Fall Dinner

The ultimate fall dinner to me is a great soup with an equally great something to dip in it. Usually that is my cream of mushroom soup, but on a week night.... that doesn't work for me. Although I did use to do it while Bradley and I were dating. But I was trying to impress him and there were a lot of things I did while we were dating. Things that are now biting me in the butt. "Oh I love to clean" "No, don't you move a muscle!" "I will cook, serve you, refill your drink, take your plate away, clean the kitchen, make your lunch for tomorrow. I AM super girl"

Right.

I'm off track as usual. Back to the point. This week some weird things have been happening to me. Right when I am cooking dinner, I start feeling bad. By the time it is ready, I can't even eat. I tried to eat last night and all of it tasted really weird to me. Bradley ate all his and the other half of mine, so it was definitely just me. I thought long and hard about what I was doing different and I have been drinking a LOT of coffee now that its chilly outside and not so much water, if any. So today I am going to change that and hopefully be able to enjoy dinner tonight.

The soup was campbell's tomato - once again, wanted to make my own, time was not on my side - and the sandwich (which is really why I'm blogging this dinner) was a ham and cheese on rosemary focaccia. But the cheese was something the two of us had never eaten, it was havarti. It was really good, the package said to pair it with something sweet. The tomato soup was a little sweet but I think they meant apples or grapes. Either way it was pretty good and I'm glad I have some for sandwiches now.

I made them with just meat and cheese, I forgot to add mustard, and popped them into the toaster oven. Very easy dinner!

Cinco! Cinco de Mayo!!!

I've been singing that all day, to the tune of I Dream of Jeanie.

Thank you for joining me on this awesome Cinco de Mayo! I have great news, but I can't unveil it just yet.... stay tuned. I should be able to tell you either tomorrow or Wednesday. Here, have some salsa while you wait!



Meanwhile, I would like for you all to notice how hard I have been working on my photography. I think if you go look at the beginning of my blog and then today's post you will really see a difference.

Tonight was allllll about our friends from South of the border. On this day, I like to sit and wonder...... I am here in America eating salsa and drinking coronas and singing my newly composed cinco de mayo song. On the fourth of July will there be senoritas sitting in Mexico eating french fries and drinking bud light and singing a song they made up about our Independence Day?

Another one of my favorite American - Spanish questions to ponder is, "Do they have peso trees like we have dollar trees?" Because I do love the dollar tree, although I have to be in the mood for it.

FUN FACT - my everyday dishes are from the dollar tree. Hey, scoff if you want but I love 'em!

Now let's get back to business. Tonight's meal was Mexican Hamburgers with guacamole and salsa. YUM!!



I made a Cilantro-Lime Mayo to smear on the buns. Take two nice scoops of mayo, stir in juice from half a lime and chopped cilantro. Just go by taste on the cilantro, I happen to like a lot, but if you don't then only use a little.





For the Guacamole I cubed one avocado, drizzled it with the juice from half a lime, added 1/4 tsp garlic powder, and forked in Ro*Tel salsa a little at a time until it reached the consistency I like - still a little chunky.





The Mexican Hamburgers were also easy. One pound of ground beef, 2 tbspns of the recently posted Mexican seasoning and the juice from.... you guess it, half a lime! Mix it all together and let it chill in the fridge for an hour or two. Form into 4 patties and grill.

I glazed them with a Smoky Chipotle Sauce right before they were finished grilling, so the sauce would set, instead of being runny.

1/3 cup ketchup
1 T mustard
1 T oil
1 T vinegar
1/4 t garlic powder
1/4 t onion powder
2 chipotle chilies, seeded and chopped
3 t adobo sauce

whisk all together and heat in a sauce pan. keep warm until ready to glaze your meat.



The finished product?? Maravilloso, como siempre!

every rose has it's thorn - just like every flip has it's flop

Sorry - Bret Michaels is on don't forget the lyrics and I can't stop singing this song.

My point is that tonight was a flip - flop kind of dinner. The "pilaf" was a flop, but I put a flip on the traditional hamburger steak. A sweet, smoky flip. (which also gave me this great idea for dinner on cinco de mayo!) It turned out great! I also succeed at making brown gravy. I don't know what I was so afraid of, it's just like making sawmill gravy.

Smoky Hamburger Steaks
recipe by me

1 pound ground meat
2 tblspn roasted garlic mustard - or plain with 1 clove minced garlic
2 tblspn worcestershire
1 tblspn balsamic vinegar
1/2 tspn cumin

mix everything together and let it marinate in the fridge for a couple of hours. form into 3 patties and pan cook until no longer pink.

Mama Mia, thatsa spicy meatball!

Well, they weren't spicy but they are definitely meat balls!

This time when spaghetti night rolled around, the only thing store bought were the noodles. Angel hair, of course. I even made the garlic cheddar drop biscuits to eat with this italian delight. I didn't get to take pictures of the sauce, but I do have the recipe written down to share, eventually. I cooked it for 3 days. Actually, I made and cooked it a little on Thursday. Then it set in the fridge until mid day Saturday when I brought it to a simmer again until dinner was ready. I also made sure to make extra, so there would be left overs this week. I'm leaving bradley for my other love - the beach!

Jaime over at Burnt Toast recently made a gouda stuffed meatball. They were really good, believe me, I tried one! I went off of her recipe and omitted the stuff part and used roasted garlic dressing instead of milk. The dressing really shined through in the final product. It gave them an incredibly nice garlicy flavor. If you aren't a big fan of garlic, I would try using a different sauce, maybe a parmesan based one.

Parmesan Meatballs
recipe inspired by Rachel Ray's Mozzarella Stuffed Meatballs

1/4 cup Italian seasoned breadcrumbs
1/2 cup roasted garlic dressing
1 lb. ground beef
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
2 tbsp parsley,
1 large egg
1 tsp salt

In a medium bowl, soak the breadcrumbs in dressing. Add the beef, parsley, parmesan cheese, egg and salt to the soaked bread crumbs and stir with a fork until combined. Take two spoon fulls of the meat and form a ball. Cook them all together in a large skillet for about 20 minutes.

Part 2 of 2

The meal is complete. Although, I don't think it has a better name. I really really really enjoyed it, I think Bradley just really enjoyed it, he didn't like that the onions still crunched. In his world, all veggies should be mush.

We both love pesto. It was so good! I purposefully fixed our plates to leave enough behind for my lunch today.

Preparation was not hard at all. Excluding the marination process, it took about 45 minutes. It could of been less, but at first I didn't think of multi tasking. It is also a 2 pan meal. One for the pasta and one for the steak and veggies.

Speaking of the marination process, mine really hit the nail on the head. The steak was so full of flavor and no one taste stood out above the rest. They all meshed very well, which made me smile. That is now my go to marinade. I have to buy more roasted garlic dressing....

Let's get started with the tutorial!

Steak with Pesto Pasta
recipe by me

one steak, your choice of cut and weight, fully marinated and brought to room temperature
your favorite house seasoning
1 tblspn olive oil
2 tblspn butter
1 & 1/2 cup dry pasta - i used penne
8 tblspns pesto sauce (or whatever equivalent that is)
1/4 cup parmesan
white wine
8 oz your favorite mushrooms (i used baby bella)
1/2 large sweet onion, thinly sliced
1 - 2 cloves of garlic, minced


bring a pot of salted and oiled water to a boil and boil your pasta for 10 to 12 minutes. drain and return to the pot. stir together with the pesto and the parmesan and set aside.










While the water is boiling for the pasta, heat your butter and oil in a large heavy skillet. rub both sides of your steak with your preferred house seasoning, i used herbes de provence, they are my favorite at the moment. get the pan nice and smoky hot and lay your steak flat on it. i cooked mine for 15 minutes, only turning once. this put it right about medium rare in the middle and more of a medium well on the ends. perfect for the two of us. when you are finished cooking, set it on a plate and let the juices re-distribute. DON'T CUT INTO IT YET! that ruins the tenderness.



now that the steak is finished, turn the heat down and let's de-glaze the pan to get all those yummy pieces un-stuck to it. pour a little white wine into the pan and rub the bottom of it. add the onions and let them start to break down. when they are almost finished caramelizing, throw in the mushrooms and garlic. they don't take nearly as long.






Aren't those mushrooms beautiful?? All that is left to do now is plate it up! I put the pasta on one side of the dish, topped it with the mushrooms and onions and fanned out slices of the steak beside it. a very easy and simple dish that tastes like it took you hours to prepare!

Part 1 of 2

Today at work a recipe came to me. I have been wanting to try pesto, but hear how expensive it can be to make. Not even knowing if I will like it or if one of us will be allergic to something in it combined with the fact that I'm kind of on a budget right now led me to trying a jarred pesto before venturing out to make it on my own. Wouldn't you know it, publix had their classico jarred sauces on sale this week. I trust classico, so I purchased.

The recipe I wrote is called "Steak with Pesto Pasta". I know, I know... bad title. Maybe after I eat it a better name will emerge. Until then - ya gotta live with this one.



Part one is allllll about the marinade! I picked up a 1.25 pound top sirloin steak for only $8 at publix.











I also bought one of their "go green" shopping bags for $0.99 and the bag boy fit all $35 of my groceries in there. Including a 3 pound bag of potatoes..... it was a long walk to the car!! But I loved it. The pretty heather green color of the bag matched my shirt. As I walked to my 4 cylinder car, sunglasses on head.... flip flops on feet.... I felt so deliciously hippy!!

Back to the meat - I originally planned to make this dish tonight but then decided to let my steak marinade a full 24 hours so it would be really flavor full. That way, if the pesto pasta is a flop.... the dinner won't be a total loss!

I love to marinate steaks with mustard. Not only does it tenderize, it also adds a great element of flavor. I usually use course ground dijon, but recently ran out. While browsing the mustard aisle I found horseradish mustard. It appealed to both my love of mustard AND love of spicy things.

I really do love mustard. It's like the perfect condiment! I always have no less then 3 different kinds in my fridge. I love it almost as much as I love cheese, and that's saying something!

This is my newly revised steak marinade.

Steak Marinade
by me

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup moore's sauce
2 tblspn roasted garlic dressing (mine is from harry and davids, but any kind will do)
2 tblspn horseradish mustard
generous helping of fresh coarsely ground black pepper
nice pinch of kosher salt

whisk everything together. put meat in a gallon ziploc bag, pour marinade over meat, press out all the air, zip the bag, place in fridge until you are ready to cook the meat.

~~~~~


stay tuned...

Happy Easter!

This year, my Easter basket was something that wouldn't just get shoved into a closet until it could be refilled next year. In fact, it was something that will get refilled time and time again before I even see Easter 2009! Now, THAT'S a riddle ;)

This was my Easter basket -
And I couldn't be happier.

It isn't just a crock pot. It is stoneware. The "pot" part can be removed and actually set on the table. If you didn't know it just came out of a "crock" you would never be able to tell! All this and it was only $40 at Lowe's.

The first meal I cooked in it had to be superb. My in-laws were coming over on Easter Eve for a quiet pre-Easter dinner. I always feel the need for everything to be perfect when they come over. I don't know why. I guess I want them to know that Bradley is in good hands. So for this meal, nothing could be store bought!! Well... if it was, they should not be able to tell! I had it planned out perfectly - a slow cooker pot roast, garlic rosemary mashed potatoes, my wonderful cheesy beer bread and the cute little cream puff parfaits for dessert. The original slow cooker roast recipe can be found HERE But of course I made a few simple changes.

Slow Cooker Pot Roast
based on Paula Deen's recipe

2 pound boneless chuck roast
herbs De Provence
olive oil
one onion, sliced
baby carrots
3 bay leaves
3 crushed beef bouillon cubes
1 clove minced garlic
1 can condensed cream of mushroom with roasted garlic soup
1/2 cup Chardonnay wine
water

In a cast iron skillet, heat up enough olive oil to cover the bottom of the skillet. Rub the entire roast with herbs De Provence (or whatever seasoning you prefer, I just wanted to use my new spice). Once the oil is REALLY hot, use tongs to position the roast in the pan until all sides are brown.

Transfer the roast to the crock pot and arrange the onions, carrots, bay leaves, crushed bouillon and garlic around it. Spoon the condensed soup on top of the veggies and pour the wine on top of the soup. Finish with 1 & 1/2 to 2 soup cans filled with water, pouring it over the veggies also. Cook on "low" for 8 hours.

If you prefer a thick gravy - Once the 8 hours is up, spoon out about 2 cups of the juice. Mix it with 2 -3 tablespoon of flour and pour it back in. Stir it together with the rest of the juices and hold it on the "warm" setting until ready to eat.

~~~~~

I haven't had much luck with cooking a roast in the past, but this one really shined! It was perfectly juicy. The searing before cooking really added a lot to the dish!

Just stick with what you know... Part 2

Have you ever seen Paula's party? Gah I love that woman! She is amazing!!! I love to tell Bradley her story over and over. I love to watch her wedding show, when she married Michael. And.... I LOVE JAMIE DEEN!!! Even though he is married and I am married and blablabla, let's not get into petty details. He is on Paula's Party a lot!!
There he is... on the right... just standing there like he doesn't know he has my heart. HAHA!

Anyway, now that I've covered my desk in drool.

I was off work Monday and catching up on all the good shows when Paula's Party came on, and Jamie was on with her. The episode was all about pies. The sweet, the savory and the southern. There was a 24 pound apple pie, we won't get into that, but let's just say.... I will be making an apple pie for the co-workers come Christmas time. With caramel.... oh gah here comes the drool again.

Jamie was making a hamburger pie. He used his favorite hamburger recipe, formed them into patties, fried them in a skillet and wrapped the burger and a cheese slice in a piece of puffed pastry and baked them in the oven. GENIUS!!! I couldn't tell if I actually liked the concept or if I just wanted to do something he did. Probably the latter....

So into the kitchen I went, playing good little housewife and planning dinner for Bradley when he got home. WHICH by the way, I could totally be a stay at home wife... at least 2 days a week. I'm still grounded, so I had to change the recipe a little. Instead of making hamburger patties I used my meatloaf recipe (which made Bradley's eyes light up). I omitted the cheese and added chopped onion. Have you ever tried to make patties out of meatloaf mixture and pan fry them? EXACTLY!! Because you can't!!! Something about it doesn't hold up in the skillet. I went to flip and it went to pieces. Great. So I found my happy place and continued on. Instead of puff pastry, I used garlic butter croissant dough. My patties were way too big so it took 4 triangles to make enough dough to cover a patty and cheese slice. Into the oven and onto a plate. They were ok.... I should of listened to Jamie and not tried to make them with meatloaf. Bradley was so disturbed by them. His rant included such comments as "No cheese? It has onions? There is nothing special about this, it is like everyone else's" "When you find perfection, you should not go back and touch it". But it was eaten, and now I know. On a lighter note, they turned out beautiful! I think my best bet would be to make smaller, appetizer sized portions.

I hate meatloaf!!!

Growing up, my mom never made meatloaf. I had it once at a friend of the family’s house and it was covered in peppers and onions and ketchup… GROSS! Being from a southern family, mama gave me “the look” and I choked down the nasty dish and smiled. But it was s0o0o bad! When I got married I realized that there is only so much you can do with hamburger meat and knew it was up to me to make meatloaf taste great. Fortunately enough, my husband was also a meatloaf hater. I’m not even that big a fan of the word “loaf”. Out of all this came……

The Meatloaf Hater’s Meatloaf
recipe by – me! :D

1 pound ground chuck
1 cup shredded cheese (crumbles work great!)
1 egg
half a sleeve of ritz crackers, crushed
2 big spoonfuls of mayo
1 tablespoon of Worcestershire
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
2 tablespoons mustard

preheat the oven to 350*

dump everything into a big mixing bowl and jump in hands first making sure everything is fully combined. put the mixture into whatever dish you see fit, last night it actually came out looking “loaf-like” but i've been known to make “meat muffins” using my ramekins. into the oven it goes and in ~45 minutes…. you’ve got a marvelous main course my friend ;)

Now, I can't take a bite of meatloaf with out a mashed potato ending, and my husband can't take a mashed potato ending without it being drenched in gravy. So that leads me to my comfort side dish.... mashed potatoes (from a box, don't faint) and milk gravy!


Milk Gravy
recipe by - anyone who has ever had to make gravy without pan drippings!

Melt 2 to 3 tablespoons of butter in a skillet. Once the butter has turned to liquid, sprinkle in a heaping spoonful of flour. Whisk the two together to make sure that all the flour is covered in butter and let it sit until the mixture has browned. Letting it brown will give the illusion that the gravy was made from meat drippings! When it turns brown, whisk in half a cup of milk and half a cup of water. Keep whisking until it starts to boil and thickens up. Add as much or as little freshly ground black pepper and pour over whatever you like!

I usually make garlic bread to go with almost every meal, it is just so easy to make right as the meal is finishing up. But this time I made something different...... may I present to you....

Jim n Nicks Cheese Biscuits
recipe found online and changed... just slightly

1 & 1/2 cups of Self Rising Flour
1/2 cup of sugar
1 & 1/4 cups of shredded cheddar cheese
3/4 cup 2% milk
1 egg, beaten
4 tbsp butter, melted
1/4 tspn vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 400*

Mix ingredients together with a rubber spatula, and pour into a greased muffin pan. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until done.
They taste JUST like jim n nicks! I can't wait to buy a mini muffin pan and really make them authentic.



The meal was a couple pleaser, as always.