Porterhouse Steaks

A visit from Reid’s friend, Adam was cause for celebration at home this week, especially because he was just accepted at several law schools.  Congratulations, Adam!   We had the butcher prepare extra thick steaks, rubbed them with some new flavours, and served them with Hugh Carpenter’s decadent mushroom sauce to make something ordinary a little special.

Porterhouse Steak with 5-Spice Rub and Shiitake Mushroom Sauce

2 porterhouse steaks, 1 ½” thick

For the rub:

1 ½ tablespoons 5-spice powder

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1 ½ tablespoons brown sugar

For the Shiitake Mushroom Sauce:

3 tablespoons butter

1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger

10 ounces shiitake mushrooms, stems removed and thinly sliced

1 ¼ cup whipping cream

2 tablespoons sherry

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 teaspoon sambal olek

1 tablespoon sesame oil

1 teaspoon grated orange zest

2 tablespoons chopped cilantro

Combine the rub ingredients in a small bowl.  Sprinkle the mixture over both sides of the steaks and rub into the meat.  Let stand, covered, in the refrigerator for 2 hours or up to overnight.  Bring to room temperature before grilling.

Preheat barbecue on MEDIUM-HIGH then reduce heat to MEDIUM.   Clean the grids with a grill brush, then coat them lightly with oil.  (Or, hold the steaks with tongs, and rub the fat side along the grids to lubricate them).  Place the steaks on the grill and cook for a total of 16 minutes, following the Broil King guide for Perfect Grill Marks. 

For the sauce, heat the butter in a skillet and add the ginger.  Sauté for a minute before adding the mushrooms.   Cook on MEDIUM until the mushrooms are softened and lightly browned.  Add the remaining ingredients except for the cilantro, and simmer until reduced and slightly thickened, about 10-15 minutes.  Serve the sauce over the steak or on top of rice noodles and garnish with cilantro.

Sticky Toffee Puddings

½ pound dates, pitted and chopped

1 teaspoon baking soda

4 tablespoons butter, softened

6 tablespoons granulated sugar

2 eggs

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

1 ¼ cups all purpose flour

½ teaspoon salt

1 ½ tablespoons baking powder

For the Sauce:

½ cup butter

½ cup brown sugar

¼ cup whipping cream

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350°F.  Butter and flour 6 large ramekins. 

Place the dates in a saucepan with 1 ¾ cups cold water.  Bring to a boil, stirring to break up the dates.  Simmer for a minute or two before removing from the heat.  Stir in the baking soda, which will cause the mixture to bubble up.

Cream the butter and sugar until pale.  Add the eggs one at a time, then the vanilla followed by the flour and salt, mixing briefly to form a lumpy dough.  Add the warm date mixture in two batches, scraping down the sides of the bowl between additions.  The dough will be quite watery.  Add the baking powder, which will also bubble up.

Pour the batter into the large ramekins, and bake for about 25 minutes, or until firm and cooked through. 

For the sauce, combine all the ingredients in a saucepan, bring to a boil, and simmer for a minute until thickened and well blended. 

Poke the baked puddings all over with a toothpick or skewer, and pour the caramel sauce overtop while they are still warm.  Let stand for 10 minutes, then serve with ice cream or whipped cream.  

Grilled Miso Black Cod

 Getting ready for a party is half of the fun of hosting it! Planning, shopping, preparing in advance, setting the table!   And always - having a few tasks for friends to help you with! This is our secret to a great party that everyone can enjoy.

With that in mind, we had a lot of fun last week, sharing a birthday celebration with some great friends and family.

Grilled  Miso Black Cod

Serves 8

This dish is super simple, but the key is to marinate the fish for 1-3 days, so it is perfect for a dinner party. As always, our philosophy is to make ahead as much as possible, as it frees up your time to enjoy your party. This menu fits the bill perfectly!

8  6-ounce fillets black cod (sablefish)

1 cup white miso (white soybean paste)

¼ cup sake

¼ cup mirin

1 tbsp maple syrup

1 tsp grated ginger

Combine white miso, sake, mirin, maple syrup and grated ginger. Lay cod in a single layer in a large glass rectangular dish with marinade.  Cover and marinate in the refrigerator for 24- 72 hours, to brine the cod.  When ready to grill, remove cod from pan and scrape marinade off of the cod fillets.

Preheat barbeque on HIGH for 15 minutes and liberally brush grids with oil to prevent sticking.  Place cod on grids and reduce heat to MEDIUM. Grill for 5 minutes per side. The outside should be caramelized and crispy, the inside firm and moist.  Do not overcook.  Set aside, covered and let rest for 5 minutes.

Grilled Eggplant and Bok Choy with Spicy Ginger/Soy Glaze

This flavourful dish works perfectly with the Grilled  Miso Black Cod.  Grill the eggplant before the cod, and set it aside in a warm oven while grilling the Black Cod and the Bok Choy. While the Black Cod is resting, prepare the glaze and toss with the vegetables .  Serve with Coconut Rice.

4 Asian eggplants -long & thin, sliced ½” thick

8 heads baby bok choy

3 tbsp vegetable oil

1 tsp salt

Glaze:

4 tbsp soy sauce

4 tbsp brown sugar

2 tbsp rice vinegar

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

6 cloves of garlic, crushed and minced

2 tbsp ginger, grated

6 green onions, chopped, separate green and white parts

1 tsp sirachi sauce

1 tbsp sesame oil

1 tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped

Preheat barbecue on HIGH for 15 minutes, reduce to MEDIUM-LOW.

Toss sliced eggplant and bok choy separately in oil and salt. Lay eggplant slices on a grill tray and arrange bok choy,  bottom side down in a wok grill basket.

Place tray of eggplant on the grids and grill for 30 minutes, with lid closed, turning occasionally. Remove and place eggplant in a warm oven, while grilling bok choy. Place wok basket on the grids and grill bok choy for 5-7 minutes, with lid closed.

Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, combine soy sauce with brown sugar and rice vinegar.  Heat oil in a large sauté pan. Add garlic, ginger, white part of green onions and sirachi sauce.  Cook for about 30 seconds.  Add soy sauce mixture and bring to a boil and add sesame oil. Pour half of this sauce over the grilled eggplant. Toss the grilled bok choy in the sauté pan with the remaining sauce. Arrange eggplant and bok choy on a large platter and sprinkle with chopped green onion and cilantro.

ENJOY!!

Ted must be telling a very scary story!!

What is he talking about?

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!

Stuffed Pork Tenderloin

There is nothing like Friday’s massive snowfall to make you want to hunker down at home after a some vigorous outdoor activity and make a comforting meal.  This delicious recipe came to us from our friend Mike Francis in the United Kingdom.

Stuffed Pork Tenderloin with Prunes

Prosciutto  is a perfect complement  to the sweetness of prunes and enhances the succulent pork in this recipe.

pork tenderloins , about 750g (1½ lb) in total

14 (or more) pitted prunes

100g (4 oz) Boursin (full fat garlic & herb soft cheese)

8-10 slices Parma ham

freshly ground black pepper

1)      Pre-heat the barbecue  to 200ºC/400ºF.  Remove any fat & membrane from the pork tenderloins & split lengthways, without cutting right through. Cut each side once again, open out flat & season generously with freshly ground black pepper.

2)      Stuff the pitted prunes with teaspoons of Boursin cheese. Lay the prunes along the middle of each tenderloin, then close up & wrap with the Parma ham. Tie loosely with string at 2.5cm (1 inch) intervals & arrange brush with olive oil.

3)      Place the tenderloins on the barbecue on a 45° angle, and rotate every 3 minutes until there are grill marks all around.  Then flip to the opposite 45 ° angle and rotate every 3 minutes for Perfect Grill Marks.  Move the meat to a carving board, tent with foil and leave to rest for 5 minutes, then carve into slices.

We served the pork with spaghetti squash, asparagus and wedge of sweet potato.

Sweet and Spicy Smoked Beans and Beef Ribs

 
The Super Bowl came around again this weekend! ( How many times a year can we sit through a full day of football on TV?? )  Well, if you can't beat them, join them!!  So, as usual, we put our heads together and came up with a rich and filling feast to satisfy anyones Super Bowl hunger!!
 

Broccoli Slaw

6 tbsp mayonnaise

2 tbsp cider vinegar

1 tsp white sugar

½ tsp celery salt

½  tsp Cholula hot sauce

1 Package (4 cups) broccoli slaw

4 tbsp red onion, minced

Salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Garnish: 2 tbsp crispy fried onion bits(often  found in the produce section)

Dressing: Combine mayonnaise, cider vinegar, white sugar, celery salt, salt and pepper and Cholula hot sauce in a small bowl. Whisk.

Combine broccoli slaw and red onion in a large bowl. Pour on the dressing and toss to coat. Refrigerate for 1 hour. Garnish with crispy fried onion bits and serve.

Easy Sweet and Spicy Smoked Beans

We have a small coffee grinder that we use exclusively for grinding spices for our rubs etc. In this recipe, rather than using ground cumin from the store, we coarsely grind the cumin seeds, as they release a fresh, pungent flavour that really makes a difference in a strongly flavoured dish such as this.

½ pound bacon

1 onion, diced

2 cloves garlic

2 tsp chili powder

1 tsp ground cumin seeds

2 tsp chopped canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce

½ cup brown sugar

2 tbsp fancy molasses

1 can beer

1 can(398 ml) each of black, red and white beans, drained

Cook the bacon until crisp, place on a paper towel to drain and set aside, reserving 2 tbsp of the rendered bacon fat. Add diced onion to the bacon fat in the skillet and cook over medium heat, until soft and translucent. Add garlic, chili powder, ground cumin and chipotle peppers and cook for another 5-7 minutes. Meanwhile, drain and rinse beans and add them to a large Dutch oven. Add beer, brown sugar, molasses and onion mixture. Bring to a boil and simmer, uncovered for 45 minutes, or until sauce has reduced and thickened. Add the bacon and place in the smoker for the last 15 minutes of cooking, while the ribs are being glazed and finished over a higher temperature (400°F). At this point, taste and season with salt and pepper, if required. The beans and bacon may contain enough salt that you will not want to add any more to the dish! If the sauce has not thickened enough, leave them on the smoker until the ribs are ready to eat.

Smoky Beef Ribs with Chili/Mushroom Rub

We found this recipe in Barbecue Secrets Deluxe, by Ronnie Shewchuk, and modified it for the smoker.

12 long beef ribs (prime ribs)

 

2 tbsp yellow mustard

coarse kosher salt

extra virgin olive oil.

Rub:

1 tbsp black peppercorns

1 tbsp dried chanterelle mushrooms

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 tbsp chili powder

½ tsp cayenne pepper

Mop: 1 cup apple juice in a spray bottle

Glaze : 1 cup barbecue sauce and 1 cup jelly(anything in the refrigerator)

2 cups mesquite wood chips

Set up the Broil King Keg to smoke ribs at 225-250° F for 4-5 hours. Soak the mesquite wood chips for 30 minutes.

Lay ribs on a large cookie sheet in a single layer. Rub with yellow mustard. Give them a light drizzle of oil and season with salt. Grind the pepper, mushrooms and cumin seeds until fine. Combine with chili powder and cayenne pepper. Sprinkle over ribs and rub in.  Let the ribs sit for 30 minutes.

Add the wood chips to the smoker and fill diffuser tray with water. Add the ribs and close the lid. Smoke for 4-5 hours. Spray liberally with mop every 30 minutes.  When the internal temperature of the ribs reaches 135°F, open the vents on the keg. Place the pot of beans on the upper rack and baste the ribs with glaze and grill until the ribs have crisped up.

 Wrap tightly in foil and place on smoker,  with the vents closed, for another 45 minutes.