Reuben

Here is another great St. Patty's day dinner. This is another recipe for the weekly cooking group that I participate in. This was my first attempt at making corned beef, and it turned out great! The meat was very tender. I used the corned beef to make a Reuben.

Corned Beef
2 lb beef brisket

Place brisket into a Dutch oven.
Sprinkle meat with the seasoning packet provided with the meat.
Cover meat with water.
Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook for 2 hours (about an hour per lb).
Drain the water.
Let the meat rest for 10 minutes.
Thinly slice the meat against the grain.

Reuben
2 slices marble rye bread
butter
thousand island dressing
sauerkraut, drained
corned beef
2 slices Swiss cheese


Heat skillet on medium heat.
Butter one side of each slice of bread.
Place the butter side down into the skillet, and spread a thin layer of thousand island dressing on the bread.
Add a thin layer of sauerkraut.
Add 2 slices of corned beef, and top with cheese.
Spread dressing on the second slice of bread and place on meat with the butter side up.
Cook for about 3 minutes per side or until the cheese is melted.

Guinness Beef Stew

With St. Patrick's Day this week, I knew I couldn't go wrong with this beef stew. It has a bottle of Guinness in it!! This recipe was from http://closetcooking.blogspot.com/2008/03/irish-lamb-stew.html but I used beef instead of the lamb.

Guinness Beef Stew
1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
1 lb beef for stew
1 sweet onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 tbsp flour
salt and pepper
1 bottle Guinness beer
14 oz can beef broth
1 bay leaf
1 tsp rosemary
1 tsp thyme
6 redskin potatoes
4 carrots

Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven.
Add the beef and brown on each side.
Add onions and cook until tender (about 5 minutes).
Add garlic and cook for 1 minute.
Add flour and let the mixture cook for 1 minute.
Add Guinness, beef broth, rosemary, thyme, bay leaf, salt, and pepper.
Bring to a boil, cover and reduce the heat to simmer for 1 & 1/2 hours.
Dice potatoes and carrots and add to the pot.
Bring to a boil, and cook for 30 minutes.

Asian-Style Braised Short Ribs

I have been wanting to make the recipe for quite some time now. It comes from Emeril. These short ribs were awesome!!! The orange zest sprinkled on made the meaty ribs lighter. It really cut through the fat.

Asian-Style Braised Short Ribs
by Emeril Lagasse
from Food Network Favorites cookbook

5 lbs beef short ribs, cut into 4-ounce portions
1 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
3 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
1 5-inch stalk lemongrass, halved and smashed (omitted)
1 tbsp peeled and minced fresh ginger
1/2 cup light brown sugar
4 cups water
1/2 cup sliced green onions, white parts only
3/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
1/4 cup hoisin sauce
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
jasmine rice, for serving
2 tsp finely grated orange zest, for serving
sliced green onion tops, for serving

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
In a dutch oven, combine the ribs, soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, lemongrass, ginger, brown sugar, water, green onion bottoms, crushed red pepper flakes, and 2 tbsp orange juice.
Make sure that the ribs are submerged in the liquid.
Bake the short ribs for about 3 hours.
Remove the short ribs, and cover to keep warm.
Increase the oven temperature to 425 degrees.
Skim the fat from the cooking liquid and discard.
Add the hoisin sauce to the liquid and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
Reduce the liquid until only 1 & 1/4 cups remain.
Strain the liquid through a fine mesh strainer, discarding the solids.
Stir in 2 tbsp orange juice and the lemon juice.
Return the short ribs and the reduced sauce to the dutch oven.
Coat the ribs with the sauce.
Bake for 10 minutes, or until the short ribs are heated through and slightly glazed.
Serve over hot jasmine rice.
Season each portion with the grated orange zest and green onion tops.

Fennel-Pepper Spaghetti

This recipe was my pick for our cooking group. It is a quick meatless meal that can be vegetarian if you use vegetable stock instead of chicken stock. The fennel in the dish made me think of sausage. The dish tasted like sausage, peppers, and onions.

Fennel-Pepper Spaghetti
from the Rachael Ray Show
http://www.rachaelrayshow.com/food/recipes/fennel-pepper-spaghetti/

• Salt
• 1 pound spaghetti
• 1/4 cup EVOO – Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped or grated
• 2 teaspoons fennel seeds
• 1 red onion, quartered then sliced
• 1 red bell pepper, quartered lengthwise, seeded and sliced
• 1 green bell pepper, quartered lengthwise, seeded and sliced
• 1 cubanelle pepper, quartered lengthwise, seeded and sliced
• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 1 28-ounce can crushed or whole tomatoes, such as San Marzano
• Ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup basil, chopped
• 1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1/2 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese

Yields: 4 servings

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Preparation

Place a large pot of water over high heat to boil the pasta. When the water reaches a boil, add some salt and drop in the pasta. Cook to al dente according to package directions and drain. Return pasta to the pot it was cooked in and reserve.

While the pasta is cooking, place a large skillet over medium-high heat with 4 turns of the pan of EVOO, about 1/4 cup. Add garlic and fennel seeds to the pan while you cut the rest of the vegetables. Add in the onion, peppers and red pepper flakes to the pan and cook until the veggies are tender, 6-7 minutes.

Add the chicken stock and tomatoes to the pan (if using whole tomatoes, break them up using a wooden spoon or potato masher). Bring the sauce up to a bubble, season with salt and pepper and simmer until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the basil and parsley.

Toss the butter and cheese with the cooked pasta, then add the tomato sauce and toss well to combine.

Salsa Chicken & Black Bean Soup

This recipe is from the Weekend Wizards cooking group. The original recipe is to be made in a crock pot. I am afraid to leave mine on when I'm not at home (I had one crack once), so I just made this soup on the stove. This is a great, fast, and flavorful soup. I added some extra spice and some lime juice to give it a nice kick and it was perfect!!
The original recipe can be found here http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/2008/11/salsa-chicken-and-black-bean-soup.html

Salsa Chicken & Black Bean Soup
with my changes

1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
1 lb chicken breast
2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed
4 cups low sodium chicken broth
1 cup red bell pepper, diced
1 cup frozen corn
16oz jar salsa
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tbsp lime juice
1/2 fresh cilantro, chopped
optional toppings:shredded cheddar cheese and tortilla chips

Heat dutch oven on medium heat and add oil and chicken.
Cook about 8 minutes, then flip breast over and cook for another 8 minutes.
Remove chicken from the pan.
Add bell pepper and corn and saute for 3 minutes.
Dice chicken and add back to pan.
Add cumin, red pepper flakes, chicken broth, and salsa.
Simmer for 5 minutes.
Stir in lime juice and cilantro.

I topped each bowl with cheese and crushed blue tortilla chips.