Meat

Beef Bolognese Sauce

This is not your momma’s meat sauce. Well it might be, but the possibility of that is highly unlikely. This is certainly not a marinara sauce with some meat casually tossed in. This is a rich, creamy and satisfying beef bolognese sauce. There are a couple differences between this deliciousness and your average meat sauce. The beef bolognese here before you includes rehydrated porcini mushrooms along with their soaking liquid, which becomes a light mushroom stock. We learned from the mushroom overload cheddar burgers posted earlier this week that these babies are mushroom gold when adding a decadent earthiness to beef.

Second is that the milk added cuts the acid of the tomato base and brings a great creaminess to the sauce without overloading it with fat like a traditional cream sauce. Finally, all the different steps- the processing, the sauteing, the eating-with-a-spoon-but-someone-needs-to-taste-test-it-ing- may seem like a lot of work, but once you ravishingly start into that first bite of bolognese coated pasta it will all be worth it. The original recipe calls for using a meatball mixture, typically consisting of beef, pork and veal, but feel free to use whatever you prefer. Or is readily available in your grocery store as was my case.

Beef Bolognese Sauce
 
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Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients
  • ½ cup water
  • ½ ounce dried porcini mushrooms
  • 1¼ cups white wine
  • 1 small carrot, peeled and cut into ½ inch pieces
  • ⅓ cup finely chopped onion
  • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1 garlic clove, minced
  • 1¼ pounds ground beef
  • 1½ cups whole milk
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
  • Salt and pepper
Directions
  1. Microwave the water until hot. Add the dried mushrooms and let rehydrate for 10 minutes. Using a fine mesh strainer set over a small bowl drain the mushrooms making sure to reserve the liquid. Set aside.
  2. In a small skillet over medium heat cook the wine until it has reduced to about 2 tablespoons, about 20 minutes. Set aside.
  3. While the wine is reducing use a food processor to finely grind the rehydrated porcini mushrooms. Add the carrot and pulse until the carrot pieces are smaller than a chop, but larger than a mince. Add the onion and pulse until combined.
  4. Heat a large pot over medium high heat. Melt the butter then stir in the mushroom, carrot and onion mixture. Cook until the vegetables are soft.
  5. Add the sugar and minced garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Add the ground beef and cook for 1 minute, making sure to break apart the meat with a wooden spoon. Stir in the milk and continue breaking apart the meat. Once the milk begins to bubble, reduce to medium low heat.
  6. Continue to cook the ground meat, making sure to break up the meat often, for 20 minutes. Once the meat has begun to sizzle, stir in the tomato paste to combine. Add the can of crushed tomatoes, reserved mushroom liquid, ¼ teaspoon salt and ⅛ teaspoon pepper.
  7. Cook for another 15 minutes then stir in the reduced wine. Cook for a couple more minutes then remove from the heat. Serve hot over pasta or store in the fridge for 2 days or the freezer for 2 months.

 

Main Dishes, Meat, Pasta, Recipes, Sauces 0 Comments

Grilled Steak and Peach Salad with Homemade Blue Cheese Dressing

I am not a huge fan of having a salad as an entrée. Maybe it’s because salads get a bad rap as diet food. Maybe it’s because it’s ingrained in my brain that dinner should be a hot meal. Or maybe it’s because munching on all that lettuce makes me feel a bit like a rabbit.

But sometimes between the pasta dishes and batches of peanut butter apple bars you just need a fresh break. All the recent baking and experimenting in the kitchen left me craving a salad. Of all things. Unbelievable.

This grilled steak and peach salad did not disappoint. Peach season is ending, but there’s still time to take advantage of this sweet fleshy fruit before it’s gone from grocery stores until next summer. Peaches are delicious, but grilled peaches are like a whole new species. The outer flesh caramelizes and develops a light smoky taste while the inner peach juices form a syrupy concentrate. For those of you who have not grilled peaches before, I apologize for sharing this secret at the end of peach season.

Between the succulent grilled peaches, the tender steak and the creamy mild dressing this salad made me forget all about my salad doubts. And I didn’t even think about rabbits once.

Grilled Steak and Peach Salad with Easy Homemade Blue Cheese Dressing
 
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Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients
for the steak
  • 1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon brown sugar
  • ¼ teaspoon onion powder
  • ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
  • ¼ teaspoon paprika
  • ⅛ teaspoon cayenne powder
  • ⅛ teaspoon mustard seeds
  • salt and pepper
  • 1 pound sirloin tips
for the dressing
  • ½ pound cambozola cheese crumbles, or another mild blue cheese of your choosing
  • ⅓ cup light sour cream
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon honey
  • 2 teaspoons minced fresh chives
  • 1 teaspoon pesto
for the salad
  • 2 peaches, halved and pitted
  • 4 cups mixed romaine, raddicchio and butter lettuce, or the greens of your choosing
  • 1½ cups grape tomatoes, halved
  • ¼ of a red onion, thinly sliced
Directions
  1. Place the steak in a shallow dish. Whisk together the first 9 ingredients in a small bowl then pour over the steak. Cover and refrigerate overnight, or for at least three hours. Remove the marinated steak from the fridge about 30 minutes before cooking.
  2. Heat a grill pan over medium-high heat and let it get hot. Place the steak tips on the grill pan, being sure not to crowd the pan, and let them cook 5-6 minutes per side for medium depending on the thickness of the tips. Remove to a cutting board and let rest for 10 minutes before cutting into thin slices.
  3. While the steaks are cooking make the dressing. Put half the blue cheese into a small mixing bowl with the sour cream, lemon juice, vinegar, honey, chives and pesto. Cover and chill until ready to serve.
  4. While the steak is resting, finish the salad. Brush the cut side of the peaches with extra-virgin olive oil then place them cut side down over a grill pan on medium-high heat. Grill the peaches for 3 minutes then flip and grill the other side for one minute. Remove from the heat and let cool slightly. Once peaches are cool enough to touch, slice into wedges.
  5. Toss the greens, grape tomato halves and red onion slices in a large bowl. Divide onto the four plates then top with the sliced steak, peach wedges, dressing and the remaining blue cheese crumbles.

Recipe adapted from September 2013 issue of Food Network Magazine.

Main Dishes, Meat, Recipes, Soups & Salads 0 Comments

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