Borscht-Braised Beef Short Ribs – It Sure Beats Beets

Even though I often joke about naming dishes a certain way to help with the search engines, I rarely actually do. Mostly because I don’t get a bonus for extra traffic, but with this borscht-braised beef short ribs, I fully admit to intentionally not using the “B” word.

I would hate for someone who thinks they hate beets to not even watch the video. I figured if we could trick them into at least seeing the dish in all its colorful glory, they’d simply have to give it a try. Unless they don't like beets, and gorgeous things.

By the way, I can totally relate to the “I don’t eat beets” people, as I am one. I’ve never been a big fan, but in certain things, like borscht, I love them. With that simple soup as an inspiration, I thought the flavors would work nicely with the rich, fatty short ribs, and they sure did.

Will this be enough to change your mind about beets? There’s only one way to find out. I hope you give this a try soon. Enjoy!


Ingredients for 4 portions:
1 tbsp vegetable oil
3 pounds beef short ribs, cut into 3-inch pieces, seasoned generously with salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 yellow onion, chopped
2 tbsp all-purpose flour
3 cups chicken broth
1 bay leaf
1 cup cubed carrots
1/2 cup chopped celery
1 pound beets, cut in large pieces (about two large ball sized beets, cut in eighths)
2 teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste
- Optional step: when you taste your finished sauce, if you want to add some acidity to balance the sweetness, adjust with a splash of white vinegar.
- Garnish with sour cream and chives
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Canadian Candy Bars

About a year ago I was in Toronto with some journalists, including one from Germany. He had been to the US many times but it was his first trip to Canada. He remarked that he thought Canada would look different somehow. The truth is, when you travel to Canada from the United States, it doesn’t always look very different. Especially on the surface. The U.S. has a lot in common with Canada, but there are some subtle (and not so subtle) differences. One difference? Candy bars! 

The candy bars in question are made by Nestle and Cadbury, but they are not the same as candy bars in other parts of the world, and none of the ones I brought back from my last trip across the border are available in the US, not that I know of anyway. I’m not much of a candy bar fan, and these are everyday, available-in-the-supermarket candy bars, but I still think it's fun to try something different now and again. 

So what are they like?

The Coffee Crisp is my favorite. It’s light and crunchy, a bit like a Kit Kat bar but with a distinct coffee flavor. It's made in Canada and has layers of vanilla wafers and a coffee filling. There was actually a campaign to bring this bar to the U.S.  

The Wunderbar was recommended to me by another traveling companion and pal, the Global Gumshoe. It has many of the flavors of a Snickers bar and the texture of a Butterfingers bar. It has a light crispy crunch, and mild peanut flavor but no crunchy nuts. It is very thick and chewy with caramel. 

Mr.Big is a bit like a lighter version of the Wunderbar, cararmel, peanuts, crisp vanilla wafer and rice crisps, but much more delicate. And well, bigger. 

The Crunchie is another top pick, a bit like a Violet Crumble it’s a honeycomb toffee bar, though the chocolate coating is milk chocolate and very sweet. The airy texture and richer flavor are very appealing.

What candy bars do you like to bring home to the US? Or from the US if you live abroad? Let me know in the comments.

Curious about my trip to Canada? Check out this terrific video of Nova Scotia from the Global Gumshoe --and see if you can spot me!
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Next Up: Something with Beef Short Ribs


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Titus' Vanilla Cake

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Titus and Dante wanted to make a cake. I had them make this  classic quatre-quarts plus a little vanilla, but you can add whatever you'd like. For vanilla though, use vanilla extract or the scraped out seeds from a fresh vanilla pod if you have it - that's the best.

This is, literally, easy as cake. Easy enough for kids, for sure. And delicious! Leftovers? Well, this keeps well-wrapped in the fridge for several days. Or you can toast a slice or two, top with with berries and whipped cream perhaps?

Titus' Vanilla Cake

200 g eggs (3 or 4, depending on how large they are) 
200 g sugar
200 g flour
1 tsp baking powder
200 g butter, melted
1 tsp vanilla


Beat eggs and sugar until pale and fluffy. Stir in flour and baking powder, and the melted butter and the vanilla. Pour into a well-lined cake pan and bake in a 200°C oven, for 30-35 minutes. Check to make sure it's baked through.
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Crispy “Peking Duck” Lettuce Cups – Faster, Easier, and Better?

I was going to say that one of these days we’ll actually make a proper Peking duck recipe, but that’s probably not going to happen. That takes multiple steps, several days, and requires a place to hang the ducks to dry. Most modern homes don’t have a duck drying room.

However, using this relatively quick and simple technique, we can achieve something kind of similar, which many people would say, all things considered, is even better. Well, maybe not “many people,” but I would say that. These were really, really good.

Regarding the Chinese five-spice seen herein; mine contained cinnamon, anise seed, cloves, ginger, and fennel; but these ingredients can vary. Believe it or not, despite the name, many contain more than five spices, as things like pepper, nutmeg, orange peel, and cardamom, are also common additions. The good news is, for something like this, any combination of those will work.

If you’re not into lettuce cups for whatever reason, you can also use this technique for serving whole duck legs. The only difference is, don’t cut them up. Since this is something that can be made well ahead of time, it works nicely for large groups. Just simply reheat, and crisp up the skin before serving. I really hope you give these a try soon. Enjoy!


Ingredients:
6 whole duck legs
1 tbsp veg oil
1 tbsp kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons Chinese 5-spice powder
3 green onions, cut into large pieces
5 garlic cloves, halved

For the sauce (everything here is to taste, so please adjust):
1/4 cup hoisin sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon hot sauce
1/2 lemon juiced

Serve in lettuce cups, garnished with cucumber, green onions, and sesame seeds.
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Brown Butter Caramelized Banana Bread


I am a zombie.  Yesterday morning, Carson and I woke up, flew to LA, attended the Emmy's, and then flew home on a red-eye last night.  Essentially, we spent 12 hours in Los Angeles and another 12 hours on a plane in a 24-hour timespan.  I am a zombie.  BUT, it was allll worth it because The Voice won an Emmy!!!!  I was so proud of Carson and everyone that works so hard on the show, and it was very exciting to be there in person to cheer them on.  Tonight starts a new season, so tune in!!

Moving on to this ridiculously delicious banana bread that I made on Saturday morning in guilty preparation for leaving my children.  I think it worked, because they barely missed us and made us pretty cute "welcome home" signs.  Go, banana bread, go!  I tried out a couple of new techniques after seeing this recipe.  First, I caramelized the bananas by roasting them in the oven with a little honey and cinnamon.  Then, I browned the butter and let it cool slightly before adding it to the batter.    


By doing these two things, the banana bread tasted sinful.  Almost as if I had added rum or peanut butter.  It has a caramely, slightly nutty flavor, and it's perfectly moist and plain old delicious.  No need to bake this out of guilt, just bake this!  And watch The Voice tonight!  Ok, I'll take a nap now...


Brown Butter Caramelized Banana Bread
(Makes 1 loaf)
Printable Recipe

4 ripe bananas
Honey
Cinnamon
1 1/4 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
6 T unsalted butter
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup sour cream
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Peel bananas, and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet.  Drizzle with honey and sprinkle with cinnamon.  Place in oven, and cook for 20 minutes, until bananas begin to caramelize.  Remove, and set aside to let cool.  Reduce oven heat to 350 degrees.

While bananas are roasting, melt butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat, until it begins to brown and let off a nutty aroma.  Remove from heat, and set aside to let cool.

In a small bowl, whisk together dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and nutmeg). In a larger bowl, add the bananas and mash.  Stir in the butter, vanilla, sour cream, brown sugar and eggs, and combine until just smooth.  Add the dry ingredients, and stir to combine.  Pour batter into a greased bread pan, and bake for one hour.  
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Poached Pears “Belle Helene” - Why Escoffier Really Created This Dish

They say Auguste Escoffier created this dish in honor of the opera, La Belle Helen, but we chefs know the real reason. How else are you going to use up bruised pears in such a delicious and beautiful way? Okay, so maybe that wasn’t his motivation, but as you’ll see in the video, it sure does work great.

The recipe is very straightforward, so instead we’ll go into your options for the chocolate sauce, as well as what to do with all that extra simple syrup. We have two chocolate preparations that will work for this (and have been linked). The first would be our easy hot fudge recipe; and the second, and more traditional choice, would be the classic chocolate ganache.

If you follow the link to the later, you’ll be taken to our Boston Cream Pie video, where you’ll see the technique for creating a classic ganache, but you’ll probably need to adjust the ratio of cream to chocolate. Generally it’s equal parts chocolate and cream, but if you want something more pourable, then 2 parts cream to 1 part chocolate (by weight) would work better.

As far as the extra vanilla poaching liquid goes; you’ll want to strain it, pour it into some cool looking bottles, and give it away as edible gifts. The taste is incredible. Better than the pears, if we’re being honest, and would make a fantastic holiday treat for the wannabe mixologists in your life. I really hope you give this a try soon. Enjoy!


Ingredients for 4 poached pears:
6 cups water
zest and juice of one lemon
4 bosc pears, cored and peeled (you can also use Anjou or Bartlett)
1 split vanilla bean, or a few teaspoons of vanilla extract
3 cups sugar
Simmer for about 20-25 minutes, depending on size and firmness
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Wine Folly Book Review


Because I used to develop recipes to pair with wines (for a now defunct online wine retailer) I have quite a collection of wine books. The book I probably use the most these days just to learn about wine is The Wine Bible, by Karen McNeil. I am eagerly anticipating the next edition, due out next month. However another book came across my desk recently that I am really enjoying. While by no means comprehensive, it does really get at the important stuff, especially when it comes to enjoying wine, not just geeking out on it. 


Wine Folly, The Essential Guide to Wine is just that, a book that includes the fundamentals of wine—such as how wine is made, how to read a wine lablel, a glossary, how to taste, pair and serve wine, profiles of popular and under the radar wine varietals, regional maps and and more. It uses lots of infographics, data visualization, icons and imagery to help simplify the information. I particularly appreciate that is goes beyond the standard oft repeated information. For example in the pairing section there are pages on vegetable, herb and spice pairings not just the typical how to pair wines with meat or cheeeses. 

Because the book focuses on the big picture, it does miss some details, particularly in terms of soils. For example the listing for Soave includes the flavor profile of the wine, dominant and possible flavors as well as the main grape type, common styles, where it grows, how to serve, store and pair it.  However I was just at a seminar about Soave where I learned that the two main styles of Soave vary by the region and soil type—when produced in the South West the soil is limestone the wines are citrus, linear and floral. When produced in the Eastern and Central part of the region the soil is volcanic and the wines are richer and oilier in texture. Is that an important detail to know? It all depends on you. 

In particular I find the tips on where to find value, terrific wine region maps and color icons of wine flavors really make this book a keeper and are guaranteed to deepen your appreciation and enjoyment of wine. Check out the popular blog from Wine Folly to get more of a sense of the style of the book. 

Disclaimer: Wine Folly was provided to me for review purposes. I was not compensated monetarily for this or any other post. This post does include Amazon affiliate links. 
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Turkey, Cheese & Cauliflower Meatballs


I make a lot with cauliflower, because it's a vegetable that my children will actually eat, but chopping it up is one of my least favorite things to do.  It's messy, tedious and time consuming.  But yesterday I was at Target, and I came across these Cauliflower Crumbles (did you know if you're a mom and you find yourself with a few free hours you car will actually DRIVE YOU TO TARGET all by itself??? so weird).  Yes, these crumbles are a major short cut BUT WHO CARES!?  Short cuts at dinnertime make for a happy household.  So last night, I made a version of these meatballs with cauliflower crumbles instead of the other vegetables it called for.  They were so yummy!!  They even went to the party, the party in our tummies, because sometimes we have to sing that song while we eat...


Thank you for the recipe, Audra!
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Next Up: Something with Pears


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