Sirloin Steak Italian Style

Think you can’t go low carb with Italian?  Think Italian means only pizza, breadsticks and pasta?  Well, think harder!  Italian cuisine is robustly expansive.  Just remember Italy has a long coastline.  Fish is prominent and I’m not talking Captain D’s.

Then there’s the sumptuous meats, from Parma ham to another thousand varieties of cured meats and salamis.  Salami itself is another wonder world of flavors and none of them taste like the packaged, un-definable, nitrate saturated stuff labeled salami in most American supermarkets.

Today, I’ll take you past even the Italian meats you know and let you in on a new favorite of mine, Sirloin Italian Style.

This recipe isn’t original, but then few recipes are.  The basis came from a magazine, Tastes of Italia.  Nice magazine that’s mostly about Italians who immigrated to California a few generations ago, but haven’t forgotten how to cook.

Hard to call this a recipe, which is essentially steak and wine, with chopped this and that, all of it your choice.  But, that’s the essence of cooking, right?  Machines can easily be programmed to follow recipes.  How do you think canned goods and even bread can be shipped, or baked around the country, and always taste the same?

As a rule, I stay away from prepared foods, but I have to admit I don’t make my own donuts.

Home cooking seldom tastes the same way twice, because it’s seldom prepared the same way twice, even when you use the same ingredients.  Why?  The meats and vegetables are never exactly the same.

Check this simple example: Every time I squeeze fresh orange juice, there’s always a difference in flavor.  Maybe because I used different varieties, but most likely it’s because every orange is different, even if they all come from the same tree.  Then why do commercial orange juices always taste exactly the same?

Commercial orange juice is a combination of thousands of oranges, often stored in huge vats for up to a year.  All the air is removed from the vats to prolong the life of the juice.  Lack of air also makes the juice tasteless, or so I’m told.  Companies then use specific flavor enhancers to re-flavor the juice and therefore it all tastes the same, every time.

Ok, let’s get back to Italian steak and wine.  This recipe, as simple as it is, needs some forethought.  Follow along and you’ll see why.  One of the things I love about this recipe is that with a little planning, I’m never working very long at any one time.

Sirloin Steak Italian Style

About 2 Pounds (1 kilo) of sirloin.  I used two good-sized steaks.

1 bottle of dry red wine

Diced vegetables of your choice.  I used half a thin sliced onion, four cloves of garlic chopped, two stalks of celery diced, and two good-sized sprigs of fresh rosemary.  Surely you have a rosemary bush growing in your garden or flowerbed.  No?  You heathen!

Some people say to chop the rosemary.  No need.  The leaves come off in the cooking and the stalks are easily removed before serving.

How to:

Salt and pepper the steaks.  Put them in a gallon sized, sealable bag.  Add the vegetables and the full bottle of wine.

Put the bag in the refrig and leave it overnight.  Turn the bag every now and then.

The next day, preheat your oven to 350ºF (180ºC) 

Remove the steaks, brushing off the marinade, add a little olive oil to a large frying pan and quickly sear them on both sides.  Leave the steaks in the pan and pour in the bag of marinade.  Bring to a boil.  Cover and put the pan in the 350ºF (180ºC) oven for two hours.

I served mine with broccoli, steamed, then pan roasted.  Add Mirin (Japanese sweet cooking wine) and soy sauce as the broccoli is roasting.

Ok.  Time to refresh your hungry guests’ goblets and get down to some Sirloin Italian Style!

Just be prepared for at least one guest to remark:  “Jeez, I thought Italian meant pasta.”  Those folks clearly have no imagination.  Don’t invite them back and turn down all their invitations unless you want to dine on cans of Chef Boy-r-something, or Coast-to-Coast Pizza.

Why would you want to punish your taste buds like that, when I'm offering you Sirloin Steak Italian Style?

Ham and Cauliflower Soup: Simply Delicious

Where I live, it’s still sturdy soup weather.  Mornings and evening send a chill to the bone.  I sport scarves and gloves, along with designer sweaters and Gucci winter jackets.  Baloney, I’m not living in Paris!

But, I do wear all those accruements, minus the labels. Ok, go ahead and call me a whimp.  I’ve been called worse by red-faced men wearing uniforms and carrying weapons.  Fortunately, the fine wasn’t much and now I always remember my driver’s license.

But, what I really want to introduce you to is the result of playtime in my kitchen, with limited ingredients.  Turns out you can do a lot with a little and in this case it turned out more than a little delicious.  Served this soup to a captive audience, but I did untie one hand so she could use a spoon.  ONLY KIDDING!  I untied both hands.  STILL KIDDING! 

This is another of my fave low carb recipes.  Too often low carb translates to very high fat.  Not in this case.  Lean protein, a dash of heavy cream, a bit of butter, and the rest is vegetables.

Here it is: Simply Delicious Ham and Cauliflower Soup

1 Pound sliced lean ham, roughly cut into 1/2 inch squares, more or less

½ Pound freshly sliced mushrooms

1 Stalk of Celery, diced

12 Oz frozen cauliflower

6 Cups of organic chicken broth

Several drops of Liquid Smoke flavoring (Careful!  This stuff is powerful.)

¼ Cup heavy cream (optional, but I had it handy)

Olive Oil

Butter

Salt and pepper

Several sprigs of fresh thyme (I used 6 small sprigs), or 1/4 teaspoon ground thyme

Melt a pat or two of butter in a large saucepan, add a dash or two of olive oil, and sauté the diced celery and sliced mushrooms until they are soft.  Add a teaspoon of salt.

Add the chicken broth, sprigs of thyme, and Liquid Smoke.  Bring to a boil.  Add the cauliflower and half the ham.

Now comes the fun part.  When the cauliflower is cooked, pick out and discard the sticks of fresh thyme, then use an immersible blender to blend everything into a thick liquid.  Turns out I don’t have an immersible blender, so I put a couple of cups at a time in a countertop blender and poured the results in a bowl, until everything was liquid. 

There is a drawback to putting scalding soup in a countertop blender.  As I found out.  Stick to blending one or two cups (at most) at a time.  Safer and less scalding.

Put the liquid soup back in the large saucepan, stir in the cream and the rest of the ham.  Add a dash of freshly ground pepper, if you want.

Voilá!  Pour the wine, serve your guests.  Another warning.  You’ll dream about this ham and cauliflower soup and wake up wanting it for breakfast.  So, make enough!

Heavenly Sausage and Eggs Casserole

Heavenly Sausage and Eggs (another sensational low carb recipe)

No, you have not had sausage and eggs like this supremely delicious offering.  Not at Denny’s, not at McWhat’s it, not in Aunt Julie’s Emporium for Holistic Eating and Meditation, although, you will be thinking about this meal for a long time. 

The secret is an unusual ingredient, not in the same sense as pickled Madagascar squirrel, or Chinese wrinkled yeast, just something not normally found in culinary association with sausage and eggs.

This is a dish you’ll want to serve for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.  At lunch and dinner, I like to add a cucumber salad.  And afterwards a medicinal brandy or two.

Heavenly Sausage and Eggs

Pre-heat oven to 350ºF (180ºC)

Grease an 8 inch X 8 inch (20 cm X 20 cm) baking pan (glass or metal)

¾ Pound (300 g) loose sausage (I make my own. See below)

6 slices sandwich size Swiss cheese

1 Ball of fresh mozzarella di bufala cheese (about 1/3 pound, 125 g)

5 Eggs

1 Cup unsweetened coconut milk (not coconut juice or cream) Be sure to mix this well before using. Often the top of the can is thick and the bottom watery.

1 Green bell pepper, diced

1 Yellow bell pepper, diced

½ Red onion, diced

Salt and pepper

1 Level teaspoon dried marjoram

1 Level teaspoon dried Herbes de Provence

½ Teaspoon ground sage

Red pepper flakes

Ready to cook?

If you’re not using a commercial sausage:  Put ¾ pound ground pork, or beef, or a mixture in a bowl.  Add salt, pepper, and the dried herbs.  Toss in 1/2 teaspoon of red pepper flakes and mix well. Not trying to make this HOT, just enough red pepper to put a slight tingle on the tongue. 

For either commercial or homemade versions, add a little oil to a frying pan and fry the sausage, breaking it up with a spatula as much as possible. When it has lost it’s color and beginning to brown, take it off the heat and set it aside. You want the sausage cooked, but still juicy.

In another frying pan, add a tablespoon of oil and fry the onion and bell peppers, only until wilted.  Set aside. (All you’re trying to do is cook the onion and peppers a little bit and also remove much of the water.)

Crack the eggs into a mixing bowl and add the coconut milk. Toss in salt and pepper to taste, along with just a pinch or two of red pepper flakes.  Mix well.

Putting It All Together in Three Layers:

Put only enough of the egg mixture in the baking pan to cover the bottom.  Sprinkle in 1/3 of the cooked sausage and peppers/onion mix.  Add more of the egg mixture, then more sausage and peppers/onions.  Lay the Swiss cheese slices to cover.  Add the remaining egg mixture.  Put the last of the sausage and peppers/onions on top.

Rip up the ball of mozzarella and scattered it evenly over the top.

Bake for approximately 35-40 minutes, or until the center is firm and the top is beginning to brown. Hint:  just give the pan a little shake and you'll know if the center is firm.

Let the dish rest about ten minutes before serving.

Serve with Pinot Grigio, you wild man!  Even at breakfast?  Damn straight!

Curried Cabbage Fit for a Maharaja

Deliver your first question, my beautiful, but skeptical friend.  “What is a Maha…watchamicallit?”  Easily answered. A Maharaja is the Sanskrit word for great ruler.  The female version is Maharani.

“So what is Sanskrit?”  Wow, this hole gets deeper and deeper.  It’s like I came to the well to fetch a pail of water and now I have to dig another well!

Sanskrit is the liturgical language of Hinduism.  “What does liturgical mean?”

Will this never end? Can’t you just concentrate on being beautiful and let it go at that?  Liturgical language is a holy language, usually ancient, used in religious services or ceremonies, like Latin in a Roman Catholic Mass, or old Hebrew and Aramaic in Jewish services.

You finished?  Can I get on with one of the most simple and delicious one-dish meals you’ll ever be fortunate enough to have on your plate? 

Curried Cabbage

2 Pounds of green cabbage (about ½ a normal sized cabbage), cored and thinly sliced

1 ½  Pounds of minced pork

1 Red onion, finely chopped

2 Tablespoons (be generous) of mild, red curry paste

1 Tablespoon wine vinegar

1 Heaping teaspoon each of onion and garlic powder

Butter, salt, pepper, vegetable oil

Mayonnaise, used to garnish

A handful of cilantro leaves, chopped and used in the pork and for garnish.

Putting it all together:

Add a little oil to a frying pan. Cook and season the minced pork and add a few pinches of chopped cilantro leaves.  When the pork has lost its color, put it aside.

In the same frying pan you used for the pork, add some butter and cook the diced red onion until it wilts.  Put it aside.

Put 3 pats of butter in a large skillet (medium heat).  When the butter melts, add a 1/3 cup of water and pile in the cabbage.  Toss the cabbage from time to time to keep the cooking even and to keep the wilted cabbage green.

When the cabbage has cooked down, add the onion and curry paste, along with the other seasonings, including the vinegar.  Stir well and make sure the curry paste is well distributed.

Add the cooked pork to the cabbage and stir well.

Remove the pan from the heat.  Put servings of cabbage in shallow bowls, and garnish with a dollop of mayo and a sprinkle of chopped cilantro.

Don’t like cabbage?  This meal will either force you to change your mind, or force you to admit you’re not too thrilled about sex either.

Warning:  Even though this recipe is low carb, you’ll find yourself scurrying to the refrig in the middle of the night, forgetting about a breakfast of bacon and eggs, and signing up for conversational Sanskrit.

This dish is an डेलिचिओउस्  (pronounced Ananda), meaning divine joy! Yeah, my cute little Maharani!