Bobberrific said:
Like your picture phisher, I will be spending Easter at college. Not sure if I'll cook anything special. Maybe a big steak. Ham is pretty expensive. Didn't realize they cost that much until I went to go buy one the other day. Oh well, I'll have to settle for sirloin
Ham is definately a real pain when single, regardless of the cost. Per pound it's cheaper than a good steak, but the good stuff only comes in big hunks. While I may be able to afford tossing half or more of an occasional ham, it just seems to wasteful. Since it's either that or eat leftover ham for dinner every night for the better part of a week, I just don't buy the things.
That said, you can get a ham slice for not a lot, but those aren't the good stuff. Once in a while I buy one, but as far as meat I cook myself goes mostly I survive on chicken along with the occasional pork chop, fish filet, burger, or steak. At any rate, they're certainly not up to par for a holiday meal.
I suspect I won't do anything fancy on Easter. Usually Sunday is a day for cooking something a bit nicer than usual for me, but lately I've been hooked on this computer game. It'll wear off after I finish it... probably in a couple of weeks. Make nice food or make easy food (like a seasoned and roasted hunk of chicken + bread & veggies) and have more time for Oblivion. I want to spend the time playing the game, but my sensible side tells me the above slacker dinner is reasonably healthy and if I'm taking time away from my game my top priority should be getting some exercise.
At any rate, if I were to make something nice on Easter it would likely be one of these:
Steak Sandwich with Brie cheese
Skirt Steak, grilled or broiled to taste
Grilled Onions
Brie cheese, melted over steak
The best long roll you can find, or a section of French bread.
Steak recipie I ripped off from a restaurant and slightly Improved
Filet Mignon
Chopped Onion
Chopped Tomato
Crumbled Blue Cheese (I usually use French Roquefort)
Thick sliced Portabello mushrooms
Cast Iron Skillet
Shortening. Butter if you're lazy, Olive oil if you're even more lazy or are pretending to be healthy, freshly rendered pork fat for the best taste. Get some salt pork, fry on medium heat until well browned and you've got a big puddle of pig fat. Run the molten fat through a sieve and discard the tried out (whaling term... read Moby Dick for more info... great book) pork.
1. Preheat the oven to 325.
2. Mix onion, tomato, and blue cheese together.
3. Place shortening in pan, heat until a drop of water boils off instantly.
4. Place steak in pan. Sear one minute, then remove from heat and turn over. Immediately place the mushrooms around the meat and dump/spread the onion, tomato, and blue cheese on top of the meat.
5. Place pan in oven.
6. Roast 15-20 minutes.
Shellfish Quiche
This one's sort of approximate, so you'll have to trust your cooking instincts.
4-5 egg whites
1/2 a medium onion, finely chopped
3/4 cup shredded swiss cheese (3 oz)
1 can crab meat
1/2 lb bay scallops (the small cheap ones- they have the strongest flavor, and they're less expensive than most scallops, making them perfect for this)
1/2 lb salad shrimp, pre-cooked unless you feel like pre-cooking them yourself.
Crust for single crust pie. I usually use the recipie from Better Homes and Gardens and use olive oil for the shortening for this.
1. Make and cook a pie crust.
2. Pre-cook scallops (and shrimp if they're raw)- 3 minutes in boiling water if I remember right. May not be necessary.
3. Preheat oven to 325.
4. Mix everything but the shrimp together.
5. Fill pie crust most of the way up with mixture.
6. Top mixture with shrimp.
7. Bake at 325 until top just starts to brown and a knife comes out clean. Usually about an hour.
