UnRecipe: Meatball Ballad - Meatballad?

There's always food trends and crazes afoot, and I would argue there's a thin strand of logic that connects several of them. I'm somewhat convinced, like some Biblical genealogy, through the massive popularity of St. Cupcake of the Holy Sugar-Sprinkled Spirit, which begat Cake Pops, which through a second cousin once-removed begat the Meatball Craze. I'm pretty sure somewhere between Cupcake and Cake Pop, a litter of Old Fashioned Doughnuts showed up. Amen. I think when the pendulum swings towards the Bizarro World of packing Cake Spam into a sphere, covering it with an inch of frosting and jamming a stick through its bottom, the trend swings back towards more sensible familiarity and we embrace spherical food that's more meatball than goofball.

On top of spa-ghe-tti....all covered with cheeeeese.... I managed to not lose my meatball - Photo by Wasabi Prime

Food trends are as cyclical as the fascination with round balls o' meat that's been going on for over a year, I'd say. But since it's hard to think about making a rich, heavy meal in the heat of summer, I'm definitely seeing more "easy meatball" recipes in all the magazines, to the point where I grow weary and full of Meatball Fury, wanting more challenging things. My recent issue of St. Martha of the Holy Stewart's Everyday Food magazine had a whole section devoted to meatballs -- like, three or four different recipes! When I flipped to that section, even I had to take the name of Martha in vain and say, Martha Focker, what are you thinking?  Initially, I thought, Where's the variety? You can do a million things with ground meat? Why follow such an overdone trend, and so late in the season, at that??  (breeeeathe)

The Hatorade Rant in my braincapsule promptly ended when I looked at my own disaster-area excuse of a weekly planner. Scribbled notes crossed out, then re-circled, as if to signal in some secret code that no, that deadline still stands, and it was due yesterday. Blerg. And lately there's been more than a few days that dragged into 2am nights, finishing a project so that I could save time for an extra project that suddenly popped up unexpectedly, that will be due at 10am the next morning. You know this Freelance Dance that I speak of, and anyone who's juggling work with a family and home life can also shout an, Amen! to that. So when I have the odd moment to peer glassy-eyed at whatever Mr. Postman has delivered to my hobbit-hovel, I may yearn for fancier fare in theory, but simple-to-prepare humble comforts are what I really need.

So in reality, meatballs kind of save the day. You can make them with any type of ground meat -- even no meat! I've done a vegetarian version with smashed beans, cooked quinoa and an egg to bind, but you could probably replace the egg with some sticky, short-grain rice to give it a vegan-friendly binder. They can be baked, pan-seared, fried or boiled. The seasoning can vary -- Italian, Asian, Spanish, Greek, anything your worldly wanderlust appetite desires. One Friday evening, I saw no less than three different mentions over Twitter from people in different states, all making spaghetti and meatballs, I'm assuming for the same reason -- a long week finally come to an end, they wanted something familiar and hearty. It made me think back to the last time I made spaghetti and meatballs, and it was for that same reason. It wasn't fussy, it can be prepared easily from scratch, and there's something about this totally Americanized dish that feels like home.

Giant turkey meatballs, with or without spaghetti, plenty tasty - Photos by Wasabi Prime

I made giant turkey meatballs. I mean, seriously, they were huge, the size that could split a planet in two if Bruce Willis and his team of roughnecks can't land the space ship on it in time to shove a nuke in it. But the benefit of large balls (heh heh) is that it's less time forming them, especially if they're going to finish cooking in a sauce, which will ensure more gentle cooking. I know a mixture of pork, veal and beef are ideal, but I like ground turkey, as it seems to stay tender and I don't get the rubber ball toughness if it's overcooked. In a basic tomato sauce of canned tomatoes with a ton of garlic, oregano and red pepper flakes (I like spicy tomato sauce), the meatballs braise away. I usually like to give the surface an all-around sear, and build the sauce on the pan drippings before the meatballs finish cooking in the sauce. Many people prefer baking, which is great for large batches that won't all fit in a pot. Regardless of method, this is was a good reminder why the meatball craze is not without merit. Even when you're tired, you can mix some ground meat together with seasonings and form a few meteor-sized meat-spheres and let the stove do the work. And the result is nothing less than satisfying.

I turned to The Power of Meatballs when I had a surplus of tomatoes at varying degrees of overripeness. You've run into this before -- everyone brings stuff from their gardens or something wonderful from the farmers market to a barbecue, but then you're stuck with all these leftovers. The tomatoes had beautiful color, but rapidly softening -- into a sauce they went! A grilling surplus of orphan hot dog buns (arrrg, damn you Atkins no-bun hot dog eaters! Oh, who am I kidding, I'm one of those douches too.) resulted in a few days of meatball sandwiches. I don't understand the notion of meatball sliders -- a tall, round burger between a bun just seems like a recipe for lockjaw. But meatball sandwiches done sub/hoagie-style, that's more bite-friendly. Either making smaller meatballs or splitting them before adding them into the bread helps for easier eating and optimal surface area for topping with extra sauce and cheese. See, there's a science to eating meatballs! It was less about epic blog food, and more about making sure random leftovers didn't go to waste, but just like with an overstuffed schedule, Meatballs Are My Hero.

Meatballs saving the day, yet again - Photos by Wasabi Prime

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