When I met my husband back in the 1900's, we had come from two very different worlds. He being an Oregon, semi country boy (with big city aspirations) and me a city girl who thought country life was best experienced while sitting on a hotel veranda overlooking the country.. But, while on the outside we seemed pretty different, we had way more in common than not...except for our love of meat... anything meat.. all meat,, all the time meat... (and the rarer the better according to the Book of Rich)... Thou shall eat meat was like the 11th commandment in the Moehl house... thou shalt eat bacon for breakfast, thou shalt eat roast beef for lunch and thou shalt have a stew/roast/meat casserole for dinner.... I on the other hand could have easily done away with meat all together in my youth...and living in the "new age" Berkeley/tofu appreciating society, there was exposure to a lot of different options. So as you can imagine when our worlds combined there was some adjusting to do - on both ends... For Rich to imagine eating a Margarita pizza was like him watching a chick flick on constant replay.. and for me the meat eaters delight was far from delightful. So fast forward many years and we have come to a rather pleasant and healthy balance.. Having beef a few times a month is currently where we are at and to keep both of us happy I have kept both of our likes/wants in mind and I hope they tickle your fancy (and his) as well .......
And on another tasty note, Angie has shared another yummy dessert....And if you have not baked her famous chocolate chip cookies from last week then you are CRAZY and missing out on an extraordinary mouth experience!
Menu
Simple as 1.2.3Beef and Broccoli Stir Fry
* Great to serve over white/brown rice or Asian noodles.
Marinated London Broil
* This is great with a baked potato and oven roasted asparagus. I must pay homage to my father-in-law who is the marinade master and created and perfected this little beauty.
Channeling My Inner Julia Child
Beef Bourguignon
* Perfect for company and can be made hours before the party starts!!
Delectable Desserts
Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Bars* Need I say more :)
Beef and Broccoli Stir Fry
* Martha Stewart
Serves 4
3 tablespoons soy sauce
3 tablespoons apple juice
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
3 cloves garlic , minced
Ground pepper
1 1/4 pounds flank steak, cut diagonally across the grain into 1/2-inch-by-3-inch strips
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon canola oil
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 head broccoli, stems trimmed, peeled, and cut into 1/4-inch rounds, florets separated into bite-size pieces
Coarse salt
Directions
In a large, shallow bowl, mix soy sauce, apple juice, vinegar, sugar, garlic, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Add meat; toss to coat. Let marinate 15 minutes. Transfer meat to a plate; reserve marinade.
Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over high heat. In two batches, cook meat until lightly browned, turning once, about 2 minutes per batch. Remove meat. Add 1/2 cup water to pan; stir up browned bits with a wooden spoon. Pour into marinade; whisk in cornstarch.
In same skillet, fry broccoli in remaining teaspoon oil over high heat until bright green and crisp, tossing often, 2 minutes. Add 1 cup water; cook until broccoli is tender, 6 to 8 minutes.
Stir marinade, add to pan, and bring to a boil. Cook, stirring, until thickened, 30 seconds. Return meat to pan; toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.
Marinated London Broil
½ cup soy sauce ½ cup apple cider vinegar
2 Tbsp Garlic Salt
Marinate meat for at least 5 hours – overnight is better.
Preheat a broiler to high. Bring the steaks to room temperature about 20 minutes before cooking.
Broil until just charred and crispy on top, about 6 minutes on 1 side. Flip the steak and cook until beginning to char, about 6 minutes more or until rare and temperature registers 115 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer. Place the steak on a cutting board and let rest, tented with foil for about 10 minutes. Slice across the grain and serve.
Beef Bourguignon
* Ina Garten
1 tablespoon good olive oil
8 ounces dry cured center cut applewood smoked bacon, diced
2 1/2 pounds chuck beef cut into 1-inch cubes
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 pound carrots, sliced diagonally into 1-inch chunks
2 yellow onions, sliced
2 teaspoons chopped garlic (2 cloves)
1 (750 ml.) bottle good dry red wine such as Cote du Rhone or Pinot Noir
1 can (2 cups) beef broth
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves (1/2 teaspoon dried)
4 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature, divided
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 pound frozen whole onions
1 pound fresh mushrooms stems discarded, caps thickly sliced
For serving:
Country bread or Sour Dough, toasted or grilled and rubbed with garlic clove
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley, optional
Directions
Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F.
Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven. Add the bacon and cook over medium heat for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the bacon is lightly browned. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon to a large plate.
Dry the beef cubes with paper towels and then sprinkle them with salt and pepper. In batches in single layers, sear the beef in the hot oil for 3 to 5 minutes, turning to brown on all sides. Remove the seared cubes to the plate with the bacon and continue searing until all the beef is browned. Set aside.
Toss the carrots, and onions, 1 tablespoon of salt and 2 teaspoons of pepper in the fat in the pan and cook for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onions are lightly browned. Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Add the Cognac, stand back, and ignite with a match to burn off the alcohol. Put the meat and bacon back into the pot with the juices. Add the bottle of wine plus enough beef broth to almost cover the meat. Add the tomato paste and thyme. Bring to a simmer, cover the pot with a tight-fitting lid and place it in the oven for about 1 1/4 hours or until the meat and vegetables are very tender when pierced with a fork.
Combine 2 tablespoons of butter and the flour with a fork and stir into the stew. Add the frozen onions. Saute the mushrooms in 2 tablespoons of butter for 10 minutes until lightly browned and then add to the stew. Bring the stew to a boil on top of the stove, then lower the heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Season to taste.
To serve, toast the bread in the toaster or oven. Rub each slice on 1 side with a cut clove of garlic. For each serving, spoon the stew over a slice of bread and sprinkle with parsley.
Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Bars
* From Sunset October 2006
1/2 cup butter, softened (I put in the micro and melt about half way)
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1/3 cup smooth peanut butter (I use Kirkland Organic Peanut Butter. I pour the entire contents from a newly opened jar into the KitchenAid mixer and blend until all the oil and peanut butter is mixed together.)
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup white flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup wheat germ (I used oat bran because that is what I had in my pantry)
1 cup rolled oats (Do NOT use instant!!)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 package (6 oz) semisweet chocolate chips (I used chopped Euphoria dark chocolate buttons.)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed, beat butter with sugars until smooth. Beat in egg, peanut butter and vanilla until well blended.
Add flours, wheat germ (or oat bran), oats, baking soda and salt to butter mixture until smooth. Stir in chocolate chips.
Spread dough evenly into a parchment lined 8-inch square baking pan. I cut the parchment a lot larger than the pan so that I can lift out the bars when they are cooled slightly. Use wet hands to evenly press the mixture into the pan. Bake until pale and golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool, lift out of pan and then cut into squares. Yummy!!
