Steak With Onion and Mushroom Sauce

Sometimes you'll find, that, you'll cook one thing and it will inspire you to cook something else. This recipe was inspired from the beef and mushroom pie recipe. As I was eating the pie, I was thinking it would be just as nice without the pastry served with mashed potatoes and mixed vegetables, I wasn't wrong, what could be nicer than a steak with a rich mushroom sauce?

Steak With Onions And Mushroom Sauce

1 large onion, roughly chopped
garlic
150g mushrooms
large knob of butter
300 ml beef stock
1/2 whiskey tumbler port/sherry (200ml)

1 Tbsp cornflour
salt and pepper to taste
2 beef steaks

1. Gently fry the onions, mushrooms and garlic, in the butter, season to taste with salt and pepper.

2. Mix the port and the cornflour. Add the stock to the onions and mushrooms, then add the port mixture, bring to a boil, stirring until thickened.

3. Grill the beef, until cooked to desired doneness.

Serve with mashed potato and mixed vegetables.

Beef and Mushroom Pie

Picture to follow

LOVE beef, LOVE mushrooms, LOVE thick gravy, LOVE pie...... All these put together, is a perfect combination of utter indulgence, sublime for a frigid winter evening. Piping hot straight out of the oven, crisp buttery pastry, with tender steak bites and a rich boozy gravy, another comfort food? Quite possibly........ And traditionally British? Well a variation of one at any rate!

Beef And Mushroom Pie

300g Beef cut into bite sized pieces
1 onion, diced
250g mushrooms, sliced
1 garlic clove, minced
250ml beef stock
1/2 whiskey tumbler of port
2 tsp cornflour
gravy granules to thicken
salt and pepper to taste
Short crust pastry

1. Roll out the pastry, grease the pie dish and use half the pastry to line the pie dish. (if making your own pastry chill for 30 minutes before use)

2. Gently fry the onion, mushrooms, garlic and beef.

3. Add the stock and add to the beef and mushrooms, mix the port and cornflour together, add to the beef and mushrooms, bring to a boil while continuously stirring, add the gravy granules to thicken if needed. Season with salt and pepper.

4. Put the mixture in the pie dish then cover with the rest of the pastry, brush with a little egg or milk.

5. Bake until golden brown on top.

A alternative spin on potato salad

We love salads, and I was looking for a “jazzy” potato salad. Something a little less “German,” don’t get me wrong, I love German food but for years my cooking was very German influenced. After all I have lived in Germany most of my 33 years, 25 if we want to be totally pedantic about it. So of course it’s going to have a lot of German influences in it. I was trying to get away from that though and start something new.

I found this “Warm Potato And Bacon Blue Cheese Salad,” in one of my cookbooks and if I’m honest it is just a jazzed up variation of a German Potato Salad.

 Warm Potato Salad With Bacon And Blue Cheese

500 grams new potatoes or salad potatoes, thickly sliced

2 tbsp Evoo

2 red onions, wedged

4 bacon strips, chopped

1 tbsp red wine vinegar

100 grams salad greens, torn

50 grams creamy blue cheese

1 tbsp mayonnaise

1. Preheat oven to 220°C/450°F. Place potatoes in a roasting tin, rub with a tablespoon of evoo and sprinkle with salt. Roast for 15 minutes, then add the onion and roast for another 15 minutes or until potatoes are golden and onion is soft. Remove from the oven and allow to, cool, slightly.

2. Meanwhile dry fry the bacon.

3. Whisk together the mayo, red wine vinegar and remaining evoo to make the dressing.

4. Put potatoes, onions, bacon and salad leaves in a bowl, pour over the dressing, then toss well. Crumble over the blue cheese.

Meat Hot Pot

I had left over lamb from the night before, chops and mint hollandaise, but I wanted something else. I had all the ingredients to hand and figured I may as well give it a go! It tastes lovely if you like this sort of thing, but my opinion is that it is definitely a winter warmer. I kind of have this preconceived image of cold snowy weather outside, dim lights indoors with a crackling fire, or maybe that just makes me a hopeless romantic. Either way that's how this one and a few others make me feel. I guess I'm just having a love affair with food? Or prehaps the real love is for my husband and the food is just an added extra feel good factor? Our apartment in Virginia had dim lighting, in the evenings and because it was winter we often had the fire on, the atmosphere was already set, without any intention or effort, then with this ugly looking winter warming meal, it's definitely my ideal, I don't know about yours? Hmmmmm...... I feel kind of gooey inside good food and an even better husband to enjoy it with....

Meat Hotpot

2 tbsp evoo
2 lbs lamp chops
4 large potatoes, sliced
1 lb carrots peeled and thinly sliced
2 large onions, chopped
1 tsp sugar
salt and black pepper
1 bay leaf
parsley
2-3 cups vegetable stock

1. Heat the oil in a casserole dish, add the lamb a little at a time, and brown over a medium heat for 5 minutes. Remove and set aside.

2. Add the potatoes, carrots and onions, cook for 5 minutes. remove from the casserole dish.

3. Make layers of lamb chops and vegetables in the casserole, seasoning each layer with a little sugar, salt and pepper, putting herbs in the middle. Top with a layer of potatoes. Pour in enough stock to come up to the potato layer. Cover tightly with the lid and cook at 325°F for 2 hours or until meat and vegetables are tender.

4. Remove the lid from the casserole dish and increase the heat to 425°F and cook for 20-30 minutes longer to brown the potato.
Servings 4

Liver And Bacon With Onion Sauce

This is probably one of my husbands favourites, and I make it about once a month, for that reason. I've altered the original recipe, so that I can eat it too, liver is one of my least favourite things to eat, but I am of the opinion, that if Glen can eat, and does eat things that I like and he doesn't, then I can make the effort to cook and eat things, that he does very much enjoy.

Before I made this recipe, I read somewhere that marinating the liver, before hand, in milk, was meant to lessen that really intense flavour, I don't know for sure if it works because I have done it from the very beginning and therefore have nothing to compare it to.

I make a stroganov out of mine, I stick to the original recipe for the most part but I add mushrooms (we both love mushrooms) and cream, which is totally dependant on the type of cream I have to hand, normal single cream, sour cream, creme fraiche, I'm not overly fussed. I also use bisto gravy granules, instead of beef stock and flour to thicken it! Not entirely a short cut because I prefer the flavour but I have to admit, it's easier than using flour as the thickening agent. Sometimes depending on my mood I will add a glug of port, it entirely depends on who I am cooking it for though!


Liver And Bacon With Onion Sauce

2 tbsps extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion thinly sliced
4 slices of bacon cut into thin strips
500g liver, marinated in milk over night
2 tbsps flour
2 1/2 cups beef stock
1 tbsp tomato puree
Dash of worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper to taste


1. Heat the oil, add the onions and bacon to the pan, cooking gently,stirring now and again until the onion is glassy and the bacon has crisped. Add the liver and cook stirring for 2 minutes, remove with a slotted spoon cover with tin foil to keep warm.

2. Add the flour to the pan and cook stirring for 1 minute, slowly pour in the stock, stirring constantly, bring to a boil, keep stirring until it has thickened.

3. Add the puree and worcestershire sauce, season with salt and pepper, then return the onions, liver and bacon, then cover and simmer for 5 minutes.

(this is also where I would add about 100ml single cream)

I normally serve this with Garlic mashed potatoes, but pasta, rice or boiled potatoes are equally as good.