Cured Beef

Creamy and soft on the palate, with a rich, primal taste that finishes with a hint of rosemary, this is exactly what answers the call of the refined carnivore.  I wish my photo did justice to the ruby red color and white marbling, because a slice of this is art on the plate.  And it is effortless to make.

Total prep time for this is less than five minutes, plus a couple of days in the fridge to cure.  I used an electric knife to slice it thin, and fanned it on my plate.  My comment to Kate after eating my first slice: "This is what beef jerky aspires to."

Beef Carpaccio

Beef Carpaccio is a household favorite.  It's actually pretty simple to prepare, and the flavor of the raw beef, lightly seasoned and served with an aggressive spring mix salad, fresh shaved Parmesan, and a few Caperberries is a treat that we reserve for special occasions.  If you can overcome your fear of raw beef, you won't be disappointed by the texture and flavor of this dish.

Start by slicing a filet of beef as thinly as possible.  You will have better results if the meat is almost frozen when you begin.  I find that using an electric knife really helps with this step.

In order to pound the meat as thinly as possible and not destroy it when you move it to the serving dish, make sure to put a layer of plastic wrap on your cutting board, then arrange the meat slices so that they are almost touching, then put another layer of plastic wrap over the top.  Gently pound the meat until it forms a single thin piece, then carefully remove the top layer of wrap.  Put your serving plate upside-down on top, and carefully flip the whole thing over.  Leave the (now) top layer of wrap on until you are ready to serve.

When tossing the salad, use the best olive oil and balsamic vinegar that you can afford.  Simple preparations like this demand the highest quality ingredients to really shine.

Steak House Mushroom Burger with Creamed Spinach

Steak House Mushroom Burger with Creamed Spinach

I admit this doesn't look too pretty on the plate, but it's fast to make, filling, and has a great beefy taste.  This was our first experience with home-ground beef, and we could really tell the difference.  The texture and flavor were superior to any store-bought hamburger meat that we've ever had.  We omitted the toast this time, but it's really good when it soaks up the sauce.

Seasoned, mixed and ready to cook

Using the electric grill when it's cold outside is nice, and has the added convenience of cooking the burgers faster because of the top plate.  My patties were about 1" thick before I put the grill down.

Creamed Spinach

The cayenne and the nutmeg add a lot of flavor to the Spinach.  A little goes a long way, especially with the nutmeg.  I've read that cooked spinach is much better for you than raw, and this is one of the few cooked spinach dishes that I enjoy.

Ponzu Soba Noodles

Ponzu Soba Noodles with Grilled Flank Steak

This one is fast and really tasty.  We've altered the recipe a bit to fit our tastes by using Sesame Oil instead of Vegetable Oil and adding some other vegetables that we like.  We don't use Ponzu that often, but it works really well here.

1/3 Head of Sliced Cabbage

I don't think Cabbage can ever be sliced too thin.  We ended up using only half of what I prepared.

All the rabbit food mixed in a bowl

You could add peanuts or sesame seeds at this point.  Really, anything you have on hand that sounds good should be put in the bowl right now.

Soba Noodles and Sauce mixed in

Everything but the Soba Noodles should be cold and crispy at this point.  Add the sauce right after you add the noodles so that it has time to season everything and keep the noodles from sticking together.

Grilled Flank Steak

I prefer beef that is rare to medium-rare, and Kate likes hers a little less pink than mine.  Usually that means that she gets the pieces on the ends and I get the middle.  I seasoned it with Everglades Seasoning, something I got from my cousin.  (He calls it "monkey dust".  I'm not sure why.)  We used a George Foreman grill tonight because of the weather.

Sliced on the bias and across the grain

Cutting the meat on the bias and across the grain like this makes it easy to chew.  Cutting with the grain tastes the same, but isn't any fun to eat.