Beef Pho

I love pho, and even thought there are two Vietnamese restaurants within 5 minutes of my house, it's really nice to be able to make at home on a chilly night.   I went a little overboard and made my own bone broth, but you can easily start with pre-made broth. Broth can also easily be made ahead of time and/or frozen. 

Don't be intimidated by the number of ingredients or steps. As long as the broth is ready, I can put this together in less than 30 minutes.

Beef Pho

Ingredients:

The Broth:

• 3-4 pounds of beef bones
• 4-6 quarts of water
• 1 onion, cut in half
• 4 inches fresh ginger, peeled and sliced
• 2 pods star anise
• 4 whole cloves
• 2 whole cinnamon sticks
• 2 teaspoons whole coriander seeds
• 2 ½ tablespoons fish sauce

The Soup:

• Medium rice noodles (about 1/4 inch wide, not vermicelli or wide noodles)
• 1 to 1 ½ pounds very, thinly sliced steak (such as top sirloin, flank, London broil)

Garnishes:

• Fresh Bean Sprouts
• Fresh herbs such as: Thai Basil. Cilantro, Parsley, Fresh Mint
• Lime Wedges
• Jalapeño slices
• Chopped green onion

Condiments:

• Chile-garlic sauce, such as Sriracha 
• Hoisin sauce

Instructions:

Broth (see Note 1)

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees. 
• Place beef bones on a baking sheet and roast until browned, 30-60 minutes.
• Place onion and ginger on a baking sheet on highest rack in your oven and char on each side until blackened and soft.
• Put roasted beef bones and water in a stock pot. Bring to a boil and simmer on low from 24-48 hours. The longer you can cook it the more depth and flavor your broth will have. 
• For the last 6 to 8 hours, add the roasted onion and ginger and spices to flavor the broth. I simmered mine for 18 hours and then added the onions and spices for an additional 8 hours. 
• Strain the broth into a pan and set aside  (See Note 2).
• You can freeze any extra broth for future use.

Soup:

• Cook noodles according to instructions drain, and divide into bowls. 
• Top the noodles with the raw beef slices top with the hot broth. Stir and let sit until beef is no longer pink, 1 to 2 minutes (See Note 3).
• Set a plate at the table so individuals can add the bean sprouts, the fresh herbs, lime wedges, and sliced jalapenos as they desire. Also provide sriracha and/or hoisin sauce. (See Note 4).

Notes: 

1. If you don't want to make your own broth you can always use 6 cups store-bought beef broth (or chicken or veggie, if you prefer) and add the charred vegetables and spices and simmer for at least one hour, or in a crockpot for 3-4 hours or more.
2. If there is a lot of marrow your broth may be greasy. You may want to cool the broth before serving and remove the hardened fat from the top.
3. For variety, I often add fresh broccoli, cauliflower and carrots. You can place bite-size pieces on top of the beef before you pour over the broth. 
4. This dish should be served with the bean sprouts, herbs, and lime. To me, the are definitely key to the experience. The rest are optional and to taste. I add all listed, because I like mine spicy!

Whipped Cauliflower

Ahh, whipped cauliflower--some refer to it ask Faux Mashed Potatoes. But there are no such things as a fake potatoes. Potatoes are sacred to me, so don't even try to mess with them. Thanks.

While cauliflower can be prepared similar to mashed potatoes, and can be served in lieu of mashed potatoes, as a low carb option, this is a tasty dish all on it's own.  This is very simple recipe, but it gives a nice consistency and you can dress it up or down as you wish.

Whipped Cauliflower

Ingredients:

• 1 medium head of cauliflower
• 3-4 Tbsp. butter
• 2-3 Tbsp. half and half or heavy cream
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• Salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste

Instructions

• Clean and cut up the cauliflower, steam for about 10 minutes, until soft and tender--easily pierced with a fork.
• In a bowl with and immersion blender, add remaining ingredients and whip until smooth.
• Stir in any cheese, herbs, or other additions you wish.
• Serve while hot.

Sweet and Sour Collard Greens

OMG!!! These are so delicious. Of course they are--they have bacon. Because they are a superfoody, green leafy vegetable, they kind need the flavor, but overall they are still pretty healthy.

Ingredients:

• 4 slices bacon, chopped
• 1 1/2 Tbsp. white flour
• 1/3 c. water
• 2 Tbsp. white vinegar
• 3 Tbsp. brown sugar
• 1 tsp. black pepper
• pinch of salt
• 2 c. collard greens, chopped with stems removed

Instructions:

1. Fry the bacon in a large frying pan, until crisp. Remove from pan, cover and set aside. Do not drain the bacon grease from the pan.
2. Combine the water, vinegar, brown sugar, pepper and salt and set aside.
   
3. On medium heat, whisk the flour into the bacon grease. Add the liquid mixture
4. Reduce heat to low and add the greens a handful at a time. Cover and steam for about 10-15 minutes, stirring frequently.
5. Serve with crumbled bacon on top.

Tortellini Artichoke Salad

Spring is here! And it's time for salad and outdoor gatherings. Now I love potato and macaroni salads, but I'm not a huge mayonnaise fan, especially at an afternoon backyard barbeque when its over 80 degrees. So you will notice most of my salads are a vinegar base.

Here is one of my favorite salads to bring with me that is quick and easy to make. You can basically add or substitute any vegetables you like to make this your own. You can also serve the leftovers over lettuce for an instant green salad!

Tortellini Artichoke Salad

• 1 lb. cheese tortellini
• 8 oz. marinated artichokes, chopped (reserve marinade)
• 1 small green pepper, chopped
• 1 small red or yellow pepper, chopped
• 8 oz. grape tomatoes, cut in half
• 1/2 c.shredded carrots
• pepper (to taste)
• 3 Tbsp. red wine or balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 c. shredded or shaved Parmesan cheese

Cook tortellini according to instructions. In the meantime, drain the artichoke and reserve the marinade in a small bowl and chop artichoke into bite size pieces. Prepare remaining vegetables and put in a large bowl.

Add the vinegar to the artichoke marinate and whisk to make a dressing and pour over the salad. Add pepper to taste and stir.

Put the salad in the fridge to cool completely. Then stir 1/3 c. Parmesan cheese and sprinkle the remaining on top. Store in the fridge until ready to serve.

Brussels Sprouts with Bacon

These are not the Brussels Sprouts you were made to eat as a kid, sitting in your chair until it was time for bed because you refused to eat them... Now, these are also certainly not the steamed veggies your nutritionist recommends but they aren't all bad at about 120 calories and 4g of fat per serving. Added bonus, every time I cook bacon my fire alarm gets tested. Safety first in the kitchen, I say! This is also a pretty dish since the sprouts turn a lovely brilliant green that glistens in the bacon... mmm... bacon! Oh, and please don't judge my dirty stove top, I just cooked bacon... mmm... bacon!

Brussels Sprouts with Bacon

• 2 lbs. Brussels Sprouts
• 4 slices bacon
• 1/3 c. chopped onion
• 1 cup chicken broth
• black pepper

Remove the stem part of the Brussels sprouts, rinse in cold water and drain. In a large frying pan, cook bacon until crispy. Remove bacon and drain on paper towel. Drain the bacon grease from the pan, but don't wipe out the pan, you'll want some fat to fry the onions. Add the onions and saute for about 2 minutes, then add chicken broth and Brussels Sprouts and season with black pepper. Cover and simmer on low to medium heat for about 10 minutes until sprouts are tender. If there is any remaining broth, remove from pan with slotted spoon. Sprinkle with bacon and serve.