NY Strip Steak

It's been awhile since the hubby and I had a chunk of meat medium rare. We had food poisoning and it wasn't fun. We saw a pretty decent looking meat (a bit too lean, not enough marbling) for a pretty good price and decided to eat some steaks tonight all while in the back of our minds, we're praying not to get food poisoning again. 

We patted our steaks dry with a paper towel. Then seasoned the steaks with salt and pepper.

In a cast iron pan, on high heat, we melted about 2 tbs of butter. Then we placed one steak at a time to cook for a couple of minutes on each side. 

When the steak is flipped, we added just a touch more butter. Once the steak is done to your liking, simply place the steak on a wooden board, cover with foil, and let it rest for 10 minutes before cutting into it.

Serve with salad on the side :D Twas delicious!

Pasta Casserole

I got tired of making baked goods because I found I had nothing substantial to eat when lunch time came. So I made an easy peasy pasta casserole.

I used 6oz uncooked pasta (not shown), 1/2 cup ricotta, 2 oz pepperoni, 3oz baby spinach, 8 oz spaghetti sauce (not shown) and 4 oz Monterrey jack cheese.

1. Cook the pasta according to directions. In the meantime, roughly chop up the spinach and pepperoni.
2. Once the pasta is cooked, place in a 6 cups casserole dish. Mix in the ricotta cheese, then pepperoni, then spinach and then the spaghetti sauce.

3. Then top with Monterrey jack cheese. (Shredded works fine too, but I didn't feel like washing an entire food processor for only 4 oz of cheese.)

4. Pop it in the a preheated oven of 350°F for 20 minutes. 

It was pretty yummy and super quick to make. I love how the pasta holds onto the other foods making every bite delicious! I would add more sauce and cheese next time because I love my pasta drenched in sauce and cheese. 

What to make with Apples??

We spent the weekend with a couple of awesome friends down in SD to check out a few breweries, then check out the apple festival and try out apple picking! But, we still needed dinner and decided to do some homecookin'. We stayed in Saturday night and made pork chops with some kind of apple sauce, baked an apple crisp and pear-apple cobbler and made a swan! :D Needless to say, we had too much fun!

pork chops

husband can cook!

some kind of pork chop sauce made with apples

pork chops and salad

yep, that's an apple swan as our centerpiece.

Homemade apple crisp 

Homemade pear-apple cobbler

We also bought a pumpkin apple pie from a Julian Cafe Bakery and it was unanimous that the homemade stuff were much more delicious.  I thought I took a picture of that pie, but couldn't find it. Oh wells, not missing much...

Here are close ups of the swan (not made by me)

Takes skills man!

Special Request ~ Meatloaf

Le hubby and I were headed to San Diego for the weekend to check out some breweries, the apple festival and do a bit of apple picking. That meant dad would be at home for the weekend without dinner! So I asked him if he had any special requests. Of course, it was meatloaf. And as usual, I used Alton Brown's Good Eats Meatloaf as my guideline.

I used 9oz jimmy dean sausage with sage and the remainder 27oz of ground beef for a total of 36oz of meat. Sprinkle with 1 and 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt.

Little bowl on left:

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1/2 teaspoon Penzey's bouquet garni

Bowl on the right:

1/2 red bell pepper, chopped

3 stalks celery, chopped (couldn't find my onion)

3 whole cloves garlic, minced

1 carrot, chopped

6 ounces garlic-flavored croutons or any other flavors would work well too.

Mix everything together, then mix in an egg.

Pack into a loaf pan.

Flip over and set the meatloaf on parchment paper. This way allows the fat to drain out. Then bake in preheated oven of 325°F.

After 10 minutes, pull the loaf out and cover with a ketchup glaze. The ketchup glaze was made with 1/2 cup ketchup,1 teaspoon ground cumin, dash Worcestershire sauce. I actually double the recipe; use half of it for the loaf and the other half as extra sauce.

My meatloaf's glaze burned a bit as our meat thermometer alarm wasn't working properly. You want an internal temperature of 155°F to ensure your meatloaf is cooked well. My meatloaf baked for about 1 hour and 40 minutes.

I realize we always use Alton Brown's meatloaf recipe. It's because it has veggies in it!. Most other meatloaf recipes is basically meat, bread, onions and egg. But, I will try another meatloaf recipe next time. Found some pretty highly reviewed ones as well as some fun ones:

Allrecipes.com's Easy Meatloaf

Paula Dean's Old-Fashioined Meatloaf

Betty Crocker's Savory Meatloaf

The Pioneer Woman's Favorite Meatloaf (w bacon strips)

Cheddar BBQ Meatloaf Muffins

Lentil Soup

I got really sick this past few days and am still sick. So, I decided to make some kind of vegetable soup. We have a crapton of green lentil beans and so many recipes to choose from: Giada De Laurentiis, Ina Garten (The Barefoot Contessa), and Aida Mollenkamp. I used a little bit from all three to make my own version.

1 pound green lentils

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

3 carrots, peeled and chopped

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 can diced tomatoes

10 cups water

8 beef bouillon cubes/teaspoons

1 teaspoon dried thyme

3 dried bay leaves

3 celery stalks, chopped

2/3 cup dried elbow pasta

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Baby spinach optional

In a large bowl, cover the lentils with boiling water and allow to sit for 15 minutes. Drain water.

Heat the oil in a heavy large pot over medium heat. Add the onions and carrots and season lightly with kosher salt and pepper. Cook until softened or onions are translucent. Stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant. Pour in a quart (4 cups) of water and 4 beef bouillon cubes. Add in the can of tomatoes and its juices. Add in the lentil beans. Then add the remaining water and beef bouillon cubes, dried thyme and bay leaves and let simmer for 30 minutes. After 20 minutes, add in the celery. 

In a separate pot, boil pasta according to directions and serve with soup when ready. If you like mushy pasta, feel free to cook it in the soup. When ready to serve, top with spinach leaves. 

This lentil soup turned out to be really delicious and very savory with the beef flavor along with all the veggies. I will definitely be making this again when I need a healthy hearty meatless dinner. Although, if you have to have meat, add in sliced sausages. Super yummy still. This lasted for a week for two people. Mm-mmm.

Pizza Night!

Yesterday, I made lots of pizzas! And the night before that, I made the pizza dough. I followed Alton Brown's recipe as best I could, which turned out to be pretty good, but not at all near as bready as I would like it. Next time, I'll just use the whole dough for one pizza instead of splitting it into two. Despite it's thinness, the taste and texture were perfect. PS: I prefer bready pizzas.

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoon kosher salt (we have the small flakes)
1 tablespoon olive oil
3/4 cup warm water
2 cups all purpose flour
2 1/4 teaspoon active dry yeast
2 teaspoons olive oil
Olive oil, for the pizza crust
Flour, for dusting the pizza peel

Directions:

Dissolve a sprinkle of the sugar into the warm water. Then sprinkle in the yeast and let sit for about five minutes or until foamy.

Place the sugar, salt, olive oil, 1 cup of flour, yeast mixture, and remaining cup of flour into a standing mixer's work bowl. Using the paddle attachment, start the mixer on low and mix until the dough just comes together, forming a ball. Lube the hook attachment with cooking spray. Attach the hook to the mixer and knead for 15 minutes on medium speed.

Tear off a small piece of dough and flatten into a disc. Stretch the dough until thin. Hold it up to the light and look to see if the baker's windowpane, or taut membrane, has formed. If the dough tears before it forms, knead the dough for an additional 5 to 10 minutes. I think this part was really useful.

Roll the pizza dough into a smooth ball on the countertop. Place into a stainless steel or glass bowl. Add 2 teaspoons of olive oil to the bowl and toss to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 18 to 24 hours.

Preheat oven to 500°F. 

Split the pizza dough into 2 equal parts using a knife or a dough scraper. Flatten into a disk onto the countertop and then fold the dough into a ball.

Wet hands barely with water and rub them onto the countertop to dampen the surface. Roll the dough on the surface until it tightens. Cover one ball with a tea towel and rest for 30 minutes. Repeat the steps with the other piece of dough. If not baking the remaining pizza immediately, spray the inside of a ziptop bag with cooking spray and place the dough ball into the bag. Refrigerate for up to 6 days.

Sprinkle the flour onto a cookie sheet or a peel if you have one and place the dough onto the cookie sheet/peel. Using your hands, form a lip around the edges of the pizza. Stretch the dough into a round disc, rotating after each stretch. Toss the dough in the air if you dare. My first piece came out rectangular. I also used a rolling pin to flatten out any thick areas.

Brush the rim of the pizza with olive oil. (skipped that part) Spread the pizza sauce evenly onto the pizza. (I added sliced cherry tomatoes from my garden).

Sprinkle cheese. We used Montery Jack with leftover sharp cheddar. 

Top with pepperonis. This is the first time we made pizza with our huge bag of pepperonis. The last three or so time, we just munched on them :D

Bake for 7 minutes, or until bubbly and golden brown. Rest for 3 minutes before slicing.

Twas delicious! These three pizzas only lasted for 2 days. I thought for sure at least 3. Totally wrong and totally goners. I want to make more, but man, it takes a lot of effort to make the dough.... we shall see...

Doughnuts!!!!!!

I made doughnuts!!!!!!!

The husband said randomly, "I want doughnuts." So as his dutiful wife, I thought, "Hrm, that could be fun to make. Maybe..." And today's the day that maybe became a yes. I used this recipe called Crispy and Creamy Doughnuts bc it had a LOT of positive reviews. I was skeptical though because I think it's hard getting a doughnut to be airy and light and chewy all at the same time like the ones from doughnut shops. Well, this one came pretty close. It was more light and chewy. Didn't quite have that airiness, but maybe I'm just picky because the boys (pops n hubby) and a few friends who have tried it thought it was really good.

Here's the ingredients list (tweaked for yield of 12):

Dough

1/3 oz active dry yeast (I have a digital scale)
3 tbs warm water (105°F - 115°F)

1/3 cup white sugar

1 cup lukewarm milk
3/4 tsp salt
1 egg
3+1/2 tbs canola oil or shortening
3+1/3 cups all-purpose flour
Frying Oil

2+2/3 cups vegetable oil for frying (I didn't actually measure out what I used... I just poured)
Glaze

3+1/2 tbs unsalted butter
1+1/3 cups confectioners' sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons and 2 teaspoons hot water or as needed

Directions:

1. Sprinkle a little of the sugar into the warm water and swirl until all or most has dissolved. Then sprinkle in the yeast over the warm sugar water and let stand for 5 minutes or until foamy.

2. In a large mixer bowl, mix together milk, sugar, salt, egg, oil, and 2 cups of the flour. Mix for a few seconds, then add in the yeast mixture. Mix again for a few minutes at low speed or stir with a wooden spoon. On medium speed, add in the remaining flour 1/2 cup at a time, until the dough no longer sticks to the bowl. Knead (medium-high speed) for about 5 minutes, or until smooth and elastic. Place the dough into a greased bowl, and cover with plastic wrap. Set in a warm place to rise until double. (You can heat your oven to its lowest temperature then turn it off and then set your dough in your oven until it doubles). Dough is ready if you touch it, and the indention remains.

3. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface, and gently roll out to 1/2 inch thickness. Cut with a floured doughnut cutter. (I just knifed it into strips because I don't own a doughnut cutter. Worked just fine.) Let doughnuts sit out to rise again until double. Cover loosely with a cloth.

4. For the glaze, melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir in confectioners' sugar and vanilla until smooth. Remove from heat, and stir in hot water one tablespoon at a time until the icing is somewhat thin, but not watery. Set aside.

5. Heat oil in a deep-fryer or large heavy skillet to 350°F (175°C ). Slide doughnuts into the hot oil using a wide spatula. Turn doughnuts over as they rise to the surface. Fry doughnuts on each side until golden brown. Remove from hot oil, to drain on a wire rack. 

6. Dip doughnuts into the glaze while still hot, and set onto wire racks to drain off excess. Keep a cookie sheet or tray under racks for easier clean up.

The two middles ones have not yet been glazed (above photo).

It's definitely something I'd make again! YUMMY DONUTS!!!!!

Junk Food Dinna

Le hubbester and I decided to feast on junk food tonight. The picture above is just my portion. You should've seen his, but he had already eaten half by the time I took that one bite. A quesadillas (with sliced rib-eye and sharp cheddar cheese), fries with poppy seed dressing and a punkin beer (it kinda tastes like pumpkin!). Our tummies were very satisfied and we were left wanting more!