A Life, Lived

Open-face Steak Sandwiches with Herbed Goat Cheese and Tomatoes

I don't know about you but as much as we love flank steak the two of us have never been able to eat one and I hope we never can! Leftover flank steak can be used in so many delicious ways. Like these amazing sandwiches.  This open-face flank steak sandwich is a perfect lunch or light dinner.

I have been wanting to make this for some time but had to wait for some really ripe heirloom tomatoes. with this sandwich hearty toasted bread is topped with herbed goat cheese, tomatoes, sliced flank steak and topped with Parmigiano Reggiano cheese and placed under the broiler for a few minutes to lightly brown the toppings.

YUM

It looks like a ton-o-steps but it is manageable - we grilled the steak and made the goat cheese mixture one day and put the sandwiches together for dinner the next. With some veggies and dip and a salad it made for a very filling and healthy dinner!

Open-face Steak Sandwiches with Herbed Goat Cheese and Tomatoes

4 oz. fresh goat cheese (1/2 cup), at room temperature
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
2 Tbs. chopped fresh basil
2 tsp. finely grated lemon zest
1/2 tsp. minced garlic (I omitted this garlic)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Four 1-inch-thick slices sourdough or Tuscan bread
1 large clove garlic, cut in half
Olive oil for brushing and drizzling
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 lb. heirloom tomatoes, preferably different colors (about 2 small or 1 large), sliced 1/2 inch thick
1/2 lb. leftover grilled flank steak, thinly sliced, preferably at room temperature
2 oz. Parmigiano-Reggiano, shaved

In a small bowl, combine the goat cheese, parsley, basil, lemon zest, and garlic. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside.

Position a rack 5 to 6 inches from the broiler element and heat the broiler on high. Put the bread on a large baking sheet. Rub one side of each slice with the garlic halves, brush with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toast under the broiler, 1 to 2 minutes per side.

Spread equal amounts of the goat cheese on the slices of toast, oiled side up. Distribute the tomato slices among the sandwiches and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Distribute the steak among the sandwiches and drizzle with olive oil. Top each with some of the shaved Parmigiano-Reggiano. Broil until the sandwiches are bubbling and starting to brown, 2 to 3 minutes, lowering the rack if necessary to prevent burning. Serve.

ARGH

 

Every now and then a story comes across the news wire that makes me very angry. A story that makes me wonder about the future of our race. A story that makes me certain that somewhere along the way we have gotten things so very wrong.

No. It's not the sad tale of Michelle Bachman blaming the earthquake and hurricane Irene on bad government in Washington. Honestly, if God were to smite those who were incompetent Bachman herself and the entire cast of FOX news would be long gone.

Often these stories that get me riled aren't political in any way.

This story that I read yesterday is a perfect example:

Judge blasts kids for suing mom over birthday card

CHICAGO—Raised in a $1.5 million Barrington Hills, Ill., home by their attorney father, two grown children have spent the last two years pursuing a unique lawsuit against their mom for “bad mothering” that alleges damages caused when she failed to buy toys for one and sent another a birthday card he didn't like.

The alleged offences include failing to take her daughter to a car show, telling her then 7-year-old son to buckle his seat belt or she would contact police, “haggling” over the amount to spend on party dresses, and calling her daughter at midnight to ask that she return home from celebrating homecoming.

Last week, at which point the court record stood about a foot tall, an Illinois appeals court dismissed the case, finding that none of the mother's conduct was “extreme or outrageous.” To rule in favour of her children, the court found, “could potentially open the floodgates to subject family childrearing to . . . excessive judicial scrutiny and interference.”

In 2009, the children, represented by three attorneys including their father, Steven A. Miner, sued their mother, Kimberly Garrity. Steven II, now 23, and his sister Kathryn, now 20, sought more than $50,000 for “emotional distress.”

Miner and Garrity were married for a decade before she filed for divorce in 1995, records show.

Among the exhibits filed in the case is a birthday card Garrity sent her son, who in his lawsuit sought damages because the card was “inappropriate” and failed to include cash or a check. He also alleged she failed to send a card for years or, while he was in college, care packages.

On the front of the American Greetings card is a picture of tomatoes spread across a table that are indistinguishable except for one in the middle with craft-store googly eyes attached.

“Son I got you this Birthday card because it's just like you . . . different from all the rest!" the card reads. On the inside Garrity wrote "Have a great day! Love & Hugs, Mom xoxoxo.”

In court papers, Garrity's attorney Shelley Smith says the “litany of childish complaints and ingratitude” in the lawsuit is nothing more than an attempt by Garrity's ex-husband to “seek the ultimate revenge” of having her children accuse her of “being an inadequate mother.”

“It would be laughable that these children of privilege would sue their mother for emotional distress, if the consequences were not so deadly serious for (Garrity),” Smith wrote. “There is no insurance for this claim, so (Garrity) must pay her legal fees, while (the children) have their father for free.”

Cook County judge who ruled on the case, Kathy Flanagan, declined to assess sanctions against Miner, but said the lawsuit amounted to nothing more than children “suing their mother for bad mothering.”

In court filings, Garrity's attorney writes that “she does still love” her children but found that they wanted “the benefits afforded by a family relationship, but none of the restraints.”

Steven A. Miner wrote that the case is no different than a patient suing a physician “for bad doctoring.”

“(The children) do not view their (lawsuit) as an attack on mothering, but rather on accountability," he wrote. "Everyone makes mistakes, but . . . there must be accountability for actions. Parenting is no different.”

Garrity called the lawsuit nothing but harassment.

“Everything . . . shows that these children, orchestrated by their father, will stop at nothing to embarrass and financially harm their mother,” Smith wrote in a court filing. “In the process they have embarrassed themselves and left a public record blogged about on the Internet that will shadow their every future relationship.”

hmmmm - go judge!

If any parent should eb taken to task and held accountable for bad parenting in this case they aught to look at the father!

A Market Haul

I mentioned last week that I was noticing signs of fall all over the place and this was filling me with dread. Dread because winter follows fall. Winter means an end to local fruit and vegetables.

Winter means an end to hauls like this from the farmer's market:

 
plums, red-skinned potatoes, green beans, red haven peaches (since made into jam), blackberries (also made into jam), raspberries, garlic, Italian plums, tomatillos, peppers, heirloom tomatoes, and eggs.

I pay a bit more for the produce than I would in a store but I don't care. It is worth paying a bit extra to help support local farmers.

Pantry Pork Chops

It's the last weekend of the Slow Travel grilling mains and sides cook-a-thon and its been a quick, easy exploration of various ingredients. Actually, another week was just added but we'll be in a tent along the shores of Lake Huron next weekend so I likely won't be updating my blog or grilling anything then. Sandi selected rosemary as her ingredient.

It was Paul's turn to cook last night so he actually made the entry for this week's slowtravel cooking challenge. This pork chop recipe is from the fine folks at Weber - if you've not been to their site you really should check it out for an amazing collection of grilling tips and recipes.

With this recipe the rosemary is a key ingredient in the marinade. You'd not think that such a small amount of an herb would leave a distinctive taste but it did! We both agreed that these chops were amazing - moist, full of flavour . . . a perfect treat!

Better yet, they were easy to make! We got home late from our shopping trip in the US. Paul started the marinade at 5 PM and we were still sitting down to an amazing dinner at our usual time. Heck, we even had time for an amazing pre-dinner cocktail - the Raspberry Thyme Smash  that we made a few years ago and had forgotten about.

 

Pantry Pork Chops

1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon packed light brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary leaves
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
4 bone-in pork loin chops, each about 8 ounces and 1 inch thick

In a medium bowl whisk the marinade ingredients.

Place the chops in a large, resealable plastic bag and pour in the marinade. Press the air out of the bag and seal tightly. Turn the bag to distribute the marinade, place in a bowl, and allow to stand at room temperature for 15 to 30 minutes before grilling.

Prepare the grill for direct cooking over medium heat (350° to 450°F).

Remove the chops from the bag and discard the marinade. Brush the cooking grates clean. Grill the chops over direct medium heat, with the lid closed as much as possible, until barely pink in the center, 8 to 10 minutes, turning once or twice. Remove from the grill and let rest for 3 to 5 mintes. Serve warm.

Photo Hunt - Symbolic

 

This week's Photo Hunt theme is 'symbolic'. There were lots of different ways I could go with this - so many of the things that appear in photos are symbolic of one thing or another. However, as I was reading and thinking about our upcoming trip to Italy (5 weeks and NO, I do NOT get tired of saying that), I started thinking about the importance of the symbols that appear on various buildings throughout Italy.

The Medici family dominated Florentine politics for two and a half centuries and presided over a cultural achievement that is equalled only by Athens in the golden age. The family also got its genes mixed with those of most royal families in Europe. Medici women included Catherine (1519-1589) who married Henry II, King of France and ruled the coutry after her husband's death; Maria (1573-1642) married Henry IV, King of France. Maria's daughters became queens of Spain and England. Cosimo II's wife, Maria Magdalena, was the sister of Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor.

One of the things we found interesting when we were in Italy was the number of times their family crest could be found on buildings throughout Tuscany (and the odd one in Rome as their influence increased in Papal circles). This inclusion of the symbolic crest sent a message to the people - this lovely sculpture, critical bridge, well, or building is provided by the Medici - aren't we wonderful. Generally the crest is fairly discrete - except in Sienna where it often dominates the facade of buildings as if ti say 'you dared tried to fight us and LOST'.

Their family emblem—a number of red balls on a gold shield—is prominently displayed on buildings all over Florence and Tuscany which have Medicean connections or which were financed with Medici money. One outraged contemporary of Cosimo il Vecchio declared that "He has emblazoned even the monks' privies with his balls."

  
 
 

The Medici family crest has long been the object of much historical speculation. The most romantic (and far-fetched) explanation of the origin of the palle is that the balls are actually dents in a shield, inflicted by the fearsome giant Mugello on one of Charlemagne's knights, Averardo (from whom, legend claims, the family were descended). The knight eventually vanquished the giant and, to mark his victory, Charlemagne permitted Averardo to use the image of the battered shield as his coat of arms.

Others say the balls had less exalted origins: that they were pawnbrokers' coins, or medicinal pills (or cupping glasses) that recalled the family's origins as doctors (medici) or apothecaries. Others say they are bezants, Byzantine coins, inspired by the arms of the Arte del Cambio (or the Guild of Moneychangers, the bankers' organization to which the Medici belonged).

In times of danger, Medicean supporters were rallied with cries of Palle! Palle! Palle!, a reference to the balls (palle) on their armorial bearings. Whatever the origin of the Medici family emblem, it is interesting the note that the number of palle depicted in it varied. Originally there were 12; in Cosimo dé Medici's time it was seven; the ceiling of San Lorenzo's Sagrestia Vecchi has eight; Cosimo I's tomb in the Cappelle Medicee has five; and Ferdinando I's coat of arms in the Forte di Belvedere, six.

Fall's Coming . . .

It's true. After a brilliant summer the signs are everywhere that fall is coming our way. The ancient Roman's revered those who could read the signs in the enviroment - they'd observe and make pronouncements about what was coming.

Today, since I had the day off of work I was obsessing a titch over these signs . . .

1. Back to school sales are taking place in every store. Parents are racing about buying kids supplies they likely will lose in the first week of class.
2. Monarch butterflies are heading south. Heck, even the Canada Geese are starting their migration.
3. The tomato plants have stopped blooming.
4. The nights are getting cooler.
5. A month ago we were sitting out and reading at 9:30 PM. Now it is dark at 8:30.
6. Local families of Italian descent are filling jars with tomatoes and tomato sauce. Our favourite grocery store is selling those HUGE propane burners so that temporary tomato canning facilities may be set up on people's front driveways.
7. Pots of mums, ornamental kale, and corn stalks are arriving at nurseries.
8. The leaves of some trees have started to turn colour already.
9. Squirrels are racing about storing nuts for the winter.
10. I am starting to crave soups, stews, and casseroles.
11. I am almost sick of toasted tomato sandwiches.
12. Today in the store I noticed that those horrid pre-made disks of dough that Pillsbury calls 'cookies' have arrived in therefrigerator section - the seasonal school bus. 'Back to School' has arrived.
13. There is less cat fur laying about when I vacuum - their winter coats are coming in.
14. People aren't dressing as skimpily as they were. Happily those graphic tats are soon to be covered for another year.
15. Halloween candy has arrived.
16. Costco is selling Christmas wrap, ribbon, and tacky decorations.
17. Elderly folks are starting to make their annual trek south.
18. The Hurricane watch has begun.
19. Sports folks are bleating on about hockey. Will Crosby return or not. The rest of us cover our ears.
20. Cars, laden with boxes, mattresses, and cast off furniture have been spotted along the highways as they take university students to campus.

See. It is official. Fall is on its way.

Apparently I should have lived back in Roman times where my talents in reading signs would no doubt provide me with elevated status.

I don't hate the fall - in fact Iprefer the cooler days to the hot, stifling heat of the summer. For years fall has meant an end to the joyous freedom the summer - those long days where I was able to do what I wanted, when I wanted. It takes a long time for that to ease out of your system.

Fall also means that winter is that much closer.

SIGH

Greek Yoghurt with Grilled Figs, Honey, and Pistachios

I often look at the line up of cars waiting in the McDonald's drive through in the morning and wonder 'why?'. Least I come across as too sanctimonious a soul I should admit that there was a time, in the not too distant past, when you'd have found me eagerly awaiting my sack of grease, sodium, and fat.

Our diet is changing - fresh, limiting additives, and limiting bad fats is where we are now. We're both at the stage in life where calories find their way quickly to your ass and gut and then seem to take hold there with a vampire-like grip. We see the morbidly obese folks rolling along in their scooters and have no wish to join them. It's easy to get fat. Getting 'unfat' ain't easy or fun. :-(

Anyway. This wasn't intended to be a lecture on us being fat and what we're doing about it. As is my tendency I have digressed. this is intended to show how you can have a fresh, healthy, and delicious breakfast in less time than it'd take to zip to the McDonalds, ait in line, zip home, and eat.

Last week I saw a tray of fresh figs at the market (yes, I remember a time about 4 years ago when they were NEVER in the market) and picked them up. I had no idea what I was going to do with them buy knew my life would be a sadder thing without those figs.

I used half of them as a appetizer on Sunday - our favourite prosciutto wrapped figs with blue cheese. I couldn't figure out what to do with the other half - I really wanted to make a fig tart but Paul made me promise not to make desserts until he was back under control. SIGH

So on Tuesday fired up the grill and while it was getting good and hot I went inside to attend to the figs. I cut them half and brushed them with a bit of olive oil. by now the grill was hot so I lay them cut side down on the grill for about 2 minutes - they softened up and had wonderful caramelized grill marks. While they were grilling I put some low-fat Greek yoghurt in two bowls. When the figs were ready I took them off the grill and sprinkled them with some fresh thyme leaves. Back int eh kitchen I put a few of the grilled figs on top of the yoghurt, drizzled it with honey, and sprinkled it with some shelled unsalted pistachios. The whole thing took less than 15 minutes from start to finish.

Yes, it was amazing and filled us up without a weeks worth of fat, sodium, or unneeded calories.

Mexican Chop Salad

If you're lucky you have been experiencing the same wonderful fresh produce that has been flooding the markets in Ontario. It's bittersweet really, especially for those of us with no access to local produce that isn't canned, frozen, or stored in some cellar throughout the long winter. We're doing our best to eat as much of it as we can!

It helps that we're in full-out 'we must lose those 15 extra lbs' mode before we go to Italy in October.

It's a happy thing really (no, not that we're fat) - the happy intersection of full-out diet + lots of tasty goodness in the vegetable aisle.

We've been eating a TON of dinner salads. Likely more in the past five weeks than in the past 5 years! It's a simple, healthy way to cut back on calories at thesame time as filling up with fresh, crisp veggies. Often (as we did with this recipe) we'll throw on some cooked chicken breast - not from a package though - I always buy boneless, skinless breasts in bulk, grill them and slice them - they will last for weeks in the freezer and are far less expensive than those thing sold in the store - and without all of the additives!

I printed this recipe weeks ago (promptly forgetting where it came from) however when I googled Mexican Chopped Salad a gazillion recipes came up. I believe it was originally published in Self magazine. We finally got around to enjoying it tonight - instead of mixing the ingredients all together I made an arranged chopped salad on a bed of Romaine - look at us being all creative. I misread the recipe - completely forgot to add sliced radishes. I also added some cooked chicken breast. We loved the fresh flavours and the honey lime dressing was outstanding (although could have used more heat - we'll double the jalapeno in the future - of course, then we'll have industrial strength jalapenos and we'll burn our mouths off *smile*).

If you on the hunt for a great way to add some veggies to your dinner plate you should be sure to try this one out!

Mexican Chop Salad

2 1/2 cups chopped romaine lettuce
1 (15.5 ounce) can black beans, rinsed & well-drained
3/4 cup chopped seeded tomato
3/4 cup chopped peeled jicama
3/4 cup fresh corn kernels, uncooked (or use frozen or canned)
3/4 cup thinly sliced radishes
1 large avocado, diced
1 large red bell pepper, chopped
1/4 cup crumbled reduced-fat feta cheese

1/4 cup fresh lime juice
2 Tablespoons olive oil
2 Tablespoons honey
2 Tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro (or more to taste)
1 clove garlic, peeled & minced
1 teaspoon chopped jalapeño pepper (use canned for less heat)

Toss all salad ingredients in a large bowl. In separate bowl, mix dressing ingredients. Pour dressing over mixture and toss again. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Travel Tuesday # 5

It's the fifth week of Sandi's blog 'event' - Travel Tuesdays. It's easy to play (I like THAT!) all you need to do is to post one of your travel pics (and who doesn't have a gazillion of those) and then pop on over to Sandi's blog to join her Linky.

Art work we have been planning teacher professional learning activities for next summer. These sessions will be a tad different since we're planning them for Europe! We're hoping to run one of our courses in Greece - split between the mainland and the island of Rhodes. Of course the planning got me thinking about our long stop in Rhodes during our cruise a few years ago . . .

 

 

 

Cherry Clafoutis

A clafoutis (pronounced kla-foo-tee) is a French dessert that resembles a flan or baked custard, but made with a whole lot of delicious fruit. It’s an easy recipe, almost fool-proof really, made simply by preparing a pancake-like batter which is poured over fruit (in this case, cherries), then baked in the oven until puffed, set and golden.

Not only is making a clafoutis simple, it’s also very versatile; you can make it with different fruits as they come into season. It works equally well made with berries, cherries, apricots, peaches, grapes, plums, nectarines, pears, apples….. You may want to sauté some of the harder fruits (e.g. apples) briefly before covering them in the batter and baking the clafoutis in the oven. Just so they aren’t still crunchy by the time the batter has baked.

The traditional way to make a cherry clafoutis is to leave the cherries unpitted. Baking the dessert with the stones left in the cherries will give a little more flavour to the dish. nope. Not for me - who wants to stop after every bite to spit out (discretely of course) some pits? The pits are said to add an almond flavour to the dessert - I took the easy (and safe) route and added some almond extract.

Removing the cherry pits can be the be a challenge especially if you have lots of cherries to pit. Investing in a cherry pitter will make short work of the task - yes, it will be a utensil that you might use 2 or 3 times a year but it will be worth it. Trust me.

There are a bazillion of different clafoutis recipes out there, each unique to their owner and this one was posted by Garret McCourt (Vanilla Garlic) on his friend Elise's blog Simply Recipes. If you're a fan of desserts with little work and a lot of payoff, then clafoutis is the way to go.

Cherry Clafoutis

2 cups of fresh sweet cherries, pitted
2 tablespoons of slivered almonds
3 eggs
1 cup of sugar
1 tablespoon of brown sugar
1/2 cup of all-purpose flour, sifted
1/8 teaspoon of salt
1 cup of whole milk
2 teaspoons of Amaretto -or- 3/4 teaspoon of almond extract
1 1/2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
Powdered sugar for dusting

Preheat the oven to 350F. Butter and lightly flour a 9X9 or 10X7 baking dish. Toss in the cherries and slivered almonds.

Whisk the eggs, sugars, salt, and flour together until smooth.

Add the milk, Amaretto (or almond extract, if using), and vanilla extract. Whisk until smooth. Pour into the baking dish.

Bake for 40-50 minutes or until lightly browned and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. When you pull it put of the oven it will wiggle a bit which is normal. Place on a wire rack to cool. The clafoutis will have puffed up quite a bit and will deflate while cooling. When cool dust the clafoutis with powdered sugar. Serve.