French Onion Steak

This is a Rachael Ray recipe.  It is probably one of Matthew's favorite things that I've ever made.  It calls for London Broil, but I used flank steak when I made it, and we actually grilled it instead of broiling it.   And yes, this is a pretty involved recipe, so I've only made it once, and will probably only make it for special occasions. But it was so good!

Ingredients

• 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO), divided plus additional
• 4 tablespoons butter, divided
• 3 softball-size yellow onions, thinly sliced
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tablespoon ground dry thyme
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 London Broil (about 2 to 3 pounds, one that is large enough for 4 people)
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1/2 cup chicken stock
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 cup shredded gruyere cheese

Preheat oven to broil.

In a large sauté pan over medium-high heat, heat 2 tablespoons EVOO and 2 tablespoons butter. When the butter is melted, add the sliced onions, bay leaf, thyme, salt and freshly ground black pepper and cook until caramelized, about 15 minutes, or until melted down, brown and sweet.

While the onions are cooking, place steak on a broiler pan and generously coat it with EVOO, salt, and freshly ground black pepper. Broil under the broiler for 10 minutes or until cooked to desired doneness. When done, remove and let the steak rest to let the juices return to the center of the meat, about 5 minutes.

In a medium-size skillet over medium-high heat, melt remaining 2 tablespoons of butter. Add flour to the melted butter and cook about 1 minute. Whisk in chicken stock and milk and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Let it come up to a bubble and thicken then turn off the heat. Add the cheese and stir in a figure-eight motion until mixed.

Slice the steak and place on a platter. Pile the onions on top and pour the cheese sauce over the top.

Green beans are a great side dish for this!

Fresh Corn Salad

My hubby found this in a farm magazine we get. I tried it over the weekend and it was SO good. You can change the proportions however you want (and K, you can leave out the onion...).

5 ears fresh corn

4 cups cherry tomatoes, halved

1/2 cup red onion, chopped

3 Tbs apple cider vinegar

4 Tbs extra virgin olive oil

6 Tbs fresh basil, finely chopped

salt

pepper

In a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook the corn for 3 minutes or until the starchiness is just gone. Drain and immerse the corn in ice water to stop the cooking and set the color. When the corn is cool, cut the kernels off the cob.

Toss the kernels in a large bowl with tomatoes, onions, vinegar and olive oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Just before serving, toss in fresh basil. Serve cold or at room temperature.

Pizza Dough (Whole Wheat if you want)

1 tsp. yeast
1 tsp. sugar
1 cup warm water

2 T oil
2 1/4 cups flour (1 cup whole wheat and 1 1/4 cup white)

Put yeast, sugar and warm water in mixing bowl. Let foam for about 10 minutes. Then add rest of ingredients and mix with dough hook (I have a KitchenAid mixer so I don't know if all mixers have a dough hook. But you can just knead it by hand too) Mix until a dough ball forms that doesn't stick to the side. Let rise 30 minutes to 1 hour. Take dough out. Roll into whatever shape you want for you crust and put on pizza sheet. Add toppings and bake for 15 minutes or until cheese is melted.

*I found it better to bake the crust for about 5 minutes first and then add the toppings and bake. That way it didn't get soggy.

becker barbequed shrimp

This is the recipe I mentioned in the post I did about shrimp being on sale. The recipe says that you should use 16-20 medium-to-large shrimp, but I used 2 lbs, and I didn't double any of the other ingredients. There was still plenty of sauce/broth for the shrimp.

2 tsp dried rosemary (I only use 1 b/c I'm not big on rosemary)
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 tsp sweet paprika (I used regular--not sure if it was sweet)
1 tsp whole black peppercorns
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup butter
4 cloves garlic, minced
shrimp (however much you want to make)
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup beer
2 tbs minced parsley (I didn't add this)
2 tbs fresh lemon juice

Grind the first 6 ingredients in a spice mill or coffee grinder. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add spice mixture and garlic. Cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Add shrimp and cook for 4-5 minutes. Remove shrimp from pan and add chicken broth and beer. Bring to a boil over high heat and cook for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes. Turn off the heat and return the shrimp to the pan to heat through. Season with parsley and lemon juice. Serve. (Be forewarned that this recipe packs a bit of heat. We don't like really spicy foods, and we don't think it's too bad though. It just might make your nose run just a bit.)
Now I'm off to make Erin's Mexican Polenta Pie. Mmm....

grilled bananas

This recipe is a new-found personal favorite of mine. I'm not sure when this started, but I now have this very bad habit of needing something sweet after dinner. I have found that I often end up making a dessert when I'm home to cook, especially during the school year since homemade meals were somewhat rare, and I wanted to go all out. So I've been on a hunt for healthy-ish dessert options. My work friend Yvonne introduced me to this little gem. So good, so easy, and not too bad for you....

4 bananas (or however many you want to make)
1 tbs veggie oil
1 tbs butter
3 tbs honey (the recipe calls for molasses, but I'm just not a fan)

Slice bananas length-wise in the peel. Brush both sides w/ oil to prevent them from sticking to the grill. Place on grill banana-side-down first for 3-4 minutes. Turn over and grill for another 4-5 minutes. (My grill said the heat was about 350 degrees.) Melt butter and honey together in the microwave. Remove bananas from the grill and drizzle honey mixture over them. I served them in the peel, and we just scooped them out as we went. This will sound weird, but they were so juicy!

chicken pesto pizza

I made some yummy pesto (Jocelyn's recipe) and was trying to figure out what I could make with it besides my Pesto Ravioli with Chicken recipe. So this is what I came up with...Chicken Pesto Pizza.

ingredients:

• one whole wheat homemade pizza crust (if you're interested in the recipe I can post it)
• pesto
• grilled chicken cut into thin slices
• chopped fresh mushroom
• chopped fresh tomato
• mozzarella cheese

Just top the crust with a thin layer of pesto. Add chicken, mushrooms and tomato. Then top with cheese. Bake at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes.

7-Layer Mexican dip

The Deans had us over for a Cinco de Mayo celebration last night. I brought this dip, cause it's one of my favorite fiesta-type indulgences. I'm sure that all of you foodies have made the 7-layer dip before, but mine is a little tweaked for more flavor... and I'm also just posting it here so I can be reminded of it, if I need an idea!

Layer in a dish:

1 can Refried beans- mixed w/half a packet of taco seasoning
1 can Green chilis
1 can chopped black olives (I always leave these out... cause I just don't like 'em)
Sour cream- enough to cover
Guacamole - enough to cover (sometimes I just chop up avocado if I don't feel like making it...)
Chopped tomato - mixed with salsa and/or taco sauce. I always add a bunch of salsa cause I really don't like a dry dip!
Grated cheddar cheese- enough to cover

Refrigerate and serve w/chips.

Sorry I forgot to take a picture...

Pecan-Crusted Chicken Salad

This is a salad at O'Charley's that I just love...so I decided to try and make it at home.

1 bag mixed greens
3-4 pcs. of skinless, boneless chicken
1 small can mandarin oranges
craisins (however many you want)
1 (4 oz.) container feta cheese
candied pecans
chopped pecans
buttermilk
flour
balsamic vinaigrette

First I cut the chicken up and dredged in the buttermilk and then the flour with the chopped pecans. I cooked the chicken in oil on the stove in a large non-stick skillet. Then you pretty much toss everything into a bowl - toss some more and serve. This would make about 3-4 servings.

To make the candied pecans I used a large non-stick skillet
first line a baking sheet with tin foil and butter the foil.
Put the following ingredients into the skillet
1 1/2 cups of pecans
1/2 tsp. of vanilla
2 tbls. butter
1/2 cup sugar
Cook over med-high heat, shake skillet occasionally, until sugar begins to melt. Do not stir.
Reduce heat to low. Continue cooking until sugar is golden brown, stirring occasionally. Remove skillet from heat. Pour nut mixture onto the prepared baking sheet. Cool completely. Break into clusters. Store tightly covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 weeks.

This turned out so yummy! I do wish that I had a fryer - I think that would have made the chicken taste more like O'Charleys...mine turned out pretty good.