Sirloin Steak Bites with Mushroom Sauce

I wanted to cook a special meal for our 30th anniversary (we were going out to celebrate later in the week), so I went looking for a good steak recipe. The following is adapted from three different recipes I found on the internet. Everyone loved it!

Two large, thick sirloin steaks (about 4 pounds)

SIRLOIN STEAK BITES

Trim off the large pieces of fat. Cut the meat into 1-inch pieces and place in a large bowl. Sprinkle generously with sea salt, freshly ground pepper and any herbs of your choice that you would like to add (I used rosemary-garlic seasoning). Toss everything together really well and set aside.

Heat a large cast-iron skillet over medium high heat. Add 1/2 stick butter (real butter, of course) and allow to melt and brown slightly.

Add meat in a single layer and cook for 45 seconds. Flip and cook for 30 more. Don't stir until after the second 30 seconds. Stir it gently for about 20 more seconds. Remove to a serving platter and cover with foil.

Add more butter (a Tbsp at a time should do) and repeat the process until all the meat is cooked.  Pour the remaining butter over the meat, and serve with the mushroom sauce (see below).


MUSHROOM SAUCE

1 stick butter (1/2 cup)
1 pound baby portobello mushrooms, sliced
3 large cloves garlic, minced
3 green onions, sliced (white and green parts)

Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add  vegetables and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes. Add:

1-1/2 cups red wine of your choice (I used Merlot)

Simmer to reduce the liquid by about half - about 15 minutes, on medium low.

Serve with steak bites.

Country Pork Rib Stew

I'm not good at making meal plans, in spite of my best effort. Many days I pull something out of the freezer and hope for the best - I have no idea what to do with it and half the time I don't know for sure until it's done! Sometimes the result is good, and sometimes it's not. Tonight, the result was amazing. We just finished dinner, and the kids have shooed me into the computer room to type out what I did. They want me to make it again!

When I create, I don't measure, so it's really difficult to type it out. I'll try to guess, but if anyone else happens on this and wants to try it, adapt it for your own. Those of you who need exact recipes - I'm sorry! 

Country Pork Rib Stew

1 onion, sliced

1/2 green pepper, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 Tbsp olive oil

Saute the vegetables in a dutch oven on medium high heat until soft. Add :

2 lbs. boneless country pork ribs, cut into stew sized pieces

1 tsp salt

1 tsp garlic and herb seasoning

Stir and cook on medium high until lightly browned.. Add:

1 cup chicken broth

1/2 cup V-8 juice

1/4 cup sherry wine

1 tomato, diced (canned would be fine too)

Bring to a boil and reduce heat. Simmer, covered, for 3 hours, stirring occasionally.  About 30 minutes before dinner time, remove cover and raise the heat slightly. Mix 2 Tbsp flour with 1/2 cup water until very smooth. Stir slowly into stew and mix well. Simmer, uncovered, for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Taste and adjust seasonings as needed.

Just before serving, I added a small can of green beans and a small can of mixed peas and carrots, just to stretch it out a little. It was a good fit!

Serve over rice or mashed potatoes.

The sauce was SO delicious, the kids and I (we're all soup lovers) ate it in a bowl, over rice, like soup! 

** Feel free to add whatever vegetables you like. I wish I'd added some celery and potatoes or turnips.

** I think this would also be great for the crock pot.

These quantities served 8 people, but we all ended up wanting more. I'm going to double it next time.

Raising Cane's Dipping Sauce clone

Tastes like the real thing! Be sure to make a few hours in advance - it's even better the next day. You should probably also make extra, because it's a crowd favorite! I serve this with chicken tenders from the grocery deli.

I didn't create this, but didn't write down where I got it. When I tried to find the source, I found that it's all over the internet with no credit given. If I find out where it came from, I'll post.

1 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup ketchup
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon black pepper (fresh ground if possible!)

Instructions

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and whisk until well blended. Chill for several hours before serving - until the next day is even better. Keeps for 2 weeks tightly covered in the fridge.

King Ranch Chicken

This is our version. We call it Rotel Chicken, but if you Google that it's a completely different thing. I started with the recipe off the Rotel site and tweaked it.

Preparation: Preheat oven to 325. Spray a 13x9 pan with cooking spray.

Ingredients:

1/2 stick butter
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
1/2 cup chopped yellow onion
1 can (10-3/4 oz) condensed cream of chicken soup
1 can (10-3/4 oz) condensed cream of mushroom soup
2 cans (10 oz) Rotel tomatoes, undrained
1 can (7 oz) chopped green chilies, undrained
1 can (10 oz) water or chicken broth, use to rinse out the other cans
4 cups chopped cooked chicken breast
12 corn or flour tortillas (6 inch), torn into bite-size pieces
2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese

DIRECTIONS:

Melt butter in large saucepan over medium heat. Add bell pepper and onion; cook and stir about 5 minutes or until tender. Stir in soups, undrained tomatoes and chilies, water and chicken. Mix well.
Layer half each of tortillas, chicken mixture and cheese evenly in dish. Repeat layers. Bake uncovered 40 minutes or until hot and bubbly.

Let stand for about 10 minutes before serving.

Variations:
* Use different heat levels of tomatoes. Our favorite is a can of mild and a can of hot.
* Instead of tortillas, use Nacho Cheese Doritos. Don't crush - just spread in an even layer.

Braunschweiger Pate

My sister-in-law gave me this recipe years ago. I just looked it up in  y e-mail and am parking it here for future reference. 

Ingredients:

·         8 oz. liverwurst or braunschweiger

·         8 oz. cream cheese, softened

·         2 small green onions, minced

·         1.5 tablespoons dried onions (or 1 tablespoon fresh onion, finely minced)

·         ¾ teaspoon dried dill weed

·         1/4 -1/2 teaspoon garlic granules (or one small garlic clove, minced)

·         Ground pepper (to taste)

·         1-2 tablespoons capers (to taste)

Instructions:

·         Thoroughly blend together all ingredients except capers.

·         Fold in capers, reserving a few for garnish.

·         Cover mixture and allow it to rest in the refrigerator for several hours before serving.

·         Garnish as desired.

·         Serve with Melba toast, crackers, or sliced baguettes (I use pork rinds or sliced cucumber or celery, when eating low carb)

Serves 6-8 as an appetizer.

Lemon Blueberry Dump Cake

I love Dump Cake. It's so easy and yummy! I also love blueberries. One of my favorite desserts from my childhood was lemon blueberry Bundt cake. It came in a mix, with a glaze and a little can of "real Maine blueberries!!" I asked for it almost every year for my birthday cake.

They don't make Bundt cake mixes anymore, and I haven't seen any mix combining lemon with blueberries. We went out blueberry picking this past weekend and I started to crave the flavor. I decided to make a dump cake.

I was concerned that the fresh blueberries wouldn't provide enough liquid, so I added a little by mixing the berries with lemon and sugar and letting it sit for a bit. This works to draw out the juices for other berries, so I was hoping it would do that here. I don't know if it did, but the cake worked so I don't really care. :)

The result was as good as I had hoped! We will definitely make it again. Enjoy!!

LEMON BLUEBERRY DUMP CAKE

4 cups fresh blueberries
2 T lemon juice
1/4 cup sugar

1 box lemon cake mix

1 stick butter

Toss the berries with the juice and sugar, and let it sit for about 15 minutes.

Place the berries in the bottom of a 13x9 inch pan. Dump the cake mix over the berries and spread evenly, but don't stir. Cut the butter into pats and spread evenly on the top, but don't stir.

Bake at 350 for about 35 minutes. it should be slightly brown on the top. You may need a few more minutes. It's normal for the berries to break through the top.

Notes:

You can use any size pan you like, but watch the time. I used a 12" round dutch oven and it took close to an hour.

You could substitute frozen berries or even canned.

Try different cake mix flavors if you don't want lemon.

Of course you can sub margarine for butter, but why would you want to?

A trick we learned in Girl Scouts is to omit the butter, and pour a 12-ounce can of lemon-lime soda over the top. it works the same and tastes great.

Peanut Sauce, Peanut Butter Chicken

I've discovered PB2 - powdered peanuts that lets you have peanut butter without the fat and sugar! I actually ordered it awhile back and forgot I had it. I found it in the back of the pantry recently and have been playing around with it. Here's a peanut sauce I made that was fabulous!

Ingredients

8 Tbsp PB2 powdered peanut butter
2 tsp Apple Cider vinegar
2 tsp Rice Vinegar
1 tsp Lime Juice
1 tsp brown sugar, packed
¼ tsp red chili sauce (I used sriracha)
3 tsp minced garlic
1 Tbsp Soy Sauce


Instructions

Mix all ingredients together in a small bowl. Add water as needed to thin as desired.

One of my kids' new favorite is "Peanut butter chicken". I simply bake chicken tenders in the oven, brushed with this sauce. Temp was 350 and I don't remember how long (I'll update next time I make this). Serve more sauce for dipping on the side. Enjoy!