Valentine's Beef Oxtails on the Smoker

 

This Valentine’s Day Mark and Ted were distracted by hockey games and business trips, so the celebrations had to be postponed.  Fortunately, Pluto remembered and sent long-stemmed roses to some of his favourite girls.  He is a bit of a hopeless romantic.

However, the next day we lovingly created and produced a special menu using the Broil King Keg.  Little did we know that the grand conclusion of the evening was going to be watching UFC......!

Valentines Boxing Day Menu

Smoked Oxtails and Mushrooms with Demi-Glace

Risotto Hearts stuffed with Blue Cheese

French Green Beans with Oven Dried Cherry Tomatoes

Heart-shaped Braised Carrots

Chocolate Soufflés with Raspberry Sauce

Smoked Beef Oxtails

Note:  apply rub one night before cooking

4 beef oxtails, about 3” thick

For the rub:

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon sugar

4 thick slices onion

Handful fresh thyme sprigs

8 ounces cremini mushrooms

1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme leaves

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

½ cup veal or beef demi-glace

The night before serving, mix all the rub ingredients and coat the oxtails generously.  Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.

The next day, around noon, light the Broil King Keg following the instructions in the techniques section.  Sprinkle glowing coals with soaked maple wood chips. Fill the diffuser with warm water.

Place the oxtails on the grids and smoke for 3-4 hours, maintaining a temperature of 200° F. 

Prepare 4 sheets of heavy aluminum foil large enough to surround the oxtails.  Place one slice of onion and a few sprigs of thyme in the centre of the foil.  Top with oxtail, wrap tightly, and place on the outside edge of the smoker.  Toss the mushrooms with oil, vinegar, herbs and spices, and place on the grids in the centre of the smoker.  Continue to cook for 2-3 hours at 200 F.

Serve with heated veal or beef demi-glace

Risotto Hearts stuffed with Blue Cheese

1 ½ cups leftover beet risotto (see future posts for beet risotto, but any leftover risotto can be substituted)

 2 ounces Blue d’Auverne cheese

1 cup panko bread crumbs

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon butter

Using a sheet of parchment paper, shape risotto into 4 heart shaped-mounds.  Hollow slightly, and sprinkle with crumbled blue cheese.  Cover with another layer of risotto.  Sprinkle with panko bread crumbs.  Using a flat spatula, turn carefully and sprinkle with more panko.  Place on a flat platter and refrigerate until ready to cook.

In a large non-stick skillet, melt the butter and olive oil over medium-high heat.  Place the prepared risotto hearts in the skillet and cook until golden brown, about 5 minutes per side. 

 

Braised Heart-Shaped Carrots

3 large carrots, sliced into desired shape

(If you wish to make them heart-shaped, use a vegetable peeler to create the pointed edge along the whole carrot and a knife to cut the impression at the top.  Use the peeler again to round the shape, then cut into thick slices)

½ cup chicken stock

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon maple syrup

¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

¼ teaspoon cinnamon

¼ teaspoon cayenne

Preheat oven to 375°.  Spread the prepared carrots in a single layer in an 8” x 10” pan.  In a small bowl whisk together the rest of the ingredients.  Pour over carrots, and cover with foil.  Place in oven for 45 minutes, then remove cover and cook for another 15 minutes, until golden brown and tender.

Chocolate Soufflés

4 individual soufflés

2 teaspoons butter, softened

1/2 cup sugar, divided

8 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, chopped

4 large eggwhites, at room temperature

3 large yolks

1/4 cup Grand Marnier

Preheat the oven to 400° F. Using the butter, grease 4 large individual ramekins and sprinkle them with about 1 teaspoon sugar per ramekin.

In a large metal bowl set over a pot of simmering water, melt the chocolate, stirring it with a whisk from time to time. Remove the bowl of melted chocolate from the heat and let cool slightly.

In another bowl beat the egg whites with 1/4 cup of the sugar until stiff and glossy.

Whisk the egg yolks into the chocolate one at a time, add the orange liqueur, and whisk in the remaining 2 tablespoons sugar. Fold in the egg whites and whisk until thoroughly blended.

Pour the chocolate mixture into the prepared ramekins, place on a baking sheet, and bake until they're puffed and somewhat firm, for about 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from the oven.

Raspberry Sauce:

1 pint raspberries

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

Place a food mill over a small bowl.  Pour in raspberries, and churn until all the juice is extracted.  Discard the seeds, and add sugar to the raspberry pulp.  Spoon over chocolate soufflés and garnish with fresh raspberries.

      

We all show our love to different people in different ways, but one of the very sweetest expressions is taking the time to bake with little ones.  Hayley and Brooklyn discovered their inner-bakers this week and produced some spectacular and delicious Valentine’s sugar cookies for Brooklyn’s school party.  

Sugar Cookies
Ingredients:
1 ½ cups butter, softened
2 cups white sugar
4 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
5 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt

Fondant, kneaded with your choice of paste colour

Piping gel, to “glue” the fondant to the cookies

 In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Stir in the flour, baking powder, and salt. Cover, and chill dough for at least one hour (or overnight).

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Roll out dough on floured surface 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick.

Cut into shapes with any cookie cutter. Place cookies 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets.   Bake 6 to 8 minutes in preheated oven. Cool completely.

Dust countertop with icing sugar or corn starch and roll the fondant fairly thinly, about 1/8”.   Using the same shape cutter as you used for your cookies, cut fondant shapes.

Lightly brush cookies with piping gel.  Apply the corresponding fondant shapes onto the cookies.

Maple Glazed Smoked Pork Belly

 

Andrea and I love good food and also have a great interest in creating a healthy lifestyle for ourselves and our families – which probably contributed to my pursuit of food and nutrition studies in university. It is the perfect background to have when developing recipes for food cooked on the smoker.  At the top of our minds are always 2 goals - creating food that is both healthy and delicious. SO here goes with this recipe for smoked pork belly using the Broil King Keg. We combed over a lot of recipes for braised pork belly in the process,   including some that  called for the addition of large quantities of oil  to the pork belly while marinating, cooking and finishing*! DO you really need to add more fat when cooking pork belly??  We decided to try to moderate on this ingredient, and make sure that each ingredient that we used was essential for delicate, flavor packed, mouth-watering pork belly.

* Lang, Adam Perry, 2009. Serious Barbecue, Smoke, Char, Baste, & Brush Your Way to Great Outdoor Cooking, Hyperion.

Maple Glazed Smoked Pork Belly
 

 Important to know:  1) You will need to marinate the pork belly at least  12 hours  ahead of cooking and   2) Cooking Time is 7-8 hours

One 3-4 pound pork belly piece

Marinade:

¼  cup olive oil

¼ cup lemon juice

¼  cup apple cider vinegar

8 cloves garlic

2 tbsp fresh rosemary leaves

2 tbsp fresh thyme leaves

¾   tsp kosher salt

1 tbsp freshly ground black pepper

2 tbsp crushed red chili peppers

1 cup water

Maple Glaze:

1/4  cup Jack Daniels

½  cup maple syrup

2 tbsp Dijon mustard

¼ cup Italian parsley, chopped

2 tbsp apple cider

½  tsp dried chili pepper flakes

Final seasoning:

1 tbsp chopped parsley

1 tbsp chopped green onions

1 tbsp apple cider vinegar

Freshly ground black pepper and kosher salt

Marinate pork belly:

12-24 hours ahead of time, combine marinade ingredients in food processor and blend until garlic is finely chopped. Place pork belly in a large resealable plastic bag and pour over marinade. Refrigerate overnight.

Cooking the pork belly:

Set up the Broil King Keg with enough lump hardwood charcoal for 8 hours of cooking at 250⁰F.  Soak 1-2 cups of fruit wood chips for smoking.  This is also be cooked using the gas barbecue set on low (275⁰F). Be very vigilant of watching for flare-ups during the final stage of grilling, when applying the glaze.  Place the pork belly into a similar sized rectangular disposable aluminum tray and pour marinade and 1 cup water over top. Cover with heavy-duty aluminum foil and seal edges tightly so that steam does not escape.  Place in the smoker and cook at 250⁰F for 5 ½  hours.

Remove pan from smoker, and with foil still sealed tightly, allow pork belly to rest in the liquid in the pan for 2 hours.

Smoking and glazing:

Add soaked woodchips to smoker and open vents to bring oven temperature to 375⁰F.  Remove pork belly from pan and reserve cooking liquid. The pork belly will be quite delicate at this point and will require gentle handling during the final grilling process.  In order to facilitate this, organize to have a wire grilling basket on hand. The basket will help maintain the rectangular shape of the pork belly and prevent the skin from sliding around.  If not available, use a wire rack and a  very large spatula for carefully turning the pork belly on the grids.  Place pork belly skin side down on a wire grilling basket . Place on smoker and allow skin to crisp for 15 minutes. Monitor for flare ups. Meanwhile, prepare glaze by combining Jack Daniels, maple syrup, Dijon mustard, chopped parsley, cider vinegar and red pepper flakes in a glass dish.  Carefully remove pork belly from smoker and brush all over with glaze.  Return to smoker and cook for 5 minutes, carefully turn, apply remaining glaze and cook for another 5 minutes. The pork belly will be finished when the glaze caramelizes on the meat and is a beautiful glossy dark brown.

Finishing:

Scatter chopped parsley , green onions, salt and pepper on the cutting board and sprinkle with apple cider vinegar. Carefully remove the pork belly from the basket or wire rack and place on top of this mixture. Allow to rest for 10 minutes. Turn and rub mixture on the other side. Gently cut into one and a half-inch square cubes, continuing to dredge in the finishing mixture.

Sauce:

The reserved cooking liquid can be used as a flavourful sauce, once the fat has been poured off.  Pour reserved liquid into a large glass measuring cup. Pour off the fat that has floated to the top. Skim or spoon off the final inch or so, using a tablespoon.   Add any remaining glaze to this mixture. Pour into a small saucepan and bring to a boil for 2-3 minutes. Reduce heat and cook for another 10 minutes. This sauce is delicious poured onto the prepared pork belly and simply boiled new potatoes and wilted kale cooked with garlic and lemon juice. 

We enjoyed it again on Sunday for lunch, in a delicious Canadian sandwich featuring pork belly, Old Canadian cheddar cheese and thinly sliced apples. It was the perfect meal to get us ready for an energetic ski around the golf course!

Nora, Bev, Briar and Pepper

And now we're back to cooking in the snow!!!

 

Smoked Lamb Shanks and Polenta with Grilled Vegetable Ragout

It’s hard to change gears from cooking for eight to cooking for two.....so with a kitchen full of food on Saturday we found ourselves looking out the window to see if any neighbour’s lights were on so we could invite them to join us!  Fortunately, after a full day of hiking in the hills and forest with Pluto we had worked up an appetite. 

It’s hunting season in Ellicottville, so we had to protect our dog with his orange super-hero cape to make him look less like a deer.

Blue Cheese Crackers with Walnuts

These savoury biscuits are delicious served simply as a nibbly, or arranged on a platter with apple or pear slices, soft cheeses, nuts and fruit chutneys or antipasto.

½ cup unsalted butter

½ cup (8oz) gorgonzola cheese

1 cup flour

½ tsp salt

5 ml black pepper, freshly ground

5 ml dry mustard

¼  tsp cayenne pepper

1 egg, beaten with 1 tsp water for egg wash

¼ cup walnuts, chopped finely

1. Cream the butter and gorgonzola cheese together for 1 minute in a large bowl. Add flour, salt, pepper, dry mustard and cayenne pepper and mix on low until the dough comes together in large pieces.  Add 1 tbsp water and mix until combined.

2. Dump the dough onto a floured board and knead lightly. Divide into 2 balls and roll into logs. Brush logs with egg wash and roll in finely chopped walnuts. Wrap in plastic or waxed paper and refrigerate for at least an hour or overnight.

3. Preheat oven to 375⁰F(190⁰C). Meanwhile, carefully slice logs into thin coins and place on a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes, then turn and bake for another 8 minutes. Cool and store in an airtight container.

Smoked Lamb Shanks

4 lamb shanks

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

4 teaspoons Italian seasoning

1 teaspoon each salt and freshly ground pepper

Red wine

2 sprigs fresh rosemary

Brush the shanks with the mustard, and sprinkle with the seasoning and salt and pepper.

Prepare the smoker as outlined in Techniques.  Fill the drip pan with red wine, water and 2 sprigs of rosemary.

Keeping the temperature at 250°, smoke the lamb for about 5 hours, or until very tender.  Be sure to top up the water pan with hot water when necessary. 

Polenta with Gorgonzola

(click on the link for our recipe from April 18, 2011)

When mixing polenta, you know it is ready to turn out when a wooden spoon stands up straight.

Grilled Vegetable Ragout

2 tablespoons olive oil, or more

1 Vidalia onion, coarsely chopped

1 large clove garlic, minced

6 plum tomatoes, halved

1 each yellow and green zucchini, sliced lengthwise

1 each orange and red pepper, cut in large chunks

Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

1 bunch fresh basil, cut into chiffonade

Preheat barbecue and set to LOW.  Meanwhile, sauté onion in 1 tablespoon olive oil in a medium saucepan until caramelized, about 30 minutes.  Add the garlic, and stir until fragrant, then remove from heat.

Drizzle the tomatoes with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Place them, cut side down, on the upper rack for 15 minutes, then turn and continue to cook until very tender, about another 15 minutes.  Let cool slightly, then slip off the skins and chop roughly.

Grill the zuchinni and peppers and let cool slightly before chopping roughly.

Add all the grilled vegetables to the sauté pan with the onions and heat through.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.

To serve, place a handful of basil chiffonade on the plate.  Top with the polenta and then the grilled vegetable ragout. 

First Dinner Party of Spring

What did we say about April showers and May flowers?  Where does this snow fit in?!

Bev and Briar braced against wind and snow.

 

Last week we were on very different paths:  Andrea was in England by her son Charlie’s bedside post-op, and the good news is he came through very well.  Andrea and Charlie got to watch one great movie The Lives of Others,  and a string of really bad ones too.  

  Meanwhile, Kris was busy volunteering at the Child Witness Centre 8th Annual Youth Symposium, where 2,000 grade eight students came together to be inspired by some leaders who have overcome challenges in their lives. 

At the end of the week we gathered around the barbecue for some creative development and the earliest dinner party ever (all the guests were gone by 9:45!!  ....yawn!)  On the menu was:

Bev's Arugula Salad with Pecans, Smoked Gouda and Asparagus

Polenta with Gorgonzola and Sundried Tomato Vinaigrette*

Grilled Vegetable Succotash*

Potato Gratin with Caramelized Onions and Emmenthal Cheese

Smoked Beef and Pork Ribs with Spicy Indiana Barbecue Sauce

Ginger Carrot Cake with White Chocolate Frosting

One of our guests, Linda Jarrett, was preparing for the annual MS Walk which was happening the next morning.  She is the top fundraiser for our local chapter with over $18,000 in pledges!  Congratulations, Linda.

Grilled Polenta with Gorgonzola and Sundried Tomato Vinaigrette

Polenta is very versatile and is a great make ahead dish.  The polenta should be prepared in the morning, then let to sit in the refrigerator until you are ready to eat.   We adapted this recipe for grilling by putting the cheese on top instead of inside the polenta.  It is quickly grilled and then ready to garnish and served as an appetizer, side dish or even main course.  Another time, try serving it with a marinara sauce, or for a Mexican twist, with salsa and black beans ( and lots of cilantro!)

Polenta

2 cups cornmeal

6 cups water or chicken stock

1 teaspoon salt

2 tsp Mediterranean rub (stay tuned for more information about our product line; meanwhile, substitute Italian Seasoning)

3 tbsps  butter

Sundried Tomato Vinaigrette

2 tbsp sundried tomatoes, packed in oil, finely chopped

4 tbsp fresh herbs, chopped – we recommend basil and fennel

1 clove garlic, minced

1 tsp kosher salt

2 tbsp sherry vinegar

½ tsp grainy mustard

½ tsp honey

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

3 ounces gorgonzola cheese, sliced

Prepare polenta by combining cornmeal, water, salt, and herbs in a large saucepan, whisking until blended. Bring the mixture to a boil, whisking constantly. As you notice the cornmeal thickening, keep stirring, reduce heat and simmer for 25 minutes. Stir every 3 – 4 minutes to prevent scorching. When polenta is thick and creamy, it will start to pull away from the sides of the pot. Add butter. Transfer to a small baking sheet which has been lined with plastic wrap. Flatten and smooth the surface with your hand, or a flat spatula dipped in water. Cover and refrigerate at least 3 hours .

Prepare vinaigrette by chopping herbs, sundried tomato, garlic and salt together. Scrape off cutting board and add to glass jar. Add sherry vinegar, grainy mustard, honey and extra virgin olive oil. Shake vigourously and set aside.

Preheat grill on MEDIUM-HIGH. Cut polenta into triangles, brush with oil and grill 4 minutes. Turn and top with gorgonzola cheese and cook another 4 minutes. When ready to serve, drizzle vinaigrette over top. If serving as an appetizer or main course, plate on top of a bed of arugula.

Grilled Succotash

Succotash is typically a combination of late summer corn and beans, but we took our cues from what looked best at the Farmer's Market on Saturday.   Only the tomatoes were grown locally, but there was a big stack of corn from Florida that looked juicy and moist and that inspired the rest of the dish.  The green beans (which would have been our preference) looked sad, so we used sugar snap peas and asparagus instead.

4 cobs corn, husks left on
1 bunch scallions
2 ripe tomatoes, cored and halved
1 cup sugar snap peas, trimmed
1/2 pound asparagus, ends snapped
2 tablespoons olive oil
juice of one lime
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
1 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves, chopped
salt and pepper, to taste

Preheat barbecue on MEDIUM-HIGH for 10 minutes, reduce heat to MEDIUM-LOW and brush the grids with oil to prevent sticking.  Place the corn on the grill, and turn every 5 minutes until cooked through, about 15-20 minutes.  Set aside until cool enough to handle.  Meanwhile, brush the remaining vegetables with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Place the tomatoes cut side down on the grill, lay the scallions on the grill on a diagonal, and place the asparagus and sugar snaps (or green beans if using) horizontally on the cooking grids.  Another option is to use a wok topper to minimize vegetables slipping through the grids.  Continue turning and cooking the vegetables until they are softened and have light grill marks.  Cool slightly.

Into a medium bowl, cut the corn nibletts off the cob.  Slip the skins off the tomatoes, then chop them coarsely and add them to the bowl with the corn.  Chop the green vegetables into bite-sized pieces and add them to the bowl.  Sprinkle with lime juice, chopped herbs, and salt and pepper to taste.  Toss to combine well.  Cover and let sit at room temperature for up to 2 hours.