Month: May 2013

Paprika-Roasted Leg of Lamb
by

Paprika-Roasted Leg of Lamb

It’s spring and the boneless leg of lamb was on sale at Wholefoods and Lyn had pinned this the other day so aside went the traditional Greek style recipe I use and we decided that this would be a good free meal for the week. Last year we tried something similar with lamb kabob and liked it. I thought the that is would be to spicy with the paprika and chili but surprisingly enough it was not and the spice snuck up on you as an after taste pleasant and mild. 


From Food and Wine

Ingredients

  • 3 tablespoons sweet paprika
  • 1 tablespoon pure chili powder, such as ancho or pasilla
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cardamom
  • One 6 1/2-pound boneless leg of lamb, butterflied
  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • Salt
  • 6 whole garlic cloves
  • 4 rosemary sprigs
  • 2 thyme sprigs
  • 1 lemon, sliced 1/4 inch thick

ingredients

I used a 2 lbs. boneless leg so I cut everything by 1/3 except the fresh herbs I used more. But watch the cooking time it cooked quickly. Although Lyn likes lamb well done I would have liked it a little less well done.  Even so it came out tasty and very tender.

 

How

Preheat the oven to 500°. In a small bowl, mix the paprika with the chile powder and cardamom. Rub the lamb with the olive oil and season with salt. Sprinkle the spices all over the lamb.

sprinly with the rub

Lay the lamb fat side down on a large rimmed baking sheet. Scatter the garlic cloves, rosemary and thyme sprigs and lemon slices around the lamb and roast on the top rack of the oven for about 25 minutes, or until nicely browned.

roasted

Turn the lamb fat side up and roast for about 25 minutes longer, or until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the meat registers 130° for medium-rare. Transfer the lamb to a carving board and let rest for 10 minutes. Slice the lamb 1/4 inch thick and serve.

 slice 1/4 " and serve

Suggested Pairing

With their gamey notes and firm tannins (more European than Australian in style), South African Shirazes and Syrahs would pair superbly with this spice-roasted lamb

100_1781

STEAK SAUCE
by

STEAK SAUCE

Ingredients

  • tablespoons  unsalted butter
  • 2   garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 teaspoons  onion powder
  • 1 teaspoon  pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon  salt
  • 2 teaspoons  soy sauce

First

Melt butter in 8-inch skillet over medium-low heat. Add garlic, onion powder, pepper, and salt and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.

Pour all but 1 tablespoon butter mixture into bowl and let that cool slightly, about 5 minutes, save to mix in hamburger meat.

From America's Test Kitchen

Then:

  • 2 tablespoons  tomato paste
  • 2/3 cup  beef broth
  • 1/3 cup  raisins
  • 2 tablespoons  soy sauce
  • 2 tablespoons  Dijon mustard
  • 2 tablespoons  balsamic vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon  Worcestershire sauce

How:

Add tomato paste to skillet and cook over medium heat until paste begins to darken, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in broth, raisins, soy sauce, mustard, vinegar, and Worcestershire and simmer until raisins plump, about 5 minutes. Process sauce in blender until smooth, about 30 seconds; transfer to bowl.

Image from katedeering.com

 

 

Cuts of meat, I know I always have to ask where did it come from

 

butchering-beef

Related articles
by

Bahn Mi Pork Tenderloin Sandwich

A common craving for our readers is for ethnic, spicy fare, and these Vietnamese-style sandwiches fill the bill. You can prepare the pork and the mayonnaise mixture (steps 3 and 4) up to a day ahead. Assemble these Bahn Mi sandwiches up to four hours ahead, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate. Cooking Light 2008

This was very good but Lyn and I still like the Bahn Mi-Style Turkey Burger better,

Ingredients: Serves 8

  • 1/2 cup shredded carrot
  • 1/2 cup grated peeled daikon radish
  • 1 tablespoon cider vinegar
  • 2 teaspoons sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

 100_1744

  • 3 tablespoons chili garlic sauce (such as Lee Kum Kee)
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar

100_1746

  • 1 (1-pound) pork tenderloin, trimmed
  • Cooking spray (I just rubbed with olive oil)
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

 100_1749

  • 3 tablespoons fat-free mayonnaise
  • 2 (20-inch) baguettes (about 8 1/2 ounces each)
  • 16 thin cucumber slices (about 1 cucumber)
  • 16 cilantro sprigs
  • 1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions (about 2)
  • 1 seeded and thinly sliced jalapeño pepper

How:

Combine the first 5 ingredients; cover and let stand 15 minutes to 1 hour. Drain.

Preheat oven to 400°.

Combine the chili garlic sauce and 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar; stir well.

100_1748

Place pork on the rack of a small roasting pan or broiler pan coated with cooking spray. Spread 2 tablespoons chili garlic mixture evenly over pork; sprinkle the pork with 1/2 teaspoon salt. Bake at 400° for 20 minutes or until a thermometer registers 155° (slightly pink). Cool; cover the pork, and refrigerate.

 100_1749

Combine mayonnaise and remaining chili garlic sauce mixture; cover and refrigerate.

Cut each baguette horizontally, cutting to, but not through, other side using a serrated knife. Spread mayonnaise mixture evenly on cut sides of baguettes. Thinly slice pork; divide pork evenly between baguettes. Top evenly with carrot mixture. Arrange 8 cucumber slices and 8 cilantro sprigs on each baguette. Top evenly with onions and jalapeño.

100_1760

Press top gently to close; cut each baguette into 4 equal servings.

100_1767 100_1766

Sweet Potato Pancakes
by

Sweet Potato Pancakes

Lyn wanted some sweet potato puffs or tater tots and because it was not on the list we forgot. We also forgot where we saw them. The list is becoming very important these days for two reasons, it keeps our impulse buys to a minimum “not on the list, not in the carriage” (In theory at least) and recently if it is not on the list we tend to forget about it. Hey, we talk as we shop and we forget things, that is until we are putting away things. That’s Ok because shopping for food ideas is one of our favorite things so we tend to hit a lot of grocery stores on the weekends. So I thought quickly and came up with this as a substitute and served with my Herb Marinate flank steak. She gave these a thumbs up on her second one.

 

Ingredients:

I eyeballed most of this

  • 1 Sweet potato or yam (this one was white) grated
  • 1 tablespoon (estimated) fresh flat leaf parsley chopped fine
  • 1 Shallot finely minced
  • 1 egg beaten
  • ¼ cup of grated parmesan cheese – depends on how finely grated could be more or less.
  • Salt and pepper to taste- I went light on the salt and then sprinkled more on them when they were done.

sweet potatoe pancake

How

Micro wave the potatoes for 3 minutes and let cool, when cool enough to touch where it will not cook the egg then proceed.

Combine all ingredients

Heat small amount of canola oil in pan

fry them up

Form pancakes and flatten on pan

Brown on each side turn when necessary.

Sweet potatoe pancakes

I did it in batches so as not to lose the heat of pan which would have been steaming

I kept the ready ones on a pan on cookie rack in low oven to keep crisp

eat

BTW – these made a great topper in my Dill Chicken sandwich the next day.

Missi’s Dill Chicken with Tomato-Dill Relish
by

Missi’s Dill Chicken with Tomato-Dill Relish

I’ve been relatively quiet these days, outside cleanup has taken a lot of my time just getting outside without bundling up is great. Lyn and I took a road trip, the ultimate test of the Prius, and gave a new meaning to a tank full of gas trip. We drove from Milford MA to Washington DC on about 10 gallons of gas about 58 MPG. Spent more of tolls than gas, heck spent more on what they pass off  as food at service areas than on gas. You get closer to DC and it is rural and you soon come to the realization that there is nothing at the exits and the service areas are the only choice.  Traffic gods were nice to us on the way down but on the way back they laid out one traffic jam after another. Amazingly enough after all these years of together we can still stay in a confined place together for long periods of time. Anyway we made it to DC and Missi even gave up her parking spot for us she guided us in over the phone as we drew close. It was a wonderful visit laid back and comfortable, individually they are great, together they are pretty perfect. Missi gently pounded the chicken as the 4 of us along with the cat and dog sat around the kitchen talking. Ever notice that the kitchen is the hang out room?  This chicken immediately made it to my favorite list and yesterday we tried to duplicate, did a good job but I just could not duplicate that missing ingredient “Missi Love”.

Simple and delicious

Ingredients

  • 4 (6-ounces) skinless boneless chicken breast halves
  • 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1/4 cup chopped dill
  • 3 tablespoons finely chopped shallot
  • 1 tablespoon grainy mustard
  • 1 tablespoon white-wine vinegar
  • 1 pint cherry tomatoes, quartered

ingredients

How:

Prepare grill for direct-heat cooking over hot charcoal (medium-high heat for gas)

Pound chicken 1/4 inch thick between 2 sheets of plastic wrap with flat side of a meat pounder or with a rolling pin.

pound chicken (1)

Whisk together oil, dill, shallot, mustard, and vinegar in a large bowl. Set aside 1/4 cup.

vinergarette

Sprinkle chicken evenly with 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper, then add to dill mixture, turning to coat.

tuen to coat

Toss tomatoes with reserved dill mixture and salt and pepper to taste if you want.

quarter tomatoes add sauce

toss

Grill chicken, turning once, until just cooked through, 3 to 4 minutes total.

grill

Serve topped with relish.

cover

palted

dill chicken

I like this time of year
by

I like this time of year

Spring brings a new kind of depth to the woods in the back

100_1695100_1693

The colors start in the front

IMG_20130508_164358_714 IMG_20130508_164407_027 IMG_20130508_164430_497

and the official garden in honer of Mom who smiles in appreciation from above start to fill the deck

100_1679 100_1680

Every year Lyn and I say next year it will just be a small deck garden and by Mid June there is not a empty space on the railing.

Let the gardening begin.

The herbs are coming up in the yard garden and the grape tomatoes like thier new home.  They say there might be a frost on Tuesday so I will cover those up.

Yes, I like this time of year.