Days 292 & 293: Whiskey Cream Rib-Eye & Rosemary Cream Scalloped Potatoes

I am happy to say that the wallpaper has all been removed from that awful "wallpaper room!"  I returned the rented steamer just this morning (Monday).  We completed the wallpaper removal on Saturday and as a reward for ourselves, Randy and I had an in-home date night.  What was on the menu?  Well we started our night with some good, old-fashioned whiskey sours accompanied by veggie sticks and homemade herb dip.  I grilled up some rib-eye steaks on my grill pan and whisked some whiskey cream sauce to smother them with.  In the oven, I had rosemary cream scalloped potatoes making the house smell absolutely glorious.  And the movie?  DJango Unchained.  We never saw it when it hit theaters and shortly thereafter.  Lucky for us, Randy's brother, Eric, allows us access to his Netflix account!  It was a great couch date!  Here are the recipes:

Whiskey Sours
Using fresh lemons and lime and homemade simple syrup really does make a difference in how cocktails taste!

3/4 cup whiskey
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice (3 lemons)
1/2 cup fresh lime juice (4 limes)
2/3 cup simple syrup
maraschino cherries

To make the simple syrup, simply boil 1 cup of sugar and 1 cup of water together on the stove until the sugar dissolves.  Chill before using.
Combine the ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice and shake for about 30 seconds.  Pour into glasses with ice and garnish with 1-2 cherries.

Herb Dip
Once you've made 1 creamy herb dip, you've made them all.  Have fun playing with different herbs and flavors and just keep your base the same!
 

8 oz cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup mayonnaise
3/4 cup chopped scallions
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1 TB chopped dill
salt, pepper

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix thoroughly.  You may also use a food processor if you prefer.  You may serve the dip at room temperature or chilled.

Rib-Eye Steaks with Whiskey Cream Sauce

This is how we stir the cream sauce.

This recipe, along with the potatoes, are more from my kindred cooking spirit, Ree Drummond: aka, the Pioneer Woman.  They were both super scrumptious!  Investing in a good quality steak is well worth it, too!

2 rib-eye steaks
1 small onion, diced
5 TB butter
1/4 cup of whiskey
1/4 cup beef stock
salt, pepper
1/4 cup cream

Cook the onions in a couple tablespoons of butter over medium-high heat.  When they are brown, turn off the heat and add the whiskey.  Turn the heat back on once the whiskey evaporates and set it to medium.  Pour in the beef stock and season with salt and pepper.  Whisk in another tablespoon of butter.  Let the mixtrue bubble for about 30 seconds, then reduce the heat to low.  Pour in the cream.  Whisk and add more cream if necessary.  Let the sauce simmer on low while the steaks are cooked.
Melt the last of the butter in another skillet on medium-high and season the steaks liberally with salt and pepper.  Add the steaks to the skillet and cook them for about 2 minutes on each side for a medium-rare steak.  Pour the sauce of the cooked steaks and serve.

Creamy Rosemary Potatoes
Umm... YUM!!!

1/2 stick of butter
1 cup half-and-half
1 cup heavy cream
5-6 medium potatoes, thinly sliced
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 onion, chopped
8 oz cream cheese, room temperature
salt, pepper
2 TB minced fresh rosemary
3 scallions, chopped
1 cup grated parmesan cheese
3 TB minced chives

Preheat the oven to 350*.  Butter a 9 x 13 baking dish.  In a bowl, let the potatoes soak in half a cup of both the half-and-half and heavy cream.
In a large skillet, cook the onion and garlic over low heat.  Add the cream cheese and stir while cooking until smooth.   Add the rest of the half-and-half and cream.  Season with salt, pepper, and rosemary.  Add 1/2 cup of the parmesan cheese and stir.
Pour the potatoes into the baking dish and pour the cream cheese mixture on top.  Sprinkle with the remaining cheese and bake for about 1 hour.  Garnish with the chopped chives.

We are ready!

Day 185: Steak w/ Fontina, Garlic Broccoli, & Mustard Roasted Potatoes

Alright, don't get mad, but this is not a humid-weather-friendly cooking experience.  That's my disclosure.  I know some people hate to have the oven on at all during the summer, or use the stove for that matter, and this dinner requires both. :/  I know, I know.  I have a small air conditioner in the living room, but it certainly doesn't feel like it reaches the kitchen (unless, of course, I walk outside and then come back in).  But I also have one in our bedroom and I keep our bedroom door closed so it gets nice and cold in there.  On nights like this, I often take "bedroom breaks" while cooking so I can cool off! :)  Anyway, I hate to sacrifice all delicious dishes during the summer months, so I grin and bear it occasionally and cook up a nice meal like this one.
Yesterday was Day 184 and we ended up having leftover pizza for dinner.  But I also made my classic margaritas which are always a huge hit on hot evenings!




Steak w/ Fontina Sauce
Fontina cheese is a soft Italian cheese that melts beautifully!  It makes a great fondue and a great cheese sauce.  If you've never had a cheese sauce on a steak, you don't know what you're missing!  (Plus, it's a great way to get the kids to eat their meat.)  I choose a London Broil because it's nice and thick and makes great-looking slices.  We like our steak cooked medium-rare.  And let me also say that I photographed the steak with the sauce "elegantly" drizzled on top, Randy and I both added an extra few spoonfuls of the sauce to our steak--it's that good!

1 London Broil steak
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/3 cup olive oil (or extra virgin)
2 garlic cloves, minced
salt, pepper
steak seasoning of choice
4 oz fontina cheese, grated or shredded
3 TB butter
3 TB flour
1/2 cup whole milk
salt & pepper for the sauce

In the morning, marinate the steak in the soy sauce, olive oil, minced garlic, salt, pepper, and steak seasoning.  Don't use too much salt, or you might cause the meat to seize--about 1 tsp for the whole steak is good.  Keep the steak in the refrigerator for the day but take it out about 30 minutes before you want to start cooking so it can come to room temperature.  Grill the steak on a grill pan to get good grill marks on each side and finish in the oven for desired doneness.  For information about cooking steak and cuts of meat, read here.
For the cheese sauce, melt the butter over medium heat in a saucepan.  Add the flour and whisk.  Cook 1 minute.  Add the milk and bring up to a boil, stirring constantly.  Once it bubbles, reduce the heat to low and add the cheese.  Stir in a figure-eight pattern until the cheese is melted.  You should have a nice, thick sauce at this point.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.
When the steak is done cooking, give it time to rest and let the juices absorb back into the meat.  Slice the steak on a diagonal in thin slices.  Drizzle the cheese sauce over the top.

Garlic Broccoli
This is a great and flavorful vegetable dish.  Even if you don't love garlic, try it!  The garlic infuses the oil that the broccoli cooks in and gives a subtle flavor, not too strong.  You add the garlic back into the pan, but they are large pieces so they are easy to "pick off" if you're not a garlic person.

2 bunches of broccoli
4 cloves of garlic, sliced
1/3 cup olive oil
juice of half a lemon
salt, pepper
sprinkle of red pepper flakes

Pour the oil into a pan and cook the garlic over medium heat.  When the garlic turns brown, remove it with a slotted spoon.  Add the broccoli to the pan and season with salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes.  Cook for about 8 minutes or until desired softness.  Turn off the heat.  Add the garlic back to the pan and squeeze half a lemon over the broccoli and garlic.  Stir, serve hot.
With the steak and broccoli, I also served mustard-roasted potatoes and paired it with a petite sirah red wine.  Bon apetit!

Day 141: Chicken-Fried Steak, Mashed Potatoes, Green Beans

If family wasn't congregated in this area, I would move to the South.  And possibly go back in time (but leave out the racism and heinous crimes against African Americans).  I would wear a checkered dress or skirt with an apron, bake breads, pies, make fried chicken, and of course, chicken-fried steak.  So there's that part of me, and then there's a whole other side of me who loves the modern, chic, stylish world: the elegant culinary "fads" of the city and much more that our modern world has to offer.  I just can't choose!  Well, tonight I channeled my inner, southern June Cleaver.  And Randy couldn't have been more pleased...

Chicken-Fried Steak & Gravy
Okay, so there's no chicken in this steak, just so we're clear!  The name simply refers to the fact that this is how chicken is normally fried, and now we're doing it to steak.  The best steak to use is cube steak, which is pre-tenderized and thin (it cooks fast and is easy to cut and chew).

2 lbs (about 4 pieces) cube steak
2 eggs
1 cup + 2 cups of milk
1 cup + 1/4 cup flour
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp cayenne or chipotle chili powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 cup vegetable oil
more salt & pepper (for the gravy)

Set up your dipping stations: 2 eggs + 1 cup of milk (beaten together) in one bowl/deep plate, and 1 cup of flour with paprika, chili powder, salt, and pepper in another.  Heat the oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet, and set the oven to warm for holding finished steaks.
Start by dredging the steak in the egg and milk and coating it thickly, then in the flour mixture, making sure it is well-coated again.
When the oil is hot enough (you can test by dropping a little flour or coating in--if it bubbles and rises to the top right away, it's hot enough), you can start frying the steak (2 pieces at a time).  Fry it for about 2 1/2 minutes on one side, and the 2 minutes on the other.  Then put it on an oven-safe plate and in the oven to keep warm while you finish frying the rest of the steak.
When the steak is all in the oven, pour the drippings into a heat-safe bowl.  Either use the same skillet or a saucepan for the gravy.  Start by pouring about 1/4 cup of the drippings into the pan over medium heat.  Add the 1/4 cup of flour and whisk.  (You are making a roux--or a thickener.)  After about 2 minutes, pour in the 2 cups of milk and the rest of the drippings.  Bring the liquid up to a boil while whisking.  Season with salt and pepper to taste, and reduce the heat to low.  By now (after the gravy has bubbled and settled) it should be pretty thick!  It's ready to lather some mashed potatoes and fried steak!  Enjoy!
I served the steak with creamy mashed potatoes and green beans.
"This is so yummy, Mommy.  I'm glad you made it!" ~ Abigail

Days 113 & 114: Steak, Tilapia, Mango Salsa, Sides

#TwoForTuesday!
Sorry, I couldn't resist.  That hashtag is the reason I am staying up way past my "bedtime" writing this post--I must get these dinners written up today, Tuesday!!! ;)

I guess we'll start with yesterday's dinner--Day 113: Marinated Steak, Mashed Potatoes, Seasoned Vegetables

Let's talk about steak.  So many people love steak, but are scared of cooking it at home.  Getting the temperature and tenderness can be tricky.  Then there's questions like, "Do I go with a rub or a marinade?"  Well, without overloading you with tons of information about beef, let me give you a quick low-down...
1) Cuts of Beef:  If you're looking for a nice, big, tender, juicy steak, you'll probably have to spend a couple extra bucks.  The most tender part of a cow/bull would be the tenderloin.  (Yes, the name speaks for itself.)  The problem is, it's about the smallest part of the animal, which is why it's so expensive.  This is where your filet mignon will come from.  Now, if you don't want to spend so much, you can also usually get away with buying the parts of beef around the tenderloin.  Just look for cuts ending in "loin" i.e. short loin, sirloin, top sirloin, bottom sirloin, etc.  The New York strip will come from here, also.  Sticking with these names will most likely give you the most tender cut of meat.  The tougher cuts will come from the parts of the animal that move the most and are the most muscular: the rear and shoulder.  These would be the "round" and "chuck" respectively.  Although, the flat iron comes from the chuck and can be tender and is very inexpensive--it's probably the perfect steak to cook at home during the week!  Then you have the brisket, flank, shank, and rib.  (The rib should be obvious...)  These cuts are thin and may be a bit chewy.  Marinades help tenderize them and because they're thin, they're great in fajitas and as additives to other meals.
2) Cooking to Temp: For exact cooking temperatures, obviously use a thermometer.  155*-160* is about well-done, 115* is rare.  Medium should be about 140*.  We like our steak medium-rare.  I don't use a thermometer, I use the "thumb/finger" test.  By touching your thumb to your index finger, you create a "medium-rare" feeling in your lower thumb, when you touch your thumb to your pinky, you're at well-done.  Match these with the feel of the meat, and you're close!  Don't forget to give your meat time out of the oven/off the grill to "rest."  (The juices will soak back into the meat and the the meat will continue cooking on its own for a few minutes.)
3)  Rub or Marinade?  Use a marinade when you want your meat to tenderize all day or overnight.  A rub is a dry combination of spices and seasonings and you rub it into the meat right before cooking.  This is a great way to add flavor and kick at the last minute!

I marinated my steak overnight in a combination of olive oil, soy sauce, and grill seasoning.

Then, I seared it on my grill pan and finished it in a 400* oven.

With it, I served garlic mashed potatoes and zucchini & summer squash sauteed in butter and grill seasoning (to complement the meat).  A perfect summer meal on an 80* May day!

Day 114: Roasted Tilapia with Mango Salsa, Wild Rice, Green Beans

I began by breading my fish.  We've talked about this before.  A good crust on poultry or fish is created by starting with a good breading process: flour seasoned with salt, pepper, garlic powder if desired (I used it tonight), then an egg wash, and finally, breadcrumbs with additional seasoning.  I added dried thyme and lemon zest to my breadcrumbs tonight to go with the fish.
I drizzled the tilapia with olive oil and a little hot sauce before baking it at 400* for about 12-15 minutes.

Before oven.

After oven.

I've featured mango salsa before, but here I have it broken down with pictures:

Start with 1 mango, diced.

Add 1 plum tomato, diced.

1/4 cup red onion, finely chopped.

Add 2 TB chopped cilantro, salt, pepper, juice of 1 lime, drizzle of hot sauce.

YUM!

The fish went well with green beans sauteed with butter and seasoning, and wild rice.  You can never have enough hot sauce in this family, so we drizzled a little more on...

Day 68: Steak Gorgonzola

So here's another "Randy-inspired" meal.  When I met him, this was one of his favorite Olive Garden dishes.  After we got married, it was one I knew I had to learn to make for him at home.  It's not as hard as I had thought it would be, and now we have it pretty frequently.  
This, along with other meals I've made in the past, have pretty "adult" flavors.  Because I have small children, people have wondered what I feed them.  So, below, I've included my thoughts on feeding children "adult" meals.  Enjoy!

Steak Gorgonzola
1 lb rigatoni pasta
olive oil, 2 TB butter
1 lb steak, cut in cubes
8 oz cremini mushrooms, thinly sliced
1 shallot, chopped
2 tsps rosemary, chopped
2 tsps thyme, chopped
1 garlic clove, chopped
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 TB flour
1 cup beef broth
2/3 cup heavy cream
5-6 oz gorgonzola cheese
fresh parsley, for garnish

Bring a pot of water to a boil, salt it liberally.  In a skillet, heat a drizzle of olive oil and add the butter.  When melted, add the steak.  Add the pasta to the boiling water at this point, too.  I like my steak medium-rare, so I simply sear the edges of the chunks.  Remove the meat once cooked with a slotted spoon.  Add the mushrooms to the pan and cook until soft.  Add the shallot, garlic, rosemary, and thyme.  Add the white wine.  Cook 1 minute.  Add the flour and cook 1-2 minutes.  Pour in the beef broth and cook about 5 minutes, until reduced by half.  Add the cheese and cream and stir until smooth.  Return the meat to the pan and add the pasta to combine.  Sprinkle with fresh parsley on top.

Making "Adult" Meals with Kids at the Dinner Table
Before having kids, I always said I would never make my kids a different meal than what we were having (as long as we were eating at the same time).  I.e: I won't make my children macaroni and cheese while we have steak if we're all eating together just because they might not like what we adults are having.  The exception, for me, is when Randy and I want to have a "date night" at home.  Then I'll feed the kids supper first, put them to bed, THEN we'll have our adult date dinner.  They get a different meal under those circumstances for different reasons, not because I'm afraid they won't like something.
Now that I am a parent, I hold the same philosophy, but want to present my reasons as gentle as possible because this is a TOUGH JOB.  I cringe when I hear parents judging other parents and saying "If you don't do this, you're a bad parent."  This parenting thing is not easy, and I refuse to believe that any parent sets out to raise a "bad" kid (or a "picky" eater).  That being said, I hold no judgment for parents that do make different "kid-friendly" meals for their kids.  If it works for you, great!  I don't do it, and here's why:
One of my goals as a parent is to raise a polite child.  Hey, if they don't finish their whole dinner, I really don't care.  But I want them to try everything without complaint because it's the polite thing to do.  If my child honestly doesn't like something and is fine going without dinner, then fine.  My daughter would rather do anything else but eat at this point in her life.  She likes food well enough and isn't necessarily "picky", she's just "busy."  When she would rather play or "be excused" than have dessert, I know she really just isn't interested in eating, period.  She's healthy, active, and growing.  She rarely asks for food after supper.  The one or two times she has, when I say "no" she says "ok."  No crying, no arguing.  So when she doesn't finish her dinner, I don't care that much.  What am I teaching her by FORCING her to finish something she doesn't want to?  To me, it's polite to try everything, not necessarily to finish everything.  That's my goal.  So why would I go out of my way to prepare something different for Abby when she probably won't eat it all anyway, even if it's something I know she likes?  (Plus, I find that breakfast and lunch are "happier" times of the day for kids, so I try to fill mine up at those meals.  That way, when they don't want as much supper, I can rest easy knowing they ate great meals and snacks throughout the day.)
Have you ever brought your kids somewhere only to cringe at the sound of them saying "What's that!?"  or "I don't like that!"  That's something I try to avoid.  Listen, I understand that our kids sometimes say things that make us cringe no matter how much we teach them manners.  It happens.  But the way I see it, if I train my children to eat what's in front of them with no questions here at the home, they're less likely to complain about something "different" when we're at a friend's house.  Not only is it embarrassing for the parents, but it's also embarrassing for the cook.  As a cook, it stings when anyone (even a child) doesn't want to eat what I've made.  If it's a child, I understand it a little more, but it still stings.
While on the subject of table manners, I should say that I HAVE removed EACH of my children at different times from the dinner table for poor manners.  If Abby immediately says, "I don't like that!" without even trying it, I give her a warning that if she doesn't want to eat it, she can go to bed.  Since she's been age 1 and older, I've never had to go further than a first warning.  When she was a baby and eating solid foods, we removed her several times for screaming at the table for no reason.  When teaching a child to start eating solid foods, I also never pushed either child of mine to FINISH what they ate.  It's just not a philosophy I believe in.  But if they have ever screamed or fussed for no reason at the table, they have gone right to their crib (when I know they aren't sick).  To me, if you're going to be obnoxious for no reason, do it elsewhere so you don't disturb my dinner.  After about a minute, Randy or I would go get the child, bring him/her back, and they would have each calmed down immediately and finished dinner.  (We've only had to do this once with Noah--he's the "chunky" child in the family; never met a meal he doesn't love... yet.  With Abby, we did it a few times.)  I truly believe that this action taught Abby that I mean what I say when I threaten to remove her from the table.  Establishing good table manners starts early, my friends!
Speaking of starting early, that's how I get my kids to eat what's in front of them.  Noah (10 months) had rigatoni gorgonzola tonight.  I don't push the steak for (hopefully obvious) reasons.  When Abby was younger, I remember my grandmother being surprised that I would give her strong seasonings or "diverse" foods that she herself hadn't eaten until adulthood.  My response to that is, what do you think children who live in countries where that food comes from eat???  If a child is exposed to those different flavors from the beginning, then it's not really "different" or "sophisticated" for him/her--it's normal.  I want it to be normal for my kids to eat what's in front of them, and to eat a wide variety of flavors/textures.  So I would encourage parents of very young children to try giving your child what you eat and see what happens.  The sooner you start, the easier it'll be for them to get used to it!  I've never bought a jar of "baby food" for either of my kids.  To me, it's just always been easier to get them used to what/how we eat as a family early on.
All of that being said, I'm not oblivious to the "picky" child or to the fact that children's taste buds haven't matured as much as adults'.  Some kids are just pickier than others, and there's not much we can do about it.  So my tip to the parent of the picky eater is this: make meals that always include a food your child can/will eat.  Serve bread at every meal, if necessary (they do in other countries!).  Serve fruit and vegetables at every meal.  For a dish like this, reserve some of the pasta before putting it in with the gorgonzola sauce.  But, sprinkle it with parsley and butter so the kids get used to "seeing green" in their food.  I reserved some pasta for my kids tonight because I know that gorgonzola is a strong flavor and I wouldn't really blame Abby if she didn't like it.  But guess what?  She ate her meal just fine and didn't want any "plain" pasta.  (Noah took care of his portion and hers and the gorgonzola!)  Abby had her rigatoni gorgonzola, then some fruit, THEN some ice cream!
I hope these writings shed some light on how and why I get my kids to eat the meals I make without sounding "self-righteous."  I highly recommend the book Child of Mine: Feeding with Love and Good Sense to anyone wanting more tips on feeding babies, toddlers, and young children.  I love it and have kept it by my bed ever since my doctor recommended it to me when I said I wanted to make all of Abby's food.  I know I've said it before, but this is a journey we're all on together and it's so important that we have each others' backs rather than pass judgment!
(I purposely didn't address allergies in this because I don't have any and neither do my children, yet.  If you have a child with allergies, please know that I'm not making any suggestions to you.  Allergies are completely different than plain "pickiness.")