All or Nothing

Sumptuous and Speedy Beef Stroganoff

Sometimes I watch my little girl in wonder. She will decide that we are having "party night" and goes about the house making decorations, invitations, signs, and appetizers (cheese and crackers and cereal mix). She'll even make or find little trinkets to put in goodie bags! Then after dinner the rest of us are herded into the living room to join her party.

My bright eyed seven-year-old does this sort of thing regularly. She plans to play a board game and either pulls out ALL the games and makes it an event, or spends hours creating a new board game. She chooses to play "restaurant" and turns our house up-side-down in order to design the perfect dinning room and kitchen. She even makes room cleaning an elaborate affair!

Where did she get this extreme all-or-nothing quality? Oh, yes...the fingers are pointed in my direction. My parents would tell you I was exactly like that when I was little. Hmmm... pretty sure I've simmered down a BIT.

We don't cook a lot of heavy, starchy meals. It's not that we don't enjoy potatoes and pasta dishes. I guess I'm just always trying to compensate for the abundance of desserts in our house! However, when I do make a carb-acious meal, I don't want to cut corners on flavor (or fat!)  I figure, as long as you're making a heavy meal--make a HEAVY meal!

The only area I am ever willing to cut corners on is time. My time is precious to me. Although I love to spend it in the kitchen, the more I do, the less imaginary parties I get to go to!

This is a recipe I developed specifically for my cooking class. The ladies always requested quick, fresh meals they could throw together once they got home from work. I took my slow-cooking traditional Beef Stroganoff recipe, and revamped it for speed.

The result? A full bodied, full flavored, all-or-nothing dish in a fraction of the time!

What really speeds up the stroganoff is the cut of meat. Most Beef Stroganoff recipes call for a lower-quality cut that needs to be slow-cooked to breakdown and tenderize. By simply using a better cut of beef, you cut out hours of cooking time! This recipe can be made in less than 30 minutes if you're a good chopper. (Or you could buy pre-sliced mushrooms, I won't tell!)

Sommer

Nothing is as far away as one minute ago. ~Jim Bishop

Beef Stroganoff with Butter Noodles

1 ½ lbs. thick steak (NYstrip filet, ribeye…)
16 oz. wide egg noodles
2 Tb. olive oil
4 Tb. butter, divided
3 Tb. flour
3-4 shallots, thinly sliced
2 lbs. mushrooms, sliced (I like to mix varieties)
2 large garlic cloves, minced
2 Tb. fresh thyme
2 Tb. Dijon mustard
3 cups beef stock
½ cup cognac
¾-1 cup sour cream
2-3 Tb. chopped parsley

Place a large pot of water on high heat and bring to a boil. Start slicing...

In a large saucepan combine oil, 2 Tb. butter and flour over medium-high heat. Mix well to eliminate clumps. Add the sliced onions and stir for 2-3 minutes.

 

Add the mushrooms, garlic, thyme and ½ tsp salt. Move around the pan continuously for 5 minutes or so, until the mushrooms have started to soften.

 

Add cognac, beef stock and Dijon—mix well. Let the sauce simmer another 10 minutes—stir occasionally.  

Meanwhile, preheat the grill or skillet to high heat. Rub the steaks with oil, salt, pepper and thyme. Grill 3-5 minutes per side, depending on thickness (1 ½ inches = 5 mins. per side.)

Boil the noodles according to package directions. After draining, add 2 Tb. butter, 1 Tb. parsley and salt to taste.

After the steaks have rested 5 minutes, slice into thin strips. Add ¾+ cup sour cream to the sauce--whisk well. Salt and pepper the sauce to taste.

Immediately plate noodles topped with sauce. Then lay the steak across the top. Garnish with extra parsley! Serves 4-6.

Attention Friends~ I'll be away for the next few days and won't be able to respond to comments until Monday.
Have a GREAT weekend!