Beef and broccoli: A delicious way to dirty every dish in your kitchen

Beef and broccoli isn’t something I ever order at restaurants. Maybe that’s why I like this homemade version so much. It reminds me of good Chinese food, and it doesn’t pale in comparison. It’s easy enough, but not quite simple. The original recipe in a Williams Sonoma Asian cookbook clocks it at 30 minutes start to finish, but I’d say more like 45. This is slightly adapted.

If you haven't done much with stir-frys, the secret is to cook the ingredients separately then throw them together with the sauce at the end. I should say that I've heard that's the secret. This is the only stir-fry I've ever managed to get right, and I think that's because it's hard to mess up beef in a frying pan.

The sauce

• 1/3 c water 
• 1/4 c oyster sauce
• 2-3 TBSP soy sauce (The sauce might be too salty with the full amount of soy. We’ve tried it with less and I think it’s better.) 
• 2 TBSP rice wine or dry sherry (or I usually use 1 tsp of whatever wine I’m drinking and 1 tsp. sherry vinegar) 
• 2 tsp. Asian sesame oil 
• 1/2 tsp. brown sugar 
• 1/4 - 1/2 tsp fresh grated ginger 
• 1 small clove of pressed or grated garlic 
• 1 tsp corn starch

The stir-fry

• 1/2 pound broccoli 
• corn or peanut oil for sautéing 
• 1 pound of sirloin 
• Optional: 1.5 c sliced mushrooms and a half of sliced onion 

The accompaniments

• Cooked rice
• Store-bought frozen egg rolls

1. Bring a medium pot of water to a boil to blanche the broccoli in.
2. Make the sauce. Put all the sauce ingredients above in a bowl and stir them with a fork. Set it aside.
3. Trim the fat from the sirloin and slice it thinly against the grain. 
4. Cut the broccoli into florets and slice the onion and mushroom if you’re using them. 
5. When the water is boiling, blanche the broccoli for 3-4 minutes. When it’s done, drain it and set it aside. 
6. Heat the oil in a frying pan on high till it’s hot. Add the beef (and onions if using) and brown it on both sides. The recipe says it should only need two minutes per side, but I think it takes about 10 minutes total. Remove it from the pan when it’s done and set it aside. 
7. I take the frying pan off the stove and wipe it out with paper towels at this point. Some people might call what’s left behind flavorful “browned bits,” and if you’re one of them, best wishes. But I think it looks burnt and gross. If you’re using mushrooms, add a smidge of fresh oil to the pan to sauté them and then remove them from the pan and… set them aside.
8. Assembly: Pour the sauce into your frying pan. Let it bubble for a minute or so, until it slightly thickens. Then take each one of those ingredients you set aside and add them to the pan. Toss until it’s heated through, about a minute.

I'd love to hear how you adapt this one ... whether you add or omit anything from the sauce or the stir-fry. 

Fresh Basil Pesto

Instead of spending 3 bucks for a few ounces of basil pesto at the store, why not make yourself a vat of this yummy spread that can make any mundane food taste gourmet. It takes no time at all to make, and costs less if you use walnuts instead of pine nuts.  Here's what to do:


- 2 Cups Fresh Basil leaves (packed)
- 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan chees
- 1/2 cup of extra virgin olive oil - if you like more oily pesto you can up this
- 1/3 cup of pine nuts or walnuts (we always use walnuts)
- 3 medium sized garlic cloves (minced)
-  a pinch of salt

1.  If you are using walnuts, pulse the walnuts a 4 times in the food processor, then add the basil and pulse a 3 or 4 more times. If you are using pine nuts just combine with basil and pulse. Add the garlic, and pulse a few more times.

2.  Add the olive oil while the food processor is on and pulsing.  Add the Parmesan cheese and pulse until it is the right consistency. Add a pinch of salt to taste. Be careful not to over salt, as the parmesan cheese is quite salty.

Store in a tupperware container in the fridge so it stays fresh for the whole week.  It may brown a little after a few days, but it is still safe to eat. You can also freeze some for next week.

My favorite thing to do with pesto is to spread it on french bread, and add fresh mozzarella and tomato.  You can also make yummy pastas, and even top your burger with it! Enjoy.

Note: this recipe was adapted from SimplyRecipes.com

Spinach, ham and Swiss muffin pan stratas

I had a muffin pan epiphany the other day. For a brunch, I was looking for a veggie- and meat-studded egg dish that I could assemble the night before and would cook pretty quickly. Individual stratas! If you're not familiar, a strata is a bread, egg and cheese casserole. The bread breaks down and gives the finished product an elegant texture. Stratas usually take 45 minutes to an hour in the oven, but muffin tin statas crisp up in 30 or less. And they're adorable. I'll be making some version of these once a week now. (Nicer pic to come. My camera is on loan and this is the best my phone could muster.)

Spinach, ham and Swiss muffin pan stratas

• 4-5 1/2-inch thick slices of Italian bread
• 10 oz. pkg frrozen spinach
• 1/3 pound deli ham, chopped
• 1/3 pound grated Swiss (I used Jarlsberg, and it may not need to be shredded, now that I think back.)
• 8 eggs
• 1 1/3 c milk
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 small onion, diced (about 1/2 cup)

1. Butter a 12-muffin pan
2. Dry the bread in the oven at 400 for 10 minutes or so, then cut it into about 1/2-inch cubes
3. Thaw the spinach, cool it and press it between two plates to squeeze the excess water out of it
4. Saute the onion in olive oil until it's translucent.
5. Add the spinach and ham to the onion and saute for another minute or so.
6. Whisk together the eggs and milk.
7. These are assembled in layers. Start with around three bread cubes in each muffin cup.
8. Spoon a few tablespoons of the egg mixture into each cup. 
9. Add a ham/spinach/onion layer. 
10. Sprinkle some cheese. 
11. If they seem to be nearing the tops of the tins, compress them a bit with the back of a fork. 
12. Add another layer of everything. 
13. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate 30 minutes to 24 hours. 
14. Bake uncovered at 350 until the tops are browning, probably around 30 minutes. I'd set the timer for 20 and then keep checking them every 5. If you're using a mini muffin pan, they'll probably cook in 15.

Steak tacos with green sauce

The green sauce makes these steak tacos look and taste gourmet. We adapted the recipe from a Cooks Illustrated one for indoor steak tacos.

We took at 1.5-pound sirloin, marinated it in half the recipe of green sauce, grilled it, sliced it and served it on warmed whole wheat flour tortillas with homemade guacamole and sour cream.

A lively guacamole

Ingredients
• 1/4-1/3 Cup finely chopped Vidalia onion
• 2 Large (very ripe) avacados
• 2 vine ripe tomatoes, diced
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
• Juice from one lime
• 1 large clove of garlic, pressed or chopped
• 1 jalapeno, finely chopped
• 1/3 bottle or green tobasco sauce
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 bag blue corn tortilla chips

Gazpacho

I have never been a huge fan of raw tomatoes but I have recently discovered how delicious gazpacho can be. It is a mixture of raw peppers, garlic, onion and tomatoes all ground up into a "soup." It's very typical in Spain, very delicious, and extraordinarily healthy. Instead of writing the recipe I have made a very poor quality video of myself preparing it this afternoon. I felt very professional until I watched the final result...

Eat up,

Elliott

Wings that might not kill you

By Nikki

J went grocery shopping with me a few weeks ago and a family pack of chicken wings for less than $6 caught his eye. He thought that given the price, they were a responsible dinner choice. I agreed to see what we could do with them, on the condition that we eat them with cauliflower. OK, cauliflower gratin. I'm pregnant! I need my cheese.

I think we found a way to make the wingies semi healthy. I don't have a picture, but I'll take one next time we make them. Here's the recipe.