By on Jan 31, 2008 in Home Improvement | Comments Off
With electricity and gas bills skyrocketing, it’s more important than ever to make energy usage adjustments to the home and its appliances. Take control of utility bills.
By on Jan 31, 2008 in Recipes and Cooking | Comments Off
4 Servings
Beef
American
Main Dish Easy Steak Sugar tomato paste thyme rosemary consomme beef stock Stock Shiraz wine Shallots Sear Fry Quick Roast Beef American filet mignon beef tenderloin unsalted butter
4 (8 ounce) center-cut filets mignons*, 2-inches thick, trimmed of fat and silver
Olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
— Shiraz Sauce (optional) —
1/4 cup shallots, finely chopped
1/2 cup Shiraz or other bold red wine
1 cup beef stock (preferably homemade), or beef consomme
2 to 3 sprigs fresh rosemary (optional)
2 to 3 sprigs fresh thyme (optional)
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1/2 teaspoon sugar
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold, cut into pieces
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
* Note: I usually buy a 2 to 2 1/2-pound center-cut tenderloin roast and portioning it into four 8-ounce steaks myself to produce more consistent results. Bring steaks to room temperature before cooking. Thoroughly dry steaks with paper towels. Lightly coat steaks with olive oil and season both sides liberally with salt and pepper (pressing seasonings into meat with your fingers). Gently press sides of steaks until uniform 2-inches thick. Set a 10-inch heavy-bottomed ovenproof pan or cast-iron skillet on a rimmed baking sheet and place both on oven rack adjusted to lower-middle position, and heat oven to 500 degrees F. When oven reaches temperature (about 15 to 20 minutes), remove skillet from oven and transfer to stove top over high heat (be careful — pan and handle will be extremely hot). Immediately place steaks in skillet, being carefull that they are not touching each other. Sear steaks for 2 to 3 minutes without disturbing, turn with tongs and sear second side another 2 to 3 minutes without disturbing, or until both sides are well-browned and have a nice crust. Remove pan from heat, and using tongs, transfer steaks to hot baking sheet in oven. (After transferring steaks to oven, proceed with pan sauce.) Roast 4 to 6 minutes for rare (red in center and warm throughout), 6 to 8 minutes for medium-rare (pinkish red in center and fairly hot), or 8 to 10 minutes for medium (pink in center, grayish brown surrounding and hot throughout). Remember, residual heat built up in steaks will continue to cook the meat until it begins to cool off, meat temperature will rise 5 to 10 degrees after it is removed from the oven. This means you should undercook your steaks, removing them from oven before they reach desired temperature. When steaks are done to your liking, transfer to large plate. Double check doneness by thermometer (rare - 130 to 140 degrees F, medium-rare - 140 to 150 degrees F, medium - 150 to 160 degrees F), or touch (very rare feels soft and squishy, rare is soft to the touch, medium-rare yields gently to the touch, while medium yields only slightly to the touch and is beginning to firm up, and medium-well is firm to the touch). Tent steaks loosely with foil and let rest for 5 to 10 minutes, allowing steaks to finish cooking from residual heat and meat juices to redistribute and settle before serving. Serve as individual steaks or slice just before serving on warmed plates. Shiraz Sauce: After transferring steaks to oven, melt 1 tablespoon butter in the same skillet with fond (brown bits in pan leftover from cooking) and residual fat that it was cooked in. Add shallots and cook over medium-low heat, stirring, until translucent, about 2 to 3 minutes. Raise heat to mediun-high, add wine, and bring to a boil. Using a wooden spoon or spatula, stir and scrap to loosen any flavorful browned bits stuck to pan and incorporate them into sauce. When wine is almost gone, add stock, herbs (if using dry herbs, just a pinch), tomato paste and sugar, bring to a boil and cook until reaching the sauce consistency you desire. It should be thick enough to coat back of a regular spoon. Remove from heat, whisk in remaining 2 tablespoons cold butter until melted and sauce is thickened, smooth, and glossy. Correct seasoning with salt, pepper. Stir in any accumulated juices from the steak plate. Spoon sauce over cooked steaks just before serving. Safety Note: Doneness is an issue of personal preference. However, it is recommended that beef be cooked to medium-rare doneness, the internal temperature should reach 145 degrees F to ensure that harmful bacteria have been destroyed. A thick cut of beef that has been cooked to an internal temperature of 140 degrees F, may be removed from the pan, loosely covered, and allowed to rest a few minutes. The temperature will continue to rise about 5 degrees F, reaching proper doneness.
This Pan-seared Filet Mignon ( Beef Tenderloin ) with Shiraz Sauce recipe was posted via BigOven Recipe Software to the BigOven Social Network about Food with 160,000+ recipes.
By on Jan 31, 2008 in Recipes and Cooking | Comments Off
4 Servings
Chicken
American
Low Carb Sauces Chicken Dessert Breakfast Lunch Beef Drink Appetizer Spring Summer Fall Winter Side dish Vegetarian Vegetable Fruit 30 minutes or less hour or less hour and a half or less 2 hours or less Christmas Easter Halloween Ham Soup/Stew On the gill Spicy Camping Slow Cooker
2 whole Chicken breasts boneless and skinless
2 Egg whites
2 tbl. Cornstarch
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1 cup Dry, course bread crumbs
1 Tbl Fresh parsley chopped
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon Ground black pepper
Zest of 1 lemon minced
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese grated
3 tbl. Olive oil
Sage-Butter Sauce
3 tbl Shallots minced
1/2 cup Dry white wine
1/2 cup Heavy cream
1/2 cup Chicken broth
1 teaspoon Fresh lemon juice
4 Tbl Unsalted butter cold, cubed
1 teaspoon salt,white pepper,cayenne to taste
1 teaspoon Fresh sage minced
Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Prepare the chicken by halving and then halving again lengthwise. (Whole chicken breast are a bit too big. Making smaller pieces ensures that the coating will not burn before the chicken is cooked through.) Pound to about 1/2 inch thick. Blend the egg whites, cornstarch, and lemon juice with a fork in a wide, shallow dish; set aside. Combine the bread crumbs, parmesan, parsley, salt, pepper, and zest in a second wide, shallow dish. To crust the chicken breasts, dip each in the egg white mixture and then roll in the bread crumbs. Then transfer the chicken to a rack set over a baking sheet. Air-dry the chicken for 20-30 minutes to help set the crumbs. To cook, first saute the chicken on the stove in an ovenproof skillet. As you put the chicken in the pan, lay it towards you. This way each piece will rest on top of any crumbs that fall off. Saute until the chicken is golden and crisp on one side, then carefully flip the pieces over. Cook until golden. Finally, transfer the whole pan to a 450 degree oven to finish. Cook for 8 to 10 minutes in the oven. If you are serving this with Sage-Butter Sauce and Roasted Potatoes with Garlic and Rosemary, begin roasting the potatoes while the chicken is air drying on the rack, then prepare the sauce and keep it warm in a warm water bath. It will hold just fine for at least an hour. For the Sauce - saute the shallots in butter in a small saucepan over medium heat until soft, 2 - 3 minutes. Add the wine, cream, broth and lemon juice. Simmer until reduced by half, 8 - 10 minutes. Whisk in butter, 1 Tbl at a time, stirring constantly. Do not add more butter until previous addition has melted completely. Finish sauce with sage and seasonings. Keep warm in a warm water bath until ready to serve. The Roasted Potato recipe is listed seperately.
This Parmesan Crusted Chicken recipe was posted via BigOven Recipe Software to the BigOven Social Network about Food with 160,000+ recipes.
By on Jan 31, 2008 in Home Improvement | Comments Off
In a continuing series, a remodeling contractor shares ideas and cost estimates for new vinyl or tile bath flooring, with cautions concerning tile on wood subfloors.
By on Jan 31, 2008 in Home Improvement | Comments Off
In a continuing series, a remodeling contractor shares ideas and cost estimates for replacing a bath tub and shower and installing new shower tile.
