I made up this pan sauce tonight and it was GOOD. Not just kind of good....double O, capitalized GOOD.
4 Ribeye Steaks - about 1 inch thick
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup beef stock/broth or water
1 tsp mustard -- I used yellow, but I think brown or the "Poupon" would be even better
2 Tbsp brown sugar
Fresh ground Sea Salt and Freshly coarsely ground Black Pepper
olive oil
Add about 1 Tbsp of olive oil to a large skillet and heat over medium high heat. You want it HOT. Season both sides of the steak with salt and pepper--however much you like. When the pan is pretty darn hot, add the steak. Don't overcrowd the pan or it will steam instead of sear. I had to do 2 batches of 2 steaks each.
Now, don't touch the steak....Resist the urge. No, No....Hands off. Just leave it alone. It will get a nice sear and crust that keeps the juices in. After 6 minutes for medium rare or 7-8 for medium, flip it over. Then hands off. Don't touch for another 6 minutes for medium-rare, 7-8 for medium. Then take it out, sit it on a platter and don't touch. Let it rest for 10 minutes. It's carry-over heat will make it perfect and the juices will stay in the meat. Repeat for the other 2 steaks if they didn't fit.
After the steaks are done and resting, turn the heat to medium. Add stock/broth or water to pan to deglaze, scraping up the yummy brown bits. Add balsamic vinegar and brown sugar and stir for a couple of minutes until it thickens a bit. Then serve either poured over the steak or on the side for dipping.
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Herbed Onion Focaccia with Basil Vinaigrette Dressing
This is from the pampered chef book, which I recently found and became a fun thing to add to pasta meals (like a pizza without all the pizza ingredients), especially cause I've got fresh basil bushes in the back that I LOVE! and some starts of oregano. I recently got some tarragon that I added also. I assume you can experiment with the herbs you want to put on it.
1 loaf frozen bread dough (I don't have this luxury here to I just do a quick pizza dough)
2 t olive oil
1 onion, sliced in rings
3 fresh garlic cloves, minced
fresh basil leaves
fresh oregano
1/4 C Parmesan cheese
Saute the onion and garlic in oil until the onion is tender and garlic turns golden brown (I actually like it when the onion are a little caramelized, even looks burnt). Prepare the dough and spread onto a pizza stone. Brush the olive oil over the bread. Spread the onion and garlic mix over the dough and sprinkle the herbs around it also. Sprinkle the Parmesan cheese (I actually usually just use a local brand cheese. I bet you could use the cheese of your choice as long as it's not too strong to over power the herbs.) Bake at 375 for 20-25 min. Serve.
I usually use this dressing to dip the bread in:
Basil Vinaigrette Dressing
1 C olive oil
1/3 C apple cider vinegar
1/4 C honey
3 T fresh basil
2 cloves minced fresh garlic
In a bowl whisk together.
1 loaf frozen bread dough (I don't have this luxury here to I just do a quick pizza dough)
2 t olive oil
1 onion, sliced in rings
3 fresh garlic cloves, minced
fresh basil leaves
fresh oregano
1/4 C Parmesan cheese
Saute the onion and garlic in oil until the onion is tender and garlic turns golden brown (I actually like it when the onion are a little caramelized, even looks burnt). Prepare the dough and spread onto a pizza stone. Brush the olive oil over the bread. Spread the onion and garlic mix over the dough and sprinkle the herbs around it also. Sprinkle the Parmesan cheese (I actually usually just use a local brand cheese. I bet you could use the cheese of your choice as long as it's not too strong to over power the herbs.) Bake at 375 for 20-25 min. Serve.
I usually use this dressing to dip the bread in:
Basil Vinaigrette Dressing
1 C olive oil
1/3 C apple cider vinegar
1/4 C honey
3 T fresh basil
2 cloves minced fresh garlic
In a bowl whisk together.
Scones and granola
Inspired by Kam's breakfast post, I wanted to share our latest breakfast favorites.
I recently discovered scones. I like them. I like something bread-y but I don't like to wait for bread to rise. These are fast and flavorful. The kids like to eat them with milk in the mornings or as an after school snack (it's a step in the healthy direction away from cookies).
Orange Chocolate Scones
2 C flour
1/3 C sugar
2 t. baking powder
1/2 t salt
1/4 t baking soda
1/3 C cold butter
1/3 C orange juice
1/3 C + 2 T buttermilk (you can also do this by using regular milk, squeezing 1 T lemon juice in it and let it sit for 5 min)
2 T orange zest
1/2 C dark chocolate chips
Wisk flour- baking soda together. Cut in butter. Combine wet ingredients then add to dry ingredients until moist (Don't pour it all in at once cause sometimes, the flour is not really dry, so it comes out too wet. Add the mixture a bit at a time and mixing it). Stir in chocolate chips. Kneed to combine. Pat the dough into a flat circle and cut into wedges. Bake at 350 for 12-15 min. I keep some of these for the next day and then I freeze the rest. Take out what you want and warm them up in the microwave.
Apple Scones
2 C flour
1/4 C sugar
2 t baking powder
2 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
1/4 C cold butter
1 shredded apple
1/2 C milk
Combine dry ingredients. Cut in cold butter. Add the shredded apple. Slowly add the milk until moist. Knead it till mixed and form a circle. Flatten it and cut wedges. After dip the top of the wedge into a cinnamon-sugar mix. Bake at 350 for 12-15 min.
Last, I've started to make my own granola. This has actually become a staple breakfast food, even replacing prepared cereals. It's pretty easy and I like it cause I know what is going into it so I can consider it to really be healthy for my family. It's a fun way to get my kids to eat oats. It also sticks better in our stomach than prepared cereals.
2 C oats
1/2 C flaked coconut
1/2 nuts (I usually use peanuts)
1/8 C sesame seeds
1/8 C flax seeds
1/4 C shelled sunflower seeds (I actually haven't added this in before, but the recipe calls for it)
1/3 C oil
1/3 C honey
1/4 C raisins, dried fruits or chocolate chips/m&m's
Combine oats - seeds (if you don't have some seeds or if you like another kind of seed, use what you have and what you like). Add oil and then in the same cup you measured the oil, measure the honey (this way, the honey comes out of the cup easier). Mix this together. Bake at 300 for 20 min stirring after 10 min. Check on the granola every so often. As it darkens, stir it. Remove from oven. Turn onto a foil and allow to cool. Add dried fruits and chocolate. Store in an air tight container and it'll last for quite some time (even in the humidity of the Philippines!)
We love to eat this with yogurt and banana's (like an acai bowl type thing). We've also eaten this on banana splits. Yum! and it's healthy!
I recently discovered scones. I like them. I like something bread-y but I don't like to wait for bread to rise. These are fast and flavorful. The kids like to eat them with milk in the mornings or as an after school snack (it's a step in the healthy direction away from cookies).
Orange Chocolate Scones
2 C flour
1/3 C sugar
2 t. baking powder
1/2 t salt
1/4 t baking soda
1/3 C cold butter
1/3 C orange juice
1/3 C + 2 T buttermilk (you can also do this by using regular milk, squeezing 1 T lemon juice in it and let it sit for 5 min)
2 T orange zest
1/2 C dark chocolate chips
Wisk flour- baking soda together. Cut in butter. Combine wet ingredients then add to dry ingredients until moist (Don't pour it all in at once cause sometimes, the flour is not really dry, so it comes out too wet. Add the mixture a bit at a time and mixing it). Stir in chocolate chips. Kneed to combine. Pat the dough into a flat circle and cut into wedges. Bake at 350 for 12-15 min. I keep some of these for the next day and then I freeze the rest. Take out what you want and warm them up in the microwave.
Apple Scones
2 C flour
1/4 C sugar
2 t baking powder
2 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
1/4 C cold butter
1 shredded apple
1/2 C milk
Combine dry ingredients. Cut in cold butter. Add the shredded apple. Slowly add the milk until moist. Knead it till mixed and form a circle. Flatten it and cut wedges. After dip the top of the wedge into a cinnamon-sugar mix. Bake at 350 for 12-15 min.
Last, I've started to make my own granola. This has actually become a staple breakfast food, even replacing prepared cereals. It's pretty easy and I like it cause I know what is going into it so I can consider it to really be healthy for my family. It's a fun way to get my kids to eat oats. It also sticks better in our stomach than prepared cereals.
2 C oats
1/2 C flaked coconut
1/2 nuts (I usually use peanuts)
1/8 C sesame seeds
1/8 C flax seeds
1/4 C shelled sunflower seeds (I actually haven't added this in before, but the recipe calls for it)
1/3 C oil
1/3 C honey
1/4 C raisins, dried fruits or chocolate chips/m&m's
Combine oats - seeds (if you don't have some seeds or if you like another kind of seed, use what you have and what you like). Add oil and then in the same cup you measured the oil, measure the honey (this way, the honey comes out of the cup easier). Mix this together. Bake at 300 for 20 min stirring after 10 min. Check on the granola every so often. As it darkens, stir it. Remove from oven. Turn onto a foil and allow to cool. Add dried fruits and chocolate. Store in an air tight container and it'll last for quite some time (even in the humidity of the Philippines!)
We love to eat this with yogurt and banana's (like an acai bowl type thing). We've also eaten this on banana splits. Yum! and it's healthy!
Japanese
I started out this post dedicated to miso soup, but then when I was looking for my recipe, I came across a few other Japanese recipes we like, so here they are:
I like miso soup. I don't think I ever was really exposed to it till practically here in the Philippines when we got it free at a popular fast food Japanese restaurant. Since then, I've wanted to be able to make it. I think I attempted it (horribly) on vacation in Hawaii . . .
Well, I have since found a recipe that we love and it's VERY easy! Whenever we do an Asia type meal and I need a little extra food, I make this soup.
Miso Soup
2 t handashi granules (this is important, when mixed with the water it makes kinda a fish broth)
4 C water
In a saucepan over medium heat, combine dashi and water. Bring to a boil.
3 T miso paste (I usually use a red miso paste)
1 C water
Miso miso paste with water. Reduce heat. (don't allow to boil after the miso is added)
Diced tofu
Seaweed (nori) for soup (optional)
green onion, chopped
Add tofu, nori and green onion. Simmer gently 2-3 min. Serve
Next recipe I actually found on a Hawaii local food site. I like to make extra and freeze them (since we never eat all of them in one meal). They are handy to pull out and fix.
(As a side note, if you want to beef it up a bit more without adding more meat, it's easy to add some tofu diced small into it and nobody even notices! I actually do that quite a bit when I make ground meat things since the tofu takes on the flavor of whatever I'm cooking. It saves me money - tofu is cheaper than meat - and it's healthy.)
Gyoza
1/2 lb ground pork
1/2 lb ground chicken
3/4 C chopped cabbage
1/4 C mushrooms (chopped)
1/4 C carrot (shredded)
1 t ginger, diced
2 t garlic, diced
1 t shoyu
package of gyoza wrappers (sometimes I use dimsum wrappers)
Mix all the ingredients with your hands. Fill each wrapper with about a teaspoon of mix and fold it up. (This takes a while, but if you aren't too particular about the looks, you can get your kids to help - they seem to enjoy it)
You can either steam, boil or fry for about 7 mins or until filling is cooked. They are also good to add to soups or eat with rice. You can mix equal portions of shoyu and vinegar for a dipping sauce.
Last, we don't have any prepared mixes of teriyaki sauce that we can pick up and dump on some chicken. I found this chicken teriyaki recipe which is so easy and yummy that I don't think I need a mix anymore.
Teriyaki Chicken
1 whole chicken chopped up (I would think it's about 6 pieces)
3/4 C sugar (some people may prefer brown sugar)
3/4 C shoyu
1 T fresh ginger, grated
2 cloves of garlic, minced
Basically, you just mix it all up. The recipe said to marinate it for 3 hours and then bake at 350 for an hour, basting frequently. I didn't have the time to marinate it and didn't feel like turning on the oven so I just covered and boiled it. I brought it to a boil for a few minutes then turned it down and let it simmer for about 30 mins. The last 5 minutes, I remove the cover and boil it again so more of the flavor would cook into the chicken (Mom Briones does this with her adobo). We still liked it.
I like miso soup. I don't think I ever was really exposed to it till practically here in the Philippines when we got it free at a popular fast food Japanese restaurant. Since then, I've wanted to be able to make it. I think I attempted it (horribly) on vacation in Hawaii . . .
Well, I have since found a recipe that we love and it's VERY easy! Whenever we do an Asia type meal and I need a little extra food, I make this soup.
Miso Soup
2 t handashi granules (this is important, when mixed with the water it makes kinda a fish broth)
4 C water
In a saucepan over medium heat, combine dashi and water. Bring to a boil.
3 T miso paste (I usually use a red miso paste)
1 C water
Miso miso paste with water. Reduce heat. (don't allow to boil after the miso is added)
Diced tofu
Seaweed (nori) for soup (optional)
green onion, chopped
Add tofu, nori and green onion. Simmer gently 2-3 min. Serve
Next recipe I actually found on a Hawaii local food site. I like to make extra and freeze them (since we never eat all of them in one meal). They are handy to pull out and fix.
(As a side note, if you want to beef it up a bit more without adding more meat, it's easy to add some tofu diced small into it and nobody even notices! I actually do that quite a bit when I make ground meat things since the tofu takes on the flavor of whatever I'm cooking. It saves me money - tofu is cheaper than meat - and it's healthy.)
Gyoza
1/2 lb ground pork
1/2 lb ground chicken
3/4 C chopped cabbage
1/4 C mushrooms (chopped)
1/4 C carrot (shredded)
1 t ginger, diced
2 t garlic, diced
1 t shoyu
package of gyoza wrappers (sometimes I use dimsum wrappers)
Mix all the ingredients with your hands. Fill each wrapper with about a teaspoon of mix and fold it up. (This takes a while, but if you aren't too particular about the looks, you can get your kids to help - they seem to enjoy it)
You can either steam, boil or fry for about 7 mins or until filling is cooked. They are also good to add to soups or eat with rice. You can mix equal portions of shoyu and vinegar for a dipping sauce.
Last, we don't have any prepared mixes of teriyaki sauce that we can pick up and dump on some chicken. I found this chicken teriyaki recipe which is so easy and yummy that I don't think I need a mix anymore.
Teriyaki Chicken
1 whole chicken chopped up (I would think it's about 6 pieces)
3/4 C sugar (some people may prefer brown sugar)
3/4 C shoyu
1 T fresh ginger, grated
2 cloves of garlic, minced
Basically, you just mix it all up. The recipe said to marinate it for 3 hours and then bake at 350 for an hour, basting frequently. I didn't have the time to marinate it and didn't feel like turning on the oven so I just covered and boiled it. I brought it to a boil for a few minutes then turned it down and let it simmer for about 30 mins. The last 5 minutes, I remove the cover and boil it again so more of the flavor would cook into the chicken (Mom Briones does this with her adobo). We still liked it.
Friday, June 18, 2010
breakfast
i remember growing up, my mom always prepared breakfast for us. whether it was scrambled eggs or just putting out a buffet of cold cereal and yogurts, she always prepared something for us before school. i now look back and see what an effort that took! so even though i am grateful to my mom for trying to give us that "good start" to the day...
i am SO not my mom. i totally fail at the preparing breakfast every morning thing.
luckily for me, i can ease my guilt by preparing some breakfast options that my kids can get ready themselves. since i've put in the pre-work, i don't feel so bad that they have to warm it up themselves. during school, they all get up at different times because they all start at different times. during the summer, hey! it's summer and i want to sleep in.
another reason i do it is because we have vastly different appetites. i have one child who needs something that will stick to her stomach for a good long time. i have a pre-schooler who grazes all morning. every time someone eats she'll take a bite of theirs but "her" breakfast is usually a bowl of cold cereal that she can munch off of for an hour or two. then i have another who like me, prefers something lighter but still traditionally breakfast.
anyway, i've found that muffins and breakfast burritos go over the best here. combined with a few different cold cereals in the pantry and we're set. here are the recipes i use:
breakfast burritos
this is one of those recipes you can vary according to your own taste. i make little mini burritos because one is the right size for the kids and two is just fine for the husband.
2 pkgs small tortillas (16 count each), warmed or fried how ever you prefer.
18 large eggs, scrambled with some salt and pepper
bacon bits (you could also fry up a pound of bulk sausage if you want)
shredded cheese
ketchup (i don't know if it's just a hawaii thing but practically all forms of eggs are eaten with ketchup in our house.)
i do an assembly line here -
tortilla, ketchup first because it's less messy when you roll them up, bacon, cheese, eggs on top. fold all sides in. pack into a large freezer bag or two. these are one of the things i don't freeze spaced out individually first. they stay together better if you pack them in the bag and they are easy enough to break apart if they happen to stick together. i used to wrap each individually in plastic wrap but it's just as good without that added step of work.
the kids and the husband then take out one or two breakfast burritos in the morning and microwave for about a minute. good for the ones who like a heartier breakfast.
pumpkin muffins
preheat oven to 350 degrees. spray 2 muffin pans with non-stick spray.
in a large bowl, mix:
1 (15 oz) can pumpkin puree
4 eggs
1 C. oil ( i sub 1/2 C. canola oil and 1/2 C. unsweetened applesauce)
2/3 C. water
3 C. sugar ( i sub 1 C. brown sugar and 1-1 1/2 C white sugar)
add in and mix until just blended:
3 1/2 C. flour ( i sub in some whole wheat for this)
2 t. baking soda
1 1/2 t. salt
1 t. ground cinnamon
1 t. ground nutmeg
1/2 t. ground cloves
1/2 t. ground ginger
bake for 20-30 minutes until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. cool for 5 minutes and then remove from pans. cool completely on wire rack. place on a cookie sheet and freeze until firm. i then bag them into gallon sized freezer bags. when you're ready to eat them, you can allow them to sit and come to room tempurature or microwave individually from frozen for 30 seconds.
you can do this with any of your favorite muffin or quick bread recipes. subbing out with some whole wheat and applesauce make them healthier and heartier. i think i'll do a zucchini bread (turned into muffins) variety this summer.
i am SO not my mom. i totally fail at the preparing breakfast every morning thing.
luckily for me, i can ease my guilt by preparing some breakfast options that my kids can get ready themselves. since i've put in the pre-work, i don't feel so bad that they have to warm it up themselves. during school, they all get up at different times because they all start at different times. during the summer, hey! it's summer and i want to sleep in.
another reason i do it is because we have vastly different appetites. i have one child who needs something that will stick to her stomach for a good long time. i have a pre-schooler who grazes all morning. every time someone eats she'll take a bite of theirs but "her" breakfast is usually a bowl of cold cereal that she can munch off of for an hour or two. then i have another who like me, prefers something lighter but still traditionally breakfast.
anyway, i've found that muffins and breakfast burritos go over the best here. combined with a few different cold cereals in the pantry and we're set. here are the recipes i use:
breakfast burritos
this is one of those recipes you can vary according to your own taste. i make little mini burritos because one is the right size for the kids and two is just fine for the husband.
2 pkgs small tortillas (16 count each), warmed or fried how ever you prefer.
18 large eggs, scrambled with some salt and pepper
bacon bits (you could also fry up a pound of bulk sausage if you want)
shredded cheese
ketchup (i don't know if it's just a hawaii thing but practically all forms of eggs are eaten with ketchup in our house.)
i do an assembly line here -
tortilla, ketchup first because it's less messy when you roll them up, bacon, cheese, eggs on top. fold all sides in. pack into a large freezer bag or two. these are one of the things i don't freeze spaced out individually first. they stay together better if you pack them in the bag and they are easy enough to break apart if they happen to stick together. i used to wrap each individually in plastic wrap but it's just as good without that added step of work.
the kids and the husband then take out one or two breakfast burritos in the morning and microwave for about a minute. good for the ones who like a heartier breakfast.
pumpkin muffins
preheat oven to 350 degrees. spray 2 muffin pans with non-stick spray.
in a large bowl, mix:
1 (15 oz) can pumpkin puree
4 eggs
1 C. oil ( i sub 1/2 C. canola oil and 1/2 C. unsweetened applesauce)
2/3 C. water
3 C. sugar ( i sub 1 C. brown sugar and 1-1 1/2 C white sugar)
add in and mix until just blended:
3 1/2 C. flour ( i sub in some whole wheat for this)
2 t. baking soda
1 1/2 t. salt
1 t. ground cinnamon
1 t. ground nutmeg
1/2 t. ground cloves
1/2 t. ground ginger
bake for 20-30 minutes until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. cool for 5 minutes and then remove from pans. cool completely on wire rack. place on a cookie sheet and freeze until firm. i then bag them into gallon sized freezer bags. when you're ready to eat them, you can allow them to sit and come to room tempurature or microwave individually from frozen for 30 seconds.
you can do this with any of your favorite muffin or quick bread recipes. subbing out with some whole wheat and applesauce make them healthier and heartier. i think i'll do a zucchini bread (turned into muffins) variety this summer.
Friday, June 11, 2010
Onion Rings
Awhile ago I was watching a movie and they were eating onion rings, they looked so good! And since there isn't any where around here that sells onion rings (beside little fast food type things), I found this recipe and tried it. We love them (although it does take some work, it's worth it.)
1-2 large onions
1 1/4 C All purpose flour
1 t baking powder
1 t salt
1 egg
1 C milk (or as needed)
Bread Crumbs
Slice your onions and separate the rings. Set aside. (Sometimes I put the slices into water to help be able to separate the rings easier, and take them out once they are separated)
Stir together dry ingredients - flour, baking powder and salt.
Dip rings into mix to coat and set aside.
Whisk egg into flour mix and milk with fork. dip rings in batter to coat. Place on a rack till batter stops dripping, just make sure it does drip all the way off or the bread crumbs won't stick (since I don't have a rack I just put it on a plate).
Place rings in bread crumbs to coat. Tap so excess is removed. Fry 2-3 min in oil till golden brown.
1-2 large onions
1 1/4 C All purpose flour
1 t baking powder
1 t salt
1 egg
1 C milk (or as needed)
Bread Crumbs
Slice your onions and separate the rings. Set aside. (Sometimes I put the slices into water to help be able to separate the rings easier, and take them out once they are separated)
Stir together dry ingredients - flour, baking powder and salt.
Dip rings into mix to coat and set aside.
Whisk egg into flour mix and milk with fork. dip rings in batter to coat. Place on a rack till batter stops dripping, just make sure it does drip all the way off or the bread crumbs won't stick (since I don't have a rack I just put it on a plate).
Place rings in bread crumbs to coat. Tap so excess is removed. Fry 2-3 min in oil till golden brown.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)