Cooking with Kristen
Well, I never started that cooking blog. I REALLY wanted to, but I knew that I would not be able to give it the time and effort that I wanted. I had this whole thing envisioned, and then I thought, that would take about an hour a day to work on this thing?! So, I will continue to post cooking related things here.
Today, I want to share some of my favorite tools that help me in the kitchen.
Today, I want to share some of my favorite tools that help me in the kitchen.
My lemon juicer. I know, is it really that hard to juice lemons? Well, no, but this lovely tool makes it even easier, and most importantly, neater.
Also, I love the cutting board that the juicer is on. I have marble tile, which is beautiful, but it is not cool getting stuff in the grout or trying to roll out dough on the tiles. This HUGE cutting board is perfect!
This is my vegetable chopper. I use it for onions, and I love it because it gets you a nice, small dice. I am not the best chopper , and I don't like big chunks of onion in my food, so this has been wonderful!! Also, it does garlic in the front part!
My last and absolute best tool is my double oven. Just yesterday, I got this urge (I was also really hungry) to make a super yummy dinner and dessert. I always make dinner but sometimes I am more excited about it than others. So I had shortcakes baking in the bottom oven, popovers in the top, and then took out the shortcakes and replaced it with roasted potatoes and onions, zucchini and hamburger steaks. I cooked every single thing in the oven yesterday for dinner and dessert, and it was no problem!
Bless you, double oven. You are my favorite and my best.
Hamburger Steaks with Garlic Brown Gravy
*I totally made this up, so I apologize ahead of time for no actual measurements.
1 lb. ground beef
diced onion (I used dried)
Worchestershire sauce
seasoning (I used a dried steak seasoning, but just salt and pepper would be fine. Be liberal!)
3 cloves of garlic, chopped (I like garlic, you can use less if you want)
beef broth
flour for thickening
Oven to 400 degrees.
Mix beef with seasonings, about a tablespoon of worchestershire, and onion. Form into patties.
*I am using the stovetop and the oven, because I wanted a seared crispy-ness to my hamburger steaks from the stove and then bake them in the oven so they wouldn't get dried out. You don't have to do it this way, but they were really good!!
Heat a skillet (or some pan that can be on the stove and in the oven) with a little oil, on medium high heat. You want the pan hot so it will sear the beef and get a crispy crust. Put patties in the skillet, and sear for 2-3 minutes. Take beef out of the skillet, and place on a plate. Turn the stove off and move the skillet off the heat. Mix chopped garlic cloves, beef broth (at least a cup) and season with salt and pepper in a small bowl. Pour your sauce into the skillet and return patties to the pan.
*IMPORTANT* When you return patties to the pan, make sure the already seared side is up. You want the other side to get cooked, so it should be down on the skillet.
Put in the oven (mine was at 400 because of the potatoes and zucchini) for about 10 minutes. Check after 10 minutes to make sure it is no longer pink, and take the patties out and put on the plate again. Put the skillet back on the stove and turn the stove to medium, just to get the sauce boiling. Add a tablespoon of flour and mix quickly to get the sauce to thicken. You can add more broth and then more flour to make as much sauce as you want.
I put the patties back in the skillet, turned off the stove and covered in foil until Jason got home and we were ready to eat.
*I know this seems like a lot of steps, but none of them took a long time, and it was ready quickly. I am always looking for new ways to do my ground beef, and I was very happy with the way these turned out. I served it with roasted potatoes and onions, and roasted zucchini.
Also, I love the cutting board that the juicer is on. I have marble tile, which is beautiful, but it is not cool getting stuff in the grout or trying to roll out dough on the tiles. This HUGE cutting board is perfect!
This is my vegetable chopper. I use it for onions, and I love it because it gets you a nice, small dice. I am not the best chopper , and I don't like big chunks of onion in my food, so this has been wonderful!! Also, it does garlic in the front part!
My last and absolute best tool is my double oven. Just yesterday, I got this urge (I was also really hungry) to make a super yummy dinner and dessert. I always make dinner but sometimes I am more excited about it than others. So I had shortcakes baking in the bottom oven, popovers in the top, and then took out the shortcakes and replaced it with roasted potatoes and onions, zucchini and hamburger steaks. I cooked every single thing in the oven yesterday for dinner and dessert, and it was no problem!Bless you, double oven. You are my favorite and my best.
Hamburger Steaks with Garlic Brown Gravy
*I totally made this up, so I apologize ahead of time for no actual measurements.
1 lb. ground beef
diced onion (I used dried)
Worchestershire sauce
seasoning (I used a dried steak seasoning, but just salt and pepper would be fine. Be liberal!)
3 cloves of garlic, chopped (I like garlic, you can use less if you want)
beef broth
flour for thickening
Oven to 400 degrees.
Mix beef with seasonings, about a tablespoon of worchestershire, and onion. Form into patties.
*I am using the stovetop and the oven, because I wanted a seared crispy-ness to my hamburger steaks from the stove and then bake them in the oven so they wouldn't get dried out. You don't have to do it this way, but they were really good!!
Heat a skillet (or some pan that can be on the stove and in the oven) with a little oil, on medium high heat. You want the pan hot so it will sear the beef and get a crispy crust. Put patties in the skillet, and sear for 2-3 minutes. Take beef out of the skillet, and place on a plate. Turn the stove off and move the skillet off the heat. Mix chopped garlic cloves, beef broth (at least a cup) and season with salt and pepper in a small bowl. Pour your sauce into the skillet and return patties to the pan.
*IMPORTANT* When you return patties to the pan, make sure the already seared side is up. You want the other side to get cooked, so it should be down on the skillet.
Put in the oven (mine was at 400 because of the potatoes and zucchini) for about 10 minutes. Check after 10 minutes to make sure it is no longer pink, and take the patties out and put on the plate again. Put the skillet back on the stove and turn the stove to medium, just to get the sauce boiling. Add a tablespoon of flour and mix quickly to get the sauce to thicken. You can add more broth and then more flour to make as much sauce as you want.
I put the patties back in the skillet, turned off the stove and covered in foil until Jason got home and we were ready to eat.
*I know this seems like a lot of steps, but none of them took a long time, and it was ready quickly. I am always looking for new ways to do my ground beef, and I was very happy with the way these turned out. I served it with roasted potatoes and onions, and roasted zucchini.
Comments
fun stuff.