Chez Marcita Presents: Bill’s Fab Meatloaf

I already posted Bill’s meatloaf recipe a few years ago on Life Is Fare, but now you can see the chef in action as he prepares this cozy comfort food. It’s wheat-free, corn-free, and dairy-free, and made with grassfed beef and pastured pork. Happy food heaven!

Grassfed Beef Tenderloin

Since Bill and I have been buying our own local grassfed meat, I’m appalled–even disturbed–by the sizes of meat cuts served in mainstream restaurants. That’s why I wasn’t surprised to see our tenderloin portion we received in our mixed quarter of beef from Lubbers Farm this year. The filet mignon (French for “cute filet”) is from the smaller end of the tenderloin, which runs along the spine of the cow.

Known as the most tender cut of meat in beef (as well as pork and venison), it’s also the most expensive part. An “average” steer or heifer (probably the feedlot variety) produces just 4 to 6 pounds of tenderloin, which is why our piece from a mixed quarter yielded just .63 pounds.

One saves a special occasion for preparing such a prime piece of meat. For Bill and me, it was New Year’s Eve. I chose an easy recipe but was very vigilant to make sure the meat wasn’t overcooked, especially since grassfed beef takes less time than feedlot meat. It was called Beef Tenderloin with Red Wine Sauce.

What I didn’t expect was for the meat to be cut into two pieces when I opened the package. So I had to be even more watchful since the surface area in the oven was nearly twice as much.

For a recipe like this, it helps to prepare the side dishes in advance as much as possible because the roasting time is fast. After rubbing with fresh garlic and sprinkling the meat with salt and pepper, I preheated the oven and got busy on the sauce. (You’re supposed to do this with the pan drippings after the meat is roasted but I wasn’t anticipating much in the way of drippings so I thought I’d start it and add whatever I could salvage later.)

First I sautéed green onions and garlic in olive oil.

Then I added rice flour instead of wheat flour to accommodate Bill’s allergies, and made a roux.

I added the red wine and some beef stock, omitting the mushrooms because I detest them.

The meat was done in about 25 minutes. I poured the drippings into the sauce and covered the meat with foil to let it rest while we finished the rest of the preparations.

Alongside our tenderloin we had mashed Yukon potatoes with raw milk buttermilk, braised carrots with carmelized onions in balsamic vinegar, and a Caesar salad (plus a wonderful Cabernet Sauvignon and a little bubbly Prosecco to ring in the new year!).

Pork and Bok Choy Stir-Fry

Every two weeks Bill and I get lettuce greens from our local CSA—all year ’round. Usually the day before delivery our farmer emails our CSA group about any extra produce she has, and we often take her up on it. When bok choy was on the list recently, I knew I had to make a stir-fry. We used the entire head in one meal, and it was so tasty—especially knowing it was freshly grown and harvested about ten miles from where we live.

To make this recipe, I browned a half pound of ground pork in a wok. (I also put some white rice on the stove to cook so it would be ready when the stir-fry was done.)

I removed the meat, then threw some sliced garlic and a 1/2-inch slice of fresh ginger (peeled) into the wok with safflower oil on medium-high heat until fragrant.

Meanwhile, I chopped a bunch of green onions and the bok choy so they were ready to throw in, separating the thicker pieces from the stem of the bok choy.

I removed the garlic and ginger and added a pinch of red pepper seeds, then quickly sautéed the bok choy stem pieces for a minute or two.

Then I added the green onions and the leafy parts of the bok choy, stir-frying for another minute. I added about a 1/2 cup of chicken stock mixed with a 1/2 teaspoon of arrowroot to thicken it. (Arrowroot is a good substitute for cornstarch if you’re allergic to corn.)

At the end, I mixed in the pork, then served it over rice. Filling, delicious, and healthy.

For a vegetarian option, omit the pork and add cashews or peanuts at the end and substitute vegetable broth or water for the chicken stock.

Sirloin Tip Roast with Red Wine

So the last time I made Sirloin Tip Roast I let myself be inspired by dry-heat cooking methods, even though my heroine, Irma Rombauer of The Joy of Cooking, literally shows us in black and white that this meat cut deserves moist heat.

When Bill and I ate it, the meat did seem a bit dry, but I figured at the time that the lean-ness of grassfed meat had a lot to do with the end result.

This time I decided to stick with Irma’s suggestion. I found a recipe on Food.com that called for a dry heat method, i.e., roasted uncovered in the oven, but you also add water and wine to the pot. I loved the idea of rubbing the roast with Dijon mustard—which is really yummy on prime rib—but I decided not to add it because I was going to put a lid on my Dutch oven and that wouldn’t make the mustard nice and crispy like on prime rib. It turned out to be the right approach.

The recipe is simply called Sirloin Tip Roast. As the diagram above shows, this cut is either adjacent to the rump, the flank, or the shank of the cow. And for grassfed beef, it’s extremely lean so cooking time must be reduced.

I followed the beginning of the recipe by taking the roast out of the fridge an hour ahead of time, then sprinkling it with salt and pepper.

Then I poured olive oil in the bottom of my Dutch oven and browned the meat on all sides.

Afterwards, I cut slits in the meat and added sliced garlic cloves, then poured 1/2 a cup of water and 1/4 cup of dry red wine into the pan. Like I said, I skipped the mustard. And, I basically skipped the rest of the ingredients except for some fresh chopped rosemary.

Even when a recipe calls for a rack, I never use one because I don’t own one. Sure, it might be a good idea sometimes, but I don’t want to wreck my pans and I seemed to have done just fine so far without one.

I put the 3-lb. roast in a 325-degree oven with the lid on for just 1  1/2 hours.

I believe it was more moist than last year’s recipe. Served au jus alongside roasted root vegetables, it made a delicious autumn meal—and great leftovers during the week!

Grassfed Oxtail Stew

The mixed quarter of beef that Bill and I got from Lubbers Farm this year included an oxtail. Not a whole oxtail, I guess, because it weighed less than one pound. And not really from an ox! It was a partial tail divided among the other people who share the meat from our cow.

I’ve never eaten oxtail before but I have heard of Oxtail Soup (and stew). So I looked for a recipe online and came across this delicious one that I followed to make the recipe: Simply Recipes Oxtail Stew.

Most of the time I search for recipes they become the inspiration for something I make, or I need to substitute ingredients to accommodate Bill’s allergies. In this case, I pretty much followed the recipe to a “t” except for altering quantities since I only had a third of the weight in oxtail.

It’s so easy…..

First you separate the oxtail by the joints.

After seasoning the meat with salt and pepper, you brown the pieces in olive oil, then remove the meat from the pan and add a chopped onion, carrot and stalk of celery–sauteing until the onion is translucent.

I also added a chopped clove of garlic to the mixture instead of leaving the cloves whole with the skin on. And, I added tomato paste in the next step, when I added the red wine, beef stock, thyme, and bay leaf.

While the stew simmers on the stove for three hours, you cut up the root vegetables and toss them in olive oil with salt and pepper.

Then you roast them in the oven for about an hour at 350 degrees F.

When the meat is falling off the bone, you remove the oxtail, take the meat off, then put it back in the stew. Then add the root vegetables and heat through.

It’s a delicious fall dinner with just a slice of bread (with or without wheat!).

What the Heck is a Fresh Ham Steak?

You’d think with my latest experiments making fresh ham roasts that I’d know what to do with a fresh ham steak. It looks something like a pork steak in the package but a little thicker.

But buying a whole animal from a farmer brings a lot of learning experiences. As usual when I need cooking advice, I went to Google and came across a number of recipes, and this is the one that caught my eye: Pork Scallopini with Butter Caper Sauce.

That’s because it’s easy, quick, and tasty, and it gave me an excuse to use up the fresh raw milk butter I made last week–and which Bill can eat!

I cut up this nearly 2-lb. ham steak into pieces first.

Then I placed them between waxed paper and flattened them with a meat tenderizer.

Next, I sprinkled them with salt and pepper and dredged them in brown rice flour.

In a large, oven-proof skillet, I heated a clove of garlic (smashed) in olive oil until golden, then removed it before browning the cutlets on both sides for about three minutes each.

Then I added some butter and scraped up the browned bits in the pan, and added the wine and lemon juice. By the time I was in the midst of preparing this recipe, I realized I didn’t have any capers, but I’ll add them next time!

I covered the pan and let them cook a little longer in the oven–about three minutes.

Pork Scallopini is delicious with seasonal produce, such as carrots from my garden, sliced yellow onions, and fresh green beans from the farmers market.

Bratwurst, Onions and Red Peppers–on Pizza

Bill and I stay creative by thinking up new combinations of ingredients to put on top of lavash, the flatbread we use to make lavash pizzas. Red bell peppers are in season now, and we always have plenty of onions on hand. Instead of a hoagie, or grinder, or hero, or sub, or whatever you call it, why not apply this yummy combo of bratwurst and sautéed onions and peppers to pizza?

It’s easy to make, and very filling. This recipe is for two pizzas.

Braise two brats about ten minutes and remove from the pan.

Dump out any excess water and add some olive oil. Then place a medium yellow onion, sliced, and a small red bell pepper, sliced, in the pan, cooking until tender.

Meanwhile, push the veggies aside and put the brats back in the pan to brown.

Cut brats into 1/4-inch slices and brown in pan.

Heat the bottom of a lavash on a griddle until toasted. Then place on cookie sheet and top with veggies, sliced brats, and some cheese. (We use raw milk cheddar to accommodate Bill’s cow-dairy allergy.)

Broil on low for about 2 1/2 minutes, turning once, until cheese is melted and bubbly.

Bon appetit!

Grilled Pork Steaks with Lemon Butter

If you think Bill and I eat a lot of pork because I post so many recipes with pork as the main ingredient, you’re right. That’s because we still have some cuts from last fall in our freezer and our order for this year has already arrived. So I’m always looking for new ways to cook it.

We love grilling, and this recipe is so easy and flavorful that it’s become a favorite. Plus, since we learned Bill can eat butter if it’s made from raw milk, a plethora of recipes (and not just pork) await for us to try!

I found Grilled Pork Steaks with Lemon Butter at allrecipes.com. Instead of steaks, I used chops and cooked them as little as possible because our pastured pork is very lean.

For the butter sauce, you just melt the butter, add chopped garlic, and cook it until tender. Then add the lemon juice.

Since I make unsalted butter, I sprinkled salt and pepper on the chops before basting them with the sauce.

All you do is put the basted side down on a very hot grill to sear for one minute.

Then baste the other side, flip them over and sear for one minute.

Turn of the direct flame (center burner on our Weber grill) and cook each side for three minutes, basting again each time the meat is flipped. Remove from the grill and cover with foil to rest about three minutes.

We served them with a summer veggie medley: sautéed onions, carrots, and green beans fresh from the Holland Farmers Market!

Why Roast Pork When You Can Grill It?

I don’t know about where you live but in the Midwest it’s been one helluva hot summer. The last thing I want to think about is firing up the oven. But what if you have large cuts of meat in the freezer taking up the space you need for freezing this summer’s produce?

Some cuts don’t fare well cooked with dry heat, but let me tell you about the roast pork we had last night. I found this online recipe called Rubbed and Grilled Pork Loin. Bill and I are big fans of a rub when it comes to grilling because many barbecue sauces contain corn syrup. Besides, I think sauces are messy. We use similar rubs to the one in this recipe for our grilled pork steaks and ribeyes. What they all have in common is paprika, salt, and pepper. For pork, it’s nice to throw in some cumin, sugar, and spice, such as chili powder. But the main thing about all these recipes is that they’re easy.

Here’s our 4-pound pork loin that we got in our meat order from Lubbers Farm.

The recipe calls for a boneless roast but I couldn’t tell if there was a bone in this when I pulled it out of the freezer, so I just followed the standard rule to cook it longer with a bone in, and used my trusty digital meat thermometer to check the temperature.

The rub consists of sugar, paprika, onion salt, garlic salt, ground black pepper, chili powder, cumin, and coriander.

You just rub olive oil all over the meat, then rub in the spice mixture on all sides.

After preheating the gas grill to around 400 degrees F, we browned the meat on both sides for about 5 minutes each (shorter time than the recipe calls for since pastured pork is leaner and requires less cooking time than factory farmed meat).

Then we turned off the center burner and kept the temperature around 350F, grilling the meat for about 60 minutes.

In retrospect, I would probably lower the temperature to about 300 and cook it slightly longer so you don’t risk drying out the meat.

After taking the meat off the grill we let it rest (covered in foil) for about ten minutes.

Sticking with the easy theme, I sautéed some onions, carrots, and green beans from the Holland Farmers Market in olive oil to serve with the meat, along with what we call a “melange:” white rice cooked with chopped onion and celery.

As the meat cooked we enjoyed some wine on the patio—a fabulous way to spend a Sunday evening.

Cuban Lechon Asado from Pastured Pork

When you store local meat in bulk in your freezer, I believe it’s important to follow a stock rotation protocol. Generally, this happens for Bill and me when our supply thins out and we check the dates on the meat we have left. Our 11-cubic-foot freezer in the basement is where we store our bulk meat and produce I freeze from summer. Then I move any older cuts to the upstairs freezer so it’s more visible, and therefore likely to be used.

Last weekend I had one cut left–a fresh ham roast–from 2010. The term “fresh ham” always throws me off, but, as I mentioned in a blog post a couple years ago, it’s really just roast pork. The ham simply comes from the hind end or leg of the pig and when it’s cured, that’s the pink meat you’re used to seeing on sandwiches.

I’ve been fairly content with a couple of recipes for fresh ham, one from Cooks.com and the other, which is a modification of a po’boy recipe. But I was looking for something different this time. Enter Cuban Lechon Asado, or Roasted Fresh Ham, from Food.com.

Lechon is actually a suckling pig. Another way to make this recipe is with a fresh ham. Ours was 3 pounds so I adapted this recipe accordingly. It’s easy because all you do is make a marinade and let it soak into the meat overnight.

Then, put the roast in a lightly greased roasting pan, saving the marinade for later.

I added some green onions that I had in the freezer (also from last year–the end of the produce) to the marinade.

Roast in the oven according to the recipe. (I did a half hour on each side because the roast was a third the size of what the recipe called for, and because pastured meat is much leaner so it needs less cooking time.) Add the marinade and sliced onions.

Some recipes claim that you can pull the pork apart when it’s done. I think it depends upon the cut of meat. A pork shoulder will do this more easily than a fresh ham roast.

In Cuba, many meals are eaten with black beans and rice, so that’s what Bill and I had with ours. Plua a little side I call “guacamole salad:” chopped tomato, red onion, and avocado on a bed of lettuce. It’s a delicious combination!