Beef & Lamb Kofta Kabobs

I love ground meat. All kinds of ground meat. Turkey, beef, lamb, chicken, I love them all. Shepherd's Pie, meatballs, hamburgers, chili, sloppy joe's, meatloaf, tacos, lasagna; really, I can go on and on! I love the different ways to spice the meat and that it's an incredibly versatile ingredient.

Beef & Lamb Kofta Kabobs

During a recent trip to Istanbul, we tried many different Kofta Kabobs. Twice a day for 5 days and one day I tried three different kinds. It was research people, RESEARCH! I'm willing to eat for my craft. Kofta mixtures are as different as the people who make them. Some are more mild, while others have a heavy coriander flavor and yet others are incredibly spicy. I think that I've measured out a flavorful blend of spices that doesn't overpower the palate with any particular flavor and isn't too hot. Feel free to modify it to your personal taste!

Enjoy!

All ingredients mixed together in one bowl

Form flatish logs, about 4" long, around two pre-soaked wooden skewers
(so that the skewers don't burn on the grill)

Ready for the grill!

Preheated your grill
(I used an indoor cast iron grill that goes over two burners)

Serve with a tangy Greek yogurt dipping sauce!

Beef & Lamb Kofta Kabobs
My favorite picture of the bunch ;)

Beef & Lamb Kofta Kabobs

Makes approximately 20 kabobs

Ingredients

2 pounds ground beef
1 pound ground lamb
1 small white onion, grated
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup flat leaf parsley (tightly packed), finely chopped
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp ground ginger (or 1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger)
freshly ground black pepper
kosher salt

40 wooden skewers, soaked in cold water for 20-30 minutes

Directions

1. In a large bowl mix all ingredients together.
2. Make small flat-ish logs, about 4" long, out of the mince meat mixture and wrap them tightly around two wooden skewers.
3. Preheat grill on medium/high. (Outdoor charcoal grills work best, but these kabobs were made on an indoor stovetop grill and were fabulous!) and cook kebabs, about 4 minutes on each side.

Eat, Drink & Be Yummy!

Rainbow Vegetable Meatloaf

Meatloaf wasn't a staple food when I was growing up. We had something similar called "katleti". Consider a "katleta" to be a mini-meatloaf. It could be made with any kind of ground meat and usually had ground onion in it and a binder (egg and breadcrumbs). They're formed into small hamburger-patty-like shapes and are gently fried on a skillet. My mom would make large batches of katleti and it would take her the better part of a weekend morning.

Following suit, when my son started eating table food, I would make katleti. And my goodness, they were so time consuming! Plus, they really didn't pack as much nutrition as I'd like them to. So I went the American route and started making meatloaf (enough for a family!) and adding whatever vegetables that I had on hand. 

Rainbow Meatloaf with a side of asparagus
(this batch was made with carrots, yellow peppers and zucchini)

Meatloaf is so forgiving and so flexible; another reason to love it! I try to pack as many vegetables into the meatloaf as possible. Staying away from red meat and want to make it with ground turkey? Fantastic. Have extra broccoli or cauliflower? Great, throw them in!  Hard vegetables like onions, peppers and carrots need to be sauteed for a few minutes, but soft vegetables like shredded zucchini are added directly to the raw meat.  

Hint to hide ALL vegetables: To make the vegetables invisible: saute all of the vegetables until they've softened. Using an immersion blender (or a regular blender) puree until smooth. Try not to add any additional liquid. 

Rainbow of vegetables waiting to go into the meatloaf!
(clockwise from left: diced red bell peppers, coarsely shredded zucchini, TJ's shredded carrots and diced onion)

Saute the "hard" vegetables to soften them up a bit. In this recipe, it's the onions, peppers and carrots.

While the sauteed vegetables are cooling down, throw all of the other ingredients into a large bowl. I love one bowl wonders!

Mushed beauty! A bit fuzzy, but you can still see the rainbow! ;)

Form into a loaf shape on a baking sheet and cover with glaze.

Rainbow Meatloaf with Carrots, Zucchini and Peppers

Rainbow Vegetable Meatloaf

Serves 8
Adapted from Bobby Flay

Ingredients

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 medium onion, diced
2 small zucchini, Coarsely shredded
1 large red bell pepper, finely diced

8 ounces TJ's shredded carrots (About 2 large carrots. If you shred your own, no need to saute them because they're thin enough to bake through.)
5 cloves crushed garlic
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
2 large eggs
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
2 pounds lean ground beef (90 or 95 percent lean)
1 cup panko (coarse Japanese breadcrumbs)
1/2 cup freshly grated Romano or Parmesan cheese
3/4 cup ketchup
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

Directions

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. 

1. Heat the oil in a large saute pan over high heat. Add the onions, bell peppers and  carrots. 

2. Season with salt and pepper and cook until the vegetables are almost soft, about 5 minutes. Set aside to cool.

3. In the meantime, in a large bowl add the beef, zucchini, garlic, parsley, panko, parmesan cheese, 1/2 cup ketchup and 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar. Add the sauteed vegetables once they've cooled down. Mix until just combined.
4. On a foil lined baking sheet, place the meat and form into a loaf. 

5. Whisk the remaining 1/4 cup ketchup, 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar in a small bowl; brush the mixture over the entire loaf. 

6. Bake for 1 hour. Let rest for 10 minutes before slicing.

Eat, Drink & Be Yummy!

Turkey Chili with Black Beans and Corn

I love the heartiness of chili during cold weather. Not only is it comforting and filling, but it's also as flexible as I need it to be. Meat substitutions are easy with chili as are vegetable swaps! If you don't like corn, swap it out or omit it completely. You can also adjust the spiciness of the chili to your liking. I keep the main pot mild so that everyone can enjoy it and those that like it hot add sriracha or Frank's Red Hot to their individual bowls.

Turkey Chili with Black Beans and Corn

Turkey Chili with Black Beans and Corn

Serves a small army

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil, divided

2 pounds ground turkey

1 large onion, diced

2 red peppers, diced

2 carrots, diced

3 large cans (28 ounce) diced or pureed tomatoes (Tuttarosso or similar)

3 cans of black beans

2 cups frozen corn

1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon paprika
1 tablespoon garlic
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Kosher salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. In a 7 1/4 quart cast iron pot (or similar heavy bottom pot) heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil.
2. Brown ground turkey, remove from pot. 
3. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil to pot and heat.
4. Saute onion until softened, about 4-5 minutes.
5. Add red peppers and carrots. Saute until softened, about 3-4 minutes. (If your vegetables are sticking to the bottom of the pot, add 2 tablespoons of water or chicken stock.)
6. Add diced tomatoes (I'm partial to Tuttarosso), beans, corn and seasonings. Bring to a boil. Then cover and let simmer on low for at least 20 minutes and up to 5 hours.
7. Taste and adjust salt and pepper as needed.
Optional: serve over rice of your choice... with or without sour cream

Eat, Drink & Be Yummy!

Braised Oxtail with Oyster Mushrooms over Creamy Polenta

A former colleague and great friend gave me ad hoc at home a few years ago. The photographs are stunning. The writing flows easily and matches the ease that family styled recipes should have. Although I can probably recite the contents of the book from memory, I've never made a recipe. I'm so enamoured with the photos that the doubt in my mind yells at me saying "but what if it doesn't LOOK like Thomas Keller's creation?!!"  If I was going to make something from the book, it would have to be something that I wouldn't be able to compare to the photo.  A picture-less recipe!! I would make this creation and photograph it, to create my own visual standard to live up to!

Braised Oxtail with Oyster Mushrooms over Creamy Polenta

Enter Braised Oxtail and Mushroom Tartine. Immediately, I knew that I'd be replacing the tartine part of the recipe with a creamy polenta because this was going to be the entree at my dinner party. I love oxtail, but have never cooked it myself.  It took almost an entire day to prepare, but the work was well worth the effort.

THE Tome

Searing the oxtails

Seared oxtails

  

Post braise oxtails, removed from the bones
(bones kept for a special treat for my birthday guest!)

Oyster Mushrooms

Oyster Mushrooms cut into the pot!

Sauteing mushrooms and adding the shallots

Adding the oxtail and reserved juice into the sauteed mushrooms and shallots

Braised Oxtail with Oyster Mushrooms
Happiness in a pot!

Braised Oxtail with Oyster Mushrooms over Creamy Polenta

Adapted from Ad Hoc at Home, by Thomas Keller

Ingredients

About 4 pounds of oxtail (about 2 trays)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Canola oil
About 5 cups beef stock
12 oz. (about 5 cups) oyster mushrooms, cut into 1 1/2″ pieces

2 tablespoons sliced shallots

3 sprigs of thyme

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400.

Generously season oxtails with salt and pepper. Pour 2-3 tablespoons canola oil into a large ovenproof saute pan (or dutch oven) and heat over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking. Reduce the heat to medium, add about half the oxtails, and cook, adjusting the heat if necessary, until browned on all sides, 5-7 minutes. Transfer to a plate and repeat with remaining oxtails.

Pour off the fat and return the oxtails to the pan. Add enough beef stock to come halfway up the oxtails. Bring to a simmer, cover, transfer to the oven, and cook until the oxtails are tender, 2-1/2 to 3 hours.

Turn the oxtails over and let rest on top of the stove for at least 30 minutes, or up to 1 hour.

Remove the oxtails from the cooking liquid, and strain the cooking liquid through a fine mesh strainer; set aside. Using your hands, remove the meat from the bones, discarding the fat and tough connective tissue, and put the meat in a bowl. Season to taste with salt and pepper. (The meat can be covered with the strained cooking liquid and refrigerated overnight. The cooking liquid will solidify; when you reheat the oxtails it may be necessary to add about 1/4 cup water).

Heat 1-2 tablespoons of canola oil in a large saute pan over medium heat until hot but not smoking. Add half the mushrooms and cook, without moving them, until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Stir and cook for another 2 minutes, or until browned on all sides. Season with salt and pepper and transfer to a bowl. Cook the remaining mushrooms in the same way.

Return all the mushrooms to the saute pan, add the shallots and thyme, and cook for 1-2 minutes, until the shallots soften. Add the butter and cook, stirring, until the liquid the mushrooms release has cooked off and they are glazed with butter, about 2 minutes. Stir in the oxtails, then pour in the reserved cooking liquid, bring to a simmer, and simmer until the liquid has reduced considerably and glazed the meat and mushrooms, about 20 minutes. 

Remove the sprigs of thyme (the leaves will have fallen off).

Meanwhile, prepare polenta.

Creamy Polenta

Ingredients

1/2 cup of fast cooking grits
2 cups of chicken broth (or water)
sprinkle of salt
about 1/2 cup to 1 cup of whatever shredded cheeses you like (sharp cheeses do well here... parmesan, sharp cheddar, asiago, grueyere, herbed goat cheese... blue cheese even. If you do mozzarella, add an extra sprinkle of salt and some garlic). If you don't shred the cheese, cut it into small pieces... it just makes the melting of the cheese in the last step a little bit easier.

Directions

Bring 2 cups of chicken broth (or water) and a sprinkle of salt to a rolling boil.
Add grits.
Reduce heat to medium.
Stir.
Stir some more.
Stir for about 5-7 minutes until the grits has fluffed up and have become very creamy in their texture.
Take off of the heat.
Add shredded cheese(s). Keep stirring! :)

Season with salt and pepper to taste
When all of the cheese has been incorporated... you're done.

Serve polenta, topped with a generous helping of braised oxtail for a rich and hearty meal!

Eat, Drink & Be Yummy!

Borolo Braised Short Ribs w/Mashed Rutabaga & Turnips

I grew up in New York City to Russian immigrants, but my comfort foods don't have their base in Eastern European cuisine.  Maybe one day I'll explore this on a deeper level, but not today.  Today I'm celebrating short ribs. Meat seared and stewed in wine is my idea of comfort.

A few weeks ago I had some "extra" time on my hands.  In my world, this is code word for having more than 20 minutes to get food onto the table. But I still couldn't afford a lot of hands-on time. The only real actively hands-on time with this recipe is the searing of the short ribs.  Then there's some simmering, some immersion blendering and some oven time.  Things that take your time and effort, but you can multitask, juggle and balance a ball on your nose during those steps. Basically, you can go back to mom duties.

Seared short ribs (pre-braise)

Borolo Braised Short Ribs with Rutabaga and Parsnip Puree w/Haricot Vert

Borolo Braised Short Ribs

Makes 6-8 servings

Ingredients

2 tablespoons canola oil
6 short ribs with bones, cut 2 inches thick (about 4 pounds)
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper 
Unbleached all purpose flour (or GF AP flour) for dusting
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 carrots, sliced
3 celery stalks, sliced
3 garlic cloves
1 28oz can crushed or diced tomatoes (Tuttaroso or similar)
One 750-milliliter bottle Borolo
Leaves from 4 thyme sprigs
3 cups chicken stock

Directions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

1. Bring the meat home and let it lay on the counter. Bring it to room temperature.
2. Season with salt and pepper and dust with flour.

3. In a large pot with a heavy bottom (I use a cast iron pot), heat a thin layer of oil on HIGH.
4. Sear each of the short rib pieces on all sides for about 2-3 minutes. If you're making more than 6 pieces, you'll have to work in batches.
5. Set seared pieces aside on a plate. Continue until all meat is seared. 

6. In the same searing vessel add cut carrots, celery, thyme leaves and onions saute until onions soften, 5-7 minutes. 

7. Add 1 cup of chicken stock and deglaze the bottom of the pot.
8. Add remaining chicken stock, crushed tomatoes and bottle of wine.
9. Add a sprinkle of salt and a few turns of the pepper grinder.
10. Let simmer on LOW for about an hour, until the mixture has reduced by half.

11. Puree with an immersion blender until a smooth sauce forms.
12. Add the short ribs back into the pot. The liquid should mostly cover the meat. If it doesn't, add some chicken stock.

13. Cover with heavy lid and put in the oven for 3 hours at 325 degrees.

14. Let pot stand at room temperature for at least 20 minutes before serving.  Serve short ribs with braising liquid.

Parsnip & Rutabaga Puree

Boil peeled parsnips and/or rutabaga until fork tender. Drain. For every pound of parsnips and/or rutabaga that you cooked, add 1 TBSP of butter. Mash (or use an immersion blender). Add kosher salt and white pepper to taste.

Eat, Drink & Be Yummy!

Beef Bourguignon

We fared through Hurricane Sandy better than most.  Post Sandy, we are feeling a greater sense of gratitude for our family and friends.  A renewed understand of what is truly important. 

Food is not only important for sustenance but also for creating memories. Almost a week later, we were fortunate to at the point of "back to normal." I will always remember that we wanted to envelop ourselves in a meal that was hearty, warm and comforting.  Because it was a weekend and we had some time on our hands, we made Beef Bourguinon.  (Promise that the next time we make it, will take step-by-step pictures!)

Sauteed mushrooms & pearl onions

Beef Bourguinon

Beef Bourguinon

Adapted from Ina Garten's Beef Bourguinon

Ingredients

1 tablespoon good olive oil
4 ounces pancetta
3 pounds chuck beef cut into 1-inch cubes
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 pound carrots, sliced diagonally into 1-inch chunks
2 yellow onions, sliced
2 teaspoons chopped garlic (2 cloves)
1/2 cup Bourbon
1 (750 ml.) bottle good dry red wine (we used Pinot Noir)
2 cups chicken stock (or beef broth)
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves (1/2 teaspoon dried)
4 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature, divided
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour (or GF AP flour)
1 pound frozen pearl onions
1 pound fresh mushrooms stems discarded, caps thickly sliced

For serving:
1 1/2 pounds of new potatoes. Boiled until fork tender.

Directions

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F.

Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven. Add the pancetta and cook over medium heat for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the pancetta browns and releases fat. Remove the pancetta with a slotted spoon to a paper towel lined bowl.  Reserve.

Dry the beef cubes with paper towels and then sprinkle them with salt and pepper. In single-layered batches, sear the beef in the hot oil for 3 to 5 minutes, turning to brown on all sides. Remove the seared cubes to a plate. Continue searing until all the beef is browned. Set aside.

Toss the carrots, sliced onions, 1 tablespoon of salt and 2 teaspoons of pepper in the fat in the pan and cook for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onions are lightly browned. Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Add the Bourbon, stand back, and ignite with a match to burn off the alcohol. Put the meat back into the pot with the juices. Add the bottle of wine plus enough beef broth to almost cover the meat. Add the tomato paste and thyme. Bring to a simmer, cover the pot with a tight-fitting lid and place it in the oven for about 1 1/4 hours or until the meat and vegetables are very tender when pierced with a fork.

Combine 2 tablespoons of butter and the flour with a fork and stir into the stew.  

In a separate pan, saute the mushrooms in 2 tablespoons of butter for 10 minutes until lightly browned.  Add the frozen pearl onions and heat through. Add mushrooms and pearl onions to the stew. Bring the stew to a boil on top of the stove, then lower the heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Season to taste.

To serve, place two or three new potatoes on a plate.  Ladle the Beef Bourguinon over the top. Enjoy!

Eat, Drink & Be Yummy!