New England "Boiled" Dinner

It's more of a braise, actually!  I don't have one drop of Irish blood in me, but I love the culture and their food.  Today, I made this traditional Irish-American, one-pot-wonder and we really enjoyed it.  The food was overflowing on this platter and I served the remaining vegetables in a serving bowl.  This feast of slowly cooked corned beef, cabbage, onions, potatoes, turnips and carrots only cost about $15 total!

One corned beef brisket, approximately 21/2 pounds
1/3 cup light brown sugar
One bottle (12 oz.) Sam Adams Irish Red Ale or beer of your choice (Guinness would be excellent, of course!)
Water, to cover brisket
1 bay leaf
2 garlic cloves, smashed with a knife and peeled
1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns
24 oz. container baby red potatoes, scrubbed and rinsed
2 turnips, washed, peeled and cut into 2" chunks
1 extra-large onion, peeled and cut into 8 wedges
1 head cabbage, washed, outer leaves and root end removed, cut into 10 wedges
8 oz. baby carrots, washed

Remove brisket from package; rinse well.  Place on a large plate and coat both sides with brown sugar.  Place meat in a Dutch oven.  Pour the beer over the beef.  Add water to cover.  Place bay leaf, garlic and peppercorns in a small piece of cheesecloth; tie up with kitchen twine.  Toss the sachet into the pot.  Cover and bring to a boil.  Remove any scum that floats to the surface.  Reduce heat to simmer and cook for 3 hours.

Discard sachet.  Place brisket on a cutting board and cover with foil.  Set aside.  Bring cooking liquids back up to a boil.  Add potatoes, turnips, onion, carrots and cabbage.  (I couldn't fit two of the cabbage wedges into the pot.  Oh, well.  Coleslaw tomorrow!)

Place lid on the pot.  Reduce heat to brisk simmer and cook for 25-30 minutes.  Drain vegetables and serve with brisket.

Dipping Sauce:

3/4 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons prepared horseradish
1 tablespoon stone-ground mustard
1 green onion, root end removed, washed and minced
Kosher salt and Mrs. Dash Garlic-Herb Seasoning, to taste
Honey, to taste (a healthy teaspoon, I'd say)

Mix ingredients and chill until ready to serve.  I made this just before I put the brisket on the stove.  Great with the beef and potatoes!

Christmas Roast Beast

This would melt any Grinch's heart--well-seasoned, slowly roasted, juicy, medium in the center, more well-done on the ends.  Delicious!

One bone-in, ribeye roast, approximately 5 1/2 pounds

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

2 tablespoons coarse-ground mustard

1 tablespoon Montreal Steak Seasoning

1 teaspoon kosher salt

2 tablespoons Mrs. Dash Garlic & Herb Seasoning

1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves

1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a shallow roasting pan with aluminum foil.  Place the roast on the pan.  Set aside.

Whisk together oil, Worcestershire and mustard.  In a separate bowl, combine the rest of the ingredients.

At this point, I put on a pair of disposable gloves.  Pour the liquid mixture all over the roast and rub it in well.  Do this with the dry mixture as well.

Roast it for three hours.  Remove from the oven, cover with foil and allow to rest at room temperature for 20-30 minutes before carving.  

Swiss Steak Remix

One of my favorite dishes as a child was Mom's Swiss Steak.  She seasoned round steak with garlic salt and pepper, cut the meat into strips, rolled the strips in flour and browned them in about a cup (!) of Wesson oil in a cast iron skillet   Next, she threw in onion chunks and cooked them until softened.  She mixed in flour for thickening and stirred in water, ketchup and Worcestershire sauce.  She slapped on a lid and allowed the beef to cook slowly for at least two hours.  Buttered rice and garlic bread were the go-withs.

I was craving that flavor but had to make it healthier--less oil, more vegetables.  Here is my version, with southwestern seasonings. (Weight Watchers-friendly; 7 POINTS.)

1 pound round steak, cut approximately 3/4" thick
3/4 teaspoon fajita seasoning
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon Mrs. Dash Southwest Chipotle seasoning (or 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1 medium Vidalia onion, peeled and sliced into half-moons
1 large green bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and cut into thin strips
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 cups Newman's Own Farmer's Garden Salsa (Medium)*
1/2 cup water
2 cups hot cooked white rice

Spread plastic wrap over a large cutting board.  Cut steak into four pieces.  Place the pieces of steak on top of the plastic.  Cover with another sheet of plastic wrap.  Pound with a meat mallet to 1/2-inch thickness.  Combine seasonings and flour in a large zip-top bag.  Add the pieces to the bag one at a time, seal it up and shake to coat evenly. Set the meat aside.

Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat.  Add the meat and brown well on both sides.  Remove the meat to a plate.

Add the onions and peppers to the pan drippings; lightly brown the vegetables.  Add the minced garlic; cook for one minute.  Deglaze the pan with the salsa and water.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce the heat.  Return the steaks to the pan.  Cover and cook for 1 1/2-2 hours, or until tender.  Serves 4.

*Note:  Any tomato-based salsa would be great.  I love this particular salsa because it contains grated carrot, which adds a lot of richness to the dish.

Also, you can transfer this to a slow cooker and cook on High heat for four hours.

Bowl O' Red

We love chili.  I've tinkered with the recipe over the years.

This is my latest version.  Corey says it's just right--flavorful and not too spicy.

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 medium Vidalia onion, peeled and chopped

1 poblano chile, stemmed, seeded and chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided

2 pounds ground sirloin

1 teaspoon Mrs. Dash Southwest Chipotle seasoning

2 tablespoons chili powder

1 tablespoon ground cumin

2 teaspoons dried oregano

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

10 ounce can Ro-Tel Diced Tomatoes with Chiles, mild, undrained

14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes, undrained

2 cans kidney beans, undrained

1 cup beef stock

Garnish:  sour cream, shredded cheese, cilantro, chopped green onions and/or tortilla chips

Heat olive oil in large, heavy Dutch oven over medium heat.  Add onion and poblano.  Saute for 5-7 minutes, or until translucent.  Add minced garlic and one teaspoon salt.  Cook for two more minutes.  

Raise heat to medium-high.  Add ground sirloin.  Break up the meat with a wooden spoon while it cooks through.  Add next six ingredients and the remaining salt.  Cook until fragrant.

Add tomatoes, beans and beef stock.  Bring it to a boil.  Reduce the heat to simmer; cook for 30 minutes, uncovered.  Taste for seasoning.  (I like to use a potato masher at this point to crush some of the beans.  It makes it thicker.)

Garnish and enjoy!  Freshly baked cornbread alongside is a must.

Puree the leftover chili with an immersion blender and use it to top grilled hot dogs and baked potatoes.  Yum!!

Stuffed Shells

After suffering through a brutal winter packed with blizzards and Nor'easters, it was so nice to spend the first day of Spring in Dixie.  I wore short sleeves and sandals (!) and chased my daughter and nieces around the yard.


Back to reality.  The weekend ended when we returned home last night.  We were exhausted after the long drive, starving and rain-soaked.  What's for dinner?  Pasta sounds good.  I analyzed what I had on hand....jumbo stuffed shells!  Yum.

20 jumbo pasta shells (half of a 12 oz. box)


Meat Sauce:
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
One-half of a 20.8 oz. package ground turkey breast
1 medium onion, peeled and chopped
2 large cloves garlic, peeled and minced
4 ozs. fresh mushrooms, chopped
Pinch of red pepper flakes
Salt and pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons dry wine, whatever you have on hand
24 oz. jar tomato-basil pasta sauce
1/2 cup chicken stock
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/2 teaspoon Mrs. Dash Garlic and Herb seasoning
1 cup baby spinach leaves, chopped


Cheese Filling:
15 oz. whole-milk ricotta cheese
1 cup shredded four-cheese Italian blend
1 large egg
1/4 tsp. dried oregano
Few grinds of black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt


Topping:


3 tablespoons grated Parmesan


Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Put the pot of water on for the pasta and start the sauce.


Heat the oil in a large cast-iron skillet over medium heat.  Add the turkey breast and break it up with a wooden spoon.  When halfway cooked, add the onion, garlic, mushrooms, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper.  Cook until the turkey is done and the onions are tender.  Deglaze the pan with the wine and stir in the pasta sauce.  Pour the stock into the empty jar, recap it and shake to get every bit of sauce.  Pour this into the pan.  Add Mrs. Dash and Italian seasoning.  Stir in the spinach and heat until wilted.


Cook the pasta shells according to package directions. Drain, rinse with cold water and drain again.


Stir together the ingredients for the cheese filling.  If you have fresh parsley on hand, add a good tablespoon.


Grease a gratin pan or a 13 x 9" pan.  Add three ladles of sauce to the bottom of the pan and spread it around.  Stuff a heaping tablespoon of filling into each shell.  Place them on top of the sauce.  Sprinkle with Parmesan.  Cover with foil and bake for 35 minutes.


Enjoy the pasta with a salad, garlic toast and a glass of wine.


It took about an hour, but it really hit the spot!

My Evening With Julia

My husband bought me a copy of  Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child for Christmas and I was instantly wowed.  She is a legend and that book is a classic for a good reason:  The recipes are sheer perfection.

It snowed yesterday.  Great beef stew day, I thought.  But not any ol' beef stew.  How about Julia's Bourguignon?  The first recipe I decided to try of hers and it has to be the most difficult one!!

What a production!!!!!  But so worth it.

Step 1:  Blanch bacon to remove the smokiness. Drain.  Preheat the oven.
Step 2:  Dry beef cubes.  Saute bacon, leaving drippings in the "fireproof casserole".   (I used a Dutch oven.) Brown the beef in the drippings.  Remove beef.
Step 3:  Add sliced carrot and onion to pan; brown the veggies.
Step 4:  Return beef and bacon to the veg.  Sprinkle on salt, pepper and flour; bake for 8 minutes.
Step 5:  Add wine, beef stock, tomato paste, crushed garlic, thyme and bay leaf.  Bring to a simmer on the stove.  Reduce the oven temp and bake for 3 hours.
Step 6:  While stew bakes, trim and peel 24 pearl onions.  (That took a while!)  Skillet-braise in butter, oil, stock and herbs for 40 minutes.
Step 7:  Quarter up a pound of mushrooms.  Saute in oil and butter.

Step 8:  Stew's done!  Scoop out the solids and bring the gravy in the pan to a quick boil to reduce slightly.  Add the goodies back in and top with the onions and 'shrooms.  Serve with potatoes, noodles or rice and decorate with parsley.

Excellent last night--fall-apart-tender meat, silky vegetables and velvety sauce.  Absolutely unbelievable for lunch today.  The flavors melded and became more intense.  Served it with Rachael Ray's superlative Cheesy Rice Fritters and wilted spinach.  I made two changes to Rach's rice fritters recipe to boost the flavor and cut the fat.  What did I do?  You'll just have to wait for tomorrow's rice post, won't you?