Dinner for One - Super Simple Steak and Salad

So I haven't posted in a while - I've been really busy with my real job (you know, just running a business) and we've been eating out and making a lot of the same stuff recently. I wanted to put something up to keep you salivating - so here's a quick and easy dinner for one.

Cooking for one is next to impossible, in my experience. It's hard enough just cooking for two sometimes, but one? Forget about it! So, when I eat dinner by myself it's usually take out, but occasionally I'll make this dinner because 1) I love it and 2) It's super delicious and fast and there's no leftovers (okay, I didn't eat the whole steak, but that just means leftovers for a yummy steak salad!).

Simple Steak:

Your choice of steak (I used a porterhouse in this recipe, but I've also used filets, t-bones, NY strips, etc.)
Salt and Pepper
Lemon
Olive Oil

Salad:

Arugula
Bacon, cooked and chopped into bits
Pine nuts, lightly toasted
Goat cheese for sprinkling on top
Pepper

For the salad dressing:

Juice of one Lemon
Salt and Pepper
1 tsp. Dijon mustard
About 3 Tbsp. Olive Oil (sometimes I use leftover bacon grease instead, but olive oil is MUCH healthier!)

Take your steak out of the fridge about 30 minutes before you cook it and season it with salt and pepper generously. Seriously.

Meanwhile, prepare your bacon and toast your pine nuts. Set aside.

Pre-heat your grill to high and clean and oil it. Cook the steak for 4-5 minutes uncovered. Obviously, the cook time will depend on the thickness of your steak. My porterhouse was about an inch thick and it came out on the medium side of medium-well - and I cooked it for a good 5 minutes each side. The best thing to do when it comes to figuring out how to cook a steak to your liking on your grill is to just grill a LOT of steaks! You'll get the hang of it eventually!

When your steak is done, take it off the grill and let rest for 10 minutes while you prepare your salad.

For the salad dressing, mix lemon juice, salt and pepper and mustard in a jar. Cover and shake until well combined. Slowly add olive oil, shaking between additions. You want a nice uniform colored dressing, well emulsified and kind of creamy.

Pour dressing over arugula and toss. Add your crumbled bacon, goat cheese crumbles and pine nuts. Add a twist of pepper and voila! Super simple salad.

Cut your steak lengthwise and drizzle lightly with olive oil and lemon.

Bon Apetit!!!

Sunday - Goat Cheese and Chive Stuffed Squash Blossoms & Some Desserts

I guess I am getting lazy, because we've been making repeats of previous blog posts. On Sunday, we had a little BBQ and made our new favorite, Grilled Veggie Pasta with Browned Butter and Mizithra (covered on the blog here). We served it with a slice of toasted brioche and balsamic vinegar for dipping. Mmmm, mmmm...So good. It's really good left over, too. It can serve as at least your next day's lunch. In the spirit of trying something new, though, we did make some fried squash blossoms. Also, I've been hankering for desserts lately, I'm not sure why. But look for a couple of dessert posts below, too!

Trey's Mom served these fried squash blossoms to us when we were in Houston in June and though I'd seen squash blossoms on menus and in the stores I'd never eaten them. Trey's Mom did them simply - with just (and I hope I get this right) seltzer water and salt and pepper and flour. They were phenomenal. So delicate, with just a hint of squash-y flavor. I had seen a recipe for goat cheese stuffed blossoms and of course, I couldn't pass up the opportunity. We bought a huge squash plant from Portland Nursery on Sunday afternoon and immediately picked off all the male blossoms (a word to the wise - if you do use your own blossoms, don't pick off ALL the male blossoms. You'll need at least one to fertilize the female blossoms. I just hope I didn't ruin ours!). You'll need to give them a good rinse, gently, if you use ones from your garden. I'm hoping to find some at Zupan's or Uncle Paul's so that I don't have to ravage our plant every time I get a hankering for these.

If you decide to stuff your blossoms, just remember that they are very very fragile and will break or tear easily. Be super gentle.

Goat Cheese Stuffed Squash Blossoms:

Squash blossoms, stems and stringy sepals removed (the insides, including the stamen can remain intact)
About 1/4 C goat cheese, at room temperature
Chopped chives
Dash lemon juice
2 eggs
1/4 C heavy cream or whole milk
1 C Flour
Salt and Pepper
Oil for frying (we like Canola)

Rinse your blossoms really well in cold water. Let dry on a paper towel. Meanwhile, mix chives, goat cheese, lemon, salt and pepper in a small bowl. In another small bowl, beat eggs and add cream or milk. Put the flour in another shallow bowl or plate.

Heat the oil to 350 degrees. Using a teaspoon (I used a 1/4 tsp. spoon), gently spoon your goat cheese mixture into the center of the blossoms. Twist the ends of the blossom back up so that it closes. One at a time, dip the blossoms into the egg mixture, then the flour, shaking off any excess. Refrigerate for about 5 minutes.

When your oil is ready drop the blossoms in, about 5 at a time. Fry until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Drain on rack set over paper towels. Let cool slightly, serve immediately.

Dessert #1: Brownie A La Mode with Caramel Sauce

Why? Because it's the easiest freaking dessert you can make! Especially if you get a nummy hazelnut brownie from the Moonstruck counter at Fred Meyer. Just add vanilla ice cream (I LOVE the new Five by HaagenDazs) and drizzle with caramel sauce. So good. So so so good.

Dessert #2: Blackberry Tartlet

I made this one up, pretty much. It started when I had first taste of blackberry pie many years ago. I've always loved blackberries, I have fond childhood memories of picking them off the roadside and in fields by my house. Anyway, a pie is a perfect showcase for these little nuggets of num. Sometimes, however, you just don't pick enough to fill an entire pie. Case in point, on Monday at the Sandy River we miraculously found a small patch of blackberries that were already ripe. There were acres upon acres of bushes that had unripened berries on them, it's still a little early for blackberries. However, the ones that were ripe were perfect if a little sour. So I picked a handful (literally, a handful) for a small tartlet that evening. All you have to do is make a quick pie crust, take a small dish or ramekin and put the crust on the bottom, add your berries (that have been soaking in sugar) and top with another small pie crust. Do a little egg white wash and sprinkle with a bit of sugar. Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes. Top with ice cream et voila! Blackberry tartlet!

Saturday Dinner - Rotisserie Chicken Sandwiches

 This recipe was emailed to me last year courtesy of the Whole Foods newsletter. I thought it sounded like a good recipe for leftover roasted (or rotisserie) chicken which we usually have in spades after we make it. It's a great sandwich for a hot night - it's cool, refreshing and healthy. We paired it with our new favorite, the grilled salad, from The Bitten Word (with some modifications, of course). I've covered it here on the blog, but it's totally worth repeating. Both recipes use buttermilk, so I guess I figured they'd go well together. And they did! Success. Side note: We had an avocado left over, so I grilled it. It's super easy and a delicious accompaniment for the salad. Just brush a halved avocado with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper and grill for 3-5 minutes on high heat. Voila!


Rotisserie Chicken Sandwiches (recipe from the Whole Foods website):

1 cup low-fat buttermilk (or 3/4 cup unsweetened soymilk)
1/2 avocado, peeled & pitted - I used a whole one for more flavor
3 tablespoons lemon juice, divided
Salt and ground black pepper to taste
1 cup (about 1/2 bunch) packed flat-leaf parsley leaves, stems removed
1 bunch radishes, trimmed and thinly sliced
8 slices whole wheat hearth bread, toasted - Zupans has these amazing demi-baguettes that we use for just about everything. They're perfect for these sandwiches!
1 rotisserie chicken, skin and bones removed, meat shredded and warmed

Combine buttermilk, avocado, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, salt and pepper in a food processor or blender until smooth; set aside. In a medium bowl toss together parsley, radishes, remaining lemon juice, salt and pepper. Arrange toasted bread on a large platter and top with chicken. Drizzle with avocado cream, top with parsley salad and serve. That couldn't have been easier, right!!

 

Bon appetit!

Thursday Dinner - Rotisserie Chicken and Warm Goat Cheese Salad

 Trey's Mom got him this great rotisserie for our new grill back in June and we hadn't used it until last night. Sometimes I think chicken is super boring, but then we make it a new way and I'm reminded that seasoned and cooked well, chicken can be wonderful. We had the rotisserie chicken with a side salad of arugula, bacon, warm goat cheese medallions (super easy to make!) with a simple balsamic vinaigrette. We also had white rice (delicious when you add salt and butter to the boiling water) and some grilled asparagus that got a little burnt. It was a really nice meal. Simple, homey and delicious. It's this type of meal that prompted me to start this blog - anyone can make it and it'll make you feel good all over.

The rotisserie is completely optional in this recipe. If you don't have one (you should get one!) you can roast the chicken in the oven at 375 degrees for about an hour and a half (or until a thermometer inserted into the deepest part of the thigh reads 180).

So, Trey had wanted to get the chicken started early so we could eat at a decent hour. He started it at about 6:30 I believe. He wanted me to go to the store after work (I work until 7) and get  a roasting pan to catch the drippings with. By the time I had gotten to the store (about 7:10) he called to ask me to get another chicken since the one he was making got completely burnt to a crisp. This was due to the fact that he added the butter basting sauce without first putting the roasting pan under it to catch the drippings and the grill flared up. He left it alone for one minute, came back and it was gone. Irreparable. He was pretty mad about it, but I wasn't concerned. With me home, I could see the whole process (plus take pictures!). So, to make a long story short - we ate at 10 pm and I didn't get a good shot of the chicken on the rotisserie, but it doesn't really matter does it? As long as it tasted good...And it did. In fact, only one word comes to mind as I recall this chicken - succulent.

The salad was inspired by one I used to get at South Congress Cafe in Austin, TX. They put warm goat cheese medallions on their salad and I've been obsessed with goat cheese ever since. They are super easy to make and really good - I do recommend eating them right out of the oven while the cheese is still warm. Don't let them sit around for 10 minutes like I did last night.

Rotisserie Chicken (or Roasted Chicken):
1 3-4 lb. whole chicken
Various herbs - we used sage, rosemary and thyme. Keep half of the herbs whole and chop the other half.
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 lemon, cut into slices
1 stick butter, for basting
Salt
Pepper

Prepare your chicken by removing anything from the cavity, rinsing with cold water and patting dry. Season liberally inside and out with salt and pepper. Stuff the cavity with your herbs, a few slices of the lemon and two pats of butter. Season the outside with some of herbs that have been chopped and some of the minced garlic. Reserve some minced garlic for the basting sauce.

Tie the legs and wings back with kitchen string and put the chicken on the rotisserie bar. If you are using an oven, preheat to 450 degrees - put chicken in a roasting pan and let it cook for about 10 minutes at 450 then turn oven down to 375. Roast for an hour and a half, until a thermometer inserted into the deepest part of the thigh reads 180. On the rotisserie, cook the chicken over high heat for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes put a roasting pan underneath the chicken to catch drippings and turn heat down to low. Roast for an hour and half, or until a thermometer inserted into the deepest part of the thigh reads 180.

For both methods, baste with chicken's own juices or with basting sauce (just melted butter and garlic will do, you can also add any herbs you like) every 20 minutes or so.

Warm Goat Cheese Salad:
Salad mix (We used arugula, because that's what we had on hand, but any salad mix will do)
Toasted pine nuts
Cooked bacon, chopped
Balsamic Vinaigrette (recipe below)
Goat cheese, cut into rounds (using really cold goat cheese will help with this, so you may want to stick it in the freezer for about 10 minutes before cutting)
1/2 C Panko bread crumbs
1/2 C Regular (Italian) bread crumbs
2 eggs
Salt and Pepper

Pre-heat your oven to 425.

Cook your bacon and toast your pine nuts. Add to the salad mix.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a small bowl, whisk the two eggs with salt and pepper. In a separate bowl, combine the two types of bread crumbs. Take your goat cheese rounds and dip into the eggs then into the bread crumbs. Shake off excess and dip back into eggs and then back into breadcrumbs. Lay them on your baking sheet. Cook in oven for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown.

Toss the salad with the vinaigrette and serve on a plate with the goat cheese medallions.

Balsamic Vinaigrette:
1/8 C good balsamic vinegar
Juice of 1/4 lemon
1/4 C olive oil
Salt and Pepper to taste

Combine vinegar, lemon juice and salt and pepper. Whisk in olive oil slowly to emulsify.

Bon appetit!

Sunday Dinner with Mom and Dad - Bulgogi Lettuce Wraps and Shrimp Stir Fry

I saw this recipe on Serious Eats (my new obsession) and really wanted to try them. I first had bulgogi at Burger Tex in Austin, TX. According to Wikipedia, bulgogi is simply a Korean dish that usually consists of marinated barbecue beef, although chicken or pork may also be used. This recipe calls for 1 lb. pork loin, and it needs to be marinated for quite awhile, so it's one of those "think ahead" meals. I was just starting to marinate the pork on Saturday night for Sunday's dinner when my Mom texted to see if we wanted to have dinner out with them Sunday. I told her I was just marinating the pork for Sunday's dinner and did she and my Dad want to come over to our house for dinner instead? She agreed and Trey and I quickly decided to make a quick shrimp stir fry with the lettuce wraps to make it a meal. The bulgogi is super easy and doesn't call for anything too out of the ordinary, except maybe gochujang - a savory and pungent fermented Korean condiment that is basically a hot pepper paste. I'd never heard of it before, and we couldn't find it at the grocery store so we picked up some sweet chilli sauce and used that instead. I marinated the pork overnight, and it was really good in just the Boston lettuce, with a little rice stick noodles and soy sauce. I can't wait to make them again. Perfect for a hot summer night.


The stir fry is one that Trey and I have been doing for years. It's super easy and you can add whatever you like in your stir fry to it. We use shrimp, sugar snap peas, green onion, bean sprouts, garlic, sesame seeds and make a quick sauce of soy sauce, wok oil, sesame oil, mirin, a dash of sriracha, and ginger. It's also really easy and comes together quickly.

Oh, one more quick note on the recipe - I don't particularly care for kimchi so I omitted it. I also didn't feel like making the quick pickles, so I didn't use those either.

And finally, a little shameless self-promotion, a few more of my pictures have made it up to Serious Eat's Photograzing site - here. Mine are the "Gartner's Marinated Short Ribs" and "Thick Cut Bacon". Tell me which pictures from this post you think I should upload to the site in the comments section!

Daeji Bulgogi:

1 lb pork tenderloin, trimmed of silver skin and excess fat
1/4 cup soy sauce
3 cloves garlic, minced2 tablespoons light brown sugar
2 tablespoons gochujang
2 tablespoons mirin
2 tablespoons sesame oil
1 tablespoon crushed ginger root
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 green onions, minced
1 small onion, thinly sliced
2 heads Boston, Bibb or Buttercrunch lettuce
1/2 package rice stick noodles, prepared according to package directions


Place the pork in the freezer until it firms up, about 1 hour. While the pork is in the freezer, combine the soy sauce, garlic, brown sugar, gochujang , mirin, sesame oil, ginger, red pepper flakes, and green onions in a small bowl.


Remove the pork from the freezer and slice into pieces 1/8 inch thick. Place the pork and sliced onion in a large Ziploc bag, pour in the marinade and seal. Toss to evenly distribute the marinade, then open and reseal the bag, removing as much air as possible. Place in the refrigerator and let marinate for at least one hour to overnight.

Light one chimney full of charcoal. When all the charcoal is lit and covered with gray ash, pour out and spread the coals evenly over the charcoal grate. Clean and oil the grilling grate. Place the pork slices on the grill and cook until the meat is seared on both sides and cooked through, about 1 minute per side. Remove from the grill and serve immediately with bibb lettuce, rice stick noodles and soy sauce.

Shrimp Stir Fry:
6-12 prawns, cleaned and de-veined
2 packages ramen noodles
sugar snap peas
bean sprouts
green onion, chopped
sesame seeds
1 garlic clove, sliced thinly
Ginger root, grated

 For the sauce:
2 tbsp wok oil
1 tsp sesame oil
2 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp sriracha
1 tsp Mirin (rice wine vinegar)
Juice of 1 lime

 There's not a whole let of method to the madness that is Trey's stir fry but I will attempt to recount how he made this delicious dish...

Cook ramen noodles according to package directions. Add 1 packet of seasoning (the stuff that comes with Top Ramen) to the water after cooking and drain.

Put 1 tbsp of the wok oil in your wok and heat to high. Add the shrimp and cook until it's opaque. Add the garlic slices, let them sautee for about 1 minute then add bean sprouts and sugar snap peas. Add cooked noodles, and turn heat down to medium-low. Add 1 more tbsp wok oil and 1 tsp sesame oil. Let fry for a minute or two until noodles firm up a little bit. Add 2 tsp soy sauce, 1 tsp sriracha and 1 tsp Mirin.

Add ginger, stir. Add lime juice, sesame seeds and green onions. Serve immediately.

Bon appetit!