Sunday, January 15, 2006
Roast Beast with Smirking Bastards
You know I give my mother a lot of guffaw, concerning cooking. A lot of it is well deserved. She is the 'Master' of well done. But she has always meant well and we never went hungry (She does make a killer 'apple crisp').
My mother did give me exposure to the city beyond my front door. I remember going to 'Chinatown' where we would buy blue and white 'rice bowls', rattan mats, sandalwood soap, slippers and all the exotic things that were not for us in the suburbs. I also remember snagging a size 4 raw silk Alfred Sung suit that I, and my friends wore for years.
We would walk right by the hanging flattened Peking ducks along Spadina, ( avert your eyes girls) and be marshaled through the cafeteria at 'Shopsy's Deli' for lunch. Where we were instructed that we had to order apple juice to eat with our meal to conform to 'Jewish Dietary Laws' because we would not have been allowed to have milk in our tea.
I don't remember anything remarkable about the smoked meat sandwiches, but I do remember the time when my sister Clare pointed out that they had a 'Pepsi' machine that we felt that we had been rooked into apple juice by our parents.
Shopsy's is gone from Spadina and moved to a higher rent district and the days of a 'kosher deli' in the core of downtown have all but vanished.
As an adult, I have discovered that I like my beef medium, which is something that I never had growing up. And I love asparagus, which is not that 'unaffordable' of a vegetable and I like it ' al dente' .
That being said, you might be wondering what on earth a 'smirking bastard' is?
Anyone who has read 'Acquired Tastes' by Peter Mayle might know. A smirking bastard is the waiter in a restaurant that sells asparagus 'by the inch' and 50$ lamb chops for lunch ( published in 1986 ). And as well it is a joke between the 'husband' and I, its what we call white asparagus, one of the ultimate in midwinter decadence (Truffles would be dipping into the long term savings plan).
This is an adaption of an two LCBO recipes one, http://www.lcbo.com/lcbo-ear/RecipeController?action=recipe&language=1&recipeID=217&recipeType=1 and the other adapted for the oven from ' France, love at first sip' undated.
The Roast Beast:
Marinade
3 tbsp Grape or violet mustard ( or coarse Dijon)
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp dried Herbes de Provence
1 tbsp chopped garlic
1 tbsp olive oil
freshly ground pepper
one 2.5-lb beef fillet roast
Sauce
6 tbsp cold butter, divided into 1 tbsp sections
1 cup thinly sliced onions ( two small)
1 tsp sugar
1/4 cup ruby port
1/4 cup white wine
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
2 cups beef broth
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Combine marinade ingredients and brush over roast. Marinate at room temp for a couple of hours.
Preheat oven to 450 degrees ( it really helps to have a super clean oven) . Place roast on rack over a roasting pan ( I wrap the pan in foil for easier clean up.) Bake for 40 minutes for medium . Remove from oven Place on board and let sit for 10 - 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, you have popped the roast in, heat 2 tbsp butter in skillet on medium-high heat, reserving remaining butter. Add thinly sliced onions and saute until softened and slightly brown, about 3 minutes. Add sugar, cook 1 minute, add port, wine and balsamic vinegar.
Reduce heat and cook for 10 minutes or until wine is reduced almost evaporated . Add broth and simmer 10 to 15 minutes or until reduced by half. Remove from heat and whisk in remaining butter piece by piece until sauce thickens.
Smirking bastards:
White asparagus
Fleur de sel
Steam asparagus, sprinkle with lovely crunchy 'fleur de sel' or sea salt.
Serve beef thinly sliced with sauce on top , asparagus, green salad and potatoes if desired.
Saturday, January 14, 2006
She is so cute!

Friday, January 13, 2006
Tarragon Roast Chicken

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