Monday, March 24, 2014

Spectacular Bacon Meatloaf

My husband loves meatloaf.  He would eat it everyday if I would cook it for him.  Needless to say I am constantly creating new meatloaf recipes  in order to keep myself from getting bored cooking the same thing over and over again. 

Spectacular Bacon Meatloaf

2lbs ground beef

1lb bacon, divided

1c Italian bread crumbs

2 eggs, beaten

¾ c milk

1tbsp charbroil seasoning (or use a combination of garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper….seasoned to your tastes)

1tbsp worcestshire sauce

¾ c shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1 onion, divided

In a large bowl combine eggs, milk, and breadcrumbs.  Mix well and let the bread crumb absorb the liquid.  Set aside. 

Cook all but seven slices of the bacon.  Set aside to cool. With the remaining bacon, create a lattice structure to layer on top of the meatloaf.  Use 3 full strips and cut the remaining for pieces in half for a total of 8 pieces.  Weave these between the longer strips and set aside. (see pic below)
Mmmm...bacon
Chop half the onion and add this to the bowl with the breadcrumb mixture.  Slice the other half of the onion, and sauté it in the bacon grease (you can also use butter or olive oil).   You want the onions to be translucent and just beginning to caramelize or turn slightly golden in color.  When onions are done set aside and allow them to cool.

 Add bacon, seasonings, worceshire, cheese, ground beef to the bowl.  Mix well.  Place mixture in a large loaf pan.  Layer sautéed onions on top of the meat, reserving a small amount.  Top with bacon lattice from previous step, tucking the ends of the bacon into the sides of the pan.  Finally garnish the meatloaf with the remaining onions.
Bake at 350*F for about 1hr 30min, and let sit for 15 minutes prior to serving. 






Saturday, March 15, 2014

A Feast Fit for a King Part 2


Roasts make me nervous.  I’m always afraid of overcooking or undercooking them, and I’m terrified I’m going to end up with a dried up piece of jerky.  I know, that totally makes it sound like I don’t know how to properly cook a roast.  I do, but it’s a stressful process for me because I am a bit of a perfectionist in the kitchen. 

Needless to say, when it came time to attempt this next recipe, I was a little intimidated.  I didn’t read any reviews on it.  I honestly had clue how it was going to turn out.  I was even more intimidated when I got to the grocery store and saw the price tag on the roast.  The ingredients for this recipe can be pricey depending on the season and where you live.  I assure you though; this recipe will produce an amazingly moist and tasty roast.

In addition to the salad in my previous post, I served the roast with a side of the roast leeks and carrots, a hard roll, and Onions in Gravy.  You can find the recipe for the Onions and Gravy below the recipe for the roast.

Aurochs Roasted with Leeks
1 hour of cook time will produce an amazing medium rare roast
3lbs Top Round Beef

6 Leeks (white and light green parts only), sliced ¼ in thick

4 Carrots cut into ¼ in thick slices

1 Head of Garlic (break into individual cloves and peel)

A small bunch of rosemary and thyme

Olive Oil

Kosher Salt

Black Pepper

Beef Stock

*Medieval Black Pepper Sauce (see below for recipe)

Preheat oven to 400*F, and remove beef from the fridge 30 minutes prior to cooking.  Place vegetables, garlic, and herbs in a roast pan and toss with a bit of olive oil.  Rub roast with olive oil, salt, and pepper, and then place it on top of the vegetable mix.  Add about ½ c beef stock to the bottom of the pan, and then place it in the oven.  Bake for 1 hour.  Around the 30 minute mark, check on the roast to make sure vegetables are not looking dry.  Baste the roast and veggies with another ½ c of beef stock.  Check for doneness by using a meat thermometer.  The internal temperature should be at least 145*F.  Allow roast to sit for 15 minutes before serving. 

Medieval Black Pepper Sauce

It's strong and peppery, but amazing on the roast.
1 slice of bread, toasted until black (make sure it’s good and burnt)

1/3c equal parts apple cider vinegar and water (add extra liquid if you would like a thinner sauce)

1tbspn red wine vinegar

1tbspn black pepper

¼ tsp ground ginger

Soak the burnt bread in the liquid in a small sauce pan until it begins to fall apart.  Use a fork to mash it.  Stir in the spices, and slowly bring the mixture to a boil. 

This can be rubbed across the entire roast once it has finished cooking, or you can add it to each slice upon serving.  It looks like watery mush when it is cooked, but trust me, it’s supposed to look that way.  This sauce is very peppery.  On its own it is pretty intense, but it pairs wonderfully with the roast. 

Onions in Gravy

Yum!
10oz pearl onions (peeled)

1tbsp honey

1tbsp unsalted butter

1 sprig of thyme, minced

1/3 c apple cider

1tbsp flour

3c beef stock

Salt

Pepper

Quarter 7 of the onions, and set the rest aside.  Heat a sauté pan over medium heat and add honey, butter, herbs, and the quartered onions.   Toss onions in the butter mixture to ensure they are evenly covered, and cook until the onions turn golden brown.  Make sure you stir frequently to prevent onions from burning.  Once the onions are golden brown, add the cider to the pan slowly to deglaze the pan.  This will help remove all the sticky goodness from the pan.  Evenly sprinkle the flour in the pan and stir.  Then add the stock and the remaining onions.  Cook for an additional 5 minutes, then reduce the heat and cook until the gravy reaches your desired consistency.  Make sure to taste and seasoning with salt and pepper before serving.  

It took me about 2 hours to prep and cook the complete meal.  It was a lot of prep work, but the end result was worth it.  This will be a meal I make again in the future. 

A Feast Fit for a King

I can't say enough about A Feast of Fire and Ice, the Official Game of Thrones cookbook.  I highly recommend this book to any GoT fan and foodie out there.  There is such a great variety of recipes and illustrations.  This is definitely one of my favorite cookbooks. 

Friday, March 14, 2014

Are You a Fan of The Game of Thrones? A Feast Fit for a King Part 1...


I am a huge Game of Thrones fan.  I’ve read the books multiple times.  I have the audiobooks so I can listen to the books during long car trips.  I’ve seen the show, and I’m quite impressed that HBO is actually sticking pretty close to the original story line (unlike other shows *cough*TrueBlood*cough*). 

Anyways, you can imagine my excitement when I learned there was an official Game of Thrones cookbook.  It’s called A Feast of Fire & Ice.  It is seriously a legit cookbook.  The recipes are based off of the various cuisines within the Game of Thrones world. 

I’ve wanted to test out the recipes for some time now, but lack of time has prevented me from doing some.  Some of the recipes require a bit prep time, and it’s really hard sometimes finding that kind of time with a 4yr old, 2yr old, and 10 month old trying to “help”. 

 Sansa Salad

This salad is easily a meal on its own, but it also makes a great first course with a smaller portion size.  I was unable to find edible flowers to garnish my salad with since it’s not the right season, but hopefully the next time we try this recipe I’ll be able to get my hands on some fresh ones.

7c Baby Spinach

1c Fresh Mint Leaves

1c Diced Prunes

½ c Candied Walnuts

½ c Fresh Lemongrass, thinly sliced

Optional:  ¼ c Edible Flowers (usually you can find these near the packages of fresh herbs in the produce section)

Raspberry Vinaigrette

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl.  Toss and serve.  You can toss the dressing, or you can leave it off and let each person add as much as he or she wants. 
This salad was amazing.  I’m actually excited that we have leftovers plus enough ingredients left to make it again.  I think it would be great with some grilled chicken maybe even a feta or a blue cheese if you are looking to add more protein and make a full meal out of it.  It stands alone perfectly, and I only wish I could have gotten my hands on those flowers just to add an extra pop of color and texture. 

Thursday, March 13, 2014

Its Been One of THOSE Kind of Weeks....

Ok, so I've been horrible at making meals for the family this week.  I've got a teething baby whose been screaming and refusing naps for days now, and we just started IEP month.  My middle child has a couple evals coming up along with her IEP meeting for school, and my oldest has his annual review coming up soon.  I'm exhausted, and honestly, its been one of those kind of weeks where I've given into the kiddos wants.  They may have gotten their way and had granola bars, cereal bars, cheese crackers, and other easy to grab foods on more than one occasion.  I would feel guilty about it except that I am too tired to care!

I did get a chance to prepare an awesome meal that is literally "fit for a king" today. If you are a Game of Thrones fan, you are going to love the recipes I'll be reviewing and sharing tomorrow.  I have a lot of typing to do, but I'll leave you with an amazing teaser pic.

Quite possibly one of the best roasts I've made. 

Saturday, March 8, 2014

Lemon Pepper Tilapia

I was walking through Sams Club yesterday with my three little ones, and it just so happened that they had tons of samples in every aisle.  You know its going to be a good shopping trip when you walk through the door and the first sample they have happens to be your kids favorite candy (M&Ms).  The kids had a blast, and were happily occupied while mommy shopped.  When you have 3 kids 4 and under, this is quite the accomplishment. 

Anyways, one of the samples they had was fresh tilapia.  I got a sample for myself, and it was amazing.  It must have smelled pretty good because my 2yr old and my 10 month old both decide to inhale that sample.  Whenever my kids try a new food and like it, I make a point of buying it so we can expand our dinner menu at home.  I asked the lady which seasonings she used, looked over how she prepared it, and then I went home to recreate the recipe. I had the seasonings, but realized after we were home I didn't have any olive oil.  I did have some coconut oil on hand, so I decided to use that in its place.

Lemon Pepper Tilapia


4 tilapia fillets
1tbsp coconut oil
lemon pepper seasoning
sea salt

Lay your fillets on a cutting board or on a cookie sheet.  Sprinkle some lemon pepper seasoning and sea salt on each fillet and rub it in.  Turn each fillet over, and repeat.  In a skillet on med heat, melt the coconut oil.  Cook 2 fillets at a time.  You want to avoid over crowding the pan.  It makes for more even cooking.  Cook for 3-6 minutes, then flip and continue cooking for an additional 3-6 minutes (you may need to flip again if your fillet is thicker).  The tilapia will be flaky when it is finished cooking.

Like any true child, once I prepared the fish, none of mine wanted to touch it.  As soon as I had my own plate made though, they all swarmed me and ate all my food.  In the end, mommy still got them to eat something new, so I consider this a win for me. 

Wednesday, March 5, 2014

House Party and Kitchen IQ

Have you heard about House Party?  If you haven't, you are missing out!  It is a great website that offers up parties from various brands.  If you see a party you might be interested in, simply fill out an application.  There are activities you can do to increase your chances to be selected.  Hosts get a package of goodies to share with their guests.  Sometimes its samples.  Sometimes its coupons and/or rebates.  Other times its full size products.  Most of the parties that are posted require no purchase. 

I got selected for the Kitchen IQ party!  You have no idea how excited I am to be hosting this party.  I love kitchen gadgets!  It's the perfect party for me.  Here's a list of goodies that I will receive for hosting this party:

  • 1 Angle Adjust Manual Knife Sharpener
  • 1 Apron
  • 1 Cutting board
  • 1 KitchenIQ kitchen tool
  • Knife skills bookmark
  • Recipe booklet
  • Kitchen IQ Rebates
  • Coupons for Cabot Cheese
  • Cabot Cheese recipes

  • All I have do is invite my friends over for an afternoon of food and fun.  I'll show off what I received, and share coupons and recipes.  It's great for us because we get to see and try products we haven't heard of before, and its great for the company because it gets their products and name out there. 




    Check out this link to see more info on this party!

    http://www.houseparty.com/event/kitcheniq

    Seriously, if you haven't done it yet, sign up for House Party today! 

    Saturday, March 1, 2014

    Quick (and easy) Swedish Meatballs


    Most of the time, I prefer to make my meals from scratch.  I don’t always get the time to do so.  I have three young kids, and sometimes I don’t have the energy or the time.  Other times I just don’t have all the ingredients needed to make a full meal from scratch, so I rely on some convenience products to help speed up the process a bit.  This is happens to be the case tonight.  I really wanted to make Swedish Meatballs, but I didn’t have time to make my own meatballs.  I also didn’t have any heavy cream in the fridge.  I did have a few other products in the house though, so I came up with a quick version.  While it’s not the traditional recipe, it does taste pretty good in my opinion.

    Quick (and easy) Swedish Meatballs

    1 can cream of mushroom soup (10-3/4oz)

    1/2c sour cream

    1/3c milk (2% or whole)

    1tbsp dried parsley flakes

    1tbsp onion powder

    1/2tsp black pepper

    1/4tsp sea salt

    1/4tsp nutmeg

    1 bag frozen meatballs

    Combine all ingredients minus the meatballs in a bowl.  Place frozen meatballs in a skillet and cover with sauce.  Heat covered on medium, stirring occasionally.  These are great served over cooked egg noodles.