At 50, D is in better shape than he has been in his life. He goes to the gym three times a week and plays tennis another 1-2 times. Last night was one of his mid-week tennis dates. I had the grill all fired up when they guys arrived, D put down his racket and picked up his tongs.
There were three of us for dinner and I had three different steak cuts ready to go. One was an inside round with very little visible fat or marbling. The grain of the meat was very compact and dense and so that morning I had prepared a marinade to add some flavour and tenderness. I had found the recipe on the Canada Beef website in the recipe section and picked up all kinds of other suggestions and tips while on the site.
I used this to marinate an inside round for 8 hours and a sirloin for ½ an hour. We also basted a rib steak on the grill with it.
Ingredients
¼ c steak sauce (I was out and had to use a BBQ sauce and it worked well)
¼ c strong brewed coffee
2 T canola oil
1 T minced ginger root
1 T fresh thyme
2 cloves minced garlic
½ t allspice
salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
Whisk together in a small bowl.
2.2.6
The steaks that I had purchased varied in price per kg according to the cut. What proved to be interesting, to those of you managing a grocery budget and thinking that a regular steak dinner might be too extravagant for your family, is that the steak that was the least expensive turned out to be the taste hit of the dinner. With marination the inside round was certainly as tender as the sirloin and almost as flavourful as the rib steak. Sometimes, when you are standing in front of the meat section at the grocery store, this is a tricky decision to make, so consult the Canadian Beef website. The site puts steaks into grilling vs marinating vs simmering categories, so no matter what the cut or how little you spend, you will always be serving up a flavourful and tender steak.
D sliced all the steaks into medallions and we placed a platter on the table. Beef can hold its own against other robust flavours and so I also served brown and wild rice pilaf, roasted beets, sauteed Swiss chard and pine nuts and a tomato, cucumber and feta salad with a precious stash of pungent olives that I had purchased while in Ireland this spring.
So in spite of the guys working a full day and then playing over two hours of tennis, they had been fortified to take on another day.
Kath’s quote: “People who like to cook like to talk about food….without one cook giving another cook a tip or two, human life might have died out a long time ago.”-Laurie Colwin
Mole Poblano is a popular sauce in Mexican cuisine. It is prepared with dried chilies, ground nuts and seeds, spices, Mexican chocolate (which is traditional ground with sugar and cinnamon) and a variety of other ingredients including onions, plantain and garlic. Because of the labour-intensive nature of the mole, it is often made in large batches for special occasions, such as holidays, birthdays and weddings. Since we were celebrating upcoming nuptials and because Laura never does back down in the face of a challenge, she lovingly prepared this authentic dish.
Laura gave me two recipes which she indicates that she used in combination for her dish. This version is from the Food Network and is marked “Easy”. (Doesn’t look easy to me-I typically buy the Dona Maria Mole Sauce at the Mexican grocer).
Laura poached the chicken breasts, placed on a bed of rice and then poured the mole over top at serving time.
Ingredients
1 chicken (3-4 pounds) cut into pieces (Laura used boneless breasts)
5 black peppercorns
kosher salt
½ c sesame seeds
5 whole cloves
1 cinnamon stick
½ t anise seeds
¼ t coriander seeds
6 dried quajilo chile peppers
4 dried ancho chile peppers
6 T canola oil
¼ c raisins
¼ c whole almonds
¼ c hulled pumpkin seeds
2 6 inch tortillas torn into pieces
1 2.7 oz. disk of Mexican chocolate, broken into pieces
pinch of sugar
Instructions
Place chicken and peppercorns in large pot, cover with water and season with salt.
Bring to a gentle simmer over low heat and cook until tender, about 40 minutes.
Transfer the chicken to a large plate and set the cooking liquid aside.
Toast the sesame seeds in a dry skillet over medium heat, tossing until golden, about 5 minutes.
Set aside 2 T for garnish and transfer the rest to the blender.
In the same skillet, toast the cloves, cinnamon stick, and anise and coriander seeds until fragrant, about 3 minutes.
Add to the blender.
Meanwhile, add the raisins, almonds, pumpkin seeds and tortilla pieces to the canola oil and cook, stirring, until the seeds and tortillas are golden brown, about 2 minutes.
Add to the blender along with oil from the skillet and cook, stirring, until the seeds and tortillas are golden brown, about 2 minutes.
Add to the blender along with the oil from the skillet.
Add the softened chilies and puree, pouring 2 to 3 cups of the soaking liquid to make a thick, smooth sauce.
Heat the remaining 2 T canola oil in a large pot over medium heat, Add the chile sauce and fry, stirring until thickened, 5 to 6 minutes.
Add 4 c of the reserved chicken cooking liquid and simmer until the sauce starts to thick, about 20 minutes.
Add the chocolate and simmer, stirring frequently, until the chocolate melts and the sauce reduces, about 20 more minutes.
Add the sugar and season with salt.
Add the chicken pieces to the sauce and warm through over low heat.
Garnish with reserved sesame seeds.
2.2.6
My contribution to the evening was a simple watermelon and feta salad. I prepared three c of watermelon balls, covered with 1/2 small red onion slices and 1/2 c of crumbled feta and drizzled balsamic vinegar over all.
Kath’s quote (I was searching for Mole quotes and found this one -wrong kind of mole but…): “Their [watermelons] cleansing action you can discover for yourself; just rub them on dirty skin. Watermelons will remove the following: freckles, facial moles, or epidemic leprosy, if anyone should have these conditions.”-Galen (129-216 A.D.)
In my humble opinion, the quality of a soup, determines the skill of the cook. This is one reason why a vichyssoise or a bouillabaisse do not often find their way into many households. This is also true of my favourite Mexican soup-Soupe de Lima (Yucatan Lime Soup). The balance of the broth, vegetables and chicken must be exactly right along with the trickier ratio of chicken stock and lime juice. I have posted my version on this site previously. Believe me, it does not hold a candle to this version.
Laura had everything simmering on the stove as we arrived along with the strips of fried tortillas. I often cheat on this step and serve it with thin La Cocina tortilla chips on top-passable in a time crunch but going to the extra trouble, like Laura did, is well worth the effort.
She spooned out little bowls so that we wouldn’t fill up. This made every sip, particularly precious. I could eat it by the vat…..
Author: Emerile Lagasse via the Food Network website
Recipe type: Appetizer or Entree
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 6-8
Ingredients
8 corn tortillas
½ c vegetable oil (I would recommend Canola oil)
salt
1 medium onion, chopped
1 celery rib, thinly sliced
1 carrot, thinly sliced
1 jalapeno or Serrano pepper, stemmed, seeded and finely chopped
4 cloves of garlic, minced
1 bay leaf
¼ t dried Mexican oregano, crumbled
1 large tomato, peeled and chopped
8 c chicken stock or canned low sodium chicken broth
1½ lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 green onions, finely chopped
3 limes, juiced (about ⅓ c)
1 large avocado, peeled, pitted and coarsely chopped
2 T chopped fresh cilantro leaves
Instructions
Cut the tortillas into ¼ inch strips.
Heat the oil in a medium skillet and, when very hot, fry the tortilla strips, in small batches, until lightly golden and crisp, 30 seconds to 1 minute.
Transfer to paper towel lined plate to drain.
Season with salt, to taste.
Repeat until all tortilla strips have been fried.
Set fried tortilla strips aside and reserve the vegetable oil.
Transfer 1 T of the reserved oil to a large saucepan and add the chopped onion, celery, carrot and pepper.
Cover over medium-heat, stirring occasionally, until vegetables have softened, about 4 minutes.
Add the garlic, bay leaf, and Mexican oregano and cook, stirring for 1 minute.
Add the tomato and season lightly with salt.
Cook, stirring, until tomato is softened and has released its liquid and the mixture is nearly dry, 4 to 5 minutes.
Add the chicken stock and chicken breasts and bring to a boil.
Reduce the heat to a slow simmer and cook until the chicken is just cooked through, 12 to 15 minutes.
Remove chicken from the soup and set aside until cool enough to handle.
Allow soup to continue simmering.
When the chicken has cooled a bit, shred into bite sized pieces and return to the pot along with the green onions and lime juice.
Cook for 5 minutes, or until the chicken is heated through and the soup is piping hot.
Season the soup, to taste, with salt and ladle the soup into wide soup bowls, with a handful or tortilla strips added to each bowl.
Garnish with avocado and cilantro and serve immediately.
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Ahh, refreshing and warmly satisfying at the same time. The only version that I have enjoyed as much as this was concocted by Lynn and Tom McGrath when they owned the beautiful Casa O Restaurant on Isla Mujeres.
I had forgotten that I was a redhead in those days….
I first dined there on my very first trip to Isla Mujeres in 2005, when the three sisters celebrated Sister #2’s birthday. Casa O’s added a hint of cinnamon and fresh mint. Let me know if you want me to publish this version. Supposedly it was a favourite of Paul Newman’s!
Kath’s quote: “When love and skill work together, expect a masterpiece.”-John Ruskin
You are truly blessed if you have someone in your life that will virtually guarantee a fabulous time if you are invited to their home. My friend Laura and her husband Allan are such people. And knowing that they love hosting as much as their friends benefit from their hospitality, is like a double blessing. Their comfortable home is perfect for entertaining, especially when the guest of honour, whose upcoming nuptials we were celebrating, requests a Bikinis and Margaritas evening.
Allan had the blender and freshly cut strawberries set up when we arrived. He was offering Pink Bikini Margaritas or traditional lime versions. Seeing as though a cocktail is the closest way I am going to be a associated with a pink bikini, I opted for the former-a delicious way to start the evening.
Laura’s Shrimp Cocktail
We were an assembly of old friends and were comfortable to perch on the stools in front of their cooking island. I don’t know whether we started with the Sopa de Lima or Mexican Shrimp Cocktail and my photos do not give me any hints as to the order. (Good thing I stopped with a single margarita). Let’s say it was the shrimp.
Shrimp Ceviche at the Fisherman’s Cop-op on Isla Mujeres
Laura’s version is the closest thing that I have tasted to the ones that we dream about from the little seafood restaurants lined up on the sandy beach of Isla Mujeres.
Picus Shrimp Cocktail on Isla Mujeres
I am rambling on about Isla because only Laura knows how to make the Yucatan dishes that I long for. Someone in Winnipeg should seriously hire this talented woman to fashion their Mexican menu for them…..but I digress.
Cooked shrimp are chilled in a spicy tomato-juice cocktail.
Ingredients
lbs. cooked shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 T crushed garlic
½ c finely chopped red onion
¼ c fresh cilantro,chopped
1½c tomato and clam juice cocktail
¼ c ketchup
¼ c fresh lime juice
1 t hot pepper sauce sauce, or to taste
¼ c prepared horseradish
salt to taste
1 ripe avocado-peeled, pitted and chopped
Instructions
Place shrimp in a large bowl.
Stir in garlic, red onion and cilantro.
Mix in clamato juice, ketchup, lime juice, hot pepper sauce and horseradish.
Season with salt.
Gently stir in avocado.
Cover and refrigerate 2 to 3 hrs.
Serve in one large bowl or ladle into individual bowls.
2.2.6
Everything about this recipe was so delicious that I poured the nectar onto taco chips, so as not to miss a single taste.
Kath’s quote: “To make people who have no appetite eat, to make the wit of those who have it sparkle, to enable those who want these qualities to find them — this is the supreme science of a gastronome-host.”-Lucien Tendret
D is working from the cottage today and I am a little bit jealous. I have no reason to be, as he was underneath the cottage early this morning, disconnecting our current plumbing, while I was sound asleep in our cozy bed. But I am envious about the idea of working from the cottage in September. So I have done the next best thing and set up on our little back deck in the city and if this drizzle of rain continues, I will move to the gazebo.
But I digress. I first became acquainted with Pit Pat squash when I found it at the St. Norbert market last autumn. The way I prepared it then did not leave a positive impression upon me but when I received it again as part of my Blue Lagoon Garden share, I simply roasted it in canola oil to have with Gourmet Mac and Cheese. I LOVED the taste-more flavourful than zucchini, with a nuttiness and slight acidity not found in other squash. Now of course, I can’t get enough (like roasted beets this summer).
Kath’s quote: “Square meals, not adventurous ones, are what you should seek.”-Bryan Miller
