I have been receiving this cooks magazine for a few months now, Cook’s Country. Frankly, I absolutely love it! Not just for the recipes, but for the helpful tips and tricks. The magazine also has some great info on ingredients and tools that work and one’s that fall pretty short in the kitchen.
I decided to make Wednesdays my day of the week to compile recipes for my weekly menu. Yes, I said weekly. Once upon a time I would write out a monthly menu. That is all fine and dandy. But, now with more of a limited budget, the weekly menu works best. I base that menu primarily on what I have in the freezer and pantry. I then break up my weekly shopping list even further. Therefore I am hitting the store more often (about every other day), but I am making my money go further. Previously, while stocking up on everything I needed all at once, I ran the risk of family members possibly grabbing something that was meant for a meal. Plus, seeing as how we downsized, I really don’t have all the storage space I used to have.
Now about this recipe. I decided on this recipe because of the green beans, then I found the steak recipe. I live in a house full of carnivores, of course they were gonna love it. But would I?? I have never made a really good chicken fried anything. Well, let’s give this bad boy a whirl!!!
Minute (Cubed) Steak with Garlic Parsley Butter
from the April/May 2012 issue of Cook’s Country, page 15
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1 teaspoon minced parsley (you can use fresh, I use dried)
2 garlic cloves, minced (I use my PC Garlic Press)
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
Gotta Have It Steak Rub
1 cup all purpose flour
4 beef cube steak (approx 6oz each)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
Step by Step…
- In a small bowl, mix together the butter, parsley, garlic, Worcestershire, and about 1/4 tsp of steak rub. Set aside. Place flour in a shallow dish, I used a square plastic tub.
- If your steaks are not already thin, place between plastic wrap and pound down to about 1/4″ thick. Then season with steak seasoning. There is no real measurement for the seasoning, use as much as you want.
- Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in skillet over med-high heat. I was able to cook 2 steaks at a time in my skillet. Coat steaks in flour, shake off excess, and move to skillet. Cook for 3 minutes on one side, just until browned. Flip and cook on second side for another 1-2 minutes or until browned.
I transferred my steaks to my PC Large Bar Pan, topped with some of the seasoned butter, and tented with foil. To keep warm, I also put the bar pan in the oven set to warm.
Wipe out the skillet with paper towels. Repeat with the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil, steak, and butter.
Southern Style Green Beans
from the April/May 2012 issue of Cook’s Country, page 7
5 slices of bacon (I am pretty sure I used something like 8 slices)
1 large onion, sliced thin
2 pounds green beans, trimmed
2-1/2 cups water
salt and pepper
1 teaspoon sugar
Let’s do this……
Cook 4 slices of bacon in dutch oven over medium heat until crisp, approx 6 minutes. I do not have a dutch oven, so opted to use my large stock pot. Transfer bacon to a paper towel lined plate. Make sure you leave fat in the pot!
Add onion to pot and cook until softened, about another 6 minutes. Add green beans, water, remaining uncooked bacon, 2 teaspoons of salt, and sugar. Bring to a boil.
Cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer. Be sure to stir, occasionally.
- Simmer for about 45 minutes.
- Remove lid and discard bacon (Pa decided he needed to sample the bacon at this point). Increase the heat to medium-high and cook so that some of the liquid burns off. Should take approx 5 minutes.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste. Make sure you stir very gently.
- Transfer to a serving platter and crumble reserved bacon over the dish.
Ma’s Side Note……
The steaks were fabulous and the beans wonderful! I do not think I will make the beans again. Even though they tasted very good, they were a bit ‘soggy’ for my taste. I might reduce the cook time on them next time, if I do make them again. The flavor was very pleasing. Again, the kiddos cleaned their plates and begged for seconds! **Beans were not good at all when heated up the next day as leftovers.
