Hunger Games - Paper Thin Beef

During Katniss's prep time before the Hunger Games, she decided that she would eat as much as possible. The few extra pounds would be an advantage to her during the games. However, I don't need the extra pounds so one of her dinners is the same amount as a week's worth of dinner for me.

After the fiery entrance Katniss and Peeta had at the opening ceremony, the District 12 team (Haymitch, Effie, Cinna and Portia) have a fantastic dinner with their tributes. I've decided to try out a couple components from that meal, the first being "rare roast beef sliced as thin as paper." When I read this, my mouth starts to water with one thought --- carpaccio! A simple but delicious and decadent appetizer. When paired with a little bread (which is a MAJOR theme in the books) and wine (which Katniss tries for the first time at this meal) it is my quick and easy Monday night dinner! 
 
Ingredients: 

1/2 lb fatty beef tenderloin
2 cups mixed salad greens
1/4 cup crème fraîche
1 teaspoon horseradish
1 lemon
olive oil
Parmesan cheese shavings
salt & pepper

Directions:

Heat a skillet over high heat. Season the whole tenderloin with salt and pepper. Drizzle a little oil into the pan and quickly sear all sides of the beef; 1-2 minutes per side. Take the beef out of the pan; wrap in plastic wrap and put in freezer for an hour.

When the beef is just about ready, mix the crème fraîche and horseradish together and set aside. Take the beef out of freezer; while it is still semi-frozen, try to slice as thin as possible. If it is not as thin as you would like, place slices between wax paper and pound thinner.

Mix the juice of a lemon and 3 tablespoons of olive oil together with some salt and pepper. Toss the mixed greens into the vinaigrette.


Arrange the thin slices of beef onto a plate. Drizzle horseradish crème fraîche on top of the beef and top with the dressed mixed greens and shavings of Parmesan cheese. Serve with some toasted crostini and have a great meal!

Stuffed Zucchini

When things come into season and produce is really cheap at the supermarket I can't help myself. A trait I inherited from my mother, if it's on sale and fresh, buy it! However, it can lead to an overstuffed refrigerator and ten pounds of zucchini that needs to be consumed.

When you have too much of an ingredient, that ingredient needs to become the main component of a meal, as to use as much of it as possible. Luckily, I love zucchini so I made delicious stuffed zucchini boats and had it for dinner and lunch the next day.

Ingredients:

4 zucchinis
1 cup onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup tomatoes, chopped
1 tablespoon of olive oil
2 cups panko breadcrumbs
2 tablespoons Italian parsley
2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese
Salt & Pepper

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut the zucchini length-wise and scoop the inside out of the halves. Chop the flesh of the zucchini into similar sized pieces like the onions and tomatoes.

Heat the skillet over high heat. Put oil into the pan. Add the chopped zucchini, onions and garlic in with the olive oil. Season with salt and pepper while letting the vegetables soften. After 5 minutes, the onions start to look translucent; add tomatoes to the pan and cook for a few more minutes.

Line an oven safe sheet pan with aluminum foil and place emptied zucchini halves onto the baking sheet. Fill the zucchini boats with the zucchini, onion & tomatoes. Stir together the panko breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese and Italian parsley in a bowl and top the zucchini halves with the mixture.

Place in the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes until breadcrumbs are golden brown. Serve with a side salad for a light meal or add a pasta or protein for a more filling dinner.

Whole Wheat Pasta with Arrabiata Sauce

Most people like their spaghetti with normal marinara sauce... tomatoes stewed into a thick sauce with some basil for aromatics and carrots for sweetness. I personally like my sauce with a little more KICK! My go-to sauce for pasta would definitely have to be the fiery spice of arrabiata sauce. This easy sauce can be made with things in most pantries for a quick and easy meal.

According to wikipedia, arrabbiata (the Italian word for angry) is a Roman sauce of garlic, tomatoes, and red chili cooked in olive oil. Basil is sometimes used, although the majority of chefs in Italy do not use basil for this recipe. The dish is usually served with pasta and chopped fresh parsley sprinkled on top. That's how I like! SPICY!



Ingredients:

1 tablespoon red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon garlic, chopped
2 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup onion, chopped
1 large can (28 oz.) whole tomatoes
1 tablespoon Italian parsley, chopped
1 tablespoon Parmesan cheese
1/2 lb whole wheat spaghetti

Directions:

Put a pot of water on the stove over high heat and bring to a boil.

Heat the olive oil in a heavy bottom pot over medium heat. Add red pepper flakes and garlic and infuse the oil with those flavors for 2 minutes. Watch carefully to not burn garlic or you have to start over. Add onions to the oil mixture and soften for about 5 minutes. Hand crush the whole tomatoes into the pot along with all the juices; this gives the sauce better texture.

Allow the sauce to simmer while preparing the pasta. Salt the pasta water and throw the whole wheat spaghetti. After the spaghetti is al dente (about 10-11 minutes for whole wheat), add pasta to the sauce pot.

Toss the pasta in with the sauce and turn of heat. Give the pasta a few minutes in the sauce and allow it to absorb the flavors of the sauce. (This would be a good time to prepare a salad to accompany pasta.) When ready to serve. Top the sauce pasta with parsley and give it one last toss before plating.

Twist the pasta with serving fork and place a heap of spaghetti on each plate. Top with a little extra sauce and sprinkle Parmesan  cheese over the dish for a extra richness and flavor.

Winegasm

My "go-to" bar in the neighborhood of Astoria, Queens - Winegasm. This quaint little bar which seats about 25 people has an note-worthy selection of wines from all around the world. Their staff is knowledgeable and enjoy conversing and educating their customers. Their candle-lit cozy atmosphere is perfect for dates and the long bar-height table in the middle of the bar is perfect for larger groups.

 Cucumber Martini

They also have a very classic cocktail list; sidecars and vesper martinis included. Their new chef, Brian, hails from a two-Michelin star restaurant and has transformed their menu. Some of my favorites off the menu: Chicken liver pate, chick pea fries, cheese fondue, mushroom panini, and many more. Happy hour at my local watering hold is until 8:00pm and they also have a great prix-fixe three-course menu during that time for only $19. MUST TRY IF YOU'RE EVER IN ASTORIA!

Endive Lettuce Cups

Light lunch and bored of the same thing over and over and over...? Me too. So for lunch today I decided to class it up with endive lettuce and goat cheese. A quick pop over to the corner bodega to pick up some supplies from their salad bar and I had myself a nice little lunch that my co-workers will give me grief about for the next week probably. But who cares because it was delish!

Ingredients:

12 leaves endive lettuce
2 oz goat cheese
1 cup assorted prepared salads
1 tablespoon hot sauce (everything is better spicy)

Directions:

Cut the end off head of endive and separate leaves onto a plate. Smear a dollop of goat cheese on each leaf. Top with the different salads you pick up that day. Drizzle a little hot sauce or leave on the side as a dip and enjoy a quick and healthy lunch.

Ultimate Romantic Dinner - Fondue

In lieu of Valentine's Day tomorrow, I was thinking about a truly romantic dinner. What should that entail exactly? Is it having someone cook you a great meal? Is it cooking together? Should it be extravagant and complicated? I think there needs to be a delicate balance between cooking and enjoying on a sensitive day like V-day. Someone cooking for you is nice but that would require spending some time apart. Cooking together and doing it well is a romantic notion to me but it can go awry when trying to do something overly complicated.

The answer... FONDUE! It's simple to prepare and it just requires 15-20 minutes of prep work. While one person melts the cheese into a sauce, the other can prepare all the dippers. Team work people!

Ingredients:

1/2 lb Swiss
1/2 lb Gruyere
1 cup white wine
2 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg (optional)

Suggested Dippers:

Bread
Apples
Chorizo sausage
Baby potatoes
Broccoli

Directions:

Grate the cheeses into a bowl and toss with the cornstarch.

Heat your fondue bowl (read the directions on your specific fondue bowl, some can be heated on stove while others need to be transferred) or a pot over medium low heat. Rub the inside of the pot with garlic. Discard the garlic for a subtle garlic taste but I don't think there is ever enough garlic. I mince the garlic and put it into the pot with wine. Bring the wine and garlic up to a simmer.


Add cornstarch coated cheese slowing to the simmering wine a little at a time until all the cheese is melted. Add pepper and nutmeg. The cheese sauce should have the consistency of a thick sauce that coats the back of a spoon but drips smoothly. If the cheese sauce is a little thick, add a bit more wine. If too thin, sprinkle in some more cornstarch.

Prepare all the dippers into a good dipping size. Boil the potatoes until fork tender. Blanch the vegetables for a couple minutes before eating. 

Brie Sliders

There are nights when  you can't wait to go out after work; share a nice meal with friends and have a couple drinks to wash it all down is one of the best ways I know how to spend an evening. There are other nights though, when you can't wait to get back to your apartment and pull on some fleece pajama pants, throw on a movie and just veg out. Sometimes those nights call for food to be delivered to your door but my preference is always for a home cooked meal. Something that is easy, not a lot of fuss, and finger food that doesn't require utensils. (Dishes are not my favorite thing in the world.)

A favorite finger food of mine... sliders. When made at home they can be customized to your taste and flavor preference of the day. I've made mexican-flavored sliders with chipotle sour cream, cheddar cheese and jalepenos; my korean-flavored sliders have bulgogi glazed patties and kimchi (to be posted later). On this particular day I had an intense craving for Brie so french style sliders came to mind.

Ingredients:

1 lb ground beef (80-20 fat ratio)
6 mini brioche buns
6 oz. Brie cheese
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
2 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 cup arugula
6 cloves garlic confit
3 tablespoons ketchup
2 teaspoons Sriracha hot sauce

Directions:

Mix the ground beef with the mustard, salt, pepper, thyme, and 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Divide the meat into six portions to ensure relatively similar sized patties. Form the meat into round patties; they should not be too thin and larger than the bun. They will shrink as they cook.

Heat a skillet with the remaining tablespoon of olive oil over medium-high heat. When hot place the patties into the pan and allow them to cook for 3-4 minutes an each side.

As the patties are cooking, start to assembly your buns with the condiments. Mix the ketchup and the Sriracha together and smear on the bottom half of each bun. Place arugula on top of the spicy ketchup. Spread the garlic confit on the top half of each bun.

During the last minute of cooking on the second side, place 1 ounce of Brie on each patty and cover the pan. This will melt the cheese. Place the slider patty over of the arugula, allowing it to wilt slightly and enjoy!