Tuna Tartare

The summer after my freshman year at Baylor, someone actually paid me to nanny for them in the Bahamas. I basically got to go on their long family vacation, entertain their adorable children, and enjoy the beautiful beach right outside their house. And they paid me. I would have done that for free. In fact, I probably should have paid them. Mrs. K (my employer/friend) also introduced me to two fabulous dishes, one of which is now my husBen’s* favorite food—roasted vegetable orzo—and the other of which I rediscovered last night for dinner and cannot stop thinking about. I found Mrs. K’s recipe card for Tuna Tartare tucked in a binder on my bookshelf, so I just modified it according to what I had in my fridge and pantry. And wow, was it good...about as good as scoring a nanny job in the Bahamas.

Tuna Tartare

½ pound of really awesome fresh tuna steak

2 tablespoons olive oil

grated zest of 1 lime

3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime

1 tablespoon soy sauce

½ teaspoon wasabi powder (I omitted because I didn’t have any on hand)

a few dashes Tabasco (I used Sriracha)

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon freshly ground pepper

4 scallions, chopped (white and green parts)

1 ripe Hass avocado

1 teaspoon black sesame seeds, toasted

Cut the raw tuna into ¼ inch dice and place into medium bowl. In a small bowel, combine the olive oil, lime zest, juice, wasabi (if using), soy, hot sauce, salt and pepper. Pour all over the tuna, add the scallions and mix well. Dice the avocado (slice in half, remove seed, score in criss-cross pattern, then scoop out with a spoon) and carefully mix into tuna mixture. Gently fold in the sesame seeds. Allow mixture to sit for at least an hour (the lime juice “cooks” the tuna). Serve with crackers.

*husBen= husband Ben

Note: Most of my recipes serve only 2 people. They are on small-batch on the fly because I live in two-people home. Quimby the dog does not count because although he does know to expect tasters along the way and leftovers afterwards, he does not get a full plate at the table. You can easily double most recipes- just make sure you taste before you serve so that the spices, etc turn out right!

Bacon Day

I self declared it Bacon Day so that I could justify concocting a menu with bacon as a major constituent of every dish…including dessert. I called over our friend Michael to help Ben eat this man-meal since I knew I would be too full (I taste while I cook) by the time the bacon-laden dishes hit the table. Those boys cleaned up (and I do not mean the kitchen, because they did not do that).

50/50 sliders

(makes 5 sliders…so that basically feeds two boys)

8 oz ground sirloin

8 oz bacon, barely cooked* then ground

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon pepper

1 egg

Lightly fry bacon in a cast iron skillet, only until it barely changes to a different shade. Cool on a paper towel then pulse in a food processor until ground. Mix beef, bacon, salt, pepper, and egg (with your hands!) and form into small patties (roughly same size as whatever buns you choose to use). Reheat skillet (with bacon grease still in it) to medium high heat. Cook burgers about 2 minutes per side, only flipping once. Allow to “rest” on a plate before building your burger (I used ciabatta rolls, red onions, lettuce, and my “ketchup”).

Roasted cherry tomato “ketchup”

¼ cup roasted cherry tomatoes

1 teaspoon white vinegar

2 teaspoons brown sugar

¼ teaspoon molasses

pinch of salt

Roast about 1 cup of cherry tomatoes (drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt, and roast in oven at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes- just watch them). Cool tomatoes then pulse in a food processor with remainder of ingredients.

Bacon-chocolate chunk waffles with maple-caramel ice cream

Waffles:

1 cup all purpose flour (I used half all purpose flour and half cake flour)

¾ teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 tablespoon sugar

1 egg, room temperature

¾ cup milk (use whole milk), slightly warmed

¼ cup (actually a little less) Crisco, melted

3 tablespoons butter, melted

5 slices of bacon, fried and chopped

1/3 cup chocolate chunks (I used Callebaut)

Put the flour, salt, baking powder, and sugar in a mixing bowl and stir the mixture with a fork until blended.

In another bowl, beat the egg well then beat in the milk. Beat in the flour mixture until well blended. Add the melted shortening and butter and beat again until well blended.

Stir in chopped bacon and chocolate.

Pour ¼ cup batter into your preheated waffle iron and bake until golden and crisp.

Top waffles with one scoop of maple ice cream (recipe below) and sprinkle with chocolate chunks. Yum.

Ice cream:

1 pint bluebell vanilla ice cream (they’re the small ones)

2 overflowing tablespoons maple syrup

1 tablespoon caramel dip

Allow the ice cream to melt until soft enough to stir in syrup and caramel. Refreeze (I just put it back into the little Bluebell pint container) until firm and ready to serve.

Sauteed Carrots caramelized with honey and rosemary

The carrots made the cut for tonight’s menu because:

a) they were sautéed in bacon grease

b) they were sprinkled with prosciutto (which is like upscale bacon?)

c) they were cute (from Mrs. Patti’s garden!).

easy tzatziki

Tzatziki

Tzatziki is a greek yogurt dip traditionally served on gyros. You could serve it as a dip with wedges of pita bread...or just eat it by the spoonful yourself.

½ a Cucumber, diced

½ cup greek yogurt (like Fage)

1 clove garlic, finely minced

1 teaspoon white vinegar

1 tablespoon fresh dill, chopped

8 fresh mint leaves, chopped

squirt of lemon juice

pinch of salt

Combine the above ingredients in a small bowl. Season to taste.

steak and cake

This previous weekend was Ben’s 24^th birthday and to my excitement, he wanted to spend it in Lamar with our families! Perhaps I was just in a pensive mood, but I feel as though I learned a few little life lessons in the short while we were there:

• Running with family members (or doing whatever it is you do with family members) is infinitely important. I speak not only for the proponent of health, but also for the therapeutic nature of conversation had during this seemingly simple activity. I especially valued my time with Ben’s sister Becki this weekend; I am very grateful for any context to hang out with her as a friend (since most of the time I experience her as a mother, attending to her little ones) and hear little tidbits of her wisdom on bearing life.
• I don’t appreciate the audacity of seagulls. They are far too tame and tolerant of people (it’s like they are circus-trained or something). We went to the Rockport beach on Saturday and Abram sure had fun feeding the seagulls his goldfish (and I must admit: I did enjoy watching from under the safety of my beach umbrella). My mom says children build memories through pictures… this was a quality set of mental snapshots.
• You should always buy lemonade from little kids. They suffer in the heat and they cannot even understand money. Besides, you might just make a friend.
• Food can evoke strong emotion. I felt proud to be my mother’s daughter when I was in the kitchen, trying to pull off a birthday dinner for example. I legitimately missed a certain sister-in-law (Naomi) when we cut into the double chocolate ganache birthday cake because I knew she would most appreciate it…and want to attack it with a fork like me after we had politely eaten our own servings off our plates. Whatever your emotional attachment to certain foods may be, notice how much richer each bite tastes with great memories as a foundation.

Steak Au Poivre

1-¾ pound beef tenderloin filets

¼ cups Olive Oil

3 Tablespoons Black Peppercorns, Cracked To A Medium Consistency*

8 Tablespoons Butter, Unsalted, divided

1 Tablespoon Beef Base (I Used Better Than Bouillon)

½ cup Water, Hot

1 Tablespoon Dijon Mustard

¼ cup Cognac (I split this amount between Cognac and Bourbon)

½ cup Heavy Whipping Cream

Kosher Salt

Season each side of the steak with about a teaspoon of salt. Lightly oil both sides of the steak and coat each side with half of the crushed peppercorns. Note: It will look like too much pepper, but just go with it. Let the steak sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes.

Preheat your oven to 425º.

Heat a large heavy oven-safe pan (cast iron works fabulously) over medium-high heat. Add the remaining oil and half of the butter to the pan. Sear each side of the steak until it is browned nicely. Move the pan to the oven and cook for 10 minutes (for medium rare).

Mix the beef base and hot water well in a small bowl and set aside.

Remove the pan from the oven, move the steak to a platter, tent with foil, and let it rest.

Put the cast iron on a burner at medium heat. Add the beef base and water mixture and bring just to a boil while scraping the brown bits from the bottom of the pan.

Add the mustard and cognac/brandy and continue stirring until the mustard is well incorporated. Add the remaining butter and heavy cream and stir to combine. Adjust the seasoning of the sauce with salt to taste. Reduce the heat and continue cooking the sauce until it coats the back of a spoon. Serve with the peppered beef tenderloin.

(credit to Patiodaddy on tastykitchen for the recipe)

*A pepper grinder is invaluable, but not irreplaceable. For his own birthday steak dinner, I made Ben hand crack the peppercorns for this dish he requested with a hammer. Real fresh.

Double Chocolate Layer Cake

For cake layers:

3 ounces fine-quality semisweet chocolate such as Callebaut

1 1/2 cups hot brewed coffee

3 cups sugar

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 cups unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch process)

2 teaspoons baking soda

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

3 large eggs

3/4 cup vegetable oil

1 1/2 cups well-shaken buttermilk

1 teaspoon vanilla

For ganache frosting

1 pound fine-quality semisweet chocolate such as Callebaut

1 cup heavy cream

2 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons light corn syrup

1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter

Special equipment

two 10-by-2-inch round cake pans, or three smaller cake pans

Make cake layers: Preheat oven to 300°F. and grease pans with Baker’s Joy (or do the melted butter and sift of flour thing).

Finely chop chocolate and in a bowl combine with hot coffee. Let mixture stand, stirring occasionally, until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth.

Into a large bowl sift together sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In another large bowl with an electric mixer beat eggs until thickened slightly and lemon colored (about 3 minutes with a standing mixer or 5 minutes with a hand-held mixer). Slowly add oil, buttermilk, vanilla, and melted chocolate mixture to eggs, beating until combined well. Add sugar mixture and beat on medium speed until just combined well. Divide batter between pans and bake in middle of oven until a tester inserted in center comes out clean, 1 hour to 1 hour and 10 minutes.

Cool layers completely in pans on racks. Run a thin knife around edges of pans and invert layers onto racks. Carefully remove wax paper and cool layers completely. Cake layers may be made 1 day ahead and kept, wrapped well in plastic wrap, at room temperature.

Make frosting: Finely chop chocolate. In a 1 1/2- to 2-quart saucepan bring cream, sugar, and corn syrup to a boil over moderately low heat, whisking until sugar is dissolved. Remove pan from heat and add chocolate, whisking until chocolate is melted. Cut butter into pieces and add to frosting, whisking until smooth.

Transfer frosting to a bowl and cool, stirring occasionally, until spreadable (depending on chocolate used, it may be necessary to chill frosting to spreadable consistency).

Spread frosting between cake layers (I put Heath toffee bits between the layers also) and over top and sides. I put toffee bits on top of the cake as well. Serve room temperature.

(adapted from Gourmet, March 1999)

Patti's bounty, Part II

RATATIZZA

This Ratatouille-Pizza may seem like a bit of an effort, but it turns out fabulously good looking and tasty enough to win over anyone’s heart…in case you are trying :)

Tart/Pizza base:

2 sheets puff pastry, thawed

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Roll 1 sheet out just barely until it resembles a rectangle instead of a square. Use the other sheet to form borders on top of the edges of the first sheet (I just cut strips). Use egg wash to brush strips. Poke holes in your rectangle pastry with a fork then pop it into oven for 5 minutes to cook. Remove and allow to cool.

Goat cheese spread:

4 cloves garlic finely minced

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

1 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano

1 teaspoon thyme leaves

4 ounces soft goat cheese

Mix above ingredients in a small bowl. On cooled pastry crust, spread mixture evenly inside of the borders.

Ratatouille:

2 tomatoes

1 chinese eggplant

1 squash

1 zuchini

1 red bell pepper

½ red onion

olive oil, salt, and pepper

Egg wash:

1 egg

1 tablespoon water

Garnish:

1 tablespoon of pine nuts, toasted

4 leaves basil, julienned

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Drizzle olive oil on a cookie sheet covered with foil. Slice vegetables to be roasted about ¼ an inch thick and lay out on cookie sheet. Lightly drizzle olive oil on top of sliced veggies and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast in oven about 30-40 minutes.

Arrange vegetables in rows on top on goat cheese spread on pastry. Bake for 15-20 more minutes. Remove and promptly sprinkle with pine nuts and basil. Serve warm!

BLT for two

Very simple sandwich: bacon, spinach, fried garden tomato, pesto, and sourdough bread. Very big reward.

Steps:

Fry 4 pieces of bacon.

Spread butter on 4 pieces of sourdough bread then toast (in the oven).

Fry two to four big slices of tomato (still using up my treasures from Mrs. Patti, my prize mother-in-law):

-slice tomato ¼ an inch or thicker

-dredge in flour*, then egg (beaten), then cornmeal*

-fry tomatoes in one inch of olive oil preheated over medium/high heat (about two minutes per side)

Assemble sandwich:

Spread pesto on one side of toast.

Layer spinach, then bacon, then tomato, and then the other toast on top.

*note: I put Tony’s in my flour and garlic salt in my cornmeal

Lunch on the 24th floor

I was recently informed of the “tradition” at the medical practice where I work that the medical student has to bring the doctor and nurses lunch one day. Since people have very specific tastes that one certainly cannot fault them for (maybe they had a bad experience with a certain food as a child, traumatized at the dinner table for not finishing their peas type thing), I did some inquiring beforehand: one mouth didn’t like cucumbers, onions, or asparagus; another mouth didn’t eat red meat, pork, or shrimp. Nevertheless, I really liked my “co-workers” so I enjoyed this setup… it kind of felt like a game. Here’s how it played out.

• Prosciutto wrapped peaches with peppered goat cheese and balsamic vinegar glaze
• Roasted vegetable orzo with grilled pesto chicken and truffle oil pastry sticks
• Better than sex cake… classic
• Strawberry tea with lemongrass simple syrup

Homemade Pesto

5 cloves garlic, peeled

1/3 cup parmesan chunks (buy a wedge and break it up)

2 cups basil leaves

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon pepper

¾ cup good olive oil

Put garlic and parmesan in a food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Add in basil, salt, pepper, and olive oil and pulse until a green paste forms.

I grilled the chicken then tossed with this beautiful pesto. Slice chicken and serve hot!

Roasted Vegetable Orzo

(adapted from Ina Garten's Barefoot Contessa)

1 eggplant, peeled and diced

2 red bell peppers, diced

1 yellow bell pepper, diced

1 orange bell pepper, diced

1 red onion, diced

3 garlic cloves, minced

1/3 cup good olive oil

2 teaspoons kosher salt

½ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper

1 cup orzo (1 cup dry)

Dressing:

1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

¼ cup good olive oil

1 teaspoon kosher salt

½ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper

Assembly:

4 scallions (green onions), minced (white and green parts)

¼ cup pignolis (pine nuts), toasted

¾ pound block feta, diced (not crumbled)

15 fresh basil leaves, cut into chiffonade (sliced thin)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Dice the vegetables into 1-inch pieces. Toss the eggplant, bell peppers, onion, and garlic with the olive oil, salt, and pepper on a large cookie sheet. Roast in the oven for 45 minutes, stirring once about half-way through, until browned and crisped.

While your kitchen is filling with the most amazing of all smells (vegetables are roasting), cook the orzo in boiling salted water for 8ish minutes until tender. Drain and transfer to a large serving bowl.

Dump your roasted vegetables into the bowl with the orzo pasta, making sure to scrap all the juices from the pan into the pasta as well.

For the dressing, whisk together the lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper and pour onto the pasta and vegetables. Let cool to room temperature, then add the scallions, pignolis, feta, and basil and toss all components together (use a big spoon to gently mix everything evenly). Check the taste—you should first experience a punch of lemon then the more mellow taste of garlicky roasted vegetables—and adjust as needed (add a pinch of salt or more lemon juice) before you serve. This shows responsibility on your part. Taste. Adjust. Serve.

Better Than Sex Cake

1 package yellow cake mix

1 package instant vanilla pudding mix

½ cup vegetable oil

½ cup water

3 eggs

8 ounces sour cream

4 ounces Baker’s German chocolate, grated*

6 ounces miniature chocolate chips

Ganache topping:

3 tablespoons butter

4 ounces Baker’s bittersweet chocolate

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Mix first 5 ingredients well. Add in sour cream and beat until smooth. Finally, mix in chocolates. Yes, that simple.

Pour batter into a greased bunt pan (use Baker’s Joy or melted butter and flour) and bake for 55 minutes.

Melt butter and chocolate in a double broiler** until melted and smooth. Drizzle over cake and allow to cool before serving.

*I substituted 6 ounces Callebaut chocolate semisweet chocolate chunks

**Double broiler: fill a pot with about 2 inches of water and bring to boil. Set a heatproof bowl with ganache ingredients on top of the boiling pot. The bowl should fit down into/on top of the pot but not touch the water. Stir chocolate and butter until melted then quickly remove from double broiler.

Note: Bakers is a brand of chocolate found on the baking aisle in a box near chocolate chips. Chocolate chips are not meant to melt easily so avoid using them for the ganache topping