Sunday Dinner: 1950s Broiled Steak and Vichysoisse

Menu: broiled T-bone steaks
vichysoisse
crisp green salad with French

It was such an elegant 1950s meal.  I didn't intend to broil the steaks, but there was just enough gas left in the grill to turn it on and that was it, as I discovered just before dinner.  I turned to my 1954 Joy of Cooking for help.  I really have not been following recipes recently - only using them for ideas.  What I did was heat the oven to 350, then turn the broiler on high.  I laid the steaks on a rimmed baking sheet and broiled them for 5 minutes a side.  They were tender and absolutely delicious.

And so was the vichysoisse.  I wasn't crazy about it last year - I hope I can repeat this version again. 

Again, I used a recipe for the idea only.  What I did, loosely:
1.  Saute leeks in butter.
2.  Add chopped potatoes, roughly the same quantity as leeks.  Saute a little.  (Peel the potatoes if you're after perfectly fleck-free soup).
3.  Barely cover with good chicken stock.  Cook covered until tender.  Allow to cool (several hours).
4.  Add some watercress. Blend until very smooth, adding some milk and plain yogurt, a little half and half.
5.  Add some dill and marjoram.  Taste, add salt.
6.  Chill overnight.
7.  Serve in soup bowls, garnished with snipped parsley.

Lettuce from our garden, but not much longer:  it's starting to bolt in the heat.

By this point, my husband was saying firmly, "I'm hungry."  So I put the camera away, despite the lovely light that comes in our dining room at lunchtime every day.  And then we had a lovely Sunday dinner with naps and books to follow.

Sunday Dinner and Dark Days 10: Leg of Lamb

The thing about buying a whole animal for meat is that you must figure out how to cook its various parts.  I handled lamb chops and lamb stew easily, but leg of lamb intimidated me for over a year.

So I studied up.

I rubbed on herbs and poked in garlic slivers, mostly following Simply in Season.

When we came home from church, the house smelled wonderful. . . but the lamb was rather rare for my liking.  It was, thankfully, tender and flavorful.

I served it with mint jelly made specifically for this purpose; I was not a fan of the flavors together, but my husband and kids really liked it.  In fact, I'm not quite sure what I'm going to do with the rest of that mint jelly.  Can't face it on toast in the morning or with peanut butter. . .

Menu:
roast leg of lamb
mint jelly
baked potatoes with butter
steamed spinach with butter and lemon

Friday:put lamb in fridge to thaw
bring mint jelly up from basement - so pretty

Sunday morning:
rub lamb, set on timed bake
wash potatoes, place in oven as well

Sunday noon:
wash and steam spinach
set table
light candles because these are the dark days (I love that phrase, "dark days")

I divided the leftovers for the freezer in three ways: one bag of meat chunks, another bag of meat chunks plus a little bag of pan drippings (I'm thinking shepherd's pie), and the meaty bone for soup.

Specifically, dark days ingredients, all local and where noted, organic:  organic leg of lamb, organic garlic, organic potatoes, homemade mint jelly, spinach, butter

Mashed Potatoes in the Crockpot

I've been trying to use my slow cooker more, especially since I started working part time.  Last Sunday, I tried a new potato recipe.  Essentially, I made mashed potatoes on Saturday, put them in the crock, stashed them in the fridge, and then heated them up in the crockpot on low while we were at church.  They tasted just fine.

But golly, it made a lot of mashed potatoes.

I had a casserole idea tickling away at the back of my brain.  I read recipes all the time for my job and although I can't pinpoint it, I'm sure that's where I got this idea.  I've got lots of sauerkraut in my freezer, so I'm playing around with it and seeing what else I can do besides cook it with pork.

This time, I mixed white sauce with mushrooms with a jar of sauerkraut and spread the mashed potatoes on top to make a shepherd's-pie-like casserole. 

We ate it with peas on the side for a recent supper.  It was good, but not transcendent.  Can I expect transcendent in January?  This part of winter seems to go on forever - or maybe that's just my chest cold talking.

Sunday Dinner: Stroganoff in the Slow Cooker and Dark Days 2

I achieved a number of goals with this meal:  dark days meal, Sunday dinner, and a slow cooker experiment.  I wondered if I could put raw-ish ground beef and raw vegetables in the slow cooker and get something good.  I get annoyed with recipes where I cook on the stovetop before assembling and baking or cooking again.  Too many steps to keep track of, too many dirty dishes.

Menu:Slow Cooker Stroganoff
egg noodles
home-canned pickled beets
steamed broccoli

Saturday:
set ground beef in fridge to thaw
bring up a jar of pickled beets from the basement

Sunday morning:sear beef
mix up the slow cooker
cut up broccoli, put in pot

Sunday noon:
steam broccoli
cook noodles
thicken stroganoff
set table

Slow Cooker Stroganoff - adapted from Fix-It and Forget-It Lightly - the original recipe had 2 lbs. ground beef and only 4 oz. mushrooms, which is way too much ground beef in my opinion.

1 lb. lean ground beef
2 medium onions, chopped
1 lb. baby bella mushrooms, sliced (I also used some dried shiitakes, rehydrating them in the stock)
1/2 tsp. thyme
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. fresh ground pepper
1 cup beef stock
3 Tbsp. ketchup

1 1/2 cups plain yogurt
1/4 cup flour

1.  Sear the ground beef - this means that you don't stir and fry it until it's uniformly greyish-brown, but rather allow it to sit in the pan over the heat until dark crusty bits form.  Mine had lots of pink-red parts left, but several seared patches.  Perfect. (If you're not using lean, grass fed beef, better fry it and drain off the grease.)
2.  Put the beef in the slow cooker along with everything else except the yogurt and flour.  Mix.
3.  Cook on low, covered, for 2 1/2-3 hours.  Break up any clumps of beef now.
4.  Whisk together flour and yogurt.  Stir, stir, stir it into the beef mixture.  Clap the lid back on, turn the cooker to high, and allow it to cook until thickened, 20-30 minutes.

I forgot to ask my family specifically what they thought of this meal, but they all ate enthusiastically and wrangled for the leftovers later.  And look, it soothed them to sleep, too.  Ah, Sunday afternoon, how I love you.
(Specifically, the Dark Days elements:  local organic beef, stock made from aforesaid beef, local onions and mushrooms, homemade yogurt from local milk, local broccoli, home-canned local beets, locally made noodles (were the ingredients local? I don't know).  The flour, thyme, and pickling brine were not local.)

Sunday Dinner on a Very Busy Weekend

Suffice to say we had three big events this weekend, with two vacations and three birthdays breathing hotly down our necks.  There have been tears - of joy, and of weariness.

Dahlias from a friend - they look like lush summer to me, not autumn.  I can't get over their beauty.  And there are wedding flowers, too, that didn't get photographed.

A wedding bow discovery: tie a regular bow as if tying a shoe, but with very long tails.  Then do it again right on top of the first one, and do it until you run out of tails.  This photo shows three bows.  The ribbon was lightly wired, so I was able to puff the loops into an even prettier bow. 

I was not fond of this ribbon, a freebie, on its own, but with the deep discount gold foil paper, it turns out to be a very nice autumnal package.

So in the midst of all this, we had a quiet little family Sunday dinner.  I wasn't even going to mention it here, but Genevieve made a sign.  Of her own volition (she did ask how to spell "kale" and "millet").

We ate a vegetarian millet casserole that I put together Saturday in about 10 minutes. 

 - - -Mix together 4 cups cooked millet or another grain,
1-2 cups salsa,
then finely minced (food processor)  1 bell pepper, hot pepper, 4 tomatoes, and 1-3 cloves garlic. 
Black beans optional.
Cheese on top. 
350 for 45 minutes- - -

 Then Sunday morning, I chopped up the collards (not kale, as Genevieve thought), and put them in the Dutch oven with sugar, salt, and garlic.  I turned them on when we got home from church and let them go for 10-15 minutes. 

A simple healthy dinner in the midst of all the candy and rich meals.  The essence of home.

Sunday Dinner: Cottage Potatoes

I had leftover baked potatoes in the fridge - usually I shred them and freeze them for hashbrowns.  This time, I used a recipe for Cottage Potatoes.  I've seen this recipe around a few times and at the end of the post is my take on it.  First, though, here is how I put together Sunday dinner:

Thursday:thaw ground beef in fridge

Friday:
mix up Poor Man's Steak and spread in pan

Saturday:fry Steak
make mushroom sauce - pour over steak, back in fridge
put together Cottage Potatoes

Sunday morning:set potatoes and steak on timed bake

Sunday noon:
make green salad
set table

Cottage Potatoes, Thrift at Home Style

Mix together gently in large baking dish:

6 medium cooked potatoes, cubed (I don't peel them)
1 onion, diced
1/2-1 cup tasty cheese, but not too sharp, cubed
1 1/3 cup hearty bread cubes
2 Tbsp. fresh rosemary (or 3/4 Tbsp. dried)
3/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. fresh ground pepper

Pour over:
3 Tbsp. melted butter

Cover and bake at 350 for 30 minutes.  Uncover and bake for 10-15 minutes.  Yesterday, I baked it at 300 for 1 1/2 hours alongside the Poor Man's Steak - and I forgot to cover it!  And it was fine.

Traditional recipes leave out the rosemary and add green bell pepper.  You can see how easy it is to tweak the flavors here.  It's a rustic, comforting potato dish and your house will smell fabulous.

End of Sunday Dinner, Saveur Style

One of my favorite food magazines is Saveur - they're like the National Geographic of food: real people in interesting places, photographed so engagingly.  I was an adult before I realized there were articles in National Geographic too, not just photos.

This photo, a September Sunday dinner, is in that style - unposed, compelling, telling a story.

And here is the pickle tray up close.  My husband pickled some beet stems with siriacha and spices.  The flavor was fantastic, they looked pretty in the jar, but the stems themselves were tough. 

I loved the pickling brine so much that I boiled beets and put them in it for round two.  Ben requested some of the pickle brine in his cup at supper last night and we laughed and said, sure.

Sunday Dinner: Vichysoisse

I didn't look at a screen the entire week I was at the beach - how odd and how refreshing.  But now I'm back with lots to record!  I already enjoyed a nice visit on your blogs when I got home.

I'm beginning to think many things are easier in winter - it's so cozy to cook up big, heavy meals and welcome the stove heat.  Now in the summer, what should we eat?  I don't like the feeling of perpetual snacking.  I've been browsing through my vintage cookbooks for ideas - after all, these people did not have air conditioning either and most of them wore many more layers than us. 

I've been making extremely simple meals, always with a chilled element and some straight up summer bounty.

Sunday's meal was no different:

Vichysoisse
biscuits and butter
yellow grape tomatoes
fresh peach and blueberry pie

Saturday:make biscuits (bake them with the bread and granola - if I'm going to turn on the oven, I'm going to fill that baby up)
make Vichysoisse
make peach pie (using previously baked crust from the freezer)

Sunday noon:
snip some parsley for the Vichysoisse
wash the tomatoes
set the table
warm the biscuits in the toaster oven

The Vichysoisse (first time I've made it, had it) was good, but I wasn't wowed.  I did add some dill, and then the snipped parsley. 

Also, I really do keep my oven filled if I have to turn it on for something.  I'll roast some vegetables, even if I don't have an immediate plan for them - better to prep them now when the oven is on and have another meal option in the fridge. 

Or the tart crust - I have 4 pie pans, enough that I can bake a double batch and stick one in the freezer without missing the pan.  And it was easy as pie (ha!) to slice the peaches, make a quick sauce, and plop it all in the frozen crust to chill for Sunday.

I was baking bread for general eating, but also to make pretty sandwiches for a party - I'll get that post up this week.

Sunday Dinner: Salade Necoise

The version of salade necoise that I use varies with what I have on hand.  I got the idea from More with Less, but I've eaten different versions in restaurants, most notably a French restaurant in Montreal with A.  I love salade necoise in all its versions! (And I had a room mate in college whose name was Necois. . .she taught me some cooking tricks).

My version of salade necoise is potato salad on a bed of lettuce, with cucumbers and tomatoes, a steamed, chilled green vegetable, some tuna, and fresh herbs and a vinaigrette over all.  I used frozen peas this time, as we had just picked and eaten our green beans a few days ago.  I usually like salade necois with good bread, but yesterday there was dessert instead.

Saturday:make Aunt Linda's Potato Salad
chill a can of tuna
wash, dry lettuce
chop cucumbers

Sunday morning:
defrost frozen peas
make vinaigrette


Sunday noon:
put the tuna in a serving bowl
slice tomatoes
snip fresh herbs from the backyard
set the table

The dessert was a variation of eclair dessert that I made up.  I made a batch of vanilla cornstarch pudding, and layered it with chocolate graham crackers.  Then I put peanut butter icing over the top.  I allowed it to sit for a few days in the fridge.  The flavor was great, but there should have been more pudding in my opinion.

Sunday Dinner: New Green Beans

There are actually no new tricks to this Sunday dinner to share with you, but there are the first green beans from our garden!

Thursday:put steaks in fridge to thaw

Saturday:
marinate steaks (recipe here)
trim green beans

Sunday morning:
oil, prick potatoes - put in slow cooker (high for 2-4 hours)

Sunday noon:
set table
grill steaks
steam green beans, douse with brown butter
open jar of pickled beets

hallelujah!

A few notes:I have not made baked potatoes in a crock pot before, but I plan to use that thing as much as possible this summer to keep the heat out of the house.   The potatoes came out beautifully.

I kept one steak back - with plans to make a hearty dinner salad later in the week.  Possibly a Pittsburgh salad with roasted potatoes and blue cheese dressing.

Our green beans are the first ones we know of around here.  My husband planted them April 11, which is well before our frost-free date as the seed packet advised.  We did have to cover them once, but my husband explained that cities are "heat sinks" that keep heat more than rural spaces.  Good in the winter, bad in the summer and the reason why so many city people used to flee to the country for the summer months.

Sunday Dinner: Make-Ahead Chicken Casserole

mmmmm - Mennonite comfort food is more like it.  This is an easy casserole with macaroni, chicken, and veggies that has to soak overnight before baking.  It does call for a can of cream of mushroom soup, which I do not buy or cook with; that can be replaced with a homemade extra-thick white sauce, or a homemade cream soup mix from Simply in Season which is what I used. (Just say the word and I'll post the recipe if you want.)

Saturday:
thaw turkey (picked off the Thanksgiving turkey bones)
hardboil eggs
cook up the cream soup
assemble casserole

Sunday morning:
set casserole on timed bake

Sunday noon:
open up cranberry sauce
cook peas
set table

Now a word about that canned cranberry sauce:  I keep some on hand to make sandwiches with.  It's great with brie and spinach.  However, in a pinch, it works well as a tart sauce.  There is going to be a lot of pinching around here because I am starting to teach another eight-week ESL class today.  In other times, I would have made cranberry applesauce.  It's something I'm thinking a lot about right now - the trade offs I make between family, teaching, and homekeeping.

Updated, with recipe:

Make-Ahead Chicken Casserole (tweaked from Mennonite Country-Style Recipes)
Combine in greased 8x12:
1- 2 c. diced cooked chicken/turkey
1.5 cups uncooked macaroni
3/4 c. grated sharp cheese
1 10 oz. can cream of chicken soup OR 1 and 1/4 c. cup very thick white sauce OR cream soup substitute below
2 c. milk and chicken stock combined
1/2 c. celery or parsley, chopped
2-3 hardboiled eggs, chopped
1/2 - 1 chopped onion
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. poultry seasoning (or sage and thyme)

Allow to sit in fridge at least 8 hours, preferably overnight.  Bake at 350 for 1 hour.  Can double and bake in 9x13 (increase baking time 20 minutes).

I think this is a flexible recipe - it's just basically heating the casserole through, so you want to be sure you have a good ratio of solids to liquids. The first time I made it, I added more macaroni and milk instead of  hardboiled eggs.  I have never used the full amount of chicken, just increased the poultry seasoning.  I used fresh parsley this time instead of celery, making the casserole much prettier.  I think there's room with experimenting with peas or carrots too.

Cream Soup Substitute - - from Simply in Season
Mix and store, covered, in fridge:
2 c. dry milk powder
3/4 c. cornstarch
1/4 c. dry bouillion
1 tsp. dried basil
1/2 tsp. pepper
2 tsp. dried minced onion

To use as one 10-ounce can of cream soup, combine 1 and 1/4 c. cold water with 1/3 cup mix in saucepan.  Cook and stir over low heat until thick.