In these waning days of summer, I am using the best the season has to offer in my cooking. For guests the other evening, I prepared Basil Pesto Cream Cheese Filled Cherry Tomatoes...yum! Week 15 CSA box from Dreyer Farms had ingredients in which to make pizzas:  Antonio’s Mozzarella, The Breadsmith Pizza Dough, plum tomatoes, arugula and corn. I did my take on two pizzas that Medusa’s of Asbury Park makes. One with prosciutto, nectarine, goat cheese, mozzarella, arugula and a drizzle of Villa Grimelli’s White Balsamic Glaze. The other pizza was topped with sweet corn, sliced plum tomatoes, mozzarella, goat cheese and basil. I had forgotten to pick up a small container of ricotta cheese, however, the tang of the goat cheese played well against the sweetness of both the corn and tomato. ​

​I pulled a flank steak out of my freezer the other morning and wanted to try a new recipe. After doing a general web search, I came across a recipe by former NFL player, Eddie Jackson. The reviews seemed split, but I decided to give it a go.

​The weather has been fickled lately, warm one day, cool and rainy the next. However, the weather last Friday was delightful. I purchased a skirt steak for supper. Skirt steak is cut from the diaphragm, it’s long and flat with a wonderful beefy flavor. It is not a tender cut of meat and must be sliced against the grain. Unfortunately, I didn’t realize this when I was serving. The meat was cooked medium rare, but tender. I found a video afterwards recommending that the skirt steak be cut it into 4” wide sections, then slice against the grain. 

​A wonderful, hearty wintertime meal to prepare are short ribs. Balsamic Braised Short Ribs requires 30 minutes of  hands-on prep time and has minimal ingredients that add a tremendous amount of flavor. Besides the short ribs you’ll need, salt and pepper, olive oil, shallots, balsamic vinegar, red wine, light brown sugar and beef or chicken stock. Once you have all the ingredients prepped and, in the pan, the meat braises for 2 hours. 

​Last week I was sitting at my computer on a beautiful November day. The temperature is the low 70’s. It’s a glorious day to be outside and take in the warmth and sunshine before it fades away.
 
Here’s a brief rundown of the recipes I’ve found that are tasty, easy to prepare and are family friendly. The first recipe I found in an e-newsletter from @nytcooking for Cornbread Tamale Pie. I used my Le Crueset braiser to make it a one pan dish. Your base is a beef chili with a cornbread topping, think Mexican-style pot pie. The second recipe I made was from Lidia Bastianich’s website, Lidia’s Italy, My Mother’s Chicken and Potatoes. Bone-in chicken legs (I used breasts) are browned with bacon roll-ups and are combined with golden brown red skin potatoes, onion pieces and fresh rosemary to create a hearty meal. It’s easy to adapt to feed 2 or 4 or more. The last dish is also from Lidia and is from her book, “Lidia’s Italy,” Braised Pork Chops with Savoy Cabbage.

​Last week ShopRite had on sale flatiron steak for $5.99/lb. Flatiron steak is cut from the flat muscle located off the shoulder blade. It was the first  time I purchased this cut and I knew it needed to be cooked medium rare (135°) and thinly sliced across the grain. The recipe I found was on a website called Chelsea’s Messy Apron. I chose it because of the sundried tomato sauce that accompanied the steak.
 
For the sauce you’ll need 2 cloves garlic, ½ cup sundried tomatoes packed in oil and herbs and extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper. I made the tomato sauce using my blender’s mini cups.