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Beef Stroganoff

Growing up my mom would make beef stroganoff frequently. Of course her version can out of a packet we got at the grocery store. I’ve based this recipe on several different ones, none of which use a packet. There are two ways of making this. I love using my Anova Sous Vide , so the recipe below follows that method. If you don’t have one then slice your steak raw, coat it in a little flower and briefly fry it in a couple of tbsp of oil; about 2 minutes per side. Remove it and then follow the recipe below. Enjoy!

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Beef Stroganoff

  • 1/2 small yellow onion, diced
  • 8 oz crimini mushrooms, sliced thin
  • 10 oz steak (I use New York, size is just a suggestion)
  • 3-4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
  • 2 tbsp butter
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1/4 cup cognac
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream
  • 1 cup sour cream
  • 1/2 cup beef broth
  • 1 tbsp Worcestershire
  • 2 cup egg noodles

Directions

Cook the steak using your Anova Sous Vide  set to 130 degrees for an hour.

In a deep skillet or braiser, I like using my Le Creuset Casserole, melt the butter with the olive oil. On medium high saute the mushrooms until they start to soften. Add the onion and garlic and saute until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Turn the heat to high and add the cognac, cook until it’s mostly gone*. Turn the heat down to medium and add the sour cream. Stir until it softens; add the cream, beef broth, and Worcestershire. Bring to a simmer and cook for about 10 minutes.

In the mean time, bring a pot of water to boil with about 3 tbsp of salt. Cook the egg noodles for about 5 minutes or until soft.

Heat a skillet on high heat until hot with 1 tbsp of oil.  Brown the steak, about 2 minutes per side. Slice thinly and add to the sauce. Serve over the noodles.

*careful with the cognac as it can, and sometimes does, catch on fire. Keep the pot lid at hand. If it catches on fire put the lid on to put it out.

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Salted Caramel Marshmallows

A couple of years back I decided to give my friends a Christmas gift of hot chocolate and home-made marshmallows. I made bourbon, peppermint, and salted caramel marshmallow. Here’s the recipe for the salted caramel ones, I’m sure I’ll be posting the other two along with my version of hot chocolate (think Mexican and slightly spicy). Enjoy!

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Salted Caramel Marshmallows

  • Caramel Sauce (recipe below)
  • 2 packages of Knox unflavored gelatin
  • 3/4 cups water divided (1/2 cup cold, 1/4 cup)
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup light corn syrup divided (1/4 cup & 1/4 cup)
  • 1/4 tsp sea salt
  • 2 tsp real vanilla extract
  • 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
  • 1 cup cornstarch

Directions

Sift together the powdered sugar and cornstarch and put in a bag (ziplock works great).

Add the 2 packages of gelatin in with the 1/2 cups of cold water in a microwave safe bowl.

In a medium pot add 1/4 cup of corn 1/4 cup of water sea salt and bring to a boil. Cook until it reaches 240 degrees (so you’ll need a thermometer for this recipe), stir occasionally.

In a stand mixer, I love my KitchenAid Stand Mixer, put in the remaining 1/4 cup of corn syrup. Nuke the gelatin mixture for 30 seconds until it’s completely dissolved and liquid. Add that into the mixer and start mixing on low.

Now be very careful here! Once the sugar mixture is at 240 degrees we’re going to slowly add it to the mixer. IT’S REALLY HOT! I’d hate for you to burn yourself! Once you’ve got it in start to slowly turn up the speed. Keep beating until it’s pretty much tripled in volume and it pretty white and fluffy. At this point add in the vanilla and beat for another minute or two.

Take the caramel sauce you’ve made and fold it into the marshmallow mix.

Take a 8×8 pan and spray it with non-stick cooking spray. Take some of the powdered sugar/cornstarch mix and coat the pan with it. So what does that mean? Dump about 1/2 cup in and start tilting the pan around so the mixture adheres to all sides. I recommend doing this over your sink.

Dump the mixture into the pan, put a coating (I recommend using a sieve) over the top and let it set for at least 8 hours in a cool, dry place.

Once it’s set, use a knife to loosen it from the sides of the pan and dump it out onto a cutting board. I use a Scraper (if you don’t know what this is click the link, you don’t have to but it) to cut it into cubes. Size depends on what you want your marshmallows to be. As you’re cutting them but them into the powdered sugar/corn starch mixture and shake them up to coat, this prevents them from sticking.

Salted Caramel Sauce

  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 2 tbsp water
  • 1 tsp light corn syrup
  • 3 tbsp cream
  • 1/8 tsp sea salt

Directions

In a medium pot add the sugar, water and corn syrup over medium-high heat. Stir to disolve the sugar. Once it’s melted stop stiring! At this point gently swirl the pan occasionally. You want the mixture to turn to a nice golden brown. Be careful! You don’t want to burn it. Once it’s golden take it off the heat and add the cream, whisking quickly. Careful! It will bubble, hiss and steam. Whisk in the salt and cool slightly.

Posted on by Opie · 2 Comments

Pulled Pork

This recipe highlights why I love my Instant Pot so much. Standard pulled pork recipes take hours of slow cooking. Thanks to the Instant Pot I can have this done in an hour. Enjoy!

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Instant Pot Pulled Pork

  • 2 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 2 lbs pork roast (give or take)
  • 2 tbsp brown sugar
  • 1 tsp powdered mustard
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 1 tbsp ancho chili powder
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp onion powder
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
  • 3 tbsp tomato paste
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1 cup BBQ sauce

Directions

Combine in a small bowl the brown sugar, mustard, cumin, ancho, garlic, onion, salt and pepper. Cut the pork into 2 – 3 inch sections. Rub the spice mixture on all sides of the pork.

Add the oil to your Instant Pot and turn to the saute mode. Brown all side of the pork, this will take about 15 minutes or so. Once browned turn the Instant Pot off and add the vinegar, tomato paste and water. Put the lid on, make sure the pressure valve is closed, and use the manual setting to pressure cook the pork for 60 minutes.

After 60 minutes use the rapid release valve to release the steam safely. Remove the pork from the pot and shred it using a couple of forks and a medium bowl. Meanwhile turn the Instant Pot to the saute setting again and add the cup of your favorite BBQ sauce, I happen to like Cattleman’s Chipotle sauce, it’s one of the few I have found that doesn’t contain high fructose corn syrup. Let it reduce for about 15 minutes. Add the pork back into the sauce, stir to combine and then serve.

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Chicken Carbonara

Be warned, this is not a healthy dish! But it is oh so good! This is my take on an Italian favorite. Brings back memories of my first trip to Italy. We were staying at a “castle” near Montalcino. We arrived late and our host was gracious enough to make us dinner and it was carbonara. Quick, easy and delicious. He used prosciutto, which he carved off the leg that was hanging in his kitchen. I use bacon but if you want to be more traditional use pancetta instead. I like the smokey flavor that bacon gives this dish. I also cook my chicken using my Anova Sous Vide but you can cook it in the pot after cooking the bacon. Enjoy!

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Chicken Carbonara

  • 2 tsp olive oil
  • 4 slices of bacon (or 6 of pancetta)
  • 4 (or more) cloves of garlic, minced
  • 1 1/2 cups grated parmesan cheese
  • 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
  • 4 egg yolks
  • 1 chicken breast cut into 1/4 inch cubes
  • 1/2 lbs (1/2 box) fettuccine

Directions

In a bowl whisk together the cream, yokes and cheese.

Put a large pot of water on to boil for the pasta, season generously with salt. Add the pasta once it boils and cook until done, about 10 minutes.

In a heavy pot, I like my Le Creuset Dutch Oven, cook up the bacon on medium-high heat with the olive oil until crisp. If you’re cooking you chicken in the pot add it here with the bacon. After about 4 minutes turn the heat down to medium and add the garlic. Cook for 2 minutes. Take off the heat and let cool slighty.  Add the pasta and then the cream mixture and stir to combine. Put it back on the heat at medium-low. You want to slowly bring it up to a simmer so as not to “scramble” the eggs. Once it’s up to a simmer turn the heat down to low and let it cook for about 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. If you like you can garnish this with some chopped basil. It’s also good if you add walnuts, lemon peel, or parsley. You shouldn’t need to add salt because of the bacon but it’ll need some pepper.

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Mexican Chocolate Cookies

OK I don’t remember where I saw this recipe originally. I assume it’s called Mexican chocholate because of the spice. It is delicous and I have modified it a bit. Now keep in mind that you can adjust the spice. I usually put in more than what is listed below but you can also put in less it you don’t want as much “kick”. Enjoy!

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Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies

  • 1 ¾ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
  • ½ cup almond flour
  • 2 ½ sticks unsalted butter, at room temp
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • ½ tsp almond extract
  • 1 cup packed brown sugar
  • ½ cup cocoa powder
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp espresso powder
  • ½ tsp fine sea salt
  • 1 tsp cayenne
  • 1 tsp ancho chili powder
  • ½ cup mini semisweet chocolate chips (or grated chocolate)
  • Flake sea salt for dusting

Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment cream the butter and brown sugar at medium speed until smooth. Add vanilla and almond extract and beat for another 1-2 minutes.

Whisk the flours together in a medium bowl with the cocoa, cinnamon, espresso, salt, cayenne and ancho. Add to the butter mixture and mix until smooth. Add chocolate chips and mix until just combined.

Dump the dough onto a piece of saran wrap and shape into a long log about 2 1/2” wide & high. Refrigerate for at least an hour.

Preheat the oven to 350°. Cut the cookie log into about ¼” slices and space evenly on the cookie sheet. They do not spread much, only a little so leave about 1/2 inch between. . Sprinkle the flake sea salt on top and bake for 20-25 minutes.

 

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Stop! Cranberry Pomegranate Tart

I started this blog to document my experiences in cooking. Sometimes things don’t work, this is one of those. The flavor was spot on! Exactly what I wanted. Everything else, not so much. Crust to tough, filling too runny, etc., so don’t make this one but I am working on it as I’m sure it can work!

So recently a recipe for a cranberry tart with a hazelnut crust popped up in my Facebook feed. I thought it looked intriguing but I wasn’t super thrilled with the hazelnut crust part. So I went ahead and made the cranberry curd, thinking I would use a regular tart crust instead. But when it was done I wasn’t super thrilled with the curd either. I thought it was kind of bland. Funny, another Facebook friend made the same tart (I’m assuming) and his comment was the curd was bland and he had to modify it to make it work. So I gave it some thought and decided to try making this version, which I made from combining components from a couple of other recipes. You can make this gluten free if you make the crust hazelnut, which was the original recipe. If people are interested I’ll put the crust recipe in the comments. Enjoy!

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Cranberry Pomegranate Tart

  • 12 ounces fresh cranberries
  • 2 1/2 cups sugar, divided ( 1 cup, 1 cup, and 1/2 cup)
  • 1 orange
  • 1 lemon
  • 1 3/4 cups flour
  • 1  1/2 sticks of butter, divided (1 stick and 1/2 stick)
  • 5 eggs (2 you only need the yolks)
  • 4 cups pomegranate juice (I use POM)
  • 1 8 oz container mascarpone cheese
  • pinch of salt, kosher

Directions

Crust first and you’ll need a tart pan for this. In a food processor, I use my Cuisinart Food Processor, combine 1 3/4 cups flour, 1/2 cup sugar, the zest of the lemon and a pinch of salt. And a pinch of salt is literally that, you take as much as you can pinch between your thumb and forefinger. Pulse until well mixed. Cut up the butter into small chunks and add to the flour mixture. combined until the flour starts to look like it’s the size of peas. Add 1 egg and mix until it’s just combined. Now press the dough mixture into the tart pan, pushing it up the sided. Bake in a 350 degree for 20-25 minutes or until lightly brown. Let it cool.

Now for the cranberry curd, which is the 1st part of the filling. In a medium pan, over medium heat, add the cranberries and sugar. Take a vegetable peeler and peel the orange, try to get as little of the white as possible with the peal. Now juice the orange and add that as well. Cook for 15 – 20 minutes or until the cranberries are soft and have mostly popped. Transfer to a strainer and press out all the juice. Whisk in the butter until combined and then cool before refrigerating.

Now for the pomegranate. Basically we’re going to make pomegranate molasses, similar to what can be found in my rack of lamb recipe. This will make more than you need but more is never bad. Take 4 cups of pomegranate juice and add 1 cup of sugar. Bring to a simmer, turn the head down to medium-low, and let it reduce until you have about 1 1/2 cups left. This can take a couple of hours. Make sure to keep an eye on it, you don’t want it to be too hot or it’ll scorch and taste awful. Or reduce too much and ruin your pot! Once it’s reduced let it cool before putting into a container and refrigerating.

Now to combine it all together and make a tart! In a stand mixer, I use my KitchenAid Stand Mixer, whip the mascarpone cheese until light and fluffy. Add in the cranberry curd and whip again until smooth. Add 1 cup of the pomegranate molasses. Whip again until smooth. Pour the mixture into the tart crust and chill for at least an hour.

What to do with some of that leftover molasses? I like to drizzle it on top of the tart as in the picture above.

Posted on by Opie · 2 Comments

Gingerbread Cake

As we get into the holiday season some of my favorite recipes are going to come out. This is one of them. I love gingerbread cake! There’s just something about it that is warm and comforting. Enjoy!

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Gingerbread Cake

  • 1 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 cup blackstrap unsulphured molasses
  • 1/4 cup minced crystallized ginger
  • 2 large eggs at room temp, slightly beaten
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 tbsp ground ginger
  • 2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp ground cloves
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 tbsp baking soda
  • 1/4 cup ginger vodka
  • non-stick cooking spray
  • parchment paper

Directions

Pre-heat the oven to 325 degrees. Spray a 9×13″ cake pan and line it with parchment paper. A trick here, once you have the parchment in the pan spray it again, this really helps when you need to remove it.

In a mixer, I use my KitchenAid Stand Mixer, beat the oil, sugar, molasses and ginger together. Add the eggs and beat until smooth.

In another large bowl; shift together the flour, ground ginger, cinnamon, salt and clove. Slowly add this to the molasses mixture with the mixer on low.

Bring the water to a boil, I microwave it for 2 minutes, and add the baking soda to it. Whisk to combine. Add this to the molasses/flour mixture and stir until well combined. Add the ginger vodka and still that in as well. Pour into the cake pan and bake for 45 to 50 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

I like to service it with home-made whipped cream with a splash of the ginger vodka in it as well. Reinforces the ginger flavor.

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Fish in Cheese Sauce

Several years ago I went on a cruise with about 20 friends. In one of the ports in France 4 of us wander off to the side streets, away from the tourist crowds. On one of those back streets, we found a cute little restaurant/bar that was an old nunnery I think. Anyway, they had a lunch special; starter, main and dessert with a glass of wine for 12 Euro if I remember correctly. The meal was amazing! One of the options for the main course was a white fish in a cheese sauce with rice. It still resonates with me after all these years and I’ve been trying ever since to recreate it.

Part of the problem, I’m sure, is I don’t have access to the same ingredients that are available in France. You know, the FDA is fussy about import cheese because it could kill you or something. Anyway, this is as close as I’ve been able to come so far but this recipe is still a work in progress. Now, this makes more cheese sauce than you probably need but extra is never a bad thing. It goes well on top of broccoli FYI. Enjoy!

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Fish in Cheese Sauce

  • 2 – 4 fillets of fish (I use Halibut)
  • 3 tbsp unsalted butter
  • 3 tbsp flour
  • 1/2 cup grated fontina cheese*
  • 1/2 cup sharp cheddar (or 1 cup if you don’t have the next cheese)
  • 1/2 cup Cougar Gold or Beechers Flagship (sorry this is a PNW cheese mostly)
  • 1/2 cup dry white wine (French or Sauvignon Blanc is best)
  • 1 1/2 cups milk
  • Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions

In a medium pot, I use my Le Creuset Dutch Oven, melt the butter on low temperature. Once melted turn the heat up to medium-high and add the flour, whisking constantly. Cook for at least 2 minutes, you want to get rid of the flour taste. Now the next part is tricky and you need to be prepared. Have the wine and milk close at hand. Slowly, whisking fast the wine into the flour/butter. It will steam up and start to thicken fast. That’s why you want everything on hand. Immediately start slowly adding the milk. The idea here is to make it smooth and thick but not lumpy. If you add it too fast or to slow you can get a mess.

Once you have the milk incorporated turn it down to medium-low and add the fontina. Stir until it pretty much melted, this is the base of the sauce and what makes it creamy. Now add the rest of the cheese and stir until it’s melted. Salt and Pepper to taste.

So for the fish. Cooking fish can be hard. It is so easy to over-cook. If you’re comfortable with fish, you shouldn’t have a problem. I, personally, use my Anova Sous Vide . It guarantees that it will never be overcooked. I cook it up to 120 degrees for 45 minutes. Then a quick sear in a hot skillet for about 1 minute on each side. Pour the cheese sauce over and serve with rice (optional).

*If you don’t have fontina on hand or can’t find it I’ve used velveeta. Not the best but it’ll do in a pince.

Posted on by Opie · 1 Comment

Limoncello Tiramisu

So the inspiration for this came from an episode of Lidia Bastianich’s cooking show. She was making this tiramisu, which looked delicious! But there were a couple of things she did with hers that I was like, “why would you do that???” Needless to say I’ve modified it extensively. It is really good, especially in the summer, when you want something light and refreshing. You could, I suppose, make it without the Limoncello but why bother? It’s also a little more complicated than most of the recipes I like to make as it requires several different components. So heads up, each one has it’s own list of ingredients; so you’ll want to compile them all together before you go grocery shopping. Enjoy!

Limoncello Tiramisu

Lemon Sponge

  • 5 large eggs yokes
  • ¼ cup of sugar
  • ½ cup Limoncello

Directions

Using a double boiler (aka in my house a glass bowl on top of a medium pot of simmering water) whisk the egg yokes, sugar, and Limoncello until well blended. Bring the water to a simmer and whisk constantly, frequently scraping the whisk around the sides and bottom of the bowl. Do this for about 5 minutes until it thickens, it will kind of start to look like mayonnaise.

Let the mixture cool.

Lemon Simple Syrup

  • 2 to 3 lemons
  • 1 cup water
  • ½ cup sugar
  • 1 cup Limoncello

Directions

Take 2 to 3 lemons and using a vegetable peeler, peel the skin off (try to get as little of the white as possible). Juice the lemons after zesting until you have about 1/2 cup of juice (more doesn’t hurt but you definitely don’t want less).

In a small pan bring the lemon peel, the lemon juice, water and sugar to a boil. Stir until the sugar dissolves completely. Turn it down to a simmer and let it gently steep for about 30 minutes. Add the limoncello and allow it to cool slightly. It works better if it’s still warm when you soak the ladyfingers in it but it can be completely cool as well.

Lemon Curd:

  • ¾ cup sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • ¾ cup lemon juice
  • Zest of 2 lemons (or 3 if it takes that many to get ¾ a cup of juice)
  • 6 Tbsp unsalted butter (melted)

Directions

Whisk together the sugar & eggs in a sauce pan. Add juice, lemon zest & melted butter. Cook on Med Hi heat. Stir until thick, mixture should coat the back of a metal spoon. What does this mean? When you can dip a spoon in, run your finger down the back, turn it sideways, and it doesn’t run back down the spoon erasing your swipe. Cool on counter, whisking occasionally, for about an hour. Finish cooling in fridge.

Custard

  • 1 lbs (2 cups) Mascarpone at room temp
  • Lemon Sponge
  • Lemon Curd
  • ¼ cup Limoncello

Directions

In a large bowl, again I like my KitchenAid Stand Mixer, beat the mascarpone until soft and smooth. Add lemon sponge and lemon curd and beat until smooth. Add a ¼ cup of limoncello and beat again until smooth.

Whipped Cream

  • 2 cups heavy whipping cream
  • ½ cup powdered sugar
  • ¼ cup Limoncello

Directions

Chill a metal bowl and beaters in the freezer for at least 30 minutes.  Really this does make a difference. Whip the heavy cream until soft peaks start to form. Slowly add in powdered sugar and beat until peaks form. Add ¼ cup of limoncello and beat until stiff peaks form.

Assemble the tiramisu

  • 40 Ladyfinger cookies
  • Custard
  • Lemon simple syrup
  • Whipped Cream

Directions

Using a 9 x 13 inch pan, dip the ladyfingers into the lemon simple syrup. Don’t let them become soggy or they’ll fall apart but you want them to be somewhat moistened. Arrange them in the pan, should take about 20.

Cover the ladyfingers with ½ of the finished custard. Dip the remaining ladyfingers in the simple syrup and arrange them in a layer on top of the custard. Cover with the remaining custard. Smooth the whipped cream on the top and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

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Vanilla Bean Ice Cream

This is a pretty simple recipe and so much better than anything you can buy in the store, believe me. I bought a simple Cuisinart 2-Qt Ice Cream Maker at Costco about 10 years ago and it’s more than paid for itself with the delicious ice cream I’ve made with it. Salted Caramel, Chocolate, Limoncello, and of course Vanilla Bean. Enjoy!

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Vanilla Bean Ice Cream

  • 4 2/3 cups half and half*
  • 1 whole vanilla bean
  • 7 eggs divided (3 whole and 4 yolks)
  • 1 1/8 cup sugar
  • 2 tsp of vanilla extract (use the real stuff, not that fake crap)

Directions

In a medium pot combine the half and half and vanilla bean, which you want to split in 1/2 (but not all the way, leave on end whole to keep it together). Use the blunt side to the knife to scrape the seeds and add them in too. Bring to a gentle boil over medium heat. Reduce to low and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

In a medium bowl combine the eggs, yoke and sugar. Use a hand mixer on medium speed until it’s thick and smooth. It will start to look like yellow mayonnaise. This takes about 2-3 minutes.

Take the vanilla bean out of the half and half. Slowly pour a ladle of the mixture into the eggs stirring constantly. Repeat this until you have 4 ladles fully incorporated. Now slowly add the egg mixture back into the half and half, stiring constantly. Why do you do this? If you add the eggs in directly they’ll scramble and you’ll have a mess. This way you’re slowly bring them up to temp without over cooking them.

Cook on medium-low heat until it starts to thicken. You’ll know when it’s done when you can dip a spoon in, run your finger down the back, turn it sideways, and it doesn’t run back down the spoon erasing your swipe.

Take it off the heat and whisk in the vanilla. Then pour it through a strainer into a medium bowl. This will make sure you don’t have any lumps. Let it cool on the counter for about 20 minutes, then put plastic wrap directly on top of the mixture. This will prevent a “skin” from forming on the top. Refridgerate for a couple of hour (or more). Then run it through your ice-cream maker.

*if you don’t have half and half then do 2 1/3 cups heavy cream and 2 and 1/3 cups whole milk.