.
Unbelievably, there was no butter used in the making of this recipe. Go figure.
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Beef Stew One
It has been a rainy and bleak week over in my little corner of New England. Every morning before committing to getting out of bed I would open only one eye and check my phone to see if it had miraculously snowed instead and I could continue sleeping. Alas, no. Over at The Fresh Dish they were cooking lamb stew, I thought stew was just what the doctor ordered to combat the ick factor of the weather.
My first Silver Spoon stew recipe (of many to come!) was very basic. It consisted of sirloin chunks, pureed tomatoes and the basic onion, celery, carrot combo. I started with butter and olive oil (it is pretty much a mandatory cooking action) and added the carrots, celery and onions. While that was sauteing I pureed a can of San Marzano tomatoes and two very pink rocks that they called tomatoes at the store in the food processor, and added 2/3rds cup of water. Do you use San Marzano Tomatoes? They are so much more delicious than other canned tomatoes. I love them! My fiance's family taught me all about them, and it has spoiled me. I now shy away from any other variety.
I squeezed the beef chunks dry a la Julie and Julia in paper towel and then added to the beef to the pan to brown. Beef browns so much better when it is dry! After browning it on all sides, I seasoned and added the tomato puree mixture. Then I let it cook for an hour. The results, delicious but more like a tomato sauce than what I think a stew should be. I served it with a green salad and garlic bread. If you leave out the garlic bread, it is a fairly low carb stew, as stews go. What have you all been cooking this week? Leave a comment and let me know!
My first Silver Spoon stew recipe (of many to come!) was very basic. It consisted of sirloin chunks, pureed tomatoes and the basic onion, celery, carrot combo. I started with butter and olive oil (it is pretty much a mandatory cooking action) and added the carrots, celery and onions. While that was sauteing I pureed a can of San Marzano tomatoes and two very pink rocks that they called tomatoes at the store in the food processor, and added 2/3rds cup of water. Do you use San Marzano Tomatoes? They are so much more delicious than other canned tomatoes. I love them! My fiance's family taught me all about them, and it has spoiled me. I now shy away from any other variety.
I squeezed the beef chunks dry a la Julie and Julia in paper towel and then added to the beef to the pan to brown. Beef browns so much better when it is dry! After browning it on all sides, I seasoned and added the tomato puree mixture. Then I let it cook for an hour. The results, delicious but more like a tomato sauce than what I think a stew should be. I served it with a green salad and garlic bread. If you leave out the garlic bread, it is a fairly low carb stew, as stews go. What have you all been cooking this week? Leave a comment and let me know!
Saturday, February 20, 2010
Meatballs with a Tasty Onion Garnish
Thursday nights are tough for me. I usually have nothing left to give energy-wise and am often cooking 6 nights in a row. I have a hard time not ordering take out or *gasp* driving through some slop shop just to keep my sanity. With our upcoming nuptials and a weekend ahead of travel and cake tasting, I knew I had to push through and make something. This recipe has been hanging around for me to cook for a while, so with heavy support from my fiance I launched into making the meatballs.
My fiance started off by sauteeing an onion in some butter. After about ten minutes of cooking time I started to combine half of the onions with a few cups of ground beef, two egg yolks and salt and pepper. I formed meatballs and fried them in more butter. These meatballs really stayed together and developed a nice color.
Because I was having a sentimental craving, I whipped up some Quick Tomato Sauce and my BFF added a box of spaghetti to round out the meal. After the meatballs were cooked through, I topped the meatballs with the remaining sauteed onion and slathered the spaghetti with some sauce. It was a hearty, filling meal and the meatballs were so easy that they didn't even feel Spoon-worthy. The total cooking time was less than 15 minutes. It was just about all I could handle on a Thursday, especially after the cooking storm that was Wednesday. The Silver Spoon even has recipes for Thursday nights, what a versatile book. Coming up, more deliciousness, I assure you. What do you guys make for yourself when you are feeling especially tired? I want to add some quick recipes to my fiance's repertoire!
My fiance started off by sauteeing an onion in some butter. After about ten minutes of cooking time I started to combine half of the onions with a few cups of ground beef, two egg yolks and salt and pepper. I formed meatballs and fried them in more butter. These meatballs really stayed together and developed a nice color.
Because I was having a sentimental craving, I whipped up some Quick Tomato Sauce and my BFF added a box of spaghetti to round out the meal. After the meatballs were cooked through, I topped the meatballs with the remaining sauteed onion and slathered the spaghetti with some sauce. It was a hearty, filling meal and the meatballs were so easy that they didn't even feel Spoon-worthy. The total cooking time was less than 15 minutes. It was just about all I could handle on a Thursday, especially after the cooking storm that was Wednesday. The Silver Spoon even has recipes for Thursday nights, what a versatile book. Coming up, more deliciousness, I assure you. What do you guys make for yourself when you are feeling especially tired? I want to add some quick recipes to my fiance's repertoire!
Friday, February 19, 2010
Dinner Party Number 4, Will I Ever Finish Cooking a Multi-Course Meal on My Own?
Wednesday started off with a snow day! An apparent gift from the no school gods. I am skeptical as I write this about what kind of gift the day off actually was. I slept way too long, made lunch for my fiance, spent way too long at the post office, grocery shopped, hastily cleaned the house and then made a three course meal for a special dinner guest. I was tired Wednesday night. The question remains, was I more tired than usual on a Wednesday, I am not sure.
The Menu: Mushroom and Caper Crostini, Asparagus Mousse, Tomatoes stuffed with Romano and Roman Saltimboca.
I started off by prepping 8 tomatoes for the stuffed tomatoes. I cut the tops off the tomatoes and scooped out the guts, then then salted and flipped them upside down to drain for 30 minutes. Once they were draining I began making Mushroom and Caper Crostini. The SS has taught me the secret of cooking delicious mushrooms: cook them for a long time. Cooking the mushrooms for a long time over a relatively low heat gave them a beautiful crisp and color. I cooked them in olive oil and slowly added a small amount of beef stock for twenty minutes. Once I had added the six tablespoons of stock, I seasoned the mushrooms with salt, pepper, and parsley. I also added two tablespoons of capers and that was it. I topped the already toasted bread with the mixture and put them on the table.
Once the crostini were done it was time to stuff the tomatoes with various romano cheeses. I must confess here that I made a mistake, I didn't realize I needed to find two kinds of romano cheese. I only bought the sharp type when the recipe calls for the crumbly non sharp type and the sharp type. Panicking about my impending dinner date, I looked in the fridge and found ricotta. Alright, I thought, and mixed the ricotta with the sharp romano and slapped them in a buttered dish.
While I was baking the tomatoes, I put a large pot of salted water onto boil for the Asparagus. Once boiling, I added the Asparagus and cooked it for only ten minutes, practically al dente. Right then my guest arrived, a new friend from my fiance's work visiting from Japan. Oh boy, I wasn't even close to done. I attempted to have her sit and eat some crostini but alas she wanted to help.
I set back to work on the mousse. After draining it, I transfered it into my food processor and pureed it. It looked like bad baby food at this point. I, then mixed in an 8 oz package of cream cheese and had G. start beating egg whites, she was begging to help, I swear (I am a cruel and unusual hostess). My fiance juiced 1/2 of a lemon, we folded in the egg whites and it became a light, fluffy, fancy dish. I portioned it off into ramekins and refrigerated the mixture.
Next, I slapped together the Saltimboca. Roman Saltimboca recipe was voted on and approved by real Italians in Italy. According to the Silver Spoon the following recipe is The Recipe: Simply take a huge amount of butter and melt it in a pan and top a piece of veal with a slice of prosciutto and a sage leaf. Anchor the conglomeration with a toothpick and fry away.
After I had seared both sides I added a "scant" amount of dry white wine and that was pretty much it.
The tomatoes were done, the mousse was done and the Saltimboca was done all at the same time, thanks to help from G. and my fiance. We sat down to a lovely dinner. The Saltimboca was not only mouthwatering, it was totally easy and quick. I will definitely do it again! The tomatoes were tasty, but lacking something with the cheese mixup. The true star of the evening according to my fiance and G. was the Asparagus mousse. Honestly, I thought that one could have gone either way. It started out looking like baby food and finished as a fancy bowl of goodness. Ah Silver Spoon, a veritable tome of recipes. Some that challenge my perception of what a good recipe could be. Sometimes you have to take a chance and blend your veggies.
The Menu: Mushroom and Caper Crostini, Asparagus Mousse, Tomatoes stuffed with Romano and Roman Saltimboca.
I started off by prepping 8 tomatoes for the stuffed tomatoes. I cut the tops off the tomatoes and scooped out the guts, then then salted and flipped them upside down to drain for 30 minutes. Once they were draining I began making Mushroom and Caper Crostini. The SS has taught me the secret of cooking delicious mushrooms: cook them for a long time. Cooking the mushrooms for a long time over a relatively low heat gave them a beautiful crisp and color. I cooked them in olive oil and slowly added a small amount of beef stock for twenty minutes. Once I had added the six tablespoons of stock, I seasoned the mushrooms with salt, pepper, and parsley. I also added two tablespoons of capers and that was it. I topped the already toasted bread with the mixture and put them on the table.
Once the crostini were done it was time to stuff the tomatoes with various romano cheeses. I must confess here that I made a mistake, I didn't realize I needed to find two kinds of romano cheese. I only bought the sharp type when the recipe calls for the crumbly non sharp type and the sharp type. Panicking about my impending dinner date, I looked in the fridge and found ricotta. Alright, I thought, and mixed the ricotta with the sharp romano and slapped them in a buttered dish.
While I was baking the tomatoes, I put a large pot of salted water onto boil for the Asparagus. Once boiling, I added the Asparagus and cooked it for only ten minutes, practically al dente. Right then my guest arrived, a new friend from my fiance's work visiting from Japan. Oh boy, I wasn't even close to done. I attempted to have her sit and eat some crostini but alas she wanted to help.
I set back to work on the mousse. After draining it, I transfered it into my food processor and pureed it. It looked like bad baby food at this point. I, then mixed in an 8 oz package of cream cheese and had G. start beating egg whites, she was begging to help, I swear (I am a cruel and unusual hostess). My fiance juiced 1/2 of a lemon, we folded in the egg whites and it became a light, fluffy, fancy dish. I portioned it off into ramekins and refrigerated the mixture.
Next, I slapped together the Saltimboca. Roman Saltimboca recipe was voted on and approved by real Italians in Italy. According to the Silver Spoon the following recipe is The Recipe: Simply take a huge amount of butter and melt it in a pan and top a piece of veal with a slice of prosciutto and a sage leaf. Anchor the conglomeration with a toothpick and fry away.
After I had seared both sides I added a "scant" amount of dry white wine and that was pretty much it.
The tomatoes were done, the mousse was done and the Saltimboca was done all at the same time, thanks to help from G. and my fiance. We sat down to a lovely dinner. The Saltimboca was not only mouthwatering, it was totally easy and quick. I will definitely do it again! The tomatoes were tasty, but lacking something with the cheese mixup. The true star of the evening according to my fiance and G. was the Asparagus mousse. Honestly, I thought that one could have gone either way. It started out looking like baby food and finished as a fancy bowl of goodness. Ah Silver Spoon, a veritable tome of recipes. Some that challenge my perception of what a good recipe could be. Sometimes you have to take a chance and blend your veggies.
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
My First Italian Lamb Chops and Something Undercooked!
Snowmageddon reared its ugly head once again and it left me home alone, at least for a little while, I perused my fridge and found some lamb that needed cooking. Last week I saw it on sale and I bought it under duress because I don't really like lamb.
My mom tells a story about Easter when I was five or six in which I demanded a Swanson TV dinner because she was cooking a leg of lamb instead of turkey. She complied and I loved it, I never got TV dinners. As I aged, my palette expanded and I have liked lamb in the past, usually in greek or turkish style cooking, with copious amounts of Tsatziki or cream, cooked over open fire. I do not like the gaminess or odor of lamb, but I like liver, go figure.
Tonight's recipe was very simple, "Lamb Chops Cooked in Vinegar." It started with a marinade of lamb chops, white wine vinegar, onion, parsley and olive oil. As directed, I let it sit for an hour while I folded wedding invitations. Invitation folding is totally on an as needed basis. After an hour, I drained the chops and added them to a hot pan with some more olive oil. I was then directed to cook them for two minutes on each side. Eager not to overcook the protein for a change, I followed directions and I had barely warm raw meat. I attempted to serve it to my fiance, who as the record shows, pretty much loves everything I cook, but alas no. He asked for a refire, take that J.! I cooked them for about 4 more minutes on each side and they were edible. I ate it, it had no happy zing of vinegar or satisfying crisp and was very gamy smelling.
The true treat of the meal were the green beans which I steamed in the microwave (cringe, I keep it honest) and served with butter and Nana Salt. What is Nana salt you might wonder? It is an herb infused salt that my future mother in law makes and it is delicious. The recipe comes from her grandmother in law, who was an Italian ex-patriate. Once I tried it, I was hooked. So much so that I beg for Nana salt in various weird containers when I go over to my future in law's home. Pretty much everyone who tries it does the same thing. Nana salt saved dinner, thanks Nana and K. I think for the rest of this week I will stick to familiar meats.
My mom tells a story about Easter when I was five or six in which I demanded a Swanson TV dinner because she was cooking a leg of lamb instead of turkey. She complied and I loved it, I never got TV dinners. As I aged, my palette expanded and I have liked lamb in the past, usually in greek or turkish style cooking, with copious amounts of Tsatziki or cream, cooked over open fire. I do not like the gaminess or odor of lamb, but I like liver, go figure.
Tonight's recipe was very simple, "Lamb Chops Cooked in Vinegar." It started with a marinade of lamb chops, white wine vinegar, onion, parsley and olive oil. As directed, I let it sit for an hour while I folded wedding invitations. Invitation folding is totally on an as needed basis. After an hour, I drained the chops and added them to a hot pan with some more olive oil. I was then directed to cook them for two minutes on each side. Eager not to overcook the protein for a change, I followed directions and I had barely warm raw meat. I attempted to serve it to my fiance, who as the record shows, pretty much loves everything I cook, but alas no. He asked for a refire, take that J.! I cooked them for about 4 more minutes on each side and they were edible. I ate it, it had no happy zing of vinegar or satisfying crisp and was very gamy smelling.
The true treat of the meal were the green beans which I steamed in the microwave (cringe, I keep it honest) and served with butter and Nana Salt. What is Nana salt you might wonder? It is an herb infused salt that my future mother in law makes and it is delicious. The recipe comes from her grandmother in law, who was an Italian ex-patriate. Once I tried it, I was hooked. So much so that I beg for Nana salt in various weird containers when I go over to my future in law's home. Pretty much everyone who tries it does the same thing. Nana salt saved dinner, thanks Nana and K. I think for the rest of this week I will stick to familiar meats.
Saturday, February 13, 2010
BLT's Italian Style, a Revelation! and Some Overcooked Steak
Tomatoes with Bacon Au Gratin, a Silver Spoon revelation, this recipe is one of my favorites so far! Wednesday, I had the day off from work due to a snow storm that never arrived. I decided to try one of the more time consuming recipes for dinner that day. To start Tomatoes with Bacon Au Gratin, I scooped out several tomatoes so that they were hollow shells, salted them and turned them upside down. The tomatoes are supposed to drain for an hour so I left them draining and took off to the grocery store.
When I got back it was just about time to flip them over. I added bacon, mushrooms and onions to a pan and sauteed them for a few minutes. I then added thyme and parsley and cooked for a few minutes more. I then removed the pan from the stove and stirred in a beaten egg. I greased a small oven safe pan and filled each tomato with the bacon mixture and sprinkled with a scant amount of bread crumbs. I popped them in the oven at 350 degrees for 45 minutes and turned my attention to making Salted T-Bone Steak in Sauce.
Silver Spoon instructed me to generously butter a 5 pound T bone steak. Of course I complied. Then I fried the steak for two minutes on each side and put the steak in the oven at 400 degrees. While the steak was cooking I made the sauce. I added six shallots and butter to a pan and cooked it down and then added some wine. Once it evaporated I removed the pan from heat and added two egg yolks, parsley and white wine vinegar. This is where I should have had sauce, but instead I just had sticky shallots. This concoction is best described as a steak topping.
After 15 minutes, I took the steak out of the oven and added my steak topping. The steak was well done, we are more medium rare people. Next time I will cook the steak for 8 or so minutes. Thankfully, I served the steak with the tomatoes and nobody really complained. The tomatoes tasted just like a tender BLT with the lettuce upgraded to mushroom. I really suggest this recipe to anyone who likes the classic combo of tomatoes and bacon.
Ah, I am finally caught up. I have been so busy cooking that I haven't had time to do the writing part of this project.
When I got back it was just about time to flip them over. I added bacon, mushrooms and onions to a pan and sauteed them for a few minutes. I then added thyme and parsley and cooked for a few minutes more. I then removed the pan from the stove and stirred in a beaten egg. I greased a small oven safe pan and filled each tomato with the bacon mixture and sprinkled with a scant amount of bread crumbs. I popped them in the oven at 350 degrees for 45 minutes and turned my attention to making Salted T-Bone Steak in Sauce.
Silver Spoon instructed me to generously butter a 5 pound T bone steak. Of course I complied. Then I fried the steak for two minutes on each side and put the steak in the oven at 400 degrees. While the steak was cooking I made the sauce. I added six shallots and butter to a pan and cooked it down and then added some wine. Once it evaporated I removed the pan from heat and added two egg yolks, parsley and white wine vinegar. This is where I should have had sauce, but instead I just had sticky shallots. This concoction is best described as a steak topping.
After 15 minutes, I took the steak out of the oven and added my steak topping. The steak was well done, we are more medium rare people. Next time I will cook the steak for 8 or so minutes. Thankfully, I served the steak with the tomatoes and nobody really complained. The tomatoes tasted just like a tender BLT with the lettuce upgraded to mushroom. I really suggest this recipe to anyone who likes the classic combo of tomatoes and bacon.
Ah, I am finally caught up. I have been so busy cooking that I haven't had time to do the writing part of this project.
Beef Stroganoff and Spinach and Ricotta Gnocchi
Beef Stroganoff is a recipe I have done for years. Previous to cooking it a la Silver Spoon, I thought I had perfected it. My recipe was some form of beef, onions, mushrooms, mustard and sour cream. It worked great, non fussy and made for great left overs too.
The SS recipe is fussy, doesn't have sour cream and was probably slightly better. I started off by sauteing 4 onions in butter. Onions and butter is clearly a cornerstone of Italian cooking. I then added sliced mushrooms and covered for 10 minutes. Meanwhile I started another pan and added more butter and flour to create a base for a cream sauce. I quickly added a cup of cream and a pinch of sugar and stirred. I removed the sauce from the heat and added a healthy dose of mustard and put it aside while I sauteed strips of sirloin in butter and olive oil. When the beef was cooked, I combined the contents of all three pans and had Beef Stroganoff SS style.
Somewhere in the middle of making the stroganoff, I started washing 2 pounds of spinach. I filled the biggest pot in my house with it and cooked the spinach for 5 minutes. Once it was wilted I made a huge mess in my kitchen trying to squeeze out the excess water. Next time I will bring the whole pot closer to the sink before trying to extract the water. I then dumped the spinach in the food processor and chopped it finely. I combined the spinach with ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese and two egg yolks. I added salt and pepper and rolled them into little balls. I delegated some ball rolling to my BFF and started to add the finished ones into boiling water one at a time.
Instantly I had spinach soup. I was getting about 50 percent of the gnocchi out of the water. It may have needed another yolk to bind the cheese and spinach dough together, or I might not have dusted them with enough flour. T. and I were giggling and trying our best to get as many out of the water as possible. We spilled hot butter on each other, panicked for a few seconds and giggled some more.
I really can't say that this recipe was a success but it was fun to make. The gnocchi were on the bland side, despite the copious amount of salt I added and parmesan cheese. The best way to eat them was discovered this morning when I spread some gnocchi on Italian bread and pretended it was spinach bread. So much for low carb living. Coming up soon, another dinner party, stay tuned!
The SS recipe is fussy, doesn't have sour cream and was probably slightly better. I started off by sauteing 4 onions in butter. Onions and butter is clearly a cornerstone of Italian cooking. I then added sliced mushrooms and covered for 10 minutes. Meanwhile I started another pan and added more butter and flour to create a base for a cream sauce. I quickly added a cup of cream and a pinch of sugar and stirred. I removed the sauce from the heat and added a healthy dose of mustard and put it aside while I sauteed strips of sirloin in butter and olive oil. When the beef was cooked, I combined the contents of all three pans and had Beef Stroganoff SS style.
Somewhere in the middle of making the stroganoff, I started washing 2 pounds of spinach. I filled the biggest pot in my house with it and cooked the spinach for 5 minutes. Once it was wilted I made a huge mess in my kitchen trying to squeeze out the excess water. Next time I will bring the whole pot closer to the sink before trying to extract the water. I then dumped the spinach in the food processor and chopped it finely. I combined the spinach with ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese and two egg yolks. I added salt and pepper and rolled them into little balls. I delegated some ball rolling to my BFF and started to add the finished ones into boiling water one at a time.
Instantly I had spinach soup. I was getting about 50 percent of the gnocchi out of the water. It may have needed another yolk to bind the cheese and spinach dough together, or I might not have dusted them with enough flour. T. and I were giggling and trying our best to get as many out of the water as possible. We spilled hot butter on each other, panicked for a few seconds and giggled some more.
I really can't say that this recipe was a success but it was fun to make. The gnocchi were on the bland side, despite the copious amount of salt I added and parmesan cheese. The best way to eat them was discovered this morning when I spread some gnocchi on Italian bread and pretended it was spinach bread. So much for low carb living. Coming up soon, another dinner party, stay tuned!
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