Oven Steak with Basil Butter

I have to say that originally, I hadn't purchased a large quantity of basil for this purpose.  Also, I can't credit the idea to myself, as it really was my mother who came up with the genius idea!  And you know what?!  It WAS genius!  I am now addicted...  I'm not sure I'll be able to see plain butter (in MOST savory contexts) in the same light again.  (Baking?  That's another ballpark!).

So, with some family, this feast commenced!  Documenting this epic event?  Well... my camera?  MIA.  The NICE camera?  Currently with Nicholas in... a foreign country...  All that to say, MUCH thanks to Bri for letting me use her iPhone for this meal and the chocolate cake (next post?).  :)  THANKS, Bri!!!

This steak recipe, or one VERY similar to it, came about in Aspen two summers back with my brother-in-law Stephen and our AWESOME friend, Doug.  Let's just say there wasn't ONE bite left that night and we were all SO stuffed that we couldn't move for a couple hours.

It was about TIME to bring back this recipe!

Oven Steak

1 large steak (about 1.25-2 lbs - also, use a NICE, FATTY cut!  It'll make it SO much more tender)
salt
pepper
Worchestershire Sauce (A MUST!)

Pre-heat your oven to 325.

Heat a "lined" cast iron skillet on medium-high heat.  By lined, I mean it's "grated" and can make sear marks - ours is great for this AND for making paninis!!  (Hmmm... that gives me an idea for this week!).  :)

Salt and pepper, generously, both sides of your steak.  One your skillet has heated, place your steak into the skillet and allow to sear.  Toss in about 1-2 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce.  The cast iron will really SIZZLE at this moment and beautifully add a nice brown to the steak.  After 45-60 seconds, check the steak for nice grill marks.  If you have a nice browning and coloring, flip the steak over and repeat.

Once both sides of the steak are nicely seared, grab the skillet with a pot-holder and place in the oven.  Allow to cook for 15-20 minutes.  If you're really conscious and don't like a rare steak, use a meat thermometer to check the internal temperature.  If you like a rare steak, I would suggest about 12 minutes.  20 minutes gets a nicely done steak with no apparent pink, but isn't charred!  :)

Allow the steak to sit for about 5-10 minutes before cutting into.  If you're really specific about things, cut against the grain.  :)

Top with Basil Butter and drizzle the excess drippings/sauce from the cast iron!!!

Basil Butter

1 cup butter (2 sticks - best if still somewhat chill and not room temp)
5-6 oz fresh basil (EVEN more, if you'd like - no stems - leaves only)
3-5 cloves fresh garlic
salt

In a food processor, or blender, combine butter and garlic (add cloves depending on how strong of a garlic essence you enjoy) and beat/blend until the garlic is chopped and no large chunks remain.  Add basil, seasoning with some salt.  Blend again until the basil is fully incorporated and smooth.  Test to see if more salt is needed and add as necessary.

We enjoyed this on a nice loaf of ciabatta bread as well!  NOT a bad choice, if I say so myself...  :)

Beef Samosas

There's a grocery store back home that my mommy and I ALWAYS go to when I'm home.  We love getting lunch there whenever we can.  It's one of those special things we do together - a mother/daughter thing!  :)  I have a few traditional things that I always get when we're there, one of them being the tomato, mozzarella, basil, and red onion paninis.  One of the others?  SAMOSAS!!!  I don't think I had even heard of a samosa until seeing them there.  Now... well, I'm addicted!  They're one of my favorites foods, and not too difficult to make (you just need to have some time!).

They come with a lime cilantro chutney at this place, and I have to say, my mom and I always ask for an extra chutney, just because we're SOOOO addicted to it!  I know that people are either cilantro lovers or cilantro haters, but really, you could make these with another chutney or just skip it!  They're like little meat pies (and can be made with potato instead of beef for a vegetarian or vegan option!).  This is a great option if you're looking for something different than your traditional fare.  Break out of your mold and expand your horizon-taste-buds!!  I don't think you'll be disappointed!

Beef Samosas
1 lb ground beef
1 large onion
1 1/2 - 2 cups frozen peas
3 tbs oil (you can omit the oil and use all butter if you'd like)
2 - 4 tbs butter (you could omit the butter and use all oil for the vegan option!)
3 - 4 cloves garlic (crushed)
1/2 tsp freshly grated ginger (or dried if you prefer)
salt & pepper
1 jalapeno (chopped) or 2 - 3 tsp chili powder
3 - 4 tbs garam masala (or more if you really like the flavor!  We use LOTS!)
1 tsp coriandor
1 - 2 tbs fresh chopped cilantro (optional)

Preheat oven to 350.  (Tip!  While the ingredients are cooking below in the skillet, begin making the dough!  The recipe for the dough is listed below.)

In a large skillet bring either the oil or a few tbs butter to a medium-high heat.  Once heated, toss in the onions, season with some salt and pepper and stir.  After about a minute or two, add in the garlic and the fresh ginger (and jalapeno at this time if you're not using chili powder) and stir.  Cook onions until tender.  Add in ground beef, reseason with salt and pepper.  Add a few tbs of butter, toss in the garam masala, coriandor, and chili powder.  Stir until well incorporated.  Once the beef has fully cooked, add in the peas and cilantro and bring heat down to low.  Simmer until peas are tender.


Take about a 1" ball of dough and roll-out thinly into an oval-like shape.  Place about 1 - 1 1/2 tbs of the samosa filling on one side of the oval.  Fold the other end of the dough over the filling to create a pouch.  Seal the sides by pressing firmly to create a seal.  Repeat this process until all of the filling has been used.

Bake for 10-15 minutes or until  

Samosa "pouch" dough

4 cups flour
1/3+ oil
1/3+ oil

In a bowl, combine all of the ingredients.  Mix until a nice dough forms (you might need to add extra liquid as the recipe indicates).

Cilantro Lime Chutney

1 large bunch cilantro
2 -3 cloves garlic
1/2 - 1 tbs fresh ginger
1 tbs sugar
zest of two limes
juice of 4 smallish limes
a dash of salt

Toss everything into a blender and blend until smooth!  If you end up really liking this sauce, you may need to double this recipe (like I do!!!).

Pan Seared Pot Roast with Roasted Veggies

Last night we had the great pleasure of having dinner with our wonderful friends Zack and Molly.  They have two beautiful little boys who are filled with energy!  Just after Molly and I finished dinner, all the food was set out on the table, and the boys had  brushed their teeth and were in bed, we suddenly started hearing chanting coming from their bedroom.  "I'm hungry!!!  I'm hungry!!!" sounded from the bedroom.  We all couldn't help but giggle.  We all knew that there was just too much fun going on in the dining room and Connor and Shep didn't want to miss out on a moment of it!  After fetching them from their beds and smothering some bread in raspberry jam, we all sat down and dove in!

Molly and I spent a fun afternoon together, running an errand to the grocery store with the boys, both happily sampling the chocolate covered strawberries without thinking twice.  Browsing the produce section with little chocolate covered faces, we found all the missing ingredients for our oven roasted veggies.

After reseasoning the cast iron skillet and thankfully not making a smokey mess, or causing a major catastrophe in the kitchen...  we were ready to go!  Molly and I embarked on second cooking adventure (our first being Thanksgiving!).

We served this up with a delicious loaf of bread Molly found at Central Market and some garlic butter we made.  Kind of  a heart attack waiting to happen, but really, it's worth it for the flavor!  (The boys even started smothering their roast with the garlic butter).  :)

We topped the evening off with a fresh Mango Strawberry Sorbet (made in the super, awesome ice cream maker - but could easily be made without one!).  A nice contrast to a heavy, rich dessert.  That recipe will come at a later date.  Promise!

(And one little possibly, slightly selfish thing...  I was given the great pleasure of using their nice camera!  All the more reason I can't wait for Nicholas and me to get a new camera.  We're thinking it might be a nice one year anniversary gift for ourselves!).

Pan Seared Pot Roast
1 pot roast (as many or few pounds as you like!)
1 - 3 tbs butter
Worcestershire Sauce
garlic powder
salt & pepper

Heat oven to 325.

Using a cast iron skillet, heat on medium heat, melting butter (more for a larger roast and less for a smaller - we had a 1.6lb roast and used about 1 tbs butter). 

Season the top of the roast with salt, pepper, and garlic powder.  Once skillet is heated,  place seasoned side-down in the skillet and allow to brown for about 45-60 second.  Season the top of the roast at this point, so once the bottom finished searing, you can turn the roast over and sear the recently seasoned side.  While you are not seasoning, toss some Worcestershire Sauce over the roast and into the pan.  Continue to do this until all sides of the roast (including the ends!) have been seasoned and seared.

Once all sides of the roast have been seasoned place roast in the oven, baking 35 minutes per pound and an internal temperature of 135 is reached.

Remove roast from oven and allow to sit for about 15 minutes before slicing.

Serve with horseradish or this homemade "horseradish-like" sauce!

"Horseradish" Sauce
1 cup sour cream
1/4 cup freshly grated horseradish root
salt & pepper
crushed garlic (if desired)

To prepare the horseradish root, remove the outside, revealing the white flesh.  Grate flesh.  Combine horseradish root and sour cream together.  Season with salt and pepper, and garlic if you'd like, until you reach your desired flavor!


Oven Roasted Veggies
4 red potatoes (diced)
1 red onion (diced)
2 zucchinis (diced)
4 carrots (diced)
1/4 cup (or more) olive oil
2 - 4 tbs butter
salt & pepper
rosemary

Preheat oven to 325 (this works well if you're baking these while the roast cooks!  You may decide to use a higher temperature if you're not cooking the roast at the same time).

In a glass pan, combine all the veggies together.  Season with salt, pepper, and rosemary.  Drizzle over olive oil and top with butter (amount depend on your preference!).

Bake for 60-75 minutes or until potatoes are soft and cooked fully through.  Serve with roast.

Kebab-Delicious

If you're from Austin, then you know that we're known for our food trailers here.  Goodness!  There are some awesome places to get some tasty grub here!  I'm not usually one for going out to eat, but I can say, in these next few short months, I might just have to change that.  I can say, without a doubt, that the thing I will miss the most is Kebabalicious.  Nothing, I mean, nothing compares.  Maybe I have just become biased...  It is just THAT good in my opinion!

I have to say that I have always enjoyed Middle Eastern foods.  Funnily enough, when Nicholas and I were honeymooning in New Zealand, we happened upon a food court with booths representing all sorts of ethnicities; Thai (NOM!!!), Chinese, Japanese, Koren BBQ, Middle Eastern, just to name a few.  It was kind of a tough decision for both of us.  We walked back and forth... back and forth... between all of them for about 10 minutes looking at all the menus and smelling the amazing food wafting through the air.  We couldn't make a joint decision, so we decided to each go for our own.  It really was a difficult decision for me to choose between Thai and Middle Eastern, but I finally decided, since it's generally a little easier to get ahold of Thai, and I make it often enough, that I needed that lamb/beef combo with tzatziki.  I didn't regret it for a moment!  There's something about those flavors for me that are always satisfying.

If you don't have a doner kebab "cooker," you're not alone.  It's really not possible to be authentic and roast the meat to get the real doner kebab taste, so it has certainly posed the biggest challenge in replicating this kebab.  It's still a work in progress, but I can honestly say that with the spices we used tonight, we really liked the flavor of the final product!

Served with the creamy yogurt Tzatziki sauce, a bright harissa sauce, and fresh veggies on a warm pita, this meal is to die for.  :)

"Doner Kebab" Beef
1 1/2 lbs beef (steak or tenderloin are good options) sliced thinly (you can also use lamb, chicken, or have a combination of them)
2 - 3 tbs olive oil
1/4 - 1/3 cup Greek yogurt
1 1/2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp cumin
salt
pepper

Season meat with salt and pepper.  Toss into a gallon zip-lock bag and add the yogurt, coriander, garlic, cinnamon, and cumin.  Allow to marinade for at least two hours.

On medium heat, place olive oil in a skillet and heat.  Add the beef and marinating sauce into saucepan and cook until cooked through, about 6-9 minutes, depending on how thick/thin your cut is.  Careful not to overcook the meat, as it will get tough and won't be pleasant to eat...

Warm pitas in the oven as directed.  Top meat with tzatziki sauce and harissa sauce.  Some great vegetables are lettuce, fresh diced tomatoes, red onion, and parsley.  Someone I know quite well also enjoys topping his off with feta (or spicy feta like Kebabalicious serves!).  :)

Tzatziki Sauce
1 cucumber (cut thinly, and then diced into 1/4" pieces)
1 - 1 1/2 cups Greek yogurt
zest of one lemon
juice of lemon
1 tsp salt (less if desired)
1 tsp garlic powder (I have used both fresh and powdered - both give it a nice flavor)

Combine all ingredients together and stir well.  It's best if this is made a couple of hours in advance.  This allows the ingredients to combine and the flavors to blend.

Harissa Sauce
1 large tomato (or three small)
1/2 fresh red pepper
1 jalapeno
2 tbs olive oil
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp salt
4 garlic gloves
3 tsp coriander
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp cumin

Combine all the ingredients in a blender and puree until it creates a smooth sauce.

Beef Tacos with Sriracha-Tzatziki sauce

 So, remember when I said that I loved watching Ming?  Well, there are many times in which I want to reach through the television and grab what he's making (most notably when he was making donut recipes a couple weeks ago...!!)  If you have never watched his show, he has a unique format in which he chooses two "flavors" or ingredients, one from the East and one from the West, and finds creative and innovative ways to combine them.  This specific episode, Ming was working with Sriracha and Greek yogurt - two ingredients that I find rather tasty!

Just last night Nicholas was craving some Sriracha, and once again, rummaging through the fridge, freezer, and cupboards, we settled on Sriracha chicken and fried rice (which turned out rather well).  All that to say, I guess we're on a few day "Sriracha spree" here!  Who knows.  Something in the next few days might materialize with some of that spicy red sauce in it.  ;)

This recipe, unlike the last one, is almost exactly what Ming made.  Although he made it with ground lamb (which wasn't available at the store I was at, and last I used lamb, sadly, :( I had a negative comment...), I used ground beef, as it's much more readily available and is standard amongst many Americans.  The sauce gives a great taste to this otherwise "standard" dish!

Beef Tacos
1 1/4 lbs ground beef
1 red onion (finely diced)
1 jalapeno (finely minced)
3 gloves garlic (minced)
1 tsp fresh ginger
2 tsp cumin
salt
pepper
olive oil
juice of one lemon

Heat large skillet over medium-high heat.  Allow oil to heat (not too much, but enough to create a thin layer on the bottom of the skillet).  Toss onions, jalapeno, garlic, ginger, cumin, and season lightly with salt.  Saute until lightly browned.  Add beef, seasoning with salt and pepper, and allow to cook fully.  Before removing from heat, toss the lemon juice over and stir.

Sriracha-Tzatziki sauce
1 cup plain Greek yogurt
1 - 2 tbs sriracha sauce (more if you like it extra spicy!)
1 cup cucumbers (finely diced)
zest of one lemon
salt and pepper to season

In a bowl, combine yogurt, sriracha, cucumbers, and zest.  Stir.  Season with salt and pepper (stirring again).

Heat tortillas in the oven or on the stove (in the microwave if you really want to speed-up the process!) until warm.  Serve with iceberg lettuce (maybe even some tomatoes or cilantro!).  You could even make this an appetizer and use small tortillas.  :)