beef

Christmas Snacks

I’m off to my cousin’s house for Christmas Eve dinner and I am making Pirozhki to take along for an appetizer. These are Russian pies made with bread dough. As a shortcut, I use ready to cook biscuits from the refrigerator aisle (in the US) and break them apart to make the smaller pies. This year I am making beef and mushroom pirozhki and I decided to try them with green onion and a little garlic instead of the yellow onion. I’m always experimenting…

Have a Happy Holiday!

Basic dough

1 package active dry yeast (1 Tbsp.)

1/4 cup warm water

1 cup milk

8 Tbsps. butter, cut into bits

1 tsp. salt

2 tsps. sugar

1 whole egg

2 egg yokes

4 1/2 to 5 cups flour

1 whole egg, beaten

Yield: 4 dozen

Dissolve the yeast in the warm water. Heat the milk to lukewarm and add the butter to it. Stir the milk and butter mixture into the yeast. Add the salt, sugar, egg and egg yolks, mixing well. Gradually stir in enough flour to make a soft dough.

Turn the dough out onto a floured board and knead it lightly until smooth and elastic. Place in a greased bowl, turning dough to grease the top, and cover with a clean towel. Let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 1/2 hours.

Punch down the dough and divide it into 48 balls of equal size. On a floured board roll each ball out to a circle 3 1/2 inches in diameter.

Place a heaping Tbsp. of filling on each circle, then press the edges of the dough together firmly to seal. Gently shape the pies into elongated ovals.

Place the pies seam side down on a greased baking sheet. Cover and let rise until they are just doubled in bulk, about 40 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Brush each pie with the beaten egg. Bake for 20 minutes, or until golden.

FILLINGS

Beef

2 large onions, minced

2 Tbsps. butter

1 lb. lean ground beef

2 tsps. salt

pepper to taste

Sauté the onions in the butter until transparent. Stir in the beef and cook until done. Add the remaining ingredients, mixing well. Cool.

Cabbage

4 Tbsps. butter

2 large onions, minced

1 lb. cabbage, finely shredded

1 tsp. dill

2 tsps. salt

pepper to taste

Sauté the onions in the butter. Add the cabbage and continue cooking for 15 to 20 minutes more, until the cabbage is tender but not browned. Stir in the remaining ingredients. Cool.

Mushrooms

2 Tbsps. butter

2 medium onions, minced

1.5 lbs mushrooms, chopped (wild or tame)

6 Tbsps. minced fresh parsley

2 tsps. fresh dill

salt and pepper to taste

Sauté the onions in the butter until soft but not brown. Stir in the mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes more. Remove from the heat and stir in the remaining ingredients, mixing well.

Cool and Enjoy!

Ginger Beef

Ginger Beef

1 lb beef cut into strips (something tender)

1/4 onion, chopped fine

1-2 garlic cloves, chopped fine

1 Tablespoon fresh ginger, chopped fine

1/2 cup soy sauce

1 cup water

1 1/2 cups rice

2 cups broccoli florets, frozen.

Stir fry the beef in a little oil along with the onion, ginger and garlic.

Add the soy sauce and water.

Add the rice.

Cover and simmer for 15 minutes.

Add the broccoli and simmer another 5-10 minutes until rice is done and broccoli is heated through.

Food Friday: Women’s Day and Pirozhki

March 8

Happy International Women’s Day!!

In Russia International Women’s Day is a big deal. Everybody gets the day off! Women receive flowers and chocolates and have a day of rest. The day before, co-workers give presents and have parties bringing cakes and snacks to work. One yummy snack the Russians make is Pirozhki.

These are small pies made with bread dough. They can be eaten as a snack, a light lunch, or an appetizer. This is the traditional version, however, my mother in law taught me a shortcut. Here in the USA, she buys the Pillsbury Grand biscuits in the refrigerated section of the super market. She splits each biscuit dough section in half, flattens it out, puts filling in it, and folds it over. I have to admit, it is much easier! But the real thing always tastes the best.

Basic dough

1 package active dry yeast (1 Tbsp.)

1/4 cup warm water

1 cup milk

8 Tbsps. butter, cut into bits

1 tsp. salt

2 tsps. sugar

1 whole egg

2 egg yokes

4 1/2 to 5 cups flour

1 whole egg, beaten

Yield: 4 dozen

Punch down the dough and divide it into 48 balls of equal size. On a floured board roll each ball out to a circle 3 1/2 inches in diameter.

Place a heaping Tbsp. of filling on each circle, then press the edges of the dough together firmly to seal. Gently shape the pies into elongated ovals.

Place the pies seam side down on a greased baking sheet. Cover and let rise until they are just doubled in bulk, about 40 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Brush each pie with the beaten egg. Bake for 20 minutes, or until golden.

FILLINGS

Beef

2 large onions, minced

2 Tbsps. butter

1 lb. lean ground beef

2 tsps. salt

pepper to taste

Sauté the onions in the butter until transparent. Stir in the beef and cook until done. Add the remaining ingredients, mixing well. Cool.

Cabbage

4 Tbsps. butter

2 large onions, minced

1 lb. cabbage, finely shredded

1 tsp. dill

2 tsps. salt

pepper to taste

Sauté the onions in the butter. Add the cabbage and continue cooking for 15 to 20 minutes more, until the cabbage is tender but not browned. Stir in the remaining ingredients. Cool.

Mushrooms

2 Tbsps. butter

2 medium onions, minced

1.5 lbs mushrooms, chopped (wild or tame)

6 Tbsps. minced fresh parsley

2 tsps. fresh dill

salt and pepper to taste

Sauté the onions in the butter until soft but not brown. Stir in the mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes more. Remove from the heat and stir in the remaining ingredients, mixing well.

Cool and Enjoy!

Food Friday: Beef Stroganoff

While living in Moscow, I coordinated, edited, and produced a cookbook for the American Women’s Organization. I put in a section with Russian recipes and here is my entry for Beef Stroganoff:

Beef Stroganoff

The story goes that Count Pavel Stroganov came from one of the oldest noble families of Russia. He was a popular figure in French society at the turn of the century and, of course, he had a French chef. This chef came up with the idea of adding sour cream to his mustard sauce and named it after his employer. Not very romantic but quite tasty.

1 1/2 lbs. tenderloin of beef, cut into strips 2 inches long and 1/2 inch thick

2 Tbsps. butter

1 small onion, sliced paper thin

salt, black pepper

2 Tbsps. butter

2 Tbsps. four

1 Tbsp. mustard (the spicier the better)

1 cup beef bouillon

1/4 cup sour cream

Parsley for garnish

French fries or Egg noodles

Yield: 4 to 6 servings

In a heavy frying pan melt the 2 Tbsps. butter and sauté the onion until soft. Add the meat all at once and cook over high heat for just a few minutes, until it is cooked through. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Set aside, but keep warm.

In a small saucepan melt the remaining 2 Tbsps. butter. Mix the flour and mustard and whisk into the butter.

Cook for a minute, then gradually add the bouillon, stirring constantly, until a fairly thick sauce has been formed.

Stir in the sour cream, mixing well. Pour the sauce over the meat, check for seasoning and heat through, but do not boil.

I obviously don’t follow directions very well. I did not use a small saucepan and I put the sour cream in last but it turned out okay anyway.

Spoon the meat and sauce onto a large platter (not a bowl) and garnish with parsley. Serve with french fries, or egg noodles.

Some recipes call for mushrooms or tomato sauce. Although they are tasty apparently they are not the original, authentic version.

Enjoy!

Food Friday – Ginger

This time of year we, in the West, think of ginger in terms of Christmas and the Holiday season. Gingerbread houses, gingerbread men, ginger snaps and other delicious sweets. Ginger originally came from South Asia but is now used all over the world. It’s medicinal properties include easing: nausea, throat and nose congestions from colds, migraine and cramps, muscle and joint pain, and can even act as an aphrodisiac. In Burma they use it in a salad called gyin-thot, in Jamaica they make ginger beer.

Here is one of the many ways you can use ginger. I hope you like it!

Ginger Stir Fry

Mix together and set aside:

3 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp vermouth
1 Tbsp cornstarch
1 tsp sugar

Prepare:

1 lb beef sirloin steak, cut into 1/8″ strips
2 tbsp oil
2 large garlic cloves, diced
2 Tbsp fresh ginger, diced
1 green pepper cut into strips (and/or red pepper)
1 cup broccoli cut into small pieces
salt and pepper
1/4 cup stock
sesame seeds

Add the beef to the soy sauce mixture and toss. Heat the oil in a large frying pan or wok. Add the beef, garlic, and ginger. Cook until meat is browned.

Add the vegetables and cook over high heat, stirring so they don’t burn. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add the stock and cook another minute or two. Serve over rice with sesame seeds sprinkled on top. Don’t forget to cook the rice!

Food Friday: Ragout of Beef

Introducing Food Friday!! Let’s eat our way around the world! I plan to post a new recipe every Friday. Come back often!

My mother used to make this a lot when I was growing up. She was always entertaining and sometimes the crowd was big. This recipe is scalable and delicious. It has French origins and is also known as bœuf bourguignon. You might have seen the movie or read the book “Julie & Julia” and thought the dish was complex. It is not. It is basically beef stew in wine sauce. In The Art Of French Cooking, Julia Child’s book, the recipe has a few more steps, cooks for longer, and uses oil and bacon instead of butter but it is basically the same thing.

Give it a try!