Mongolian Beef

My husband and I love the Mongolian Beef from P.F. Changs. I searched the internet for a copycat recipe so I could try making it at home. This was pretty easy to make and it was good. But I think next time I would cut the brown sugar at least in half. It was so sweet. Otherwise the flavor was great. It may even be good to add a pinch of red pepper flakes.

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
• 1/2 teaspoon minced ginger
• 1 Tablespoon chopped garlic
• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1/2 cup water
• 3/4 cup dark brown sugar
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 1 lb flank steak
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 2 large green onions

Directions

1. Make the sauce by heating 2 teaspoons of vegetable in a medium saucepan over med/low heat. Don't get the oil too hot or you'll get a major spatter when adding the other liquids. Add ginger and garlic to the pan and quickly add the soy sauce and water before the garlic scorches. Dissolve the brown sugar in the sauce, then raise the heat to about medium and boil the sauce for 2 to 3 minutes or until the sauce thickens. Remove it from the heat.
2. Slice the flank steak against the grain into ¼" thick bite-size slices. Tilt the blade of your knife at about a forty five degree angle to the top of the steak so that you get wider cuts.
3. Dip the steak pieces into the cornstarch to apply a very thin dusting to both sides of each piece of beef. Let the beef sit for about 10 minutes so that the cornstarch sticks.
4. As the beef sits, heat up one cup of oil in a wok (you may also use a skillet for this step as long as the beef will be mostly covered with oil).
5. Heat the oil over medium heat until it's nice and hot, but not smoking.
6. Add the beef to the oil and saute for just two minutes, or until the beef just begins to darken on the edges. You don't need a thorough cooking here since the beef is going to go back on the heat later. Stir the meat around a little so that it cooks evenly. After a couple minutes, use a large slotted spoon or a spider to take the meat out and onto paper towels, then pour the oil out of the wok or skillet. Put the pan back over the heat, dump the meat back into it and simmer for one minute. Add the sauce, cook for one minute while stirring, then add all the green onions. Cook for one more minute, then remove the beef and onions with tongs or a slotted spoon to a serving plate. Leave the excess sauce behind in the pan.

Source: Food.com

Balsamic Flank Steak

We had some friends over for dinner the other night. The wife has Celiac Disease so the food had to be gluten free. I enjoyed looking around for recipes. I decided to go with a broiled balsamic flank steak because, well...I have a weakness for balsamic vinegar. So once I saw that ingredient I was sold. The flavor was really good and I'll definitely be making this again. Oh and yet again I forgot to take pictures. I promise I'll get back to taking pictures soon.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
• Splash of Worcestershire sauce
• 2 Tablespoons light brown sugar
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 shallot, chopped
• 1 teaspoon crushed dried rosemary
• coarse salt and ground pepper
• 1 1/2 pounds flank steak

Directions

1. In a resealable plastic bag or bowl, combine vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, sugar, garlic, shallots, rosemary, salt and pepper.  Add steak to marinade and turn to coat.  Let marinate for at least an hour. (I marinated for almost 5 hours.)
2. Broil under the broiler for 15 minutes, turning once for medium. When done, remove and let the steak rest to let the juices return to the center of the meat, about 5 minutes.

Source: Adapted from Creative Cooking Gluten Free

Baked Ziti

I had some friends over for dinner the other night. I figured making a pasta dish would be easy, filling, and good. I've seen this recipe for Baked Ziti on All Recipes and wanted to try it for awhile. The only thing I changed from the original recipe was that I layered pasta, sauce, and then cheese instead of pasta, cheese, and then sauce. I wanted to the pasta to have plenty of sauce so it wouldn't dry out. This was delicious! It was cheesy and creamy and so good! A little side note, I used penne pasta instead of ziti because it's what I had.

Ingredients

• 1 pound dry ziti pasta
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 2 (26 ounce) jars spaghetti sauce
• 6 ounces provolone cheese, sliced
• 1 1/2 cups sour cream
• 6 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add ziti pasta, and cook until al dente, about 8 minutes; drain.
2. In a large skillet, brown onion and ground beef over medium heat. Add spaghetti sauce, and simmer 15 minutes.
3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Butter a 9x13 inch baking dish. Layer as follows: 1/2 of the ziti, Provolone cheese, sour cream, 1/2 sauce mixture, remaining ziti, mozzarella cheese and remaining sauce mixture. Top with grated Parmesan cheese.
4. Bake for 30 minutes in the preheated oven, or until cheeses are melted.

Source: Allrecipes.com

Inside Out Lasagna

I love lasagna but it always makes so much! Of course I could half a recipe or freeze half, but I never think of that. I found this recipe for Inside Out Lasagna from Eating Well and it looked really good. I made just a couple of changes. I used about half of the spinach, added ground beef and italian spices. Growing up, I loved my mom's lasagna and she used cottage cheese instead of ricotta and I have to say I still really enjoy cottage cheese in lasagna. So instead of the ricotta I used cottage cheese and I also added some mozzarella cheese. It turned out really good, nice and cheesy! I'd make it again. I'm not sure it's any easier than lasagna but it's definitely good to change things up a bit.


Ingredients

• 8 ounces whole-wheat rotini or fusilli
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 lb ground beef
• 8 ounces sliced white mushrooms (about 3 1/2 cups)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 2 tomatoes, diced
• 1 small can tomato paste
• 1 Tablespoon italian seasoning (I didn't measure this, just eyeballed it.)
• 4 cups baby spinach
• 3/4 cup cottage cheese
• 1 cup mozzerella cheese

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add pasta; cook until just tender, 8 to 10 minutes or according to package directions. Drain and transfer to a large bowl.
2. Meanwhile, heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and cook, stirring, until soft.
3. Add ground beef and brown.
4. Add mushrooms, salt and pepper and cook, stirring, until the mushrooms release their liquid, 4 to 6 minutes.
5. Add tomatoes, spinach, tomato paste, and italian seasoning. Increase heat to medium-high; cook, stirring once halfway through, until the spinach is wilted, about 4 minutes. Mix in cottage cheese.
6. Toss the sauce with the pasta. Top with mozzerella cheese and gently mix in.

Brown Sugar Meatloaf and Cottage Potatoes

It's been chilly lately which had me craving some comfort food. I haven't had meatloaf in years so I decided to find a yummy recipe. After some searching, I finally decided to try this recipe from All Recipes. I was originally thinking of doing a side of scalloped potatoes but when I found Paula Deen's Cottage Potatoes I knew I had to give them a try.

The meatloaf was really good. I might saute the onions before adding them to the meat next time. The recipe has you put the glaze on the bottom of the pan and the meat on top. I actually put 2 slices of bread in the pan, then the meat, and the glaze on top. I added the sliced bread because I heard they soak up any grease. I added ground mustard and Worcestershire sauce to the glaze and decreased the brown sugar to 1/4 cup. It was pretty sweet still so I'm glad I cut it down. Half a cup would have been way too sweet.

The potatoes were really good and easy too! I sauteed the onions before adding them to the potatoes, which was a good decision. I also had some white cheddar cheese which I grated and added to the top. It was good with the cheese but it would have been just as good without. Delicious!!! I will definitely be making these again.


Brown Sugar Meatloaf

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 1/2 teaspoon ground mustard
• 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
• 1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 3/4 cup finely seasoned bread crumbs
• slices of bread

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a 5x9 inch loaf pan.
2. Place bread slices at bottom of pan. (I used 2 pieces.)
3. In a small bowl, mix the brown sugar, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, and dry mustard. Set aside
4. In a mixing bowl, mix thoroughly all remaining ingredients and shape into a loaf. Place on top of the bread slices. Cover with ketchup mixture.
5. Bake in preheated oven for 1 hour or until juices are clear.

Paula Deen's Cottage Potatoes

Ingredients

• 3 large Idaho potatoes
• 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter
• 1 cup cottage cheese
• 1/2 onion, diced
• Salt and pepper
• Paprika
• 1/4 cup cheddar cheese

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Scrub the potatoes, slice them, and put in a pot with water to cover. Boil the potatoes until tender, then drain and mash them with 2 tablespoons of the butter.
3. Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat, and saute onion until tender.
4. Add the cottage cheese, onion, and salt and pepper to taste. Stir the mixture gently, and then put in a greased casserole. Dot with the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter and sprinkle with paprika. Bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes. Add the cheese after 20 minutes of cooking.

CrockPot Tex Mex Pot Roast

There's a wonderful blog called A Year of Slow Cooking. Stephanie challenged herself in 2008 to use her crockpot everyday for a year. Since I've been trying to find more recipes for the crockpot, her blog has been my go-to site. I found this recipe for Tex Mex Pot Roast. It turned out really good! It was so easy, practically zero prep work but the result was wonderful. The only change I made to it was added a little onion and garlic powder. Also, instead of adding canned corn I used frozen corn. Stephanie served her's on top of a baked potato, so I did the same. It was a great way to eat it. We had a decent amount of leftover. I wonder how it would freeze. Thoughts?


Ingredients

• 2 pounds boneless beef chuck roast
• 1 teaspoon chipotle chile powder
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 (15-ounce) can chili beans, undrained
• 1 1/4 cups frozen corn
• 1 (10-ounce) can Rotel (tomatoes and chiles), undrained

Directions

1. Use a 6-quart slow cooker. Add your meat to the slow cooker. Add the chipotle chile powder, garlic powder, onion powder, corn, and all the canned ingredients.
2. Cover and cook on low for 8 to 10 hours, or on high for 4 to 6.

French Onion Steak with Gruyere Sauce & Green Beans

My mom gave me a cookbook recently, Rachel Ray's Big Orange Book. While looking through it I found this recipe and it make my mouth water it looked so good! I had to give it a try. I did my green beans a little differently than her recipe. I roasted them instead of boiling them and then sauteing them. It just seemed like less work. She also has you broil the steak after only seasoning it with olive oil, salt, and pepper. I decided to also add Worcestershire sauce and balsamic vinegar. I meant to add garlic powder too but forgot. This meal was so good!! The steak was delicious, the sauce amazing, and the green beans were also very good. It wasn't a very difficult meal to make. It would be perfect for company.


French Onion Steak with Gruyere Sauce

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO), plus additional
• Balsamic Vinegar
• Worcestershire Sauce
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 large yellow onion, thinly sliced
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tablespoon ground dry thyme
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 Flank Steak (about 2 to 3 pounds, one that is large enough for 4 people)
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1/2 cup chicken stock
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 cup shredded gruyere cheese

Directions

1. In a large sauté pan over medium-high heat, heat 2 tablespoons EVOO and 2 tablespoons butter. When the butter is melted, add the sliced onions, bay leaf, thyme, salt and freshly ground black pepper and cook until caramelized, about 15 minutes, or until melted down, brown and sweet.
2. While the onions are cooking, place steak on a broiler pan and generously coat it with EVOO, balsamic vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, salt, and freshly ground black pepper. Broil under the broiler for 15 minutes, turning once for medium. When done, remove and let the steak rest to let the juices return to the center of the meat, about 5 minutes. (I didn't let mine rest long enough apparently...I had juices everywhere!)
3. In a medium-size skillet over medium-high heat, melt remaining 2 tablespoons of butter. Add flour to the melted butter and cook about 1 minute. Whisk in chicken stock and milk and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Let it come up to a bubble and thicken then turn off the heat. Add the cheese and stir in a figure-eight motion until mixed.
4. Slice the steak and place on a platter. Pile the onions on top and pour the cheese sauce over the top.

Roasted Green Beans

Ingredients

• 1 bag of fresh green beans, trimmed (I think it was about a pound)
• 1-2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1-2 cloves of garlic, minced
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• Zest from one lemon
• Juice from one lemon

Directions

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
2. In a 9x13 pan, toss green beans with olive oil, garlic, salt, pepper, and lemon zest. I line my pan with foil for easy cleanup. Spread green beans evenly across pan. Roast for 20-25 minutes.
3. When green beans are finished, remove them from the oven and squeeze lemon juice over top. Toss and serve.

Cincinnati Chili

When my family lived up north, we always ate Skyline chili. After moving here, I decided I had to learn how to make it myself. I looked up several recipes and finally settled on this on from All Recipes. I've made it several times now. It's really good, but it's not the typical chili most people think of. I usually serve it "3-way" which is spaghetti, chili, and cheddar cheese. But you could also add onion to make it 4 way. I cut the original recipe in half. Also the original recipe calls you to saute the beef and onion. However, the real way of make Cincinnati Chili is by boiling the beef and you don't add onion unless you want it raw at the end, the 4-way.


Ingredients

• 1 pound ground beef
• 2 tablespoons chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 small bay leaf
• 1/4 (1 ounce) square unsweetened chocolate
• 1 (10.5 ounce) can beef broth
• 1/2 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce
• 1 tablespoon cider vinegar
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
• 2 tablespoons shredded Cheddar cheese

Directions

1. Add beef and beef broth to a pot. Bring to a boil and boil until the beef is cooked through. While boiling, stir often. You want the beef to be very small bits not large chunks.
2. Add chili powder, cinnamon, cumin, allspice, cloves, bay leaf, chocolate, beef broth, tomato sauce, cider vinegar, and red pepper. Stir to mix well. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.
3. Remove bay leaf. Serve now over hot, drained spaghetti, topped with shredded cheddar cheese. Or, you can refrigerate it overnight. Reheat gently over medium heat.

First Attempt at Persian Food

My friend, Naji, and her mom make the BEST Persian food! I cannot get enough and there's never been anything I've tried that I haven't liked. I finally decided to give it a try myself. Naji taught me how to make Persian rice with Saffron, beef kabobs called Koobideh Kabob, and a yogurt sauce with cucumbers. While the flavors were great, and for a first try I did pretty good, it definitely wasn't as good as what Naji and her mom make. I like to cook and I'd like to say I'm decent at it, however, rice always gives me a problem so I was nervous about Persian rice. You steam it. Well, I burnt the bottom layer and so when I pulled the lid off, it smelled like smoke. If you just use the top layer, it was alright and didn't taste like smoke. I guess practice makes perfect. The yogurt was good, hard to ruin that. Although, Naji's mom makes her own yogurt which of course is much better. The beef got a little too dark on one side but still tasted great. I just had a hard time flipping it. Oh well, I'll get it or try another cooking method next time. For a first try, I did good. I'll definitely keep trying though. Oh....and I can't BELIEVE I forgot to take a picture!!! Sorry!

I also did some research online before cooking. I found a couple of great websites and Persian cooking blogs which ended up being great resources for the meal. Here's what I found:

Family Spice: This shows different ways of cooking the kabobs.
Tumeric & Saffron Persian cooking blog
My Persian Kitchen Persian cooking blog - There's a great blog on making Persian rice.
Javane's Kitchen Persian cooking blog
I also borrowed a book from Naji called A Taste of Persia.

The recipes below are from Naji. I wrote things down and some of it is from memory. I may have remembered something wrong.

Yogurt and Cucumber (Mast-O-Khiar)
Ingredients

• 2 cups yogurt
• 1 large seedless cucumber, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon dried mint
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl. Refrigerate for 1-2 hours.

Persian Rice (Polow)

Ingredients

• 3 cups Basmati Rice (1 cup per person, plus 1 extra cup)
• canola oil
• pinch of saffron
• salt

Directions

1. Place rice in a large bowl. Wash rice several times until water is clear. Soak rice in water for at least an hour or even overnight.
2. Boil a large pot of water. Add rice. Dump enough water out so that the water level is about 2 inches above the rice. Bring the water back to a boil and allow it to boil for roughly 7 minutes. The rice should be al dente, soft but still have a little firmness. Drain the rice. (One blog said to have about 3 cups of water per cup of rice.)
3. Add a little oil to the pan and return the rice to the pan. Put a little hole in the center of the rice to allow steam to come through. Add 1/2 cup of water to the rice. Cover the lid with a towel and put the lid on the pot. Cook on low (about 3 or 4) for around 30 minutes.
4. When the rice is finished cooking, heat a few spoonfuls of oil and spoon on rice. 
5. Boil a small amount of water (about 1/4 cup) and add ground saffron. Cover for several minutes. Add about a cup of the cooked rice to the saffron water and stir. You can either add this rice to the rest of the pot and stir it in, or put the white rice on a platter and put the yellow rice on top.

Ground Beef Kabob (Koobideh Kabob)

Ingredients

• 1 pound of ground beef 
• 1 egg
• 1 medium onion, grated
• 1 teaspoon Ground Kabob Seasoning
•  salt and pepper
• Canola Oil (about 1 Tablespoon)
• 1  tomato cut into segments

Directions

1. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl.
2. Heat a large non-stick skillet to medium to medium high and add canola oil. 
3. Add beef mixture and form one large patty. Cook for about 10-15 minutes. You want each side to be dark brown but not too dark. 
4. To flip, put the lid on the pan, flip the beef so it's on the lid, and then slide the beef from the lid to the pan. Be careful with this step so you don't burn yourself. You should probably do this over the sink.
5. Once flipped, return to heat. Score the beef into long thin rectangles. Add the tomatoes to the top of the beef. Cover and cook for another 10-15 minutes until the bottom side is dark brown. Remove the kabobs from the skillet and serve.

Stuffed Acorn Squash

I love fall, especially fall produce. I've tried a lot of the winter squashes, but for some reason, I've never made acorn squash. I found this recipe from Taste of Home and decided to give it a try. It called for rubbed sage which I could have sworn I had. Once I started cooking, I realized I didn't have it so I just used italian seasoning. I thought it turned out good. It's not a difficult recipe to make but it does take a little time. First you have to bake the squash for about an hour, then prep the filling, and then bake the whole thing. Perhaps you could just microwave the squash for a bit until tender to save time. Regardless, I'd probably make this again.



Ingredients

• 2 small (or 1 medium) acorn squash, halved and seeded
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 pound ground beef
• 2 tablespoons chopped onion
• 2 tablespoons chopped celery
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon rubbed sage (I used Italian Seasoning)
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/2 cup cooked rice
• 1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Directions

1. Invert squash in an 11-in. x 7-in. baking dish. Add water and cover with foil. Bake at 375° for 50-60 minutes or until tender.
2. Meanwhile, cook beef, onion and celery over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Stir in the flour, salt and sage until blended. Add milk. Bring to a boil. Cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened and bubbly. Stir in rice.
3. Transfer squash to a baking sheet. Fill cavity with meat mixture. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes. Remove from oven; sprinkle with cheese and bake 3-5 minutes longer or until cheese is melted. Yield: 4 servings.

Slow Cooker Beef Stew

I've been wanting to use my slow-cooker more. I just want to choose recipes that are at least somewhat healthy - and don't include cream of something soup. This recipe was simple and good. If you have any good slow cooker recipes, please pass them on!

Ingredients

• 2 pounds beef stew meat, cut into 1 inch cubes
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 1/2 cups beef broth
• 3 potatoes, diced
• 4 carrots, sliced
• 1 stalk celery, chopped

Directions

1. Place meat in slow cooker. In a small bowl mix together the flour, salt, and pepper; pour over meat, and stir to coat meat with flour mixture. Stir in the garlic, bay leaf, paprika, Worcestershire sauce, onion, beef broth, potatoes, carrots, and celery.
2. Cover, and cook on Low setting for 10 to 12 hours, or on High setting for 4 to 6 hours.

Beef Kabobs and the Best Ice Cream Ever!

We had friends over last night for dinner. Matt made beef and veggie kabobs. I made brown rice and ice cream. It all turned out really well and we were STUFFED afterwards (didn't stop us from demolishing the ice cream though!)

Marinated Kabobs
from www.allrecipes.com

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1/3 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 1/2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 1/2 pounds flank steak

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, mix the oil, soy sauce, vinegar, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, garlic, and ground black pepper. Place meat in a shallow glass dish. Pour marinade over the steak, turning meat to coat thoroughly. Cover, and refrigerate.

We used top sirloin, baby bellas, onion, red and orange bell peppers, red potatoes, and pineapple. Everything was marinated most of the day except the mushrooms. They were only marinated for a couple of hours. Then Matt grilled everything. When making kabobs, we have learned (thanks to Alton Brown) that they come out best when each ingredient is kept on seperate skewers. So do all the meat together, potatoes together, and so on. Each ingredient cooks differently and need to be on the grill different amounts of time. YUM!


Baked Brown Rice
from Alton Brown

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups brown rice, medium or short grain
• 2 1/2 cups water Chicken Broth
  
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Place the rice into an 8-inch square glass baking dish.
3. Bring the water broth, butter, and salt just to a boil in a kettle or covered saucepan. 
4. Once the water broth boils, pour it over the rice, stir to combine, and cover the dish tightly with heavy-duty aluminum foil. Bake on the middle rack of the oven for 1 hour.
5. After 1 hour, remove cover and fluff the rice with a fork. Serve immediately.

Double Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream
from Annie Eats

Ingredients
For the cookie dough:

• 5 tbsp. salted butter, melted (or unsalted butter plus ¼ tsp. salt)
• 1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
• ¼ cup flour*
• ½ tsp. vanilla extract
• ¾ cup chocolate chips (I used mini chips)

For the ice cream:

• 3 tbsp. unsalted butter
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 2/3 cup dark brown sugar
• 4 large egg yolks
• Pinch of coarse salt
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1½ cups whole milk
• 1 cup chocolate chips (semisweet or bittersweet)

Directions
To make the cookie dough:

1. Stir together the butter and sugar in a mixing bowl until smooth.  
2. Mix in the flour, then the vanilla and chocolate chips.  
3. Form the dough into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm.

To make the ice cream:

1. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat.  Continue heating, stirring often, until the butter is a deep golden brown color, being careful not to burn it.  Whisk in the heavy cream and heat until simmering.  
2. Meanwhile in a medium bowl, whisk together the brown sugar and the egg yolks until pale and fluffy.  
3. Once the cream mixture is warm, add a small amount to the bowl with the egg yolks, whisking constantly.  Slowly whisk in the rest of the cream.  Mix in the salt.  
4. Return the egg-cream mixture to the saucepan and heat until just slightly thickened, and the temperature reads 170-175˚ F on an instant-read thermometer.  Immediately remove the mixture from the heat and pour through a fine mesh sieve into a bowl.  
5. Stir in the vanilla extract and the whole milk.  
6. Cover and chill thoroughly in the refrigerator.
7. Once the mixture is chilled, freeze in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions. 
8. Chop the disk of cookie dough into small chunks.  
9. As soon as the mixture is done churning, transfer to a bowl or airtight container and stir in the chocolate chips and the chunks of cookie dough.  Store in the freezer until firm.

*1/4 cup flour for the cookie dough did not seem like much. I actually added slightly extra but didn't need to. Once it's refrigerated, it's fine. The flavor of this ice cream is absolutely amazing.

Seared Steak Salad with Edamame & Cilantro

This recipe also came from Eating Well. It called for shredded red cabbage and red pepper. I don't like peppers and wasn't in the mood for cabbage. So to add some color, I added a handful of shredded carrots. The original recipe didn't call for green onions or garlic powder. But I had some green onions and figured they'd go well. Also, for the meat, I wanted to add more flavor so I sprinkled the garlic powder on and it turned out well! This was SO good!!! It was really easy to make. The steak was yummy and the dressing was amazing. I'll definitely be making this again.

Ingredients

• 8 ounces top round steak, 3/4 inch thick, trimmed of fat
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 4 cups mixed greens
• 1 cup snow peas, sliced
• 1/2 cup shredded or thin carrots
• 1/2 cup cilantro leaves, chopped
• 1/3 cup shelled edamame, thawed
• 1/4 cup Sesame Tamari Vinaigrette (recipe follows)

Directions

1. Sprinkle steak with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Coat a small nonstick skillet with cooking spray; place over medium heat. Add the steak and cook about 4 minutes per side for medium-rare. Let rest for (at least 5) minutes before slicing.
2. Combine greens, snow peas, carrots, cilantro, edamame and vinaigrette in a large bowl. Toss to coat. Divide between 2 plates. Top with the steak. 

Chicken Variation Substitute 8 ounces chicken tenders for the steak. Cook through, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Shrimp Variation Substitute 8 ounces cooked, peeled shrimp for the steak (omit Step 1).

Per serving:  328 calories; 9 g fat (2 g sat, 3 g mono); 68 mg cholesterol; 19 g carbohydrates; 42 g protein; 7 g fiber; 679 mg sodium; 949 mg potassium.

Sesame Tamari Vinaigrette

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup orange juice
• 1/4 cup rice vinegar
• 2 tablespoons reduced-sodium tamari, or reduced-sodium soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, finely grated.

 Directions

1. Whisk orange juice, vinegar, tamari, oil, honey and ginger in a small bowl until the honey is incorporated. Transfer to a jar and refrigerate.

Per 2-tablespoon serving:  37 calories; 2 g fat (0 g sat, 1 g mono); 0 mg cholesterol; 4 g carbohydrates; 0 g protein; 0 g fiber; 303 mg sodium; 21 mg potassium.