This page features recipes that appear (or could appear!) in my books. I talk a lot about food and drink in my stories so thought I'd share some of these recipes.
Stoned Stew
From The Complete Best of Bridge Cookbook
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| Lance Thomson Photographic |
This recipe is for Matt, from With Strings Attached. He's a brewmaster who likes to create new beers and this is a great recipe for one of his brown ales. (It's actually pretty similar to the boeuf carbonnade recipe below)
3 lbs stewing beef, cut up
1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp seasoned pepper (I LOVE seasoned pepper)
1/4 oil
2 large onions, thinly sliced
1 can sliced mushrooms (I used FRESH mushrooms, sliced)
1 can beef broth (I use Campbell's Stock First)
1 bottle beer (I used a brown ale)
2 tbsp vinegar
2 tbsp sugar
2 cloves garlic minced
1 tsp thyme
3 bay leaves
2 tbsp parsley.
In plastic bag combine flour, salt and pepper. Trim beef cubes and shake in flour mixture. Heat oil in skillet and brown meat, turning often. Add sliced onions, mushrooms with liquid, beef broth, beer, vinegar, sugar, garlic, thyme and bay leaves.
Kelly's note: My pan wasn't big enough to hold everything. I like to cook a lot and have leftovers, so I browned the meat and transferred it to a large casserole dish, then sauteed the onions until soft, then the mushrooms and garlic and the rest of the ingredients, then added that all to the casserole.
Simmer, covered, adding water if necessary, for 2 hours. Add parsley. Serve over hot buttered noodles.
Kelly's note: I baked it in the oven at 350 degrees for 2 hours
Chicken with Artichokes and Lemons
In "Taming Tara" family cook Nina makes this recipe when Joe comes for dinner with Tara and her family. Since the Lockhart family are olive growers in California, it makes sense that they would use olives in many of their meals.
1 chicken cut into 8 serving pieces (I use boneless, skinless chicken breasts because that's my preference - I use 4 and cut them in half)
2 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup dry sherry
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
2 bay leaves
1 1/2 tsp dry oregano
1/4 tsp pepper
1 lemon
16 black olives
1 jar marinated artichoke hearts
2 tbps fresh parsley
Heat oil in large heavy skillet. Brown chicken, in batches if necessary, and transfer to plate.
Pour off all but 1 tbs fat from skillet. Cook onions and garlic until softened, 3-4 minutes. Pour in sherry, stirring to scrape up brown bits from pan. Add stock, bay leaves, oregano and pepper. Arrange chicken in pan in single layer.
Peel lemon, removing white pith. Slice lemon and remove seeds, then add to pan along with olives. Bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer 30 minutes. (Note if you're using boneless chicken breasts, this will be only about 15 minutes).
Nestle the artichoke hearts among chicken pieces and simmer for about 10 minutes longer or until chicken is no longer pink inside. (Again if using boneless chicken breasts, this will only be a few minutes more to heat the artichoke hearts.) Discard the bay leaves.
Using a slotted spooon, transfer chicken, lemon, artichokes and olives to a platter. Boil the remaining liquid over high heat for 3 to 5 minutes or until thickened slightly. Pour over chicken and garnish with parsley.
Makes 4 to 6 servings.
Recipe is from Canadian Living Cooking Collection
I like this served with couscous and a green vegetable.
Sexpresso Night Pork Tenderloin
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| Lance Thomson Photographic |
This recipe doesn't actually appear in my book
Sexpresso Night, but since coffee is an important ingredient, I thought it was an appropriate dish to go with the book. Don't worry - this doesn't taste like coffee, it just tastes rich and delicious and is impressive if you have guests - very sophisticated.
Sauce:
1 tbsp butter
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1 tsp minced garlic
1/4 cup bourbon (yum!)
1 cup beef stock
6 tbsp cream
1 tsp finely chopped fresh thyme
salt & pepper
Rub
4 tsp finely ground dark-roasted coffee
4 tsp finely chopped fresh thyme
2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 pork tenderloins
To make the sauce:
In a medium saucepan, melt the butter. Add the onion and cook until tender, about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent browning. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute more. Remove saucepan from the heat, carefully add the bourbon and return to heat (watch out so it doesn't catch fire!) Reduce heat to medium and add the beef stock and cream. Simmer until about 1/3 cup liquid remains, 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the thyme, season with salt and pepper to taste.
To make the rub:
In a small bowl, mix the rub ingredients with your fingers.
Bring tenderloins to room temperature. Trim all fat. Lightly brush all over with oil and spread the rub evenly over, pressing the spices into the meat. Grill until barely pink in the center. Remove from grill and let rest about five minutes. Slice diagonally. Bring the sauce to a simmer and spoon over the sliced pork. Garnish with sprigs of fresh thyme.
Steak Rub
Here's a rub for grilling or barbecuing steak (whatever you call it where you live!) that appears in my book
Lost and Found when Krissa and Nate are grilling up steaks and drinking wine:
1 1/2 tsp whole black peppercorns
1 1/2 tsp mustard seed
1 1/2 tsp paprika
1 1/2 tsp light brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp sea salt
1 1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 1/2 tsp onion powder
1 1/2 tsp ground coffee
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
Grind this all up in a spice grinder (I use an extra coffee grinder for grinding spices). Brush the steaks with oil and the press the rub into the meat. It makes lots, but it keeps. Also you can use it on pork, too, I've done pork tenderoin and pork chops with it.
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The first recipe I'm posting is used in my book
Dream Girl. Zach is a brewmaster, the creative force behind Surf Coast Brewery. He likes to cook and he often uses beer in recipes. This is one he makes for Ashlyn: Beef Carbonnade. The recipe comes from Canadian Living Magazine. This makes 8 servings but you can adjust up or down. Zach used a Brown Ale in the book but you can use other beer as well. This is good with potatoes, but I also like it with noodles.
Beef Carbonnade
Ingredients:
3 lbs (1.5 kg) chuck or round steak
2 tbsp (25 mL) flour
2 tsp (10 mL) each paprika and salt
1 tsp (5 mL) pepper
1/4 cup (50 mL) butter or oil
6 large onions, sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
4 carrots, cut_into large chunks
1/2 cup (125 mL) each chopped celery leaves and fresh parsley
1/2 tsp (2 mL) dried thyme
1 bay_leaf
1/3 cup (75 mL) flour
2-1/2 cups (625 mL) beer 3 tbsp (50 mL) packed brown_sugar
2 tbsp (25 mL) cider_vinegar
1/3 cup (75 mL) finely chopped fresh parsley
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Preparation:
Trim excess fat from meat; cut into 1-inch (2.5 cm) cubes. In large bowl, combine 2 tablespoons (25 mL) flour, paprika, salt and pepper; add meat and toss to coat.
In large heavy saucepan or Dutch oven, melt half of the butter over medium-high heat; brown beef, in batches and adding more butter if necessary. Remove meat and set aside.
Add remaining butter to pan; cook onions and garlic; stirring and adding 1 tablespoon (15 mL) water if pan is browning too much, for 5 minutes or until softened. Stir in carrots, celery leaves, parsley, thyme and bay leaf; stir in 1/3 cup (75 mL) flour.
Return meat to pan; pour in beer. Add sugar; bring to boil. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer for 1-1/2 hours. Uncover and simmer for 1-1/2 hours longer or until meat is tender and sauce is slightly thickened.
Stir in vinegar; simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Remove bay leaf. (Make-ahead: Stew can be cooled, covered and refrigerated for up to 3 days; reheat over medium-low heat for about 45 minutes.)
Garnish with finely chopped parsley.
