Monday, February 23, 2009

Venison Tenderloin

1 to 1.5# venison tenderloin
3 garlic cloves, slivered into thirds
1 cup red wine
1/4 cup teriyaki sauce
3 slices bacon

With a small knife, cut slits in the tenderloin. Insert garlic cloves. Wrap bacon slices around tenderloin securing with toothpicks. Put in Ziplock bag; add wine and teriyaki sauce and refrigerate for three hours.

Remove tenderloin from refrigerator about 30 minutes before ready to cook. Put a little olive oil in pan heat until hot. Sear tenderloin on all sides in hot pan, about 4 minutes. Cover pan and put in the oven set to 450F for 18-21 minutes for rare.

Remove tenderloin from oven, tent with foil and let rest for 5 minutes. Slice and serve.

Friday, February 13, 2009

Oxtail Ragu

1.5# Beef oxtail
2 carrots, finely chopped
1 parsnip, finely chopped
4 stalks celery, finely chopped
1 large onion, finely chopped
3 large cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 bay leaves
2 cups red wine
4 T tomato paste, divided use
½ c tomato sauce
Olive oil

Soak oxtails in cold, salted water for an hour. Rinse and put them into a pan; cover with clean water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove oxtail and place on paper towels to dry. Discard liquid.

Heat olive oil in a heavy pan. Add oxtail and brown on all sides. Remove to a bowl and season with salt and pepper.

Add the carrots, parsnip, celery, onion and garlic. Cook until vegetables are soft. Return oxtails to pan. Add red wine, 2 T tomato paste and bay leaf and enough water to almost cover oxtails. Simmer for 4-5 hours or until meat is falling off bones.

Remove from heat. Remove oxtails and pull the meat off the bones. Put meat into a baggie and refrigerate overnight. Strain liquid, keeping vegetables and liquid in separate containers and refrigerate overnight.

The next day remove liquid from refrigerator and skim fat. Return sauce to a pan. Add remaining 2 T tomato paste and ½ c tomato sauce.

Put the soffritto, which has been drained into the bowl of a small food processor and pulse until vegetables are blended. Pour vegetables into sauce to thicken. Return meat to sauce and heat through. Serve over your choice of pasta garnished with grated parmesan cheese.

Monday, February 9, 2009

Oatmeal Cookies with Dried Apricots and White Chocolate

1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1-1/2 cups old-fashioned oatmeal
1/2 tsp baking soda
8 ounces (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 cup packed light-brown sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
2 large eggs
8 ounces white chocolate, chopped
7 ounces dried apricots, chopped (1-1/2 cups)

Preheat oven to 350F. Mix flour, oatmeal and baking soda in a medium bowl. Cream butter and sugars with a mixer until light and fluffy. Reduce speed to low. Add salt, vanilla, and eggs, and beat until well combined, about 1 minute. Add flour mixture gradually, beating until just combined. Stir in chocolate and apricots. Cover, and refrigerate until cold, about 30 minutes.

Drop heaping tablespoons of dough onto parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing 2 inches apart. Bake until cookies are golden brown around the edges but still soft in the center, 14 to 16 minutes. Let cookies cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes. Transfer cookies to a wire rack; let cool. Cookies will keep, covered, for up to 1 week. Makes about 4 dozen.

Recipe from Martha Stewart Living, March 2009

Thursday, February 5, 2009

Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

1-1/2 c flour
1-1/2 c sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 c cooked, mashed carrots, room temperature
3/4 c vegetable oil
1 (8-1/4 oz) can crushed pineapple, drained
3 eggs
1 T hot water
1/2 c chopped walnuts
1/2 c raisins

Mix flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, giner and nutmeg in a large bowl. Combine carrots, oil, pineapple, eggs and water; stir into dry ingredients, mixing until smooth. Stir in walnuts and raisins. Pour into greased and floured 9-inch cake pan. Bake at 350F for 45 minutes or until cake springs back when lightly touched. Remove from pan and cool completely. Frost with cream cheese icing.

Cream Cheese Icing
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/2 c butter, softened
1 pound powdered sugar

Beat cream cheese and butter until fluffy. Gradually add sugar to desired consistency. Frosts on 9-inch cake.

Monday, February 2, 2009

Spaghetti and Meatballs

For the meatballs:

1# hamburger (or 1/2# hamburger and 1/2# pork sausage)
1/2 c finely chopped onion
1/4 c finely chopped fresh parsley
1/2 tsp granulated garlic
1/4 tsp smoked paprika
1/4 c water
2 T olive oil

Mix burger with onion, parsley, water and seasonings. Roll into 2" balls. Put olive oil in large frying pan and brown meatballs. Remove from pan with slotted spoon leaving the oil in the pan.

For the sauce:

1 anchovy filet
3/4 c chopped onion
1-1/2 tsp granulated garlic
1 bay leaf
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1-1/2 tsp chopped basil
8 oz sliced mushrooms
1/4 c white wine
1 (29 oz) can tomato sauce
2 T tomato paste

Put the anchovy in the oil and let it melt. Add onions and cook for 5 minutes. Add garlic, bay leaf, black pepper and basil and stir to combine. Add mushrooms (adding more oil if necessary) and cook until juices have been released. Add wine then tomato sauce and tomato paste. Stir to combine.

Add browned meatballs to the sauce and simmer for 1 hour until meatballs are cooked through.