Although we don’t cook steak at home all that often, when we do, we usually have leftovers.  Dan appreciates a good deal almost as much as a giant slab of red meat, so whenever he sees a bargain on nice, big steaks at the grocery store, he buys them and freezes them for later use.  Then, when a special occasion calls for steak (for Dan, the occasion would be a random Tuesday), we’ll have enough left over for another, separate meal (thereby creating two special occasions.)  Dressing up a simple green salad with leftover steak is an easy way to create an elegant weeknight meal.  Adding homemade vinaigrette and roasted onions ups the fancy factor even higher.

Continue reading “Steak Salad (w/ leftover steak) & Blue Cheese Vinaigrette”

Dan and I are both blessed with wonderful families, and although all of us live in different cities, we are fortunate to be able to travel to see them at the holidays (as well as other times throughout the year.)  Holidays are filled with traditions, and like most, each of our extended families have their own little customs and practices that make a holiday special (possibly the biggest and most-debated of which is the timing of opening gifts at Christmas.  I come from a Christmas-Eve-Gift-Opening family, while Dan’s family always opened gifts on Christmas morning.  Since we travel  to be with family each Christmas (last year’s trip to Paris being the exception), we follow the customs of whichever family we are spending the 25th with, and haven’t had to draw any lines in the sand at our own home.  Yet.)  Because we spend most of the week or two surrounding Christmas traveling to spend time with our extended families, we decided several years ago to create our own holiday tradition for just the two of us — spending New Year’s Eve at home together, cooking a fabulous meal and watching a classic movie.  The meals and movies are always different (we rang in 2011 with mussels in champagne broth and the movie “Vertigo”), but the underlying theme is the same — make an effort to cook something special that may take a little more time or technique than usual, and enjoy each other’s company.  Fresh off our trip to Paris, this year we decided to make beef bourguignon, using this recipe from French chef Eric Ripert.  While the movie that night (Hitchcock’s “Shadow of a Doubt“) was good, but not great, the rich and meaty stew was layered with flavor and was well worth all the time and effort required to prepare it.  Plus the recipe involves fire, and Dan loves (safely!) making fire in the kitchen.

Continue reading “Beef Bourguignon”

Now that it’s officially Fall and the temps are finally under 100 degrees, it’s time to dust off our slow-cooker and indulge in more comfort food recipes.  We found this one in the book “Slowcook” and adapted it after researching some other beef stroganoff recipes online.  We love how the flavor turned out — rich and meaty — but the sauce was a little more thin and broth-y than we would prefer.  We talked about creative ways to thicken it up next time — saute the mushrooms before adding them to the pot or do something different with the flour — but concluded that the easiest solution is also the most obvious.  Next time we make it, we’ll put in less beef broth and that should do the trick.  As Homer Simpson would say, “S-M-R-T!”  Update:  We got a super smart tip from our good friends Paula and Matt — use cream cheese instead of sour cream.  Adds more flavor and might help thicken up the sauce.  Thanks Guys!

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For some people, including Dan, cooking a meal for someone can be a way to show love and affection, celebrate an achievement, or commemorate an important occasion.  For the Conrad family and many others, August 29 is a signifigant date that does not go unnoticed.  Three years ago today, Dan’s dad Tom passed away after a too-brief but valiant battle against a brain tumor.  It is a date upon which we struggle against the sadness and missing by instead focusing on the happy memories, joyful times and favorite moments.  One of Tom’s greatest joys was food — in a simple, meat & potatoes way, nothing too unusual or exotic.  Dan loves cooking for family and does so just about every time he goes home to Altoona.  During one visit years ago, as Dan was cooking dinner, his dad came in the kitchen to watch and keep Dan company.  While observing, Tom cautioned “not too spicy!” just as Dan was seasoning the chicken soup — with salt and pepper.  Although he didn’t have the most adventurous palate, Tom would have eaten just about anything Dan cooked and would have raved about it — such was Tom’s way of showing unwavering support to those he loved, no matter their endeavor.  One of Tom’s true favorite meals that Dan cooks is London Broil, which involves a simple marinade used to spice up (but not too much!) an inexpensive cut of beef and turn it into something special.  And it’s our way to claim this day and honor a great man who enjoyed nothing more than a delicious steak dinner.  Except maybe a turkey dinner.  Or dinner at Lena’s.  Or a sleeve of Oreo cookies… Continue reading “London Broil”

Taco Pizza might not be the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Independence Day, but isn’t freedom what America’s birthday is all about?  We like to think so.  July 4th has always been my favorite holiday, and this pizza is now one of my new favorite meals.  I’m not sure what it is I love most about the 4th — fireworks and sparklers, neighborhood get-togethers, meeting new friends, barbeque and picnic food; or maybe that it marks the halfway point of summer, with the promise of several more weeks of fun, sun and good times.  Whatever it is, I think of the Fourth of July as a magical wonderland, and I look forward to it every year.  Happy Birthday America!

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In honor of Father’s Day this weekend, we grilled a couple of what Dan affectionately referred to as “Big Daddy Steaks.”  Since we try not to indulge in too much red meat too often, we figured Father’s Day was the perfect occasion for this rare treat.  There is something special about dads and grilling.  Dan fondly remembers a hiking trip long ago with his dad, brothers and grandfather where they cooked steaks over a campfire.  I recall my dad grilling something delicious nearly every weekend, and to this day he makes the best burger I’ve ever had.  So grilling a couple of giant steaks seemed like the perfect tribute to our dads.

Continue reading “Porterhouse Steak with Bourbon BBQ”

As we have mentioned previously, we often enjoy grilling meat in kebab form, especially in the spring and summer.  It’s relatively easy, looks cool and allows you to cook the meat to uniform done-ness (technical grilling term.)  We found this kebab recipe in The New Grilling Book by Better Homes and Gardens, which is a great cookbook in terms of volume and variety of recipes.  Not all the recipes we’ve tried have been hits, but several have been quite good, and we certainly won’t run out of new ones to try any time soon.  This kebab recipe is one of the better ones we’ve tried.  We especially like how it incorporates the starch, veggies and protein into a single dish.

Continue reading “Beef Kebabs and Noodles”

On a busy weeknight, we love a dish that incorporates both the protein and the vegetable in the same recipe — as seen here and here.  Such meals are usually really easy to prepare, but still have fresh and complex flavors.  We found this recipe in an old cookbook by Cook’s Illustrated, “The Quick Recipe,” which we found at a Half Price Books store (used book stores are great places to find good quality cookbooks at inexpensive prices.)  The ingredients for this dish include steak, arugula, a vinaigrette made with olive oil, lemon, garlic, fresh parsley, fresh oregano, salt & pepper, and freshly shaved parmesan for garnish.  We added tomatoes for a little extra flavor and texture.  We’re crazy like that.

Continue reading “Tuscan-Style Steak with Arugula and Parmesan”

Lamb is not something we eat very often, and this is the first time we’ve ever cooked it at home.  But Dan has a very good, and very persuasive, friend who has been requesting a lamb recipe, so we were happy to oblige.  We decided to do rack of lamb because that is what was available in our grocery store.  Dan researched several recipes and combined certain components from each to come up with this particular dish.  It turned out great, and we enjoyed experimenting with a new (to us) protein.  This one’s for you, Dr. Z!

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This might be the most simple and easy recipe we have ever posted. It’s so basic that it doesn’t even require an actual recipe. All you do is roast some onion strips in the oven and grill a skirt steak, then put those ingredients in a taco. But the end result tastes a lot more complex — as if you marinated the steak for hours and meticulously carmelized the onions.  This meal is perfect for a busy weeknight, or even a last-minute dinner party where you can fool your guests into thinking you spent way more time cooking for them than you actually did.  (We won’t tell.)

Continue reading “Skirt Steak Tacos”