Beef Tips and Noodles

Quite unintentionally, we found ourselves in a rut the past few days with Italian food. Last Thursday and Friday we had homemade pizza (admittedly not the best I'd ever made, either). On Saturday, we enjoyed a delicious Italian buffet meal with our friends Nobody and Fantastagirl, and last night after being on the road for a couple of days, all I could muster was a couple of Jack's frozen pizzas.

I was in the mood for something different tonight, and Beef Tips and Noodles was just the ticket. In my opinion, it's nothing but comfort food that can be dressed up for company. I like it best with hot dinner rolls and a cool salad.

The following is a recipe I "stole" when I worked for a catering company, and reduced to a family-sized amount. You can use any cut of beef, even a tougher one. The meat simmers for such a long time, it will be tender. I've made it several times with venison, and I think I like it even better than beef, but we haven't had any venison for a long time, so beef it is. This time I'm using top round steak.

I like to use an oven-proof skillet and lid, but if you don't have one, you can use a large casserole dish and cover it with foil.


Beef Tips and Noodles

Roux (for thickening gravy):

1 stick butter
1/2 cup flour

Combine and cook over medium heat until mixture is bubbly and gives off a nutty aroma, about 3-5 minutes. Note that the darker the roux is allowed to cook, the "darker" your gravy will taste.

Set roux aside. (If all if it is not used in this recipe, you can refrigerate it for use at a later date.)


Beef Tips

1 lbs. beef, cut into 3/4-inch cubes
olive oil
1 teaspoon seasoned salt
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 onion, cut into chunks
mushrooms, cut into chunks (optional, as many or few as you like)
1-1/2 cups water
1 10-ounce cans beef consomme (can use beef broth, but consomme has richer flavor)
browning sauce, such as Kitchen Bouquet

Heat oven to 400° F.

Spray bottom and sides of oven-proof skillet or casserole dish with non-stick spray. Combine garlic powder, seasoned salt, dried thyme leaves and pepper. Sprinkle half of this mixture over bottom of pan. Place meat cubes in pan and sprinkle remaining spice mixture over the top. Bake in oven, uncovered, for 20 minutes, stirring once if desired.

Remove pan from oven. Reduce heat to 250°. Pour water and beef consomme carefully around beef cubes. Add onion and mushrooms. Cover pan, return it to oven, and let simmer gently for at least 2 hours or until meat is very tender.

Remove pan from oven and sit on top of stove. While liquids are still very hot, carefully whisk roux into liquids 1 tablespoon at a time, until desired thickness is achieved. Gravy will be light to medium brown. Stir in browning sauce, a little at a time, until desired color is achieved.

Taste gravy and adjust seasonings to taste.

Cover and set aside until ready to serve.


Noodles:

1 8-ounce package of dry egg noodles
olive oil
fresh or dried parsley

Cook noodles according to package directions. Drain.

Drizzle lightly with olive oil (I prefer extra light olive oil for this), and toss to coat; this keeps noodles from sticking together.

Sprinkle with parsley flakes and toss.

Portion noodles onto serving plates or wide shallow bowls. Top with beef tips and gravy. Serve immediately.

Makes 4 servings.


Dress-Ups:

Add 1/4 cup or so of dry red wine with the water and beef consomme for a richer flavor.

Stir 1/4 cup or so of sour cream just before serving for more of a stroganoff flavor.

Citrus Shrimp with Penne Pasta

Hey, all! This is Violet! I'm feeling rather honored that Blogarita asked me to come over and post some of the recipes that I try at home... I have only recently begun cooking foods other than Easy Mac and toast, because I've spent so many years working so much that I haven't had time to cook. But, with Dave around to sample all my experiments, I've become rather adventurous and like to try things out of the ordinary.

This is a recipe that I found in my Better Homes and Gardens cookbook. When I decided to make it at first, I thought it would be just for Dave and me. Then it was us plus two friends. By the time I was cooking, we were having a dinner party for eight people... Luckily, I had enough food to double the recipe.

I was a little bit nervous that the citrus flavor of the dish wouldn't go over too well and that we would end up ordering pizza instead, but in fact, the flavor gave just enough kick to it to make it unique, but not overpowering. The orange slices also really brought out the flavor and the shrimp really complemented the whole dish quite well. I think one of the tricks is not to overcook the veggies; they were tender but not mush. I've also been on a health food kick recently, and I replaced the regular penne pasta with whole grain pasta, which worked well. Everyone liked it so much that I didn't even have any leftover to bring to work with me for lunch the next day!


Citrus Shrimp with Penne Pasta

12 ounces peeled and deveined medium shrimp
4 cups (uncooked) penne or bow tie pasta
1 teaspoon finely shredded orange peel (set aside)
2 medium oranges
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 teaspoon instant chicken bouillon granules (I just used one of those little cubes)
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
1 red or green sweet pepper, cut into 3/4-inch squares (Since I double the recipe, I used one of each)
1 tablespoon cooking oil
1 1/2 cups fresh pea pods, ends trimmed and halved diagonally

Thaw shrimp, if frozen. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain; keep warm.

Meanwhile, shred the peel from the oranges and remove remaining peels. Set oranges aside. In a small bowl, combine orange peel, orange juice, water, cornstarch, bouillon granules, sesame oil, salt, and ground red pepper; set aside.

In a large skillet cook sweet pepper in hot oil over medium-high heat for 1 to 2 minutes or until crisp-tender. Remove sweet pepper from skillet. Add shrimp to skillet; cook and stir about 2 minutes or until shrimp turn opaque. Remove shrimp from skillet.

Stir orange juice mixture; add to skillet. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly. Return shrimp and sweet pepper to skillet; stir in pea pods. Cook and stir for 2 minutes more. Gently stir in orange sections. Gently toss shrimp mixture with pasta.

Nutritional Info: Makes 4 large servings! 384 calories, 7 grams total fat, 2 grams of fiber

Pasta With Smoked Salmon In Pesto Cream Sauce

Here's a recipe I came up with by combining and changing two other recipes. The great thing about smoked salmon is that a little of it adds a lot of flavor!

I really enjoyed this, but Spouse Guy said it isn't one of his favorites. Why? Because he doesn't like Parmesan or Romano cheeses. I cut the amount in the original recipes back considerably, but the prepared pesto I bought had a STRONG flavor of both cheeses, while most pesto sauces we've tried have been much milder. I will probably make it again, but I will try a different brand of pesto, or will make my own.


Pasta With Smoked Salmon In Pesto Cream Sauce

1 lb. any dry, chunky pasta, such as penne or bowtie (I used spiralini)
5 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
2 cloves garlic, minced
2-1/2 tablespoons flour
2 cups milk
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1/3 cup prepared pesto sauce
1 cup frozen chopped broccoli, thawed and drained
1/2 cup chopped tomatoes (fresh or canned)
5 ounces smoked salmon, chopped
salt to taste

Cook pasta according to package directions.

While pasta is cooking, melt butter in a large skillet, adding 1 tablespoon olive oil to keep butter from burning. Add onion, mushrooms and garlic; saute until onions become translucent and mushrooms are tender.

Stir in flour. Cook, stirring constantly, for 1 to 2 minutes. Gradually whisk in milk. Cook over medium heat until sauce thickens. Stir in Parmesan cheese, pesto sauce, broccoli and tomatoes. Continue to cook and stir for 2 minutes. Stir in salmon and heat through, stirring often. Should sauce get too thick, add a little more milk. Add salt to sauce according to your own taste.

Drain pasta and serve with sauce.

Makes 4-6 generous servings.

Zio's Chicken Pepperoni

Any of you ever eat at Zio's Italian Kitchen? It's been a few years since I've eaten there, and I haven't tried this dish, but it is supposed to be a copycat of the one on their menu. I used my own pasta sauce from the freezer and a different shape of pasta, but otherwise, was true to the recipe. It's a good one.


Copycat Recipe for Zio's Italian Kitchen Chicken Pepperoni

1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
4-6 ounces good quality sliced pepperoni
1 jar Bertolli Marinara (if you double this recipe, use 3)
1 pound penne pasta
1 large sweet onion, julienned or large chopped
1 yellow bell pepper, julienned or large chopped
1 green bell pepper, julienned or large chopped
8 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced thick
3 tablespoons minced garlic
1 small can black olives, drained and sliced
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
Olive oil
8 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded
Grated Romano or Parmesan cheese (optional)

Put 4 quarts water on to boil in a 6-quart pot. When water is boiling, add pasta.

In hot skillet, add 2 teaspoons olive oil, then sauté onions, peppers, mushrooms and pepperoni until vegetables start to sweat. Add garlic, olives and chicken, stirring often. When chicken is white and onions are translucent, remove from heat (be careful not to overcook vegetables or everything will be too soft)

Drain pasta when done.

In large bowl add pasta, meat mixture, topped with grated mozzarella, covered with marinara and tossed lightly. Top with grated Romano or Parmesan to taste. Serve immediately.

Serves 4-6.

Spinach Lasagna and Green Beans with Carrots & Mushrooms

I never cook my lasagna noodles beforehand when I make lasagna. It isn't necessary and I find I'm not very coordinated when I try to work with limp, wet noodles. In the stores I've seen "special no-cook" lasagna noodles. You can buy those if you like, but any kind will work just as well.

I like to serve this lasagna with garlic toast and Green Beans with Carrots & Mushrooms. This is probably my favorite recipe for green beans.


Spinach Lasagna

1-1/2 cups spaghetti sauce, or better yet, homemade sauce if you have it
1/4 cup dry red wine*
1/4 cup water
9 lasagna noodles, uncooked
12 oz. cottage cheese**
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 small onion, finely chopped
1/4 c. Parmesan cheese
10 oz. frozen chopped spinach, thawed and well-drained
1 cup shredded Mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 350°.

Spray a 12-in. x 8-in. baking dish with non-stick spray. Set aside

In bowl, combine spaghetti sauce with wine and water. Spread 1/2 cup of sauce over bottom of pan. Place a single layer of dry lasagna noodles over sauce.

In medium bowl, combine cottage cheese, egg, garlic powder, chopped onion and Parmesan cheese until mixed well. Spread half of this mixture over lasagna noodles in pan.

Sprinkle half of the well-drained spinach over the cottage cheese. Top with 3 more lasagna noodles and half of the remaining sauce mixture.

Repeat layers of cottage cheese mixture and spinach.

Top with remaining 3 noodles and the rest of the sauce. Make sure noodles are entirely covered with a layer of sauce (the need not be submerged in sauce, but should be well coated).

Sprinkle Mozzarella cheese over the top. Cover tightly with foil and back at 350° F. for 50 minutes. Uncover and bake an additional 10 minutes.

Serves 4- 6.

* Or you can use 1/2 cup water if you don't want to use wine.
** If you prefer, use Ricotta cheese. Spouse Guy prefers cottage cheese, so it's what I usually use.


Green Beans with Carrots & Mushrooms

2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large carrot, peeled and julienned
5 medium button mushrooms, with stems, sliced
1 pound whole fresh or frozen green beans (thawed if frozen)
1 teaspoon thyme leaves
salt and pepper to taste

Heat butter and oil in large skillet. Add all ingredients and saute until carrots and green beans are tender-crisp.

Serves 4 - 6.

Olive You Very Much

The picture doesn't do this dish justice. Tonight we went meatless with Olive Lovers' Fettucine, with French bread and salad. I thought about having a glass of white wine with it, but decided against that at the last minute.

My husband, Spouse Guy, doesn't mind meatless meals a few times a month, especially when pasta is the main ingredient. I like meatless meals because they are usually quick and easy to make, tasty, fairly healthy, and good for the budget.

I try to make as much of our bread homemade as I can, but I didn't have time today, so I bought some from the grocery store bakery's day old shelf and made garlic toast with it.

This pasta is great as it is, or you can dress it up with any of the gourmet olives that are now available at most grocery stores.


Olive Lovers' Fettucine

12 ounces fettucine
1 (6 oz.) can pitted black olives
1 (3 oz.) jar pimiento-stuffed green olives
1 small bunch fresh parsley or 2 tablespoons dried parsley
2 cloves garlic
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cup water
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Prepare the past using the package directions; drain. Cover pasta to keep warm.

Drain and slice the black and green olives. Chop the parsley. Mince th garlic.

Heat olive oil in a 2-quart saucepan over medium-high heat. Add garlic. Saute just until the garlic begins to brown. Stir in olives, parsley, water, oregano and red pepper flakes. Bring the mixture to a boil over high heat, stirring occasionally.

Transfer the pasta to a heated serving platter. Spoon the sauce over the past. Sprinkle with Parmesan.

Serves 4.