Tuna Steaks with Lemon Cream Sauce

I was at Giant Eagle on Sunday and looking in the seafood department when I came across some fresh tuna steaks for only 4.99/lb (compared to the regular 10.99/lb) because their use by date was only a few days away. I planned on making them for dinner that night anyway, so who cares! They turned out so good! My only regret is that I didn't take a picture to share with you how pretty it came out. But here's the recipe anyway:

2 tuna steaks
1 Tbl black pepper
1 teaspoon seasoned salt
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

Combine the spices and coat the steaks top and bottom with mixture.

Lemon sauce:

1 Tbl butter
1 Tbl olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
Juice and zest of one large lemon
2 Tbl heavy cream
a little parsley
salt, and a pinch of sugar to take away the sourness of the lemon

Saute garlic in butter and olive oil taking care not to burn the butter. Add the lemon juice and zest along with everything else and simmer on low for a few minutes until the sauce thickens up.

Meanwhile, heat a saute pan over med-high heat with a little olive oil. Put the steaks in once it has become hot and cook for 4-7 minutes on each side, depending on thickness and desired done-ness. It is recommended to eat tuna med-rare, but we cooked ours until about med-well, just slightly pink. Remove from pan and place over a bed of mixed greens if desired, and cover with sauce.

I think this may have been the best fish I've made to date!

Butternut Squash Soup

I had extra squash leftover and need to get rid of zucchini so I threw that in there too. It turned out pretty good, but I think next time I'll add something to give it more flavor. Celery and carrots or roasted red peppers.

1 small butternut squash, peeled and cut into cubes
1 small zucchini cut into cubes
1 small onion, diced
4 cups chicken or vegetable stock
olive oil
1 cup milk (or 1/2 of cream)
1/4 cup flour whisked with 1/4 cup water
1/4 teas. nutmeg
salt and pepper

Saute onions in olive oil until soft. Add stock and squash. Boil until squash is tender. Transfer to a blender or food processor with the liquid and blend until smooth. Put back into pot and add milk, flour mix, and spices. Bring back up to boil, whisking constantly until it thickens.

Roasted Fall Vegetables

It's been a while, huh? I've been pretty busy with the cake thing, Evan, and Evan's birthday coming up and finally I found some time to try something new. I found this recipe in a Food & Wine magazine but altered it with ingredients I could easily find and weren't too expensive. The original had a pine nut pesto over the veggies but I decided to just go with some Parmesan cheese. Also added some rosemary and potatoes. I have been wanting to try new produce I find, things I've never cooked with before, and decided to go with the parsnips the recipe called for. I honestly did not like them. They taste like a very very bitter carrot. Next time, I'll do without them. The brussels sprouts however turned out delicious! Much better than steaming them. I will definitely use this technique just for the brussels sprouts themselves. Butternut squash, but the way, is one of my new favorite things to try out. It was really good in this and makes wonderful baby food. These veggies have a very earthy taste to them, very nice for a fall dinner. Anyway here it goes:

Makes about 4 big servings. 6 smaller side dishes.

2 carrots, peeled, diced into 1 in chunks
2 parsnips, peeled, diced into 1 in chunks (next time I will do without these!)
1 large white potatoes, peeled, diced into 1 in chunks
7 or 8 brussels sprouts, halved. (the ones I had were huge so I had to quarter them)
About 1 1/2 cups butternut squash, peeled, and diced into yep, you got it! 1 in chunks
1/2 cups white onion, cut up into 1/2 in. pieces
1 clove garlic, chopped
a couple Tbl. olive oil
1 or 2 sprigs rosemary
1/2 teas. dried thyme
salt, pepper

Cut all the vegetables up, drizzle with olive oil and spices. Mix until covered. Transfer to a baking sheet. Cover with foil. Bake for about a 30 min on 375 or until veggies are tender. If you want them to get a little browned, take the foil off ten minutes before they are done.

Cajun Shrimp, Jalapeno Corn Muffins, and Zucchini

Cajun Shrimp: (this is for 2 people)
Preheat oven 400 degrees

.5 lb medium size raw shrimp, peeled & deveined
1 lemon sliced plus juice from one lemon
2 Tbl melted butter
1 teaspoon hot sauce
2 teaspoon worcestershire sauce
1 clove chopped garlic
2 bay leaves
Cajun seasoning
black pepper
parsley flakes

Mix melted butter, lemon juice, and all ingredients except shrimp and sliced lemon. Pour half of mixture into casserole dish. Add shrimp and place lemon slices overtop. Pour the rest of the mixture on top. Bake uncovered for about 15 minutes until shrimp is cooked. If making a bigger portion, make 1 layer shrimp, 1 layer lemon, 1 layer shrimp, etc. Serve with the butter from the dish on the side to dip in.

Jalapeno Corn Muffins:

1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup corn meal
1/2 cup corn kernels
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 Tbl butter
a pinch of salt
1.5 t. baking powder
cayenne pepper
1/4 cup shredded cheddar or pepperjack cheese
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/8 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
1 half jalapeno diced
3 Tbl honey

Sautee onion and corn in butter in small saucepan. In a bowl, combine dry ingredients. In another bowl, whisk buttermilk, oil, egg, and honey. Add this to the dry ingredients, along with the jalapeno and cooled onion and corn. Grease 6 muffin cups and add the batter 3/4 full. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean and tops are golden.

I had our first pick from the garden, a large zucchini (cut into thin slices) so I just sauteed it up with some olive oil, salt, and black pepper.

Steak Salad

This was my first attempt at a flank steak and I was pretty impressed with the way it turned out. They are an inexpensive cut of meat but I've heard they can be super tough if not prepared properly. I marinated it for a few hours in soy sauce, worcestershire, and fresh garlic. I grilled it outside on a gas grill but here's the trick: (as with any steak, I think) Get the grill super hot before putting the meat on it, cook each side only 4 minutes and flip only ONE time. Don't touch it once you put it down for the whole 4 minutes. If you overcook these, they WILL get tough. They have to be done no more than medium-med well. After you take it off, let it sit for about ten minutes before you slice it. Use a super sharp knife and cut against the grain on an angle making thin slices to lay over your salad. I used a mix of romaine and iceburg with bleu cheese and a balsamic dressing (both very good with the red meat) I made up real quick. Here is a complete list of ingredients for this salad, sorry, no measuring!

One flank steak (for two people)
Soy sauce
worcestershire sauce
fresh garlic
salt pepper

Romaine and Iceburg lettuce
Balsamic dressing (I make my own with balsamic vinegar, olive oil, and sugar)
Crumbled bleu cheese
Any vegetable you want to throw in there (I had an avocado so I sliced it up)

I think that's it :)

Chicken and Broccoli with Almonds

I made this for lunch today. I've made it about 5 times now and I think I perfected it. This is for one person.

1 small boneless skinless chicken breast, cubed
3/4 cup of broccoli florets
1/4 cup sesame oil
1 Tbl (give or take) soy sauce
1 t. chopped garlic
1 Tbl brown sugar
1 teaspoon peanut butter
a small handful of slivered almonds

In a frying pan, coming the oil, soy sauce, sugar, peanut butter, and garlic. Heat on medium until bubbling. Add chicken and cook until almost done. Add broccoli and almonds. Cook under the chicken and broccoli are done. I like the put my broccoli in with only a couple minutes left because I like it still crunchy. This is super easy and fast. I make it in under 10 minutes for lunch. To make it a dinner, you could cook up some rice or noodles for a bigger meal.

Can you tell we eat a lot of chicken?

Brown Sugar & Ginger Chicken with Vegetables

I stole this recipe from Giada At Home and changed it up a little bit. Karl LOVED it, I thought it was a little too sweet. Anyway, it turned out pretty good, I would probably use less sugar and maybe add some soy sauce next time.

4 Chicken Thighs cut into 1 inch pieces(The kind I bought had skin and bone in so I had to cut the skin off and pull the bone out. Kind of a pain in the ass but they are cheap)
1/4 cup brown sugar
3 Tbl butter
1 Tbl chopped fresh ginger
a few peeled and cut potatoes
a few peeled and cut carrots
a handful of chopped fresh parsley (keep half for garnish)
cayenne pepper (depends on how hot you want it)
Cajun seasoning
black pepper
3/4 cup water

Melt butter in large skillet, add brown sugar. Cook until bubbly and it starts to turn dark. Add chicken and cook until done or close to it. Add your potatoes, carrots, spices, and water. Cover and simmer about 20-30 minutes until vegetables are tender. Transfer to serving bowl and garnish with the rest of your parsley!