Minestrone soup with chicken

Saturday was a rainy day. I had wanted to unload my truck and get it cleaned up, but the rain put a damper on that. So, instead, I made soup. I made a stock from bones in the freezer, but the beans were canned. The chicken carcass I had in the freezer had lots of meat left on it. I used that to make the stock, and then cut the meat off the bones, and added that to the soup.

That night, my neighbors came over for dinner. I got pretty favorable reviews on this minestrone. It went real well with the lamb I roasted. Here is how I made the minestrone. 

1 meaty chicken carcass from roast chicken

Water

1/4 cup of onion flakes

3 bay leaves

4 stalks of celery, broken

1/2 tsp. adobo seasoning

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1/2 tsp. cumin

1/2 tsp. chicken bullion

Olive oil

1 large carrot, cubed

3 stalks of celery, sliced

1 large onion, chopped

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1 serrano pepper, chopped

1/2 tsp. thyme

1/2 tsp. oregano

1 tsp. smoked paprika

15 oz. can of pinto beans

1 pound can of Blue Runner red beans

10 oz. can of RoTel tomatoes

1 cup of frozen mixed vegetables

Worcestershire sauce

Maggi seasoning

4 small branches of fresh rosemary

1 cup of small pasta shells

Preparation

For the stock, place the chicken carcass in a stock pot, and add enough water to completely cover the bones. Add the onion flakes, the broken celery, bay leaves, adobo seasoning, cumin, and the chicken bullion. Bring that to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for one hour.

Strain the stock. Remove all the meat from the bones, chop that and set aside. Heat a large soup pot and add just enough olive oil to coat the bottom. Add the carrots, onion, sliced celery, garlic and serrano pepper. Stir and let that sweat down. Sprinkle on the thyme, oregano and smoked paprika. Once the onions have softened, add the chopped chicken. Let that gently cook for about five minutes and add the stock.

Bring the soup to a boil, and let it simmer uncovered, for about a half hour, to reduce the volume. Add the pinto beans, and then stir in the Blue Runner red beans. Stir well, and let that simmer for another half hour. Add the RoTel tomatoes, the mixed vegetables, a few dashes of the Worcestershire sauce, and a few more dashes of the Maggi seasoning. Simmer for another half hour, and add the rosemary branches and the pasta.  Simmer for a final half hour, but stir often, and keep the heat low, to avoid scorching. Taste and adjust the minestrone for salt, using adobo seasoning.

Serving

Serve big bowls of this soup, with some grated Parmesan cheese. We also had medium rare roast lamb, roasted potatoes, gravy, fresh homemade bread and lots of butter. A hearty Zinfandel would be best with this.

Chicago style Italian beef ... made with leftover roast beef

Last week, I did a beef roast, long and slow, over charcoal and wood, until it hit medium rare perfection. Even though I overate when I served it up for dinner, I still had a lot left. Another night I turned it into Chicago style Italian beef. 

Ok, I admit, I cheated. Italian beef is supposed to be braised so long that it almost falls apart, and the ‘juice’ is full of that great flavor. Instead, I started at 5:00, and by 6:15, I was eating a very good version of an Italian beef sandwich. 

This is a great way to use up leftover roast, and it came real close to the authentic flavor of ‘A beef with hot’. Here’s how I did it. The picture right below is just after I added the liquid, but before it was simmered and reduced.

At least a pound of medium rare roast beef

1 large onion, chopped

1 bell pepper, cut into strips

Olive oil

About a quart of water

1 tablespoon of beef bullion

Teaspoon of flour

Quarter cup of the brine from Peperoncini

2 teaspoons of oregano

1 teaspoon of garlic powder

Quarter cup of onion flakes

1 teaspoon of smoked paprika

Cajun seasoning

Adobo seasoning

Hearth baked hard rolls

Preparation

Heat a large skillet and add enough olive oil to coat the bottom of the pan. Add the chopped onion and bell pepper strips. Let that start to sweat down. While that is cooking, slice the roast beef as thin as you can, and then cut the slices into strips. Add that to the skillet, along with the oregano, garlic powder, onion flakes, and smoked paprika. Sprinkle on the flour and stir until all the flour and seasonings are well distributed. Add the water, beef bullion, and the brine from a jar of Peperoncini pickled peppers. 

Bring that to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and very gently simmer, uncovered, for at least an hour. Taste and adjust the flavor with cajun and adobo seasoning. By now, the liquid should be reduced and very flavorful. You are ready to serve.

Serving

Slice open a few hearth baked hard rolls, and pile on the beef, peppers, and onions. Get some of the ‘juice’ with it. Give the beef a sprinkle of cajun seasoning, and top with some hot giardiniera. Pop open a little Italian red wine, and you are good to go!

Beef roasted over charcoal and wood

Sunday, I was enjoying the cool summer day. My first order of business was to mow two front lawns. It wasn’t even 70º yet, and that made for nice mowing weather. After that, I was in relax mode. Around noon, I lit the grill.  I had a four pound beef roast and I wanted to do that nice and slow on the grill. I set my chair out by the grill, and grabbed my Kindle. It made for a nice afternoon.

I served the beef, slice thin, with lots of gravy, which had a great smokey flavor. Here’s how I got it ready to serve.

Four pound beef roast

Cajun seasoning

Wondra gravy flour

Quarter teaspoon of oregano

Half teaspoon of smoked paprika

Adobo seasoning

Water

Preparation

Pick out a beef roast with a nice layer of fat on it. Place that in a oven proof pan, fat side up. Season it on all sides with a generous amount of cajun seasoning. Let that sit at room temperature for about an hour.

Prepare the grill by placing a large pile of charcoal on one side. Light the charcoal with a propane torch in a couple of places. Give that some time for the charcoal to get hot. While that is heating up, gather some hardwood branches. There is a dead apple tree just down the river from me, and I broke off a branch to supply flavor.

When the coals are hot, place the pan with the roast on the opposite side of the grill from the coals. Add a couple of hardwood sticks, and close the lid. My roast took about three hours to reach medium rare perfection. Cooking time will vary, as much by the shape of the roast, as it will by the heat of the fire. As it roasts, occasionally turn it. Every twenty minutes or so, add more hardwood sticks, to keep the smoke up, and if necessary, more charcoal. When an instant read thermometer just hits 120, bring the roast in.

Set the beef on a plate, in a warm place. Place the pan with the drippings on the stove over medium heat. Sprinkle on enough flour to almost absorb the fat. Add the oregano and smoked paprika. Stir that for a few minutes to cook the flour. Add water, a little at a time, to thin out the gravy. When you think you have the right thickness let it simmer a minute to see if it needs more water. Taste and adjust for salt with the adobo seasoning, and you are ready to serve.

Serving

Slice the beef nice and thin, and then pile several slices on a dinner plate. Add any juices from the cutting board over the sliced beef. I didn’t have potatoes, but I did bake some leftover pizza dough from Saturday, into a small loaf of bread. I put several slices of bread next to the beef, and covered them with gravy. I also had a salad and some grilled yellow crookneck squash to round out the meal. The wine was a nice Zinfandel.

Double decker sausage and garlic pizza

A couple of nights ago, I was in the mood for pizza, and had some Italian sausage. I went with an unusual twist, a double decker pizza. 

Basically this is a thin crust cheese pizza, set on top of a thin crust garlic and sausage pizza, with the two edges rolled together to make one stuffed pizza, and then baked. Here’s how I did it. Use any assortment of cheeses you like.

2 - 1/2 cups of flour

1-1/4 cups of water

Olive oil

1/4 tsp. salt

2 tbs. yeast

8 oz. can of tomato sauce

1/2 cup of grated Parmesan cheese

1 tsp. of oregano, plus some more

Louisiana Hot Sauce

2 cups of Longhorn marble cheese, shredded

1 Italian sausage, broken up

3 cloves of garlic, chopped

1-1/2 cups of shredded Mozzarella cheese

Fresh ground white pepper

Extra virgin olive oil

Preparation

Place the flour, water, salt, yeast, and about two tablespoons of olive oil in a mixing bowl. Use the dough hooks to bring the dough together. Adjust as needed, with a little extra flour or water. Knead the dough for a minute, divide it in half, and let it rest.

Place the tomato sauce in a small bowl, and add about a teaspoon of olive oil to it, along with two tablespoons of the Parmesan cheese. Add the oregano, and several shakes of Louisiana Hot Sauce, and stir to mix well.

Heat a small skillet and add just enough olive oil to coat the bottom. Add the sausage, and stir. When the sausage is almost cooked through, add the chopped garlic. Stir until the garlic softens, and turn the heat off. 

Take the first half of the dough and work it into fourteen inch circle using your fingers, turning it over and flouring it as you do. Slide that into a pizza pan, which has been sprinkled with corn meal. Add two thirds of the pizza sauce to the dough. Spread it out, but leave the outer two inches uncovered. Add the sausage and garlic evenly over the sauce. Add the Longhorn cheese (or whatever you are using) along with the remaining Parmesan cheese.

Now, work the remaining dough into a fourteen inch circle, the same way. Gently slide it over the top of the pizza. Roll the two edges of the dough up together, until you reach the start of the sauce. Add the remaining sauce to the top dough. Sprinkle the Mozzarella cheese over the sauce. Sprinkle a couple pinches of oregano over the cheese. Bake at 380º for about twenty minutes, until the cheese has turned golden brown. Remove the pizza to a cutting pan, and drizzle your best olive oil over the top of it. Grind on some white pepper, and wait at least five minutes before slicing.

Grilled steak fajita

On Saturday, I had a small group over for dinner and I made steak and chicken fajitas. I’m always amazed how I get so many compliments on my steak, when the dry rub is so simple. 

Saturday, I did a slightly different variation than my normal dry rub, but I received rave reviews on the fajitas. Here’s how I prepared them. The steaks I used were sold as ‘charcoal grilling steaks’ (Bistec Para Asar), and are found in many stores that have a Mexican-American customer base. Round steak will work too.

Two one pound steaks

Cajun seasoning

Adobo seasoning

Fresh ground white pepper

Soy sauce

2 red bell peppers, cut into strips

3 large jalapeño peppers, cut into strips

2 large onions, cut into strips

Maggi seasoning

2 limes, cut into wedges

Shredded cheese

Warmed flour and corn tortillas

Valentina Hot Sauce

Preparation

About two hours before dinner time, season the steaks with generous dusting of cajun seasoning, adobo seasoning, and fresh ground white pepper. Rub it in, and set the steaks in a single layer on a plate, and set the plate in the fridge. Let them rest for a couple of hours.

When it is time to start cooking, light a charcoal grill. I bordered my charcoal with inch thick applewood logs for extra flavor. Light the charcoal with a propane torch, and let the coals come to full heat. While the coals are warming up, remove the steaks from the refrigerator, and let them come to room temperature.

Grill the steaks until they are medium rare, and remove them from the coals.  As you turn the steaks over, splash on some soy sauce. Let them rest for five minutes before slicing. 

While that is resting, heat a large skillet on the stove, so it is real hot. add enough olive oil to the skillet to coat the bottom, and add the pepper and onion strips. Stir those until the onions just begin to soften. Splash the peppers and onions with some soy sauce, and a few shakes of Maggi seasoning. Slice the steaks thin, across the grain. 

Now you have a choice. You can either set the steak out like that (which I did on Saturday) or add the slices to the hot skillet of peppers and onions, (which I did, with leftover steak, on Sunday). Either way, set the steak and vegetables on the dinner table. 

Serving

You want to serve the steak and vegetables on your tortilla. Add some cheese, a generous amount of hot sauce, and squeeze a wedge of lime over it. Fold over, enjoy, and repeat until you fear a button will pop. Ice cold beer is perfect with fajitas.

Old fashioned spaghetti and meatballs

I spent most of the day yesterday, working around the house. Towards evening, I called a halt to my cleaning, and started on dinner. My neighbors were coming, and I started making spaghetti and meatballs. Just a simple old fashioned meal, but very tasty. I got rave reviews. Here’s what I did.

1 lb. ground pork

1 lb. ground lamb

1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 large shallot, finely minced

1 tsp. smoked paprika

1 tsp. thyme

Fresh ground white pepper

Cajun seasoning

2 eggs

1/2 cup of flour

Olive oil

6 cloves of garlic, smashed and minced

1 tsp. red pepper flakes

2 cans (28 oz.) San Marzano tomatoes

1/2 cup of torn basil leaves

1 lb. spaghetti, cooked and drained

Preparation

An hour before you plan to cook, place the lamb and pork in a large bowl. Add the grated parmesan cheese, the minced shallots, along with smoked paprika and the thyme. Grind on some fresh ground white pepper, and give it a heavy sprinkle of cajun seasoning. Add the eggs, and use your hands to mix everything together.

Place the flour in a bowl, and season it with some cajun seasoning. Set a large broiler pan on the counter. Use your hands to form meatballs, about the size of a jumbo egg. Roll the meatball in the seasoned flour, and set it on the broiler pan. Repeat until all the meatballs are assembled. Set the meatballs in the fridge for at least a half hour to firm up.

Pre-heat the oven to 375º and set the tray of meatballs on the top rack. Let those bake until they are half cooked, about fifteen minutes.

Add enough olive oil to a large sauce pan, to coat the bottom. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes. Let that gently cook, without browning the garlic. Place the tomatoes in a large bowl, and use your hand to squeeze them apart. Add the tomatoes to the garlic, and stir. Bring that to a simmer and add the torn basil leaves. Let that simmer uncovered.

When the meatballs are just starting to brown, add them, along with any drippings, to the tomato sauce. Simmer the meatballs very gently in the tomato sauce, for at least thirty minutes, but leave the pot uncovered. When the sauce has reduced and thickened a little, you are ready to serve.

Serving

We had spaghetti and meatballs, along with homemade bread, a large tossed salad, and assorted cheeses and olives. Chianti is perfect with this meal.

Beef and pepper stir fry with spinach

The other day, I still had some roast beef left that I needed to use up. I was in the mood for a stir fry, so I figured why not. I used that with some peppers, onions, and some baby spinach. 

Now, you could just as easily do this with strips of round steak. I had rare roast beef, but the procedure is the same. I used both a bell pepper and a couple of jalapeños. I find that, when cooked, today’s store bought jalapeños aren’t any hotter than bells, but have a different flavor. Here’s how I made the stir fry.

A cup and a half of roast beef, cut into strips

4 cloves of garlic, smashed and chopped

1/4 of dry white wine

Soy sauce

Peanut oil

5 thin dried red hot chiles

2 stalks of celery, cut up

1 bell pepper, cut into strips

2 jalapeño peppers, cut into strips

1 large onion, cut into wedges

1 tbs. dark molasses

2 cups of baby spinach leaves

Toasted sesame oil

1 cup of converted rice

2 cups of water

Adobo seasoning

Preparation

First order of business, is to put the rice on. For stir fries, I like Uncle Ben’s converted rice. Place that in a pot. Sprinkle on some adobo seasoning, and then add about a teaspoon of toasted sesame oil. Add the water, bring to a boil, simmer until all the liquid is absorbed, about fifteen minutes.

While that is going on, chop everything up. Place the beef in a bowl, add the wine, a generous splash of soy sauce and the garlic. Stir to mix, and set aside. 

Heat your wok. (I remove the little round deflector from my gas range, and have the wok over a jet of flame.) Add a small puddle of peanut oil, and then add the beef and garlic. Stir that until all the beef is sizzling, and starting to brown, and all the liquid was boiled off. Remove the beef and garlic to a bowl, and set aside.

Add a spec more peanut oil to the wok, and add the dried chiles, along with the celery. Stir that for about a minute, and then add the pepper strips. Stir as that cooks for about a minute. Add the onion wedges and break them up as you stir fry. 

Once the onions just start to clarify, add the beef and garlic back in. Now add the molasses, and give this several shakes of soy sauce. Stir to mix well. Finally add the spinach leaves and stir until they just begin to wilt. Splash on a spec of toasted sesame oil, give it one final stir, and turn the flame off.

Serving

Place the rice in the center of the plate, and spoon the stir fried beef mixture all around the rice. Have soy sauce on the table (Hey, that’s what the blood pressure pill is for, right?) Even though this is a beef dish, I prefer a cold crisp white wine like Pinot Grigio, or even a German Riesling. I find red wine doesn’t match well with a spicy stir fry.