Good morning GUSiacks! Snow here seems to have ended. Per usual, snow plow guy plowed the truck and my buddy's car in. God forfend he just beep his damned horn a couple of times so we can get downstairs. Oh, well, a bit of shoveling out. Can't tell how much we got -- maybe 6 to 8 inches so not horrible.
Spent yesterday finishing up the darn brief, getting it to the printer, picking it up at the printer, counting out copies and boxing them. Totally wasted Saturday. But, what the hank. Time to start Julia Child's Boeuf Bourguignon. Julia Recipes to follow.
The only time to eat diet food is while you are waiting for the steak to cook.
-- Julia Child
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Ok, the thing about Julia is that her recipes are long but not hard. You just have to read them multiple times, make sure, multipe times, that you have all of your ingredients, pots and pans. Then read the recipe again multiple times. If you follow her detailed directions, you really can't fail. This has become my go to winter recipe because stew beef is inexpensive and you don't have to buy an expensive bottle of wine -- just not Boone's Farm.
I've thrown the ingredients (after the preliminary browning) into a dutch oven then into a 200 degree oven overnight. Perfect. You can't overcook this dish. The meat just continues to get more tender. Ok, you can overcook if you forget about it for a few days.
Julia Child's Boeuf Bourguignon
INGREDIENTS
1 6 ounce piece chunk bacon
3 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
3 pounds lean stew beef, cut into 2-inch cubes
1 onion, sliced
Salt and pepper
2 tablespoons flour
3 cups red wine, young and full bodied
3 cups beef stock
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 cloves mashed garlic
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1 bay leaf, crumbled
20 small white onions
3 1/2 tablespoons butter
herb bouquet (4 parsley sprigs, one-half bay leaf, one-quarter teaspoon thyme, tied in cheesecloth)
1 pound fresh mushrooms, quartered
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
Remove bacon rind and cut into lardons (sticks 1/4-inch thick and 1 1/2 inches long). Simmer rind and lardons for 10 minutes in 1 1/2 quarts water. Drain and dry. Or you can do what I do and slice up regular bacon and throw it in -- cook til light brown. You basically want to release the fat.
Sauté lardons in 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a flameproof casserole over moderate heat for 2 to 3 minutes to brown lightly. Remove to side dish with a slotted spoon.
Heat fat in casserole until almost smoking. Dry beef in paper towels; it will not brown if it is damp. Add beef, a few pieces at a time, and sauté until nicely browned on all sides. Add it to the lardons. In the same fat, brown the sliced vegetables. Pour out the excess fat.
Return the beef and bacon to the casserole and toss with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Then sprinkle on the flour and toss again to coat the beef lightly. Set casserole uncovered in middle position of preheated oven for 4 minutes. Toss the meat again and return to oven for 4 minutes (this browns the flour and coves the meat with a light crust). Remove casserole and turn oven down to 325 degrees.
Stir in wine and 2 to 3 cups stock, just enough so that the meat is barely covered. Add the tomato paste, garlic, herbs and bacon rind. Bring to a simmer on top of the stove. Cover casserole and set in lower third of oven. Regulate heat so that liquid simmers very slowly for 3 to 4 hours. The meat is done when a fork pierces it easily.
While the beef is cooking, prepare the onions and mushrooms. Heat 1 1/2 tablespoons butter with one and one-half tablespoons of the oil until bubbling in a skillet. Add onions and sauté over moderate heat for about 10 minutes, rolling them so they will brown as evenly as possible. Be careful not to break their skins. You cannot expect them to brown uniformly. Add 1/2 cup of the stock, salt and pepper to taste and the herb bouquet. Cover and simmer slowly for 40 to 50 minutes until the onions are perfectly tender but hold their shape, and the liquid has evaporated. Remove herb bouquet and set onions aside.
Wipe out skillet and heat remaining oil and butter over high heat. As soon as you see butter has begun to subside, indicating it is hot enough, add mushrooms. Toss and shake pan for 4 to 5 minutes. As soon as they have begun to brown lightly, remove from heat. When the meat is tender, pour the contents of the casserole into a sieve set over a saucepan.
Wash out the casserole and return the beef and lardons to it. Distribute the cooked onions and mushrooms on top. Skim fat off sauce in saucepan. Simmer sauce for 1-2 minutes, skimming off additional fat as it rises. You should have about 2 1/2 cups of sauce thick enough to coat a spoon lightly. If too thin, boil it down rapidly. If too thick, mix in a few tablespoons stock. Taste carefully for seasoning.
Pour sauce over meat and vegetables. Cover and simmer 2 to 3 minutes, basting the meat and vegetables with the sauce several times. Serve in casserole, or arrange stew on a platter surrounded with potatoes, noodles or rice, and decorated with parsley.
Orecchiette Con Broccoli Di Rape and Sausages
Ingredients
For the Sauce:
2 lbs. broccoli di rape
1/2 lb. sweet Italian sausage
5 tablespoons good olive oil
3 large cloves garlic crushed
Salt
1/4 teaspoon hot red pepper flakes
1 to 3 tablespoons unsalted butter (optional)
1 cup or more excellent chicken stock
For the Pasta:
6 quarts water
2 teaspoons salt
1 lb. orecchiette pasta
For Serving:
1 ounce or more Pecorino Romano cheese grated
Special Equipment Suggested:
A 12-inch saute pan 3 inches deep, with tight-fitting cover
A tall stockpot holding at least 2 gallons with cover
A large warm platter or warm soup bowls or plates
Directions
Preparing the Broccoli di Rape: Wash and spin-dry the broccoli di rape and remove the large tough leaves, leaving just tender leaves and flower buds. Cut off and discard the lower part of the stems, leaving broccoli about 8 inches long. Peel the stems by lifting strips from the stem end and drawing them up toward the bud area.
Preparing the Sauce: Peel the sausage, crumble it, and saute over moderately high heat in a tablespoon of olive oil. In a moment or two, add the crushed garlic and continue sauteing for another 2 to 3 minutes, until the sausage is lightly browned. Drain out the fat in the pan, and add a tablespoon of olive oil. Roughly line up the broccoli di rape and slice into 4-inch lengths: add to the pan, tossing.
Taste, and season lightly with salt and pepper flakes. (At this point, you could start the pasta.) Cover the broccoli pan and let steam for several minutes: when the broccoli has wilted, stir in the butter, then the stock and bring to a boil. Taste again for seasoning, and let cook uncovered for several minutes more to reduce and concentrate the liquid. (At this point grate the cheese.) Again taste and correct seasoning. Set aside until the pasta is ready.
Boiling the Pasta: Heat 6 quarts of water in the stockpot, adding the salt, and timing so that the water is at a full boil by the time the broccoli di rape goes into the pan in the previous step. With the heat at its maximum, stir in the pasta and cover the pan until the water is at a boil. Then set the cover ajar and maintain at a moderate boil for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring and checking on the progress now and then. After 9 minutes, start testing by eating a piece. It should be just cooked through, but not quite as tender as you would like because it will cook a little more with the sauce. Drain at once, and proceed to the serving.
Serving the Pasta: Reheat the broccoli di rape as soon as the pasta has cooked and drained. Turn the hot pasta into the hot sauce and toss gently to blend. Taste carefully for seasoning, and remove from heat. Sprinkle on half of the freshly grated Romano cheese, and toss to blend. At once, turn the pasta onto the hot platter or plates, sprinkle with the rest of the Romano, and serve
Spinach and Eggplant Curry
Ingredients
1 large firm, shiny eggplant (about 1 1/2 pounds)
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
2 tablespoons black or yellow mustard seeds
6 tablespoons clarified butter
For the Curry:
1 large onion diced (1 1/2 cups)
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons chopped garlic (3 to 4 large cloves)
2 tablespoons freshly grated ginger
3 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 tomatoes peeled, seeded, and diced
1 cup water
1 tablespoon palm sugar (or light brown sugar)
For the Finish:
2 bunches (20 ounces) fresh spinach washed, stemmed, and cut into 2-inch slices
Special Equipment Suggested:
A 6-inch frying pan
A 12-inch frying pan
A 10-inch saucepan
Directions
Preparing the Eggplant: Wash the eggplant, cut off and discard the green cap, and cut the purple part lengthwise into even 1/2 inch slices. Cut the slices into 1/2 inch strips, and the strips into 1/2 inch dice. Toss in a colander with the coarse salt, and let drain for 20 minutes.
Preparing the Mustard Seeds: Meanwhile, measure the mustard seeds into the dry 6-inch frying pan and saute briefly over moderate heat, until they turn gray and start popping--the heat brings out their aroma. Set aside.
Sauteing the Eggplant: When the eggplant has drained for 20 minutes, dry it thoroughly in a paper towel, so that it will saute rather than steam. Pour 4 tablespoons of the clarified butter into the 12-inch frying pan and set over moderately high heat. When the butter is hot, add the eggplant and saute for several minutes, tossing and turning; regulate the heat so that the eggplant is no darker than a nice golden brown. When soft, turn it into a bowl and toss with the mustard seeds.
Preparing the Curry:
Heat the remaining butter in the 10-inch saucepan over moderately high heat. Stir in the onions and salt and saute, stirring frequently, until the onions are golden and soft. Add garlic and ginger, cook just a few seconds until their aromas are released, and then stir in all of the spices listed. Cook an additional minute, stirring constantly to blend spices and prevent them from scorching. Stir in the tomatoes, water, and sugar. Turn the heat to high and bring to boil.
Ahead-of-Time Note: You could stop at this point. Cover and refrigerate everything, and bring to boil several hours later.
Finishing the Dish: Add the spinach, bring back to boil, then stir in the eggplant. When the eggplant is heated through--in about a minute--the dish is ready to serve.
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