St. Patty's Corned Beef Dinner

It is the week of St. Patricks Day, and nothing says St. Patty's more than corned beef and cabbage.


I have read a bit on how to make a brisket of beef a corned beef brisket - but I have no idea why it's called "corned." I do know it is delicious.

I bought a packaged corned beef brisket from Costco, about 5 pounds. You don't have to go to Costco for this - they commonly appear in most grocery stores during the month of March.

Preparation was really easy. The toughest part was peeling all the little boiling onions to line the bottom of the dutch oven. They were going to act as my rack to hold the meat off the bottom of the pan, but more on that later.

Next I put the corned beef on top of the onions, fat side down so it would be a prettier picture. Then I slowly poured in beer to cover the top of the brisket. This is where my "onion rack" technique revealed it's flaw - the corned beef floated in the beer and some of the onions popped up to the top of the pan. Oh well.

I preheated the oven to 450 degrees, then brought the beer floating brisket to a gentle boil. By that time, the oven was hot, I covered the dutch oven, and put it in the oven. Cook at the high temperature for 40 minutes, then reduce oven temperature to 225 or 250 and cook an additional 8 or 9 hours - seriously. (I started at 250 but checked the pot after a couple of hours, and the oven boil was a bit vigorous, so I dropped it further to 225 - you know your oven better than I.)

Remove the brisket from the dutch oven and let rest for 20 minutes; if your brisket had a side with a fatty layer, the fat will just scrape right off after it's full day in the dutch oven if it didn't disintegrate already.

I supplemented the meal with Roasted Garlic Potatoes. Scrub and dice a combination of red potatoes and white potatoes. Chop one medium red onion. Chop several cloves of garlic. Toss all together in a baking dish with olive oil, salt and pepper. Bake in the oven, covered, at 375 for 45 minutes. Uncover, stir the mixture, and continue to bake uncovered until it's to your desired crispiness.

Feel free to stir a few more times to get the most out of crunchy edged potatoes.

We also enjoyed cabbage wedges, steamed in plastic wrap in the microwave, and lightly buttered and salted and peppered.

Don't forget to add green food coloring to your beverage of choice.

AND, the leftovers make a GREAT corned beef hash - yummy enough for dinner. Enjoy.

Linguine with Sausage Sauce

Since I short-changed you with the Spaghetti in a Box post, I'll stick with the pasta theme and post a similar, yet oh-so-different, Linguine with Sausage Sauce.

You'll need:

1 package Linguine noodles

1 12 oz. package raw pork sausage (I used Farmer John's spicey sausage, but if your store brand is on sale, just use that!)

1 large onion, chopped

4 cloves garlic, chopped (remember, the entire bulb of garlic, or "head" of garlic, is what you buy raw at the store. Each bulb consists of 15 -20 cloves - the individual sections of the garlic. You need to peel the onion-like skin off the garlic clove, and then chop it up.

1 jar Pasta sauce (I used Ragu because it was on sale - but any brand will do)

1 can mushrooms, sliced.

Salad stuff (however simple or complicated you want to make your salad.)

In a large frying pan, cook the sausage, drain the grease, and set aside.
In the same pan (using the sausage drippings in lieu of oil), saute the chopped onions and chopped garlic. Stir periodically, and remove from heat when the onion starts to brown.

Add to the cooked sausage. Stir in the sliced canned mushrooms. (If you're using fresh mushrooms, add the mushrooms to your sautee mix after the onions and garlic have had a head start).

Cook your linguine according to package directions (the usual big pan of water, a little oil and salt, bring to a boil, add the pasta, and cook for about 10 minutes).

While you're cooking the pasta, in a separate pan, heat the jar of pasta sauce, stirrring in the sausage and onion mixture. Heat over low, stirring frequently.

Drain and rinse the linguini, dish a serving size in a bowl, scoop on an appropriate amount of sause, and grate fresh parmesan cheese over the dish. Serve with a yummy chopped salad.

Spaghetti in a Box

Hi dear readers (all 22 of you!)

I have to sincerely appologize for not posting last week. I have a personal goal to post a new recipe/food idea every Sunday - but last week just got away from me. Brian and I were in SLC for a UTAH/Nebraska gymnastics meet, and we flew home late Sunday, AND it was Oscar Sunday.

So, what's a boy to do when he's so busy?

Cook Spaghetti in a Box.

Yes, really, Spaghetti in a Box.

Simply follow the directions on the box. Oh, I added some canned mushrooms, and served it with a simple salad. Simple, and remarkably delicious. I'll try to do better from here on out.

Dover Sole En Papillote

My niece Abby and her boyfriend Jared were visiting from Brooklyn a few weeks ago. They are both busy professionals who eat out a lot, so rather than go to a restaurant, we decided to just have a quiet dinner party for four at our place. Jared is vegetarian, with certain eating no-nos, so I confirmed with Abby, and with my sister Alta, as to what could and could not be served, and I decided upon an easy to make – and beautiful to present – one-dish meal - Dover Sole En Papillote.

This meal is the classic marriage of British and French Cuisine. Well, not really, but Dover is in Great Britain, and En Papillote is French, so kind of. As Julia would tell you, cooking “en papillote” is a method of baking your food within a parchment paper – the sealed parchment paper creates a mini-contained oven in which the flavors blend and infuse your fish (or poultry or pork) and the porous-ness of the parchment paper allows the steam to escape, so you’re baking, rather than steaming.
I didn’t have any parchment paper, so I thought about using wax paper – but a quick Google search on the internet confirmed what Brian had cautioned me of – the heat of the oven will melt the wax, causing it to burn on your pan and fill your oven, and kitchen, with nasty smoke.

So what’s a person to do, short of running to the store to buy true parchment paper? Substitute aluminum foil. You will in essence be steaming your meal, but it’s still tasty as can be.


This recipe is for 4 servings – it can be adjusted easily to accommodate more or less.

1 – 1 ¼ pounds Dover Sole filets (if you have 4 filets total, cut the filets in half – but my Trader Joe’s frozen filets were smallish, and only one had to be cut in half)
½ pound fresh Mushrooms, sliced
3 – 4 Italian Squash, sliced (I used 1 green Italian (zucchini) and 2 yellow Italian – but really, any squash will do).
6 cloves Garlic, sliced.
Thai Yellow Curry Sauce from Trader Joe’s (or any other flavoring sauce you prefer).
Lemon or Lime juice, preferably fresh squeeze.
Chinese Noodles – or any thin, delicate noodle of your choice.

Boil and drain your noodles, according to package directions. Set aside.
Cut 4 large sheets of aluminum foil – approximately 18x18 inches. Lay them out on your counter.

Place a serving of noodles just slightly off center – just a bit to one side – on each piece of foil.

Arrange slices of squash and mushrooms on top of the noodles. Lightly salt and pepper.




Lay two small filets, side by side, on top of the vegetables. Top with slices of garlic, drizzle a bit of oil over the filets (or small pats of butter), salt and pepper, squeeze of lime juice, then pour a splash of curry sauce over the filets.





Arrange a second layer of squash and mushroom slices on top of the filets, salt and pepper.

Fold the foil gently over your tower of food, leaving room to tent, and then seal the edges by crimping the foil.

Place the foil packets on a ridged baking pan (to catch any juice that may escape the packets), and put in a preheated oven at 375 degrees. Bake for 15 minutes; remove from the oven.

CAREFULLY open the foil packets – be ware of hot, hot steam that will rise from the opening. Gently slide the contents to individual plates or shallow bowls, keeping the layers intact. Enjoy immediately.

We rounded out this meal with a simple salad, a baguette from Champagne, and delicious Tart Lemon Pie – with crusts that I actually pressed to the sides of the pans so they didn’t collapse like they did in my blog post – AND, I halved again the lemon-filling amount, so the pies were deeper than the first go-round. This meal was oh-so-delicious – and Jared didn’t get sick from any food faux pas.

Simple Baked Curry Chicken, with Cauliflower Rice

You don't need much for this recipe, but once you're done, you'll be glad you tried it.

You'll need:

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (or more if you want)

Seasonings, to taste

Rice

Steamed Cauliflower

And that's about it.

In an oven proof dish, lightly oil one side of chicken breasts. Season with salt, pepper, garlic, cummin, curry powder and ground cayenne pepper. Turn, lightly oil the other side, and season with the same yummy seasonings. Set aside to come to room temperature.

In your favorite rice cooking machine, fix rice. If you have a favorite rice cooking machine, you'll know what to do. If you don't, then just fix some rice. Are we clear?

Meanwhile, slice up your cauliflower flourets, and put on some plastic wrap, sprinkle a little salt and pepper and water, wrap up and microwave for a minute or so. The plastic will puff up, then suck in on itself - set aside.

Broil the chicken in your convection oven - for about 5 minutes on the first side, then turn and broil for another 3 minutes on the other side. Remove from the oven, and set aside.

Mix the rice with a little bit of butter, salt pepper and some of the cauliflower and put in a bowl. Add one chicken breast on top...

AND ENJOY for dinner with your favorite dinner beverage - I suggest a gin and tonic.

Bob's Norweigian Crepes

Here's a BONUS BLOG - I know I teased you with talk and a couple of photos of these incredibly delicious crepes that Bob fixed for us when we were visiting Phoenix, and now, here's the recipe, direct from the Norwegian himself!
And best of all, Bob couldn't even email it to me - he had to MAIL me a photocopy of the recipe, and now, because I care, I'm typing it for you, my 20 followers......
How Nordic is that?! Here's what Bob claims he did:
Ingredients:
1 Cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup milk
3/4 cup water
3 large eggs, at room temperature
2 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled
1/2 teaspoon salt.

Combine all ingredients in a food processor and blend/mix/process for 10 -15 seconds, or until smooth (I know this sounds all fancy-like, but if you look at the photo - throw it in a blender and mix for a bit!) Next, the "recipe" says to scrape the sides of the bowl and process for 5 to 10 seconds more. Transfer the batter to a medium size bowl, cover with plastic wrap and chill for 1 hour... but that's what the "official line" calls for. What Bob did, in reality, is he scraped the sides of the blender, beat it a bit more, then covered the blender and put that directly into the fridge for an hour... no need to dirty another bowl!

Heat a crepe pan or small skillet over medium heat until hot, or until a few drops of water sizzle on the surface (in other words, heat your skillet!). Lightly grease the pan.

Pour about 3 tablespoons batter onto the pan, tilting to coat the bottom evenly. Cook for about 1 minute or until the edges look lacy and begin to pull away from the pan.

Before turning the crepe, lift the edges to check that the underside is lightly browned. Turn the crepe and cook for an additional 15 to 30 seconds, or until the underside is lightly browned.

Transfer the crepe to a sheet of waxed paper, repeat with the remaining batter, greasing the pan as necessary.

NOTE: Crepes can be made ahead - stack completely cooled crespes, wrap with foil, and refridgerate up to 5 days, or freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw at room temperature, and no matter what you do, don't forget to ENJOY !

Chili Cheese Potato Casserole

This is one of the ultimate comfort foods, and oh-so-easy to make. And if you are adult enough to admit it, you probably have most of the ingredients in your pantry and fridge.



First, the preparation:
Dice 6 medium potatoes
Dice 2 medium onions
Chop 6 cloves garlic
Open 2 cans Chili
Open 1 can diced jalapeno chilis
Open 1 can sliced mushrooms
Open 1 small container sour cream
Grate (or open your pre-grated) Sharp Cheddar and Jack Cheddar cheeses - about 1 cup of each.

Putting it all together:
Grab a big bowl and mix everything together - the potatoes, onions, garlic, chili, jalapenos, mushrooms and sour cream, and lightly salt and pepper the mixture. Then fold in the grated cheese, reserving just a bit to top the finished product. Lightly spray your casserole dish with non-stick spray, then spoon your delicious casserole goop into the casserole dish. Sprinkle the remaining cheese on the top of the casserole.

Cook it all up:
Cover and bake in oven (convection if you want to save energy) at 350 - 375 (depending how hot your oven really gets) for 50 - 60 minutes. Remove lid and continue to bake for another 10 minutes - to brown the top layer of cheese.

Remove from the oven and let sit for 20 minutes .... just enough time to toss a green salad....


and VOILIA - a delicious "budget" ( i.e. trailer-trash) comfort casserole to enjoy while watching the Vancouver Winter Olympics (pretend like there really is snow, and it's cold outside, and THAT'S why you're enjoying this yummy casserole.) I know, you're mocking me, saying to yourself "Oh, I would NEVER eat that kind of food" - but if you do, you'll love it.



And if that's not your kind of diet - well then just enjoy the Secret Mormon Family Recipe Bloody Marys - see recipe above.