1 Steak 2 Meals

Last week was pretty crazy around here. I barley got a chance to cook what I was hoping to so instead of the promised salads, here is the first of one night of cooking equals two meals posts. This features a kid friendly steak and fries meal, plus a great summer salad that can be used in various ways.

Grilled Steak to Pita Pocket

When looking to feed just myself and my son, I like to make simple meals that appeal to a 5 year old, yet are fun for me to eat to. my son loves steak, so I fired up the grill, seasoned the steak and made a simple meal.

2 8oz. New York Strip

1 teaspoon of Tony Chachere's Creole Seasoning

Heat grill on high. Cook steak for 3 minutes on each side. Let it rest, slice and serve half of one steak to each person. Reserve extra steak for meals the next day. Serve with Garlic Fries.

Garlic French Fries

1 package of frozen french fries or microwaveable fries (use enough to serve 2)

1 teaspoon of parsley leaves (fresh or dried)

1 to 3 pinches of garlic powder or 1/2 clove of diced fresh garlic

Salt and Pepper

Cook french fries according to package directions. Season with salt, pepper, garlic, and parsley. Mix well and optionally add some grated Parmesan cheese.

Left Over Steak Pita Pockets

2 Pitas, Sliced in half

1 steak, cut into thin slices

4 teaspoons of Mediterranean Humus (available at Trader Joe's)

1/4 cup of Greek Vegetable Salad (recipe follows)

Open 1 pita half and add 1/4 of humus to pita. Add steak and veggies. repeat until each pita is filled.

Greek Vegetable Salad

1 English Cucumber, peeled and sliced in to 1/4 inch thick slices

1 red onion, sliced into thin half moons

2 to 3 tomatoes, cut into large chunks

1/3 cup of Greek Salad Dressing (I like Kraft for this)

In a large bowl add all ingredients an mix well. Cover and place in fridge overnight. Serve with Crumbled Feta.

Sesame Crusted Seared Tuna

John got to pick out the fish that we had for our last Fish Friday of Lent and he chose his favorite, Ahi Tuna. He loves this super easy recipe and I enjoy it too.

1/4 cup of black sesame seeds

1/4 cup of sesame seeds

salt and pepper to season

1/2 teaspoon of sesame oil

1 pound of ahi tuna, cut for 4 servings

Place sesame seeds into a flat bottomed container and combine. Using a skillet large enough to fit all the tuna pieces, add oil and heat on medium high. Season tuna with salt and pepper, if kids aren't eating, use some powdered wasabi. Place season piece of tuna in sesame seeds and press down to form a crust on each side. Add tuna to pan and cook until tuna reaches desired doneness. For rare, this about two minutes on each side.

Grown Up Mac and Cheese

Once again those folks at the Food Network got to me. I was sucked in by the Barefoot Contessa and determined to try this recipe. I think this why I should just let my son watch TV more often, really I am joking on that one. I did and I must say that is not bad. I personally will add a shallot to the mushrooms the next time I make this. But the real treat came from trying to hunt down the ingredients needed to make this meal. Let me tell you, truffles, at least the non chocolate kind are not easy to find in this neck of the woods. Truffle butter came with a phone call to those wonderful folks at Harris Teeter, who seem to always have that one thing you cannot find anywhere else. I did not find any cremini mushrooms, but after a conversation with Rena, she reminded me that unless you want to pay tons of money, they are sold as baby bellas on this coast. So that is what I used. I look forward to planning this one out better next time I make it and I think the addition of the shallot will make this a meal worth the effort (getting the ingredients) and the money. Really $8 for 3 oz. of truffle butter, ouch. Here is the link to the recipe, I hope that you enjoy it, now I am going to eat some leftovers and look forward to a great seafood meal tomorrow. http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/mac-and-cheese-recipe/index.html

Slow Cooker Asian Pork

OK, so I so forgot how nice it is too cook with a slow cooker. Fix it and forget about it until dinner is done. One of my husband's favorite recipes is an Italian Beef. Take a round roast, add a jar of spaghetti sauce, cook on low for 6-8 hours, shred meat, serve on toasted rolls with provolone cheese. I decided to make that up for him and the baby is loving it too. I check out a book at the library and was intrigued by the idea of a recipe in it and decided to play around and see what came out of the slow cooker six hours later. Just a little tip for this one, the recipe I got the idea for said that this was 6 servings, try closer to 8 or more.

Asian Pork

1/8 cup of honey

the juice of 1 lime

1/4 cup of brown sugar

5 lbs of country style pork ribs

1 cup of soy sauce

1 onion, chopped

2 cloves of garlic minced

1 tablespoon of chopped cilantro

2 tablespoons of red pepper flakes

if you must 1 tablespoon of minced ginger

1 bunch of green onions chopped

3 tablespoons of toasted sesame seeds

Put chopped onion into the bottom of the slow cooker. Place all other ingredients but pork, green onion, and sesame seeds in a bowl and mix until all are incorporated. dip pork into sauce and add to slow cooker, pour remaining sauce of meat. Put cover on the slow cooker and cook on low or at least 6 hours. Remove meat and garnish with green onion and sesame seeds.

Crab Ceviche

As an added touch to our Mexican meal the other night I decided to whip up a quick ceviche. I was way in the mood for crab and felt that this would be a nice accompaniment to our meal.

Crab Ceviche

1 red bell pepper, diced

1 Serrano pepper, sliced thin

1/2 red onion, diced

the juice of one lime

1 pound of crab meat

In a small container combine red bell pepper, onion, sliced Serrano, and lime juice. Place container in refrigerator and let sit for at least 3 hours. Right before serving, fold in crab meat and serve. Note: if pepper is too hot, deseed, dice, or cut down on amount used.

Cassoulet Inspired Meal

I have some veal shanks that I was trying to decide what to do with. I know that cassoulet does not normally have veal shanks, but I figured I could play around some and make a great meal with them that would go with the goat cheese tart and salad that we are having tonight. So here is the recipe I hope that you like my version.



4 Veal Shanks, at least 1 inch think

1 tablespoon of butter

2 tablespoons of olive oil

Salt and Pepper

A few pinches of flour

1/2 large onion diced

2 carrots, peel and sliced about 1/4 inch thick

1 can of Great Northern Beans, rinsed and drained

1 can of organic tomatoes, slightly drained

5 sprigs of thyme

3 gloved of garlic, peeled and smashed



In a large skillet heat butter and olive oil until just smoking, season shanks with salt and pepper and coat lightly with flour. Brown shanks in skillet on all sides. In a slow cooker add all other ingredients. Add browned shanks and cook on high for at least 4 hours. Serve and enjoy.

Carne Asada Revisited

There are times when my husband really misses San Diego, that is probably every day, but I think part of why he misses it so much is the Mexican Food. We have tried a few Mexican restaurants here, but seriously, I have never had nachos covered in Enchilada Sauce before in my life, nor do I ever hope to be served something like that again. Trust me, if the menu had said there was a sauce on the nachos, I would not have even ordered them. That is just one of the experiences I have had. Another, I was being cussed at in Spanish because the waiter did not listen to my order. Seriously I lived in Southern California for close to 20 years, I know what is being said in Spanish, especially when it is negative. Needless to say that experiences like this have turned us off of going out for Mexican or at least what passes as Mexican here. So I made some yummy Baja style food for my man last night.

Easy Carne Asada

Flank Steak or other thin cut steak

1 cup of orange juice or enough to cover steak

2 green onions chopped into 1 inch pieces

2 Tablespoons of Tapitio

1 onion diced

1 bunch of chopped cilantro

corn tortillas

3 limes, sliced

Place OJ, green onions, and Tapitio in a dish, taste to see if you want more hot sauce, add steak and cover for 1 to 3 days. Heat grill on high and cook steak until just done about 6 minutes. Slice with a pizza cutter into strips. Serve with diced onion, chopped fresh cilantro, warm corn tortillas, and lime slices. Enjoy.

Salmon in a Foil Packet

OK, we are heading down to the last week of lent and I have made salmon for dinner almost every Friday since the beginning of Lent in a way that I was sure my guys would eat and devore. I am not always one to stick to the same dish, but when it works and the 5 year old actually eats without a fight in less than 4 hours, you tend to want to stick with what works. Well to be honest I am bored with salt and sugar salmon and I wanted something new. Salmon was not even on the menu until we headed to one of our favorite places to get fresh fish and they had wild caught salmon on sale for $6.99 a pound. I had told someone recently to try this recipe since she was having issues getting fish to turn out good and this is one of the easiest recipes that I have ever made. I taught one of my friends who doesn't cook (her oven wasn't used for over a year) how to make this and she was able to do this too.

Grilled Salmon Packets:

Salmon Fillet or Steak

Salt and Pepper

Lemon, sliced

Fresh Dill

Pat of Butter

Take a salmon fillet or steak and place on a piece of tin foil large enough to make a packet around the piece of fish. Season both side of fish with salt and pepper. Place skin side down and top with a pat of butter. Using the butter as an anchor, put some sprigs of fresh dill on the fish and top with a slice of lemon. Wrap up foil packet and place on a preheated grill for about 5 minutes on high. Check for desired doneness and serve when done.

National Grilled Cheese Month

Someone on Foodbuzz mentioned that April in National Grilled Cheese Month, how cool is that. I love grilled cheese and all the possibilities that come from bread, cheese, and whatever you can imagine tasting good with it. Tonight for dinner I decided to go ahead and honor National Grilled Cheese Month. I hope that you will be inspired to whip something up in honor of this month.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup olive oil

1 tablespoon dried herbes de Provence 1/2 teaspoon salt

2 zucchini, cut into 1/4-inch rounds

2 summer squash, cut into 1/4-inch rounds

1 red onion, cut into 1/4-inch slices

1 loaf of rustic bread cut into 1/2 inch slices

butter for bread

Cheese of your choice for this I recommend gruyere, fontina, or provolone

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. In a shallow baking pan place veggies and cover with olive oil, herbs, and salt. Place into oven and cook for 20 minutes. Right before vegetables are done cooking butter slices of bread and began to grill on a medium high heated skillet. Add cheese to one slice of bread, when vegetables are done cover the cheese with a serving of vegetables and top with grilled slice, cook until bread reaches desired golden brownness, and cheese is melted.

Stuffing Stufted Chicken

I have a problem figuring out how to use leftovers. I used to make my husband a lunch that was made up of the leftovers from the night before, but that doesn't work anymore. John doesn't get packed lunches quite yet, and I tend to eat sandwiches for lunch, so I felt it was time to get creative and came up with this recipe using the left over stuffing from our pork chop dinner the other night. This meal was a big hit, next time I will add some more yummy things to the stuffing, but this worked for the first time making this recipe.

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts

2 granny smith or other tart green apples, peeled and diced

1 1/2 cups of cooked stuffing

1/3 cup of diced onion

a pinch of dried sage and parsley

salt and pepper to season

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Heat a medium sized pan to medium high, add onions and apples and cook for about 5 minutes or until apples are soft. Remove apples and onions from skillet and mix with cooked stuffing. Butterfly cut chicken breasts, and place 1/4 of stuffing mixture inside, season breasts with sage, parsley, salt, and pepper and place in a shallow baking dish. Cook in the oven for about 30 minutes. Serve with a salad of blue cheese, apples, dried cranberries, and walnuts.

Grilled Pork Chops with Apricot Orange Glaze

So we eat a lot of pork here. I get bored with just cooking it in the typical ways so I am always experimenting with it. I had really wanted to do something with apricots and pork so I came up with this recipe. I served the chops with some stuffing and a salad with red onion, yellow bell pepper, and feta. If I wasn't having to feed John too I would have added some red pepper flakes to glaze to add some more flavor and a touch of heat.

Pork Loin Chops

Salt and Pepper to season

1/2 cup of Apricot Preserves

1/4 cup of Orange Juice

1 teaspoon of whole black peppercorns

In a small saucepan add apricot preserves, orange juice, and peppercorns. Bring to a boil and then simmer until glaze becomes thick and is reduced by almost half. While glaze is reduce preheat grill on high. Season pork chops and set aside. When glaze is done place chops on grill, cover and cook for about 3 minutes on each side. Using a silicone brush paint glaze on both sides of pork chops and cook for about 3-5 minutes more on each side. Remove from grill and serve.

Great Spring Recipe

A friends and I were talking about recipes using vegetables that are in season right now, and she mentioned that Food and Wine magazine had a great pasta recipe. After hearing about it, I knew that I had to try this recipe: http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/penne-with-asparagus-sage-and-peas. It is a habit of mine to never make a recipe as written, this one was no exception. For this one I did not use sage, I used one of my favorite Italian cheeses, Pecorino Romano, and used mini cheese raviolis instead of penne. I also cut down on the chicken stock, used low fat milk instead of heavy cream, and reduced the amount of cheese, garlic, and butter. I really do not feel that I made the recipe from Food and Wine, however it was definitely my inspiration and deserves credit as such. Give this recipe a try or add your own touch to it. Take the recipes advice and serve with a nice Sauvignon Blanc. While on the website for Food and Wine check out some other great recipes, there were quite a few that I am dying to try. I hope this recipe inspires you to get some asparagus and taste the flavors of spring.

Lawry's Taco Seasoning/ Huge Taco Salad

I have a problem in Virginia, no store that I have been to sells Lawry's Taco Seasoning. I have had to have friends visiting import this item for me, I am almost out and now I am going to just order some online, but really Virginia retailers, what is wrong with you? This is the best Taco Seasoning packet going, it is great on ground beef, chicken, ground turkey, and can be played with and used as a marinade. I beg all VA retailers to start carrying this product. Please forgive my rant over the lack of this product in Virginia; it just gets frustrating when you cannot get your hands on the right ingredients.

Anyway, I bought some great ground beef and needed to use it so I was thinking about all the things that I make with ground beef and decided I really felt like taco meat. I had three packets of Lawry’s left so I did not think my husband would get upset with me for making tacos without him. I used my packet and followed the directions on the back, from there the sky is the limit with what you can do with taco meat. Tacos, nachos with ground beef, burritos, salads, a favorite in my family is a mix up bowl, where cheese, sour cream, and pico de gallo are mixed together with the meat and scooped up with tortilla chips. I was feeling like I had not been getting enough vegetables in my diet so I pulled together this monster salad. It feature a chopped heart of romaine lettuce, ½ an avocado chopped, 1 ounce of shredded Colby jack, 2 tablespoons of pico de gallo, 3 tortilla chips that have been crushed, and about 2-3 ounces of taco meat. For a dressing I mixed 1 tablespoon of sour creams with a teaspoon of Tapatio hot sauce. I ate a little over half of this and was more than full.

Lolly Chops aka Lamb Chops

Looking at my food pics I have been a bit remiss in my postings. I did not even share my recipe for lolly chops, as John likes to call them. This is a great main course that takes no time at all to cook up. All you need is a rack of lamb cut into chops and a grill and you are ready to go. I recommend buying your rack at Costco; they have been selling it around here for only $9.99 a pound, which is quite a steal. If I did not have a Costco membership, I would be tempted to get one just for the price of lamb. Anyway on the recipe….


1 rack of lamb cut into chops
1-2 cloves of garlic minced (depends on your taste)
2 tablespoons of fresh chopped rosemary
1 tablespoon of olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste


In a large ziploc bag, add chops seasoned with salt and pepper, and rest of ingredients. Marinate in fridge for at least ½ hour up to overnight. A half hour before cooking take chops out of fridge to bring to room temperature. While chops are out pre-heat a gas grill to high. When chops have been out for allotted amount of time, place on hot grill. Close lid and cook on each side for about 3 minutes. My grill tend to set fire to the chops, so watch carefully, luckily for me, I like mine charred rare, so this really is not an issue.

Serve chops with mashed potatoes and some greens. Keep seasoning on side dishes light, as you do not want to overpower the lamb, trust me on this one, last time I made this I served it with seasoned wild rice and the flavors from the rice took away from the lamb. As for wine, I recommend serving this with a Petite Sirah, Guenoc and Bolger both make great ones that do not cost a ton.

Something New from TJ's

I am a huge Trader Joe's fan, just in case you have not noticed. I have been shopping there since I was 10 years old, and when I moved to VA, I was very happy to know that there was one just a few miles away. The other day when I stopped in searching for some honey goat cheese, a product that I found out was seasonal :(, I got a taste of something new. Rice Noodle Mac and Cheese. They had added some peas, something that I would have never thought of, but what a great way to get kids to eat their veggies! I had to buy a box the second I tasted it. This is not your Kraft Mac and Cheese. This product has a great cheese flavor, is wheat and gluten free, and I promise you and the kids will both love it. Next time you are at your local TJ's make sure to pick up a box, don't forget the peas.