morton's crab cakes

Last Christmas, A and I went to Pittsburgh to visit his family. This was back before he was in grad school, and we were fortunate enough to have 2 incomes and could afford to take his parents and brother out for a nice dinner at one of our favorite (if somewhat generic) steakhouses, Morton's. The day after was Christmas Eve, the night of his family's big seafood feast. After eating the crab cakes at Morton's, I immediately wanted to try to recreate them for the family meal. I found the recipe online, and the result tasted almost exactly like the original - or maybe better, since I was so proud to have contributed to the tradition. This year, we didn't have Morton's, but we did make a double batch of their crab cakes.

Grocery list: 1 cup fresh white bread crumbs (approximately 6 slices white bread, crusts removed), 2 garlic cloves, 1 shallot, fresh parsley, ground white pepper, prepared horseradish, dijon mustard, mayonnaise, 1 pound jumbo lump crab meat, worcestershire sauce, 2 eggs, tabasco, butter.



Start by making the bread crumbs as the base. To a large bowl, add the fresh bread crumbs, then 1 T minced garlic, 1 tsp minced shallots, 1 tsp minced fresh parsley, a pinch of salt and 1/8 tsp ground white pepper.



Next, make the mustard mayonnaise (a little of which is used in the actual crab cakes; the rest is served on the side when the crab cake is cooked). Mix 1/2 cup mayo with 4 tsp dijon mustard, 1/4 tsp worcestershire, and 1/2 tsp prepared horseradish. Stir well to combine.



Rinse the crab meat in a colander, picking through carefully with your hands to make sure there are no little pieces of shell remaining. It's very important to use jumbo lump - it costs a few dollars extra per pound, but the consistency is much better (and there is little to no shell to worry with).



Assemble the crab cakes by mixing the bread crumb mixture with the crab meat, along with 2 T of the prepared mustard mayonnaise. Also stir in 1 T finely chopped fresh parsley, 1 extra tsp of dijon mustard, 2 beaten eggs, 1/2 tsp worcestershire and 1/4 tsp tabasco.



Combine with your hands gently, then shape into 6 mounds. Allow to rest on a cookie sheet in the fridge, uncovered, for 30 minutes. According to a Tyler Florence episode I once saw, this 30 minute rest allows the crab meat to dry out a bit, so it will bake instead of steam itself (which would make for chewier crab).



Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil, then brush with melted butter. Add the crab cakes to the sheet, then bake for 5 minutes at 450 degrees. Flip the crab cakes, then cook for another 4 minutes. Serve with extra mustard mayonnaise on the side.

horseradish crusted roast beef

This isn't what I had for Christmas dinner this year, but if I wasn't busy having the world's most perfect Christmas dinner (an updated version of the classic Italian 7 Fishes dinner - instead of smelts and octopus and other dried salted versions of fish, try broiled lobster tails, crab cakes, crab legs, fried prawns... more on this later), I would have made this. Well, I did make this, but a few days before Christmas. It would make a beautiful special occasion centerpiece kind of meal. I looked at many versions online, but finally settled on this one from Food & Wine, for the horseradish crust. I made a side of extra horseradish sauce as well (just sour cream and horseradish), and it was perfect.

Grocery list: (note the original recipe is for a 6 pound roast; I only made a 3 pound roast so all the ingredients listed here are half of their original amounts) 1/4 cup horseradish, 1 T kosher salt, 1 T dijon mustard, 1 T chopped parsley, 1/2 T pepper, 1/2 T sugar, 1/2 T sherry vinegar (I used red wine vinegar), 3 pound sirloin roast, tied.



Make the paste by combining all the ingredients together (horseradish, salt, pepper, sugar, parsley, vinegar).



Set a rack over the roasting pan so your roast can cook on all sides. Cover the roast with the sauce, including the sides and bottom.



Roast for 2 hours at 375 degrees, in the lower half of the oven. The meat should register 125 degrees on a meat thermometer. Let it rest for at least 20 minutes before slicing, across the grain. Serve with extra horseradish (mixed with enough sour cream to tone it down to your liking) on the side.

steak with whiskey mustard sauce

This is absolutely amazing steak sauce. I'd say you have to try it, but I think I could get sued - it requires you to light the alcohol in the pan, and I don't want to be responsible for what happens. I have a pitiful range hood with a built-in microwave, so it's too low for this to be attempted safely again. But if you have a real range hood that sits more than 2 feet away from your stove top, you'll love making this sauce all the time.

Grocery list: 2 pound top butt steak, 2-3 shallots, 1/2 cup whiskey (or single malt scotch, which is what I used), 1 cup chicken broth, 2 T dijon mustard, 3 T butter, 1/2 tsp cider vinegar.



Let the steak sit on the counter for 20-30 minutes so it can come to room temperature; season both sides with salt and pepper. Finely chop the shallots, and measure out the liquid ingredients before you start (important - the flame will require ALL your attention later!).



Sear the steaks over medium-high heat in a fry pan, in a little olive oil, for 4-5 minutes per side. Transfer to a platter and allow to rest under a tent of aluminum foil.



In the same pan, add a little more olive oil if the pan is dry, then saute the shallots until they start to turn translucent. Now, it's time to add the alcohol. The original recipe says to pour it in, and use a long-stem match to light the liquid in the pan on fire. Well, alcohol has a magic temperature where it will burst into flames on its own, so be prepared for this to happen. Go ahead and have oven mitts on, and pour in the liquid. If it doesn't ignite on its own, use the match. It will make quite an impressive flame for a few seconds, then it'll completely die down as fast as it appeared (within 5-10 seconds).



Next, stir in the chicken broth and mustard, and cook down until it is reduced to about 1/2 cup (it will thicken to a thin syrup consistency). Remove from the heat and stir in the butter.



Slice the steak and pour the sauce over top to serve.

football food: creamy spinach artichoke dip

A and I don't really have "date night" since he's in grad school, but we do have "date football" on Sunday afternoons. If both our teams (Panthers & Steelers) are on at the same time, we bring the second TV down from the bedroom and set both up side by side. We'll make dips, chicken wings, ribs, and get some new microbrew to try. It's quite a production. This spinach dip is the most often repeated football food around my house; and if you're serving it for guests, it gives you maximum impressiveness while requiring the least amount of effort. The base is the same, but you can play around with different cheeses, different amounts of pepper/garlic, etc.

Grocery list: 10-oz package frozen chopped spinach (thawed), 1 8-oz package cream or neufchatel cheese - softened to room temperature, 1/2 cup sour cream, 1/4 cup mayo, 1.5 cups grated cheese (mozzarella, cheddar, even a little parmesan thrown in can't hurt), sriricha hot sauce, worcestershire, dijon mustard, 1 jalapeno or serrano, 1-2 garlic cloves, 1 small jar artichoke hearts, salt & pepper.



This isn't a very appetizing picture is it? Mix your softened cream cheese with the sour cream, mayo, and about 1 T worcestershire, 1-2 T sriricha hot sauce and 1 tsp dijon mustard. Stir until smooth, then fold in the grated cheese.



Drain and chop the artichokes, and mince your jalepeno or serrano pepper, and mince 1-2 cloves of garlic.



Squeeze as much liquid out of the defrosted spinach as possible, then stir it into the base. Pour into a baking dish (I use one that can go straight to the table), and bake for about 30 minutes at 350 degrees, until bubbling and starting to brown in spots. Serve with chips, pita crisps or crackers.

cheesy baked penne with cauliflower and creme fraiche

The full page photo of this dish in October's Bon Appetit sucked me in - I'm always a sucker for a new mac-and-cheese recipe. This proved to be the most complicated m&c dish I've ever attempted, but also the richest and most flavorful. The different cheeses are all pricey though, so it won't be something I make all the time. (Yes, I do realize how contradictory this is with my last post about choosing cheaper cuts of meat. There's a reason I don't work in finance...)

Grocery list: 1 head of cauliflower, 2 large heirloom tomatoes, 5 T butter, 1 bunch green onions, 2 T AP flour, 1c heavy cream, 3 c grated Comte cheese (half Fontina & half Gruyere is listed as the substitute if you can't find Comte - approx 9oz), 3/4 c grated Parmesan, 1 c creme fraiche, 1T whole grain Dijon mustard, 3.5 (10oz) penne, 1 cup breadcrumbs (I substituted panko).



Bring a large stockpot of salted water to boil. Wash and chop the cauliflower into 1 inch florets, then cook in boiling water for 5 minutes. Remove from water with slotted spoon, then drop in both whole tomatoes and boil for 1 minute.



Carefully remove them from the water and turn off the heat. Set the hot water aside though, so you can reuse it for cooking the pasta.



Blanching the tomatoes will help you peel them, as the skin should almost fall off. Chop the tomatoes. At this point you should grate the Comte, chop the green onions, and get everything set up for making the cheese sauce.



Melt 2T of butter in a large skillet over med-high heat, then cook the cauliflower for 5 minutes. Add chopped tomatoes and the chopped green onions and cook for another minute.



Season with salt and pepper and remove from heat.



Melt 2T of butter in a saucepan over med-low heat, then add flour and stir for 2 minutes. Whisk in the cream slowly.



Now, this was different than most white sauces, since the cream has such a higher fat content. I kept whisking it, but the fat started separating out and I thought the whole thing was ruined. But I turned down the heat and kept whisking and it reconstituted once I added the cheese in, but wanted to point this out in case the same thing happens.



Add 2 cups of the grated Comte, and whisk until melted. Stir in 1/2 cup grated Parmesan, then the creme fraiche and 1 T Dijon. Season with salt and pepper and set aside. Bring the large pot of water back to a boil and cook the penne for 10 minutes. Drain and immediately return to the pot. Stir in the cheese sauce and the cauliflower mixture.



Spoon half the pasta mixture into a baking dish, then sprinkle 1/2 cup Comte. Layer the rest of the pasta and the Comte on top.



The recipe calls for melting 1 T of butter and toasting the breadcrumbs at this point, but I skipped this step. I mixed the rest (1/4 cup) of the Parmesan with a cup of panko and spread across the top of the casserole.



Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes, until bubbling and golden on top.

not boring turkey again: open-face ham, cheddar & apple butter sandwiches

I have turkey sandwiches so often they've started to depress me. I know the numbers (how many calories and how much protein - so I know I'm getting what I need for an upcoming swim or whatever), but that also means I know exactly how it's going to taste. And after a while, I just dread having one. Every now and then, I'll find a new sandwich to eat for a couple days, just a bit more of a splurge, but that little investment means I can go back to my turkey again for a week or so. A vicious cycle, but at least it led me to this amazing open-face ham & cheese...

Grocery list: rustic or sourdough bread, black forest ham, extra sharp white cheddar, chives, dijon mustard, apple butter.



Drizzle slices of rustic bread with olive oil, and broil for a couple minutes on each side to toast. Spread a little dijon mustard (I prefer Roland Extra Strong), then a generous spoonful of apple butter.



Top with a few slices of black forest ham, some extra sharp white cheddar, and broil until the cheese bubbles. Slice a little pinch of fresh chives over the top, and you've got lunch.