Italian Beef Sandwiches

This past Sunday we worked all day and were feeling pretty lazy for dinner, so we decided to make Italian beef sandwiches. This is a recipe that I got and modified from my mom who devised it after many years eating the Chicagoan street food. It's pretty much cheating because I use a precooked roast from Hormel (I don't get paid for this, I swear!), but it's food that's perfect for a hearty meal when you don't have a lot of time.  The recipe follows:

Chicago-style Italian Beef Sandwiches

Makes 2-3 sandwiches depending on size/type of bread and how much filling you like falling out of your sandwich

1 package Hormel Italian beef roast
1 pack hoagie rolls (or other preferred sandwich bread, but hoagies are good because these sandwiches can get a little sloppy)
1 C shredded mozzarella cheese
1 green bell pepper, sliced
1 onion, sliced
1 T olive oil
The following herbs/spices to taste:
oregano
basil
garlic salt
black pepper
Optional:
diced pepperoncinis (I buy them labeled Greek peppers)

1. Slice the onion and bell pepper and saute them in the olive oil over medium heat until soft. Add pepperoncinis if you like a little heat. You could also add some beer to flavor it as well.

2. When vegetables are soft, add the seasonings and beef roast . Cook until it's soft and you can shred it.

I use Hormel pre-cooked Italian beef roast because it's an easy dinner when you've got other stuff going on in your life. You can feel free to use any other type of beef roast and either cook it with Italian seasonings (garlic, salt, pepper, basil, rosemary, oregano, parsley, etc.) or add seasonings after. Just something that is fork tender and can be shredded for sandwiches easily.

3. When the beef is tender, slice open your hoagie rolls, layer them with mozzarella cheese, add the beef, onions, and peppers, and enjoy! Be sure to have napkins on hand...

Cauliflower Risotto

I've been looking for ways to avoid eating more rice, but the truth is I like a lot of rice dishes! There seem to be a lot of fun replacement options like quinoa, barley, and even brown rice, but those aren't exactly forthcoming in Japan. What I do have is...cauliflower. Don't freak out! It's not as weird as you think.

So far I've made three different attempts at cauliflower risotto. In another type of dish like fried rice, I think it would be even easier to substitute cauliflower for rice. However, since a creamy texture is an important feature of risotto, if you go cauliflower only it becomes a little harder to recreate it. I first tried putting my cauliflower in a food processor as recommended by various websites, but as my food processor appears to have only one setting (murtilate), I ended up with cauliflower dust. Because of the "dust" problem, I ended up adding a cup of rice to the recipe, but had trouble with flavor. I substituted lemon juice for wine, but added way too much. Cauliflower doesn't absorb liquid or plump like rice, so the lemon flavor was offensively overpowering.

In the next attempt, I hand-chopped a head of cauliflower, used less lemon juice, and stirred in two egg whites to attempt to recreate gluten-y creaminess. It turned out pretty well, but since the cauliflower didn't double in size like rice, I ended up with way less leftovers than expected!

For the final attempt, I used one head of cauliflower and one cup of rice. I still used lemon juice instead of wine, but left out the eggs since the rice got its gluten all up ons. If you can eat rice, using just a little bit will create the nice texture while still keeping carbs low! The cauliflower isn't very strongly flavored, but provides a nice firm texture and vegetable goodness!

Ingredients:

• 1C rice
• 1 head cauliflower
• 2Tbs lemon juice
• 1 tomato
• 2 chicken breasts
• 3C or more chicken broth
• 2Tbs (1/4 stick) butter
• 1 bunch green onions; white finely chopped, green thinly sliced
• 2Tbs mascarpone cheese / whipping cream / whole milk
• grated parmesan

Season and fry the chicken, then set aside. Heat the broth in saucepan and keep warm.

Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the chopped green onions and cook until soft.

Stir in the rice and cauliflower. Add the lemon juice and cook until absorbed, stirring frequently.

Add broth in 1 cup increments, stirring often. Continue until the rice is cooked.

Stir in sliced green onions, tomato, chicken, cream, and cheese. Season with salt, pepper, and garlic.

The no rice version tasted strongly of pizza. I'm not complaining!

This delicious "Butternut Squash and Sage" version came from Frugal Feeding.

Black Bean Brownies

These brownies are fluffy, chocolatey, and delicious, but they have a secret ingredient! Rather than be made with flour, these brownies are made using black beans! I found the intriguing recipe on Ridiculously Healthy, and it seems like a dream come true! Not only am I always looking for new sources of fiber, but trading it with floury carbs is a fantastic idea. If only I could get my hands on some stevia so I could substitute it for the sugar and we'd really be in business!

 Reading the comments on the original post, some people loved the recipe and others...did not. I couldn't find western black beans at the import store and had to spring for the overpriced Japanese kuromame at the supermarket. Since they are known for their sweetness I wonder how different the recipe would be if I had used different black beans, but that will have to wait for another day. At any rate, I had 4 different taste testers confirm that these do taste quite good. The only real difference I noticed was the texture; I'm a big fan of fudgy brownies rather than cakey ones, so I'm curious to see if I can change anything to make these fudgier next time.

Ingredients

• 15.5oz (1 can) black beans, drained and rinsed
• 3 eggs
• 1/4C cocoa powder
• 2Tbs canola/vegetable oil
• 1tsp vanilla extract
• 3/4C granular sweetener (I used half and half brown and white sugar)
• 1/4C peanut butter (or PB chips)
• 1/4C chocolate chips (I melted mine)

Preheat the oven to 350F and spray the bottom of a baking dish.
Combine everything but the chips and blend until the batter reaches the desired thickness.
Stir in the chips and pour into baking pan.
Bake for 30 minutes, or until a fork comes out clean. Let sit to cool, and be careful when slicing as the top layer tends to become crusty and flake off when cut!

Sweet Potato & Black Bean Chili

I needed a boost of fiber and found this delicious chili recipe at Eating Well in my search. Sweet potatoes are high on my list of "perfect foods" so it didn't take much to convince me to try this recipe. Since I was having a dinner party, I doubled the recipe to get 4 servings, although it ended making about 6. It might be due to the fact that the import store only had one can of black beans, and I had to substitute kidney beans for the other portion. I left out the chipotle because I am not a spice warrior.

Ingredients

• 4 tsp olive oil
• 2 small onions, finely diced
• 2 small sweet potatoes, diced (I almost never peel potatoes)
• 2 15oz cans of black beans (or one black, one kidney in my case)
• 2 C canned diced tomatoes
• 2 2/3 C water
• 4 tsp lime juice
• shredded cheese for garnish
•  
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 Tbs chili powder
• 4 tsp ground cumin
• 1/4 tsp salt

Heat oil in a large saucepan on mid-high heat. Add the onion and potato and stir until onion is slightly softened.

Add the spices and cook until fragrant. Add water and bring to a boil, cover, and reduce to simmer. Cook until the potatoes are tender, about 10-12 minutes.

Add the beans, tomato, lime juice and increase heat to maintain simmer. Stir often. Cook until slightly reduce. Top with shredded cheese and serve hot!

Red Lentil Soup

Lentils! My first experience eating them was a new recipe my mother tried out using green lentils. It was so-so, and I was fairly young, so the experience came and went and I didn't think much about them for some time. Then, in my internet trawlings, I came across a wonderful recipe on AllRecipes.com using red lentils, my favorite vegetables, and even an apple! What's even better is it's packed with curry seasonings, goes well with a dollop of yogurt, and cures all of your fiber needs! (Trust me on this one!)

Ingredients

• 1/4 C butter
• 2 large sweet potatoes
• 3 large carrots
• 1 apple
• 1 onion
• 1/2 C red lentils
• 1/2 tsp minced fresh ginger
• 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp chili powder
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 4 C vegetable broth
• plain yogurt or feta cheese for garnish

Peel and chop potato, carrot, apple and onion. (Full disclosure - I don't bother with peeling!) Melt butter in a large pot over med-high heat, then add the vegetables and the apple and cook for around 10 minutes.

Stir in the lentils, spices, and vegetable broth. Bring to a boil, then reduce, cover, and simmer for around 30 minutes. I usually go for a little less time because I like my vegetables a little crunchy!

The original recipe calls for blending the soup at this point, either with an immersion blender or by removing portions of the soup, blending them, then returning them to the pot. I grab a potato masher and have at the soup, but the carrots and the apple are largely resistant to this method. I like my soups with pieces to chew on, however, so this works for me.

If you went the blending route, return all the soup to the pot and simmer for 10 minutes. Add water to thin as desired. Top with a spoonful or two of plain yogurt!

The yogurt cools it to perfect eating temperature!

Lunar Festival Pies

Maybe it's a bit late for Valentine's Day, but since we are soon to celebrate White Day in Japan, I thought it would be appropriate to post about the cookies I made! Typically, girls make chocolate or fudge on Valentine's Day, and boys purchase (white) sweets on White Day, but since this recipe combines chocolate cookies with white frosting, it totally applies to both days!

I got this recipe from The Gamer's Fridge, a very creative website that takes food and drink items from video games and recreates them using real-world food! If you're looking to throw a game-themed party, this is definitely a good place to turn for recipe ideas!

Ingredients [Cake]

• 1/2C butter, softened
• 1C white sugar
• 1 egg
• 2C all-purpose flour
• 5Tbs unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 1/2tsp baking soda
• 1tsp salt
• 1C milk
• 1tsp vanilla extract

[Frosting]

• 3/4C butter, softened
• 3/4C confectioner's sugar
• 1/4tsp vanilla extract
• 1Tbs milk

Preheat oven to 375F / 190C. Begin with cookies by creaming the butter, sugar, and egg in a bowl. Mix the dry ingredients (flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt) in a separate bowl. Stir into wet mixture, alternating with milk and vanilla, and mix well. Drop spoonfuls onto baking sheets and bake for ten minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack.

While the cookies are cooling, make the filling. Cream the margarine and confectioner's sugar until light and fluffy, then add in vanilla and milk. I did not cream the filling quite so vigorously, and it turned out much denser than in the original recipe's pictures. Still, it spread just fine! Spread on half of the cookies, making cookie sandwiches.

Caketacular!

Kinpira Tamago-toji

One of my favorite foods that comes up in Japanese cooking is definitely gobo, aka burdock root. Give it a good wash, peel it, and slice it up, and it goes great in all sorts of things! Since I had some leftover from my soup adventures, I decided to mix it with carrot strips and make kinpira. Then I realized I was a lot hungrier than I thought, and threw some eggs in as well, resulting in tamago-toji.

Ingredients

• sesame oil
• 1-2 carrots
• 1-2 burdock roots
• 1/2 Tbs soy sauce
• 1/2 Tbs sugar
• 1 Tbs mirin
• 2 large eggs
• white sesame seeds and/or shichimi togarashi to taste

Clean, peel, and slice your carrot and burdock root into similar sizes. Heat sesame oil in pan and briefly fry carrot and burdock root. Mix soy sauce, sugar, and mirin together, and pour into pan.

Fry until vegetables are nearly at desired softness, then reduce heat to medium-low. Mix eggs well, then pour evenly over vegetables and cover.

A lot of times in Japanese cooking, cooks will significantly reduce heat after the eggs have been added, and they can be quite runny or even still mostly raw when they get to your plate. I'm not quite that much of an egg warrior, so I left mine to cook until they were nice and springy.

Eat up!