Yukon Gold Gratin

Yukon Gold Gratin

12 baby yukon gold potatoes, peeled and sliced thin
2 leeks - trimmed and sliced thin as well
3/4 of a stick of butter
3 cloves of garlic
1/2 lb. gruyere cheese


Wash, peel and thinly slice potatoes and leeks.  Melt the butter in a large skillet and add leeks and garlic.  Saute about 3 minutes until soft and add sliced potatoes.  I season the leeks and potatoes at this time generously with some garlic salt, pepper, and hot hungarian paprika for a little spice!  Saute the potatoes and the leeks for about 10 minutes more.  Meanwhile, grate the gruyere cheese coarsely and set aside.

Coat a baking dish with PAM and spread half of the potato mixture into the dish.  Sprinkle the potato mixture with the gruyere cheese.  Add the remainder of the mixture and top with the rest of the gruyere cheese and grind a little more pepper and sprinkle lightly with a little kosher salt. 

Bake at 350 for 30 to 45 minutes.  They should be lightly browned and bubbly.  The gruyere cheese makes these potatoes amazingly creamy and flavorful!



Yukon Gold's on their way out!

Roasted Garlic Parmesan Tomatoes

Super easy, super delicious.

I have to admit getting this idea from Ina Garten  aka The Barefoot Contessa and she uses pesto on top which I did not like at all.  So I improvised and really like my version better.  Ina is one of my favorite cooks and we own all of her cookbooks but I can't help myself when it comes to putting my own spin of food.

Special thanks to our friend Renee, one of the truly great cooks in our life,  not just for bringing yummy roasted artichoke hearts but also for scoring a big assist on these tomatoes while I was  outside at the BBQ grill! That's her husband Marty  looking like he's posing for a mugshot in the foreground and Renee in the middle...our friend Anne is in the background who specializes in appreciating good food and bringing great wines to our gatherings...tonight it was a 2005 Silver Oak Cabernet....mmm...mmm....good!




Six Medium Tomatoes
Olive Oil
2 Cloves Crushed Garlic
1 Tspn Dried Thyme
Kosher Salt
Cracked Pepper
Parmesan Cheese

Preheat Oven to 425
Slice the tops and bottoms off the tomatoes and cut in half.
Brush a little olive oil in the bottom of a baking dish and arrange tomatoes with a little space in between so they cook evenly
Pour about 1/8 cup olive oil into a bowl and add two cloves pressed/crushed garlic...I have a Pampered Chef  garlic press and love it.
Add a couple of pinches of salt and about a half teaspoon cracked pepper and dried thyme.
Mix well and brush tomatoes with oil and garlic herb mixture
Place in the 425 oven and cook for 12 minutes
Remove from oven and cover with a liberal amount of finely grated Parmesan cheese and put back in the oven for another 3-5 minutes...keep an eye on them so the cheese doesn't burn!

These are a major crowd pleaser and healthy to boot!

Cheers!

Bone-In New York Steaks with Shallot Butter

I learned everything I know about cooking steaks from my father in law, Ray.   He is truly a grill master and actually gave us our grill 12 years ago as a house warming present.  I do my steaks Ray's way and it's just about flawless.

First, take your steaks out of the frig and place on a sheet pan.  Cover liberally with lemon pepper...yes, lemon pepper.  I like the brand the large container from Costco called Tones with no MSG.  Read the label closely  and note the primary ingredient is salt, followed by black pepper, lemon, onion, garlic etc.  In other words, it's the perfect covering for steaks.  Once the steaks are covered on one side I shake a little cayenne pepper on top as well.  Be careful here, it's really got a kick and you want to have a hint of heat, not a three alarm fire on the back of your tongue.  Flip the steaks and repeat the process.  Let them stand for at least a couple of hours.  In our house that means putting them in a cold oven top protect them from our street cat: Nala.  She's been known to drag entire salmon filet's and steaks on to the floor.




Turn your grill on as high as it will go, ours is a Turbo and  if you are using a charcoal grill time the steaks to go on at just prior to the peak of heat from the briquettes.  Cooking time is determined by thickness and every grill I have ever owned has hot spots and cool spots.  Never cover your grill when cooking steaks.  It's OK to partially cover but never all the way because at that point your baking one side and broiling the other.  Every steak deserves a good sear so start super hot and rotate to the cooler area on the second turn.  I never, ever turn a steak more than four times.   Why?  Because if you do they get tough!

My New York;s were about an 1 1/4 inches thick  and most of us like rare to medium rare.  The first turn happened at about the two minute mark, the second two minutes later and the last turns were 1-2 minutes each depending on desired doneness.  Our friends Ann and David went for Rare and the rest were medium rare to medium.   One good way to tell if a steak is done is to poke it with your index finger.  After awhile, you figure out how to tell the difference between rare, medium etc with just a little poke.  Rare is soft to the touch and well done feels like a hockey puck.

Remove from the grill , bring inside, add a hefty slice of your frozen, sliced shallot butter to the top of each steak and plate.   I plated this whole dinner because I don't want anybody getting a medium steak when they are looking for rare.

Unfortunately, Cherie was fighting a vicious cold and we did not take many photos.

Steak with Shallot Bleu Cheese Butter, Oven Baked Tomatoes and Roasted Potatoes with Gruyere Cheese( Yeah Baby!!!)

Shallot and Blue Cheese Butter
Ingredients
2 medium Shallots finely minced
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
Splash of Sherry
1/4 cup butter, divided (Room Temp)
4 ounces crumbled blue cheese ( Room Temp)
Fresh Cracked Pepper

Kosher Salt

Dash of Cayenne Pepper

 

My Somewhat systematic approach…begin at least one hour before you put your steaks on the grill!

Peel and mince shallots

Melt 4 Tbsp butter over medium high heat and add shallots to pan when butter begins to bubble a bit

Sauté 3-4 minutes and sprinkle a dash or two of garlic powder right before you add a splash of Sherry( I used the Trader Joe’s Medium Dry Pastor…great value with a cork!)

Sauté another 2-3 minutes until alcohol cooks off and sherry is slightly reduced.

Turn off and cool for about 3-4 minutes

In small mixing bowl add the remaining 4 Tbsp of warm butter, the cooled sautéed shallots and butter to  the crumbled Blue Cheese(Once again Trader Joe’s: Bleu D’Avuviergne)  I use a whisk to blend well and add a dash or two of a good quality Cayenne Pepper.  In Tucson I buy all my spices either at the 17^th Street Market or TJ’s.  Better, prices, better quality and bigger quantities for true food aficionados’ like yours truly.

Once all ingredients are mixed thoroughly let stand for at least 5 minutes.  Use a good rubber spatula to spoon the entire mixture on to about a 20 inch length of waxed paper. 

Roll the butter into a fairly tight log, twist at the ends…trim with a scissor like I did if needed and place into your freezer.

Remove from freezer, cut into about ½ inch thick slices, peel off waxed paper and place on top of your steaks while they are waiting to be served.

People go crazy for this!  I am not certain exactly why but it may be the novelty of something other than A-1 or Heinz 57(both of which I love by the way…especially on cold, leftover steak for a quick snack) or it may be the contrasting sweet and savory flavors along with a great rare to medium rare steak. 

Steak Recipe to follow!

 

Creamy Lemon Salad Dressing

Tonight, "Murph's" not cookin'. Myself, the twenty year old daughter, and my mom, Cherie are taking care of dinner so naturally, we decided to have leftovers and make a quick salad. My mom recently discovered THE best and most delicious salad dressing that is ridiculously quick and easy. The recipe called it a "caesar" salad dressing, but that's not quite the right name for it, it really tastes like a wonderful creamy lemony dressing. We are the Murphy's, so of course, we didn't follow the recipe and added our own twist to it. Feel free to add your own. Here's the run-down:






2 tablespoons Mayonnaise
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tablespoons parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
A dash of Worcestershire
A dash of Trappey's hot sauce
Salt and Pepper



All you do is mix it all together and enjoy. Our family loves the dressing on either romaine or butter lettuce with an extra sprinkle of parmesan cheese and some sort of crunchy thing - croutons, slivered almonds, crushed bagel chips, whateva. We generally double the recipe because we're dressing people. Trust me, the more dressing the merrier.

Until the next time,
Meghan

Easy and Elegant Steak au Poivre, Garlic Mashed and Roasted Asparagus

So... I woke up yesterday with this strong desire to make one of my favorite dishes: Steak Au Poivre.  Cherie was heading off to her hobby/job at a local stationary and gift store called " A Fine Line" and I had to take our 12 year old daughter, Tara, all the way to Vail for a volley ball game.  At least a one hour drive from our house but no big deal.

While driving to the game we were listening to my sister's radio show: "Mrs. Green Goes Mainstream" on our local channel 790 KNST and I thought to myself that she and her husband, James  would be the perfect candidates to enjoy dinner with us.

As an FYI Tara helped me do the shopping at Trader Joe's where we bought virtually every item for this dinner and she also picked out the pretty pink flowers on the table.  Her rationale for big pink daisies; "I think pink would be good since we are so close to Valentine's Day and it will match all the decorations Mom has out."  Makes sense to me!

As it ended up, my sister had plans with a mutual friend, Scott Caddow and I suggested he come along as well.  Later on my 20 year old daughter, Meghan who had gone shopping with her mom also decided to stay for dinner also.  As was true in the house where I grew up and is true for Cherie and  me; there's always room for one more at our table and tonight it turned out to be room for two more.

Cherie's Tasteful Touches!


Cherie never fails to make it perfect when it comes to the flowers, the table, the ambiance and the mood!





The Murph's Kitchen Mascot...El Puerco!



This is a killer dinner, easy to make and fun to share with a small group.  The only way to mess this one up is to overcook the steaks so keep a close eye on them.  Make a small cut with a steak knife to peer inside if needed but remember, the steaks will continue to cook while you are making the sauce.  I prefer Filet Mignon but have used Strip Sirloin and Rib Eye.  Any lean, high quality cut will do.



Steak Au Poivre

4 Beef Tenderloin Steaks about 1 1/4 inch thick
4 Tbsp Butter
2 Tbsp Kosher Salt
Fresh Cracked Pepper(lots!)
2 Finely Minced Shallots
Splash of Cognac
Splash of Red Wine
1/4 Cup or so Heavy Cream

Place the steaks on a cookie sheet and grind a generous amount of pepper and press firmly into the meat on both sides.  Let stand for at least two hours before cooking.  Room temp steaks are a big key to perfect doneness either on the grill or atop the stove.

Peel and finely dice shallots and set aside for later.

Preheat pan to medium high, add 3 tbsb butter and sear steaks both sides 2-3 minutes per side for medium rare.  Set aside

Add shallots and cook 1-3 minutes.

Splash in Cognac and wine and deglaze pan.
Add beef broth and boil 2-3 minutes.

Add heavy cream, final tablespoon of butter and reduce heat slightly and simmer until it thickens a bit.

Plate and serve!

Mmmmm...boy was this tasty!



Roasted Asparagus

One Pound Trimmed and Cleaned Asparagus
Garlic Salt
Fresh Cracked Pepper
Olive Oil
One Lemon
Fresh Parmesan

Preheat broiler to 500

Spread asparagus in a single layer on a cookie sheet  and lightly drizzle with olive oil, at least a couple of tablespoons to make sure no spears will stick to the sheet.

Lightly sprinkle with garlic salt and fresh cracked pepper

Place in oven about 6 inches below broiler and cook for 2 minutes.

Remove from oven and flip over with a set of long handle tongs.

Place back in oven and cook for another 2-3 minutes based on thickness of individual spears.

Squeeze an entire lemon  (through you hand to catch the seeds) over the spears and lightly dust with 2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan Cheese.


Garlic Mashed


10 Medium Red Potatoes
5 Cloves Garlic
Kosher Salt

These are super easy and are a can't miss crowd pleaser.

Peel dark spots and any "eyes" off the potatoes and quarter in a large stock pot  and cover with water plus a couple of inches more.

Peel garlic cloves and add to potatoes.

Boil until potatoes are fork tender and mash with 3-4 tablespoons of butter and a little fat free half and half.  On this particular batch I also added a little heavy cream that I purchased for  the steak dish.  Also, feel free to add a little garlic powder or salt when mashing.  I often do.

The combo of the steak covered with sauce, the bright green and crisp asparagus and the garlic mashed with bits of red skin  really make this a nice presentation and the crowd went crazy.  We served this with a warm fresh baguette from Trader Joe's and people were lapping up the sauce at the end...always a good sign!

We topped it all off with Tara's favorite: chocolate lava cakes from TJ's..easy elegant and delicious!

Megster...one of our late arrivals and the oldest of  The Murphy Girls...with Dad...aka Murph...aka the big bald guy.  Thanks to Cherie for taking all the cool pic's on her new iPhone.  Believe me, nothing happens in Murph's Kitchen without the creative and talented Mrs. M.

Murph and The Megster!

Easy Night...

The lovely and talented Mrs. M threw together a delicious and quick dinner with oven baked pork chops, a little rice a roni and a fantastic batch of fresh saute-ed green beans with garlic, onions and fresh tomato.  Followed by American Idol...of course.  Yours truly will return for some kicked up dishes over the week end.

Sunday Night in Murph's Kitchen

Welcome to a Sunday night in Murph's Kitchen.  Tonight, in honor of my 20 year old daughter, I am preparing Chicken Piccata, her favorite dish.  Perhaps more momentous is that I have finally given in and agreed to start a blog about cooking.  Who knows what twists and turns this may take but my approach to cooking is that it  be simple, flavorful and filled with the best ingredients.  In Murph's Kitchen it's always a team effort and feedback is appreciated!  Recipe to follow...have fun and enjoy!!