So when I went out in search of the perfect recipe for boeuf bourguignon, I knew right where I would start:  Julia Child.  After perusing her flawless recipe, I knew I’d found The One.  I made very few changes to the original recipe, mainly altering a few ingredients for the sake of convenience.

The result?  Boeuf Bliss!!!  Even the husband remarked that it was one of the best dishes I have ever made for him.  The sauce is so rich, each layer of flavor reveals itself to you in turn as you make your way through the dish.  This is no ordinary beef stew.

Boeuf Bourguignon
adapted from Julia Child’s amazing recipe

6 ounces of bacon, cut into 1″ pieces
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 lbs. stew beef cut into 2-inch cubes
1 carrot, thinly sliced
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
2 tablespoons flour
3 cups of full-bodied red wine (I used a nice Chianti)
2-3 cups of beef stock
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 cloves garlic, mashed
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 bay leaf, crumbled

18-24 pearl onions, peeled
1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup beef stock
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon parsley
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 lb. fresh mushrooms, quartered
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon olive oil

Preheat your oven to 450 degrees.

Heat the olive oil in an oven-proof, stove-proof casserole (I used a small dutch oven) over medium heat on the stove. Brown the bacon pieces in the oil for 2-3 minutes. Remove them to a large plate using a slotted spoon.

Next, pat dry your beef and sautee the pieces, a few at a time, until well browned on all sides. Remove the meat to the plate with the bacon.

Finally, sautee the carrot and onion in the same pan, cooking them until slightly soft. Remove these to the same plate as the meat.

Pour off any fat remaining in the bottom of the casserole. Return the bacon, meat, and veggies to the casserole, tossing them together with the salt and pepper. Sprinkle the flour over the top of the mixture, and place the casserole, uncovered, in the oven for 4 minutes. Remove from the oven, toss the mixture again, and return to the oven for another 4 minutes. This step is important because the cooked flour will help to thicken your sauce – yum!

Add the wine to the casserole. Then add enough of the broth to barely cover the top of the meat mixture. Stir in the tomato paste, the garlic, the thyme, and the parsley. Bring the entire mixture to a boil on the stovetop.

Lower the oven temperature to 325. Cover the casserole and bake so that the mixture slowly simmers – you can adjust the oven temperature if necessary. Allow to cook for 3-4 hours, or until the meat is easily pierced with a fork.

When the meat is almost finished cooking, you can prepare the onions and the mushrooms.

For the onions, combine the butter and the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onions, and sautee for about 10 minutes, so that they brown evenly without the layers coming apart. Pour in the stock, add the pepper and herbs, and cover the skillet. Simmer the onions over low heat for 40-50 minutes. The onions will be very tender, and almost all of the liquid will be gone. Remove the onions from the pan and set aside.

For the mushrooms, heat the butter and oil over medium-high heat in a skillet. As soon as the foamy part of the butter begins to disappear, add the mushrooms. Stir the pan frequently as the mushrooms brown lightly – this should take about 5 minutes. Then remove them from the heat.

To finish off the stew, remove the casserole from the oven. Place a sieve over a saucepan on the stove, and pour the contents of the casserole through the sieve. Wash out the casserole so that you can start with a clean slate. Remove the beef and the bacon from the sieve into the clean casserole. Set the onion and carrot aside (Julia says to throw this part away, but it makes a nice snack for later!!!). Place the mushrooms and the onions on top of the meat in the casserole.

Simmer the sauce for 2-3 minutes, skimming the fat off the top as necessary. The sauce should lightly coat the back of a spoon. If the sauce is thin, then simmer it until it boils down and thickens. If it is too thick, then add some extra beef stock. Taste the sauce and adjust the salt and pepper to your taste.

Pour the sauce over the meat and vegetables. Simmer the mixture for about 2-3 minutes before serving. Serve in the casserole or on a warm platter surrounded by noodles, potatoes or rice and garnished with fresh parsley. We had ours with buttered egg noodles, and it was divine. Enjoy!

You may remember my post about my cousin, the Meat Lady.  She is the one who introduced me to this up-and-coming new cut of meat: the flat iron steak.  You can read all the details here, but basically meat scientists like my cousin are finding new ways to cut meat so that you can get a really tender steak without having to pay $15 per pound.  I got the steak here for about $4, and it was more than enough to feed both me and the husband (right around 16 ounces).  The best part, though, is that this steak has the texture, flavor, and irresistible melt-in-your-mouth tenderness of filet mignon.  Pretty good deal, huh?

Grilled Flat Iron Steak with Onions and Peppers

1-2 flat iron steaks
Montreal Steak Seasoning (or other steak rub of your choice)
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
1 sweet onion, cut into 1/2″ slices
1 red bell pepper, sliced
1 green bell pepper, sliced
Salt and pepper to taste
1-2 tablespoons butter

Preheat your grill to medium heat.  Generously season both sides of the steak(s) with your chosen rub.  Grill the steak(s) on both sides to your desired done-ness.  As I’ve mentioned before, I highly recommend using a meat thermometer for these sorts of tasks.  You don’t want to over-cook your steak!  When it is done, remove the steak to a platter to rest for at least 10 minutes.  This will ensure that your steak maintains its juiciness instead of leaking all the goodness all over the plate.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a medium skillet.  Add the onion and the bell pepper slices.  Sautee until the onions are trannslucent and the peppers are tender, about 5-7 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Spread the butter over the steak before slicing, against the grain.  Top with the sauteed peppers and onions, and serve immediately.

The four cheeses in my lasagna are not the most traditional cheeses . . . but they sure are tasty!  I like to use turkey for the meat in this one – there are so many wonderful flavors going on that most people who taste this dish don’t even notice that it’s not beef! Plus, I think the turkey makes it seem lighter, which is a nice balance to the richness of the cheese.

Ellie’s Four-Cheese Lasagna

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1/2 lb. mild italian sausage, casings removed
1/2 lb. ground turkey breast (ground beef works, too!)
1/2 cup diced onion
4 large garlic cloves, minced
1 24-ounce jar of your favorite tomato sauce
1/2 cup water
Salt and pepper to taste
1 8-ounce package of cream cheese
2 cups ricotta cheese
2 eggs
2 tablespoons of fresh chopped parsley OR dry Italian seasoning
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1 9-ounce package of no-boil lasagna noodles
1/4 cup grated parmigiano regiano cheese

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.  Grease a 9×13″ baking dish and set aside.

In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium to medium-high heat.  Add the sausage and the ground turkey.  Brown the meat, stirring occasionally, until completely cooked through.  Remove the meat from the pan and add the onion.  Cook until slightly tender, about 3-4 minutes.  Add the minced garlic, stirring until fragrant.  Next, add the meat back to the pan, and stir in the tomato sauce and the water.  Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper to your taste.  Lower the heat and simmer for about 20-30 minutes.

Meanwhile, soften the cream cheese in a microwaveable bowl for about 20-30 seconds.  Stir in the ricotta cheese until combined.  Add the eggs, the parsley or Italian seasoning, and 1 cup of the mozzarella cheese, folding the mixture together.

To assemble the lasagna, spoon 1/4 of the tomato mixture into the bottom of the prepared dish.  Next, layer the no-boil noodles on top.  Spread 1/3 of the ricotta mixture on top of the noodles.  Spoon over the next 1/4 of the tomato mixture.  Then the noodles again.  Then the next 1/3 of the ricotta.  Then another 1/4 of the tomato mixture.  One more layer of noodles, and one more layer of ricotta.  Spoon the remaining tomato sauce over the top.  Finally, sprinkle with the remaining cup of mozzarella, topping it all off with the parmigiano regiano cheese.

** Note that at this point, you can either continue, **
** or cover tightly and store in the fridge for up to 3 days **
** or the freezer for up to 3 months. **

Cover with foil and bake for about 30 minutes.  Uncover and bake for an additional 10-15 minutes, until all cheese is melted and the lasagna is nice and bubbly.  Allow to set for about 5 minutes before serving.

Taco Burgers

1 packet of dry taco seasoning
1.5 lbs. ground beef (~85% lean)
1 egg, lightly beaten
4 slices cheddar or cheddar jack cheese
4 buns
Red onion, sliced
Guacamole (make your own! it’s easy!)

In a medium bowl, combine taco seasoning, ground beef, and egg lightly until completely combined. Divide the meat into four equal patties.

Grill the patties to desired done-ness, topping with sliced cheese during the last 2 minutes of grilling. Grill the buns, too, if desired.

Place a patty on each bun, and top with sliced onion and guacamole. Enjoy!

Yep, when you like food (and cocktails),
then you pretty much make every holiday YOUR holiday.

Here’s the casserole I served to my friends at our casual little get together tonight. I sort of made it up on the fly based on many recipes I had seen floating around.

Seven Layer Mexican Lasagna
8 large flour tortillas
1.25ish lb. ground beef or ground turkey
1 teaspoon cumin
1 cup enchilada sauce
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large sweet onion, diced
1/2 of a green bell pepper, diced
1/2 of a red bell pepper, diced
1/2 of a yellow bell pepper, diced
1/3 cup red onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon fajita seasoning
1 package of frozen corn kernels
2 cups shredded cheese (sharp cheddar, monterey jack, whatever you like)
About 12-15 tortilla chips, crushed

Preheat your oven to 350 and grease a 9×13 inch baking dish. Line the bottom with 4 of the tortillas, cutting the edges if necessary.

Next, brown the ground beef in a large skillet over medium-high heat, seasoning it with the cumin. Add the enchilada sauce and heat through. Set aside.

In another large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium high heat. Add the onion, peppers, red onion, and garlic. Sprinkle with the fajita seasoning. Cook, stirring until fragrant and softened, about 4 minutes. Add the frozen corn and heat through. Remove from heat.

Next spoon the meat mixture over the tortillas in the baking dish. Sprinkle with half the cheese. Then place the remaining 4 tortillas on top of the cheese. Spoon the corn and veggie mixture over the tortillas. Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top of the veggies. Finally, top with the crushed tortilla chips.

Bake for 30 minutes or until cheese is melted and bubbly. Garnish with cilantro and serve with guacamole and sour cream toppings.

We have some vegetables leftover from last week that I wanted to use up and also some ground beef. Since our outdoor grill died an honorable death during our wine tasting party, burgers were out. Next best option? Sloppy Joes of course!

So I called mom, got her recipe. We reminisced about how my brothers and I used to have competitions over who could eat their sloppy joe while letting the least amount slip out of the bun and onto the plate.

Tonight, I amped mom’s recipe up with some bell peppers and garlic, and I made it a bit more healthy by lessening the amount of meat to compensate for the extra veggies. Here is the tasty result!

Sloppy Joes
inspired by my mom’s recipe

3/4 pound lean ground beef
1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 medium green bell pepper, chopped
1/2 medium red bell pepper, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
3 tablespoons ketchup
3 tablespoons mustard
1 10.5-ounce can condensed chicken gumbo soup
6 hamburger buns

In a heavy skillet, cook and stir ground beef, onion, peppers, and garlic over medium-high heat until the meat is completely browned and the veggies are tender. Stir in the ketchup, mustard, and soup. Turn the heat down to medium-low and allow the mixture to simmer for at least 20 minutes but up to 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Spoon the mixture over the bottom halves of the buns, then top with the remaining halves. Yields six sandwiches.

I found this excellent cookbook at a book fair recently called “The Meats Cookbook” – it’s from the early ’70s, published by Southern Living and Progressive Farmer. It is so much fun to look through – with instructions on how to cook every cut of meat you could possibly imagine! And the recipes are definitely old-fashioned! I found one that appealed to me, mainly because it combined two rather unusual ingredients: corn chips and hominy. Well, I souped it up a little bit with some extra veggies and some different kinds of cheese, and it turned out to be amazing.

For those fo you not familiar with “hominy,” it’s part of the corn family – tastes like bit puffy corn kernels. The hominy paired with the Fritos makes this meal extra special – it tastes like super-lean nachos in a bowl! And this dish is a great way to sneak some veggies into your kids’ (or husbands’!) meals.

Ground Beef Goodness

1 lb. lean ground beef (recommended: 93% lean)
1 medium onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 can hominy, drained and rinsed
2 cans chili beans in mild sauce (recommended: Bush’s)
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar or Monterrey jack cheese
2-3 handfuls of corn chips (recommended: Frito’s)

Heat a heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the ground beef and brown, stirring until it’s done all the way through. Remove from the pan to drain on a paper towel.

Return the skillet to the stove and add the onion and peppers. Cook until fragrant and slightly softened, about 3-5 minutes. Add the hominy and the chili beans (and sauce). Continue cooking until heated through.

Finally, add the shredded cheese and the corn chips, stirring gently to incorporate. When cheese is melted and stringy, your dinner is ready. Serve immediately in bowls with big spoons.

Here is another recipe from our weekend wine-tasting. We served this as the main course, paired with a nice bold Cabernet Sauvignon from Avalon Winery and a fun red blend called Ménage à Trois.

This was probably the favorite dish of the night! The meat was so tender and juicy. The Boursin and roasted red peppers melted in your mouth, just like the tenderloin did! This is a great recipe for an upscale summer cookout with a crowd. One tenderloin easily fed all 10 of us!

Bells and Boursin Beef Tenderloin
Inspired by Molly Jean, the Rookie Chef

2-3 lb. whole beef tenderloin, trimmed (got ours at Trader Joe’s – yum)
Salt and pepper, to taste
Olive oil
1 10-ounce jar of roasted red bell peppers (or you can make your own)
1 4-ounce package Boursin cheese (recommended: garlic and fine herbs)

Preheat your grill to medium-high heat. Tie your beef into an even, round roast if necessary so that it will cook evenly. Season the outside of the roast generously with salt and pepper, or a seasoning rub of your choice. You can also spray or brush the meat with olive oil to prevent sticking.

Using metal tongs, apply the meat to the hot grill, browning and caramelizing the surface of the meat, turning until all sides are nicely seared. Turn the grill down to low heat (or move the meat to a lower-heat area of the grill) and continue to cook until a meat thermometer inserted into the center of the tenderloin registers between 120-130 degrees (for medium-rare).

Remove the meat from the grill, cover it lightly with foil, and allow it to rest for 15-20 minutes. The temperature of the meat should continue to rise about 10 degrees as it rests. Meanwhile, pour your roasted red peppers into a microwave-safe dish and heat for about 30-45 seconds, until the peppers are fragrant and steaming.

After the meat has rested, cut your tenderloin into 3/4″ slices and arrange on a large platter. Top each slice with a generous slathering of Boursin cheese. Then layer a warm roasted red pepper on top. Serve immediately.

As I’ve mentioned a few times now, I have a mostly Irish heritage. So today is a fun and festive day in my family when we celebrate with food and friends! Here is what I put in my crock pot this morning. As opposed to a London Broil, I like to call this a Dublin Boil.

Here is what my crock pot probably looks like right now, bubbling away in my kitchen:

I can’t wait to get home and enjoy this overflowing, bountiful Irish feast!

Dublin Boil
Inspired by a few recipes I perused in The Frugal Gourmet on Our Immigrant Ancestors:Recipes You Should Have Gotten from Your Grandmother

3 lbs. corned beef brisket
2 12-ounce bottles Irish lager beer
2 cups of water
1 bay leaf
8 black peppercorns
1/3 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
2 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1″ rustic chunks
1 lb. small red potatoes, rinsed clean and sliced in half
2 tablespoons Irish butter
2 large cloves of garlic, peeled and sliced
1 medium yellow onion, peeled and sliced
1 cup leeks, rinsed and chopped, white part only
1 large rutabaga (i.e. turnip), peeled and chopped into 1″ chunks
1 large green cabbage, cut into quarters or sixths
Salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

Spray the inside of your 8-10 quart crock pot with cooking spray. Place the corned beef brisket in the crock pot. Add the beer and enough of the water to cover the beef. Next, add the bay leaves, the peppercorns, the parsley, the Worcestershire, and the salt and pepper. Also add the potatoes and the carrots to the pot.

In a heavy skillet, heat the butter over medium heat until melted. Add the garlic, the leeks, and the yellow onion, sautéing for 4-5 minutes. Add these veggies to the crock pot.

Cover the pot and cook on low for 8-10 hours, or until the meat is very tender. In the last hour or two of cooking, add the turnips and the cabbage. Taste the broth and season as needed with the salt and pepper.

Remove the bay leaf before serving. Serve hot in generous bowls with a wedge of Irish Soda Bread.