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Simple Grilled Lamb Shoulder Blades

10 Nov

Lamb shoulder blades entered into our dinner repertoire because they are surprisingly delicious, and, compared to other cuts of lamb, less expensive, thereby making them a good “everyday” option (i.e. not “special occasion”).  When we first bought shoulder blades to cook at home, we worried that the meat might be chewy (they kind of look it at the butcher’s); but after marinating overnight and cooking them simply, the meat on the blades are tender and very flavorful.  I marinate the blades in my go-to mix of lemon juice, garlic, and olive oil overnight.  Although some pieces might be a little sinewy or have an intricate maze of bones — requiring patience for the eater — lamb shoulder blades are a good option if you want a good amount of lamb for less.   I’m sure slow-cooking will be a good method for them.  So far I have seen 2 types of grass-fed lamb shoulder blades: New Zealand and Icelandic.  The Icelandic lamb is smaller than the New Zealand lamb.  Although lamb blades may not be to everyone’s taste, if you’re interested, it’s worth trying!

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Rock the Party Spicy Pork Ribs – v. 2

13 Oct

When we lived in Stockholm last winter, I made some spicy pork ribs for a birthday party we threw for our colleague.  The ribs were a hit, and made for an excellent — and hands-on — party meal among friends.  Now back in my own kitchen in Brooklyn, I have more spices in my pantry to play with — and recently, I came up with a rub that I think works even better.  I like to put the rub on the ribs overnight before cooking.  Although these ribs aren’t of the smoke-house variety, we still think they are delicious, tender, and do come off the bone quite easily.  We tend to prefer the St. Louis style pork ribs over baby-back — there’s more meat to them (always a plus for David), and I like how the fat renders off while roasting, giving the ribs  a nice, juicy quality without being too fatty.

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Sole “Pie”

23 Sep

Every so often, I see local, wild-caught sole on sale at Whole Foods.  Sole can be tricky to cook, because it can be rather bland without frying or adding a lot of fat.  This Sole “Pie” is a neat and delicious way to eat sole baked — basically, it’s Asian-style eggplant caponata sandwiched between two layers of sole.  Chinese eggplants work best for this dish, because their skin is thin and cook quite easily without having to sweat the eggplants beforehand.

Here’s how:

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Veal/Pork Cilantro Meatballs

24 Aug

I went through a meatball-making phase about a month ago, venturing out beyond my regular beef meatballs and turkey meatballs I’ve made in the past.  One of the new versions of the meatball I made was a veal/pork one.  The basic method of making the meatball is the same — but the change-up in the ingredients makes for a new meatball tasting experience.  The veal/pork combination tastes a little sweeter and perhaps more tender in some ways than straightforward beef — we particularly enjoyed the cilantro/habañero pairing with the meats in this variation of the meatball .  (If you are not a fan of cilantro, you can use parsley.)

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Portabella+Shiitake Beef Meatballs (topped w/garlic broccolini)

21 Jul

We love meatballs for dinner, not only because they are simple to make and delicious, but also because they make great leftovers.  My favorite type of beef meatballs are stuffed full of mushrooms, which give the meatballs a juicy, earthy flavor.  Here’s an easy recipe for beef meatballs I often make at home.  In this instance, I added some crispy, garlicky broccolini on top — so it’s a complete meal of meat and vegetables!

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Whole Roasted Duck w/Black Plums+Spices

7 Jul

Sometimes, we find ourselves in a little protein rut.  What else can we eat besides beef, chicken, pork and fish?  Last night, David and I went shopping at Whole Foods and felt such a rut.  What protein should we eat for dinner?  When we saw a whole duck (last one, it appeared) and some lovely looking organic black plums,we found our inspiration and challenge: whole roast duck with black plums and spices!

Inspired by Jamie Oliver’s recipe for duck legs, I came up with a recipe that worked out quite nicely.

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Seared Jalapeño/Garlic Swordfish Steak w/Fennel/Olive Salad

18 May

Last night for dinner,  I seared local swordfish filets and made a simple, fennel/olive salad as an accompaniment.  Easy, breezy, tasty!

The swordfish was on sale at Whole Foods, labeled “local” and also “green” (as in, environmentally-friendly).   Both good labels, and a bargain at $14.99/lb (as swordfish goes)!  I bought 1.5 lbs worth of swordfish (my husband requires a lot of protein), and marinated it in a mixture of:

  • Zest and juice of 1 lemon
  • 1/2 jalapeño, finely minced
  • 2 cloves of garlic, finely minced
  • 1/4 cup organic olive oil
  • salt and pepper to taste

I let the swordfish marinate for about 20 minutes.

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Foie Gras-stuffed Grass-fed (Bunless) Burger

17 May

Aaand I’m back!  It’s been a busy week, and I have a lot of blogging on which to catch up… but to kick off our being back in New York, I share with you a delicious and simple meal I created last night:

Foie gras-stuffed grass-fed, (obviously, bun-less), burger.

How did this decadent meal come about, especially during a work week?

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Pasture-raised Pork=DELICIOUS Pork

11 Apr

We’re convinced happy pigs (pasture-raised) = DELICIOUS pork.  We recently came across local, pasture-raised boneless pork loin at Whole Foods, and boy, was it delicious!

I bought a big chunk of this gorgeous pork loin, and cut it up in about 1 inch pieces.  For dinner, I left 2 pieces out to bring them back to room temperature (about 30 minutes), and then seasoned both sides with salt and pepper.  In a non-stick pan, I drizzled some olive oil and cooked the chop on medium-high heat, 6 minutes on each side.  Rest for at least 5 minutes.  I served the chop with garlic spinach.  AH-MAZING!

David didn’t eat pork for a long time, in large part because he never found it particularly tasty.  Nowadays, he is a big believer in good, high-quality pork, cooked well.  Local, pasture-raised pork has been a good meat option for us, as, at about $8.99 a pound, it’s a good deal for high quality meat.  Chops are our favorite, since the flavor is fabulous — and when the pork is this excellent quality, you really taste the difference in the fat.  Pasture-raised pork fat just melts in your mouth in the most elegant way.  Frankly, we prefer these amazing pork chops to, say, veal chops. Continue reading

Garlic/Jalapeño/Lemon Seared Albacore Tuna Steaks

24 Mar

Continuing our commitment to eating more fish, I recently purchased these lovely, wild albacore tuna steaks.

Not as expensive as your regular yellowfin tuna steaks, I almost prefer albacore tuna because I find them more tender and flavorful.  I marinated the tuna steaks for about 30 minutes before cooking.

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