I finally did it - I channeled my inner Julia Child and made Boeuf Bourguignon.  I have been wanting to do this since I saw "Julie & Julia,"  and with 2 more inches of snow coming, it seemed like the perfect time.

The recipe takes about 4-5 hours, but don't let that scare you.  I am a little weird that way because I love spending hours in the kitchen, but  about 1/2 of that is cooking time, so you can do it.  It's not that the recipe is difficult, it just takes time, so pick a day when you don't have to be anywhere, turn on some great music and get cooking.

A few more tips that are not in "Mastering the Art of French Cooking."  Ask someone in your family to be the dishwasher. I went through about 6 pots, 1 cookie sheet and several miscellaneous bowls. It's a lot of washing, but any grateful family member should be more than happy to help.

And, a few recipe notes. With all due respect to Julia Child, I did make some adjustments -  I added some extra carrots, because 1 carrot for my family sounded too little. Also, there is a step where she boils bacon (gag) and I left that off. I also sauteed the garlic after the veggies are cooked, because adding raw garlic without a quick saute did not seem right.  Lastly, the recipe  calls for braised onions and sauteed mushroom, but it is not listed in the BB recipe. I have included that info, and by the way, Julia does not tell you the onions take 40 minutes.

You will need a dutch oven for this recipe, or some sort of flameproof/oven safe pot that can go from the stove to the oven in high heat.

This is a beautiful dish -  hearty, depths of flavors, and with a chunk of artisanal Pain Au Levain to soak up the juices, if we closed our eyes, we could almost pretend we were somewhere in France.

Bon Appetit!

Serves 4-6 people. It fed our family of 4 for 2 nights, but if you have lots of men folk in your home, it will probably last one meal. Traditionally served with potatoes or noodles.

1 6-ounce piece of chunk bacon - diced
3 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
3 pounds lean stewing beef, cut into 2-inch cubes
1 lb carrots, sliced in 1" chucks. Looks nice if you  cut them on the diagonal
1 onion, sliced
Salt and pepper
2 tablespoons flour
3 cups red wine, young and full-bodied.  Please note I used 2 cups and it was fine.
2 1/2 to 3 1/2 cups brown beef stock
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 cloves minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon thyme
A crumbled bay leaf
18 to 24 pearl onions, peeled
2 1/2 tablespoons butter
1 pound mushrooms,  quartered

Cooking Directions -
Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
Sauté bacon in 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a dutch oven  over moderate heat for 2 to 3 minutes to brown lightly. Remove to a side dish with a slotted spoon.
Dry beef in paper towels; it will not brown if it is damp. Heat fat in casserole until almost smoking. Add beef, a few pieces at a time, and sauté until nicely browned on all sides. Remove to a side dish.
In the same fat, brown the sliced vegetables. When onions are done, add garlic and saute one more minute. Pour out the excess fat.
Return the beef and bacon to the casserole and toss with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.
Then sprinkle on the flour and toss again to coat the beef lightly. Set casserole uncovered in middle position of preheated oven for 4 minutes.
Toss the meat again and return to oven for 4 minutes (this browns the flour and covers the meat with a light crust).
Remove casserole and turn oven down to 325 degrees.
Stir in wine and 2 to 3 cups stock, just enough so that the meat is barely covered.
Add the tomato paste and herbs Bring to a simmer on top of the stove.
Cover casserole and set in lower third of oven. Regulate heat so that liquid simmers very slowly for 3 to 4 hours. The meat is done when a fork pierces it easily. (Please note I had to lower the heat to 200 to keep it from boiling, so periodically check the beef.)
While the beef is cooking, prepare the onions and mushrooms.
Braised Onions
Heat 1 1/2 tablespoons butter with one and one-half tablespoons of the oil until bubbling in a skillet.
Add onions and sauté over moderate heat for about 10 minutes, rolling them so they will brown as evenly as possible. Be careful not to break their skins.
Add 1/2 cup of  beef stock, salt and pepper to taste.
Cover and simmer slowly for 30-40 minutes until the onions are perfectly tender but hold their shape, and the liquid has evaporated. My liquid never evaporated, but the onion were tender.  Set aside.
Mushrooms:
Heat 1 T butter over high heat, add mushroom and saute.Toss and shake pan for 4 to 5 minutes. As soon as they have begun to brown lightly, remove from heat.
When the meat is tender, pour the contents of the casserole into a sieve set over a saucepan. Heat sauce until slightly reduced - it should lightly coat the back of a spoon.
Return the beef and veggies to the pan.  Add onion and mushrooms to beef. Pour sauce into casserole, and  heat for 2-3 minutes.

Hello and Happy New Year.  One of my resolutions is to cook more. Of course, that makes the other resolution, lose weight, a little harder,  but cook more doesn't have to mean eat more, right?

I saw Michael Pollan  ("In Defense of Food", " The Omnivore's Dilemma") speak last year, and one of the things he said is the healthiest thing you can eat is anything you make at home. It makes sense, no bread bowl, you control the fat, the quality of your food, salt intake, no preservatives etc.  Funny side note - he also advocates cooking anything made with 5 ingredients or less so over the holidays when my youngest daughter and I were making fudge, she was counting how many ingredients went into our recipe. Too bad the fudge had about 8 ingredients - it would've been a great loophole.
For me, cooking is therapy.  I love to open a bottle of wine, turn on some music from the '70s, and cook.  I love to read recipes and figure out  how to combine and alter them. I love to chop, saute, sip and dance.  I love cooking for friends and family.  I even love food shopping - especially at a farmer's market.  The whole experience from beginning to end, from recipe to dessert, gives me great pleasure.

If cooking isn't your therapy, then make your resolution to find something that is - painting, yoga, walking, writing, boxing, running, reading, singing, gardening. It doesn't matter what it is. You have to find something that you can lose yourself in, and enjoy, to make it an real escape.

S0, cheers to finding your therapy, and I promise to share the cream of the crop recipes with you!

Here is a recipe I created during the holidays that went over well at a few parties, and was enjoyed by kids and adults.  It's a great appetizer for Fall and Winter.

Butternut Squash Pot Stickers

1 butternut squash
1 onion
olive oil
butter
curry
cumin
cinnamon
(or you can use Gram Masala in place of the curry, cumin and cinnamon)
nutmeg
salt and pepper
fat free half and half
Won ton skins
melted butter

Chutney - I used an apple chutney

Half the squash, and scoop out seeds. Dot with butter and sprinkle with cinnamon, salt and pepper. Roast at 425. Depending on the squash, it could take anywhere from 45 minutes to 1 hour 15 min. Squash needs to get soft.

Meanwhile, slice the onion and saute in a some olive oil and butter until golden and soft.  Add cooked squash, seasoning, and combine. I know I didn't put measurements on the seasoning and I am sorry. It's really just a few dashes of each.

Transfer mixture to Cuisinart and pulse until creamy. Add a small dollop of half and half and adjust any other seasonings to taste.

Place about 1 teaspoon of the mixture inside a wonton skin. Brush the edges with water (you can use your finger) and press the edges together to form a triangle and seal. Place on cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. When the sheet is full, brush each potsticker with melted butter, and bake for about 15 minutes, or until golden.

Serve with chutney on the side.

Just a recipe quickie from my CHEFS (CHeap & Easy Friends) cooking club. Tonight I went to my freezer and defrosted the Chunky Vegetarian Chili. It doesn't get much easier than this- defrosted chili, added some cheese, a few tortillas and broccoli. Dinner came together in about 15 minutes and it was a winner!

Chunky Vegetarian Chili

1 T veg oil

2 c. chopped onion

1/2 chopped yellow pepper

1/2 chopped green pepper

2 minced garlic cloves

1 T brown sugar

1 1/2 T. chili powder

1 t. ground cumin

1 t. dried oregano

1/2 t. salt

1/2 t. black pepper

2, 16 oz cans stewed tomatoes, undrained

2, 15 oz cans black beans, rinsed and drained

1, 15 oz cans kidney beans, rinsed and drained

1, 15 oz can pinto beans, rinsed and drained

Heat oil in dutch oven (or large pot) and saute onion, peppers and garlic until tender.  Add sugar, spices, and beans. Bring to a boil, reduce and simmer 30 minutes.

I like to serve chili with sour cream and grated cheddar cheese. You can also add tortillas, chips, and if you need to make it non - veg., it would be easy to stir in some ground beef or turkey.

Enjoy and pass the Beano!

Photo Credit:

I don't know about you, but when I know what I am making for dinner by 4:00, I am greatly relieved.  I am a working mom, but even when I didn't work, I felt like so much of my day revolved around what to cook that everyone will eat, can I get to the market and make it to the carpool line on time, what else can I make with chicken, and how many times can my kids eat pasta this week.  Since I love to cook and try new recipes, this kind of dinner angst really took the joy out of cooking.

Enter 2 good friends, 1 bottle of wine, a slew of recipes and one super brilliant idea. We decided once a month we would get together on a Friday and cook 5-6 meals for our freezers.  Just knowing that I would have a freezer full of food, made my  dinner time angst start to vanish.

So on a rainy Friday in September, we donned our adorable Anthropologie aprons  courtesy of Julie, brought our ingredients and containers, and got cooking. Four hours later, endless laughter and a wonderful day of friendship, we loaded up our cars with delicious dinners ready to go.

We made Baked Penne with Chicken, Mushroom and Sun Dried Tomatoes, Veggie Chili, 2 Quiches  - one with asparagus and one without, Corn Bread and Marinated Flank Steak.   This week my family had the quiche, and let me tell you... it was delicious.  I took it right from freezer to oven, made a salad and dinner was served.   I will post the recipes as we try them just in case something isn't worth sharing, but this quiche is a keeper. Don't like asparagus? You could easily substitute anything your family would like - sausage, mushrooms, peppers, or just cheese.

By the way, we came up with the name  CHEFS - Cheap and Easy Friends because we wanted inexpensive easy meals that everyone in our families would eat. We can aspire to be Les Trois Gourmands ( a la Julia), but for now, the afternoon spent with my cheap and easy friends was priceless.

Quiche -

Prep crust - Pre heat oven to 400.

1 1/2 cups flour

2 t. sugar

1 t. salt

1/2 c. veg oil

2 T .milk

Combine all ingredients and pat into bottom and side of a  9" pie pan. Prick dough with fork and bake 15 minutes or until light brown.

Meanwhile, mix the following together:

1 c. mozzarella or swiss cheese, shredded

1 c. sharp cheddar, shredded

1 onion finely chopped -sauteed in olive oil until soft and slightly golden

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1 16 oz container low fat sour cream

Pour into cooked pie crust and bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes, until heated throughout and golden.

If the quiche is frozen,  preheat oven to 350, and cook about 40-45 minutes, until heated throughout and golden.

Last night we were grilling and I remembered I had a big bag of little red, yellow and orange peppers from Costco. They are mini peppers and super sweet.  I decided to roast them and stuff them with goat cheese (also from Costco.) They were so delicious. I served them as a side, but I really think they would be better as an appetizer.

Super easy. Take as many mini peppers as you need, and toss them in  a bowl with a little olive oil and salt and pepper. I did use Trader Joes Sea Salt, and I think it made a difference. If you don't have sea salt, use kosher salt.  Grill the peppers until they become soft and slightly charred. Remove the peppers from the grill, and cut off the top - about 1/4" - and stuff with goat cheese.  Put the peppers on a piece a foil, and return them to the grill for about a minute until the cheese is hot and melty.

If you don't have a grill, you can char the peppers using an indoor grill pan, you can put them right on the burner of a gas stove, or put them in the oven on broil.  If you grill your peppers on the gas burner, finish them off in the oven,

Hope you like them - we ate them up!

This has been a highly-anticipated movie for me.  I was one of the first on my block to read, and love, the book. Before the book, I had read Julie Powell's blog. I read the article about her in the NY Times.  I own a much loved copy of Mastering the Art Of French Cooking. I lived in Santa Barbara during college and would see Julia Child from time to time. I am barely 5, 2", and she is over six feet. When I saw Julia around town I was paralyzed with fear to talk to her so instead I kind of stalked her. As a child I watched her PBS shows, and I grew up in a home where we did not say grace before dinner, we said 'Bon Appetit."

And so the first day "Julie & Julia" came out,  I played hooky from work, and  went alone (happily) with popcorn and junior mints to a matinee (which I never do) and was in pure heaven.  I think I actually cried tears of joy several times during the film. It was a perfect movie for me - the story telling, the acting, the food....delicious. I know I am not the only one waiting for a cold, crisp fall day to make  Boeuf Bourguignon, and when I do, I think I will don some pearls, an apron, and probably a terrible Julia Child accent, and pay homage to this wonderful inspirational woman.
Bon Appetit.

1 medium onion

1 large fennel bulbm stalks discarded, chopped

1/3 c. raisins

1/2 t. fennel seeds, lightly crushed

3 T. extra virgin olive oil

1 c. medium or long grain white rice

2 c. water

Cook onion and fennel with raisins, fennel seeds, 1 t. salt and 1/4 t. pepper in oil in heavy saucepan. Stir occassionally until soft, 8-10 minutes.  Add rice and stir for 1 minutes.  Add water the bring to a boil.  Cover and cook over low heat about 22 minutes.

Remove from heat, remove lid and cover with a kitchen towel, then replace lid, and let stand 10 minutes.  Fluff with a fork.

adapted from Gourmet Mag

serves 4

Preheat oven to 425 with rack in the middle. Oil a 1 1/2 to 2 qt shallow baking dish.

Salad:

1 garlic clove

1.2 tsp anchovt paste

2 T. red wine vinegar

1/4 c. extra virgin olive oil

1/2 lb grape tomatoes, halved. We used big tomatoes  from my friend's garden

12 Kalamata Olives, pitted and rough chop

4 sun dried tomatoes, packed in oil chopped

1 1/2 T. chopped oregano

Fish:

4, 6-8oz fillets of Talapia (recipe called for Black Sea Bass but it was too expensive, and my kids like Talapia)

2 T. olive oil, divided

1/2 medium red onion, thinly sliced

6 oregano sprigs

Salad -

Mnce and mash garlic to a paste with 1/2 t. salt. In a bowl combine garlic, anchovy, vinegar and 1/4 t. pepper. Whisk in oil, add remaining salad ingredients.

Fish-

rub fish with oil on both sides and season with s&p.  Place onion slice and oregano on top of fish, layer another piece of fish over (like a sandwich) and tie with kitchen string 2" apart. Roast fish until cooked through. The Talapia took 10-12 minutes.  Remove string before serving and top with salad.

My first blog, and surprise it's about one of my favorite topics....food. I have a feeling a lot of my blog entries will be about food - what I am cooking, eating, and restaurants I want to try or have been to.

In my constant search for new veggies to cook, last week Chloe and I went to a new organic farmer's market and bought cauliflower the color of cheddar cheese, in fact the farmer called it Cheddar Cauliflower.  Now that I am a "blogger" I promise to start taking pix to along with my food entries. I also promise not to leave anything out. I hate when people leave out an ingredient because they don't want to share their recipe.

Anyway, this is how I cooked it last night, and we gobbled it up - yes everyone loved the cauliflower.

Roasted Cauliflower

- 1 head cauliflower  - chopped. Do not break it into big flowers. It needs to more of a 1-2 bite size piece.
- Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with garlic salt, lemon pepper and cumin. Toss and  roast at 400, maybe it was 425, for about 30-45 minutes. I stirred it up after about 25 minutes because it's really good when its brown and slightly crispy.

Enjoy!

Photo Credit - exlibris