Rib Eye Steak

I'm tired of trying new recipes that have like 12 servings and the results being...meh. Especially when I look through it and think 'man, this doesn't really sound right' but I follow the recipe anyway because what the heck do I know. 

And I don't know much, but more than before like in one of the first posts when I was only using the Good Eats show and I bought round steak instead of rib eye. Whoops!

So I'm going through some of my old posts to plan meals for us that we liked before and to delete the stuff that we won't make again. I want to test to make sure stuff freezes well because some days reheating instead of cooking feels so good.

What I'm trying to say is, look out for some re-posts. I finally atoned from the round steak debacle and it was heavenly. 

Pan Seared Rib Eye Steak

Adapted from Good Eats

Serves 2 with leftovers

• 1 boneless rib eye steak 1 1/2 inches thick
• Grapeseed oil to coat
• kosher salt and ground black pepper

Place a cast-iron skillet in the oven and crank the heat to 450F.  Take the steak out of the fridge to start bringing it to room temperature.

When the oven reaches temperature, remove the skillet and place on the stove with the heat set to high for 5 minutes.  Coat the steak with oil and sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper.

Place the steak on the skillet and let it cook for 30 seconds (don't move it).  Flip with tongs and let it cook for 30 more seconds.  Then put the skillet (and steak) back into the oven.  Bake for 3 minutes, flip and bake for another 3 (2 minutes on each side for a rarer steak). 

Remove the steak to a cutting board and cover loosely with foil for 5 minutes. Slice against the grain or serve whole.

Notes: I used 450F while Alton used 500F. There was enough smoke pouring out of my oven that if we had a working fire alarm downstairs it would have broke from smoke damage. If I had the oven at 500F I'm sure my upstairs fire alarm would go off.

Serve with: 

Roast Sweet Potatoes - I used this recipe but didn't have any apples on hand

Blue Cheese Salad

• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• salt and pepper
• spinach
• blue cheese
• red onion (next time)
• walnuts
• blue berries

Whisk the vinegar, oil, salt and pepper together.  Toss with the remaining ingredients in a salad bowl.

Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad

Best served with white wine on a new porch while the baby is sleeping. We had no wine, a very awake baby, and a crappy old porch and it was still good!


Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad
Adapted from Gimme Some Oven

• 1 pound dry farfalle pasta
• 1 pound cooked chicken breasts, diced
• 1 small head of Romaine lettuce, roughly chopped
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes
• 1 cup croutons, I cheated and used store bought
• 1 batch of Greek Yogurt Caesar Dressing (see below)
• 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan
• NEXT TIME: 1/4 cup toasted pine nuts

Cook pasta in salted water according to package instructions.  Drain the pasta with a colander and rinse with cold water.  Add pasta to a large salad bowl.

Add remaining ingredients and toss until combined. Serve immediately. 

Greek Yogurt Caesar Dressing

• 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 3-4 tablespoons milk
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 teaspoons anchovy paste
• 2 teaspoons worestershire sauce
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• pinch of pepper
• 2-4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Whisk together all ingredients except for the lemon juice.  Whisk in the lemon juice one tablespoon at a time until the balance taste right. Serve immediately or refrigerate for 3 days.

Breakfast Pizza, anyone?

My absolute favorite thing on a groggy Saturday is throwing a fried egg on top of leftovers. Well, we didn't have any leftovers.  The good news is this is the best breakfast ever. The bad news is your day can get nothing but worse from here. 

Breakfast Pizza

Adapted from Smitten Kitchen

• one pizza dough thawed since last night 
• 6 strips bacon
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan
• 2 cups grated mozzarella
• 6 large eggs
• pepper, freshly ground obvi
• 2 tablespoons flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons chives, thinly sliced
• 2 scallions, thinly sliced
• 1 shallot, finely chopped
• cornstarch

The night before thaw your pizza dough or make a pizza dough.  As soon as you wake up the only goal is to bring that dough to room temperature. That means dough out of the fridge before you put your contacts in or before you get the crying baby. Priorities.

30 minutes before you want to bake- put a pizza stone or a baking pan in the oven and preheat to 500 degrees F. If you aren't worried the smoke detector will go off its because your oven isn't hot enough or you have disabled that thing years ago.

Meanwhile: prepare everything else. Roll out the dough on a floured countertop, fry the bacon and chop it up, grate the cheeses, and chop the herbs.

When everything is ready pull out the pizza stone and place on the countertop (probably on pot holders). Sprinkle cornstarch on the stone or pan and then the place the rolled out dough on top. Top the dough with the Parm, Mozzarella, and bacon. Crack the eggs over the cheese.

Bake for 8-10 minutes rotating the pizza halfway through.  Before removing make sure the egg whites are set, and crust is golden.  Scoot it off the stone to a cutting board.  Sprinkle all of the onions and herbs on top. Cool until the cheese is set (like 2 minutes) and serve asap.

Naan Naan Naan Naan

Homemade breads are the most rewarding, even if they are the messiest. Oh Lord this was good. I even froze a couple and they are just as good out of the freezer with a quick trip through the toaster oven.

Please, eat with the Greek Pork Patties. They are the perfect bread to sop up the leftover grease in the skillet.

Homemade Naan

Adapted from Gimme Some Oven

Makes 8

• 1 cup warm water
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 2 1/4 teaspoons dry active yeast
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1/4 cup Greek yogurt
• 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup butter
• 3 cloves garlic, minced

In a bowl for a stand mixer, let the honey dissolve in the water, sprinkle the yeast on top and give it a stir.  Let sit for 5 minutes until yeast is foamy.

With the dough hook attachment, turn the mixer on low and add egg, baking powder, salt, Greek yogurt and lastly flour.  Increase speed to medium low for 3 minutes until dough is smooth and a little sticky. 

Remove dough, shape into a ball and then put it back in the bowl. Cover it with a towel and let sit in a warm location for an hour. Dough should double in size. 

Meanwhile heat the butter in a small pot and once melted at the garlic. Cook for a minute or two then remove from heat and set aside.

Once the dough has doubled move to a floured surface and cut into 8 even pieces.  Roll each piece into a ball then with a rolling pin roll out into a large oval about 1/4 inch thick. Brush both sides with butter.

Heat a large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add a piece of rolled-out dough, cook for a minute, flip and cook for another minute. It should be a golden brown with some darker brown circles. Adjust heat accordingly and scrape down the pan for any left-behind garlic bits between batches.  Move finished naan on a plate covered with a towel.

Thin Crust Pizza Dough: 2 hours 30 minutes

I still need to test out the ball of pizza dough that we froze (update: it holds up in the freezer!!) but this is my new go-to thin crust dough and if the freezer ball works out it will be a good day indeed. We paired with our homemade pizza sauce and the hamburger tomato pizza toppings.

Thin Crust Pizza Dough
2 hours 30 minutes
Adapted from Dinner: A Love Story
Makes 2 pizza crusts

• 3 3/4 cups flour
• 2 1/2 teaspoon instant yeast
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 teaspoon sugar
• 1 1/3 cup room temperature water
• cornmeal for dusting

In a medium bowl stir all the ingredients up to water together.  Add the water and mix well with a spatula or your hands for 30 seconds. The dough should be stiff, not wet.  Cover the bowl and let sit 2 hours.

Divide the dough in half and shape each into balls (can be frozen at this point).

Put a pizza stone in the oven and preheat to 500F. Roll out one of the balls. When the oven is preheated, take out the hot pizza stone and dust with cornmeal. Place the rolled out dough on the stone then make the pizza.

Cook at 500F for 15 minutes.

Sheet Pan Shrimp Boil

A sheet pan (and one pot...and one bowl) dinner. Of course no pictures, but we both agreed this was better than a typical shrimp boil. Something about that extra char from the oven.

Sheet Pan Shrimp Boil
Serves 4
Adapted from Damn Delicious

• 1 pound baby dutch yellow potatoes (I couldn't find baby so just cut yellow potatoes in chunks)
• 3 corn on the cob, cut into sections - I used frozen and it was great
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon cajun season
• 1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 12 ounce package of smoked andouille sausage, thinly sliced
• 1 lemon
• fresh parsley leaves, chopped for garnish

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F and coat a baking sheet with nonstick spray.

Boil a large pot of salted water.  Cook potatoes for about 10-13 minutes until just tender.  Add corn in the last 5 of those minutes.  Drain

Meanwhile in a small bowl combine butter, garlic, and Cajun seasoning.

Place potatoes, corn, shrimp, and sausage on the baking sheet and toss with the butter seasoning.

Bake for 12-15 minutes until shrimp are pink and corn is tender.

Serve with lemon wedges and parsley.

Mac n Cheese

The quest for the best mac n cheese still continues.  There isn't such a thing as bad mac n cheese, I just haven't found one that hits the spot.  This one was pretty dang close.

Stove Top Mac n Cheese
From Serious Eats

• 1 part elbow macaroni
• salt
• 1 part evaporated milk (usually sold in 5 oz or 12 oz cans)
• 1 part grated cheddar cheese (I used strong, next time I'll go medium)

Place macaroni in a pot with just enough cold water to cover it (this is important, the less water the better). Add a pinch of salt and bring to a boil over high heat.  Since there isn't much water you need to stir frequently. Cook until most of the water is gone and the macaroni is almost done. About 6 minutes.

Add evaporated milk and bring to a boil. Add cheese and reduce heat to low.  Stir continuously until cheese is completely melted and turns into a creamy sauce (about 2 minutes). Season with more salt and serve.