Daube Provencal

I got this recipe many years ago from who knows where. I tried to find in on the internet and came up with something close on a French site. You'll need to translate the page, unless you speak French! Below is the recipe that I used. We will serve this with mashed potatoes, although I made a note that it might be good with baked polenta, as well.

3 lbs chuck roast, cut into cubes
1 pint mushrooms, sliced (unless small)
3 onions sliced
1 small onion, studded with 5 cloves
5 cloves garlic, minced
4 carrots, sliced on bias
4-5 shallots, sliced
2 beef bouillon cubes (or 2 t)
1 bottle dry red wine
1 T tomato paste
1 bay leaf
2 T red wine vinegar

In dutch oven, saute meat in very hot oil, so it browns quickly without rendering juices. Set aside.
Saute mushrooms quickly (no juices). Set aside.
Saute onions, garlic, carrots, and shallots till onion is slightly caramelized.
Add the meat and mushrooms back into the pot.
Drop in bouillon and pour in the bottle of wine.
Add the tomato paste, bay leaf, studded onion, vinegar, salt and pepper.

Cover and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer on low for at least one hour- the longer the better for the meat to get really tender.

**Delicious.

Kielbasa simmered in beer with onions and cabbage

I used to make this dish without the cabbage when I first got a Martha Stewart cookbook. I couldn't find her recipe online attributed to her, but I found this one from cooks.com that is identical. I have amended the recipe below to how I cooked it.

2 T butter

2 T olive oil
1 large onion, thinly sliced

1/2 cabbage, sliced
2 Kielbasas
2 (12 oz.) bottles beer (I used Rio Grande with green chile)

1. In a large heavy skillet melt the butter and saute the onion over medium heat until translucent.

2. Add the Kielbasa to the pan and brown it 3 to 4 minutes on each side.

3. Add the cabbage on top. 

4. Pour the beer over the top. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, for 20 minutes or until the cabbage is how you like it.

**Cooking it this way in beer makes the dish a bit sweet. Nice for a change although my daughter said the dish tasted 'beer-y'. hmm.

Meatloaf with chili sauce

This recipe was requested by my daughter. I used my home made ketchup mixed with a heaping teaspoon of sriracha chile sauce. You can find this recipe on the Martha Stewart site.

• 1/2 cup milk
• 4 slices white sandwich bread, torn into pieces (I used gluten-free)
• 1 1/2 pounds ground sirloin
• 1 1/2 pounds ground pork
• 2 small onions, finely chopped
• 6 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 cup chili sauce, plus 1/4 cup for glaze
• 1 cup chopped fresh parsley
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• Coarse salt and ground pepper

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees, with rack in center. In a large bowl, pour milk over bread; let soak, about 30 seconds. Add sirloin, pork, onion, garlic, 1/2 cup chili sauce, parsley, Parmesan, eggs, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Using your hands, mix until combined; do not overmix or meatloaf will be dense.
2. Divide mixture in half. Gently pat each half into a log, and place each log in an 8 1/2-by-4 1/2-inch loaf pan. Do not press down or into corners.
3. Bake 50 minutes. Brush tops of loaves with remaining 1/4 cup chili sauce; continue cooking until juices run clear and an instant-read thermometer inserted into thickest part registers 160 degrees, about 10 minutes.
4. Remove from oven; let rest 5 minutes. Turn loaves out of pans; slice each into eight 3/4-inch-thick slices.

 **Very nice. Make sure to use a thermometer so it doesn't overcook and get dry.

Mini Skillet Meatloaves

Since I didn't end up making the eggplant stir fry, I had some LPO ground pork thawed and needing to be used. I found some ground beef in the freezer from Whole Foods, so I decided to do a quick meatloaf. These are very quick since they are made individually. You can find the recipe on the Food Network site.
Below is my version (I used less sugar than in the original recipe).

• 1/3 cup breadcrumbs (GF)
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley
• 1 large egg
• 3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 small onion, finely minced
• 1 teaspoon chili powder (chipotle is nice)
• 2 cloves garlic, grated or finely minced
• 1 1/2 pounds meat (ground beef and pork)
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 1/2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

Directions

Mix the breadcrumbs, milk, parsley, egg, Worcestershire sauce, onion, chili powder and garlic in a large bowl. Add the meat, season with salt and pepper and mix with your hands until combined. Shape into six 3-to-4-inch oval loaves.

Heat oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add the loaves and brown about 3 minutes per side.
Whisk the ketchup, sugar and vinegar in a bowl and brush a few tablespoonfuls over the meat. Add 1/2 cup water to the skillet, cover and simmer over low heat until cooked through, about 15 minutes. (This time depends on how thick your loaf is- so watch it)
Transfer the loaves to a plate.


Per serving: Calories 380; Fat 24 g (Saturated 8 g); Cholesterol 111 mg; Sodium 800 mg; Carbohydrate 16 g; Fiber 1 g; Protein 23 g

 **This were great. Very similar to the hamburgers that I make. Very quick and easy.

Swedish Meatballs/Kottbullar

Once I had decided on the potato salad with herring that seems pretty Scandinavian to me, I thought some Swedish meatballs might be a good accompaniment. I found this recipe on a Swedish site. I am not a big meatball fan, so we'll so how they go over! I have some lingonberry jam that I'll serve with them.

4–6 servings

500 g (18 oz) ground (minced) beef/pork mixture
250 ml (1¼ cup) milk
75 g (¾ cup) white breadcrumbs
1 egg
1 onion
salt, white pepper
ground allspice
Preparation

Finely dice the onion and sauté gently in a little butter without browning. Soak the breadcrumbs in milk. Blend the ground meat, preferably in a food processor, with the onion, egg, milk/breadcrumb mixture and the spices to the proper consistency and taste. Add a little water if the mixture feels too firm. Check the taste by test-frying one meatball. Then shape small meatballs with the aid of two spoons and place on water-rinsed plates. Brown a generous pat of butter in a frying pan, and when it “goes quiet” place the meatballs in the pan and let them brown on all sides. Shake the frying pan often. Serve with potato purée or boiled potatoes and raw stirred lingonberries.

Leftover Steak and Vege soft tacos

Needing a light meal using left over steak. Found this one.

STEAK AND VEGETABLE SOFT TACOS

by Russell Skall, Fleming's Executive Chef

PREPARATION TIME: 15-20 minutes

INGREDIENTS

3 Tbsp. red onion, diced

3 Tbsp. green pepper, diced

2 tsp. jalapeños, finely diced

2 Roma tomatoes, diced

1 tsp. garlic, minced

1/2 tsp. Kosher salt

1/2 tsp. black pepper, fine grind

2 tsp. fresh lime juice

2 tsp. apple cider vinegar

1 TBS. extra virgin olive oil

5-6 oz. leftover steak

1 cup shredded lettuce

7-8 cilantro leaves

4 flour tortillas

Taco sauce to taste

PREPARATION

Cut the red onion and pepper into ¼-inch dice and place in a mixing bowl. Cut the jalapeño in half and remove the stem and seeds. Mince and add to the mixing bowl with diced tomatoes and minced garlic. Add the Kosher salt, black pepper, lime juice, vinegar and 1 tsp. olive oil to the mixing bowl and mix well. Allow to marinate for 20 minutes. Cut the leftover meat into ¼-inch dice, then season with a pinch of salt and pepper. Place 2 tsp. olive oil in a small sauté pan on high heat. Add the meat and sear 1-2 minutes. Place the warm steak in a clean bowl and reserve. Place the sauté pan back on the high heat with a little olive oil. Cook the vegetables for 2-3 minutes to soften. Place in clean bowl and reserve. Place some of the meat in the middle of a tortilla, then top with some of the vegetables and shredded lettuce. Pull the cilantro leaves off the stem and place on top. Finish with your favorite sauce. Fold the tortillas and serve. Makes 4 tacos.

* I won't be using bell peppers or the cilantro. We'll use spelt tortillas. I'll be using my pickled jalapenos that I canned last summer.  Daughter One's plate Daughter Two's plate **These were great. Easy to make.

Hamburgers

Wednesday was such a beautiful and warm day, that I had to grill burgers. My burger recipe comes from an Australian cookbook called The backyard barbecue cookbook published by Murdoch Books. Try as I may, I couldn't find the recipe on line. It appears the book is out of print, but you can still buy it. It is a great cookbook. My sister, who doesn't like hamburgers, loves these. She says they are like grilled meatloaf. It is a recipe that is easy to adapt to the amount of meat you choose to use. Last night I used 1 lb organic ground beef and made 5 patties.

740 g lean beef mince (1.6 lbs hamburger)
1 onion, finely chopped
1 egg
1/2 C fresh breadcrumbs
2 T tomato paste
1 T Worcestershire sauce
2 T chopped fresh parsley
Salt and pepper to taste

Prepare and heat the barbecue.
Combine everything till well combined. Make patties and grill!

Of course, for the Australians, they would also grill some onions and fry up some bacon and an egg to put on the burger. After putting that on the burger, they would top it with a pineapple ring and a large slice of pickled beet. Burger with the Works, mate.