Soy Marinated Steak Tips

This is one of those recipes that’s really just a reflection of what we have for dinner when I don’t feel like trying, but it actually turns out to be simple and great.

For some reason, a dinner of steak tips, Brussels sprouts (I know, I know! I bought Brussels sprouts out of season. Scandal. I also bought cookies in a box the other day. I don’t even know myself anymore.) and mashed potatoes is total comfort food to me. I marinated the tips in a mixture of soy sauce, garlic scapes, oil, paprika, smoked paprika (because I can never leave well enough alone with the paprika) and chili powder.

Soy sauce offers the perfect level of savory seasoning and the paprika(s), garlic scapes and chili combine to add a little sweet spice and heft. Searing on a griddle creates a crisp exterior and keeps the meat from stewing in its own juices.

1 lb sirloin steak tips, cut into 1″ cubes
1/3 C soy sauce
1 T + 1 T canola oil
1 t paprika
1 t smoked paprika
1 t chili powder
1 garlic scape, split lengthwise and cut into 1/4″ pieces

In a large bowl, mix the soy sauce with 1 tablespoon of the oil, paprikas, chili powder, and scape. Add the beef and toss to coat. Allow to marinade for 30 minutes, tossing again halfway through.

Heat the other tablespoon of oil on the griddle over medium heat until it begins to shimmer. Arrange the tips so that they are about an inch apart. Turn the tips after 5 minutes and sear the other side for another 5 minutes. If any red, uncooked spots are still visible, turn the tips using tongs to sear the uncooked sides.

Off the heat and remove the tips from the griddle. Serve with a nice comforting starchy vegetable like potatoes and something green and lush to make up the difference.

Veal Scallopine

Sure, this recipe is a tiny bit similar to last week’s stuffed chicken. To be honest, I’m feeling a little uninspired these days. It’s been a long winter and I’m just biding my time until our farmers market opens. I’m really looking forward to the availability of fresh local produce again.

Veal Scallopine is a quick dish. Cutlets are thin and take only a few minutes to cook, so while this is not necessarily a summer recipe, it’s not one to heat up the whole kitchen.

The key to this dish is the sauce. White wine and lemon juice are used to deglaze the pan and add punch. Capers lend their caperyness for salty little bursts.

Veal Scallopine – serves 2

1/4 C flour
1/2 t salt
3/4 – 1 lb thinly sliced veal (4 -  6 cutlets)
2 T lemon juice
1/3 C white wine
3 T capers
2 – 4 T olive oil

Combine the flour and salt in a shallow bowl. Dredge each veal cutlet, shake off the excess and set aside.

Heat olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Cook the veal for 2 minutes on each side. Place cooked cutlets on a cooling rack over a cookie sheet and place in the oven to keep warm.

Pour wine and lemon juice into the frying pan, using a spatula, scrape up any bits and mix it into the wine mixture as the alcohol cooks off. Add the capers and simmer for another minute.

Plate the veal, partially cover with the sauce and serve.

Ingredient origins: Flour – Vermont; Sea salt – Italy; Veal – unknown; Lemon – Mexico; Wine – California; Capers – Italy; Olive oil – Italy (See? This is why it’s frustrating to be a locavore in a temperate zone!)

Vegetable Beef Lo Mein

There’s something about eating noodles with chopsticks that, to me, has always seemed supremely exotic and fun. I know that sounds provincial, as quite literally half of the world eats noodles with chopsticks as an everyday occurrence and thinks nothing of it.

Growing up in the 80’s though, in suburban New England, films in which New Yorkers ate Chinese take-out straight from the box with chopsticks, always made me want Chinese food. Now, when I find myself in a standard American Chinese restaurant, I can’t pass up the lo mein. But, as with any food, I like to know what’s in it and where it came from, so I like to make my own Lo Mein at home.

This is a colorful dish, great to serve as a main course. The beef tenderizes as it marinates in ginger and soy sauce, resulting in satisfyingly tender chunks of beef. Bell peppers and snow peas add color and the udon noodles offer the perfect tooth.

Vegetable Beef Lo Mein – serves 4-6

1 1/2 lb well-marbled beef sirloin tips, cut against the grain into 1 inch cubes
1/4 C soy sauce
1 T grated ginger
1 8 oz package udon noodles
2 T olive oil
1 red bell pepper
1 orange or yellow bell pepper
1 C snap peas, de-strung
1 onion, chopped

Combine the ginger and soy sauce, and toss with the beef. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook the noodles as directed. Drain, rinse and toss with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in the colander. Set aside.

Over medium-low heat, caramelize the onions for 10 minutes. Add the peppers and snow peas. Cook for an additional 10 minutes until the colors become vibrant, watching the heat to be sure not to burn the vegetables. Remove from heat.

In a deep sauté pan or shallow stock pot, bring the olive oil to a shimmer over medium-high heat. Add the beef, lower the heat to medium/medium-low and saute for 10 – 12 minutes, until the juices begin to thicken.

Add the noodles to the beef and toss. Turn off the heat, add the vegetables and toss.

Serve hot.

Beef Empanadas

I made a lovely locally raised, grass-fed top round roast the other day. I should say, it was lovely, until I tragically overcooked it. Horrors, I know.

What do you do when life gives you overcooked grass-fed top round roast? Make empanadas. That’s what I always say.

This is a good recipe for any leftover beef, overcooked or not. But, if the meat is a little on the dry or tough side, the acidity in the vinegar and tomato paste will help to break down it as it rests in the fridge.

It seems a little odd to add raisins to a meat dish, doesn’t it? Go with me on this one though. Raisins lend little bursts of sweetness, while cured black olives – I like oily, wrinkly Gaetas – bring a briny punch. Together as a team, they give empanadas a nice balance.

Beef Empanadas - makes 8

2 C diced roast beef
2 T olive oil
1/2 yellow onion, diced
3 green onions, finely chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and diced
2 T vinegar
2 T tomato paste
1 t ground cumin
1 t smoked paprika
1/2 t granulated garlic
2 C all purpose flour
1/2 t salt
1/4 C shortening, chilled
1/2 C cold water
1/4 C raisins
10 cured black olives, pitted and minced (the brinier the better)
1 egg, beaten

Sweat the onions and diced jalapeno in olive oil on low to medium-low heat, being careful not to let them brown.

Combine the vinegar, tomato paste and spices in a small bowl.

In a larger bowl toss the meat with the spice mixture and sauteed vegetables. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour.

Meanwhile, make the pastry: Pulse the flour, salt and shortening in a food processor until it has the texture of cornmeal. Gradually pour the water into the feed tube while the dough spins. Turn the dough out and form it into a log, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Remove the chilled dough from the refrigerator and slice into eight discs. Roll each one out to about 7 or 8 inches in diameter, they should be about a 1/4 of an inch thick.

Remove the beef mixture from the refrigerator and toss with the raising and olive (we’re doing this after the big chill to avoid the raisins from macerating).

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Working one by one, scoop a slightly heaping 1/4 cup of the beef mixture onto one side of a round of dough. Fold the dough over and press the edges together. Starting from one end, fold the dough over itself along the edge and pinch it slightly to form a seal. Place each empanada onto a greased baking sheet.

Brush each one with the beaten egg.

Bake for 10 – 15 minutes until lightly golden in color.

Serve with a nice big dollop of sour cream and a nice big glass of sangria.

Ingredient origins: beef – Maine; egg – New Hampshire; vinegar and flour – Vermont; yellow onion – California; green onion and jalapeno pepper – Mexico; smoked paprika – Spain; olive oil, olives, tomato paste and sea salt – Italy; shortening, raisins, granulated garlic and cumin – unknown

New England Boiled Dinner

There’s always all kinds of hubbub over corned beef and cabbage this time of year. My grandmother used to make New England Boiled Dinner, which is similar. Made with more winter vegetables, it’s a whole meal in itself, including potatoes, parsnips and carrots.

The cabbage and potatoes take on the corned beef’s brininess, which is complemented by the sweetness of the carrots and parsnips, making this one-pot meal a perfect spectrum of flavor.

New England Boiled Dinner – serves 4 – 6

4 medium boiling potatoes
2.5 lb gray (nitrate free) corned beef brisket
1 small head cabbage
4 carrots
water

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

Place the corned beef brisket in a large oven safe dutch oven and just cover with water. Place on a burner and bring to a simmer over high heat.

Meanwhile peel the potatoes and cut into quarters. Cut the cabbage into eight wedges and remove the core.

Cover the beef with the cabbage and potatoes. Transfer the dutch oven to the oven and cook, covered for 1 hour.

Using tongs, gently lift the potatoes out of the liquid and submerge the carrots and parsnips. Cover again with the potatoes, being careful not to crush them. Return to the oven and cook for 1 hour.

Remove the corned beef and transfer to a cutting board. Allow to rest 10 minutes before slicing. Plate with cabbage, potato, parsnip, carrot, and little bit of broth. Serve hot.

Ingredient origins: Nitrate free corned beef – Massachusetts; Parsnips – Massachusetts; Potatoes – California; Organic Cabbage – Mexico, Carrots – California