Short Rib Terrine

Short ribs are easily my favorite cut of beef. I adore them. They need minimal TLC (barely any hands on cooking, just a bit more time in the oven or on a burner) and yet yield so much flavor -- a simple braise with fresh vegetables and herbs is all they need in my book; deglaze the braising liquid with some red wine and you've got sheer perfection.

To change things up a bit, this past weekend I tried my hand at this Short Rib Terrine and I am pleased to say it's now one of my favorite tapas and a really great way to use my beloved short ribs. Served with fresh homemade bread dotted with leeks and garlic the terrine was full of flavor. Just be sure to add some briny capers to your serving tray when offering up this tapa as they pair beautifully with it.

What's even better though, is that the cooking process yields a fragrant beef broth that can be used to enhance the flavor of other dishes. (I stored a couple of cupfuls in separate glass storage containers and placed them in the freezer for future use.)

Do try this Short Rib Terrine, you won't be disappointed.

Short Rib Terrine
(Adapted from a recipe on Epicurious.com)

6 pounds short ribs
2 onions, quartered
2 celery ribs, quartered
2 carrots, cut into large chunks
1 large leek, cleaned and quartered
4 fresh parsley stems
2 fresh thyme sprigs
1 bay leaf
6 to 8 whole black peppercorns
12 cups water
1 1/2 teaspoons salt

To finish terrine:
8 large garlic cloves, peeled but left whole
1/3 to 1/2 cup olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons Spanish paprika
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Season short ribs with some coarse sea salt and spread in a roasting pan along with the onions, celery, leek and carrot. Roast, turning occasionally, for about an hour.

Make a bouquet garni with the parsley, thyme, bay leaf and peppercorns. Transfer meat (with bones) and roasted vegetables to a large pot and add 12 cups water, salt and bouquet garni. Add a bit of water to the roasting pan and scrape all the brown bits up then pour the liquid into the pot. Bring to a boil and skim froth as necessary. Reduce heat to low and gently simmer, uncovered for anywhere from 3 to 4 hours, until meat is extremely tender and broth is reduced.

Transfer mixture to a bowl and cool completely, uncovered, then cover and chill overnight.

Remove fat from chilled mixture. Reheat mixture over moderate heat until warm. remove from heat and transfer short ribs to a platter; once slightly cooled, discard bones and fat. Finely chop short rib meat and set aside. Pour broth through a cheesecloth-lined sieve and store as desired.

To complete the terrine: Heat oil in a saucepan and cook garlic over low heat, turning occasionally, until golden, about 15 minutes. Remove garlic with a slotted spoon and reserve the oil. Mash the garlic to a paste with a fork.

Add paprika, salt and pepper to the oil remaining in the saucepan and cook over low heat until fragrant, a couple of minutes. In a large bowl, stir together the paprika oil, garlic paste and short rib meat. Pack the mixture into a terrine or crock, cover tightly and chill overnight. Bring the terrine to room temperature before serving with slices of fresh bread, crackers or pita triangles and capers.

Keftedes me Saltsa Verikoko--Meatballs in an Apricot Sauce

Tapas, meze, appetizers, canapes, antipasti ... however you label them, these small bites are often the best part of a meal. Seriously, isn't it so much better sampling a variety of small dishes rather than taking 20-something bites of the same one?

I can't imagine a better place to enjoy tapas than Spain--I've been to authentic Spanish restaurants here in New York numerous times but I long to taste the "real" thing in a rustic tapas bar in beautiful Barcelona. Being that a trip to Spain is not on the horizon (although a trip to Greece is looming--in fact I'll be leaving just one month from today), I love, love, love visiting Nuria's Spanish Recipes and submerging myself in the Spanish culture and cuisine which she so eloquently shares with her readers.

If you haven't heard, the latest ATOM event--hosted by Tony Tahhan of Olive Juice--is focusing on the Tapas of Spain and what better way to take a quick trip to lovely Spain than by cooking up your own tapas. So head on over to Nuria's site and get a taste of Spain; then head on over to your kitchen and put together some delectable tapas.

I put together these meatballs in a sweet and tangy apricot sauce for the ATOM event. They are amazingly flavorful little bites of minced pork and beef flavored with fresh herbs and served with a refreshingly simple sauce of apricots and yellow bell peppers. Try them, you won't be disappointed.

**Note: This was my second attempt at making these keftedes/meatballs. The first came about when I had one too many apricots laying around and decided to cook some meatballs in a fresh apricot sauce. But the fresh apricots added directly to some onion, garlic and fresh herbs and cooked until softened didn't impart the flavor I was looking for. They were actually much more tart than sweet and although my husband was left extremely satisfied with the dish, I was less than pleased. That's why with this second attempt I included apricot preserves, which you can very simply make by cooking down some fresh apricots with some sugar, water and a few drops of lemon juice. The sweetness from the preserves was a must for me and took the sauce/chutney to an entirely different level.

Keftedes me Saltsa Verikoko--Meatballs in an Apricot Sauce

1/2 pound ground beef

1/2 pound ground pork

1 egg

1 onion

1/4 cup cilantro

1/4 cup parsley

2 cloves garlic

Salt and pepper, to taste

1/4 cup breadcrumbs

For the Apricot Sauce:

2 yellow peppers, diced

2 celery stalks, chopped

1 onion, finely chopped

1 garlic clove, minced

Dash of cayenne pepper

Dash of chili powder

1/2 cup apricot preserves (see **note above)

Olive oil, for sauteing and frying

In a food processor, combine one onion, 2 cloves garlic, the cilantro and the parsley and pulse until processed. In a large bowl combine the ground beef and pork with the onion mixture, the egg, the breadcrumbs, salt and pepper. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for about an hour.

Heat some olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Form the meat mixture into small balls and fry in the oil until browned well on each side.

Meanwhile, heat a couple tablespoons of olive oil in a separate saute pan and add the chopped onions, celery and minced garlic. Stir in the yellow pepper and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the apricot preserves, cayenne pepper and chili powder and stir well. Cook for about 10 minutes, adding some water to thin the sauce out if necessary. Season well with salt and freshly ground pepper.

When ready to serve, pour some of the sauce over the meatballs and sprinkle with additional parsley or cilantro.

It's a Pirate's World

As you can probably guess, the theme of my son's birthday party last weekend was ... PIRATES! I had so much fun making invitations, decorating the house, the cupcakes and the cake for this theme--and my son's satisfaction with everything we did and the grisly "AARGH!" he'd exclaim every time he saw a skull and crossbones (he just turned "2" so the way he says it is just so darn cute), was the icing on the cake.

We had quite a few guests: I reiterate, we are a BIG family; add to that a plethora of friends and you've got yourself a kid's birthday party of 17 little ones and 25+ adults (and, for the record, some people didn't make it). Anyhow, we had a great time and I just wanted to share a piece of that with all of you through some of the goodies I got to serve up that afternoon.

There was my version of kopanisti (a cheese spread) which included 1 cup well crumbled feta, 1/2 cup crumbled gorgonzola and two finely chopped hot cherry peppers, mixed well and topped with about 1/3 cup of olive oil (stir the oil in until just barely incorporated). I served this slightly spicy kopanisti with some crackers and toasted pita triangles. I initially made a variation of this on Thanksgiving Day--that version included the feta, gorgonzola along with 4 or 5 pureed roasted tomatoes (cut in half and seeds removed before roasting) and some olive oil. It had a more mellow flavor as opposed to the peppery taste of the other dip.


I also had a white bean dip with thyme, lemon and olive oil; mini pancetta cornbreads; and not letting all those turkey leftovers go to waste, I put together these really yummy wraps of roasted turkey and cranberry apple chutney rolled in a flour tortilla and sliced into thick rounds.


As for the main event, there was beef roasted with thyme and honey, glazed baby carrots, roasted potatoes, turkey tetrazzini, chicken roasted with thyme and oregano, kreatopita and my sister's butternut squash casserole.


I know, I know ... it was a kid's party and yet none of what I just described was kid friendly per se, but my kid's eat things like this on a daily basis so why shouldn't others?! In all honesty, I saw many of the kids enjoying a little bit of everything that was out and that made me happy.


**It was all buffet style and nothing was plated as shown ... that's just for your viewing pleasure!!






Beef Roasted with Thyme and Honey

1 beef rump roast, about 6 1/2 pounds
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 tablespoons olive oil
3 medium onions, sliced
1 head of garlic, each clove peeled and mashed
5 carrots, cut into large chunks
2 cups red wine
3 cups broth
4 tablespoons thyme honey
6 sprigs fresh thyme


Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Rinse beef and pat dry with paper towels. Season with salt and pepper. Heat oil in large Dutch oven (or roasting pan over two burners) on high heat and then sear the beef until well browned on all sides. Remove the beef to a plate and keep warm. Add the onions, garlic and carrots to the Dutch oven or pan and saute until the onions are softened. Add the wine and deglaze the pan. Stir in the broth, honey and thyme and cook for a minute or so.

Place the beef back into the pan and cover tightly. Once covered, place the pan in the oven and roast for about four hours--turning the meat over a couple of times--until fork tender.

Kreatopita

1 pound ground lamb

1 pound ground pork

1/3 cup olive oil

1 teaspoon allspice

5 garlic cloves, minced

Thyme from 4 to 5 fresh sprigs

2 onions, chopped

1/3 cup red wine

2 heaping tablespoons tomato paste

1 cup parsley, chopped

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 eggs

1 cup grated Pecorino Romano or Kefalotyri

Grated orange zest (about 1/2 teaspoon or more if to your liking)

Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

10 sheets of phyllo

Oil for brushing phyllo

Combine the lamb and pork with half the olive oil, the allspice, the garlic, the thyme, salt and pepper to taste and let sit for about 15 minutes (or 2 hours in the refrigerator, time permitting).

Heat the remaining oil in a large skillet and saute the onions until soft. Transfer the onions to a bowl and the meat mixture. saute until browned. Add the wine and tomato paste and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for about 10 minutes.

Add the meat mixture to the reserved onions and stir. Mix in the grated cheese, parsley, orange zest, cinnamon, additional salt and pepper as well as the eggs and mix thoroughly.

Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Oil a 9-inch springform pan. Line the pan with one sheet of phyllo, keeping most of the phyllo to one side of the pan, and brush lightly with oil. Layer pan with remaining sheets of phyllo, alternately overlapping one side of the pan and then the others, brushing each sheet lightly with oil. Add the filling to the pan. Fold the overhanging phyllo up and over the filling, brushing lightly with oil.

Bake for about 1 hour and 20 minutes (if the phyllo browns too quickly, cover with foil). Allow to cool for about 20 to 30 minutes before cutting.

Pastitsada

Short ribs are one of my favorite cuts of beef. The other day I decided to stray away from my usual braising of the ribs with different vegetables and try them out in a specialty dish from Kerkyra, known as pastitsada.

I've tried many versions of this dish across Kerkyra, some made with rooster and others with beef. My favorites have never been based on which meat (I've enjoyed both the rooster and the beef) but always on the sauce. For me, the more the spices the better.

I made my version with loads of cinnamon and cloves, bay leaves and some red wine. The short ribs are quite a rich cut of meat and the hours--yes I said hours--of braising leave them so tender the meat just falls off the bone. Served with a side of penne, this is a meal my family loved.

Beef Short Ribs Pastitsada

Serves 6

5 pounds of beef short ribs

2 onions, sliced

3 cloves garlic, minced

3 bay leaves

6 cloves

2 cinnamon sticks

1 cup dry red wine

1 box good quality chopped tomatoes (26.5 oz)

Pinch of sugar

Salt and pepper to taste

1 box of penne

3 tablespoons of butter

Grated cheese

Season short ribs with salt and pepper. In a large dutch oven over medium high heat, sear the short ribs and remove to a plate once well browned. Add the onion to the dutch oven and cook until soft, stir in the garlic and cook a minute more. Toss in the cinnamon sticks, bay leaves and cloves and stir well. Add the red wine and deglaze until the wine is reduced. Stir in the tomatoes and bring to a boil. Season with the pinch of sugar, add some salt and pepper and simmer for a couple of minutes.

Add meat back to dutch oven. Cover with lid and transfer to a 325 degree oven and braise the short ribs for about 3 hours, until the meat is falling off the bone.

Meanwhile boil the penne until al dente. Drain pasta and then brown the butter in the pasta pot. Once butter has browned, add the penne back to the pot and toss to coat. Stir in some of the braising liquid. Top individual portions of penne with short ribs and sauce and sprinkle with grated cheese.

Burgers and Fries

We’ve taken the kids out to some farms the last couple of weekends to do some apple picking (to be the topic of a later post), pumpkin picking and to enjoy the outdoors before the weather changes. Luckily, we’ve picked up some great fruits and vegetables from these local farms which have made for some great dishes over the last couple of weeks. A farm we visited out on Long Island had gorgeous homegrown tomatoes, squash, lettuce, beets, potatoes, broccoli, onions, corn and more. Unfortunately, I always buy so much that in the end I don’t know where to store it all. Thank goodness the variety of squash I brought home held up well the last two weeks and we got to enjoy it in a number of ways.
Last night, I was in the mood for a burger so I put together these Feta Burgers in a jiffy and served them up with some oven baked Acorn Squash "Fries." I used mint I’d dried after collecting it fresh from our garden to flavor the ground beef. It was a quick and ultra easy meal--one loved by the kids and us adults alike.

Feta Burgers with Yogurt Sauce

1 1/2 lbs ground beef, or a combination of ground beef, veal or pork
One large onion, grated

One teaspoon dried mint
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
Tablespoon olive oil
¼ cup breadcrumbs
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1/3 cup crumbled Feta
One clove garlic, minced

Yogurt Sauce:
1/3 cup Fage Yogurt
½ teaspoon Dijon

One small clove garlic, minced
Salt and Pepper to taste

Sliced onion and tomatoes
4 Pitas

Combine ground beef with remaining ingredients and knead briefly to incorporate. Form into large patties. Heat grill pan or griddle and place patties on to cook once hot. Cook burgers about 5 minutes on each side.
Meanwhile, combine yogurt, mustard, garlic, salt and pepper and stir well. Heat pitas through and cut into fourths. Top each burger with onion, tomato and yogurt sauce and place between two slices of pita. Serve with Acorn Squash “Fries” (peeled, sliced acorn squash tossed with a couple of tablespoons of olive oil, salt and pepper, arranged in a single layer on a baking sheet and roasted in a 375 degree oven until tender and browned).