Foodie Field Trip- Is This Heaven?

It doesn't take much to get me excited these days- and a new store in a brand new shopping mall here in our city hit the nail on the head with one, and only one, store included in the project. Now some people need to drive an expensive car. Some women want the best, biggest and highest clarity diamond jewelry. Other people spend hundreds of dollars on hairstyling and spa treatments, and others spend hundreds on designer bags and clothing and shoes. I'm over all that stuff. Now, I spend my "big money" on things that are important to The Chef and I- high quality kitchen equipment and "good" grocery products. Seriously, those things go hand in hand. You might splurge on a $500 piece of AllClad but if you're just going to cook Hamburger Helper in it, save the money and buy a big box store cheap skillet. For us, we prefer to purchase what we consider investment pieces, things that will outlast us. 

Good knives are a must. I have accumulated a very nice collection of Wusthof knives from their open stock- I was able to purchase exactly the pieces I wanted and didn't end up with a knife or two that I'll never really use. I bought my block from eBay and saved a nice chunk of money on that. In fact, I often still do browse the eBay offerings and just see what's out there for sale. I sometimes grab a good buy. Now, don't think I don't also own some other knives, because I do. I have a couple Mercer Genesis knives and I'm quite impressed with their quality. Guy Fieri suckered me in to buying a big Knuckle Sandwich chef's knife when they first came out, and I couldn't resist a set of Tomodachi knives one day when I was wandering around a Sam's club. Cute, colorful, somewhat practical and disposable when they become too crummy to continue to sharpen. 

My real and true love is cookware. I've owned a set of Calphalon for a good ten years now and while some of the pots have seen better days, they are heavy, solid, the lids are all still intact with no loose handles or broken pieces. These guys are built for the long haul for sure. My next true love is cast iron. All kinds of cast iron. I love the old fashioned black cast iron that needs to be seasoned and has to be hand washed and might have been passed down for generations. There is something really special about owning a skillet that a great grandparent used to cook with. Just imagine all the breakfasts, all the bacon, steaks and burgers, all the pancakes and fried potatoes. You can't buy that kind of history. When it comes to cast iron, for me, the great French Le Creuset does it for me. Sure, I own some of the old fashioned black cast iron too, but the color pop of the Le Creuset just makes me happy. Sturdy and heavy, these beautiful cast iron, and a few ceramic, pieces are absolutely investment pieces. My first piece was a Dutch oven. I chose a color that was perfect for me- Marine, a dusty and deep turquoise that wasn't really bright or pastel, it is smokey and has a gray tint to it. I wish I had bought more pieces in this color because...... ugh, it's discontinued.  Instead now you have to make your choice between beautiful bright cherry red, sunny yellow, the perfect lime green, deep blue, a bright and pretty turquoise, pumpkin orange, and even pink. They do add new special edition colors from time to time as well.

My LeCreuset Dutch oven in Marine.

I said this is a field trip so that means we are going somewhere, right? You bet! Have you ever hear the old movie line "Is this Heaven? No, this is Iowa"? That sentence holds an entirely new meaning for me. Heaven, in Iowa, is the brand new Outlets of Des Moines shopping mall that features one store that fills my heart with joy- the Le Creuset store. My sister/friend Jessica and I made the trip the brand new mall on opening day and we had only one destination in mind- Le Creuset. She and I have a lot in common. Besides being family, we have an obsession with kitchen stuff. Cookware especially and beautiful things like bright enameled cast iron. We do the majority of our hunting at thrift stores, where you can score some great vintage pieces but we never pass up a chance to wander around, touching, holding, lusting over the beautiful brand new Le Creuset pieces.

Before we continue any further, let me insert a very brief lesson in French pronunciation here, because we cringed outwardly at the mispronounced name being spewed by literally ALL the other customers in the store and at least one employee. Say it with me: Le Crew Say. Again, Le Crew Say. Not Le Crew Set. Got it? Ok, let's move on.

The entrance walkway into the mall, which, by the way is a gorgeous open-air mall with coverings like an open roof over some of the walk ways, lovely glass store fronts that aren't looking over parking lots (those are all "behind" or around the outside of the plaza type setup), plants and benches sprinkled about, very contemporary and classy, leads right straight to nirvana......... the Le Creuset store.

Floor to ceiling glass walls give Jessica and I an incredible view of the goodies inside the store. Every size, every shape, every color of the rainbow.  We can hardly contain our glee. I said WE because she was just as giddy and giggling as I was was. Walking through the doorway literally brought tears to my eyes. I'm not even exaggerating here, guys. So many gorgeous cast iron pieces in such stunning colors, and we can TOUCH them and pick them up and hug them. Red, orange, deep blue and turquoise met us at the door and I immediately latched on the braiser. I have been wanting this piece for several years. I've entered every giveaway I've found trying to win one- and nada.

Off to the right the orange pieces have been transformed into pumpkins. I understand you can easily do this with a dry erase marker but I'm not so sure I'd try it. I was nearly jumping up and down like a kid in the toy store at this point. 

Just beyond the pumpkin display- kitchen linens. Gasp!! Le Creuset kitchen LINENS!!!!! OMG OMG OMG! Don't laugh, you people ought to know my by now.

The back wall of the store features all kinds of fun add-on pieces, like mini coccottes and mini baking dishes, utensils, a variety of cookbooks, teeny tine serving tureens, butter keepers, and crocks for all kinds of things. They even had wine glasses every bit as delicate and well crafted as Riedel. 

Teapots!!!! I die!!!!

If you wanted to, they had a table set up with filled pepper mills, in colors to match all your Le Creuset pieces, for you to try out and give it a few grinds. 

Rounding out the store, the pink pieces that you see in October and again near Valentines Day- shaped like hearts and flowers and super cute, a big selection of ceramic baking dishes, again in colors to match all the cast iron pieces, apple shaped pie pans, casserole dishes, lasagna pans, and a selection of teapots I could barely keep my hands off.

Floor to ceiling Dutch oven wallpaper

Jessica and I wasted no time getting signed up as Preferred Customers and believe it or not, we left the store without making a purchase, BUT, we both made a shopping list and we plan on working our way down the list in the very near future. We just could not pass up a visit on Opening Day!!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 55: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

A chill is in the air, time to heat up the oven

Someone has created a monster. Like me. A braising monster. Frankenbraise? Count Braiseula? I cannot stop myself. I now look at everything in the cupboard, grocery store, freezer, and try to figure out how to include it in a braising recipe. I'm not kidding! Of course, this means that I have to drive back to the city for some really special ingredients to make a really special dish. 

Some days the grocery store is like Disneyland!

I managed to get a great deal on some boneless beef ribs (marked boneless beef short ribs) from our local market, but like I said, the produce section is often sorely lacking variety, and I had some ideas already going in my brain. A road trip to the city is in order. So that's exactly what I did. Braising beef in wine is always the right thing to do so Merlot went in the basket (good deal on a bottle). I wanted something other than the plain old white mushroom too, so grabbed a couple varieties and kept wandering. Ohhhhhhh great deal on a ceramic skillet, which is something I have been wanting for a white, so I pick up one in a cool platinum color. Some baby bok choy, Peruvian purple potatoes, shishito peppers, a trip to the olive bar (of course....) artisan bread, some other things for other recipes this week and off I go.

Ready to go in the oven

Now mind you, all of these things are not for this recipe today. I have a few things to work on this week so I figured it's the best time to get just what I needed while I was at the BIG store. Mascarpone and orecchiette will make a magical pasta dish. Shishito peppers, beautiful olives and white Vermont cheddar with Hatch chilies will make great nibbles and with the cooler temps, and I have another lush soup to put together this week. Those Peruvian purple potatoes are going to make a simple fish dish a little more special.

Any day I get to use the Le Creuset is of course, a good day! If you don't have a Dutch oven, you seriously need to get one. You don't have to plunk down a ton of cash either. Lodge brand makes a great cast iron Dutch oven that's under fifty dollars and as cast iron, will last a lifetime if you season and care for it properly. While I wish I had an actual braiser pan, a Dutch oven subs nicely, and is perfect for lots of great dishes.

Getting ready to braise- the beef snuggled down in the herby
wine with bacon, smothered with leeks and mushrooms

Alright, so let's talk about our ingredients. I will be using-

• boneless beef ribs (also called country style ribs) 6 to 8 pieces
• 4 slices bacon
• 1 lb assorted fresh mushrooms
• 3 leeks
• 5-6 cloves garlic
• olive oil
• butter
• flour
• salt and pepper
• 1 1/2 cups Merlot 
• 2 tbs chopped sun dried tomato or tomato paste
• 2 tsp chopped fresh rosemary or 1 tsp dried, crumbled
• 2 lay leaves
• 2 tsp chopped fresh marjoram or 1 tsp dried, crumbled

Wipe the mushrooms clean. Trim off the dried stem end and discard. Remove stems if desired (reserve for soup or sauce). Slice the mushrooms thickly. Set aside.

I used a mix of button, baby bella and cremini mushrooms

Peel the outer tough leaves of the leeks. We will need the white part with just a small bit if the green part, so cut that off and discard. Trim the roots of the leeks but leave them intact. Slice the leeks lengthwise and rinse thoroughly to make sure there is no sand (leeks can be pretty gritty). If your leeks are big giant leeks like I had  you can cut them into quarters lengthwise.

Leaving the root intact holds the leek together while cooking

In a small dish place about 1/2 cup or so of flour. Season the meat with salt and pepper on all sides.

Save yourself a dish to wash- use the meat wrapping to hold
the flour- then just throw away when you're finished.

Cut the bacon into pieces- a little larger than "lardons" but not quite an inch wide- about the width of your finger. 

Cook the bacon in the Dutch oven until crispy and brown- no soggy flabby bacon allowed! Remove to paper towel to drain.

It doesn't look like much but a little bacon goes a long way

In the same pot with the bacon fat we are going to brown the beef. Dredge the beef in the flour and brown in the hot pan. Sear the meat quickly without cooking through. Remove to a plate as you get them browned. Don't crowd them in the pot- they won't brown, they will just steam and become mushy and not brown and seared.

After meat is browned, add a tablespoon each of oil and butter if needed. Place the leeks in the pot cut side down and cook until slightly browned. Flip them over and cook another minute or two. Remove to plate with the meat. 

Turn the leeks with tongs for easy handling.

Again, add another tablespoon each of butter and oil to pot. Add half the mushrooms; cook and stir until mushrooms are browned and any liquid has evaporated. Remove to bowl and repeat with other half of mushrooms. Remove to bowl.

Add garlic and herbs to pot, cook and stir for just a minute. You don't want the garlic to brown. 

Look at all the delicious fond in the bottom of the pot. A
quick deglaze and it's part of the sauce.

Add the wine to the pot and bring to a boil, stirring to lift up the crusty browned bits. Boil for a couple minutes to reduce slightly. Return the beef and bacon to the pot, followed by the vegetables. 

Deglazing a pot is probably the most important step in making
a beautifully flavored dish. So much deliciousness clinging to
the bottom of the pot. Use it!

Cover and place in 300 degree oven. Slowly braise for 2-3 hours until the meat is tender. Check once or twice and add a splash of beef broth if needed. 

Remove meat and vegetables from pot and place in serving bowl. 

Once you carefully remove the leeks, beef and mushrooms you will have the most beautiful, flavorful jus on the planet. It doesn't look anything like the wine it was to begin with. The vegetables and meat have added their own juices to the wine and now you have a ready made sauce. Bring cooking liquid to boil and reduce by half. 

Look at all those little bits of garlic, herbs, bacon, sun dried
tomatoes and all the cooking juices.

Serve meat and vegetables with mashed potatoes with sauce and lots of crusty bread for dipping.

Very easy. Very delicious. Very French. Bon appetit!