RSS Feed
Twitter
Posts
9:43 AM
Unknown
We'll have two "Christmas" dinners this year, one on Christmas day and another on New Year's Eve when my daughter, Helen, Will, and granddaughter, Grace come into town. For the Christmas dinner on Christmas day I decided to make an non-traditional dinner since no one wanted anything roasted or stuffed. We used to go to a wonderful restaurant called Cafe Soleil in Azle and have tenderloin steak with a pepper sauce and Steve, Alexandra, and I loved it.
Someone suggested we have that for our Christmas dinner. I was happy to oblige so our menu for Christmas:
Appetizer: Snow crab legs with cocktail sauce
Salad: Red leaf lettuce and romaine with herb goat cheese, spicy pecans, dates, and balsamic vinaigrette
Entree: Grilled tenderloin steaks with potato hash and beer pepper sauce
Dessert: Tres Leches Creme Brulee
The appetizer was something that happened by chance. As I was waiting in line at the seafood counter at Central Market I saw a worker bring out a huge pile of very plump snow crab. It looked better than any I've seen in ages so I bought 3 pounds of it. I picked up their house made cocktail sauce. (I'm tired and a short cut is OK sometimes.) I heated the crab in the oven, served it on a big platter and we all stood around and ate it at the counter. The big, plump pieces of crab were sweet and perfect.
I love the salad I made. This is my favorite salad of all time and I change it up depending on what I have. I make the salad dressing a lot and use it for my work lunches. I don't buy much bottled dressing anymore because homemade tastes so much better.
Mixed Greens with Balsamic Vinaigrette, dried fruit, and cheese
A good salad has crispy greens, somethings sweet, something savory, something crunchy, and some acid. (I learned that in culinary school and it's so true.)
Ingredients
Lettuce: (I always have organic red leaf lettuce, my personal favorite. This time I also used organice romaine, but I have also used mixed field greens.) Wash the lettuce and spin it dry.
If you don't have a salad spinner, it's a great gadget to have. You dry the lettuce in it and it you store your torn and dried lettuce in the container with the lid it will keep crispy and fresh for days. This is where I keep my week's worth of lettuce for lunches and dinners.
Cheese: I use feta or goat cheese, sometimes Parmesan. Feta and goat have less fat than regular cheese and a sharper taste that stands up to the dressing. When I have time I mix some fresh herbs into the goat cheese and make a log. This is also great in omelets or just on crackers. A few crumbles of cheese is all you need.
Nuts: I make spiced pecans a lot since I have a freezer full of fresh pecans from San Saba, Texas. Just take a handful of pecans and place in a baking pan. Add a tablespoon of olive oil, sprinkle some sugar, cumin, chili powder, cayenne pepper, and salt and bake for 5-7 minutes at 350 degrees.
Just a few pecan halves is all you need. You could also use plain toasted walnuts or almonds.
Sweets: I usually have a bag of dried cranberries or raisins. I looked in my pantry and only found dates this time, so I cut them up and they tasted great. But, I usually use cranberries.
Dressing:
Balsamic Vinaigrette
1 clove garlic, minced and mashed into a paste
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
1 T honey
2 T red wine vinegar
2 T Modena balsamic vinegar
1 T lemon juice
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4-1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
Mix the garlic, mustard, honey, vinegars, lemon juice and salt together in a bowl or food processor. If doing this my hand, add a few drops of oil and whisk briskly to combine the oil and vinegar. Keep adding a small amount of oil until the dressing appears emulisfied, otherwise it will separate quickly. You can also just do this in the food processor or shake it in a jar.
It will keep for 3 or 4 days.
Chill your salad plates, toss the lettuce with dressing (go easy on the dressing--you can always bring a little extra to the table for those who like to drown their salad in dressing (my husband))
Sprinkle the cheese, pecans, and dates on the salad. Enjoy!
Grilled tenderloin steaks with beer pepper sauce:
The sauce:
I don't know how Paula Ambrose of Cafe Soleil made her sauce but mine is pretty good, although not as good as hers. She wouldn't give me her recipe but she told me it involved beer, beef broth, and peppers. I roasted a jalapeno pepper and a habanero pepper but my first attempt was way too hot, so I started over with just a roasted jalapeno pepper, chopped and sauteed with a shallot and some garlic, a bottle of Shiner Bock, and about 4 cups of beef stock. Reduce this down by over half, strain it, and add a little fresh ground pepper. I added some butter mixed in flour (about a teaspoon) at the end. The sauce can be made in advance and heated up later.
For the steaks, sprinkle with salt and pepper, a little olive oil, and let sit out for an hour.
Grill on a hot grill, 3-4 minutes per side, depending on thickness.
The potato hash:
3-4 large russet potatoes, diced
3-4 pieces bacon ( I used applewood smoked, nitrate free, Pedersen Farms)
1/2 onion, chopped
Cook bacon drain well, cut into 1/2 inch pieces and set aside. Heat a large skillet and add 2 T of olive oil to skillet. Fry the potatoes and onions until the potatoes are tender.
Serve steak with potatoes, sauce, and a couple fried onion strips.
I made the onion strips by dipping onions into flour, egg, and panko. Fry at 350 degrees in a couple inches of oil. Remove and drain on paper towels.
Tres Leches Creme Brulee
I planned to make creme brulee for dessert and in looking through my recipe collection came upon a recipe from Bonnell's Fine Texas Cuisine. I had this creme brulee at Bonnell's a long time ago and really loved it so I requested the recipe via e-mail. They were kind enough to send it.
10 ounces heavy cream
3 ounces sweetened condensed milk
3 ounces evaporated milk
1/2 vanilla bean, scraped
4 egg yolks
4 ounces brown sugar
1 pinch of salt
In a medium saucepan, heat cream, sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk, and half the sugar and vanilla. Bring to a boil, then turn off the heat.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the other half of the sugar, salt and eggs until smooth. While whisking vigorously pour the hot cream mixture into the bowl with the eggs and sugar very gradually. Begin with a few drops, then slowly increase the flow of hot cream. Strain the mixture so there are no lumps. Pour into 8 ounce ramekins. Place the ramekins in a baking dish, then fill the dish with water halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Cover loosely with foil and bake at 325 degrees for 45 minutes (or until they have set) Refrigerate until cool.
Just prior to serving sprinkle a teaspoon of sugar over the top of each one and spread out evenly. Burn the sugar with a blowtorch until light brown. Top with a few fresh berries and serve.
Someone suggested we have that for our Christmas dinner. I was happy to oblige so our menu for Christmas:
Appetizer: Snow crab legs with cocktail sauce
Salad: Red leaf lettuce and romaine with herb goat cheese, spicy pecans, dates, and balsamic vinaigrette
Entree: Grilled tenderloin steaks with potato hash and beer pepper sauce
Dessert: Tres Leches Creme Brulee
The appetizer was something that happened by chance. As I was waiting in line at the seafood counter at Central Market I saw a worker bring out a huge pile of very plump snow crab. It looked better than any I've seen in ages so I bought 3 pounds of it. I picked up their house made cocktail sauce. (I'm tired and a short cut is OK sometimes.) I heated the crab in the oven, served it on a big platter and we all stood around and ate it at the counter. The big, plump pieces of crab were sweet and perfect.
I love the salad I made. This is my favorite salad of all time and I change it up depending on what I have. I make the salad dressing a lot and use it for my work lunches. I don't buy much bottled dressing anymore because homemade tastes so much better.
Mixed Greens with Balsamic Vinaigrette, dried fruit, and cheese
A good salad has crispy greens, somethings sweet, something savory, something crunchy, and some acid. (I learned that in culinary school and it's so true.)
Ingredients
Lettuce: (I always have organic red leaf lettuce, my personal favorite. This time I also used organice romaine, but I have also used mixed field greens.) Wash the lettuce and spin it dry.
If you don't have a salad spinner, it's a great gadget to have. You dry the lettuce in it and it you store your torn and dried lettuce in the container with the lid it will keep crispy and fresh for days. This is where I keep my week's worth of lettuce for lunches and dinners.
Cheese: I use feta or goat cheese, sometimes Parmesan. Feta and goat have less fat than regular cheese and a sharper taste that stands up to the dressing. When I have time I mix some fresh herbs into the goat cheese and make a log. This is also great in omelets or just on crackers. A few crumbles of cheese is all you need.
Nuts: I make spiced pecans a lot since I have a freezer full of fresh pecans from San Saba, Texas. Just take a handful of pecans and place in a baking pan. Add a tablespoon of olive oil, sprinkle some sugar, cumin, chili powder, cayenne pepper, and salt and bake for 5-7 minutes at 350 degrees.
Just a few pecan halves is all you need. You could also use plain toasted walnuts or almonds.
Sweets: I usually have a bag of dried cranberries or raisins. I looked in my pantry and only found dates this time, so I cut them up and they tasted great. But, I usually use cranberries.
Dressing:
Balsamic Vinaigrette
1 clove garlic, minced and mashed into a paste
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
1 T honey
2 T red wine vinegar
2 T Modena balsamic vinegar
1 T lemon juice
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4-1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
Mix the garlic, mustard, honey, vinegars, lemon juice and salt together in a bowl or food processor. If doing this my hand, add a few drops of oil and whisk briskly to combine the oil and vinegar. Keep adding a small amount of oil until the dressing appears emulisfied, otherwise it will separate quickly. You can also just do this in the food processor or shake it in a jar.
It will keep for 3 or 4 days.
Chill your salad plates, toss the lettuce with dressing (go easy on the dressing--you can always bring a little extra to the table for those who like to drown their salad in dressing (my husband))
Sprinkle the cheese, pecans, and dates on the salad. Enjoy!
Grilled tenderloin steaks with beer pepper sauce:
The sauce:
I don't know how Paula Ambrose of Cafe Soleil made her sauce but mine is pretty good, although not as good as hers. She wouldn't give me her recipe but she told me it involved beer, beef broth, and peppers. I roasted a jalapeno pepper and a habanero pepper but my first attempt was way too hot, so I started over with just a roasted jalapeno pepper, chopped and sauteed with a shallot and some garlic, a bottle of Shiner Bock, and about 4 cups of beef stock. Reduce this down by over half, strain it, and add a little fresh ground pepper. I added some butter mixed in flour (about a teaspoon) at the end. The sauce can be made in advance and heated up later.
For the steaks, sprinkle with salt and pepper, a little olive oil, and let sit out for an hour.
Grill on a hot grill, 3-4 minutes per side, depending on thickness.
The potato hash:
3-4 large russet potatoes, diced
3-4 pieces bacon ( I used applewood smoked, nitrate free, Pedersen Farms)
1/2 onion, chopped
Cook bacon drain well, cut into 1/2 inch pieces and set aside. Heat a large skillet and add 2 T of olive oil to skillet. Fry the potatoes and onions until the potatoes are tender.
Serve steak with potatoes, sauce, and a couple fried onion strips.
I made the onion strips by dipping onions into flour, egg, and panko. Fry at 350 degrees in a couple inches of oil. Remove and drain on paper towels.
Tres Leches Creme Brulee
I planned to make creme brulee for dessert and in looking through my recipe collection came upon a recipe from Bonnell's Fine Texas Cuisine. I had this creme brulee at Bonnell's a long time ago and really loved it so I requested the recipe via e-mail. They were kind enough to send it.
10 ounces heavy cream
3 ounces sweetened condensed milk
3 ounces evaporated milk
1/2 vanilla bean, scraped
4 egg yolks
4 ounces brown sugar
1 pinch of salt
In a medium saucepan, heat cream, sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk, and half the sugar and vanilla. Bring to a boil, then turn off the heat.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the other half of the sugar, salt and eggs until smooth. While whisking vigorously pour the hot cream mixture into the bowl with the eggs and sugar very gradually. Begin with a few drops, then slowly increase the flow of hot cream. Strain the mixture so there are no lumps. Pour into 8 ounce ramekins. Place the ramekins in a baking dish, then fill the dish with water halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Cover loosely with foil and bake at 325 degrees for 45 minutes (or until they have set) Refrigerate until cool.
Just prior to serving sprinkle a teaspoon of sugar over the top of each one and spread out evenly. Burn the sugar with a blowtorch until light brown. Top with a few fresh berries and serve.
0 comments:
Post a Comment