Boef Bourguignon

I love this dish, but hate waiting hours for it to cook, so I created this quick cook version, which is just as good. Using steak instead of a pot roast enables you to cook the meat quickly, while the demi glace provides that deep rich flavor you would normally get from a slow roasting method.

Boef Bourguignon



¼ Pound Bacon, diced


4 NY Steaks, about 12 ounces each


3 Cloves Garlic, minced


1 Bottle Good Chianti Wine


3 Cups Beef Stock


2 Tablespoons Double Concentrated Tomato Paste


2 Teaspoons Beef Demi Glace (I use Williams Sonoma Brand)


1 Bouquet Garni (3 sprigs each of thyme, rosemary, and oregano)


1 Pound Frozen Pearl Onions


8 Large Carrots, peeled and cut into ¼ inch thick slices, on a diagonal


Unsalted Butter, at room temperature


2 Tablespoons flour


2 Pounds Crimini Mushrooms, sliced ½ inch thick


1 Bunch Parsley


2 Tablespoons Thyme, minced



Heat a large heavy bottom paan on high heat, with 3 tablespoons oil until smoking. Add steaks and cook until seared on each side and medium rare, about 4 minutes per side. Remove from the pan and cover with aluminum foil.


In the same pan, sauté the bacon on medium heat, until crispy. Remove bacon and set aside. Drain fat, except 2 tablespoons from the pan.

Add the garlic and cook until fragrant.
Deglaze the pan with the Chianti wine and cook on high heat for 1 minute, scraping all browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Next add the beef stock, tomato paste, 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon pepper, and bouquet garni. Bring to a boil and cook uncovered on medium-high heat for 10 minutes.

Add onions and carrots, reduce heat to low and simmer uncovered, until the vegetables are tender (about 25 minutes).


With a fork combine the 2 tablespoons butter and flour into a paste and whisk it gently into the sauce, continue cooking until sauce is thickened and glossy.


Meanwhile, sauté the mushrooms separately in 2 tablespoons butter, until browned and tender.
 Add the steaks, mushrooms, and bacon to the pan, cover and reheat steaks gently for 5 minutes. Do not overcook. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve immediately.

Beef Ragu with Pappardelle

I was looking through my new Sur la Table catalog a couple weeks ago and stumbled upon the "Wild Boar Ragu Kit" which would set you back $80, yikes!!! This immediately made me curious about a two things...Can I make this with beef instead (yes), and can I make this dinner more amazing for less than $80 (yes)...which led me to this recipe. Then I realized that the "kit" didn't include the fresh veggies, wine, or stock you would actually need to make this amazing dish, adding another $20+ to your meal. Normally I don't squawk at the prices of good ingredients, but I was a little shocked that the kit had so little, at such a large price (and working for Williams Sonoma Inc...I'm used to expensive foods and such).
Ok, I'll get off my soap box now and talk about the important things, like this outstanding recipe! In my attempt at serching the interweb I found many recipes that peaked my interest, but ultimately ended up doing a little of this, and a little of that to create my own "Beef Ragu with Pappardelle." I must admit that it's a time consuming recipe, but if you enjoy puttering in the kitchen on a day off; this is the perfect Fall meal. I almost fainted mid-cooking because the aroma of the dish wafting throughout the house was completely intoxicating! I hope you enjoy this as much as I did!

Beef Ragu with Pappardelle

3 Pound Beef Chuck Roast, cut into 1-inch cubes
3 Tablespoons Vegetable Oil
2 Basil Leaves
2 Sprigs Fresh Rosemary
5 Sprigs Fresh Thyme
2 Sprigs Fresh Flat Leaf Parsley
2 Large Carrots, peeled & diced
2 Stalks Celery, diced
1 Onion, diced
2 Shallots, diced
1 Pound Mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
1 Tablespoon Flour
4 Tablespoons Tomato Paste
1 16 Ounce Can Crushed Tomatoes
1 Bottle Cabernet Wine
1/2 Head Garlic, cloves peeled and separated
4 Cups Beef Stock
1 Pound Fresh Pappardelle, or other fresh pasta
Chopped Parsley
8 Ounces Grated Pecorino Romano Cheese
8 Ounces Pecorino Romano Cheese Curls

Heat oven to 325 degrees.

Place a large 6-8 Quart Dutch oven over medium high heat. Add oil and heat until it is almost smoking. Season beef generously with salt and pepper. Working in 2 separate batches, add beef to the hot oil cook until browned on all sides. Remove from Dutch oven and transfer to a plate and set aside, continue with next batch, remove from pan.


Place rosemary, thyme, and parsley together and tie with kitchen string, set aside. Add carrots, celery, onion, shallots, and mushrooms to Dutch oven and cook over medium high heat, stirring occasioinally, until vegetables are softened and golden, about 10 minutes. Add flour and tomato paste, and stir to combine. Add wine; stir with wooden spoon until all browned bits have been scraped from the pan. Add tomatoes, garlic, beef stock, herbs, bay leaves, and galic cloves. Return meat to the Dutch oven and bring to a simer over medium-high heat. Cover the dish and place in the oven. Cook until beef is tender, about 3 hours.


Place the Dutch oven on the stove top over medium heat and simmer until reduced by half and thickened. Using a wooden spoon press the meat against the side of the pot to break up into shredded pieces. Remove the herbs and bay leaves and turn to low.

Fill a large pot with water and cook pasta until just al-dente, add to ragu and stir with shredded romano cheese to combine. Serve in large bowls with chopped parsley and shaved romano cheese as a garnish.

Beef Stroganoff

For Easter this year I decided to do something a little out of the ordinary…Beef Stroganoff! I have been craving this dish for quite a while now, I saw Tyler make it on the Food Network, and my food-blogger friend Pam made a version recently, which you can read about here. I remember eating this delicious and hearty dish at my grandmother’s house growing up…I don’t know the key to her success, but it was always really good. I have experimented with several recipes, but never got it just right. I did a combination of Pam and Tyler’s recipes and it was pretty darn good. I had 6 people over for Easter lunch and everyone finished their plates, so I guess it was a success, please enjoy.

Beef Stroganoff

3 Pound Beef Chuck Roast, cut into 1-inch cubes
Flour, for coating beef
1 Large Sweet Onion (Walla Walla, or Vidalia), cut into thin strips
2 Carrots, peeled and sliced into ¼ inch-thick slices
1 Stalk Celery, cut into ¼ inch-thick slices
1 Teaspoon Salt & Pepper
¼ Cup Dry Sherry
6 Sprigs Fresh Thyme, stemmed, minced, and divided
1 Sprig Rosemary, stemmed and minced
4 Cups Beef Broth
3 Bay Leaves
1 ½ Pounds Crimini Mushrooms, sliced ¼ inch thick
1 ½ Pounds White Mushrooms, sliced ¼ inch thick
4 Tablespoons Butter
2 Tablespoons Dijon Mustard
16 Ounces Sour Cream
½ Cup Parsley, minced and divided
1 Pound Egg Noodles, prepared per package instructions

Season beef with salt & pepper, then dredge in flour to coat. Coat bottom of a large dutch oven with olive oil and heat over high until just smoking, add ½ of the beef and cook until browned on all sides, remove and set aside. Add more oil to just coat bottom of pan and add remaining beef, and cook until browned on all sides, remove and set aside. Turn heat down to medium and add a little more oil if necessary to coat bottom of pan, add onion, carrots, celery, and salt & pepper and cook until onions are just soft. Deglaze the pan with the sherry, scraping the pan with a wooden spoon to bring up all browned bits. Add ½ of the thyme, the rosemary, beef broth and bay leaves, browned beef, and bring to a simmer. Cover and place in a pre-heated 300 degree oven and bake until meat is very tender and almost falling apart, about 3 hours. Remove from oven and place on stove top.
To prepare mushrooms add butter, mushrooms, remaining thyme, and ¼ cup parsley to a large sauté pan and cook over high heat until just tender. Add mushroom mixture to dutch oven along with the dijon mustard and sour cream, adjust seasoning to taste with additional salt and pepper, if necessary. Serve over egg noodles and garnish with remaining parsley.

Chicken Fried Steak-Updated Recipe

My friends and I were watching the Food Network a couple weeks ago and there was a cook off between Bobby Flay and Paula Dean to see who could make the best Chicken Fried Steak. Well, Paula won and all my friends and I were drooling because the steak looked so good. I have made many versions of this dish, but decided to re-create it one more time to see if I could make it even better…well it was a success! I did a buttermilk crust and double dipped the cube steak so that it had an extra thick layer of crispy coating. To top it off I made my sausage gravy and biscuits, enjoy!

Chicken Fried Steak-Updated Recipe

4 Cube Steaks
2 Cups Buttermilk
2 Large Eggs
2 Teaspoons Baking Powder
1 Teaspoon Baking Soda
1 Tablespoon Garlic Salt
1 Teaspoon Pepper
1 Tablespoon Sweet Paprika
1 2 Teaspoons Dried Thyme
4 Cups Unbleached Flour
Vegetable Oil, for frying

Mix together all ingredients except the steak and flour, it will foam a bit when you add the baking powder and baking soda. Place the flour in a pie plate or large low dish.
Now, pre-heat a large skillet over medium high heat with at least ¼ inch of vegetable oil in it to fry the steaks.
Dip the cube steaks in the flour, then into the buttermilk mixture, back into the flour, shake off excess. Dip back into the buttermilk mixture and then into the flour and place into frying pan. Cook until dark golden brown, about 5 minutes per side, remove to a wire rack or paper towels to drain.
Serve with Sausage Gravy.

Hearty Beef Stew

I have posted a couple other versions of beef stew on here the last couple years, but this is my favorite recipe so far. I keep changing ingredients and trying to make it better and better and this batch came out pretty darn good. What did I do differently with this recipe? Well, I added a few things that I haven’t in the past, stewed tomatoes and wine. It’s a very simple recipe and all you really have to be careful with, is browning the meat. Just do part of it at a time so you get a good sear on the meat and also collect those golden nuggets of flavor on the bottom of the pan. Like most stew’s you do need to let it cook for several hours for all the flavors to meld together and for the meat to get tender. I always buy a chuck roast for stew and cut it into pieces instead of buying pre-cut stewing meat. This way I can trim the excess fat and know that I’m getting a good cut of meat.

Hearty Beef Stew

3 Pound Beef Chuck Roast, trimmed of excess fat and cut into 1 inch cubes
2 Large Onions, chopped
3 Cloves Garlic, minced
6 Stalks Celery, chopped
6 Large Carrots, peeled and chopped
6 Red Potatoes, cut into 1 inch cubes
1 Cup Red Wine
1 28 Ounce Can Diced Tomatoes with juices
1 28 Ounce Can Tomato Sauce
6 Cups Beef Broth
Salt & Pepper
1 Tablespoon Dried Thyme
1 Tablespoon Dried Rosemary
4 Bay Leaves
Oil, for browning the meat

In a large heavy stock pot (at least 6 quarts or larger) over medium high heat add just enough oil to coat the bottom of the pan, heat until just smoking. Liberally season the meat with salt and pepper. Working in batches, brown half of the meat stirring occasionally until a dark crust forms, remove from the pot, add more oil if necessary and finish browning second half of meat and remove from the pan. Next add the onion and garlic and cook until just starting to get tender, a few minutes. Add the celery and carrots and continue to cook until they are slightly tender, about 5 minutes. Next, deglaze the pan with the wine, scraping up all browned bits that have formed on the bottom of the pan. Add the potatoes, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, beef broth, thyme, rosemary, and bay leaves and bring to a boil. Turn heat down and simmer on low stirring every 30 minutes until beef is tender, about 3 hours. Remove the bay leaves and serve with fresh chopped parsley as a garnish if desired.

Barbecued Beef Ribs

I think barbecued ribs are one of my favorites. I love any type of rib-beef, pork, lamb, you name it I’ll eat it! I got my first charcoal BBQ this summer (I know it sounds crazy, but I’ve always used a gas grill!) and have been experimenting with it. I finally decided to try an indirect heat, slow cooked recipe, hence the ribs, and they turned out pretty good, but it’s so hard waiting that long to eat! I pulled out my Cooks Summer Grilling magazine for the grilling tips and it was so much easier than I had imagined. I will have to try the pork ribs next time.

Barbecued Beef Ribs

8 Pounds Beef Ribs
Your Favorite BBQ Sauce
Charcoal BBQ

Heat coals in chimney until just starting to turn grey, about 20 minutes. Pour coals over ½ the grill and place a metal bread pan of water on the other side of the grill. Place the ribs on the side of the grill over the water and place lid on grill with the vents opposite the coals. Cook for 3 hours, turning meat every 30 minutes (do this quickly so you don’t loose your heat!). During the last 10 minutes of cooking liberally coat with barbecue sauce. Let rest for a few minutes then cut in to pieces and serve with lots of napkins!

Thai Beef & Asparagus Stir Fry

I came across the most delicious recipe from Darlene on her food blog Blazing Hot Wok and had to try it out. I was immediately in love with this dish. It is so simple to make and super quick too! The sauce has the perfect balance of flavor, sweet, tangy, spicy and the beef and the Asparagus together is pure heaven! I will be putting this recipe in my permanent favorites collection.
Also, she talked about using a cast iron wok, which I had never seen and I ended up picking one up at my local grocery store! I love using cast iron for cooking, and using a cast iron wok was pure heaven, it got hot enough to truly sear everything immediately and stayed screaming hot the entire time! I must admit that my All Clad wok is getting retired for my new $20 wok! Thanks for the recipe and cookware info Darlene!

Thai Beef & Asparagus Stir Fry

1 Pound Beef Chuck Steak, sliced thin
1 Tablespoon Chinese Cooking Wine or Dry Sherry
1 Tablespoon Cornstarch
3 Cloves Garlic, roughly minced
1 Bunch Asparagus, cut into 2 inch pieces
2 Tablespoons Naam Pridk Phao (chili sauce)
2 Tablespoons Thin Soy Sauce, or regular is fine also
2 Tablespoons Oyster Sauce

In a small bowl, combine the beef, cornstarch and cooking wine. Combine well and set aside.
In another small bowl, make the sauce by combining the naam prik pao, soy sauce and oyster sauce. Mix well to combine ingredients, set aside until needed.
Make sure you have all your ingredients very close because the stir fry goes very quickly. Also, have a small dish of water available as well just in case you need to thin the sauce a bit.
Heat your wok over high heat until very hot. Add 2 tablespoons vegetable or grape seed oil, then the beef followed by the garlic. If your wok is hot enough, your beef will cook very quickly. When the beef is seared, but not cooked through, about 30 seconds or so add the asparagus. Cook for another minute. Add the sauce. It should caramelize very quickly because of the high sugar content. If it gets too thick add a little water. Serve with rice or on its own.

Steak Marsala

I love a good steak, and prefer to cook them at home so I know that it will be good. My friend Sue came over the other night and requested steaks with a gravy and I thought why not do a marsala and mushroom sauce, it would go perfect with steak! The result was perfection, I will defiantly make this dish again. I know there is a lot of butter in the sauce, but it really seasons it well and gives it a nice sheen. I served this with my mashed potatoes and oven roasted asparagus. Thanks for the great company and inspiration Sue!

Steak Marsala

¼ Cup Olive Oil
2 Shallots, finely chopped
1 ½ Pounds Mushrooms, sliced
2 Cups Dry Marsala Wine
1 14-Ounce Can Beef Stock
4 New York Strip Steaks
1 Stick Butter
3 Scallions, chopped thin
1 Tablespoon Chopped Italian Parsley


Heat the olive oil in a large sauté pan and add the shallots and mushrooms and cook over medium high heat until they become soft, remove and set aside.
Wipe the sauté pan with a paper towel and add another couple tablespoons oil to the pan, and place over high heat until just starting to smoke. Season the steaks liberally with salt and pepper and then place into the sauté pan and cook for about 4 minutes per side until a crust has formed and steaks are medium rare. Remove the steaks from the pan and cover with foil to rest.
Deglaze the pan with the marsala wine and then add the beef stock and reduce by 1/3. Add the mushrooms back to the pan and stir in the butter one tablespoon at a time until the sauce thickens and becomes a gravy-like consistency. Stir in the scallions and parsley and serve over the steaks.

Corned Beef & Cabbage

My roommate Wendy made this for Saint Patrick’s Day and it was super yummy. I hate to admit it but I had never had corned beef and cabbage before! It’s funny how many basic things like this I have never even tasted. I was little concerned about pickled beef brisket, but was pleasantly surprised by the good slightly tangy flavor the brining and cooking adds to the meat. We had several friends over and just sat around the dining table and chatted and ate a ton. For drings we served Black & Tans, and for a side I made French bread and Irish Soda Bread.

Corned Beef & Cabbage

1-3/4 pounds onions, divided use
2-1/2 pounds carrots, divided use
6 pounds corned beef brisket or round
1 cup malt vinegar
12 ounces Irish stout beer
1 tablespoon mustard seed
1 tablespoon coriander seed
1/2 tablespoon black peppercorns
1/2 tablespoon dill seed
1/2 tablespoon whole allspice
2 bay leaves
3 pounds cabbage, rinsed
2-1/2 pounds small red potatoes, scrubbed
1/2 cup coarse grain mustard, optional
1/2 cup Dijon mustard, optional

You'll need a heavy-duty pot large enough to hold 4 gallons for this large quantity recipe.
Divide onions and carrots and chop enough to fill 1 cup of each, reserving the rest.

Place the corned beef in the stockpot. Add the chopped onions, carrots, malt vinegar, stout beer, mustard seeds, coriander seeds, black peppercorns, dill seeds, whole allspice, and bay leaves. Add enough water to cover the corned beef, and stir to combine. Bring to a boil, cover, and simmer about 3 hours until meat is fork-tender.

While the corned beef is cooking, cut the reserved onions into eight wedges and the carrots into 2-inch chunks. (Larger carrots should be halved first.) Slice each head of cabbage into 8 wedges.

Remove corned beef, skim fat. Cover and return to a boil. Add onions, carrots and red potatoes to the broth, with the cabbage on top. Reduce heat and simmer about 20 minutes, until potatoes and cabbage are fork-tender.

To serve, cut corned beef against the grain into thin slices and accompany with the cooked vegetables. Dijon mustard and/or coarse-grained mustard complement the corned beef as optional condiments. Or horseradish sauce.


Horseradish Sauce

¼ Cup Mayonnaise
1-8 Ounce Jar Horseradish
Zest of 1 Lemon
Salt and Pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients and let sit for a few minutes for flavors to mingle.

Pot Roast & Gravy

Pot roast is one of my favorite meals; I make this year-round, as I can’t stand to only eat it in the winter. I usually serve an extra large portion of my delicious sour cream mashed potatoes and my brussels sprouts with browned butter as sides. By using the vegetable puree and red wine the gravy takes on an extraordinarily flavor that you would never expect. I have been known to completely drown my plate in this delicious gravy because it is so delicious. I hope you enjoy this dish as much as I do.

Pot Roast & Gravy

5 Pound Beef Roast
2 Yellow Onions, peeled and quartered
4 Carrots, Cleaned and cut into 2 inch pieces
4 Celery Stalks, cleaned and cut into 2 inch pieces
4 Potatoes, scrubbed clean and quartered
1/2 Bottle Dry Red Wine, about 2 cups (I like to use Chianti)
2 Quarts Beef Stock
4 Sprigs Fresh Thyme
1 Bunch Flat Leaf Parsley, stalks and leaves separated
Kosher Salt & Pepper
Vegetable Oil

Generously season roast with salt and pepper on all sides. Heat 3 tablespoons vegetable oil over medium high heat in 6-7 quart cast-iron dutch oven until smoking, add roast and sear all sides, about 3 minutes per side until completely browned, remove meat from pan. Add onions, celery, and carrots to pan and cook until onions start to get tender, about 5 minutes. Next add red wine and deglaze pan, while scraping up browned bits from bottom of the pan. Tie thyme and parsley stalks together with kitchen twine, place in pan. Next add roast back to pan, along with potatoes, add enough beef stock to just cover meat, cover with lid. Place in pre-heated 350 degree oven and bake for 3-4 hours or until beef is very tender. Remove beef from stock, cover with foil and let rest for 15 minutes, then slice and serve with gravy.

Gravy

Strain out all vegetables and discard thyme/parsley bundle. Reduce stock by half by boiling over high heat on stove-top for about 10 minutes. Take half the cooked vegetables and puree in food processor, add to beef stock. Mix ¼ cup flour with ½ cup milk with whisk until well combined, slowly pour, while constantly whisking into stock, bring to boil and continue to whisk until thickened, season to taste with salt and pepper.

Beef Stew

There is nothing better than a piping hot bowl of hearty stew on a cold rainy day. This recipe provides just that, and can easily be served as a meal on its own. I merged my recipes for boef bourguignon, and pot roast to come up with this tasty stew and it turned out perfectly. It’s even better the next day as all the flavors blend together.

Beef Stew

3 Pound Pot Roast, fat and gristle removed, and cut into 3/4 inch cubes
1 Large Yellow Onion, chopped into medium sized pieces
1 Pound Crimini Mushrooms, washed and cut in half if small, quarters if large
4 Stalks Celery, cut into ¼ inch thick slices
5 Carrots, peeled and cut into ¼ inch thick slices (on a diagonal)
3 Tablespoons Double Concentrated Tomato Paste
2 Cups Dry Red Wine, I like to use Chianti
4 Cups Beef Stock (Pacific brand has the best flavor)
2 Cups Chicken Stock (Pacific brand has the best flavor)
3 Bay leaves
1 Teaspoon Herbs de Provence
Oil
Salt and Pepper
1 Tablespoon Gelatin
½ Cup Cold Water

In large dutch oven heat oil in pan until it starts smoking. Add half of the beef cubes sprinkle generously with salt and black pepper and cook until seared and browned on all sides, about 4 minutes, remove and set aside. Add more oil if need and brown the rest of the beef cubes, remove and set aside.
Add Onion to pan and reduce heat to medium high, continue cooking until onion is lightly browned and tender, about 5 minutes. Add mushrooms and continue cooking until lightly browned, about 5 minutes longer. Add tomato paste and celery; continue to cook an additional 3 minutes.
Turn heat up to high and add wine, cook on high while scraping up browned bits from the bottom of the pan until wine reduces by half. Now add the seared beef cubes, beef stock, chicken stock, bay leaves, and, herbs de provence.
Bring to a boil, then cover and reduce heat to simmer. Simmer for one hour. Add carrots to the pan and continue to simmer uncovered for an additional hour. Dissolve gelatin in cold water and add to stew just before serving. This will add an additional thickness to the stew. Adjust flavorings with salt and pepper and serve immediately.