perfect meal for a snowy day: slowly simmered beef ragu

We knew we'd wake up to a thick blanket of snow this morning, that school was cancelled and that the trains would be a mess. So, last night sort of felt like a Friday night. Homework was put off, the kids stayed up later than usual, and the wine was flowing. It was a comfort food kind of night, and this slowly simmered Beef Ragu Chiantigiana (fancy word for meat sauce) hit the spot. Plus I tucked two more containers of it away in the freezer for nights when I don't have the luxury of time!

Beef Ragu Chiantigiana

(makes 12 servings and freezes perfectly)

4 T olive oil

4 T butter

1 large onion, chopped

6 carrots, chopped

6 ribs celery, chopped

4 cloves of garlic, minced

2 lbs ground beef

fresh or dried rosemary, chopped

fresh or dried oregano

fresh sage, chopped

1 bottle red wine

two 28 oz. cans chopped tomatoes, drained

3 cups whole milk

splash of red wine vinegar

2 T capers (optional)

+ your favorite cooked pasta

+ Parmesan

Heat the olive oil and butter over medium heat in a large, heavy saucepan or soup pot. Add onions, carrots and celery. Season with salt and pepper and cook until soft and lightly browned. Add garlic, ground beef and herbs. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the meat is thoroughly cooked. Add bottle of red wine, chopped tomatoes, whole milk, a splash of red wine vinegar and capers. Lower heat until the sauce is at a gentle simmer and cook for at least 1 hour and up to 3 hours, stirring occasionally. Toss with your favorite pasta and serve with grated Parmesan if you like.

This sauce freezes perfectly, so package any remaining sauce in the size containers that will be useful to you. Simply thaw the sauce in the fridge and then heat it in a saucepan.

The Oven-Baked Meatballs I always come back to...

A couple of years back, a now defunct (but very cool) local kid’s store lured the gals from Kitchen Cabinet up to Fairfield County. I forget the topic they were speaking on…I think it was “healthy kids meals” or something timely like that. I’d closed my personal chef business, and was keeping busy cooking for my family and friends so I went, excited to learn from these foodie parents and entrepreneurs. I remember leaving the presentation with some localvore knowledge, and some paranoia about dairy (or was it meat, or was it produce…I can’t remember). Anyway, in my mind, the most helpful thing that came out of that meeting was their recipe for Oven-Baked Meatballs. Meatballs are easy to make. I make meatballs several times a year because I can make them in a big batch and freeze them. And depending upon what I have on hand, I’ll add grated veggies or some soaked whole grains which makes them even more moist and healthy. But I always come back to this recipe. There’s something about the addition of lemon and cinnamon that makes them special…

Oven-Baked Meatballs from Kitchen Cabinet
Makes about 20 Meatballs

Olive oil
1 lb ground beef
1 or 2 garlic cloves, pressed
½ cup bread crumbs*
1 egg
1/3 cup whole milk
Zest of 1 lemon
¼ teaspoon of cinnamon
½ cup shredded Parmesan
Dash of salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 375. Pour a drizzle of olive oil on rimmed baking sheets. Set aside.

Put the rest of the ingredients in a large mixing bowl, and combine with your hands until blended. Form into ping pong-size balls, and then place them on the cookie sheet.

Bake the meatballs for 25 minutes, flipping them halfway through the cook time. The meatballs with be nicely browned when done…but light and fluffy, with the slightest crispy edge, when eaten! These meatballs freeze beautifully, so go on and make a double batch. These are perfect to have on hand for busy nights, eaten as is or served with spaghetti.

* I usually use whole wheat breadcrumbs in recipes, but today I was yakking away with my dear friend, Leslie, when I realized I didn’t have any in the house. The kids were playing quietly (truth be told: one was watching a National Geograhpic show about the moon and the other was napping for the first time this week), so a trip to the market was the last thing I wanted to do at 4pm. “Just throw some crackers in the Cuisinart” Leslie suggested. And so, I ground up equal amounts of Saltines and Ak-Mak. Perfect substitution!

Stuffed Acorn Squash + Meat Sauce Too

I didn’t rush to post the recipe for Stuffed Acorn Squash, since my one child that didn’t like the acorn squash the first time still didn’t like it this go round. My goal in posting recipes is to pass along ideas of meals or sides you can make that have a high likelihood that both the kids and the parents will enjoy. But, I still think this one is worth sharing. First it’s such a comforting, cozy Fall dinner. And second, the remaining meat mixture you have left after stuffing the acorn squash can be combined with your favorite jarred tomato sauce and voila!: a fabulous meat sauce (which goes over particularly well here when served over Trader Joe’s Alphabet Pasta). So, all is not lost if one of your kids still isn’t digging the squash.

Stuffed Acorn Squash (makes 4)

2 acorn squashes, sliced in half, seeds scooped out
Olive oil
Rimmed baking sheet
1 lb ground beef (preferably lean)
4 Sweet Italian Sausages, casings removed
1 large (or 2 small) onion(s), chopped
2 handfuls of shredded Mozzarella
1 handful of shredded Asiago or Parmesan
(1 extra handful of either cheese to sprinkle on top)
Kosher salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Drizzle some olive oil on the rimmed baking sheet and rub the cut side of the acorn squash in it so it’s lightly covered. Turn it right side up and pinch a little salt and pepper onto the acorn squash (kids can help with this part). Put it back down on the sheet (cut side down so you’ve got these four little mounds looking at you). Bake it for 25 minutes.

In the meantime, in a large fry pan, sauté the beef, sausage and onion until cooked. Take the pan off the heat and stir in the cheeses. If you get done with this part before the squash is done cooking, let it sit (off the heat) and pick up a magazine. Once the squash comes out of the oven, turn it cut side (sunny side) up (green side down). If it’s too wobbly on its base, simply cut across the base—just a little—enough to make it level. Then stuff each squash with as much of the meat mixture as you can fit in there. Sprinkle with cheese. Pop back into the oven for another 15 minutes, until the squash is tender when pierced with a fork.

This can be made ahead and reheated in the microwave, so perfect for a bust night in the week ahead. And, as mentioned above, any extra meat mixture can be combined with your favorite jarred sauce for an instant second meal of a fabulous meat sauce to go on pasta!

Sloppy Kids

I must have cafeteria food on the mind these days, given that I whipped these up for my kids. But trust me, these are better than you remember from the lunch line, and make for a kid-pleasing dinner in a hurry!

Sloppy Joe's

1 pound ground beef or turkey
Green Pepper, chopped
Onion, Chopped
Celery, Chopped
Tomato, chopped
15 oz jar tomato sauce
Ketchup
Mustard
Brown Sugar
Cider Vinegar
Whole Wheat Burger Buns

Sauté the onion and beef (or turkey) in a bit of olive oil, then drain the oil. Toss in the peppers, chopped tomato and celery.

Add the tomato sauce, then a hearty squeeze of ketchup, mustard, and brown sugar, stir. A splash of cider vinegar (for zing). Let the flavors meld as it cooks over low heat for about 10 minutes.

Serve on whole wheat buns. Can definitely be made ahead, and kept in the fridge (or freezer) until you get home from sports practices, music classes or a long afternoon playing outside!

Creating Supper: Beef & Bulgur Meatballs

Meatballs are difficult to mess up. As I continue to share recipes with my friends (and their friends…and their friends…) you’ll see that there’s a pattern to the way I like to cook. As I mentioned before, I like recipe as a source of ideas. But when it comes to actually cooking, I do not like to worry about exactly how much of a spice I am supposed to add…or that I don’t have a particular ingredient a recipe calls for. If you’re an experienced cook you know that substitutions are easy, once you have a comfort level with flavors that compliment one another. If your learning curve is straight up when it comes to the kitchen, then practice will make perfect!

Tonight I plan to whip up Beef & Bulgur Meatballs for a new friend who just had a baby. A homemade meal is the perfect gift because it nourishes and comforts. In addition to being a client favorite when I had my personal chef business, this is one of those meals that when I make it for a friend she always asks for the recipe, so she can then share it with her friend. It is simple to prepare, yet complex in flavor. And so, now I share it with you.

BEEF & BULGUR MEATBALLS
1 cup organic beef broth
1 cup bulgur wheat* (dry, comes in a box or bag usually near rice/grains in the supermarket)
1 organic orange, zested and juiced
1 small can organic tomato paste
1 or 2 large cans (the 35 oz. variety) organic diced tomatoes (amt of diced tomatoes depends upon how much sauce you like, I always err on more sauce than less)
Brown sugar (about 4 Tablespoons, you’ll taste the sauce and add until desired level of sweetness)
Cider vinegar (again, about 4 Tablespoons, you’ll taste the sauce and add until desired level of zing…keep in mind that as the sauce cooks the taste will mellow)
1 bunch fresh basil, chopped
Salt & Pepper to taste
2 lbs organic (or all natural) ground beef
1 bunch of scallions, white parts and a little green, sliced thin
2 or 3 eggs
allspice (eyeball about ½ teaspoon, more if you like the taste of allspice...this is going into the raw meatballs so you cannot taste as you go)
ginger, ground (again part of the raw meatballs so start by eyeballing about ¼ teaspoon, and feel free to add a bit more if you particularly like the taste of ginger…)
dash of salt & pepper

1. Combine boiling broth + bulgur. Cover tightly and let stand for 30 minutes or more. (This is how you are re-hydrating the bulgur for the meatballs.)
2. Preheat oven to 375.
3. For the sauce: zest and juice the orange into a saucepan and cook over med heat until the juice is reduced by half. Then combine tomato paste, tomatoes, brown sugar, vinegar, basil, salt & pepper in the saucepan with the OJ and zest. Bring to a boil and simmer about 15 minutes or until blended nicely. You may want to add more vinegar or brown sugar depending upon your taste….
4. For the meatballs (*This is when it would be easiest if I was in your kitchen showing you an example of ideal consistency, but since most of you reading this blog are probably going to try the recipe on your own here's something to keep in mind: think about the bulgur wheat as breadcrumbs if you were making meatballs. Add as much of the re-hydrated bulgur wheat as you'd like. I always add it all, and find it makes the meatballs moist and fiber rich, but you could add half as much and end up with "meatier" meatballs too if that's your preference): combine bulgur, ground beef, eggs, scallions, parsley, allspice, ginger, dash or salt & pepper. Mix well and form into meatballs.
5. Place meatballs in baking dish and cover with sauce. Cover the baking dish tightly with foil and bake at 375 for about 30 minutes (or longer if you’ve made big ‘ol meatballs).

Another benefit of this dish is that it freezes beautifully. So, if you don’t have a friend to share this dinner with, pop the other half into your freezer and enjoy it within the next 2 months!