spicy beef with broccoli

Spicy Beef with Broccoli

1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 tablespoon salt
black pepper
12oz thin sliced eye of round steak
2 T oil for frying
4 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1/2 tablespoon white cooking wine
1 1/2 tablespoons honey
7 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 tablespoon chile paste
3 tablespoons chopped fresh ginger root
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/4 cup sliced onion
1/4 cup diced red bell pepper
1-2 heads broccoli, cut up

DIRECTIONS
Combine cornstarch, salt and pepper in a mixing bowl. Toss the steak slices in the cornstarch mixture and coat well. Warm the 2 T oil in a wok or frying pan and cook the steak on high until done.

In another mixing bowl, combine the soy sauce, rice vinegar, rice wine and honey. Add sugar, chili paste, and ginger. Mix well and set aside. Steam broccoli in a separate pan until just beginning to be tender (do not overcook, because you want some of the crispiness to remain).

Heat a wok or deep frying pan over medium high heat. Add 1 tablespoon of oil, and quickly saute the onion, garlic and red pepper for 30 seconds. Add the sauce mixture, and cook another 30 seconds. Finally, add the strips of steak and toss to heat through and coat with sauce.

homemade lasagna

Ever since my summer stint with insomia when I was 16, I have loved making homemade pasta. Nothing beats the taste of homemade noodles, the amazing texture, and just how fresh they taste. So last night when we got home from church and I had my heart set on lasagna, I decided to make homemade lasagna noodles since that is one ingredient that I almost never have on hand. (Unlike ricotta cheese, which I always have in the fridge.)

So while Ben threw together the cottage cheese, ricotta, mozarella and spices, I made homemade pasta dough and rolled it out with my pasta maker. (Kim, if you are reading this, the pasta recipe in the Better Homes and Garden cookbook is amazing. Simple, and makes the best pasta.) I rolled the pasta to the level 6 and then cut each into a 3 inch wide strip and dumped into boiling water. The great thing about fresh pasta is that they only have to cook a few minutes for them to be perfectly done. Plus, homemade pasta keeps the chewy texture better, so the noodles don't rip or fall apart when you are trying to layer your lasagna.

After sauting 1/2 of an onion, we added 1 pound of ground beef and then a jar of spagetti sauce. Layer the lasanga noodles, cheese mixture, and then meat and redsauce, and repeat about 4-5 times. After baking at 435 for 15 minutes, the cheese was melted and the edges were bubbling. Sometimes lasanga comes out too runny or really dry, but last night's was perfect. The homemade noodles don't get too soft from the baking and the texture is unbeatable.

just like my dad

My brother just sent this photo out to the fam, I think trying to get us to like a mustache. The hilarious part is that he looks JUST LIKE MY DAD, who had a mustache for years until he finally shaved it off in the 90s.