Dinner

[ksmith]

Made the Steak in Shallot Sauce, which I found on arcaedia's Foodie Page.

Make that an approximation of Steak etc... I didn't use a sirloin cut, but a cut the name of which I can't recall, which I think maybe needed to be braised or stewed rather than quick-cooked. And I didn't have any steak sauce, so I made do with a tablespoon of tomato paste mixed with enough Worcestershire sauce to give the tell-tale rust color.

And I used scallions instead of shallots.

All that aside, it was really good. I will definitely reuse the recipe with a more suitable cut of meat.

Dinner on Friday turned out tasty as well. A Chicken Creole recipe of the inside lid of a Campari tomato container. It took me 45 minutes to chop up and cook all the veggies, *and* I used stock that I made myself from scratch. Left the leftovers on the counter to cool...and forgot about them until Saturday afternoon, when I discovered them as I put away groceries. Thus did one for the pot become one for the trashcan.

I hate it when I do things like that.

Comments

[cabri729.livejournal.com]

I don't feel so bad now! Usually I just take things out of the freezer and leave them on the counter as I run off to work thinking I have lunch in my bag. Of course, I was doing that just as much at 21 so I can't even blame it on my age...

[kristine-smith.livejournal.com]

It wouldn't have bugged me so much if it were a frozen dinner or something. But all that work...

[arcaedia.livejournal.com]

Hey, neat. Sounds like a wide approximation. Shallots are a lot sweeter than scallions. I'm glad it was edible. You can leave comments on the Spice blog about it too if you want. Then I can look back at this more easily.

[kristine-smith.livejournal.com]

It was really pretty good, but more on the tomatoe-y/rich onion-y side of the Force. No sweetness. But a very nice, not overpowering, grace note for/to a decent piece of beef.

I will post on the Spice blog later today.

[e-moon60.livejournal.com]

Sounds delicious. I discovered that if you don't have chicken broth or beef broth or butter, and you want to make packaged cornbread stuffing, you can use the pan drippings from the roast of the week before to replace both the broth and the fat that the package of cornbread stuff calls for. I'd originally planned to make real gravy of them, but hadn't by the time we got to the end of the roast, so I used about 3/4 of a cup (guesstimate) of pan drippings, the rest hot water, and the cornbread stuffing (baked under thick-cut pork chops) was delicious.

For me this is the week of too much driving: two rehearsals and two performances, all in the evenings. So I'm cooking ahead today and early tomorrow, to get ready for it all. Whoosh!

[kristine-smith.livejournal.com]

I'm glad to know about this, because I would like to try packaged stuffings. Mom's recipe was for one of the soft, high-moisture stuffings, and until I find a recipe that looks similar, I don't want to experiment and risk having to toss the results. I've had to do that once already.

[e-moon60.livejournal.com]

I routinely use packaged stuffings, both for top of the stove and baked recipes. I happen to like Pepperidge Farm brand, but use others when that's what's there. I often add more moisture (esp. for baking under pork chops) and add my own choice of additional herbs...and cut the recommended butter amount in half. This particular dinner was a large (16 oz) package of Pepperidge Farm brand cornbread stuffing mix. About 1/3 of a large white onion, chopped pretty small (but I'm not a fanatic about that), maybe a half cup to a cup of chopped celery, about a half cup more liquid than they called for (hot water plus the pan drippings). No butter or other fat than was in the pan drippings (not much) because I was out of butter. It came out a little browned on top, but moist underneath. I like moist, not dry.

I spread the dressing on the bottom of a big Pyrex baking dish (um...9x13 maybe?) and laid the pork chops on top. Into a 350 degree oven until the chops were done. This made two suppers for three people, and I had a little of the dressing for lunch.

[kristine-smith.livejournal.com]

My single experience with "Stovetop Stuffing" wasn't good. Over-seasoned bread + too much butter = sour stomach. Adding more moisture plus the pan drippings and things like celery and other chopped fresh stuff would have helped a lot. Thanks for the tips!

[e-moon60.livejournal.com]

The "Stovetop Stuffing" brand isn't my favorite...not sure why, but it does feel "heavier."

Cutting the suggested amount of fat and adding more liquid helps, and I guess I just automatically put in the same fresh things I would if I were using homemade bread and cornbread. Always onion and celery, and sometimes parsley if I have it around. For T-day, I use the storebought stuffing mixes, both herbed bread crumbs or cubes and the cornbread, in a 2:1 to 3:1 ratio, and add a lot of onion, celery, parsley, plus way more herbs than they do...cut the butter by half, usually, and make it good and moist. There are people who call moist "soggy" but I think that's a matter of personal taste.

In the years that I've been making all our bread, I usually have some loaf-ends to add to the dressing too, which makes me feel good. It's been awhile since I baked just for stuffing...but one of the best dressings I ever made was a mix of my homemade whole wheat, white, and rye breads, with homemade cornbread. But that means saving out a loaf from at least three batches, cutting the slices, drying it...and I don't see anything wrong with using storebought breadcrumbs. Laziness prevails!