UnRecipe: I'm Bringing SundayDinnerBack

Nowhere near as rhythmic or booty-shaking as JT singing he's bringing SexyBack, I would still like to make an appeal to anyone who takes a look at this post, to please consider bringing SundayDinnerBack. Not that it was missing. I just think it's a pleasant weekly ritual to encourage at least one meal, fresh out of the oven or off the stove, that brings everyone to the table.

Eat this, Norman Rockwell - Photo by Wasabi Prime

I'm the first to admit, weekend meals are my "cheat" days -- the biggest question being, Burger or Pizza? I tend to cook quickly-prepared dishes during the week to supply us with a bevvy of dinner leftovers and Tupperware lunches, so by the time the weekend comes, I'm spent and just want to lay down for a while and have my nutrients brought to me, preferably in a cocktail glass. But when motivation kicks in and the fridge is well-stocked, I'll get a bee in my bonnet to make something that I can savor cooking as much as I can savor eating. Case in point, right around St. Patty's Day, corned beef was on the brain. I enjoy corned beef, but I have not, in fact, ever made it. I perused the meat section at the store, but people must have nabbed all the brisket, because all that was left were these bagged, pre-brined cuts of meat that kinda scared the bejeezus out of me. When I think I need a PhD to recognize, much less pronounce the chemical preservatives they put in brining liquid, the Food Angel on my shoulder says, Throw it back, lest ye be better preserved than Cher in a nuclear winter. Maybe being Cher isn't such a bad thing, but not as a result of eating Mummified Corned Beef.

A not-so-traditional corned beef, but Indy didn't mind - Photos by Wasabi Prime

To the Interwebs, Robin! I used Alton Brown's brine for corned beef; I didn't have saltpeter, which is the chemical you use to preserve the pink color of the meat, and I didn't have juniper berries. While the lack of juniper berries probably removed a degree of flavor potential for the meat, I wasn't disappointed -- I quite liked his use of whole cinnamon to perfume the meat, and the other flavors combined nicely. As always, good job, Alton Brown! Given the absense of non-scary brisket at the store, I did have a cut of round steak, aka London broil as some labels are apt to call it. It's a large slab of beef, somewhat tough and not a lot of fat marbling through it -- kind of like a flank steak. Since it's a bit on the gnaw-gnaw-gnaw side, round steak isn't a terrible substitute for corned beef, as the slow cooking will most certainly break down the sinewy bits, rendering it fork-tender. The slow cooker worked its magic on the brined beef, leaving me time to prepare a wonderfully rich and sinful side dish -- cheesy potatoes. Whole red potatoes, cut into large chunks, boiled just shy of fork-tender, then tossed in a cream and cheddar sauce before getting set into a casserole dish and shoved into the oven to finish off. I sprinkled some panko crumbs over to make a nice crust, but it all gets ooey-gooey mixed together when you spoon those potatoes onto a plate with slices of corned beef. I made a sauce for the beef, reducing the liquid left in the slow cooker, adding a splash of marsala and some pre-soaked wild mushrooms. I know, not so Irish, but we didn't even have this on St. Patty's Day, it was days after, as the brining process recommends over a week's time. When you see Alton's recipe saying it takes 243 hours, that's the brine talking. But consider a dish like this for the Sunday a week from now -- so get that herbed soak going on a slab of meat today!

Saucy, cheesy, bacon-y good -- who needs to live forever? - Photo by Wasabi Prime

Like everyone else, I get inspired to make things by magazines, books, and TV, and I saw this recipe for Roast Chicken with Romesco sauce from Martha Stewart. I love romesco sauce, that peppery, tangy sauce from Spain that's pretty much good on everything. I could seriously just eat it on its own, just a little bit of bread, call it done, it's so good. I used the basics of St. Martha's romesco recipe, but of course added my own touches -- I put in finely-chopped preserved lemons, just a little to heighten the tangy flavor. And I totally goofed when I was opening cans of what I thought were tomatoes -- I opened a can of chickpeas instead. Whoops. I could have left them out, but I didn't have anything in mind for them later in the week, so I said, eff it, and in they went, during the sauce's finish. Completely crazy, I know, but I added some mushrooms in there too, so it made the sauce almost like its own side dish, there was so much stuff mixed in there. And beneath everything was some seared chicken. I swear, it's under there somewhere.

Chicken n' mushrooms n' romesco sauce - Photos by Wasabi Prime

I've said it before, but I like buying whole chickens and just breaking 'em apart myself. No, not Hulkamania where I tear through it like some rabid animal, I use a knife. I'm awful at butchering my own meats, it literally feels like I'm butchering the butchering process, but I get there one way or another. As a result, there's a serial killer-like supply of chicken carcasses in the freezer for stock and all the broken down parts ready for Sunday Dinner. It feels productive to be able to do this yourself, it's cheaper, and you have enough time to practice your chicken dismemberment on a weekend. Duh, Winning. A good cast-iron Dutch oven is perfect for searing the chicken to a toasty brown color. I deglazed the pot with a little stock before adding the romesco sauce and stowaway chickpeas and mushrooms. The chicken was nestled in and it was covered up and shoved into a preheated 350 degree oven for maybe 20 minutes, just to finish off. Set it, forget it, moving on... 

Bacon makes it better and faux-Mac n' Cheese - Photos by Wasabi Prime

Aside from asparagus making your pee smell weird (well, it does), it's delicious and the perfect size for making little bundles and wrapping slices of bacon around them. What would I call such a thing -- Aspara-bacon Haystacks? Pork Torches? A-spear-a-Bacon?  Who knows, but they're an indulgence to add to a plate, just to make sure you're not eating too healthily. I've seen this done with individual asparagus spears and prosciutto -- equally good -- but since the bacon is thick, having a bundle of mid-sized spears together helps lengthen the cooking time, giving the bacon a chance to render and tighten. I threw a whole tray of these bad boys into a 375-degree oven and it probably took about 20 minutes, give or take. Having the asparagus tossed with a light drizzle of oil helps them along, and I like these with a lot of pepper.

Because everything for this Sunday meal was so comfy-cozy, I craved macaroni and cheese, but I went with cauliflower and cheese instead. I would say it's a healthier dish, but not really, as the cheese sauce is pretty rich -- full cream, shreds of cheddar, the works. The cauliflower is just an easy pasta-swap, since it holds up well and doesn't have too-strong a flavor to counter the sauce. I cut the cauliflower into bite sized pieces, added to boiling water for just a few minutes, just to lightly soften, and then quickly drain before tossing with the cream sauce. Much like the cheesy potatoes, the cauliflower-cheese combo gets put into a casserole dish, a sprinkling of breadcrumbs and extra Parmesan if you have it, and into the oven it goes to finish.

Yes, it was quite a rich meal, but it felt so fancy-schmancy to have multiple courses at home and it made having dinner on a Sunday special and something to enjoy. The Mister works late and I often eat early, so our meal schedules are always out of sync -- weekends are when we can really appreciate a meal together, without the pressure of time or the onset sleepiness from a busy workday to intrude. So come on, bring SundayDinnerBack.

OMG a Recipe: Steak Dinner Sealed With a KISS

KISS - Keep It Simple, Stupid! Does anyone remember that saying? I think I heard it in school from a teacher, before the dreaded PC Police swooped in and oversensitized everything, erasing "Stupid" from the vocabulary. But it was a good mnemonic device to always remind one to stick to the basics, because sometimes it's easy to get caught up in the details. I was cooking with a friend who wanted something really simple to make for an at-home dinner for visiting guests. The KISS-friendly meal resulted in a Marinated Seared Flank Steak, Rosemary Potatoes and Crispy Broccoli.

Meat n' potatoes - what could be simpler? Photo by Wasabi Prime

I'm truly thankful to have friends with a wide variety of interests and hobbies. I'm especially thankful for ones who don't give a crap that I write a food blog, because while they like eating at restaurants and enjoying good meals, they don't do much cooking at home, and it's an excellent realignment of perspective. It's good to work out a recipe with someone who doesn't do much cooking because it's a reminder to slow down, take the time to measure, and keep ingredient lists simple. At the end of the day, cooking feels like work to many, and the only way to encourage people to get cookin' is to make it accessible and relatively effortless. But of course the greatest incentive is tasty nomz!

The thoughts behind the meal were: basic ingredient list, short prep time, and using red meat helps resolve the whole "is it done yet?" issue with cooking, since you can eat it rare. We prepped the things needing the most time first, making a marinade for the flank steak and letting it sit in the refrigerator to soak up the flavor. Potatoes and broccoli were washed and left to dry. An hour before dinnertime, we chopped the potatoes down, tossing in olive oil and seasonings, and let the oven start working on them. Removing the flank steak from the fridge, it was patted dry and seared in a pan until medium rare. While the meat rested, the potatoes were removed and broccoli was seasoned and placed under the broiler to crisp up under the high heat. The steak was thinly-sliced, potatoes were still warm, and the broccoli had a nice smoky char on its florets, creating a simple, quick meal that was good for weeknight time frames as well as serving to guests. If this isn't a KISS-friendly meal for those dreading a turn in the kitchen, I don't know what is!

Marinated Flank Steak
(serves four, if paired w/ sides)

1 flank steak
1/2 cup soy sauce
2 sprigs of rosemary, bruised w/ blunt end of knife (to release oils, but left whole for easy removal)
2 tablespoons olive or canola oil
1 tablespoon of sugar
salt and pepper for cooking
canola or vegetable oil for cooking

Put the steak in a large freezer bag and add the soy sauce, bruised rosemary sprigs, oil and sugar. Seal bag and smoosh (sure, that's a technical term) the ingredients up, making sure the marinade is in contact with the meat. Let it sit in the fridge for at least an hour or overnight, if you can. Shift the bag periodically so the marinade can thoroughly coat and soak meat.

When ready to cook, preheat a large skillet on medium high. Remove the steak from the marinade and pat it dry, removing as much of the rosemary leaves as possible -- this will prevent burning. Drizzle some canola oil into the pan, about 1-2 tablespoons, and then salt/pepper both sides of the dry flank steak before placing it into the hot/oiled pan. Let the meat sear for 6-8 minutes on one side, developing a nice caramelized crust before flipping the meat over to do the same on the opposite side. Use a meat thermometer to check the center doneness to your taste. When meat is cooked to your preference, remove from heat, cover with foil and let it rest for at least five minutes, to let juices redistribute themselves before slicing thinly, on the bias (against the grain).

Optional: make a sauce using the same pan that cooked the steak -- all the browned bits on the bottom is flavor! Turn up the burner to a medium-high heat and pour a quarter cup of soy sauce and three quarters cup of water into the pan and use a wooden spoon or spatula to scrape up the bits to incorporate into the sauce. Lower the temperature to medium low and let the sauce reduce to a thickness that will coat the back of a spoon. Add salt/pepper to taste or a bit of sugar, if you want it on the sweeter side. Serve on the side or drizzled over the meat.

Easy Sides: Rosemary Potatoes and Crispy Broccoli
(serves as a side dish for four, if paired w/ main course)

For Potatoes:
4 to 6 medium-sized red skinned potatoes, washed and chopped into bite sized pieces
3 tablespoons olive or canola oil
2 tablespoons of chopped rosemary (about 2 or 3 sprigs' worth of leaves)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Toss chopped potatoes with oil, rosemary, salt and pepper to coat. Spread evenly on a baking sheet and place in oven. Check around the ten minute mark, and if potatoes are starting to brown, use a spatula and turn them over, to ensure even browning. Once the potatoes are fork-tender, about twenty to thirty minutes, remove from oven and cover with foil to keep warm.

For Broccoli:
3 medium sized broccoli crowns, ends removed and cut down into long stalks
1 tablespoon olive or canola oil
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

Start broiler and set baking rack about a quarter of the way to the top of the broiler coil -- not right up against coils, just somewhat close. Toss the trimmed and cut broccoli pieces with the oil, salt, and pepper, and place evenly on a baking sheet. Place in oven on the top rack and keep a close eye on the broccoli. It should start turning a bright green and the florets will start to char with a little smoke, but don't set it on fire. Should only take five to seven minutes, if that, to cook the broccoli to a nice, crisp doneness. Remove from the broiler when the color is bright and the florets have a light, smoky char on them. Serve immediately.

Basic flavor - it's magically delicious! Photos by  Wasabi Prime