Grilled Beef Tenderloin

I'm putting my beef tenderloin on to marinate right now.

Marinade
1 cup red wine
1/3 cup of low sodium soy sauce
1/4 cup of Dijon mustard
1/3 cup olive oil
5 cloves of  garlic flattened
2 shallots sliced
3 sprigs of rosemary
4 sprigs of thyme
1/2 Tbs. coarsely ground pepper
2 bay leaves

Mix all ingredients together with a whisk. Let the meat marinate refrigerated for 6 hours. Cook meat on a 400 degree grill for about 35 minutes or until the internal temperature at the thickest part read 140 degrees. Let the meat stand for at least 10 minutes before slicing.

Meatballs & Max

This past weekend my family was blessed with the opportunity to meet Max Holder Weber, the son of Kristen and Bruce. They let us come down to Florida with two 11 year olds and spend the weekend when Max was just  4 days old! Look at how gorgeous this baby is! He definitely takes after his mom! We had a great time and they got some good home cooking!

The first night we grilled strip steaks seasoned with a spicy dry rub. We sliced them and served them with baked potatoes and a salad with pears, stilton and balsamic vinaigrette. (Be sure to let the steaks sit covered with foil for 10 minutes before cutting so all the juices don't run out.) Here's a tip - if you slice the steaks and serve it family style, you will eat less. If you put a whole, thick juicy steak on your plate, you will eat it. But you will have no problem leaving steak on a serving platter and then you will have leftovers for delicious sandwiches and wraps the next day!

On Saturday I made the famous Prestia family meatballs and sauce. This recipe has been handed down for generations. I was given this recipe as a girlfriend to see if I could take care of the precious only son of Peggy Prestia. Once I succeeded, Jack decided that yes, indeed he could marry me. I have been using it ever since to get what I want! However, I must admit, Nonna's are better than mine... Don't know what that woman does differently.

Meatballs
3 lbs ground beef (I use a mixture of chuck and round for about 15% fat.)
1 lb ground pork
3 eggs
3/4 cup of seasoned bread crumbs
2 Tbs of fresh minced Italian parsley
1/4 cup finely grated, good quality parmesan (Do not use canned parm! Grate it yourself if need be.)
1 tsp minced garlic
salt & pepper

Preheat oven to 350. Combine all ingredients in a big bowl but don't squish the meat. The texture will be better  if the meat is not pulverized but gently broken apart and mixed. Form into 1 1/2" balls. Place on a cookie sheet and bake for 18-20 minutes. You do not want to cook the meatballs all the way thru but simply brown them so that they won't fall apart in the sauce. Thankfully this makes A LOT of meatballs. I use 1/3 in my sauce and freeze the rest in 2 bags for easy sauce in the future.

Sauce
1 large can Muir Glen crushed tomatoes
1 large can Muir Glen whole or diced tomatoes
1 small can of Muir Glen tomato paste
1/2 large can of water
1 tsp minced garlic
salt and pepper
1/3 recipe of meatballs
2 tsp minced fresh basil
1 T minced fresh Italian basil

In a large pot combine the first 6 ingredients. If you are using whole tomatoes, squish them in your hands to break up. Bring to a boil and taste for seasoning. Add the meatballs and bring back to a boil. Let simmer for 2 hours. Add the basil and parsley and let simmer for an additional 45 minutes.

This sauce keeps very well. You can, of course, eat it immediately. You can also let it cool off a little then stick the whole pot in the refrigerator to serve within the next two days. I have eaten leftovers a week later. It also freezes very well which makes it great to take for someone in need of a good meal. Jack loves for me to pull a jar from the freezer for a wonderful weekday night dinner!

Enjoy!

Burger with Oven Fries

It's hard to beat a good burger. Start with good meat. If you want to be naughty go with Whole Foods Ground Chuck. It's 20% fat and makes one delicious but unhealthy burger. Burgers have to have fat in them to be good - not dry and hard. I have taken lean ground beef and added olive oil to it so at least I have a healthier fat. You can also go with half ground chuck and half ground round.

I like to season the meat with garlic salt, kosher salt, pepper and a dash of Worcestershire sauce. I fold the meat in half to put the seasoning inside and form the patties. Don't mix or squish the meat because that will break up the fat and make it less tender. I use 1/3 a pound of meat per patty.

Of course it needs to be cooked on the grill about 8 minutes per side on a fairly hot (400 degree) grill. But don't freeze your fanny off in this weather!

I topped mine with gorgonzola and sauteed mushrooms. (Remember not to salt your mushrooms until after they are browned but remember to salt them. I hate getting a restaurant burger where they didn't salt the mushrooms!) Jack likes cheddar and Caterina likes a naked burger. A good roll is key too. I used a French bread roll from Trader Joe's and it was delicious!

These are oven fries made using my Pampered Chef stoneware baking sheet. Slice a russet (baking) potato thinly and place them on the baking sheet that is lightly greased with olive oil. Spray the tops with olive oil and bake at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes. Keep an eye on them! It varies based on the thinness of the potato and your oven. Salt & pepper after they come out of the oven.

Enjoy!

Lemon Herb Grilled Chicken

This was delicious! (I need to lighten up my picture, but I haven't loaded photoshop on this computer yet, sorry!) I was blogging last night and didn't have enough time to marinate the chicken very long so I made the marinade very flavorful. I made this up last night and didn't really measure so don't get carried away with the measuring spoons yourself! Loved the pasta as well.

Lemon Herb Grilled Chicken
1 1/2 Tbs dijon mustard
juice of 1 lemon
1/2 Tbs minced rosemary & thyme
1/2 Tbs soy sauce
pepper
3 Tbs olive oil
2 chicken breasts & 4 legs

In a large mixing bowl whisk together the first 5 ingredients then slowly whisk in the oil. Add the chicken, turn to coat and let sit at room temperature while the grill heats up. My grill was 400 degrees and I cooked the chicken 10 minutes, turn 10 minutes, turn 7 minutes, turn 5 minutes. I like to turn chicken multiple times so it doesn't char.

Mushroom Pasta
2 1/2 Tbs olive oil
1/2 carton of sliced mushrooms (baby bella)
1 tsp minced garlic
salt & pepper
1/2 lb of spaghetti (Barilla plus)

Cook your pasta in a big pot of boiling water that is generously seasoned with salt. The water should taste like ocean water. While the pasta is cooking, heat oil in a non-stick skillet over medium heat. Saute mushrooms until golden brown - about 5 minutes adding the garlic for the last minute. Season with salt and pepper after the mushrooms have cooked. Using tongs, transfer the cooked pasta into the skillet with the mushrooms making sure some pasta water comes with it. Toss and enjoy!

I'd like to get some comments with some of your favorite chicken dishes!

Stuffed Pork Loin

I know it is late Friday afternoon and I'm just getting this on the blog.  I'll type fast.  I really apologize if you were looking for it this morning. However, my dog died this week.  Little Nasty, not to be confused with "Big Nasty" (if I bathed them more often, they wouldn't have these nick-names - totally my fault), was very old. He got a stomach bug and didn't last. It kind of messes up your plans to have your dog die... Anyway on to better topics - my favorite - COOKING!!!

See below for shopping/ingredients list for this meal as well as a picture of the finished product.
First you need to filet your pork loin. I count off about 1" of pork loin for every serving. I also make sure it will fit in my largest non-stick skillet. When I do this for a crowd, I cut a large loin in half so I can brown it in my skillet then transfer both pieces to a roasting pan. Rinse the loin and put it on a cutting board fat side up.


You are going to make a cut into it like you are opening up a book 1/3 of the way down. Take this cut until you are 1/2" from the edge. Don't cut thru the "binding" of the book!

 Cut down the side of the loin (the binding- like you are going to cut out some pages) so you are 1/3 of the way from the bottom. Then you will cut back toward the other side.

Continue cutting until you are 1" away from that side.

And Voila! a perfectly butterflied piece of pork!

Next saute the pancetta, and layer it in with the dried cherries and stilton or gorganzolla cheese (use more than I did in the picture. I had the right amount of cherries but could use a little more cheese & pancetta.) Top all of that with bread crumbs. I took my picture half way thru so you could see the other ingredients.

Brown this in an oven safe skillet. The beauty of this meal is that you can do all this before your guests arrive and then put it in the oven after you have appetizers and a glass of wine!

You can also go ahead and dice your butternut squash, toss it in olive oil and sprinkle it with herbs de provence, salt & pepper. I like to use a stone-ware baking sheet for roasted veggies because it will brown the bottom. Great to have this done (not cooked just spread on the pan) before the guests arrive. By the way, when dicing butternut squash, I just cut off the bottom bulb and throw it away. I find it way too much trouble to deseed it and get the small walls of the bulb. Buy squash with a big neck - all the meat is there!

When you're ready to cook, preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Put a thermometer into the meat so that the tip is in the middle. Put the pork in the oven and cook for about 30 minutes or until the thermometer reads 160 degrees. (You can also grill the meat - very delicious - but use indirect heat.) About 15 minutes in, put the squash in the oven. When the pork is done, let it sit for about 5 - 10 minutes before slicing. The squash is done when it is fork tender.

I hope y'all enjoy this!!!

Shopping list for a special dinner

I had a new idea for you. Here's a shopping list for a special meal you can make this weekend. I'll give you instructions no later than Friday morning - I promise! We shared this pork loin stuffed with prosciutto, stilton and dried cherries with some wonderful friends last Friday. All the kids ate it because you can pick out the stuffing if you don't like it and the meat is tender and delicious on it's own. I served it with roasted butternut squash and a salad with granny smith apples and pecans.

Shopping list
- Pork loin - not tenderloin, you need the bigger one to stuff. It is not an expensive cut of meat and this preparation makes it seem really special!
- Dried Cherries - 1 Tbs
- Stilton or gorgonzola cheese - Trader Joe's has a stilton that's reasonably priced. Make sure the gorgonzola is creamy not crumbly so it will melt.
- Prosciutto - 3 slices 1/4" thick or the packaged of already diced from Trader Joe's
- Plain Bread Crumbs
- Butternut Squash - get one with a small bulb and large neck. It has more meat.
- Spring Mix
- 2 Granny Smith Apples
- Candied Pecans - see Thanksgiving post re: Greene's Fine Foods!

Pantry Items
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Herbs de Provence
- Dijon Mustard
- Apple Cider Vinegar or Balsamic Vinegar for salad dressing
- Garlic Salt

Italian Chicken Noodle Soup

Here's my regular, "I don't have enough time to cook" go to meal. If you make your own marinara for the soup it adds a little time. If you use store-bought, it is quick and easy. The secret ingredient? Parmesan rind! My parmesan wedge does not come with enough rind to make this soup as much as I like to have it. Therefore I buy parmesan rinds from Whole Foods. The little French roll in the picture comes from the Trader Joe's frozen section. We love bread at our house and these are a delicious must-have in our freezer!

Italian Chicken Noodle Soup
1 Box Chicken Broth
1 Cup Marinara Sauce
Parmesan rind
Chicken Tenders - 2 per person - cut bite sized
pepper
Rotini pasta (**Barilla Plus)
grated parmesan cheese

Bring broth and marinara sauce to a boil reduce heat and add parmesan rind and chicken. Season with pepper. Let simmer while you cook the pasta. In a large, separate pot cook your pasta using lots of water and be sure to add about a tablespoon of salt. Drain, place pasta in the bowl  and top with the soup. Sprinkle with freshly grated parmesan and enjoy!

** I like this Barilla Plus Pasta! We do not like whole wheat pasta at my house but my family will eat this multigrain gem. They have added flax seed which is a great source of Omega-3 fatty acid (great for your brain, joints & heart) and legume flours for protein. It has a very close consistency to regular pasta. Give it a try!

Chili

It's cold and it's time for some soul satisfying chili! Here's a recipe that my family loves. I have one secret ingredient - smoked paprika! The kind I get at Your Dekalb Farmers Market comes in both sweet and hot. I like the spicy one, especially in chili. It adds a depth to the chili that you don't get from chili powder or regular paprika, a smokey yumminess. I also like Whole Foods Organic Spicy Black Beans in my chili. My picture has the pinto beans in it but I had leftovers with the black beans and they made me very happy. Jack doesn't like beans so Caterina and I put them on the bottom of our bowl and ladle bean-less chili on top.

Chili

2 lbs ground beef (or 1 lb ground beef & 1 lb ground turkey)

1/2 C chopped onion

2 tsp minced garlic

2 tsp cumin

2 tsp oregano flakes

1 1/2 tsp smoked paprika

8 Tbs chili powder

1/2 Tbs salt

1 large can of crushed tomatoes or 1 can of diced & 2 Tbs tomato paste

2 cans of black or pinto beans

Lightly brown the meat, add the onion & garlic and continue cooking until the onions are translucent. You can put it in the crock pot at this point or cook it stove top. Add the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. If you are using a crock pot cook 4 - 6 hours on low; on the stove top simmer 1 - 2 hours. If my chili looks too watery I add 2 Tbs flour dissolved in 1/4 C water 30 minutes before serving. 

Before serving heat up some beans in a separate pot. If you are using the WF 365 black beans just heat them up. If you are using pinto beans, drain them then add juice from the chili to season them. I like my chili topped with cheddar cheese only. I'm sure this is good with sour cream and green onions as well.

I hope you like it!  

~ Ellen