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Unofficial TESA Foodie thread


WhoGuru
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Eye of Round Oven Roast

 

Eye of round is a very lean roast, but can be quite tender if cooked properly. I've used this high heat method a few times, and it always yields a delicious, tender roast.

  1. Take roast out of fridge and allow to sit for 30 minutes
  2. Mix together 6 cloves of minced garlic, 1 tsp coarse sea salt, 1 tsp black pepper, and 1/2 tsp thyme with 1 tbsp olive oil. Allow to sit for 10 minutes.
  3. Preheat oven to 500F
  4. Rub roast with seasonings and place in shallow dish
  5. Cook for 7 minutes per pound.
  6. Turn oven off and [without opening the over door] allow to sit for 2.5 hours
  7. After 2.5 hours, take the roast out and check its internal temp with an instant read thermometer. The temperature should be between 130-150 degrees. Put the finished roast on a plate, cover it with tin foil, and allow it to rest for 10 minutes.
  8. Carve it into 1/2″ slices and enjoy!

As a quick reference, here are the standard temperature/doneness levels for roasts:

 

120°F to 125°F, (49°C to 52°C) = Rare

130°F to 140°F (55°C to 60°C) = Medium Rare

145°F to 150°F (63°C to 66°C) = Medium

 

Want to save time cooking sides? Place potatoes and carrots in the dish with the roast.

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Perogies (Store bought) with Bacon and Caramelized Onions

 

Ingredients:

  • 1 package bacon
  • 1 package frozen cheddar and potato perogies
  • 1 large yellow onion, diced
  • 2 tsp sugar
  • dash cayenne
  • 1 tsp olive oil
  • 2 tbsp butter
  • salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

  1. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and arrange bacon. I find it's easier to do if the strips are cut in half beforehand
  2. Place in cold oven, and set temp to 325. Cook for 30 minutes
  3. Drain oil into a glass or metal container. Make sure to strain it to remove any unwanted bits
  4. Blot bacon with paper towels, and cut into bits.
  5. Melt butter in oil in a medium saucepan.
  6. Add diced onion and coat in butter. Cover, and cook for 10 minutes
  7. Sprinkle sugar and cayenne over onions, and stir well. Cook uncovered for 20 minutes stirring frequently. The onions should be golden brown.
  8. Using a deep stockpot, heat 6 quarts of salted water to boiling.
  9. Add frozen perogies, and cook until they are floating at the top (around 5-10 minutes)
  10. Remove the perogies from the water using a slotted sppon and place on bacon baking sheet (no need to swap parchment paper) brush tops with strained bacon grease and bake for 15 minutes per side at 325F, or until golden brown.

If you must use sour cream, use it sparingly. Too much will overwhelm the sweet/spicy/salty combination provided by the bacon and onions.

Edited by Notorious
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*

 

No recipes, just a few tips that take an average meal into a memorable one:

 

 

Chill glass bowl and knife when making buttermilk biscuits. Add the flour to the chilled bowl - and when When blending the lard in use the chilled knife - only making cuts through the flour with it. Your biscuits will come out PERFECT. 
 
Also, if you absolutely can't get buttermilk - a cheat: squeeze a few drops of fresh lemon into a cup of whole milk, let sit one hour. It will curdle nicely. 
 
 
2nd tip:  (Not for dieters).
 
When making mashed potatoes, NEVER USE MARGERINE!  Add real butter only to the steamed, drained potatoes, then as you are whipping them  - crack a raw egg into the mixer blades.  When it is fully blended in, add just a bit of heavy cream (not milk) in and whip it thoroughly.
 
Your family will go nuts over them!
 
The heavy Cream and egg brings your mashed potatoes to a whole new realm of flavor and adds a nuance of rich texture to the mashed potatoes.  If you have to use milk - absolutely go with the egg and real butter.  It is not quite as good as with the heavy cream, but still makes a huge diff in taste.
 
Also, when making scalloped potatoes - NO MILK, NO MARGERINE - use heavy cream and real butter.
 
 
 
3rd tip:
 
Italian dinners - don't buy a plastic can of grated Parmesan cheese. Buy a wedge of fresh Parmigiano-Reggiano and grate it yourself, same with Romano cheese. - you can't help but taste the difference, and your family will def notice it.
 
 
 
A better homemade potato soup:
 
Add fresh celery and onions when you add the potatoes.  A little over halfway through the cooking add fresh mushrooms (halved or quartered; I prefer Shiitake over Portabello for the milder flavor).  Always use  heavy cream not milk to thicken, and only use real butter (not margerine).   These extras bring it out of the realm of potato soup and make it a taste sensation.  If you like you can  garnish with crumbled bacon and hand grated chedder (that's a matter of personal taste).
 
 
*
Edited by mALX
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Turkey, Chicken, or Game Hens - Never have a dry bird again!   

 

 

Prep:   Rinse the bird with cold water inside and out, dry with a clean (lint free) towel.  Salt the inside cavity and sprinkle lightly with parsley. 

 

 

Stuffing:  Add one whole small diced onion and 3-4 fresh celery stalks to the dry bread cubes.    Season your (turkey or chicken) broth and bring to a boil.   Don't over-do the sage, it is better off under-used than over-used.  

 
 Pour the boiling hot broth over the dry bread cubes/celery/onion mix.     I place a lint free towel over and let it sit five minutes, but any cover will do.
  
In five minutes lift the cover and fold in fresh whole mushrooms  -  try not to stir as it will mash up the stuffing and ruin the texture.   
 
Stuff the bird: 
 
Cut one stick of real butter into pats, and lay within arms reach as you begin with the bird.    Run your clean fingers under the skin of the bird's breasts to loosen it from the meat.  Fill the pouches of skin over the breast meat with the stuffing mix.  
 
When it is fully packed with the stuffing, take the pats of butter and slide them under the skin but on top of the stuffing;  place pats all along the bone line, over the breasts, all  the way down toward the neck, and over each of the thighs.  
 
Any remaining stuffing can be shoved in the body cavity, place the remaining pats of real butter over the stuffing and along the breast bone.  
 
Tie the legs together so the stuffing stays in.  Season outside of bird  (back first, then lay in roasting pan on back and season the breasts).    ROAST IMMEDIATELY after stuffing!      
 
You will never have a dry bird again - the mushrooms, onions, and celery do most of their cooking in the bird as it roasts so their flavor and juices seep into the meat, keeping it very moist and tasty.
 
 
 
***
 
 
Italian food:
 
Homemade meatballs falling apart in the sauce?  After you shape them, roll them in parsley  They will still absorb the flavor of the sauce but retain their shape.
 
Tip:  For better tasting meatballs - for every pound of ground beef used, add 1/4 pound of ground lean pork loin.  Mix well.   Moisten the bread crumbs with milk not water.
 
When making homemade spaghetti sauce - add meatballs, Italian sausage, and chicken breasts.  (you can also add pork loin chops and use them later for "mock veal Parmisian").
 
The chicken breasts makes great chicken cacciatore and it flavors the sauce wonderfully.  
 
Tired of Spaghetti and meatballs/sausage?   
 
Flat slice the meatballs and sausage.  Fry up flat-sliced eggplant (season and roll in plain flour before frying) - cook eggplant thoroughly. 
 
Layer it all into a casserole dish as follows:  
 
Sauce
Eggplant
Sauce
Sausage
Sauce
Fresh grated Italian cheeses (see above post for cheeses to use)  
Meatballs
Sauce
More fresh grated Italian cheeses
 
Bake in low-heat oven just long enough to meld flavors.  Don't overcook or use too high a heat or sauce will taste burned  - Awesome Italian casserole.
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Good ones mALX, I remember my grandma stirring a little vinegar into the milk to sour it up.

I think mine did too, but I found I like the lemon juice better for the flavor of the biscuits.  (Not to say my Nonna's biscuits weren't awesome, of course, lol).  

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  • 8 months later...

11863268_10156152299390314_1789374577137


1 1/2 cups almost hot water
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons salt

1 package active yeast

~4 1/2 cups flour

2oz melted butter (half a stick)

2/3 cup baking soda

1 egg yolk, beaten with 2 tablespoons water

 

 

 

in a large bowl, combine sugar, water, salt and yeast. let it sit until frothy, about 5 minutes or so
add the butter and flour and mix well to form a soft dough. knead it by hand for about 5 mins

put into a greased bowl, then turn so greased side is up, cover with a cloth and sit in a warm place until doubled, about one hour

 

fill a [pot with water and add the baking soda, turn on high to get it boiling (when it boils, the bubbles will be tiny, not big bubbles like a typical rolling boil)

 

put dough onto a lightly floured surface and cut into 6-8 pieces.

roll the sections out by hand into "ropes" about 24 inches long. twist into a pretzel shape, and wet the ends a bit so the dough sticks to itself

 

;line a baking sheet with parchment or a silpat and then (using a large spatula or fryer scoop) gently lower the pretzels into the water one a a time (30-45 seconds - if they sunk, they should be floating by now)

this helps with that classic "shiny" skin

place on the parchment paper and brush with the egg mixture, sprinkle salt if desired

bake at 450 degrees for 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown

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Pretzel recipe! :trophy:

 

I'll probably wet one side after they cook and press them firmly into sea salt - for I eat heart-smart :lmao:

 

Once I accidentally mixed the mustard and the cheese on my soft pretzel. I didn't think it would be good but I was dead wrong.

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  • 2 years later...

I did have a beer-washed cheese recently.  It was really nice!

Also as an Englishwoman my guilty secret is that I prefer St Agur to Stilton.  Though Stilton is often served at the wrong temperature, too cold and therefore too hard and the flavour has been chilled out of it: incidentally, the same mistake people often make with real ales, which should be served neither warm nor cold but "cellar temperature".

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