BURGUNDY BEEF STEW - BOEUF BOURGUIGNON

The last few nights, it has been cold, I wanted to make something warm and special for dinner for my husband and me. I got out my old recipe for Boeuf Bourguignon and it was simply delicious. The meat was "melt-in-your-mouth" tender. 

The only time-consuming part was browning the meat.  

6 slices bacon, chopped

3 T avocado oil, divided

1 3½ to 4 lb chuck roast, trimmed and cut into 2-inch cubes

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

6 carrots, cut diagonally into 2-inch pieces
1 medium yellow onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced
½ cup Cognac or brandy, optional

2 cups Burgundy, Merlot, or Pinot Noir

2 cups beef stock
2 T tomato paste

1 t dry thyme

2 bay leaves

4 T unsalted butter, softened
3 T all-purpose flour
8 oz small button mushrooms, wiped clean and trimmed
½ (14 oz) package frozen pearl onions

Chopped parsley, for garnish

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.

Cook bacon over medium heat in a large Dutch oven until crisp.

Remove with a slotted spoon to a large bowl and set aside.
Pour off most of the bacon grease and discard.

Pat the beef dry and season with salt and pepper.

Turn the heat to medium-high and add one tablespoon of the oil and one-third of the meat. 
Brown on all sides, then remove with a slotted spoon to the large bowl with the bacon. 
Repeat two more times with the rest of the oil and meat.

Add the carrots to the pot and cook for 2 minutes.
Add the diced onion and cook another 2 minutes.

Add the garlic and cook another minute. 
Deglaze the pan with the Cognac or brandy and then add the wine and cook on high heat for 1 minute.
Add the beef broth, tomato paste, thyme, and bay leaves.

Return the beef and bacon to the pan, cover with a lid and place in the oven for 3 hours.

Lightly brown the mushrooms and in a skillet with a little butter and set aside.

After 3 hours, place pan on top of the stove and combine the softened butter with the flour in a small bowl.

Stir the flour-butter mixture into the stew and add the browned mushrooms and pearl onions.
Bring stew to a boil on top of the stove, then lower the heat and slowly simmer for 30 minutes.

Remove bay leaves and ladle onto plates or shallow bowls with a side of grits, mashed potatoes, or wide egg noodles.

Garnish with chopped parsley.

Serve with a green vegetable or salad.

Serves 6

SOUTHERN BREAKFAST POPOVERS

Popovers are an American version of the English Yorkshire pudding. The differences are, popovers are larger and contain butter in the batter. Yorkshire puddings, usually served with prime rib, do not contain butter, but a teaspoon of the beef drippings is added to each cup before pouring the batter in. They are both traditional and delicious! Savory popovers are made with black pepper and cheese added to the batter. 

Lee's Kitchen Tips:

Do not oven the oven door, not even to peek, during the cooking time.

2 cups whole milk

2 T unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

2 large eggs, room temperature

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 t sea salt

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Pour milk into an 8-cup heatproof measuring pitcher or bowl.

Add the butter and microwave for 2 minutes to melt the butter and heat the milk.

Alternatively you can heat the milk and butter in a saucepan to just barely a simmer.
Let cool slightly.

Whisk the eggs into the milk, one at a time, alternating with the flour and salt.

Whisk until mostly smooth.

Place popover pan on a baking sheet and heat in oven for 2 minutes, exactly.

Remove popover pan from oven and generously spray with cooking oil. 

(I use grape seed oil in a oil mister/sprayer).

Pour batter evenly into popover pan, making sure you fill each cup to the top.

Bake in oven for 20 minutes. 

Reduce the temperature to 375 degrees F and bake another 30 minutes. 

Remove from oven and let cool a couple of minutes.

Release, using a table knife, if needed.

To Serve

Puncture sides with a sharp knife to let steam escape and fill with a small pat of butter and strawberry jam.

Makes 6

SURF & TURF STIR-FRY

You can make your sauce ingredients in the morning, cover and refrigerate.

Place your steak in the freezer for about 30 to 45 minutes to make it easier to slice.

Use your own favorite stir-fry vegetables in this recipe.

Sauce 

½ cup beef broth

2 T honey

2 T oyster sauce

2 T hoisin sauce

2 T low-sodium soy sauce

2 t sesame oil

2 t cornstarch

1 t grated ginger

Sea salt and black pepper, to taste

Whisk together the above ingredients and set aside.

Stir-Fry Ingredients

1 T avocado oil or other high smoke point cooking oil

8 oz sirloin steak, cut into bite-size pieces

16 jumbo shrimp, cleaned and tails removed

8 cremini or white mushrooms, cleaned, trimmed, and sliced

1 large shallot, diced

1 red bell pepper, seeded, stemmed, and sliced

1 yellow bell pepper, seeded, stemmed, and sliced

1 small bunch broccoli, trimmed and cut into florets 

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 sliced green onions, for garnish

Sesame seeds, for garnish

In a wok or large skillet, cook the beef over high heat for 2 to 3 minutes.

Remove to a large bowl and set aside.

Lower heat to medium and cook the shrimp for about 2 minutes.

Remove to the same large bowl with the beef.

Add the vegetables to the wok or skillet and cook over high heat for about 3 minutes.

Add the garlic and cook another 30 seconds.

Add the Sauce ingredients and heat through.

Return the beef and shrimp to the pan and heat through for another minutes.

Serve over jasmine rice and garnish with sliced green onions and sesame seeds.

Serves 4

HAM AND CHEESE SLIDERS

Slider rolls with ham and cheese are a traditional brunch entree in the South. They are heated in the oven in a baking pan or dish covered with aluminum foil. Set up your sideboard with good silver, china, crystal, and flowers. Add some scrambled eggs, a fruit salad, Mimosas or Bloody Marys. This is southern hospitality at its best.

You can spread half of the butter mixture over the cheese and the remaining butter mixture over the top.  I decided to only spread the butter mixture over the cheese.

It is a little less messy to eat this way.

24 slider buns

1 lb thinly sliced deli ham, off the bone

1 lb thinly sliced Swiss cheese

Poppy Seed Sauce

1 stick (8 oz) unsalted butter, melted

1 T poppy seeds

1 T honey

1 T Dijon or spicy brown mustard

1 T dried minced onion 

½ t Worcestershire sauce

In a medium bowl, mix together the melted butter, poppy seeds, honey, mustard, dried onion, and Worcestershire sauce.

Set aside.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Spray 1 or 2 baking dishes with oil.

Separate the tops from the bottoms of the rolls and arrange the bottom pieces in the prepared baking dish.

Layer half of the ham slices onto the rolls.

Add a layer of Swiss cheese and pour half or all of the butter mixture over.

Spread with a brush to evenly coat.

Top with the remaining ham slices.

Place tops on rolls and, if desired, pour the remaining butter mixture over.

Using a brush, spread the mixture evenly over and in between the rolls.

Cover tightly with aluminum foil and bake for 20 minutes.

Slice through the individual rolls to serve.

Serve hot or at room temperature.

Makes 24 slider rolls.

 

SOUTHERN TOMATO TART

I got these beautiful tomatoes at "Dug In", my favorite farm produce store.

Most recipes call for cheddar cheese in Southern tomato pies.  I love to use my favorite Swiss cheese, Gruyére.

Other good choices are Emmentaler, Edam, or Gouda. 

I included my recipe for a savory pie crust.  

To save time, buy an already prepared pie crust.

Gruyére is a Swiss hard cheese made from cow's milk

Emmentaler or Emmental cheese is a Swiss cheese made from cow's milk.

Edam and Gouda cheeses are from the Netherlands, also made from cow's milk.

Edam is drier than Gouda and a little easier to grate.

Savory Single 9-Inch Crust

1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour (I use White Lily)

½ t fine sea salt

½ cup (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces and placed in freezer 10 minutes

1 t lemon juice

¼ cup ice cold water

Pulse flour and salt in a food processor fitted with a steel blade.

Remove butter from freezer and add to food processor.

Pulse until butter pieces are the size of peas.

Add lemon juice to water and slowly pour through shoot and process until mixture comes together.

Turn dough out onto a large piece of plastic wrap.

Gather the dough up and press into a disc.

Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Press dough into a 9-inch tart or pie pan.

Use a fork to make holes in the bottom of the pie crust, known as docking.

Line crust with aluminum foil and fill pie weights or dried beans.

Bake for 20 minutes.  

Remove foil with pie weights and bake an additional 5 minutes.

Let pie crust cool 30 minutes before filling.

Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F.

Filling

4 to 5 medium to large assorted heirloom tomatoes, thinly sliced

1 t sea salt or Himalayan pink salt

1 medium Vidalia onion, cut in half and thinly sliced

1 T avocado oil or neutral oil of your choice

1 t fine ground black pepper

¼ cup chopped basil, chives, thyme, and parsley

½ cup grated Gruyére cheese

½ cup grated Emmentaler cheese (Edam or Gouda)

2 T Dukes mayonnaise

½ cup finely chopped herbs, such as basil, thyme, chives, and Italian parsley.

Place sliced tomatoes on a large baking sheet lined with paper towels.

Sprinkle with salt and let sit 15 minutes.

Place paper towels on top of tomatoes and pat dry.

Sauté onion in oil for 10 minutes, until tender and set aside.

Place grated cheeses in a bowl and mix together with mayonnaise.

Place a layer of cheese on bottom of pie crust.

Follow with a layer of cheese, herbs, and tomatoes.

Sprinkle tomatoes with black pepper.

Repeat again.

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes.

Sprinkle with a little more herbs and serve warm or at room temperature.

COWBOY CAVIAR

This salsa (Cowboy Caviar) goes well with so many foods, especially quesadillas, grilled chicken, steak, or even salmon. It also makes a healthy lunch served over a bed of lettuce. 

2 T extra-virgin olive oil or avocado oil

Zest of 1 lime

Juice of 2 limes

½ t sea salt

½ t fine ground black pepper

1½ t ground cumin

½ t ancho chile powder

2 cups frozen corn, thawed

4 scallions, thinly sliced

1 red bell pepper, diced

1 orange bell pepper, diced

1 yellow bell pepper, diced

½ to 1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and diced

1(15 oz) can black beans, rinsed and drained

1 small bunch fresh cilantro, chopped

Spread corn out onto a baking sheet and place under the broiler until slightly charred.

This is optional, but worth it.

In a medium size bowl, mix together the oil, lime zest, lime juice, salt, pepper, cumin, and chile powder. 

Mix in the rest of ingredients, cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Serves 6

FROZEN LIMONCELLO-RICOTTA CUPS

Limoncello is an Italian lemon liqueur.  It is a favorite in summertime, especially on the Amalfi coast of Italy.  My husband and I enjoyed this many times with my former son-in-law and his family in Positano.  This dessert is light and so refreshing.

1 ½ cups crushed graham crackers or Nilla vanilla wafers

4 oz melted unsalted butter

1 ½ cups ricotta cheese

¾ cup limoncello liqueur

⅓ cup confectioners' sugar

1 T fresh lemon juice

Fresh berries, for garnish

Mint leaves, for garnish

Mix cracker or wafer crumbs together in a small bowl.

Using a muddler or other wooden devise, press crumb mixture into bottom of each 6 small glass cups, and set aside.

In a mixing bowl, mix together the ricotta, limoncello, confectioners' sugar, and lemon juice.

Make sure all ingredients are completely combined.

Fill the cups three-quarters full, cover and freeze for at least 4 hours.

Remove tops and let sit on counter for a few minutes before serving.

Add a dollop of whipped cream, berries, mint leave, and a small wedge of lemon.

Serves 6