Rare Roast Beef

4 pound beef roast

large onion, chopped

2 stalks celery, chopped

2 carrots, peeled and chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 pint beef stock (dark)
olive oil

In a large steel pan, over high heat, bring the oil to not quite smoking.

Brown the beef on all sides.

Mix the chopped vegetables and mound in the center of the pan, put the beef on top.

The way we like it 130F internal, it cooks in a 350 F oven for 20 minutes the pound. For this roast that was 80 minutes. So for an 8:30 dinner, it goes in the oven at 7:00 and comes out at 8:20, let it sit for 10 minutes, you need to mash, not whip, the potatoes anyway.

Gravy is simple, deglaze the pan with a half cup of the wine you will drink and a little flour, leaving in the vegetables, add the beef stock, bring to simmer and strain into gravy bowl.

At 8:30 carve.

The green beans were blanched and frozen last fall. Get them out and let them defrost, sautee them in a table spoon of bacon fat.

Chili

I'm going to try and be more regular on posting here. Right now I happen to be doing all of the cooking, so I don't have to be in my wife's way for photography.

This one is a bit short on photos, but it is fast.

Chili

2 pounds ground meat - I use beef, but anything you would like
1 tsp olive oil (or cooking oil if you don't have olive)
2 cups chopped onions
1 cup chopped green pepper (or what ever sweet pepper color)
1 cup chopped celery
1 tbl spoon minced garlic
1 tbl spoon oregano (or marjoram)
2 bay leaves
3 tbl spoon ancho chili pepper (I use less and add hot sauce to taste)
           -also use 3 tea spns of regular chili powder instead, still hot-
2 tsp cumin
3 cans diced tomato including liquid (nominal pint can)
1 pint beef broth
1/2 tsp hot pepper flakes (or more or less)
1 can beans (nominal pint, I use a white bean, kidney is fine).

In the bottom of a heavy pan coated with the oil and hot, brown the ground meat.

Add all of the chopped items and all of the spices and herbs other than the pepper flakes. Heat for a few minutes.

Add everything else, salt and pepper to taste

Bring to a boil for at most five minutes, turn way down cover.

You may serve an hour after you started.

Downloads are up.

Camera Nikon D-90 with internal flash.

Lens(es) AF-S NIKKOR 18-55mm f2.5-5.65G

                AF-S NIKKOR 70-300mm f4.5-5.6G

                AF-S NIKKOR 35mm F1.8G

                AF-S NIKKOR 50mm F1.4F

                AF DC-NIKKOR 105 mm F2

Recipe with pictures Downloadable PDF  Link doesn’t work 

on the PDF itself

Recipe without pictures Downloadable PDF Link doesn't work

 on the PDF itself

As always feel free to use and distribute, if you use our pictures 

and/or text then give us credit – thanks.

If you do use the recipe drop us a note in the comments, a link to your post or just what you thought.

© 2013 Virginia L. Dyson & Warner W. Johnston  

Marmalade

This is an exceedingly simple recipe (pictures later of multiple types)

12 oz lemons, ends trimmed and quartered

20 oz citrus, ends trimmed and quartered (grapefruit smaller than quartered)

2 X 1 qt. cold water.

1.5 qt sugar

Using the 2mm blade run the fruit through the food processor.

Put in food safe container with 1 quart of water and put in a cold place overnight. I use plastic

The next day put in stainless stock pot, add the other quart of water and the sugar.

Heat to 222 F. while stirring. I mean when you are stirring it should still be 222 F

Can in hot water bath for 10 minutes.

I do this four batches at a time. If you try and combine the batches while heating, you loose the color and it may burn.

I do not remove the zest as I like the bitter it adds

Four batches yields about 18 pints. They will keep several years in a cool, dark, not too humid place.

I currently have in house, to make:

Meyer Lemon















Lemon

Lime

I have also done and will do in the next weeks if I find
White grapefruit
Navel orange
Blood orange
Tangerine
Clementine

I'm looking for
Pink grapefruit
Key Lime

Downloads not up yet.

Camera Nikon D-90 with internal flash.

Lens(es)          AF-S NIKKOR 18-55mm f2.5-5.65G

                AF-S NIKKOR 70-300mm f4.5-5.6G

                AF-S NIKKOR 35mm F1.8G

                AF-S NIKKOR 50mm F1.4F

                AF DC-NIKKOR 105 mm F2

Recipe with pictures Downloadable PDF  Link doesn’t work 

on the PDF itself

Recipe without pictures Downloadable PDF Link doesn't work

 on the PDF itself

As always feel free to use and distribute, if you use our pictures 

and/or text then give us credit – thanks.

If you do use the recipe drop us a note in the comments, a link to your post or just what you thought.

© 2013 Virginia L. Dyson & Warner W. Johnston  

Smothered Onions

Smothered Onions

This is one of the two base recipes for French Onion Soup, the other is Beef Stock. Both recipes will be published on this blog and linked to this post in the future.

This recipe takes all day, it isn't much work, but the onions need 8+ hours, and should be stirred a couple of times an hour.

8 pounds yellow onions
1 stick unsalted butter

1 tbs salt

Also the photos are of a 20 pound batch, it scales up very well just takes more time.

Twenty pounds of onions.

Take off enough of both ends of the onion that the slices won't be held together by the core. Thomas Keller would have you remove the core, but I prefer it.

 Cut the onion in two, end to end.

Peel

Slice from pole to pole, thin slices, cut through the core with each slice.

After a while you will need to let the onion fall on its new long side and continue to cut. 

Get your pan, rinse it off and put it on a very low burner. Let it dry off. That pan is also used to boil bagels and for canning half pints and smaller jars.

Put in the butter and salt and let it melt.

Add the onions, stirring from time to time.

After two hours, increase the heat but not much.

You are not trying to saute the onions, this is a slow caramelization, where the sugar in the onion will slowly turn brown. This batch will still be going at 8 PM and I started it at a 9 AM.


Freeze in cup and one half put ups, in this case with holding enough for tomorrow's lunch.

These also work really well if you wish to saute them for a steak. 

Dishes where you are throwing prepared ingrediants together for a fast meal. Don't use them in a stew, as the stew needs to cook long enough to cook onions in it.

Camera Nikon D-90 with internal flash.

Lens(es) AF-S NIKKOR 18-55mm f2.5-5.65G

                AF-S NIKKOR 70-300mm f4.5-5.6G

                AF-S NIKKOR 35mm F1.8G

                AF-S NIKKOR 50mm F1.4F

                AF DC-NIKKOR 105 mm F2

Recipe with pictures Downloadable PDF  Link doesn’t work 

on the PDF itself

Recipe without pictures Downloadable PDF Link doesn't work

 on the PDF itself

As always feel free to use and distribute, if you use our pictures 

and/or text then give us credit – thanks.

If you do use the recipe drop us a note in the comments, a link to your post or just what you thought.

© 2012 Virginia L. Dyson & Warner W. Johnston