Sunday, February 14, 2010

Marinated Flank Steak

Another "thumbs-up" recipe from Pioneer Woman
Ingredients
½ cups Soy Sauce
½ cups Cooking Sherry
3 Tablespoons Honey
2 Tablespoons Sesame Oil
2 Tablespoons (heaping) Minced Ginger
3 cloves (to 5 Cloves) Minced Garlic
½ teaspoons Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
1 whole Flank Steak
Preparation Instructions
Combine all ingredients in a glass or ceramic dish. Remove flank steak from package and give it a quick rinse. Coat both sides of the meat with marinade. Refrigerate for at least 3 to 6 hours.
Remove the steak from the marinade and place on a plate while you heat up the grill pan. Make sure to turn on your overhead exhaust fan as the cooking process can be quite smoky. When the pan is extremely hot, place the steak on a slight angle as this makes for more appealing grill marks. Cook without touching for about 1 ½ to 2 minutes. Rotate the meat about 45 degrees, keeping it on the same side, and cook for another 1 ½ minutes.
Now flip it to the other side. Cook using the same method on the other side, cooking for 1 1/2 minutes, then rotating it and finishing the cooking process. I cook the flank streak to medium rare, which usually takes about 5 to 7 minutes total cooking time. Remove the meat to a cutting board and let it rest for a few minutes before slicing.
NOTES: I did not add the sesame oil and we grilled instead of cooking it indoors. We did increase the cooking time by a few minutes, but it was outdoors in the winter; I'm not sure you'd have the same issues with the same recipe grilled in warm weather. The keys to making this tough cut of meat pretty delicious are (1) marinading and (2) thin-ish cuts across the grain of the meat.

Friday, February 12, 2010

Beef Drip Sandwiches

Pioneer Woman recently ran two recipes for fantastic looking sandwiches. I made the version I had ingredients for, but the other one looks pretty tremendous also. By linking it here, I'm hoping to remember to return to is sometime. Until then, I'd recommend this one with some nice deli rolls.

Ingredients
  • 1 whole 2.5 To 4 Pound Chuck Roast
  • ¼ cups Butter
  • 1 whole Large Onion, Sliced Thick
  • 3 cloves Garlic, Peeled
  • ½ cups Soy Sauce
  • 1 cup Sherry (cooking Sherry Is Fine)
  • ½ teaspoons Salt
  • 4 cups Water
  • Toasted, Buttered Deli Rolls
  • OPTIONAL: Rosemary, Thyme, Other Spices
Preparation Instructions

Heat butter in a heavy pot over medium-high heat. Saute the onions for a couple of minutes, or until starting to get brown.

Set chuck roast on top of the onions. Add all remaining ingredients. Cover pot and simmer (very low heat) on the stove for 6 hours, or until beef is fork-tender and falling apart. **If meat is not yet tender, return to oven for 30 minute intervals till it’s tender!** Shred meat with two forks until all large chunks are gone. Serve immediately or continue to simmer for 30 minutes to 1 hour.

*Mixture can be refrigerated overnight. Remove hardened fat from top of pan before reheating.

Serve on top of toasted, buttered deli rolls. Top with cheese and place under the broiler if desired.

NOTES: I cooked it in the crock pot and didn't broil them before serving.


Macaroni and Cheese

2 cups uncooked elbow macaroni
1/4 c butter (or margarine)
1/4 c flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp. ground mustard
1/4 tsp. Worchestershire sauce
2 c milk
2 c shredded sharp Cheddar cheese (8 ounces)

Heat oven to 350 degrees.
Cook and drain macaroni as directed on package.
Meanwhile, melt butter over low heat. Whisk in flour, salt, pepper, mustard, and Worchestershire sauce. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture is smooth and bubbly; remove from heat. Whisk in milk and heat to boiling, stirring constantly. Boil and stir one minute. Remove from heat and stir in the cheese until melted.
Mix with the macaroni and bake in an uncovered casserole dish 20-25 minutes or until bubbly.

Yield: 4 generous servings

NOTES:
There is LOTS of room for variation in this recipe. You can add vegetables, tuna, or meat or change the seasonings. You can vary the pasta shape or the type of cheese. (I think a sharp cheddar gives the nicest flavor.)

You don't have to bake it; just serve it directly from the stovetop. It doesn't get that nice, crunchy top, but it's fully cooked and fast to make. If you don't bake it, you might want to cook the macaroni slightly longer. Cook it to al dente if you plan to bake it.

I teach a junior high food prep class and they love this recipe. It takes about the same amount of time as that nasty, orange, boxed stuff but it's rich and creamy and doesn't taste like salt.

Three Cheese Enchiliadas

1 1/2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese, divided
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
1 pkg. (3 ounce) cream cheese, softened
1 cup picante sauce, divided
1 medium red or green bell pepper, diced
1/2 cup sliced green onions
1 tsp. cumin (powder)
8 flour tortillas (7-8 inches)
shredded lettuce
chopped tomato
sliced black olives

Combine 1 cup Monterey Jack and 1 cup cheddar, cream cheese, 1/4 cup picante sauce, the red pepper, onions, and cumin; mix well. Spoon 1/4 cup of this mixture down the center of each tortilla. Roll and place, seam side down, in a 13" x 9" baking dish. spoon remaining picante sauce over enchiladas; cover with remaining cheeses. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until hot. Top with lettuce, tomato, and black olives. Serve with additional sauce if desired.
Yield: 4 servings.

Monday, February 8, 2010

Egg-Ceptional Tuna Pie

1 c. crumbled soda crackers (about 30)
1 c. shredded cheese
1/2 c. chopped onion
13 ounces tuna, drained
6 eggs
1 c. mayonnaise (or Miracle Whip)
1/2 c. milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Crumble soda crackers into bottom of ungreased 9 1/2" pie pan. Mix together cheese, onion, and tuna and sprinkle over crumb crust. Beat eggs until lemon-colored and stir in mayonnaise and milk. Pour evenly over pie. Bake for 40 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out clean. 6 servings.

NOTES:
  • Originally from a pamphlet, presumably from some egg promotion board.
  • I think this is pretty tremendous. Not everyone in my family agrees.

Banana Bread

2 large bananas (overripe ones are best)
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
3 tbls. milk
2 cups flour
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup nuts (optional)
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 cup soft margarine

Mix everything well. Put into greased loaf pan and bake for 1 hour at 350.

NOTES:
  • I almost always use super ripe bananas that I've stored in the freezer.
  • I've often used 5 smaller bananas for 2 loaves.

Tuesday, February 2, 2010

Peanut-Chicken Bowl

2 3-oz. pkg. Oriental-flavored ramen noodles
3 cups cut-up frozen Oriental mix vegetables
1 ¼ cups water
¼ cup peanut butter
¼ cup soy sauce
2 tbsp. packed brown sugar
1 tbsp. cornstarch
½ tsp. crushed red pepper
13 oz. can chicken breast, drained
1 8-oz. can sliced water chestnuts, drained
¼ cup chopped peanuts
  1. Set aside one seasoning packet from noodles to use in recipe; store remaining packet for another use.
  2. In a large saucepan bring 2 quarts water to boiling. Break up noodles slightly and add to water along with vegetables. Return to boiling; reduce heat. Boil gently, uncovered, for 3 minutes. Drain and return to saucepan.
  3. Meanwhile, for sauce, in a medium saucepan whisk together the 1 ¼ cups water, peanut butter, soy sauce, brown sugar, cornstarch, crushed red pepper, and seasoning packet. Whisk until smooth.
  4. Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened and bubbly. Cook and stir for 2 minutes more. Add chicken and water chestnuts; heat through.
  5. Add to noodle mixture in saucepan. Toss to combine. Top with peanuts.