Beer and A Really Good Steak

There is no substitute for a really good steak.  I cook steak, but I'm not even going to pretend that it's one of my specialties.  Cooking a great steak is a true art, and experts spend years perfecting their craft.  Thankfully there are many steakhouses out there where you can enjoy the steak of your dreams.

I recently had a really good steak in Palm Springs at the Renaissance Hotel there.  On the menu, it's called "Steak Salad", and it's a grilled sirloin steak with an old-fashioned lettuce salad and onion rings.  I have to say it took quite a while for me to get my steak, but when it finally arrived, it was delicious.  I had suspected my order didn't go into the kitchen right away, because when I asked about it, it seemed like the staff started scrambling a little.  Let's just say that when I finally got my steak, it was freshly cooked.  You know, you can't fake steak.  I can't exactly say it was worth the wait because there really was someplace else that I wanted to be while I was waiting for it, but it was still a really good steak and I enjoyed it.

I also love beer.  I love going to a bar where they have hundreds of different beers, both on tap and in bottles.  The best place around here is called Boulders on Broadway.  They have dozens of beers on tap, that they change up every week, plus several more dozens of bottled beers.  Every time I go, I try something new that I never heard of before!  It's usually pretty good!  Top's Liquor and Sprouts (f.k.a. Sunflower Market) also have an awesome variety of bottled beers to choose from.

Last fall, my friend Katherine told me about a pumpkin ale that tastes just like pumpkin pie.  I still haven't found it, but I just know it's going to be awesome when I do!  I bought some Pumpkin Ale last week by Buffalo Bills Brewery, and let me tell you, it doesn't taste anything like pumpkin pie!  I was so disappointed!  One of these days I will find that beer that tastes like pumpkin pie, and I'll be drinking it with a big smile on my face!

It's always a good day for a steak and a beer, my friend!

Yummy Easy Chili!

Ranch beans are the best!  It's the best side dish ever next to a steak and even delicious on their own.  If you are not familiar with Ranch Style Beans, they are pinto beans (a Southwestern staple) in a yummy chili gravy.  The thick sauce the beans are soaking in is made out of tomatoes, chilies, and spices, so it's not really a stretch to imagine you can make a nice chunky chili out of a can of ranch beans.

In the past, I have used ground meat to make ranch bean chili, but this week I happened to have 1/2 pound of breakfast sausage in my refrigerator.  And a can of ranch beans with jalapeno in my pantry.  I also had a green pepper, an onion, and some tomatoes on hand, so it was a no-brainer.

EASY RANCH BEAN CHILI:

1 green pepper, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
2 tomatoes, chopped
1/2 lb. sausage or ground meat
1 can Ranch Style Beans with Jalapeno (or without jalapeno if you can't take the heat)
Seasonings: salt, pepper, granulated garlic, red chili powder, chile with lime (chile con limon), cumin, etc.

Roughly chop the peppers, onions, and tomatoes.  Saute the peppers and onions in a little oil, seasoning the veggies with your faves.  I recommend the above.  Go light on the granulated garlic and cumin.  I get Chile Con Limon at Food City, it's basically red chili powder with lemon added, perfect on everything!

When the peppers and onions are about 1/2 way cooked, add the meat and continue to saute it, cooking the meat thoroughly.  Add the tomatoes last, after the meat is cooked.  Now add the ranch beans and enough water to reach the top of the ingredients.  Stir and let this mixture simmer for 20-30 minutes (stirring occasionally) so the ingredients can become one.  Chefs like to say "Let the flavors get married!"  That's a good way to put it!  They are no longer pepper, onion, meat, and beans; they have become the delicious little family of Yummy Chunky Chili!  Now go enjoy your creation!

Fresh Fruit Tarts!!!

I learned to make these when I worked as a pastry baker at the Pointe Resort on South Mountain.  We used to make fancy pastries for weddings, parties, conferences, whatever events people were having at the resort.  Fruit tarts would appear on trays with an assortment of pastries such as chocolate eclairs, cream puffs, brownies, napoleons, chocolate mousse cups, petit fours, etc.  Fresh fruit tarts were always my favorite because they're so pretty!  And they have fresh fruit!  They are not hard to make, but they do have quite a few steps.  After you read the recipe, you might just be calling me to say, "Hey Sarah, can you just make me one?"  :-)

Since this recipe comes from a resort/hotel bake shop, the original recipe calls for 8 lbs. of sugar, 13 lbs. of butter, 12 lbs. of flour, 2 gallons of milk, and 1 and 1/4 lb. of cornstarch (20 oz.).  I have broken it down to a more manageable portion size, that you can handle in a home kitchen.  Thankfully the internet has conversion charts where I could convert the lbs. to cups.

There are basically 2 recipes involved in making fruit tarts: the tart shell, which is like a shortbread cookie, and the cream filling, which is the same cream filling that you would put in a chocolate eclair or a cream puff.  Once you have those 2 recipes prepared, you just have to assemble the fruit tarts; the subsequent steps involve melting the chocolate, slicing the fruit, melting the jelly and toasting the almonds.

TART SHELLS (SUGAR DOUGH):

1/2 cup plus 1 Tbsp. sugar
2 sticks plus 2 Tbsp. butter
1 egg
4 and 3/4 cup cake flour

Cream together the sugar and butter in a mixer.  Add the egg to the sugar and butter.  Then add the flour until it's incorporated.  Don't overmix the dough.  For best results, you should refrigerate the dough for about an hour so you can roll it out.  If you have to use it right away, it will be very soft, so you'll have to squish it down into the pans, it will be too soft to roll.

Prepare your pans: With this recipe, I made two 9-inch tarts, and three 4-inch tarts.  You can get fancy tart pans at places like Williams-Sonoma in the mall, or you can use regular cake pans, chicken pot pie pans, or even muffin tins.  I used 9-inch cake pans and 4-inch chicken pot pie pans.  Grease or spray your pans.  If you are using a cake pan, you can cut a circle of parchment or aluminum foil to go into the bottom of the pan, to make sure you can get the tart shell out of the pan.

Divide the dough into 3 or 4 sections, and roll the dough out with a little flour.   Transfer the dough to the pan.  If you are using a cake pan, trim the dough so it only goes 1/2 inch up the sides.  Same for the smaller pans (an actual tart pan will have shorter sides that are only about 1/2 inch high).  Poke holes all over the bottom of the raw dough and bake them in a 350 degree oven until they start to turn golden.  Let the tart shells cool before filling them.

PASTRY CREAM (CREME ANGLAIS):

3 and 1/2 cups milk
1 cup sugar
3 egg yolks (1/4 cup)
1/2 cup plus 2 Tbsp. cornstarch
1/2 cup milk
2 sticks of butter

Mix together the 3 and 1/2 cups milk with the sugar and egg yolks.  Bring these to a boil and remove from heat.  Mix together the cornstarch and 1/2 cup milk, and add to the boiled mixture, stirring it with a wire whip (wire whisk).  It will get really thick.  Add the butter to the thickened mixture and continue stirring with the wire whip so the butter melts into the milk mixture.  Now you have pastry cream.  You'll need to cool the pastry cream before using it - put plastic wrap directly onto the pastry cream to avoid a skin forming on the top.

ADDITIONAL INGREDIENTS:

Fresh fruit -  strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, kiwi, mango

12 oz. bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips

Clear jelly - if you can't find clear apricot, look for clear apple jelly

Small (2 oz.) bag of sliced almonds 

Melt the chocolate chips in a double boiler.  If you don't have an actual double boiler, you can use a pan and a bowl.  The bowl has to be bigger than the pan.  Put about an inch of water in the pan, and place the bowl on top.  The water should not touch the bowl.  Put the chocolate chips in the bowl, and place the pan over medium heat.  Stir the chocolate chips a couple times with a rubber spatula while they're melting.  It will melt really fast.  Make sure you don't get any water in the chocolate, or else it will get lumpy.

Coat the bottoms and sides of the tart shells with the melted chocolate.  Don't be timid!  Brush on a nice thick layer of chocolate.  I use a pastry brush that I got from Ace Hardware for 79 cents.  Don't worry, I never painted with it!  The chocolate layer serves 2 purposes.  It tastes really yummy, and it also protects the tart shells from getting soggy once you fill them with cream and fruit.  Chill the tart shells so the chocolate hardens before you add the rest of the ingredients.

While the chocolate is cooling, slice the fruit really pretty.  I just love all the beautiful colors!

When the chocolate is fully cooled, it's time to fill the tart shells with pastry cream up to the top.  If you don't have a pastry bag, you can use a ziplock  bag with a 1/2 inch hole cut in the corner to squeeze the cream out of.  This will make it easy to squeeze out a nice layer of pastry cream.  Use an offset spatula to smooth the pastry cream into an even layer that is even with the sides of the tart shell.

 

Now it's time for artistry!  Arrange the sliced fruit on top of the pastry cream.  If you're doing a circular design, start at the outer edge and work your way towards the middle.  Be creative and use all your colors!  So pretty!

Next, melt the jelly so you can brush it over the fruit to make it shiny and hold everything together.  You can use a small pan or the microwave to melt it.  Make sure you also brush some jelly over the edges of the tart shell so the almonds stick to it.

Finally, you have reached the last step in your fresh fruit tart-making journey!  Toast the sliced almonds by putting them in a dry frying pan and heat them slowly on the stove.  Stir them or flip them in the pan so they get mixed up.  Watch these closely because once they start to turn golden, they will quickly burn.  As soon as they start to get some color to them, they are ready.  If you let them get brown, they are burned.  Transfer the almonds to a cutting board and chop them coursely.  Scoop the almonds into your hand and decorate the edges of the tart shell with the toasted almonds.  Wow!!!  Enjoy your fresh fruit tarts, they are beautiful AND delicious!!!

Sweet Potato Pancakes!

I usually make potato pancakes, but last week, I only had sweet potatoes, so I decided to try something new, sweet potato pancakes!  I'm happy to report, they turned out really sweet and yummy!  I made them the same way I make regular potato pancakes, just left out the onions and added brown sugar.  Mmmm!

SWEET POTATO PANCAKES:

1 small sweet potato - shredded
1 egg
1 tablespoon brown sugar
apx 1 tablespoon corn starch (maybe a little less)
1 sprinkle of salt
(oil for frying)

Shred the sweet potatoes into a bowl and add the rest of the ingredients, except for the oil.  Put enough oil in a non-stick frying pan to cover the bottom of the pan and heat it over medium-low heat.  Then spoon the sweet potato mixture into the oil and flatten it out into 4-inch rounds.  You should have enough for about 4-5 sweet potato pancakes.  Fry on each side until it starts to turn brown.  They'll be nice and crispy and SWEET!!!

These are the perfect side dish for anything!!!!!

Pollo Asado Filiberto's Style!

Another quick and easy (and delicious) chicken recipe!

POLLO ASADO FILIBERTO'S STYLE:

1 lb.  raw chicken, cut into 1-inch chunks
a couple tablespoons of oil
spices and seasonings: salt, pepper, red chile, red pepper flakes, chile con limon (I'm pretty sure I added that since I put it in everything), cumin, granulated garlic, oregano

Heat up the pan or a flat top grill.  Season the chicken chunks with salt and pepper.  Put the oil in the pan and add the chicken to start pan frying it.  As the chicken starts cooking, add the other seasonings, including more salt and pepper if needed.  Don't overdo the seasonings except for the red chile, you can be generous with that one.  Continue to pan fry the chicken so it gets nice and brown, stirring occasionally.  Let the chicken cook for about 10-15 minutes until it's really done.

Now you can make tacos, burritos, or even a salad with chicken on top!  As pictured above, pico de gallo will be delicious with the grilled chicken in a taco or burrito.  Just warm up the tortilla on a comal, large frying pan, or flat top grill so they get warm and soft.

PICO DE GALLO:

This is the salsa cruda (raw salsa), not the fruit with chile and lemon, which is also delicious, but maybe not so delicious wrapped in a tortilla with grilled chicken....  You can also serve pico de gallo with chips and guacamole.

2-3 tomatoes, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
1-2 raw jalapenos, depending on desired heat level, chopped small
1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped
juice of 1 lemon or 3-4 key limes
1 teaspoon of salt

Chop the veggies and add the lemon juice and salt.  Mix everything up together.  Enjoy!

Prize-Winning Deliciousness!!!

 CHICXULUB SURVIVORS CLUB VICTORIOUS!!!!!!!

So, this week in celebration of St. Patrick's Day, our Spring League director decided to host a contest for the best St. Patrick's themed desserts and drinks, to be held at halftime during league nights.  Each team would submit a drink and a dessert, and the winning entry from each category would win a prize.

Somehow I got it in my head that I wanted to make a drink out of mint chocolate chip ice cream, so it would be both green and yummy, so I volunteered to make our team's drink.  I found a recipe on the internet that sounded like it might be good, then went on a mission to find the ingredients.  Later, I made a test batch to make sure the drink would win the prize, and ended up tweaking the recipe just a little for maximum yumminess.  Of course, I also ended up intoxicated from tasting about 4 tiny sips of the drink while testing the recipe... yeah, it's pretty strong!

On game day, I came home early to make the drinks, and I was on the phone with my mom, telling her what I was doing, and that there was going to be a prize for the best drink.  She said "The prize is probably stuff to help you drink some more."  HOW DID SHE KNOW????  She's so wise.

My mom was right.  The prize pack included party hats, big and small, shot glasses, party shades, party ducks (?), party antennas, and party bracelets.  That was some incentive, but the bigger prize was a victory for our team and bragging rights for the next year.

What can I say?  The drink was delicious, the judges cast their votes, and the Chicxulub Survivors Club came away victorious in the drink division!

MINT CHOCOLATE CHIP ICE CREAM SHOTS (or Prize-Winning Deliciousness!):

1 shot Green Creme de Menthe
1 shot Goldschlager
1 shot Irish Cream
1 shot Golden Rum
1 cup of Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream (the green kind)
Dark Chocolate Candy - shaved into little shavings (optional)

Put the liquor and the ice cream into the blender and blend it up for a few seconds until it's smooth.  Add the chocolate shavings and briefly mix them in.  Serve ice cold!

For the contest, I made 8x the recipe so that everyone who wanted some could partake.  My blender could hold 4x the recipe at a time (4 shots of each liquor, 4 cups of ice cream, and 1 candy bar), so that was 2 batches.  I packed it on ice and it held up pretty well.  Make sure you shake it before pouring so you get some chocolate in each shot!  Enjoy!  But don't overdo it!  That's a lot of liquor!

Nobby's Table

Noble Jonathan David was one of six brothers and sisters, the American-born children of Syrian immigrants who settled in Jacksonville, Florida.  Nobby raised his family in Miami, Florida, and eventually became my sister's father-in-law when my sister married his son.  Soon after that, he became the grandfather of my neices and nephew.

Nobby was a brilliant neuro-ophthalmologist, but I knew him as a devoted family member, a gifted cook, and a passionate cello player.  Every Tuesday evening for years, Nobby had his kids and grandkids over (plus extended family such as me, my brothers and sisters and my mom), to have dinner together and play music.  Nobby always cooked, and every Tuesday, his table was stacked with plenty of food for everyone.

Every summer, Nobby returned to Jacksonville Beach and rented a beach house for 2 weeks, where all his brothers and sisters, their children, grandchildren, and ALL the cousins could come from far and wide, relax and enjoy the beach, the food, and the music.  Such a musical family too!  Guitar players, singers, recorders, french horns, violinists, piano players -- somebody was always playing music somewhere around the house or the yard.  One summer, I was blessed to be able to join the family in Jacksonville Beach, and even I joined in on the piano for duets, trios, quartets, whatever sheet music people brought to play.  We weren't quite ready for Carnegie Hall, but it was fun, and music is definitely a strong bond within this family.

That summer, I also tag-teamed with Nobby in the kitchen.  He was actually intrigued by some of my diner-style recipes such as patty melts, reubens, corn beef hash.  Of course, Nobby's specialties were the Syrian dishes: hummous, baba ganouj, tabouli, falafels, kibby, baklava, etc.  He shared his recipes with me, although the 3 dishes I make the most often are hummus, baba ganouj, and occasionally tabouli.  I would make falafels, but you actually have to start the day before, soaking the fava and garbanzo beans in water.  I never think about it in time..

I'll do my best on the measurements, since Nobby and I both had the habit of cooking without measuring our ingredients.  As always, you may adjust the amounts to your own taste.  Also, it's always nice to have other goodies on the side, such as cheeses, olives, roasted red peppers, wine, beer...  :-)

HUMMOUS:

1 15-ounce can of garbanzo beans (also called chick peas)
3 Tablespoons tahini
2 cloves of garlic
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 Tablespoons of olive oil (2+2)

Put the garbanzo beans, tahini, garlic, lemon juice, salt, and 2 tablespoons olive oil in the blender or food processer.  Blend until it is smooth.  Put it in a serving bowl and flatten out the top.  Pour the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil over the top in a circle.  Serve with warm pita bread.

BABA GHANOUJ:

1 large eggplant, grilled and peeled
3 Tablespoons tahini
1 clove of garlic
juice of 1/2 lemon
1/2 teaspoon salt
2-3 Tablespoons of olive oil

Grill the eggplant over a low flame, turning it so that all sides are charred and the eggplant gets shriveled.  You can do this on your stove, even over electric coils by placing a metal rack over the elements.  Grilling the eggplant is critical because this step gives the baba ghanouj its signature smoky flavor.  Let the eggplant cool a little and then peel it.

Next you have a choice whether you want your baba ghanouj to be smooth or a little bit chunky.  If you want it to be chunky, place all the ingredients into a bowl and mash them together.  You'll have to chop the garlic first for this method.  I use 2 knives to chop the eggplant up into little bits, then add everything else.

If you want your baba ghanouj to be smooth, place all the ingredients into a blender or food processer.  Blend it up for a few seconds until it's smooth.  Enjoy your baba ghanouj with warm pita bread!

Thank you Nobby for everything.  You were a good guy and I'm blessed to have known you.

Update on Sweet Potato Soup

One thing about being obsessed with making the same dish over and over, there's a chance you'll get better at it!  About 3 weeks ago, I made sweet potato soup again, and this time I asked myself, "What makes sweet potatoes yummy?"  The answer was clear: "Of course, brown sugar and butter!!!"

So I added brown sugar and butter to the pan while the sweet potatoes were cooking, then I added some more when they were done cooking.  The soup was SOOO GOOD!!!  Then, as I was ladling the soup into the bowls, I had the inspiration that I bet this soup would be really yummy with chopped candy pecans sprinkled over the top!  So that's what I did when I cooked this soup again for Christmas dinner.  It was very festive!  It was like eating candy yam soup!

SWEET POTATO SOUP:

1 medium onion - chopped
2 large sweet potatoes - peeled and sliced into 1/2 inch slices
4 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1 can of chicken stock
salt, pepper, and cinnamon
boiling water

Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a soup pan, and add the onions to saute.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  When the onions begin to caramelize and the edges are turning brown, add the sliced sweet potatoes and the chicken stock.  You'll also have to add boiling water to cover the sweet potatoes.  You can add some cinnamon to the pan too, maybe 1/2 teaspoon or a teaspoon (I forgot to measure it).  Now add the brown sugar, bring it up to a boil, then lower the heat and let it simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sweet potatoes are very soft.

Using a stick blender (also called an immersion blender), blend the soup completely untl it is very smooth.  You may have to add more boiling water as you blend it because it could get very thick, thicker than soup should be.  When it's blended, add 2 more tablespoons of butter and stir it in to melt.

Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with chopped candy pecans.

CHOPPED CANDY PECANS:

1/4 cup chopped pecans
1 or 2 teaspoons brown sugar
A couple sprinkles of cinnamon

Put the ingredients into a small non-stick saute pan over low heat.  Stir them as they heat up.  When the sugar is melted, turn the heat off and stir the ingredients together to get them coated.  Let them cool and break them apart before garnishing the soup.

Mmmm, mmmm, mmmmmmm!!!