Father's Day Meal

Here is our meal we had for Father's Day. It turned out so well, I was quite pleased. The only disappointment was that I had planned to have peaches, but they didn't get ripe quite quickly enough. Otherwise, it was a great meal.

We had Rib-eye steaks, Roasted Red potatoes, and braised spinach

Prime Rib-eye Steaks with Mustard Parmesan Crust
Recipe courtesy Michael Chiarello



Mustard Parmesan Coating:
20 cloves garlic, peeled
1/2 cup olive oil
3 tablespoons fresh, roughly chopped thyme
3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
3 thick rib-eye steaks (about 2 to 2 1/2-inches)
Grey salt and fresh ground black pepper
Olive oil, for drizzling
2 cups fresh, finely grated parmesan cheese

In a pre-heated saute pan over medium-low heat, pan roast the garlic in olive oil, tossing only once. Allow to brown for about 5 to 10 minutes. Drain the cloves through a strainer. Allow to cool before mashing roughly with fork. Add thyme to garlic paste and mash that in as well. When they are pasty but still chunky, mix in the Dijon mustard.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Preheat a grill to high.

Season steaks well with salt and pepper. Pound the seasonings in well. Drizzle steaks on both sides with olive oil. Place meat on grill to brown, about 5 minutes each side.

Remove steaks from grill, place on a large cookie tray. Cover top generously with mustard parmesan coating. Top with large piles of parmesan, spreading out to edges carefully with fingers. Place steaks in oven for 8 or 9 minutes.



Braised Spinach
Recipe courtesy Giada De Laurentiis

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 large red onions, sliced (I only used one)
4 garlic cloves, minced
4 large bunches fresh spinach, washed with water still clinging to leaves, stems trimmed and leaves coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons soy sauce
3/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper flakes
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat the oil in a very large pot over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic, and saute until tender, about 8 minutes. Add 1/3 of the spinach and saute until it begins to wilt, about 1 to 2 minutes. Continue adding the spinach 1 handful at a time, sauteing just until it begins to wilt before adding more. Add the soy sauce and crushed red pepper. Saute over high heat until spinach wilts. Season the mixture, to taste, with salt and black pepper. Transfer the mixture to a bowl and serve.


For Dessert, we had Chocolate-Coffee Cupcakes with Mocha Ganache and Mascarpone Cream
After I made the cupcakes, I took them out of their paper liners and put them in the bottom of paper cups, it made them look like an espresso and it was too cute. They are SO good. Very labor intensive and a bit complicated, but so worth it.




For the Chocolate-Coffee Cupcakes withMocha Ganache and Mascarpone Cream(makes 30 cupcakes)
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons milk
6 tablespoons unsweetened cocoapowder (preferably Dutch process)
1/4 cup instant coffee powder
1 1/2 cups cake flour [such as Swans Down;do NOT use self-rising flour]
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter,at room temperature
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 large eggs
3 cups heavy cream
1/3 cup coffee beans, crushed
8 ounces milk chocolate, finely chopped
2 cups mascarpone cheese
1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar, sifted

To Make the Chocolate-Coffee Cupcakes
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 30 standard muffin cupswith paper liners.Combine the milk, cocoa, coffee and 1/4 cup water in a small sauce-pan and bring to a boil, constantly whisking, until the cocoa and coffeehave dissolved. Let cool and pour into a liquid measure.Sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt. In the bowl of a mixer,cream the butter, sugar, and vanilla on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition.With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients alternately withthe milk mixture in three batches, ending with the liquid. Fill each muffin cup halfway with the batter. Bake 18 to 20 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove thecupcakes from the pan and let cool completely on a wire rack.

To Make the Mocha Ganache and Mascarpone Cream

Combine 1 cup of the heavy cream and coffee beans in a small saucepanand bring to a boil over high heat. Remove from the heat, cover, and let infuse for 10 minutes. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean sauce-pan and bring back to a boil. Put the chocolate in a medium bowl and pour the hot cream over it, stirring slowly, until the ganache is smooth. Spoon enough ganache over each cupcake to fill the liners to the rim.Using a whisk or in the bowl of a mixer fitted with a whisk attach-ment, whip the remaining 2 cups of heavy cream to stiff peaks. Add the mascarpone and confectioners’ sugar and whisk until smooth. Spoon the mascarpone cream into a pastry bag fitted with a medium round tip andpipe the cream on top of the ganache in a circle.


On the reading front, finishing up The Only Best Place by Carolyne Aarsen, it's an interesting story about a woman who moves from the city with her husband to take over his family farm. Lots of interesting emotions come up, I'm not exactly sure if I enjoy it, but it's good. Does that make sense?

Lots of gymnastics this week, Grace's show is tonight, Logan's is Thursday night, and there are tryouts for the pre-team on Friday, then our last Make a Splash on Sunday. Whew! Then VBS next week along with bring a friend for gymnastics.