Homemade Steak Sauce

A beautiful and hot weekend meant grilling time.  I made this spicy steak sauce to go with the filets on the grill.  You can use this for more than beef, it goes well with pork and chicken too.

Homemade Steak Sauce

1/4 cup ketchup
1 tsp yellow mustard
2 tsp brown sugar
2 tsp worcestershire sauce
2 tsp cider vinegar
1/2 tsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp hot sauce
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

Place all the ingredients in a small saucepan and stir until completely mixed.  Allow to simmer until it thickens (about 15 minutes).

Strawberry Lemonade Bundt Cake

I like lemonade but in a dessert form.  Citrus and I have a love/hate relationship.  I love the taste but my tummy doesn't like it.  I was looking for frozen raspberry lemonade, since I had used that before to make cookies, but could only find strawberry lemonade, which is a great substitute for this cake.  Plus, I had a brand new bundt pan that I wanted to try out or else I probably would have never made two cakes within a few weeks of each other.

Strawberry Lemonade Bundt Cake

3 sticks butter, softened

2 cups sugar

5 large eggs

1/2 cup mascarpone, room temperature (or sour cream)

3 cups flour

2 tsp lemon zest

3 cups flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

3/4 cup frozen strawberry (or raspberry) lemonade, thawed

Strawberry Lemonade Icing

1 cup powdered sugar

2 tbsp + 2 tsp strawberry lemonade

In a large bowl, cream together butter, mascarpone and sugar.  Mix until a light and fluffy.  Add in eggs, one at a time.  Alternate mixing in the dry ingredients and strawberry lemonade.  Batter will be very heavy.  Spoon into your greased (and floured, if necessary) bundt pan.  Bake for 1 hour at 350.  Insert a toothpick to check to see if it comes out clean or bake additional time.  Let cool for 10 minutes before turning out of pan.  Allow to cool completely before icing.

Lemon Poppy Seed Waffles

What a better way to start off a morning (or even have them for dinner) than the tangy taste of lemon and the little crunch of poppy seeds when you take a bite.  Topped with a blueberry sauce and that makes it the perfect bite. 

Lemon Poppy Seed Waffles

1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp lemon zest
2 large eggs, separated
3 tbsp butter, melted and cooled
2 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 cup Mascarpone
1 1/2 cups buttermilk

Sift all dry ingredients and zest into a large bowl.  In a small bowl, beat egg whites until light and fluffy.  Gradually mix buttermilk, egg yolks, butter, Mascarpone, lemon juice into dry ingredients.  Gently fold in the egg whites.

Bake per your waffle makers instructions.

Blueberry Lemon Sauce

I was making Lemon Poppyseed waffles and wanted a blueberry topping for them.  This sauce worked well and the hint of cinnamon added a nice touch.  The leftovers are going to top some vanilla bean ice cream for dessert. 

Blueberry Lemon Sauce

1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup water
2 tsp cornstarch
10 oz blueberries, fresh or frozen
1/2 tsp lemon zest
1 tbsp. lemon juice
1 dash cinnamon

Whisk together the sugar, water and cornstarch in a small saucepan.  Add in the blueberries, lemon juice and zest and bring to a boil.  Stir until the sauce thickens, remove from heat and stir in the cinnamon.  Serve warm or cold.

BBQ Salad Dressing

I love salads in summer, especially with grilled chicken on top.  I made this easy salad dressing that compliments the chicken.  I used the sunflower bread I made earlier to make croutons with.  Perfect combination.  This dressing is thick.  If you prefer a thinner salad dressing, use 1/3 cup of buttermilk.

BBQ Salad Dressing

1 cup sour cream
1/4 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup bbq sauce, use your favorite
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp parsley
1/2 tsp hot sauce

Place all the ingredients together in a bowl and whisk until everything is incorporated together.  Refrigerate until you are ready to use.  This will last in your refrigerator for one week.

Sunflower Honey Wheat Bread

Yesterday started off with a brief period of heavy rain early in the morning and humidity continuing on after.  Dinner plans were for a lettuce salad with chicken so I decided to bake some bread to go along with it.  I had some sunflower seeds on hand, along with oats so this bread was created using both.

Sunflower Honey Wheat Bread

2 1/2 cups bread flour
1/2 cup wheat flour
2 1/2 tsp active dry yeast
1 1/4 cups warm water
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp honey
2 tbsp extra light virgin olive oil
1/4 cup sunflower seeds, chopped
1/4 cup oats

Combine warm water, honey and yeast and allow to sit for 15 minutes.  Add in olive oil before adding to the bread machine.  Put flours, salt, sunflower seeds and oats in bread machine.  Pour in yeast and water mixture and set to dough setting.

When done, remove from machine and put on a greased bread pan.  Let rise for about a half hour in a warm area.

Bake for 20 minutes at 350°.  Remove from oven and brush on 1 tbsp of butter.  Return to oven for an additional 2 minutes.

Oven Roasted Vegetables

I had a mixture of fresh vegetables in the house and decided to combine them for an easy side dish to go along with the turkey breast that I made.  This is an easy way to make them and clean up is even easier since you use a plastic bag to add spices and oils to the vegetables and bake them on a lined baking sheet pan.

Oven Roasted Vegetables

12 fingerling potatoes, cooked and cooled

2 carrots, peeled and cut in 1/2" slices

3/4# green beans, cleaned

Seasoning ~

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

2 tsp salt

1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp Italian Seasonings

Cut fingerling potatoes in half lengthwise, and place in a gallon plastic bag.   Add in the rest of the vegetables, olive oil and spices.  Close top and shake until spices and oil are evenly distributed.  Place on a non-stick aluminum foil lined baking sheet.  Bake for 45 minutes at 350°.