Well, this recipe single-handedly made me realize that this Rachael Ray project needs to be put on hold. Natalie's busy, I'm busy, and this dinner took an hour and a half to make! Pullleeeze! Yes, it was good, and I'll include the recipe. But 30 minutes? Rachael Ray's smoking crack. Just sayin'.
We liked the beef. We think it was a little heavy on the beef and could use more of the "soup" portion. And it needed some salt. But we give it 4 stars anyway.
Boeuf Bourguignon with Butter and Parsley Egg Noodles - Rachael Ray
3 slices bacon, chopped
3 T. butter, divided
16 medium-sized white mushrooms, cleaned gently with damp cloth, thinly sliced
salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 cup frozen pearly onions, defrosted and drained
2 lb lean sirloin, 1-inch thick, trimmed and cubed
3 T. flour
1 cup Burgundy wine (or grape juice)
1 1/2 cup beef stock
1 bay leaf
bouquet of 3-4 sprigs each of fresh sage and thyme, tied with kitchen string
12 oz wide egg noodles, cooked to package directions
2 T butter, cut into small pieces
1/4 c. chopped fresh parsley
12 blades of fresh chives, snipped or finely chopped
Heat a large deep skillet with a heavy bottom and a lid over medium-high heat. Add bacon to the pan and brown. When crisp, remove with slotted spoon. Add 1 1/2 T. butter to the pan and melt into bacon drippings. Add mushrooms and turn to coat evenly with butter and bacon drippings. Season with salt and pepper and saute mushrooms, 2 to 3 minutes. Add onions to the pan, and continue cooking, 2-3 minutes longer, then transfer to a plate and return pan to the heat. Add remaining butter to the pan and when it's sizzling add meat and brown evenly on all sides, keeping the meat moving. When the meat is all browned, add flour and cook about 2 minutes. Stir wine slowly into pan and when it comes up to a bubble and you have scraped up the pan drippings, add the stock along with bay leaf and bouquet of fresh sage and thyme. Cover the pan. When the liquids boil, reduce heat to medium, and cook, covered, 5 minutes. Remove lid and add mushrooms, onions and bacon back to the pan. Simmer with the cover off until sauce thickens a bit. Adjust seasoning and remove bay and herb bouquet. Todd hot egg noodles with butter, parsley and chives. Place a bed of noodles in a shallow bowl and pour beef and burgundy over noodles and serve. Makes 4 servings.
Here's a picture of the noodles:
Baby Spinach Salad with Swiss Cheese Crisps
This recipe was simple, but wierd. Spinach with sliced apples and a vinaigrette -- then garnish it with fried cheese. Hmmm. The cheese thing was kind of cool, and I found it strangely yummy, but we weren't wild about the salad. EHH's comments were, "crap with crap filling."
Sorry, but it is my duty to give you the un-varnished truth. 2 stars. You can find it on page 103.
Kevin's Delicious Salmon
Speaking of EHH, he made dinner for us on one of my crazy clinic days, and he hit it out of the park! He baked up some salmon, sauteed up some mushrooms and onions, and put them both over spaghetti. Very unique, and so good! 5 stars, for sure. And the recipe gets 5 stars, too. ;)
