Great Groceries Recipe Archive-January 2001

Polenta Beef Stew
Hearty and delicious!

1/4 cup unbleached flour
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. dried thyme, crushed
1 tsp. dried basil, crushed
2 lb. boneless beef chuck steak, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 Tbls. olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
6 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. snipped fresh rosemary or 1/4 tsp. dried rosemary, crushed
1 14 1/2 -oz. can beef broth
1 1/2 cups dry red wine
8 oz. boiling onions
5 medium carrots, cut into 1-inch chunks
1 recipe Polenta (see below)
1/2 cup snipped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/4 cup tomato paste

In a medium bowl stir together flour, garlic powder, thyme, basil, and 1/2 tsp. salt and pepper. Coat meat with flour mixture. In a Dutch oven brown half the meat in hot oil over medium-high heat. Remove from Dutch oven. Repeat with remaining meat. Return all meat to pan. Add chopped onion, garlic, and rosemary. Cook and stir until onion is tender but not brown. Add beef broth and red wine. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, covered for 1 1/2 hours.

Add boiling onions and carrots to meat. Simmer, covered, about 30 minutes more or until vegetables are tender. Meanwhile, prepare Polenta. Just before serving, stir the parsley and tomato paste into stew. Serve stew in bowls with Polenta. If desired, garnish with additional parsley. Makes 8 servings.

Polenta: 3 cups milk, 1 cup cornmeal, 2 Tbls. butter. In a large saucepan bring milk just to a simmer. In a bowl combine cornmeal, 1 cup water and 1 tsp. salt. Stir cornmeal mixture slowly into hot milk. Cook and stir until mixture comes to a boil. Reduce heat to low. Cook for 10 to 15 minutes or until mixture is thick, stirring occasionally. If too thick, stir in additional milk. Stir in butter. Serves 8.

Warm Spinach Salad with Artichokes and Gruyere

1 can or large jar of prepared artichoke hearts, packed in brine, drained and quartered
3/4 lb. baby spinach leaves carefully washed and well dried
or use bagged, prepared spinach if available.
1/2 cup of bottled balsamic and olive oil dressing
3 hard-cooked eggs, peeled and coarsely chopped
1 piece Gruyere cheese, 2 oz., shaved into paper-thin strips
with a vegetable peeler or cheese shaver
Salt and freshly ground pepper

In a frying pan over medium heat, combine the artichokes and dressing and heat, stirring occasionally, until the artichokes are warm, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Place spinach in a large bowl. Add the artichokes and dressing to the spinach and toss to mix. Immediately transfer to a large serving bowl or individual plates. Garnish with chopped egg and cheese. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve at once. Serves 6.

Pineapple Upside Down Cake
An old fashioned cake that is delicious and easy to make.

7 slices canned unsweetened pineapple (one 20 oz. can)
drained on paper towels
3 Tbls. unsalted butter
3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
maraschino cherries, about 20
2 large eggs
2 Tbls. buttermilk
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 cup unbleached flour
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
6 Tbls. unsalted butter, softened
6 Tbls. buttermilk

Place the 3 Tbls. butter in a 9 inch skillet or a 9 x 2 inch round pan and place in a 350° oven just until the butter is melted. Tilt pan to coat all sides. Sprinkle the brown sugar evenly over the bottom of pan and arrange pineapple rings. In the center of each ring and in the spaces between them, place maraschino cherries.

Using a fork, whisk together eggs, buttermilk and vanilla. In a mixer bowl stir together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add softened butter and remaining 6 Tbls. buttermilk. Mix on low speed just until the flour is moistened and increase the speed to medium or high if using a hand held mixer. Add one-third of the egg mixture at a time, beating for exactly 20 seconds and scraping the bowl after each addition. Scrape the batter over the fruit in pan and spread evenly.

Bake until a toothpick inserted in the cake comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes. Remove the cake from oven and tilt the pan in all directions to detach it from the sides of the pan. Let cool for 2-3 minutes before unmolding. Invert a serving platter on top of the pan and turn cake onto the platter. Carefully lift off the pan. If any fruit has moved, use a fork to push back into place. If brown sugar is left in the pan, scrape it up and spoon it over the cake. Serve warm or cool, with whipped cream. Serves 8.