Slow Cooker Balsamic Glazed Roast Beef

It's fall, so that must mean more Sunday night dinners...even though we have a slow cooker, I used a Dutch oven over low heat for 2.5 hours

ingredients

• 1 tablespoon oil
• 3 pounds Ontario Corn Fed Beef roast such as chuck, round, brisket
• 1 large onion, sliced
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1 cup beef broth
• 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce (or tamari)
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 pound baby carrots (optional)
• 1 pound mini potatoes or diced potatoes (optional)
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch + 2 tablespoons water

directions

1. Heat the oil in a large pan over medium-high heat, add the beef and brown on all sides, about 20 minutes and set aside.
2. Add the onions and cook until tender, about 2-3 minutes, before adding the garlic and red pepper flakes and cooking until fragrant, about a minute.
3. Place the beef, onions, broth, balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, carrots and potatoes in a slow cooker, cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours or on high for 3-5 hours. (The beef will be falling apart tender when done!)
4. Remove the carrots, potatoes and beef and slice or shred the beef.
5. Skim any fat from the cooking juices, place it in a sauce pan, bring to a simmer, add the mixture of the cornstarch and water and cook until the glaze has thickened a bit.

tagliatelle alla Bolognese

"The weather outside is frightful" which means the food inside is delightful...cold, rainy, dreary days makes me want warm comfort food...some of Italian cooking is comforting, a rich, succulent spaghetti sauce is like that...cooked slowly and for a length of time to allow the flavours to meld together...the aroma of garlic and basil simmering in the sauce...then poured over some hot, fresh pasta...I could have this sauce with or without meat, it's all about how delicious the sauce is, meat is an added bonus...for a Bolognese sauce, it's all about the meat - ground beef, pork and veal...this sauce, simmered slowly for a length of time in wine and stock, seems to showcase the meats in this dish...the end result is a sauce, deep in colour and rich in flavour.

The earliest documented recipe for a meat-based sauce (ragù) served with pasta comes from late 18th century Imola, near Bologna. Pellegrino Artusi published a recipe for a meat sauce characterized as being bolognese in his cookbook published in 1891. Artusi's recipe, which he called Maccheroni alla bolognese, is thought to derive from the mid 19th century when he spent considerable time in Bologna (maccheroni being a generic term for pasta, both dried and fresh). The recipe only partially resembles the ragù alla bolognese that is traditionally associated with tagliatelle. The sauce called for predominantly lean veal filet along with pancetta, butter, onion, and carrot. The meats and vegetables were to be finely minced, cooked with butter until the meats browned, then covered and cooked with broth. Artusi commented that the taste could be made even more pleasant by adding small pieces of dried mushroom, a few slices of truffle, or chicken liver cooked with the meat and diced. As a final touch, he also suggested adding half a glass of cream to the sauce when it was completely done to make it taste even smoother. Artusi recommended serving this sauce with a medium size pasta ("horse teeth") made from durum wheat. The pasta was to be made fresh, cooked until it was firm, and then flavored with the sauce and Parmigiano cheese.

In 1982, the Italian Academy of Cuisine (Accademia Italiana della Cucina), an organization dedicated to preserving the culinary heritage of Italy, recorded and deposited a recipe for "classic Bolognese ragù" with the Bologna Chamber of Commerce (La Camera di Commercio di Bologna). A version of the academy's recipe for American kitchens was also published. The academy's recipe confines the ingredients to beef cut from the plate section (cartella di manzo), fresh unsmoked pancetta (pancetta di maiale distesa), onions, carrot, celery, passata (or tomato purée), meat broth, dry wine (red or white, not sparkling), milk, salt and pepper. The option of adding a small amount of cream at the end of the preparation is recommended.

Ragù alla bolognese is a complex sauce which lends itself well to interpretation and adaptation by professional chefs and home cooks alike. Common sources of differences include which meats to use (beef, pork or veal) and their relative quantities, the possible inclusion of either cured meats or offal, which fats are used in the sauté phases (rendered pork fat, butter, olive or vegetable oil), what form of tomato is employed (fresh, canned or paste), the makeup of the cooking liquids (wine, milk, tomato juices, or broth) and their specific sequence of addition.

The many variations tend to be based on a common theme. For instance, garlic is absent from all of the recipes referenced above, as are herbs other than a parsimonious use of bay leaves by some. Seasoning is limited to salt, pepper and the occasional pinch of nutmeg. In all of the recipes meats dominate as the principal ingredient, while tomatoes, in one form or another, are only an auxiliary ingredient.

I'm using the recipe from Eataly and following the recipe, for the most part, which is a first for me...however, the recipe calls for white wine, I'll use red as I prefer red wine for this sauce.

I've seasoned the meat (anyone using Himalayan salt?) and added the wine and tomato pasta, simmer for 20 minutes to allow the sauce to reduce...once cooked down, add the stock and simmer for 45 minutes...as Bolognese sauce is traditionally served over tagliatelle pasta, parpadelli, spaghetti or penne will work with this sauce...I'm using parpadelli as well as spaghetti...please try this very comforting sauce and tell me how you did...Bon appetito!

 
 
 
 

 

Eataly, please come to Toronto!

A good friend told me about Eataly...she even gave me the cookbook based on the store...this really not a cookbook, yes, it has recipes, but it's more about how Italians love their food...I love Italian food and enjoy cooking it...my everyday cooking has influences of Italian, especially when it's hearty, stick to your bones comfort food...as I reread the cookbook for this blog, all I wanted was to eat everything and try the recipes...there have been reports of Eataly coming to Toronto, even setting up business relationship with the Weston family.

 

So, last year when I had to make a trip to Chicago, I wondered if I could go there...unfortunately, at that time, I was unable to visit the store...but I knew that if I went back to Chicago, I would make time to see this store...Eataly has a location in New York, but I never thought I would get to that location.

Recently, I was with another good friend (I hope he doesn't mind being featured in this blog) in New York, so I dragged him to Eataly's store...after experiencing this wondrous place, I am on the bandwagon for it to come to Toronto.

The recipe I've chosen to prepare is Vesuvio al Ragù di Salsiccia e Scarola (Vesuvio pasta with sausage Ragù and escarole)...I love a simple sauce cooked for several hours...the aroma that fills the kitchen, and rest of the house, imparts a comforting feeling that no matter what the weather (it's a cold and cloudy Sunday with snow flurries)...this recipes instructs to cook the Ragù for two hours, I can only think it will make a thick, flavourful Ragù...as usual, I've deviated somewhat from the recipe...Vesuvio pasta seems the perfect pasta for this Ragù because of its curly shape.

I did not use this pasta, instead I'm using polenta that I will grill...I thought polenta would make the dish more comforting and homey...I also didn't use escarole but arugula.

 

Unfortunately, I could not find a copy of the recipe online, but here is a picture of the recipe from the cookbook...if you want, contact me and I will email a copy to you.

 

 
 

Happy New Year everyone, I hope your Christmas and New Years was a joyous one.

I'm going to write about two of my favourite things: AnyList app and Food52.com.

When I started this blog, I also am glad I had an app for my recipes...I had been searching for an app, for the iPad, so that I could refer to when cooking...I'm not sure when I discovered AnyList, but I believe it's the best one for what I was looking for...I have been wanting a recipe app to upload recipes from websites because I didn't want to waste time manually imputting recipes onto my iPad...I also wanted an app that I could add a picture of the food to go with the recipe...AnyList has provided these features and a few more as a bonus...the recipes which are uploaded include a link to the website I got the recipe from...I can share the recipe with anyone who would like a copy...the app can create a grocery list from the ingredients as well as being able to add anything other items to the list...I can also add the recipe to a "collection" which mainly categorizes the recipe, like this recipe, I added it to main dishes and chicken...this feature is capable of adding a food type to the "collection", such as Asian, should I want to.

Being able to create a grocery list from the ingredients is a handy feature, especially if I'm cooking after getting home from work and I need to stop at the store first.

Food52.com is my second favourite thing...I am fortunate to have many friends who are foodies and one such friend told me of this site...Food52 also has a Facebook page...it was from the Facebook page that this recipe is from...I'm also looking for recipes that are quick, flavourful and easy to cook during the week and Food52 has provided me with this; however, this is the first recipe I've tried...I write this blog on Sundays because dinners on this day always seem familial to me...this recipe will be quick to cook as it's a stir fry, but the marinating time is 6 hours or more...I like cooking family meals on Sunday having the house filled with the aromas of the cooking food.

I love stir frys, not because it's quick to cook, but the various ingredients that can get used...cooking tip: frozen ginger...grating fresh ginger can be a pain, but grating frozen ginger is just so easy...when grating the frozen ginger, it looks like shaved ice and does not clog the grater making cleaning it so easy.

The recipe calls for pureeing the pineapple with the garlic and ginger (first, I used the food processor to chop up the garlic, then added the rest of the ingredients)...the liquids are added next; reserve some marinade to use once the cooking starts...the recipe has a lot liquid to spare...I added sesame seed oil only because I love this flavour.

 

What interested me into trying this recipe from Food52 was the use of molasses in the marinade...I utilize molasses when making a BBQ sauce, but I don't use it for any other recipe (ok, I will have to try making molasses cookies)...also the use of malt vinegar is interesting too...I did not add any sriracha because others in the house hold don't like spicy hot; however, you could add red pepper flakes if you didn't have sriracha...this is a no effort sweet and spicy stir fry and the marinade also works well with pork and salmon.

Not sure which veggie I will use with the chicken, broccoli, green beans? I will serve this over sticky rise; I love sticky rice...I once cooked sticky in unsweetened coconut milk, kafir lime leaves and garlic which imparted very aromatic flavours into the rice...I some chicken stock and saffron. 

I hope that if you try this recipe, be adventurous by adding ingredients throughout the recipe...Bon appétit.

Spicy Pineapple Chicken Stir Fry

• 8ounces pineapple
• 1/3cup soy sauce
• 1/3cup molasses
• 3tablespoons malt vinegar
• 1tablespoon ketchup
• 1tablespoon sriracha (this will be pretty mild, add more for extra heat)
• 2cloves garlic, crushed
• 1/2teaspoon grated ginger
• 2pounds chicken, cut into one inch cubes
• 3tablespoons vegetable oil
• Some red pepper flakes (optional)

1. In a blender pure the pineapple. Add the soy sauce, molasses, vinegar, ketchup, sriracha, garlic, and ginger, and mix well. Cover the chicken with the marinade and leave in the refrigerator for about six hours.
2. In a large sauté pan heat the oil until very hot. Place the chicken with the marinade that sticks to it in the pan and fry for about 15 minutes, until chicken is well done and marinade is reduce to a caramelized coating on the chicken. (Make sure you do not overcrowd the pan, so you may have to do this in batches. If you have any leftover marinade, deglaze the pain with it and reduce to thick sauce.) Serve with steamed rice.

Pot Roast: Is it the ultimate comfort dish?

"The weather outside is frightful"...it' cold, cloudy meaning dreary outside with snowflakes falling...what better way to spend an afternoon than cooking...these types of days speak to me of having comfort food for a Sunday dinner...growing up, I recall Mom usually cooking Sunday dinner and, especially during the winter, the meal consisted of something the made me feel warm and filling...the house is filled with the delicious aroma of the food being cooked...I hope those of you who are reading this blog have wonderful memories of Sunday dinners with your family...once my inner foodie kicked in as an adult, I love emulating these memories in our home...this more so with Christmas only weeks away.

 

The Good Housekeeping Illustrated Cookbook is the oldest cookbook in the collection...I actually think this is a cookbook that Tony had...I mainly use this cookbook because, at Christmas, which is the time of the year I cook a whole turkey, it has pretty accurate cooking times for poultry.

I had been thinking of cooking a pot roast for some time; it's been some time since I last cooked pot roast...I love the flavour of the meat,  how the potatoes and carrots absorb the flavours from the spices and liquid its cooking in...my biggest decision was whether to either make mashed potatoes or cook them with the meat...I chose to put the potatoes in the pot with the meat and carrots...I must admit that I varied how I'm cooking the meat from the recipe in the cookbook...there are many recipes for cooking pot roast, like this one...If you have a slow cooker, again there are many recipes, such as this one...however you decide to cook a pot roast, just make it flavourful and with lots of love...I kept my recipe fairly simple...first, I salt and peppered the meat, then seared both sides...I next sautéed onions with lots of garlic, deglazing with red wine.

 

I returned the meat to the pan and also prepared a sauce of balsamic vinegar, worchestershire sauce and BBQ sauce as well as filling the pan with (no salt added) beef stock...I nestled the potatoes and carrots in the pan along with fresh oregano, thyme and bay leaves tied with cheesecloth to easily remove it from the pan...I find doing this as opposed to chopping the herbs it a more effective way of infusing the flavours of the herbs into the sauce and food...I put a lid on the Dutch oven and into the oven at 325 degrees to slow cook for several hours...the house fills with the aroma, even upstairs...after several hours, or longer if you like, the meat is filled with all of the flavours and the potatoes and carrots, aside from being softened, are coloured and ever so tasty.

For a side, I made a salad...I was going to roast some cauliflower with cumin, but I'll leave that for another dish and time.
 
 Here is a pot roast recipe to use as a guide...try using different ingredients to make the recipe your own.

 

Ingredients

1 teaspoon olive oil 

1 (3-pound) boneless chuck roast, trimmed 

1 teaspoon kosher salt 

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 

2 cups coarsely chopped onion 

1 cup dry red wine 

4 thyme sprigs 

3 garlic cloves, chopped 

1 (14-ounce) can fat-free, less-sodium beef broth 

1 bay leaf 

4 large carrots, peeled and cut diagonally into 1-inch pieces 

2 pounds Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces 

Fresh thyme leaves (optional) 

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350º.

Heat olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Sprinkle chuck roast with salt and pepper. Add roast to pan; cook 5 minutes, turning to brown on all sides. Remove roast from pan. Add onion to pan; sauté 8 minutes or until tender.

Return browned roast to pan. Add the red wine, thyme sprigs, chopped garlic, beef broth, and bay leaf to pan; bring to a simmer. Cover pan and bake at 350° for 1 1/2 hours or until the roast is almost tender.

Add carrots and potatoes to pan. Cover and bake an additional 1 hour or until vegetables are tender. Remove thyme sprigs and bay leaf from pan; discard. Shred meat with 2 forks. Serve roast with vegetable mixture and cooking liquid. Garnish with thyme leaves, if desired.

 
 

Chicken Cacciatori

I've been thinking of cooking this dish for some time...the first time I had chicken Cacciatori, I asked my mother to cook it way back when I was a teen...now, I'm not sure when my foodie kicked in, but I know it was not when I was a teenager; especially my love of Italian food...Growing up, I was always around good food and cooks...my grandmother cooked for wealthy families in Chicago and the holidays, her home was filled with great food...my uncle was a phenomenal cook, having been a chef on a famous train line...my aunts must have have learned well from my grandmother...recently, my mother told me that she did not like cooking, however, when I asked for this dish, she found a way to make it for me...I'm not sure why I wanted chicken Cacciatori, but I'm glad Mom made it for me (she found a mix and the chicken was cooked in a cellophane bag, I recollect that it tasted good...I'm also not sure if I ever has chicken Cacciatori as an adult...it basically is stewed Italian chicken...I just know that I have never cooked this Cacciatori dish.

 

The other thing is the cookbook that I found the recipe in: Williams-Sonoma has its own line of cookbooks and they were sold in sets of 4 as well...I also went to their website for the recipe and it's slightly different than in the cookbook I have...but, you know me, I tend to very the recipe anyway...the online recipe uses bacon, I used pancetta, also bacon and I pity da fool who doesn't like bacon...I used red wine which is in the cookbook and little chicken stock, as in the online recipe...here is the online recipe...the recipe I'm using will be at the end of the blog.

If you don't know how to cut a whole chicken into its individual pieces, here is a video...I love using the Dutch oven when cooking dishes such as this one.

The string coming out is wrapped around the cheesecloth containing the sprigs of thyme and oregano...the recipe had the fresh thyme and oregano chopped, I wanted the essence of these spices infused in the sauce...I also simmered the chicken for a couple of hours which is longer than the recipes stated...as the chicken simmers, the aroma is filling the kitchen...I guess you could simmer this in the oven at 300 degrees for 2 hours.

I cooked two side with the Cacciatori: roasted potatoes with smoked paprika and lemon juice and cheddar biscuits with garlic...I thought the biscuits would be great for dipping in the sauce...please note that there will be lots of sauce that can get use elsewhere (such as with rice, pasta or polenta).

I must admit that I really had a fun time making this dish and I hope when you try this recipe, it's very tasty.

Chicken Cacciatore with Polenta

 

Cuisine: Italian

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 4 chicken thighs and 4 drumsticks, bone-in, skin-on
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tbs olive oil
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 1 medium orange bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• 1 medium yellow bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• 10 oz fresh cremini or white button mushrooms, brushed clean
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• ⅛ teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 cup hearty red wine
• 1 can (28 oz) diced tomatoes, drained
• 1 tsp ground dried porcini mushrooms
• 1 cup non-instant polenta (coarse cornmeal), cooked

Instructions

1. Sprinkle the chicken pieces with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot, add the chicken pieces, four at a time to avoid over-crowding - and fry until both sides are browned, about 5 minutes on each side. Repeat with the remaining chicken and transfer to a plate.
2. Add the onion and bell pepper and saute over medium heat for 5 minutes, until softened. Add the mushrooms and garlic and saute another 5 minutes until the mushrooms are tender. Add the dried herbs and red pepper flakes.
3. Add the red wine and bring it to a boil over heat heat until the liquid is reduced by half, about 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes and ground porcini mushrooms. Stir to combine and return to a boil. Return the chicken to the Dutch oven and cover. Reduce the heat to medium low and simmer for 30 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through, showing no signs of pink when cut into near the bone.
4. Transfer the chicken to a warmed platter and cover with aluminum foil to keep warm. Return the sauce to a boil over high heat and cook until it has thickened a little, 3-5 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.
5. Dish out the polenta onto four plates, arrange two pieces of chicken on top of each serving of polenta, and spoon the sauce and vegetables over the chicken and polenta. Serve immediately.

 

 

Chocolate Brownies

I'm sorry for not having posted any cooking blogs and for the shortness of this blog...I just wanted to write something today that gives me pleasure.

I have always like chocolate, however, I'm not sure when I started loving brownies...I don't remember having them as a child, teenager or young adult...but truly fancy them now...diets be damned if I get cravings for brownies...I'm also fussy about the brownies I like (I can already hear the "no, really" comments)...I prefer the chewy, gooey kind, especially with nuts, either pecans or walnuts...not a big fan of the cake type brownies; if I want chocolate cake, I'll bake a cake...before I started making brownies from scratch, I used a boxed mix - it's quick and easier - but I really like making them from scratch; melting the chocolate, mixing the ingredients, licking the bowl.

The recipe I use Is from Baking Illustrated by Cook's Illustrated...unfortunately, their recipe is only available from their website if you subscribe to the magazine...however, I was able to find the Baking Illustrated recipe here.

For baking, I always for the ingredient amounts; however, some techniques I will improvise...such as melting the butter and dark chocolate; I did not melt them in a heat proof bowl over water as the recipe says, I melted them in a nonstick pot, watching carefully that the mixture did not burn...I also did not melt both the semisweet and dark chocolate, I saved the semisweet for the batter so it will melt while baking...I wish I had some nuts to put into the batter, but I'm hoping for a molten chocolate experience with these brownies.

I usually bake the mixture for 25 minutes, then using a toothpick, I test to see if the brownies are how I want them...not cake brownies, just molten goodness...this usually will take about another 2 to 3 minutes longer....I love how the brownies smell and it's filling the kitchen air with chocolate.

See the brownie crumbs on the end of the cake tester, this is what I'm looking for...gave Mother the first piece of, as she said, "warm brownie, hmm, hmm, hmm."