Steak. It's what's for dinner!

So yesterday was a fantastic day-- my new Le Creuset grill pan came in the mail! I know that doesn't sound very exciting, but I was absolutely thrilled! It came just in time for dinner, so of course, I had to grill some steaks!

Let's talk about the pan before we talk about the steaks. On Facebook and Instagram (@christinaandemmablog) I got a lot of questions on How do you make steak in a pan? and How can I use my Le Creuset to grill food? Let me start by saying, not all pans are created equally. Le Creuset makes two types of enameled cast iron; one with a light sand interior, found in french ovens and braisers, and one with a black satin enamel, found on skillets and grill pans. The black satin enamel-- and more specifically, the design of this grill pan-- allows me to cook with the high surface temperature needed to grill food. Now that doesn't mean you can crank up your stove to high heat and begin cooking. Not only can that damage the enamel, but your food will stick like crazy! I never go above a medium heat when using any type of Le Creuset product. The trick is to heat the pan long enough so that it heats through. Then, because cast iron retains heat so well, you can turn the heat down and begin your cooking! 

Now, the steak! In my house, there are a handful of absolute, nonnegotiable essentials when grilling a steak: salt & pepper, garlic, parsley, rosemary, and lemon. Say what? It's actually really good-- hear me out! Salt, pepper, garlic, and rosemary for the cooking of the steak; and salt, garlic, parsley, and lemon for dressing your board. Check out the recipe below, and enjoy!

CAST-IRON GRILLED STEAK

Prep Time: 10 minutes, Cook Time: 8 minutes per steak

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INGREDIENTS: 

steaks for grilling

salt & pepper to taste

olive oil

an herb bouquet of rosemary

2 cloves garlic, 1 halved & the other minced

1 lemon

1 tablespoon butter [more or less]

1/4 cup parsley, chopped

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DIRECTIONS:

1. Prepare your cast-iron grill pan by heating it over medium heat.

2. Season raw steak (patted dry & at room-temperature) with salt & pepper on both sides. Then, brush lightly with olive oil.

3. Dress your board. To do this, drizzle some olive oil, salt, minced garlic, parsley, and the juice from one lemon onto your cutting board. Mix it around, and set it aside. This is where you will place your steaks to rest after they are done cooking.

4. When your pan is heated through, brush it lightly with olive oil, and hold steak upright with the fatty edge on the grill. Sear the fat until it is crispy, then lay the steak down flat and press it lightly against the bars. Cook for two minutes.

5. After two minutes, flip the steak to the other side (making sure it's in the same direction), and cook for two minutes. While the steak is cooking, take one of the halved garlic cloves and rub it against the top of the steak. Then, using your rosemary bouquet, mop up the fat from the pan and pat it on top of the steak.

6. After two minutes, flip your steak and rotate it 90 degrees (this will give it classic cross marks), and cook for two minutes. While the steak is cooking, take one of the halved garlic cloves and rub it against the top of the steak. Then, using your rosemary bouquet, mop up the fat from the pan and pat it on top of the steak.

7. After two minutes, flip your steak (making sure it's in the same direction), and cook for two minutes. While the steak is cooking,take one of the halved garlic cloves and rub it against the top of the steak. Then, using your rosemary bouquet, mop up the fat from the pan and pat it on top of the steak.

8. When your steak is done, remove it from the grill and place it onto your dressed cutting board. Rub it around on both sides with some butter, and let sit for about a minute or two before you cut into it. Enjoy!

xoxo,

CHRISTINA

Birthdays, Tornadoes, & Easter-- Oh, My!

I feel like I wasn't able to post as much as I would have liked to during the month of March. With two birthdays, the beginning of tornado season, being kicked out of our house because of severe weather damages, and trying to plan for Easter (& failing miserably), we've been pretty busy!

That being said, I did have a pretty fantastic birthday-- one that will greatly improve the quality of my cooking! My amazing man and daughter gifted me with my very first Le Creuset vessel, a 3 1/2 qt braiser in the color Caribbean, and a copy of Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking. 

I've recently become quite obsessed with obtaining quality cookware, so imagine my surprise when I realized that Mr. C&E had actually been listening the entire time! He even got the color right. Love that man. He just gets me. I have to say, cooking has been so much more enjoyable since receiving this beautiful pot. It's nice and heavy, beautifully made, and has even heating-- hallelujah! One of my favorite chefs, Michael Rhulman, said that it's hard to be a good chef while cooking on bad equipment-- and now I totally get it. They're expensive, sure, but they also have a lifetime warranty, and if you take care of them, they can be passed down through generations. I've already started telling my 2 year old that someday this will be her braiser! She doesn't care...

For my LC's maiden voyage, I made French Onion Stroganoff. You can find the recipe here. It was like a whole new experience from the last time I made it! The beef browned evenly, beautifully, and the pan held heat so well-- even on a medium-low setting. Clean-up was a breeze-- much easier than I had originally anticipated! Just a dab of Le Creuset's cleaner, a soft sponge, and some warm water did the trick! The very next day, I was itching to use my pot again, so I made a tradtioanl Persian stew called Ghormeh Sabzi. Needless to say, this braiser has been well worth it's price tag! & you better believe when those tornado sirens went off, my Le Creuset was down in the basement with us! :)

FRENCH ONION STROGANOFF

xoxo,

CHRISTINA

Ghormeh Sabzi

I'm taking it back to my roots for this dinner recipe with a traditional Persian dish called Ghormeh Sabzi (basically a lamb or beef stew with herbs). Yes, it's green. Very green. It also kind of looks like something that would come out of my toddler-- BUT, it's pretty darn delicious! & healthy! There are multiple ways to make this dish, and no two are exactly alike. Many of the traditional ingredients are hard to find unless you live in a town with a Middle Eastern store. Because of this, I've tweaked the recipe so that it's 'American supermarket friendly'! Enjoy!

SAUTEED ONION & TURMERIC

STEW BEFORE 1 HOUR SIMMER

SAUTEING HERBS & GARLIC

GHORMEH SABZI

Prep Time: 20 minutes, Cook Time: 2 hr 30 min, Servings: 4-6

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INGREDIENTS:

2 lbs boneless lamb stewing meat or beef stewing meat, cut into 1" cubes

1 onion, finely chopped

1/3 cup oil

1 teaspoon turmeric

1 1/2 cups water

1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 2 lemons)

3/4 cup canned kidney beans

salt & pepper to taste

1 1/2 cups fresh spinach, stemmed and coarsely chopped

1/2 cup fresh parsley, stemmed and coarsely chopped

1/2 cup green onions, finely chopped

1/4 cup fresh dill, stemmed and coarsely chopped

1/4 cup fresh cilantro, stemmed and coarsely chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

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DIRECTIONS:

1. Heat half of the oil in a large, high-walled pan over medium heat, and saute onions until golden.

2. Add turmeric and saute for about 2 more minutes.

3. Increase heat, and saute meat cubes until they brown.

4. Reduce heat, and add water, kidney beans, and salt & pepper to taste. 

5. Cover and gently simmer for 1 hour, or until the meat is tender. 

6. With about 10 minutes left in your simmer, heat a separate pan with remaining oil over medium heat, and saute spinach, parsley, green onions, dill, cilantro, and garlic, until the herbs are just wilted and are aromatic. Be careful not to burn your herbs! 

7. Add the sauteed herbs to your meat simmer along with the lemon juice. Cover and simmer for an additional 15 minutes. 

8. Serve over basmati rice, and enjoy! 

xoxo,

CHRISTINA