A Nor Easter. Bring It On.

Look, after 17 years of writing these blog posts, I know the drill. I’m supposed to give you a sprawling, 2,000-word essay about the profound emotional resonance of ground beef, or a heartwarming childhood memory of braving a blizzard just to buy fresh thyme.

But there’s a Nor’easter predicted for tonight and tomorrow, even though it is only September.

Sometimes you don't need a deeply personal story. You just need comfort food, and you need it with absolutely zero fuss. This is Mark Bittman’s basic meatloaf. It’s warm, it’s hearty, and it doesn’t require you to think too hard at the end of a long day. Just mix it up, get it in the oven, and go put on your warmest sweatpants. Let the storm do whatever it wants outside—we have meatloaf.

Stay safe and stay warm.

The Meatloaf recipe from Mark Bitmans's How to Cook Everything - The Basics.

Ingredients-

Fresh breadcrumbs made from 1 or 2 slices of good-quality white bread
2 lb (900 g) ground beef (or veal, lamb, and/or pork combined with beef)
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 small onion, minced
1 small carrot, peeled and minced
1/2 cup (50 g) freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup (10 g) minced fresh parsley
1/2 teaspoon minced fresh thyme
salt and freshly ground black pepper

Other Ingredients-

I like to add some extra things to our meatloaf. There are no measurements. They are all the same amount: "some".

Some ketchup.

Some Dijon mustard.

Some Worcestershire sauce.

And a touch of horseradish sauce.

Method-

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Mix together all of the ingredients. 

Shape the meat into a loaf in a baking pan (a free-form meatloaf baked in a larger pan will be less greasy than one baked in a loaf pan). 

Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, basting occasionally with the rendered pan juices. 

When done, the meatloaf will be lightly browned and firm, and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center of the loaf will read 160°F.

Country Chicken Vegetable Soup

This recipe has been in my recipe box for a very long time. At least 34 years. I found the recipe in a box of Ronzoni Ditalini pasta.

Ingredients-

1 lb chicken breast, cut into 1/2" pieces

2 tbsp olive oil

1 large carrot, chopped

1 small onion, chopped

1 46 oz can chicken broth

1 cup water

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/8 tsp pepper

1 cup Ronzoni Ditalini

2 cups frozen mixed vegetables

2 tsp chopped parsley

Method-

Cook the chicken in hot oil until lightly browned; remove from pan.

Place the carrot and onion in the pan, stir, and cook until tender but not browned.

Add broth, water, nutmeg, and pepper.

Bring to a boil.

Stir in pasta.

Cook uncovered for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add remaining ingredients and chicken.

Simmer for about 4 minutes or until vegetables are tender.

Roast Pork Tenderloin and Potatoes

Tasty dinner! The recipe is from So Much Food Blog. Two thumbs up from across the table.

Ingredients-

1 lb pork tenderloin 

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1/4 cup olive oil

2 teaspoons aged balsamic vinegar

1 tablespoon minced fresh rosemary leaves

1 tablespoon minced fresh sage leaves

1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

Method-

Mix the marinade. 

Whisk together the olive oil, Dijon, rosemary, sage, balsamic, salt, and pepper until smooth. 

Reserve 2 tablespoons of the marinade and set aside.

Prep the pork. 

Start by using a sharp knife to trim away any silver skin.

Cut the pork into 2” cubes

Marinate the pork. 

Place the pork in a Ziploc bag or baking dish and coat with the marinade. 

Transfer to the fridge and marinate for at least 2 hours, up to overnight.

Preheat the oven to 400 F.

Season the potatoes. 

Toss the potatoes with half of the reserved marinade plus one tablespoon of olive oil. 

Season with salt and pepper and toss well. 

Spread the potatoes in an even layer in the skillet or braiser. 

Transfer to the oven for 15 minutes.

Sear the pork. 

Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large cast iron skillet or braiser over medium-high heat. 

Remove the pork from the marinade and shake off any excess marinade. 

Sear the pork for a couple of minutes on all sides until browned. 

Once browned, transfer to a plate and turn off the heat.

Remove the skillet or braiser from the oven. 

Place the pork on top and return to the oven.

Roast the pork. Roast for 10-15 minutes, until the internal temperature reaches 145˚F-150˚F. 

Rib-Eye Steak and Potatoes for Two

Another New York Times Cooking Recipe tonight, 
Rib-Eye Steak and Potatoes for Two.

Not a bad dinner. I would have liked the steak cooked a bit less medium, but it was nicely seasoned.

Also made a Tomato and Freselle salad as a side.

Here is my version of Rib-Eye Steak and Potatoes for Two

Ingredients-

• 1 large boneless rib-eye steak, cut 2 inches thick (at least 1 ½ pounds)

• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

• 1 rosemary sprig, roughly chopped

• 1 pound very small potatoes, rinsed

• 2 tablespoons butter

• ¼ cup finely chopped parsley

• Finely grated zest of 1 small lemon
  
  

Method-

Season steak generously with salt and pepper. 

Sprinkle with rosemary and set aside to marinate for 20 to 30 minutes.

Heat oven to 450 degrees. 

Meanwhile, bring a pot of well-salted water to a boil. 

Add potatoes and cook at a brisk simmer until just done, 10 to 15 minutes. 

Drain and keep warm.

Heat a cast-iron or other heavy skillet over high heat.

When the pan is hot, put in the steak and let it brown well on one side, 4 to 5 minutes. 

Wait until the steak forms a crust and comes away cleanly from the bottom to move it.

Flip steak and transfer pan to oven, uncovered. 

Roast until juices begin to rise on the surface of the steak (you will see the droplets) and internal temperature is 120 degrees, 5 to 7 minutes. 

Remove steak from pan and let rest, tented with foil, for 5 minutes. (Residual heat will continue to cook the meat to medium-rare as it rests.) 

Melt butter in a wide skillet over medium-high heat. 

Add potatoes and toss to coat and heat through. 

Sprinkle with salt and pepper. 

Gently stir in parsley and lemon zest and transfer to serving bowl.

Cutting on a slight diagonal, slice steak into ½-inch slices, then transfer to plates.

Pan-Fried Shrimp

Dinner on the table in just 15 minutes—using only a single pan! It’s the ultimate weeknight lifesaver, and trust me, it tastes absolutely incredible. Sorry the photo is not up to par.

Ingredients-

8 tablespoons butter, divided

1 pound peeled and deveined bay shrimp

1 tablespoon lemon juice, divided

Salt and ground black pepper to taste

Method-

Melt 6 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over high heat. 

Add shrimp; cook and stir in hot butter until browned, about 2 minutes. 

Reduce heat to medium-low.

Stir in 1 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice, salt, and pepper; cook until heated through, about 1 minute. 

Remove from heat; stir in remaining 2 tablespoons butter and 1 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice.