Amuse Bouche

Lamb. The better red meat.

Lamb. 

Why does mentioning eating lamb get more reactions than any other kind of meat?
When I was in culinary school the run through regional Italian had a host of lamb dishes, each time the chef would tell those that pulled a face, you know the one, rather like a two year old trying their first pea, that this version of lamb would change their opinion.  When asked why they disliked lamb their only reaction was to say it tasted gamey. They remained skeptical throughout the creation, but when we all sat down family style to try our spoils there were often one or two in the group who were willingly swayed in favor of lamb.

I just think they grew up eating cuts of lamb that either weren't treated properly or worse, weren't cooked properly. Lamb that has been raised well, slaughtered before they are 1 year old, and properly cleaned of the fell which has the lanolin taste is not gamey at all. Lanolin is the protective coating on a sheep's wool that acts as a waterproofing agent as well as possessing anti fungal and antibacterial properties to protect the sheep. There are even some breeds of sheep like the Katahdin that have a very thin coat that needs no shearing and the breed produces very little lanolin so the meat has a very delicate taste.2

Growing up my Italian father despised lamb above all other foods.  In fact, he wouldn't even tolerate it being cooked in the house.  My Mom would always wait for him to depart on a business trip and immediately go out and buy lamb chops to grill.  We grilled year round on a screened in porch where my Mom had a permanent charcoal grill installed.  Rain, snow, cold, hot, it didn't matter.
My husband, though not as bad as my dad, isn't really a lamb fan either, he'll eat it grudgingly, expecting it to be prepared in the oh so British fashion of a well done Sunday Roast with mint sauce, NOT mint jelly I might add, mint sauce.

Me? I adore it.  I  have lamb at least once a week but I generally have to cook separate meals for me and for him.  I routinely try different presentations, convinced that one day I will hit upon the magic bullet where the little light goes off in his head.

A few weeks ago I was reading Fading Feast: A Compendium of disappearing regional foods by Raymond Sokolov (originally published in 1981) and his essay titled Fleece Afoot: Colorado Lamb caught my attention.  Sokolov talks about the American sheep farmers disappearing nomadic lifestyle of grazing the sheep by following the mountain trails in summer:

"...utilizing a modern system...Gus Halandras pays $2,700 for grazing rights on  20,000 acres of USDA forestlands in the summer.  In the winter he uses 60,000 to 70,000 acres of desert controlled by the Department of the interior's land Management."

In fact "Sheep grazing offers low-cost, natural benefits to the environment and wildlife habitats. Sheep will eat grasses, brush, weeds and other plants, thus controlling undergrowth (and potential spread of fires) in forests and other wooded areas. The U.S. Forest Service has used sheep grazing to decrease soil erosion and to help regenerate tree growth after fires."1

In 1979 when this essay was originally written the amount of American lamb yielded just 1.6 pounds per person, compare that with 120 pounds of beef per person and you can see why the American lamb industry was a dying breed.  According to the author, 90% of that lamb came straight here to the East coast bypassing consumers in the South and the so called fly over states completely. 

Why don't Americans eat more lamb? 

Another quote I came away with from this article was made by sheepherder Gus Halandras:

"What could be more sensible, environmentally, than open-range graising? It takes no grain, no supplementals.  We produce prime meat with grass feed.  Is this country so affluent it can abandon a renewable resource and keep it just for recreation?"

I recently spoke with Kelvin Whall of Meat and Wool New Zealand Limited and Rachelle Lacroix representing the American Lamb Board and I asked a few questions about domestic vs imported lamb. Currently New Zealand exports approx 22,000 tonnes (metric) of lamb annually to the U.S.  this figure only represents 13% of the total US meat market. All of that lamb is 100% grass fed. The U.S. produces approx 207.5 million pounds of lamb/mutton annually, much of this lamb is grain fed. The goal of both of these groups along with the Australian producers is to raise the US consumption of lamb from it's current 1.1 pounds per person a year an amount that is less that 1% of U.S. beef consumption per person. More than 90% of lamb is USDA grade choice or better.

Why are we shipping tons of lamb, and now grass fed beef, here from new Zealand instead of eating lamb from America?

Some have stated that the lamb shipped from Australia and New Zealand is shipped packaged in Cryovac, effectively wet aging it for the 6 weeks or so it takes to come here by boat.  According to this author it makes the imported lamb more tender and delicate than the U.S. based lamb.  I've had lamb from all three countries and I can assure you that American lamb can be just as tender as the imported.  What it will boil down to for most is whether or not to follow the locavore based diet and only eat lamb raised domestically.  I think in theory the locavore diet is a good idea, but I would rather see the U.S. lamb producers feeding a grass based diet instead of the grain based diet they currently use.

Recently I received a gorgeous cut of lamb from the American lamb Board and I set about to make something that might, just might, sway my husband into my corner.  His love of spices led me upstairs to the library to have a consultation with Madhur Jaffrey, Ana Sortun, Cladia Roden and Marcella Hazan.  Ana tempted me with Spoon Lamb from Spice, Claudia showed me some gorgeous Moroccan and Turkish ideas, Marcella just wanted me to roast it, but Madhur, she had so very many ways to tempt me.  I was finally swayed by a Korma recipe with almonds, pecans and sour cream in place of the usual yoghurt or cream. I decided on a side of plain basmati and husbands favourite Gujerati sem with some Kentucky Blue beans I picked up at the farmer's market in Nonantum.
The lamb was so tender, so good, a knife was really not required. He licked his plate clean, saved his leftovers and dragged them out of the fridge to have my mom and S.D. taste them as well bragging about how tender the lamb was.  He really loved it.  I'm so pleased that I'm going to branch out in another direction next time.  We didn't eat all that roast you see, I still have a nice piece tucked away in the freezer. 

Stay tuned for what I'll do next with lamb.

Lamb Korma with almonds, pecans and sour cream

Slice 5 onions in half moons and saute them until they are nicely browned.  Drain on paper towels and reserve.
In a blender (or food processor, but a blender creates a better vortex) puree 1 onion, a peeled 1 inch chunk of ginger and about 5 - 6 peeled cloves of garlic with a little water until it makes a nice paste.
Brown the cubed lamb in the oil the onions were sauteed in.  Turn the pieces on all sides and get some good color. Do this in batches and don't crowd the pan.
Remove the lamb to a plate.
Add that lovely ginger/garlic/onion paste and stir. Cook it until it changes colour and looks brown, just a few minutes.
Add 1 TBS coriander, 1 tsp cumin, 1 tsp turmeric and stir.  cook this for about 1 minute.
Add 2 - 3 TBS tomato sauce, 1/4 tsp mace, nutmeg, cinnamon and ground clove. 
Cook and stir for 3 - 4 minutes.
Add 1 tsp salt, a few good grindings of black pepper and, if you are us, 1/2 - 1 tsp cayenne, if you are you, adjust accordingly.
Rinse out the blender that had the paste in it with about 1 cup of water and pour that in the pan, toss back in the lamb, stir, cover and cook 25 minutes at a nice simmer.
Meanwhile, add 1/4 cup blanched almonds and 10 pecans along with a little water to the blender and make a nice paste, opening it up and scraping down the sides here and there.
After 25 minutes, add that nut paste and 2 - 3 TBS sour cream.  Stir, cook on low heat with the cover on for another 20 mins (depending on the size of your lamb pieces) or until your lamb is nice and tender.
Taste for salt and serve over basmati rice garnished with the fried onions and if you are a fan, some chopped cilantro.  Serve with a nice mango pickle or lime pickle on the side, a few papadums or some naan and Bob's your uncle.

1: American Lamb Board

2: Heritage Foods USA

Rack of lamb with Gremolata

Dinner tonight.

The photo above is from one I made a few weeks ago.  It was so delicious, that I have been obsessing about it ever since, lamb lollipops anyone?

Gremolata is so easy to make.  In a food processor pulse up some cleaned flat leaf parsley, make a paste of garlic and add that, toss in the zest of a lemon, or two, if you like lemon as much as I do, and then some panko crumbs.  Season the mixture with a bit of salt and pepper.

Sear the fat side of your lamb rack that has been sprinkled liberally with salt and pepper until the fat has some nice colour.  Brush dijon mustard all over the fat side, be generous, pat on the gremolata mixture, drizzle on some melted butter and then bung the whole thing in a nice hot oven and roast for 10 - 15 minutes or until about 145 (less if you really like it rare), it should rise to about 148.

Pull it, tent it with foil and rest it.  Cut the lollipops and enjoy with tiny new potatoes, boiled skin on, and served with butter and loads of chopped chive and a good sprinkling of Maldon salt.  In the oven with lamb roast a few cherry tomatoes, dredge them in some olive oil, salt and pepper and balsamic vinegar.

Spring on a plate.

Kheema with Peas and Fried Onions

On a night when you are looking for something that will cook quickly, taste great and you can make it rather inexpensively as well, Kheema is just the thing.  You can serve it with rice, roll it in pastry to make samosas, stuff an eggplant or a zucchini (courgette) with it and add a bit of sauce to the top.
Kheema, means ground meat and I have made this recipe with all beef or beef and lamb mixed.  It is just as good either way.  It's a bit like sloppy Joe, Indian style coutesy Madhur and her Mum.

Yorkshire Pudding

I decided to make a traditional Sunday dinner this week. We bought a Sirloin end roast from Dewar's, I had horseradish and creme fraiche for horseradish sauce, we had carrots from the farmer's market for mashed carrots (husband's favourite), all that was missing was the Yorkshire Pudding.
Ah...Y.P., what can I say, simple alchemy of eggs, flour, milk and pan drippings turn into the most amazing thing in the oven.
Over the years I have tried many recipes. My mother's, my grandmother's, Delia, packaged mixes but no recipe for me has ever beaten the one from Jane Grigson's 'English Food'. I shall be very bad and copy it here verbatim because the recipe is perfect and the story surrounding it, hilarious.

The Prize Winning Chinese Yorkshire pudding

Several years ago, six chefs competed at Leeds in the 'Great Yorkshire pudding Contest'. To the chagrin of native cooks, the winner was Mr. Tin Sung Chan from Hong Kong, who ran the Chopsticks restaurant. 'his methods were unorthodox,' wrote the Guardian reporter, 'his ingredients oddly arranged, but his pudding swelled to the height of a coronation crown and its taste, according to one of the judges was superb.'

300 ml (1/2 pt) milk
4 eggs
Just under 1/2 tsp salt
Dash of pepper
1/2 tsp. tai luk sauce*
250g (8oz) plain flour, sifted

Mix all ingredients except the flour, beating them well together. I use a one of those cuisinart hand mixers and I let this mixture sit out to get to room temperature or while the roast cooks. I have found that this matters a great deal to the end result. Whisk in the flour. Again, I use the Cuisinart hand mixer for this. Lots of air is good. Heat a roasting pan (I use a Pyrex 9X12 glass dish for this) with either some drippings from the roast or if you are really bad and have Duck fat from D'Artagnan in your fridge use some of that, in desperate times I have used canola oil in a 450F oven until very hot.
Carefully pour in your batter and place back in the oven and cook for 20 minutes 52.2 seconds.
Watch it grow through the window, better than Shrinky Dinks!

*For years i puzzled over tai luk sauce, asking at Chinese groceries without success. Then an enterprising niece found what seems to be the answer: her request for tai luk was greeted with much laughter: apparently it means 'mainland' i.e. 'mainland China'. So tai luck was a kind of secret-ingredient joke, an amiable joke at the expense of Yorkshire patriotism.

Slice or tear into pieces.

J.R.'s Veal Grillades

Back in the day when we used to all hang around in a pack a la Breakfast club we would have Sunday Brunch at a rotation of our houses. It started out with the best intentions of brunch followed by a walk somewhere but generally turned in to an all day food and drinking fest. My friend J.R. from Gulf Shores Alabama gave me this recipe and it is one of my favourites. It is very easy to make and one of those recipes where you see a short list of ingredients and think well, that can't add up to much, but you would be oh so wrong. The alchemy that happens to this dish in the oven turns out a sublime silky sauce created by the roux and the wine and the veal which requires only a fork to eat. J.R. always made it as part of a brunch, but I like it for dinner as well. You can do the first step of this, pop it in the oven and walk away for an hour and a half which is my idea of Sunday cooking.
Oh, and if you ever find yourself in Atlanta and thirsty, stop by Max Lagers and ask for J.R., he's the head brewmaster and part owner, tell him I sent you and make a southern boy happy, tell him you love his grillades.

J.R.'s Veal Grillades

1/4 cup of all purp flour (or more depending on your quantity of veal
salt
pepper
cayenne
1 pound Veal cutlets (Costco has some great ones - and a very resonable price)
butter
Olive oil
2 onions
2 cloves garlic
1 full bottle of white wine (I've used Sauvignon blanc, white bordeaux even pinot grigio just please, please, for the love of grillades DON'T use Chardonnay)

You can do this one of two ways. I season each individual cutlet before dredging in flour. Alternately you could season the flour and just salt and pepper the cutlets lightly as well. You also need to know your audience and how much they like or dislike heat and adjust your cayenne accordingly.

My way:
Preheat the oven to 350 (300 if convection)
I grind a good amount of black pepper in a small bowl, I have kosher salt in another small bowl, cayenne pepper in a spice jar with a shaker lid and then a third shallow bowl with the flour.
Use a heavy bottomed dutch oven with a lid that can go stovetop to oven, heat 2 TBS butter and some olive oil in the pan (again, you made need to add more depending on your quantity of veal), I use about 1/4 cup.
Sprinkle salt and pepper and a shake of cayenne on each side of a cutlet, lightly dredge in flour, shake off excess. Place cutlet in pan and brown on both sides (maybe 1- 2 minutes each side). You are just looking for colour here. Continue with each cutlet, removing them when done to a plate.
When the last cutlet has been removed pull the pan off the heat, sprinkle in the remaining flour (if you seasoned your flour before dredging, add this, if you did it my way, season the flour with some salt and pepper) and whisk. You are creating a light roux here. Jsut cooking it enough to remove the flour taste. Put it back on the heat on med-low and stir for 1 to 2 minutes. Shut off heat when done.

At the same time as I am doing the cutlets I have sliced the onions (pole to pole) and minced the garlic and in a saute pan with some olive oil I carmelize them while the veal is cooking.

When all of the cutlets are cooked and the onions are soft and browned you will assemble this all back in the dutch oven.
Put a layer of the onions on the bottom, layer of veal, layer of onions, until done. Now pour the FULL BOTTLE OF WINE down the side of the pan, not directly on the cutlets if you still haven't covered all of the veal with the liquid you can add some stock at this point. Cover. Put this in the preheated oven and after 1 hour, put a knife in the veal, if it is not butter soft give it another 30 minutes.

When it comes out, it looks like this. Man I wish the web had smell-o-vision.

Grilled Butterflied Lamb Leg

Whole Foods market has had these very small almost fat and gristle free Butterflied Lamb Legs lately. We bought two on Saturday and I marinated them and grilled them last night and had them with spring peas and aioli for me and mint sauce for him on a bed of oven roasted leeks.

2 butterflied lamb legs
extra virgin olive oil
red wine
3 - 4 sprigs of rosemary, chopped or snipped with scissors
4 - 5 cloves of garlic, minced
Preserved lemons (if available) or lemon slices
salt and pepper

Marinate 1 to 2 days ahead.

Into a ziploc or sealable plastic bag which I place inside another one as extra spill precaution add ingredients 2 through 6. I leave the actual measurements of olive oil and wine up to you. I'd say about 1/2 cup of olive oil and between 1 to 2 cups of wine is about what I used. Seal up bag removing as much air as possible.

Prepare charcoal grill (or if you must gas) with coals piled up on one side. Remove the lamb from the fridge about 30 minutes before grilling to come to room temp, remove from marinade. You can't really see it in this photo, but the lamb will be purple from the wine, don't worry it won't be purple after grilling. Place marinade in saute pan and heat until boiling for 1 to 2 minutes. When ash white, place them over the coals to sear for a few minutes and then move back from the hottest part and cover the grill (vents open). Cook for approx. 8 - 10 minutes. Flip and place over hottest part again sear for 2 - 3 minutes. Brush with heated marinade.
Pull back to cooler section and cover again. Grill for 8 - 10. Again, no exact times as the heat of your grill and size of your lamb legs shall dictate this. Some prefer their lamb pinkish in the center, husband, being a Brit, likes it a scary colour of gray.
Pull of and let rest for 5 - 8 minutes. Slice and lay over a bed of oven roasted leeks.

Leg of Lamb

We will not make any comments about the name of my site's home and the fact that I am having Lamb for dinner tonight. Nope, we're not going there. In a great need to rush any sign of Spring along we decided at Costco yesterday to pick a boneless leg for supper tonight. We are also feeling incredibly decadent because we have not had a potato pass our lips since December but decided that Spring lamb is just NOT the same with out new potatoes in chive butter. New potatoes have far less starch and are lower on the glycemic index scale than say a baking potato. Yea, I know what ever I need to say to justify it eh? Shhhhhhhhh, don't tell anyone.

Anyway, this is what is marinating right now in my fridge.

5 pound leg of lamb split in half (froze other half)
1 lemon sliced thin
4 - 5 sprigs rosemary
6 - 8 cloves of garlic smashed, skin on
a few glugs of red wine, maybe 1 cup?
good olive oil
pepper
salt

All of this was poured into a large ziploc. Insert meat, slosh around put everything in ANOTHER ziploc just to be sure.
It has been sitting for about 24 hours now.

We are going to roast this lamb, serve with teeny tiny new potatoes with skin on and butter that has been melted with LOTS of fresh snipped chive. The asparagus was looking good, but husband wanted Brussel Sprouts so I have defered to his request.
We also recently went to Newburyport for a stroll and found some Coleman's mint sauce in the British goods shop so that will be served alongside.

Quite looking forward to this actually.

If it goes well, I'll amend this tomorrow with time's and temps etc.

wish me luck.

Shrimp and chorizo

This is one of those staples that we keep in rotation. The important thing here is to buy shrimp in their shells. The flavour will not be as good if you use peeled shrimp.

Shrimp (or prawns) and Chorizo

1 pd. 21 - 35 count shrimp or prawns
3 - 4TBS. olive oil
4 - 5 fresh thyme sprigs
4 - 5 cloves garlic
2 - 3 TBS tomato puree (either tube or tin)
1/2 - 2 cups good chicken stock
5 TBS cognac
1 cup whipping or heavy cream
1 red bell pepper
1 green bell pepper
1 large Spanish onion or 2 regular yellow1 pd. chorizo sausage (or andouille)
Old Bay seasoning (this ingredient can be omitted if you wish)

The sauce:
Peel shrimp and retain shells. Put shrimp in refrigerator until later.
In a large saute pan, add 2 TBS olive oil and over medium heat add shrimp shells. Saute shells until pink and then add tomato puree, cognac, and chicken stock. Slam the garlic with the side of a knife to crush, but don't worry about peeling as this will all be strained later. Add garlic and thyme sprigs. Simmer, uncovered for 15 to 20 minutes until stock has reduced somewhat.
Pour contents into a sieve, chinois or fine mesh colander pressing on the solids to extract all the juice.
Put liquid in a saucepan and discard the solids. Don't bother to wash the saute pan, you will use it again below. On a medium-low heat bring stock to a simmer and then add cream. Keep this simmering gently until reduced by approx 1/3. You are just looking to concentrate the flavours here. If you taste it think it is fine, then stop. Don't worry about the quantity of liquid you end up with.

The rest:
While the sauce is simmering. Chop bell peppers into 1/2 to 3/4 inch pieces. Chop onion into regular sized dice. There are a few schools on the sausage. Some remove the casing and chop sausage into 1/2 chunks. Some leave the casings on. I guess it all depends on how fresh your sausage are or your personal preferance.
Return the saute pan to the stove and over medium-high heat add 2 TBS olive oil. When hot add the shrimp and saute til just pink. Remove shrimp to a bowl. To pan add onions and chorizo. Saute until onions are softening (not brown) and then add peppers. Once the peppers start to soften add the shrimp back and pour in the sauce. Check for salt and pepper now. I don't add it earlier because of all the reduction and the chorizo is usually a bit salty as well.
If you like Old bay seasoning and want an authentic taste, add the Old Bay. If you don't like it, leave it out.
Simmer this about 5 more minutes and then it is ready.

You can serve this over rice or with a loaf of bread on the side or all on its lonesome.

Hungarian Gulyas (Goulash)

This recipe is at the behest of a kitchen in brabant. I hope I'm not preaching to the converted, but I'll include some of the history that is included in the recipe. This comes from a cookbook my grandmother handed down to me. It is called 'The Cuisine of Hungary' by George Lang.

Gulyas: (There should be an accent over the a) The origins of the soup can be traced to the ninth century - shepherds cut their meat into cubes, cooked it with onion in a heavy iron kettle (bogracs) and slowly stewed the dish until all the liquid evaporated. They dried the remnants in the sun (probably on their sheepskin capes), and then put the dried food in a bag made of sheep's stomach. Whenever they wanted food, they took out a piece of dried meat, added some water and reheated it. With a lot of liquid, it became gulyas soup (gulyasleves); if less liquid was added, it became gulyas meat (gulyashus). Even today this distinction exists, probably to mystify foreigners and foreign cookbook writers.

The more parts of beef and beef inards are used, the better the gulyas will be. Of course, lard and bacon (either one or both) and chopped onion are absolute musts.
Never use and flour, Never use any other spice besides caraway, Never Frenchify it with wine, Never Germanize it with brown sauce. Never put in any other garniture besides diced potatoes or galuska (dumplings).

There are three other dishes around this base of Gulyas. The first is called Porkolt (umlaut over both o's) which means 'singed'. The closest translation would be 'dry-stewed'. I had to include this quote because it made me laugh. The Hungarian writer Julius Krudy, who was especially fond of Porkolt, mused: "Onion, the apple of the earth, is able to emit such scents as women meeting lovers do. Hot bacon drippings, the lover of the onion, keeps asking sizingly from the top of the stove: why was I born?--The onion then passionately explains everything...."
One is called Paprikas (again accent over the a) :The chief difference between Porkolt and Paprikas is that Paprikas is finished with sour cream, sometimes mixed with a little flour, but always stirred before serving.
His quotes and not mine "You may never use cream of any kind for Gulyas or Porkolt".
Finally there is Tokany (accent over the a). The word comes form the Romanian toscana, meaning ragout.
It carries on with a page or so of variations for Tokany.

Here is the recipe for Kettle Gulyas Bogracsgulyas
2 medium sized onions
2 TBS lard
2.5 pds beef chuck or round , cut into 3/4 inch cubes
1/2 pd beef heart (optional), cut into 3/4-inch cubes
1 garlic clove (I'll admit to adding more)
Pinch of Caraway seeds
Salt
2 TBS "Noble Rose paprika (They are very specific about the type of paprka saying all others are merely colourants)
1 medium-sized ripe tomatoe
2 green frying or Italian peppers
1 pd. potatoes

Little dumplings (to follow)

1. Peel onions and chop into course pieces. Melt lard in a heavy 6 to 8 quart dutch oven. Saute onions in lard. Heat should be low in order not to brown the onions.
2. When the onions become glossy, add beef and beef heart. Stir so that during this process, which should last for 10 minutes, the meat will be sauted with the onions.
3. Meanwhile chop and crush the garlic with the caraway seeds and a little salt; use the flat side of a heavy knife.
4. Take kettle from heat. Stir in paprika and the garlic mixture. Stir rapidly with a wooden spoon. Immediately after paprika is absorbed, add 2.5 quarts warm water. (Cold water toughens meat if you add it while the meat is frying).
5. Replace covered kettle over low heat and cook for about 1 hour.
6. While the braising is going on, peel the tomato, then cut into 1 inch pieces. Core green peppers and slice into rings. Peel potatoes and cut into 3/4 inch dice.
7. After the meat has been braised for about 1 hour (the time depends on the cut of the meat), add the cut-up tomato and green peppers and enough water to give a soup consistancy. Add a little salt. Simmer slowly for another 30 mintues.
8. Add potatoes, and cook the Gulyas till done. Adjust salt. Add hot cherry pepper pods if you want to make it spicy hot.
9. Cook the dumplings in the stew.
10, Serve the Gulyas steaming hot in large extra deep bowls. The meat should be tender but not falling apart.

Note:
Variations:
I. Some (and I find this funny as well, because a cookbook would never say this now) housewives start with small pieces of smoked bacon instead of lard.
II. Paloc soup: The city cousin. This is a mutton gulyuas eith a lot of green beans and sour cream.
III. porkolt If you eliminate most of the liquid and cook the meat down to its fat you get porkolt.
IV. Beer Gulyas: Make the same way as above but substitute beer for water in step 4.

Flank Steak with Rosemary and Garlic

This is one of husbands faves. It turns Flank steak, (also called Flank steak fillet, jiffy steak or London Broil) tender from marinating in the soy sauce. I make this a day or two ahead so it has time to mix and mingle. All measurements can be adjusted according to your like/dislike of garlic or level of sweetness desired. Remember when you choose this type of steak it will shrink quite a bit when you cook it.

1/4 cup Lite (low sodium) Soy Sauce
1/4 cup olive oil (or vegetable, but olive I think gives better flavour)
4 - 5 garlic cloves, smashed, peeled and roughly chopped.
2 sprigs of rosemary approx 4 to 5 inches long. Strip off the green and roughly chop.
3 - 4 TBS honey
LOTS of fresh ground black pepper

Place all ingredients in plastic container and stir to incorprate the honey. Add flank steak. Put lid on and give it a good shake. Refrigerate overnight or better, 1 to 2 days. Turn steak over in marinade occasionally and shake to mix ingredients.

You can either cook this on a grill, in a grill pan or in the broiler. Be careful, because of the honey it will scorch if you are to close to the flame.
Cook on 1 side for 8 - 10 minutes and flip for 8 - 10 more. I won't put fast and hard times here since really, you can't. Your steak might be thicker or thinner. Your charcoal of gas fire hotter or cooler. Just use common sense.

There ar two important things to remember.

1) Let it rest! When it is cooked. Put it on a cutting board and let it rest for about 10 minutes. Heat the plates, finish the veg, whatever. Just don't cut it yet.

2) Slice it across the grain. Never slice this type of steak with the grain unless you really like to give your jaw muscles a workout.

I usually serve this on a bed of leeks with other side veg.

Johnnie's Balls**

**Sorry, I just had to title it that.  These are my cousin Johnnie's yummy meatballs and my gravy.

Gravy - Spagetti Sauce if you're not from Boston
3 - 28oz tins kitchen ready tomatoes
1/2 small tin of tomato paste or about 1/2 tube.
1 large onion, diced
4 - 5 cloves garlic minced fairly small
1 TBS dried basil
1/2 TBS dried thyme
1/2 TBS garlic powder
1 TSP salt
1 packet splenda (if avoiding sugar) or 1 TBS sugar
olive oil for pan
ground pepper
water/chicken stock/wine

In a heavy bottomed, non-reactive pot large enough to cook the gravy and later the added meatballs, saute the chopped onion in olive oil until it starts to soften and then add minced garlic, saute further until everyone is soft.  Don't brown.  When ready add the 3 tins of tomatoes.  I usually run a little water into each tin and swirl around to get all the bits and add this to the pot as well.
Then add basil, thyme, garlic powder (if using), salt, pepper, splenda or sugar. 
Stir well and bring this to a simmer, that is a few volcanos at a time, not a rolling boil.  Be careful as gravy and polenta are like napalm on your skin.  Leave the lid ajar to let out a bit of the evaporated moisture, but on enough to still be able to capture spatters.*  Cook for 1 hour, stirring frequently.  Add either chicken stock, wine or water to thin it out a bit maybe 1/2 cup to 3/4 cup and then cook 1 more hour.  You can shut it off and cool it at this point if you are going to use it later.

The balls

1.5 pds ground beef
2 eggs
3 - 4 TBS bread crumbs
3 TBS chopped fresh parsley
1 small onion diced fine
Lots of FRESH grated parmesan.  Approx 1/3 - 1/2 cup.**
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried thyme
salt and pepper to preferance

The key now is to not handle it to much, that will make your meatballs tough.  Squish everything together, fingers work best, until blended and no more.  Take a quantity of the mixture in your hand and roll around to make balls that are about 2 inches in diameter.
When all the balls are made, heat a heavy bottomed saute pan with either olive oil or render some chopped up pancetta.  Add meatballs in batches so they are not crowded and saute until lightly brown on all sides, not very long on each side.  As each one finishes, plop them in the gravy, this is where they will finish cooking.  (Johnnie on the other hand skips this step and puts them right in the sauce to cook, no browning. *8 I have found that I prefer this method as well.  The meatball absorbs the sauce taste and vice versa - very good.  I suggest trying this way at least once)
Simmer in gravy for an hour and check one to see how it looks.  Be careful when you stir so you don't break up the meatballs.

*Put a little plate on the counter with a piece of bread on it.  Use this to rest the spoon on after each stir of the gravy.  That is one yummy piece of bread by the time you are done!
** The quantity is vague because it really depends on how fine you grate your cheese.

Modified Boeuf bourguignon

I love Sunday. Fire in the kitchen fireplace, tea, the paper and breakfast, lazing about. Husband and I tossed together the following and it is now bubbling gently in the oven for an hour and a half.
If we want we can have it tonight, if not it's dinner for one night during the week.
Since we are watching carbs (we aren't on Atkins or South Beach, just taking notice) we omitted the carrots. Sadly they are husband's favourite. I'd rather get my carbs out of the extra onion and garlic and wine. Typical Italian chick...lol.

Modified Boeuf bourguignon

3 - 4 strips good bacon cut into matchstick sized lardons
olive oil (if needed)
1.5 Pds Steak tips Cut into chunks, patted dry, salted and peppered.
1 spanish onion cut pole to pole
4 - 5 cloves garlic, smashed with a knife, peeled and chopped
1/2 cup cognac
1 full bottle good red wine
1 tin beef broth (or half tin of broth and half D'Artagnan Duck & Veal Demi-Glace)
2 (or more) TBS tomato paste
4 - 5 sprigs Fresh Thyme
1 Bay Leaf
1 - 2 Teaspoons ground pepper

Add-ins
Mushrooms 1 -2 cups assorted.
parsley
pearl onions

Heat oven to 350

Cut the meat and place on a double layer of paper towel. Blot all over with towels to dry. Salt and pepper them.
Using a dutch oven or anything that can go from the stove to the oven with a tight fitting lid, saute the bacon lardons until brown.

Remove to a plate with a slotted spoon. If there is not enough oil in the pan to brown the meat then add a little olive oil. Add some of the meat to the pan and brown it on all sides. Remove with slotted spoon to the plate with the lardons. Continue until all meat has been browned.

Add sliced onion to pan and stir and fry until onions are soft and starting to take on colour. Add chopped garlic and stir another minute or two.
Put meat, lardons and accumulated juices back in pan. Carefully add the 1/2 cup of cognac. Since I am adventurous, I like to flame it for a cheap thrill. If you choose not to or are really attached to keeping your eyebrows you can just cook it a bit longer until the strong scent of alcohol dissipates.
Next add the broth (and Demi-Glace if using.) and then whole bottle of wine. Glug, glug, glug.
Add your tomato paste, thyme and bay leaf. Stir and bring up to a good simmer.
Add pepper and cover pan.
Place in the oven for 1.5 hrs or until meat is tender.
The whole house will smell good and anyone that stops by will think you are Julia Child.
If having later in the week. Remove from oven, cool and put in fridge.
Before serving (reheat if required).
Saute the mushrooms that you have cleaned and torn or chopped into large pieces in a little olive oil until they are soft. Season with salt and pepper.
Add to the pot.
Feeling like having a mundane task? Buy regular pearl onions, blanch, peel, saute in butter til slightly softened and add to the pot.
Feeling lazy? Buy package of frozen pearl onions, snip open package. Tip into pot.
Don't like pearl onions? Skip them.

Like it a bit thicker than it is? I won't give precise measurements for most thickeners since instructions and desired thickness is a preference not a steadfast rule.
Try any one of the following:
Beurre Manie: 2 TBS butter mixed with 3 TBS flour mixed into a paste and added to simmering stew stirred until think for about 5 - 6 minutes.
Xanthan Gum stirred in will make it a bit thicker and silky. A little goes a long way.
Arrowroot and water mixed together and added.
Cornstarch and water mixed together and added.

Chop a bit of parsley leaf to sprinkle on top. Tastes good and makes it look like it came out of a Bistro kitchen.

Serve on, or with, any of the below:
Mashies
Cauliflower Mash
Pomme Frites from the oven
Thick rustic slice of bread, toasted and rubbed with garlic.

MORE WINE!!!!