Beef Marinade

My family has made this for holidays and special occasions for as long as I can remember. Filet mignon is not really something that needs this kind of preparation to taste good, but it definitely tastes good this way to me.

My dad told me about the reaction this got the first time my grandma made it. I'm not sure where my grandma got the recipe. It was for some sort of family party. He helped her prepare a large amount of venison (something like 10 pounds) and mix the marinade, and then ended up needing to go somewhere for a few hours. He came back to find that it was all gone. All of the meat had been cooked and eaten before my dad could have some. Maybe this is why he always makes so much of it, so that he and we will always have as much as we care to eat.

Part of me thinks he'd be upset with me for sharing it here because he's told me not to share it before (I don't know how serious he was) but honestly, what is the point of secret recipes? Who are we keeping it a secret from and why? I sort of get why they were a thing before the internet but not anymore. It's not like we run a restaurant where we stand to gain financially from a proprietary recipe, or have friends that only like us for our delicious food that would stop coming to see us if they could make it themselves. Personally, I love sharing good recipes because then more people can enjoy the delicious things we make.

Notes:

• I realize some things could probably be executed better, but this is how you get it to taste like family nostalgia. If you like doing things a little differently, absolutely go ahead and improve upon it.
• This would probably work well with other cuts of beef and other kinds of meat. My grandma first made this with venison.
• Grilling is by far the best way to cook this. If you can't grill it, broil it.

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RECIPE:

Beef Marinade

from my grandma

Serves 4-6

1 lb beef tenderloin

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp dry mustard

1 tsp salt

2 tbsp molasses

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup water

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1/2 large onion, chopped

Cut beef tenderloin into 1/4 to 1/2 inch slices. Stir remaining ingredients together in a large bowl until sugar is dissolved. Add beef and marinate for 6-18 hours. Grill over medium-high heat for about 1-2 minutes per side, or to desired doneness.

Mexican Spice Blend

I first came upon this while trying to recreate food from Chipotle. I'm not normally into fast food type restaurants but theirs has vegetables and beans and stuff that tastes like actual food. However, I now live kind of far away from one and don't always want to make the trip there.

I usually put this on chicken for taco seasoning/Mexican style meals but have also used it on pork, ground beef, ground turkey, and even sauteed summer squash for vegetarians/vegans. I bet it would taste good on sweet potatoes too.

Notes:

• I have a huge stash of Korean red pepper flakes and that's usually what I use here because the standard red pepper flakes in the US are too spicy for me in this large an amount.
• I have used both chili powder that is meant for use in the soup (such as Mexene) and one that is just a straight roasted and ground pepper like ancho chile powder. Both are good.
• Sometimes I use kosher salt to make it a little less salty. You could also omit the salt.
• If using as a dry rub, the flavors are stronger if you let it stand for a couple of hours after rubbing it on the food of choice.

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RECIPE:

Mexican Spice Blend
Makes about 1/3 cup (40 g)

1 1/2 tbsp ground cumin
1 tbsp chili powder
1 tbsp mild chili flakes
2 tsp Mexican oregano
2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper

Stir together all ingredients in a bowl or shake together in a glass jar with a lid.

Salted Chocolate Halvah (Sesame Fudge)

My first experience with halvah was several years ago when I bought Joyva chocolate covered halvah from the international food aisle on a whim. I knew that some Asian countries use sesame in desserts, but I had not heard of this before. It is a common dessert item in the Middle East and is also enjoyed by Jewish people.

I loved it. It reminds me a little of Butterfinger candy bars, but not quite as sickly sweet and also easier to bite into. Why are Butterfinger candy bars so hard?

Anyway. Fast forward to last week when I knew I was going to an afternoon tea potluck, and the hosts had dairy and gluten allergies. I had been wanting to try to make halvah for the last couple of months and also wanted to bring something both of the hosts could actually eat, and this fit the bill!

Notes:

• If you use tahini from a jar, make sure you stir it very well so there are no lumps. Very small ones will melt when you mix in the hot sugar syrup but larger ones will stay in pockets and mess up the texture.
• I made this vegan by using dairy free chocolate.
• Upon researching recipes for halvah I noticed that different ones tell you different final temperatures for the sugar syrup, ranging from 240 (soft ball) to 248 (hard ball). Some said you want the texture to be crumbly, others said it should be chewy like caramel. I don't know if the differing texture is a regional difference based on what country it's made in, personal preference of the person writing the recipe, or not making it correctly.
• It is important that the sugar syrup does not crystallize or it will be especially crumbly and may not form a solid mass. I got most of it mixed in just fine but then made the mistake of scraping the sides of the pan and I think that set off the crystallization. This is also probably why the finished brick of candy was more fragile than in the original recipe's video and broke into two large pieces when I transferred it to the rack to put chocolate on it. It did still taste good, though, which is ultimately my most important metric.
• I did not use the vegetable oil spray and was fine. I used a nonstick coated pan and only the parchment paper, and had no trouble releasing it from the pan.

Verdict: I love how it tastes and despite it being something people in my area probably haven't heard of, the people that tried it at the potluck seemed to like it. I'd definitely like to try making it again and avoid the pitfalls that made the execution of this batch less than stellar. I also need a new candy thermometer that A) fits under my microwave range hood thing and B) goes down low enough in the pan to sit in the candy syrup.

RECIPE: Salted Chocolate Halva (it includes a really helpful video!)

Risotto Milanese

I first learned about risotto as an adult. The closest thing I had to it as a child, which I LOVED, was what my mom called "souped-up Minute Rice" which is pretty much exactly what it sounds like -- Minute Rice (the instant microwaveable parcooked rice) cooked in canned soup, usually cream of chicken (my favorite) or cream of mushroom (ew). (Side note: I made this as an adult and it sadly did not live up to the childhood memories. I'm going to pretend I didn't and choose to just remember that it was delicious.)

My first experience with actual risotto was when my boyfriend (now husband) made it for me in college. He would buy the packaged just-add-water-and-butter kind since it was something he could cook quickly and easily in his apartment. He mixed in sausage at the end. Once he met me and started having me over for meals, I cooked vegetables to mix in too -- while he didn't go to the effort to buy and cook vegetables for himself, he would gladly eat them if they were there, which is more than a lot of Midwestern college boys would do. We watched Hell's Kitchen because that was a thing at the time, and I laughed when I saw that it was served in their restaurant. Would macaroni and cheese be served in Hell's Kitchen? Probably not. So is risotto not fancy or really fancy?

Then one of my college roommates clued me into the fact that you could make it from scratch. She gave me some that she had cooked. Mind blown. This also opened me up to the world of alcohol as a food flavoring (AMAZING). While the packaged version doesn't taste bad, the process of cooking it from scratch is not really any harder than the packet version (though you need to have more ingredients on hand), and it tastes much better.

Risotto is what you make of it. You can make it fancy, or not. You can serve it all by itself as a side, or mix in meat and/or vegetables for a one-pot meal.

Notes:

• Using Arborio rice is important. It will not turn out the same if you use a different type of rice.
• If serving it as a side, the package I got the recipe from says it goes well with meats in a red sauce or wine sauce such as osso buco.
• The saffron is what makes it authentic Milan-style risotto. You can leave it out if that's not what you're going for, especially if you're mixing other stuff into it.
• If possible, use cheese that is not already grated; the cellulose on pre-grated cheese that keeps it from clumping will interfere with the creamy texture you want.
• Suggestions for add-ins: cooked meats/seafood (shredded chicken, browned link sausage, chopped ham, bacon crumbles, cooked shrimp), vegetables (cooked/prepared: broccoli, mushrooms, carrots, peas, asparagus, zucchini, cubed winter squash, chopped sun-dried tomatoes; fresh: chopped tomato, spinach leaves), fresh herbs (parsley, basil, marjoram). If you cook frozen vegetables, make sure they are well drained before adding them to the risotto. The version pictured above has chopped ham and peas mixed in.
• This can be made vegetarian by using a mild flavored vegetable based broth instead of chicken broth.
• You might like to vary the type of broth based on what kind of add-ins you are using (for example, a seafood broth if adding shrimp).
• You may not need extra salt. I find that Parmesan cheese and especially salty add-ins like sausage or ham lend enough salt to the dish on their own. If you plan to add salt, I recommend waiting until after the cheese is added, then tasting to see if it needs more salt. 

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RECIPE:

Risotto Milanese

adapted from a recipe I found on a box of arborio rice

Serves 2-4

2 cups chicken, seafood, or vegetable broth

Water, if needed

2 tbsp butter

3 tbsp onion, finely chopped

1 cup uncooked arborio rice

1/3 cup dry white wine'

A pinch of toasted saffron

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded or grated

Salt to taste (optional)

Place broth in a medium sized saucepan and keep heated on low on the stove. Keep a small cup of room temperature water next to the stove in case it is needed. In another larger saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. When the butter foams, add onion and cook for several minutes, until it is translucent. Add rice and stir for about 30 seconds, until everything is completely coated in the butter. Add the wine and saffron to the pan and cook, stirring frequently, until the wine is completely absorbed, about 3-5 minutes. Pour in just enough broth from the smaller pan to cover the rice and cook until the broth is absorbed, stirring often. Repeat with the rest of the broth until the rice is cooked through but still firm to the bite, about 20 minutes. If you run out of broth and the rice is still not ready, continue the above process with more broth or water until it has reached the desired  texture. When the rice has reached the proper texture, remove the pan from the heat and stir in the Parmesan cheese until it has melted slightly. Taste and add salt if you think it needs it. At this point, if using additional ingredients, stir them in until mostly evenly incorporated. Serve immediately with additional Parmesan cheese.

Red Sangria

I first made The Minimalist Baker's red sangria a couple of summers ago to bring to a cookout. I recently made it again last week when we had guests over in the evening, and it has been wonderfully easy and tasty both times. I like that you don't really need to let it stand any longer than the time it takes for it to chill.

Notes:

• I used a blend of dry-ish red wines (Apothic) since I made it on short notice and the store didn't have a huge selection of Spanish wine to choose from. Reading the reviews, it looks like just about any dry or semi-dry (not sweet) red wine will work.
• The recipe says you can use rum or brandy; I went for brandy. You don't need anything super fancy here since you're mixing it.
• I used dark brown sugar and went for the smaller amount.
• I threw in a couple shots of triple sec because I forgot to buy orange juice but then I did end up getting the orange juice and putting that in too. If you want it extra boozy and orangey you can put it in, but it's absolutely not necessary.
• I used a Fuji apple because they tend to be pretty sweet and keep their shape nicely.
• I made a single batch for 4 people and we very easily finished it. We each had a little more than one wine glass full.
• This is best consumed as soon as possible after making, though it will keep chilled for up to 2 days.

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RECIPE:

Red Sangria
adapted from The Minimalist Baker
Serves 4

1/2 medium apple (about 90g), cored, with skin on, chopped into bite size pieces
1/2 medium navel orange (about 65g), with rind on, seeds removed, cut in half and then into 1/8 inch/3 mm slices
3-4 tbsp (40-50g) brown sugar
3/4 cup (175 ml) orange juice
1/3 cup (80 ml) brandy, plus more to taste
1 bottle (750 ml) dry or semi-dry red wine; Spanish wines are the most traditional
About 7-8 ice cubes, to chill

Place fruit and brown sugar in the bottom of a 2 quart pitcher and use a wooden spoon to mix for about 45 seconds, or until the juices from the fruit have begun to dissolve the sugar. Pour the orange juice and brandy over the muddled fruit and mix for another 30 seconds, or until the sugar has dissolved. Add the red wine and stir to combine everything. At this point, you can adjust the flavor to your liking with more orange juice, brandy, and/or sugar. Once you are satisfied with the taste, add the ice cubes to the pitcher and stir to cool the mixture. If you have time, let stand in the fridge for at least an hour for the flavors to combine and everything to chill, but you can also serve it immediately, with or without more ice.