Cooking With Sean Test

Sometimes what looks good on the Food Network and on paper does not come out the way you had hoped. That was the case with this recipe. It looked so delicious when I saw Dave Lieberman make it, but I was very disappointed with the end result.

I diligently got up super early on Sunday morning to get this thing in the oven. 6:30!!!! That's a challenge on week days, let alone Sunday! Anyway, I followed the instructions - browned the beef, sauted the vegetables. It smelled delicious! When I pulled it out of the oven, though, I was so sad. After 10 hours the liquid had actually increased and the meat was not all that tender. I was going to write this recipe off until last night.

I came home and Joey had our leftovers all plated up and ready to go for dinner. I was amazed at how delicious this dish had become! The meat was flavorful and tender. YUMMO! As Rachel would say.

If I were to make this again, I think I would do it in the crock pot rather than the oven. I would also decrease the liquid a bit. I don't know if I love beef brisket, but this really did make some great leftovers and, to us, that is just as important as the first time we have something.

Ingredients

• 1 (6-pound) brisket, upper portion
• Salt
• Vegetable oil
• 1/2 pound carrots, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
• Few stalks celery, cut into big chunks
• 3 medium onions, peeled and cut into eights
• Cloves from 1 head garlic, peeled and lightly smashed
• 26-ounce box strained tomatoes (recommended: Pomi)
• 1/3 cup light brown sugar
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar

Instructions

Preheat oven to 200 degrees F.

Rub brisket generously with salt and vegetable oil.

Heat a large saute pan over medium-high heat. Add vegetable oil to evenly coat pan and when the oil is hot and is just beginning to smoke, add the brisket and brown on both sides. Transfer the brisket to a shallow baking dish. Add the vegetables to the saute pan. Cook until they brown and start to soften, about 5 minutes. Then pour the vegetables over the brisket.

Whisk together the tomatoes, sugar, stock and vinegar in a mixing bowl then pour it into the same saute pan. Cook for a few minutes to get all the flavor out of the skillet, and then pour over the brisket. It should be at least 3/4 of the way submersed in the liquid. Cover the dish loosely with aluminum foil and bake for 8 to 10 hours until tender and the meat begins to fall apart. Slice thinly and serve with veggies and cooking liquid.

Serves 8 - 10

YAY! My first blog posting!!! This weekend promises to be full o' cooking as next weekend is my birthday and I will probably be busy with that.

This is one of our favorite one-pot recipes. (Not to be confused with Crock Pot!) It's a bit time consuming to stuff the cabbage, but the end result is oh-so yummy. We usually double the recipe so that we have lots of lunches for the following week.

This recipe comes from the Weight Watchers site. For those of you interested it's only 6 points!

Ingredients

• 1/3 head savoy cabbage, about 8 whole leaves
• 1/2 pound uncooked lean ground beef (with 7% fat)
• 1/2 cup uncooked white rice
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/4 cup seasoned bread crumbs
• 1 medium carrot(s), peeled and grated
• 1 medium onion(s), finely chopped
• 1 medium garlic clove(s), minced
• 1 large egg white(s)
• 1/2 tsp table salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 29 oz canned diced tomatoes, with basil, garlic and oregano

Instructions

Wrap cabbage leaves in plastic wrap or moist paper towels and microwave on HIGH for 2 minutes, until soft. Cut off the thickest, white portion of the spine of each leaf to make leaves pliable and easy to fold; set aside.

Combine beef, rice, water, bread crumbs, carrot, onion, garlic, egg white, salt and pepper in a large bowl; mix well.

Spoon about 1/4 cup of beef mixture onto center of each leaf. Fold up bottom of leaf to cover filling, tuck in sides and then continue rolling to make loose rolls (rice will expand during cooking so it is important not to roll them too tightly).

Heat oil in a large stockpot over medium-high heat; add rolls and sauté until golden brown on all sides, turning frequently, about 5 minutes. Add tomatoes and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook until cooked through, checking pot every 15 minutes and stirring to prevent sticking, about 1 hour. (If sauce thickens or reduces, add water.) Yields 2 rolls per serving.