My friend Lura gave me this fabulous steak rub when I was over visiting her in America. It was from some ranch that she and her family summer at from time to time. It was just wonderful and made for incredibly delicious and tender meat. Sadly I ran out of it, so I have been trying to come up with my own concoction for it, or at least as close as I can get.
I took a look at the ingredients on the container and roughly put them together into what I thought might be delicious proportions.
I was actually quite pleased with how it turned out! Its not exactly the same, but it is still rather tasty!
Its a fabulous mix of mild chili powder, ground coffee, sweet paprika, ground cumin, brown sugar, salt, dry mustard powder ground coriander, black pepper and some cayenne pepper.
Although most of the ingredients were already ground, the coffee wasn't, so I popped everything into my spice/coffee grinder and blitzed it until I had a powder.
The end result was quite tasty, a bit spicy, a bit sweet, not too salty.
I used it on rump steaks today and they tasted fabulous. Rump steaks are hit and miss I find. sometimes they are tender and other times they are not.
They are not actually my favourite cut of steak. I much prefer a Sirloin or a Rib Eye. The steak rub however, added a nice flavour to what was essentially a semi-tough steak, even done medium rare.
Yield: variable
Best Ever Steak Rub
This tasty rub is easy to make and goes well on steaks, chops and even chicken. Store in an airtight container in a dark place to keep for up to six months.
ingredients:
- 35g mild chili powder (1/4 cup)
- 2 tsp ground coffee
- 2 tsp sweet paprika
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 1 TBS soft light brown sugar, packed
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1/2 tsp dry mustard
- 1/2 tsp ground coriander
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
instructions:
How to cook Best Ever Steak Rub
- Measure all of the ingredients into a spice grinder/coffee grinder. Blitz until well mixed and finely ground. Store in an airtight container.
NOTES:
To Use:
Drizzle some olive oil over your steaks and then sprinkle generously with the rub, rubbing it in all over your meat. Let stand for at least half an hour prior to grilling, or up to 24 hours. The longer it stands the more flavour penetrates the meat. Best steaks to use are Sirloin, Rib Eyes, Strip Loin, Fillet Steak.
Drizzle some olive oil over your steaks and then sprinkle generously with the rub, rubbing it in all over your meat. Let stand for at least half an hour prior to grilling, or up to 24 hours. The longer it stands the more flavour penetrates the meat. Best steaks to use are Sirloin, Rib Eyes, Strip Loin, Fillet Steak.
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You know how I was saying the other day about how I am always forgetting what I have in what container in the freezer and how I need to start labelling things? I got myself some freezer labels!
One of the reason that I have always avoided using labels etc. is because they ruin the containers you are freezing/storing your stuff in. If you write on them with indelible marker, you can't get it off, and stickers always leave a residue when you try to remove them that is in and of itself very difficult to remove.
These Innoveem Freezer Labels are just the ticket! They use a non-residue glue which means that they are really easy to peel off before you wash them! You can also write on them with any pen or Biro. They come in packs of 100 and are approximately 6 X 3 cm in size and there is plenty of space on them to label and date your contents. They also work for labelling your own spice mixes in jars. I highly recommend!
I also wanted to show you this beautiful Salt Pig I got from Sous Chef. The Logoa Salt Pig. Its stunning. It has the most unusual glaze on it. I wish I could take a photo of it that would properly showcase how very attractive it is. The special glaze changes its appearance from however you look at it . . . sometimes it looks like a forest of trees and then other times it looks like a beautiful coastline. Each piece of Lagoa stoneware is produced in small batches by a team of artisans. They hand glaze each piece, so every plate, bowl and accessory is completely unique. I love this piece and it has pride of place in my kitchen. Its nice and big as well, with a very attractive handle on top which makes it easy to move from counter to table top. I really love it! I think it would make a fabulous Christmas Gift for the Gourmand in your life!
Up tomorrow: Surprise
This was the Thanksgiving weekend back in Canada. I can never celebrate it properly at the right time of year because it is impossible to get a whole turkey without paying an arm and a leg for it at this time of year, if you can get one at all. A month makes all the difference in the world. Were it November, I would be able to get one quite easily.
I suppose what I should do is buy an extra one at Christmas or Easter and have it in the freezer, but I never think to do that!
You can get all kinds of other turkey bits all throughout the year. Turkey steaks, Turkey cubes. Turkey breast fillets, ground turkey . . . just no whole turkeys.
I quite like turkey myself and enjoy it in any way shape or form.
In any case I made us these delicious Cranberry & Apple Turkey Meatballs, instead of a roast turkey and we enjoyed them.
All the flavours of Thanksgiving in a bite sized meat ball . . . moist and tender . . .
I added grated raw apple and chopped dried cranberries to the meat mixture, along with some garlic and onion powder, a bit of seasoning and some dried sage . . .
There is an egg and dried bread crumbs as well to bind everything together. You shape this mixture into balls and then bake them in a hot oven for about 12 to 15 minutes. Easy peasy.
While they are baking you make a simple and delicious sauce to pour over them.
It also uses simple ingredients. Cranberry sauce. I like the whole berry sauce . . .
A bit of unsweetened applesauce . . . some Balsamic vinegar for a tang . . . orange juice, maple syrup and some finely grated orange zest . . .
The sauce is so delicious you will want to eat it with a spoon, but please don't! You need it for the meatballs!
Together these are incredibly delicious. You can make them ahead of time and keep them warm in a slow cooker on low for several hours. You decide.
Yield: Makes about 2 dozen
Cranberry & Apple Turkey Meatballs
Sweet and tangy, deliciously moist meatballs. These low fat meatballs make a great main course or a delightful appetiser or nibble.
ingredients:
For the meatballs:
- 1 pound of lean ground turkey
- 45g dried cranberries, chopped
- 1 tart apple, peeled and grated
- 60g dry bread crumbs (1/2 cup)
- 1 large free range egg, beaten
- 1 tsp each onion granules and dried sage
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
For the sauce:
- 280g whole berry cranberry sauce (1 cup)
- 2 dessert spoons of unsweetened applesauce (1/4 cup)
- 2 TBS balsamic vinegar
- 2 TBS pure maple syrup
- 1 TBS orange juice
- the finely grated zest of one orange
instructions:
How to cook Cranberry & Apple Turkey Meatballs
- Preheat the oven to 220*C/425*F/ gas mark 7. Line a baking tray with baking paper and lightly oil the paper.
- Mix the ground turkey together with the bread crumbs, egg, all of the seasonings and spices, the grated apple and the chopped dried cranberries, until well combined. Shape into meatballs using a light touch. Try not to compact them too much. Place them into a single layer on the baking sheet.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 12 to 15 minutes, until golden brown and cooked through. The juices should run clear.
- While the meatballs are cooking make the sauce by combining all of the ingredients in a saucepan, whisking until heated through and well combined. Add the cooked meatballs, turning to coat them in the sauce. Transfer to a serving platter and garnish with some chopped parsley if desired. Serve hot.
NOTES:
You can keep these warm in a slow cooker set on low setting.
These are great as a nibble during the holiday season when people do a lot of entertaining. Today we enjoyed them as a main course. They are pretty tasty no matter how you choose to enjoy them!
Up tomorrow: The steak rub I promised for today. (In all truth my turkey was due to expire and I needed to use it pronto!)
I am a real scone lover. Who doesn't love scones! People have a tendency to think that they are the same thing as baking powder biscuits, but they couldn't be further from the truth!
They are not at all the same thing.
Baking Powder Biscuits are light as air, fluffy and flaky, or at least they should be. If your biscuits are like rocks, I hate to tell you but you're doing something wrong!
They are also on the more savoury side, rather than the sweet.
Scones are sweeter and denser, and much crumblier than biscuits . . . Biscuits tend to use shortening, although some modern versions use butter. Scones always use butter.
The fat in biscuits is cut in until you have a variety of bits, some the size of small peas. In scones, the flour is "rubbed" in until the mixture resembles fine bread crumbs.
So you can see, they really aren't the same at all. Both are beautifully delicious and wonderful in their own unique ways!
Its filled with tasty recipes using some of our favourite autumn ingredients like apples and pumpkin, sweet potatoes and plenty of warm baking spices!
Muffins, cakes, pies, breads, you name it!
I can't believe that it has taken me nineteen years to bake these! Wow! So long and now that I have baked them, I wish that I had baked them earlier!
They are actually called Golden Carrot Spice Scones in the booklet, but I thought Carrot Cake Drop Scones sounded so much tastier and believe me . . . these are plenty tasty!
They are everything a great drop scone should be. Dense, buttery, flavourful . . .
Flecked with sweet bits of carrot and studded with sweet sticky raisins . . .
Lightly flavoured with warm baking spices . . .
Glazed with a sweet and spicy glaze . . .
Altogether, all of these things create a scone that is so purely autumnal and delicious . . .
Put the kettle on and grab your tea pot, coz you are going to want to sit right down with one of these hot out of the oven and enjoy with a nice hot cuppa!
Yield: 8 large scones
Carrot Cake Drop Scones
If you want you can shape this into one large round and cut into 8 wedges. I like to just drop them onto the baking sheet, in large dollops. They have lots of character that way and are, as always, delicious no matter what!
ingredients:
For the Scones:
- 280g plain flour (2 cups all purpose)
- 45g sugar (1/4 cup)
- 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp mixed spice or pumpkin pie spice
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 80g cold butter (1/3 cup)
- 80ml double cream (heavy cream) (1/3 cup)
- 90g finely grated carrot (1 cup, about 1 1/2 medium carrots)
- 45g sultana raisins (1/2 cup golden raisins)
- 1 large free range egg, lightly beaten
For the glaze:
- 65g icing sugar (1/2 cup powdered sugar)
- 2 TBS milk
- 1/8 tsp mixed spice or pumpkin pie spice
instructions:
How to cook Carrot Cake Drop Scones
- Preheat the oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6. Line a large baking tray with baking paper and set aside.
- Sift the flour into a bowl along with the baking powder and spice. Stir in the salt and sugar. Cut the butter into bits and drop it into the bowl. Rub or cut in until the mixture resembles fine bread crumbs. Stir in the carrots and the raisins. Mix together the cream and egg. Make a well in the dry ingredients and pour the wet into that. Mix together with a fork to make a soft dough that leaves the side of the bowl, adding a bit of milk if it seems too dry. Drop by heaped spoons, 2 inches apart, on the prepared baking sheet.
- Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, until light golden brown.
- While they are baking make the glaze by whisking together all of the ingredients until you have a drizzle icing. Remove the hot scones from the baking sheet to a wire rack and drizzle the glaze over top. Enjoy warm!
The are just wonderful! Not just for tea times either, they go fabulously at an autumnal lunch with the ladies served warm with a tasty salad. Yum Yum!
This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at: mariealicejoan at aol dot com Thanks so much for visiting. Do come again!
My kids grew up on homemade granola and homemade granola bars. When you have five children you learn how to do these things yourself! You can't afford the fancy stuff!
I credit my next door neighbour Mabel for teaching me how to make granola. It was a tasty way to get my children to eat oatmeal. They wouldn't touch it cooked, but if I turned it into granola, they didn't mind eating it at all.
As mom's we all want our kids to eat things that are healthy for them, including their breakfast cereals, and especially their snacks.
I heard on the television yesterday that the government was going to be banning eating food on buses to try to combat childhood obesity. I was like what the heck?
How is that going to combat childhood obesity? I may not be a really smart woman but I don't think banning eating on buses is going to do a heck of a lot for childhood obesity!!
How about making healthy food more affordable? There is something wrong when you can buy a package containing half a dozen fatty sausage rolls in pastry for less than you can a pack of green beans or a bag of apples. But that's just my opinion.
How about encouraging them to get off their butts and out the door to play? Too many children spend all of their time in front of a screen. Playing computer games, or watching television.
We liked watching cartoons when I was a child too, but they were only available at certain times of the day and week. Saturday mornings (so our parents could sleep in I guess) and there was a few programs on after school.
The general rule in our house was unless it was raining, you had to be outside playing. End of story. Otherwise you got stuck doing chores and housework. Trust me, we didn't mind being outdoors.
We didn't get bored either, because if we did, my mom soon found something for us to do and it wasn't going to be anything fun to do! Being bored was not an option!
Anyways, I digress. These granola bars make a nice snack for kids. They are filled with less fat and sugar than ready made ones and are filled with plenty of fibre and protein.
You can skip the white chocolate drizzle if you want to, but I think it adds a nice touch. You can also add nuts to the mix, replacing half the dried fruit with them, which would add even more protein. Delicious any way you choose to do it.
Yield: 16
White Chocolate and Cranberry Granola Bars
Making your own granola bars is not that hard and they taste far superior to those you can buy. I like that I can control what is in them.
ingredients:
For the bars:
- 240g old fashioned large flake Oatmeal (3 cups)
- 2 TBS butter
- 2 TBS soft light brown sugar, packed
- 2 TBS pure maple syrup
- 85g liquid honey (1/4 cup)
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp salt (optional)
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp ground cardamom
- 115g dried cranberries (3/4 cup)
- 90g white chocolate chips (1/2 cup)
- 35g mixed sunflower and pumpkin seeds (1/4 cup)
You will also need:
- 75g white chocolate (3 ounces)
instructions:
How to cook White Chocolate and Cranberry Granola Bars
- Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Spread the oats onto two baking trays. Toast them in the preheated oven for 15 minutes, stirring them several times, until they are light golden brown and smell toasty.
- Like a 9 inch square pan with some waxed paper or parchment paper. Set aside.
- Melt the butter in a large saucepan on the stove. Add the brown sugar, maple syrup and honey. Cook, stirring until the sugar is melted and everything is amalgamated. Whisk in the vanilla, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and cardamon. Stir in the toasted oats and combine well. Let cool completely. Stir in the chocolate chips, cranberries and seeds. Mix well together and then press into the lined pan. Place another sheet of wax paper or parchment paper on top and compress the mixture really well, until it is of an even thickness all over. Cover and place in the refrigerator overnight.
- The next morning, flip them carefully out onto a cutting board and peel off any paper. Cut into quarters with a sharp knife and then cut each quarter into 4 to give you 16 bars. Place them onto a wire rack placed over top of some wax or parchment paper. Break your white chocolate into squares and put into a microwave safe bowl. Melt in the microwave according to package directions. Using a spoon flick the melted chocolate over top of the granola bars. Leave to set before storing in an airtight container. These will keep for about a weeks or so, or you can freeze them tightly covered for longer.
If you are not a fan of white chocolate you can use dark chocolate and semi sweet chocolate chips. I just happen to think that white chocolate goes very well with dried cranberries and pumpkin seeds. These also make for a great breakfast on the go. Just sayin!
Up tomorrow: Carrot Cake Drop Scones
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