Hamburger w/ a Twist

I bought some herb chevre cheese because I've never had it and was curious as to what it tastes like. Unfortunately, it's not my favorite to eat for a snack. Since there's still quite a bit left (even for a small tube), I wanted to use the rest and thought it'd be interesting to incorporate it into a burger. I cut about 1 tbsp of it and mixed it with about the same amount of chopped scallions, then stuffed it in between ground beef that I've added about 1 tsp of olive oil and balsamic vinegar to. Although I added some garlic salt to the ground meat, it could've used more. To top it off, I cut a piece of a herb foccacia bread the same size as the patty and lightly grilled it with garlic butter. It was different but tasty nonetheless. The chevre worked really well this way.

Rack of Lamb a la Julia Child

Ever since I saw "Julie & Julia", I've been really into learning more about Julia Child. Ken bought me her "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" as well as as "Julia's Kitchen Wisdom", an essentials guide. Today, my colleagues got me her "My Life in France" as a belated birthday gift which I'm looking forward to reading.

As it turned out, I happened to buy a rack of lamb from Costco and was going to prepare it my usual way: cut into chops and marinated in olive oil, rosemary and garlic, seared on both sides then roasted in the oven, and served with a red wine reduction. This recipe called for the rack to be roasted whole, which I haven't tried before. She had a sauce to go with it but it was too time-consuming (um, simmering lamb bones for 2 hours), so I just made something up with the ingredients I had.

Yeah, I know...the whole thing is one color (including the plate). It's dinner so having something tasty was my main concern. I loved the crunch of the bread crumbs and how well it worked with the mushroom sauce. Usually, when something tastes good, I'll hear a quick "mm" from Ken. With this, there wasn't any sound but I knew he liked it because he systematically chomped down one chop after another by holding it by the rib rather than using a fork and knife like a civilized person. There was nothing left by the time we were done with this meal (it's not as much as it looks). It's been a week since I made it so my memory's a little foggy on the sauce, but I'll try my best to remember what I did.

Herbal Garlic & Mustard Coating
Whisk together a mayo-like consistency 1/3 cup Dijon mustard w/ 3 large cloves of pureed garlic, 1 tbsp soy sauce, 1/2 tsp ground rosemary & 3 tbsp light olive oil. Spread over lamb and marinate 1/2 hour or cover & refrigerate several hours or overnight.

Rack of Lamb
Scrape off any fatty meat between the ribs & from top of bones. Score the fat side of the ribs lightly & paint w/ mustard coating. Roast for 10 minutes at 500F, sprinkle 1/2 cup fresh bread crumbs over the meat & drizzle on a little melted butter. Roast 20 minutes more, or to internal temperature 125F for red rare or 140F for medium rare. Let rest 5 minutes before cutting into chops.

Mushroom Sauce
Saute about 1/2-1 cup (your preference) sliced mushrooms in a little extra virgin olive oil & butter. I added about 1 cup of dry sherry because that's what I had on hand. I had a demi-glace (Gold brand) paste in the pantry and made about 2/3 cup of stock according to the packet instructions, which I added after the the sherry reduced by about half. When the sauce reduces, add about 3 tbsp butter at the end and season with salt to taste. In the future, I would use different types of mushrooms, something more earthy, and maybe add herbs as well for a deeper flavor. It's fun to experiment.

Pot Roast Tacos

We still had some of the pot roast left over from last week, so I thought it'd be a good idea to make tacos out of it. I thought we had taco seasonings and discovered we didn't, so I had to improvise with what we had on in the pantry. I added 1/8 tbsp of cayenne and chili powder and 1/4 tbsp of cumin powder, smoked paprika, and chopped cilantro to the roast and the rest of the broth, and simmered the meat for about 45 minutes, adding chicken broth so it doesn't boil down too far and pulling the meat as it tenderized. The broth should boil down enough to just cover the meat. We made the tacos with flour tortillas, added shredded cheese, fresh chopped cilantro and Jack's Special Salsa. I was surprised how good it turned out. Ken liked it so much he ate the rest.

Mac & Smoked Gouda w/ Broccoliflower

The faculty & staff at work sponsor a brunch every Friday, with different members taking turns to host each one. One week, someone brought the best mac-n-cheese I've ever had, and it turned out to come from KooKooRoo. What made it so good was that it had a smoky flavor to it that reminded me of smoked gouda cheese. Ever since, I had been wanting to replicate the flavor, and a colleague mentioned that Rachel Ray had a recipe that called for the gouda so I had to try it out.

Prior to hearing about Rachel's recipe, I had actually attempted to make it from a box and adding the gouda, but it turned out too thick. This one turned out pretty close. She calls for cayenne and smoked paprika to give it an extra kick which we appreciated, but I would also try it without the cayenne next time. I also left out the small onion and started with sauteing about 1/4 portion of diced smoked sausage. Ham would've also worked but I wanted more of the smoky goodness. Coincidentally, I bought broccoliflower before I even saw this recipe because it just looked so darn interesting but wasn't sure what to do with it, so it worked out really well and gave an extra color element. I also left out the onion, Dijon mustard and pepper.

The one thing that concerned me the most was the tremendous yield at the end. She called for 1 whole pound of pasta, which was way beyond enough. Funny thing because the recipe said it came to 4 servings...yeah, really big ones! It could have easily been 16 servings. I actually intended on only cooking half the amount and boiled a half bag of the pasta, but forgot to make adjustments to the rest of the recipe (the sauce) so had to cook the rest of the pasta. Let's just say we have enough to last at least 3 more meals of healthy portions. We sealed up 2 portions and saved one for later this week, plus a small helping for lunch tomorrow.

How did it taste? Really good, so now it's the best mac&cheese I've ever had. The sauce was rich so it's not a dish you would eat often. The pepper gave it a good but not overwhelming kick. I would've eaten more if I had room, but it was a side dish after all. For our main dish, I made Ken's favorite: hamburgers. Having this stovetop grill has changed cooking for me--for the best. Next time, I'd also put the whole thing into a baking dish and save some of the cheese to top and bake the whole thing for a few minutes before serving.

2/2 It was suggested to me today to make this for brunch this Friday, since I just found out that I'll be one of the hosts. What good timing!

2/4 I just finished cooking this dish again for brunch tomorrow and just doubled the amount of the original recipe. It yielded two 9"x11"x3" aluminum pans, which should give you a really good idea of how much there is!

Corn, Spinach & Peppers

Two weekends ago, we went to eat at a cafe that served French country food and I had this amazing SIDE DISH! Today, like I do just about every day on my drive home, I racked my brain for dinner ideas. I already had the protein planned out but not the side. I knew I had some peppers and spinach on hand, and my mind wandered back to this dish. I just had to make a quick stop at the market for corn on the cob.

• 1 corn on the cob, shucked
• 1 red pepper, seeded and cut so that slices are flat to be grilled
• 1/2 bunch of spinach, stems cut (cut in half the really large leaves)
  
• 3 tbsp unsalted utter
  

I don't know if this was how they did it, but it was tasty nevertheless. On the stovetop grill, cook the corn and red pepper until they have a slight char. I added some water to steam and speed up the cooking. At this point, the corn was not cooked all the way through and the pepper was not crunchy anymore. Remove from heat then dice the pepper slices and cut the corn kernels. Over medium heat, melt the butter, then add the spinach and cover until it wilts. Add the peppers and kernels, season, and stir until everything's sufficiently moist. The corn should still have some crunch to it.

I noticed that the original dish had some broth to it, and mine didn't, so I would add some water next time because broth definitely added to the overall tastiness. This was so good we didn't have any leftovers.

Bulk Flap Meat

Having a FoodSaver is SO awesome! I can buy meat in bulk to freeze so I'll have it handy when I can't get to the store. Last month, I got some flap meat from Costco and divided it up, stored some just plain and some marinated in Yoshida's marinade. It's a great cut that's relatively low in fat. We got a grill pan last week and now's the perfect time to try it out since it's too cold and rainy to cook on the outdoor grill. This was an easy meal and took no time and prep to make.

Start by steaming or boiling the corn first. This is a good time to grill the zucchini. I just coated the zucchini with seasoned cooking oil, and grilled the corn when I was ready to cook the meat so they're both done about the same time.

The meat was lopsided in thickness (from 1/2 inch to 1 inch), which worked out for us since Ken likes his meat more cooked than I do. Make sure the pan is nice and hot before cooking. I cooked each side for about 4-5 minutes. When you take it off the grill, be sure to let the meat rest for about 5 minutes before slicing, then cut against the grain into thin slices. Serve immediately!

One note on the bread...this is spinach cheese bread from the S. Pasadena farmer's market...so tasty with garlic butter.

Chicken & Dumplings

This is a dish I learned from Ken's stepmom. Being Chinese, my mom rarely made American-style meals and so this is the second time I'm enjoying this. This is SO easy and tasty--reminds me of chicken pot pie! It tastes better after some sitting time, so I cooked it yesterday and served it tonight. (Ken kept eyeballing it last night and commenting how good it looked.) All I had to do tonight was to heat it up, add more broth and follow the directions on the box of the biscuit mix to make the dumplings. There's so much of this left over that we can eat for days (or freeze for later).

• 1 chicken (I got halved breasts & thighs w/ bones in, minus wings & drumsticks which is more like 3/4 chicken)
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 1 cup chopped carrots
• 3 Yukon gold potatoes, cubed
  
• 1 vegetable (or chicken) bullion cube
• biscuit mix (follow box directions for dumplings)
• 1 box chicken broth
  

In a large pot, brown the chicken first, then cover the chicken with water and let it boil (about 10 minutes). Once it's done, remove the skin, bones and any fat in between the meat. Pull apart the meat into desired size and set aside. I tossed the bones back into the liquid to get the most of the chicken. Skim away the fat from the liquid. Remove the bones from the broth, toss all the ingredients into the pot then add enough water to cover, bring to a boil, then cover and let it simmer for about 30 minutes. Season to taste if you don't find the broth salty enough, and don't forget the pepper.

Only cook the dumplings when you're ready to eat because they'll be too soggy to be enjoyable. The broth reduced by a great deal yesterday so I added about 3/4 box of chicken broth to make the dumplings. Cooking the dumplings basically consisted of dropping the mixed biscuit batter into the broth and letting it cook uncovered for 10 minutes, then covered for another 10 minutes.

I tried making gravy again today and learned my lesson after yesterday's pot roast gravy. This time, I started off with about 2 tbsp of butter and 1 tbsp of flour, and just added the chicken broth until reaching the desired consistency. We received some lovely soup bowls for Christmas, which I used to serve this meal. Make sure that the dumplings get a good soak from the broth when you plate, and top the whole thing off with gravy. Yum...

Pot Roast w/ Gravy

This was my first attempt at making pot roast. I wasn't quite sure how it'd turn out, but it was a hit. As for the gravy, Ken's stepmom had taught me how to make it while we were in New Jersey, but I couldn't quite remember how it all went so had to look up how to do the roux before getting started and improvised the rest of the way.

At first, the flour clumped up before it even had a chance to brown, and I thought I'd ruined it. I panicked then just started adding a little of the liquid at a time. The flour just kept soaking up the liquid, and the more I added, the thicker and more voluminous it got, but I just kept adding liquid until I eventually got the right consistency. I don't know how much liquid it ended up being, so it's safe to say to just keep adding until it looks right. I think I started off with too much flour because there was A LOT of gravy!

I didn't use the fat skimmed from the liquid for the gravy because it just sounded too rich, but that would've worked as well. This was easier than I remembered and it got high marks from Ken!

Pot Roast

• 1 roast
  
• 1 cup chopped celery
  
• 1 onion, sliced
• 1 box beef stock

In a pan, sear all sides of the roast until brown. Set the crock pot on HIGH and add all the ingredients in. Let it cook for about 4 hours or more. Skim any fat from the liquid.

Gravy

• 4 tbsp butter
• 4 tbsp flour
• about 1 1/2 cups of cooking liquid from roast
  

Melt the butter until it bubbles, then add all the flour, making sure to whisk until all the flour is mixed with the butter. Spoon in about a half cup of the liquid and continue to whisk. Keep spooning in liquid until the gravy gets to the consistency of your liking. Don't forget to season it with salt and pepper at the end. This makes a lot of gravy, so if you want less, start with a smaller amount (1 tbsp each of butter and flour).

*This picture of the roast was taken from night #2, served with mac & cheese w/ smoked gouda, and corn & carrots.

Our First Married Thanksgiving

We didn't have one single bite of turkey this Thanksgiving. My mom did not order the usual turkey this time because there's usually so much other food that there would be so much of it left over. We had chicken, shrimp, and other tasty side dishes. Since we did the big dinner with my folks on Wednesday night, we had Thanksgiving to ourselves on Thursday.

Originally, we were going to have dinner out but changed plans and cooked instead...the both of us. Yes, we had hot-pot, which means you have a bunch of raw food (thinly sliced lamb and beef, shrimp, enoki mushrooms, and fresh vegetables) and a boiling pot of water in front of you, and you just boil the food as you eat. To make the meal more special, and since a turkey would've been too much food for just the two of us, we had the traditional Thanksgiving lobster (which in actuality was probably closer to what the pilgrims ate during the first Thanksgiving, as told to me by my TA). And indeed this was a very tasty tradition, maybe something we will repeat in the future.

Amazing Lobster Sauce

Recently, a Henry's Farmers Market opened up in our neighborhood and we finally went in a couple of weeks ago. They had these spiny lobster tails on sale for $5/each so we got two. I wasn't quite sure what to do with them and just tucked them in the freezer. Last week, I bought TJ's lobster ravioli and thought those tails would add something special to the ravioli.

We've had the ravioli several times before with just pasta sauce from a jar. Since we were having them with real lobster, I wanted to utilize all of the lobster (i.e., the shells) so did a search on lobster sauce recipes. All my searching resulted in recipes that seemed very time-consuming and required more steps than I had skill to do, so I decided to take the essence of those recipes and create my own secret weapon short-cut: pasta sauce in a jar! My resourcefulness paid off with a very tasty end-product. Ken likes it more than the white wine sauce for fish.

• 2-4 lobster tails, depending on size & budget (we had 2 & subsidized with langostinos; shrimp works, too)
  
• 1 package TJ's lobster ravioli
• 1/2 cup rustico sauce
• 1/4 cup cream
• 1/2 cup dry sherry
• 3 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup sliced mushrooms
  

1. Start by steaming the lobster. Place the tails into a shallow bowl, then the bowl into a stir-fry pan with about 1/2 cup of water underneath the bowl, cover and steam for about 8 minutes.
2. Once the tails lose their translucency, remove and plunge into ice water to stop cooking and quickly cool the lobster. Pull out the meat from the shells and set aside. Save the shells. There should be lobster water in the bowl that held the tails. Set that aside.
3. Melt about 2 tbsp of butter in the stir-fry pan and saute the shells until reduced, then add the lobster water from the steaming process and reduce again.
4. Deglaze with sherry and reduce.
5. Add the cream and once it comes to a boil, add the pasta sauce until it comes to a boil and reduce the heat to a simmer, stirring occasionally.
6. Meanwhile, in a separate pan, melt 1 tbsp of butter, add the mushrooms and saute until tender. Add about 2 tbsp of sherry and saute until the sherry evaporates and the mushrooms caramelize. Add mushrooms to the sauce.
7. Simmer this sauce for about another 15 minutes or so. The ravioli only takes about 5 minutes to boil, so wait until you're ready to eat to cook it.
8. As the ravioli's cooking, turn off the heat to the sauce, remove the lobster shells and add the lobster meat. Keep pan covered until the ravioli's done, then it's time to eat!

This sauce is amazingly full of lobster flavor, and it took about 30 minutes to make rather than the 1 hour or so, and with a lot less effort. When I first added the rustico sauce, I thought I had ruined the whole thing because the sauce was so strong, but the flavors mellowed out after some simmering. It was so good I wanted to lick the bowl! Let me know what you think if you get a chance to try this. And if you have an easy way to make lobster bisque, I'd like to hear about that as well.