The one pot meal: Swedish Lamb Stew!

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“Swedish Turnips” or Rutabagas ( in the turnip family and a stronger taste) are a key ingredient in this fun Swedish dish. Of course, we include baby turnips!

Red potatoes, sweet onions, green onions, garlic, carrots, celery, parsley, chard help insure that you get your vegetables! 😉

All of this surrounds chunks of beautiful seared lamb!

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Some of the veggies require more time in cooking… So it’s nice to precook (Carmelized onions is nice) the veggies!

I love the one pot meal and I hope you do too.

Bon Appetite!

Food is love: Beef Bouguignon

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People who know me know I love these “one pot meals”. They seem to call to me from some long lost time when we all had a single pot on the fire and threw a bit of today’s catch in to help complete a meal.

“Beef with Bourguignon” is simply cooked cubes of seared beef with broth and wine ( I simply use Pinot Noir… But others suggest “Cote du Rhone”, Cabernet Savignon or any handy red) and a few veggies along with typical seasonings that go well with beef.

The process is fairly straightforward . Besides a lot of peeling, there is the slow cooking that tenderizes the beef and blends the flavors!

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Personally, I like to sauté the ingredients beforehand after peeling and sear the beef! So in the tradition of the one pot meal ( think: Stone Soup) here are the basics:

Several pounds of cubed beef. Searing will convert some of the flesh to sugar and toughen the meat, but the long cooking will tenderize it.

French Trinity: diced large onion, sliced carrots and chopped celery.

About four shallots

A couple bunches of green onions sliced

Crushed garlic

( can you tell I love onions?)

Beef stock

sauteed mushrooms

Wine ( equal to beef Stock) enough to submerge what you are cooking!

Potatoes diced

Baby Turnips (under 2″ in diameter) sliced (peal then place on flat spot and slice about 1/4″)

Seasonings: thyme, rosemary, white pepper, black pepper, garlic powder and sage. I add some chopped parsley. Personally, I love the taste of Fenugreek ( spice of the Greeks) and I add this at the end of the process.

In my crockpot this takes about 6 hours on high… The I turn it down to low. I find it wonderfully satisfying!

Bon Appetite !!

a super apple pie takes great apples and a super syrup!

Making a Great Apple Pie requires the best apples and making your own syrup.

  • Preparing the Apples:

Peal the apples, slice in quarters, core and divide each section into thirds. This will give you 12 slices per apple. I love my apple slices sautéed in butter with 1/2 of the seasonings ( 1 tablespoon of my apple spice blend).

Use enough butter to sauté your apples

  • Making the syrup:

Preparing a thick syrup is one of the keys to a wonderful pie! The basic thickener I use is the same combination of cooked sugar, water and corn starch that helps give Meringue its characteristic stiff peaks!

2.25 cups of fine sugar

5 cups water

1 tsp salt

1 tbsp apple spice blend

3/4 cup cornstarch

Cook the syrup until thick (spoon in combined dry ingredients slowly into the heated water and stir)

  • Spice Blend (on recipe link)

Most Apple Spice blends are rather simple with a little cinnamon , nutmeg and maybe something else… you might like mine.

Bon Appetite!

Summer is a time for BBQ’d ribs

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The summer solstice for 2013 is tomorrow and it is celebrated in many ways around the world! However, I prefer to enjoy the first barbecue of the summer!

What better than barbecued ribs that have been sitting in a spicy cure? I will now boil them in the cure and cover them in a sauce for a few days the barbecue them up!

Celebrate every day with a BBQ is a luxury!

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Hope everyone had a happy father’s day

My daughter drew her representation of me on my day! Thanks Karla!
My daughter drew her representation of me on my day! Thanks Karla!

Father’s Day is a special day for those of us intrigued with the art of fatherhood. It certainly isn’t for everyone’s temperament… but I can’t imagine my life without the involvement. I tend to over do it a bit on this day… and Laura is kind enough to make my favorite dessert.

 

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Laura’s wonderfully delicious Blueberry Buckle topped with McConnell’s Ice Cream from Santa Barbara… the best of both worlds!