Beef Wellington

Ever watch Hell's Kitchen? I must say I always wonder what Chef Ramsey would say about my cooking, and curious if I could execute his Beef Wellington recipe to his standards. This is a lot of work, and lot of fun to make. For the past 7 years this has been our family Christmas Eve tradition. Such a nice splurge on ourselves. Enjoy this amazing dish anytime of year…you deserve it. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
1 lb beef tenderloin fillet
salt and pepper
olive oil
1 lb sliced baby bella mushrooms
4 thin slices Parma ham
2 TBS yellow english mustard (this year I couldn't find it so I used Webers mustard…English is a hot yellow mustard)
7 oz puff pastry (I used the Pillsbury pastry sheets)
2 egg yolks, beaten

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400

2. Heat a TBS or 2 of oil in a large searing pan on high heat. Season the fillet generously with salt and pepper, use more then you think you need…this creates a nice crust. Sear the filet in the pan on ALL sides. Do not remove the filet from the heat until it has had a chance to sear that side…approximately 2-3 minutes per side. Remove from pan and let cool. Once cool brush all sides with mustard.

3. Place the mushrooms in a food processor and puree. Heat a large sauté pan on medium high heat. Scrape the mushrooms into the pan and let them cook down, allowing the mushrooms to release their moisture. When there is no more liquid set mushrooms aside so they can cool.

4. Roll out a large piece of saran wrap. Lay the parma ham on the plastic wrap so they overlap. Spread the mushroom mixture over the ham. Place the beef fillet in the middle and roll the mushroom and ham over the fillet using the plastic wrap so you can make it tight. Wrap the fillet into a tight barrel shape, twist the ends of the plastic wrap and secure. Refrigerate for 20 minutes.

5. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the puffed pastry to a sheet size that will wrap around the entire fillet. Unwrap the fillet from the plastic and place in the middle of the pastry. Brush the edges of the pastry with egg. Covering all the pastry, except where the fillet is. Fold the pastry over the fillet, cutting of any extra pastry. Try to minimize overlap, and press the dough seams together so the fillet is secure inside. Place on a small plate seam side down and brush with egg. Chill for 5-10 minutes.

6. Place pastry wrapped fillet on a baking pan. Brush the exposed surface again with remaining egg. Score the top of the pastry with a sharp knife, not going all the way through the pastry. Sprinkle the top with coarse salt. Bake for 25-35 minutes. The pastry should be nice and golden when done. This fillet will come out a nice medium rare.

7. Slice and serve. Enjoy.

Creamy Corn Risotto

Christmas Eve dinner is one of my favorite dinners to cook. Growing up Italian I always had seafood on Christmas Eve, a ton of seafood. However, being married to a man who developed an allergy to shellfish makes that difficult. So we decided to make up our own tradition, and every Christmas Eve we  make Beef Wellington (recipe in another post) and risotto. Generally we make a mushroom risotto, but this year we came across this recipe in my Cooking Light magazine and had to try it. We are so happy we did…this is so delicious! Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 large red bell pepper

3 cans of corn, drained

1 3/4 cups 1% milk

2 TBS butter, divided

2 1/2 cups unsalted chicken stock

1/2 cup chopped onion

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 cup uncooked Arborio rice

salt and pepper to taste

1/4 dry white wine (I used a Sauvignon Blanc)

1/2 cup sliced green onions

Directions:

1. Pre-heat broiler to high.

2. Cut bell pepper in half lengthwise, discard seeds and membranes. Place pepper halves skin side up on a foil lined baking sheet and flatten with your hand. Broil 8 minutes or until blackened. Wrap peppers in foil and let stand for at least 5 minutes. Then peel off skin and chop.

3. Combine corn, milk and 1 TBS butter in a saucepan. Bring to a simmer; cook 10 minutes. Stir in stock; keep warm over low heat.

4. Melt remaining 1 TBS butter in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic to pan; sauté 3 minutes. Stir in rice, salt and pepper; sauté 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Stir in wine; cook 30 seconds or until liquid is almost evaporated. Scrape up any brown bits. Reduce heat to medium. Stir in 1.5 cups corn mixture; cook 3 minutes or until liquid is almost absorbed, stirring constantly. Add remaining corn mixture 1 cup at a time, stirring frequently and make sure liquid is absorbed before adding next cup. This takes about 20 minutes.

5. Once all the corn mixture is added, remove from heat and stir in red bell pepper and green onions. Serve immediately and enjoy!

Potato, Chorizo & Green Chile Burritos

My love for Mexican foods strikes again. I just can't get over the flavors and aromas that come from it; it makes me happy. Burritos are always a hit with my kids, NO MATTER WHAT IS IN THEM, because I roll them tighter and smaller like a taquito and they love them. This was my first time cooking with or eating chorizo and I loved it. The recipe calls for fresh chorizo, but I could only find cooked chorizo at my local store. So I placed the links in the food processor before I started and voila, I had crumbled, cooked chorizo. Keep that in mind…you can cook with either one, but the recipe below reflects how I cooked it. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
10 oz red potato, cut into 1/2" cubes
1 cup chopped tomato
2 TBS diced white onion
1 TBS fresh cilantro, chopped
lime juice from 1/4 lime
6 oz chorizo, chopped or crumbled
1 cup chopped onion
1 poblano pepper, seeded and diced
2 tsp olive oil
salt to taste
4 tortillas (I used a tomato basil tortilla)
queso fresco, crumbled

Directions:
1. Place the red potatoes in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil. Remove pan from heat, and let stand for 5 minutes. Drain and pat dry.

2. Combine 1 cup tomato, 2 TBS onion, cilantro and lime juice in a small bowl. Toss and refrigerate while you continue.

3. Heat oil in a large skillet. Add chorizo, 1 cup onion and poblano pepper to pan and cook 5 minutes or until onion is tender. Stir frequently.

4. Add potatoes to the pan and cook for an additional 8 minutes or until potatoes are browned, add salt.

5. Warm the tortillas, and divide chorizo/potato mixture among them. Top with the salsa you made earlier and the crumbled cheese. Roll each burrito in a jelly-roll fashion.

6. Heat a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat and place burritos seam side down in the pan. Brown on each side and serve.

We enjoyed this with a side of black beans!

Grandmother's Pierogies

My husband is Polish, Irish and Hungarian, and he was lucky enough to marry me, who is 100% Italian! The blending of cultures, food, and traditions has been so much fun, and is even more fun now that our children are learning AND remembering things we did as children. This year for Christmas we made Grandmother's homemade pierogies for our Christmas day dinner, and they came out amazing. The kids helped water and crimp the edges just like my husband did when he was a kid, and I did making raviolis as a matter of fact.

Bring a little Polish into your home tonight. You won't regret it. Smacznego!

Ingredients:
Dough:
6 cups of flour
1 tsp salt
1 cup sour cream
1 stick melted butter
3 whole eggs, beaten slightly
1/2 cup milk

Filling:
2 lbs farmers cheese
1 egg
1 egg yolk
1/4 tsp salt
3 tsp sugar (more or less depending on how sweet you want them)
3-4 bunches of scallions, diced

Directions:
Dough:
1. Sift the 6 cups of flour and then measure out 6 cups again, you will not use the remaining flour. Sift those 6 cups again with the salt.

2. In another bowl mix the sour cream, butter, eggs and milk.

3. Add wet ingredients to dry and mix with a fork until it comes together to make dough (I also use my hands). Cut dough into 4 equal parts, wrap in saran wrap and place in refrigerator to chill (I chilled overnight).

Filling:
1. Place all ingredients in a bowl and mix well (I also made this and covered and chilled overnight).

Assembly:
1. Roll dough out to desired thickness, we prefer as thin as we can go without the dough ripping. Use a wide mouthed cup and cur out a circle. Place a dollop of filling on one side. Wet edges, fold over and press edges closed, we used a fork.

2. Place pierogies in boiling water and cook until they float. Then move to a sauté pan and cook in butter and diced onions until slightly browned. Try not to eat to many in one sitting!

Note: This was my first time making these, and I used all the cheese and only 3/4 of the dough and it made 44 pierogies. We like them stuffed with a lot of cheese. So if you need more, increase the filling recipe but keep the dough the same and you could probably get another 15 or so pierogies.  

Easy Italian Chops

The crock pot has become very necessary since I started juggling more activities for the kids and myself. Having dinner cook all day, make the house smell cozy and yummy and dinner ready when it needs to be is priceless. Minimal ingredients makes this recipe a must cook again, and the kids ate it up. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
16 oz Balsamic vinaigrette salad dressing (I used Paul Newman's)
1.5 pound pork tenderloin (cut into 4 equal chops)
baby carrots (enough to feed four)
1/2 sweet onion, sliced

Directions: 
1. Place carrots and onions in crock pot. Lay chops on top and pour dressing over the top.

2. Cover. Cook on high for 6-8 hours (I only cooked for 6 hours).