Make this meal
/Sorry to get so bossy with the title but sometimes you just have to say what's in your heart. And my heart loves this meal. It's a tried and true one that I've made many times, one that you can easily whip up to please your people. Maybe you have guests coming to stay for Thanksgiving so you have to think of a few more meals besides the big feast. Maybe you're having some people over this weekend but are short on time or ideas. Or maybe you, like me, open the fridge on a daily basis and look blankly at its contents at a loss for what to feed these people in your family that keep showing up around the table and expecting meals.
So here are three of my favorite recipes, each exceedingly delicious and just as easy (or as they say here in Australia "easy as." Or, for example, if someone's smart they say "he's smart as." Smart as what? Easy as what? I want to ask. But then I wouldn't be cool as. Is that a thing in the States, too? I'm losing track.) Anyway, this combo has saved my bacon on more than one occasion. (This is also one of those meals where doubling it really doesn't require much more work than just a single batch so it's great for a crowd.)
- The Best Flank Steak Marinade, Guaranteed (that's its name, I didn't make it up)
- Crash Hot Potatoes
- Lemon Bars From Heaven
photo via Tired & Inspired
The original Flank Steak Marinade recipe, shared by Tired & Inspired, makes a huge batch (5 liters of marinade!) so here's the recipe for 1 liter, which still goes far:
1/2 c. rice vinegar
1/2 c. oyster sauce
1 + 2/3 c. soy sauce
3/4 c. mirin
3 T garlic puree (or very finely chopped)
4 T ginger puree (I also use it from a spice jar if needed but reduce the amount)
2 T honey
Marinate flank steak for (ideally) 24 hours [sometimes we only do 2-4 hours, though the longer the better]. Grill steak 4-5 minutes per side on medium high heat. Remove from heat and let rest about 5 minutes before cutting into thin slices across the grain.
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photo via PW
Crash hot potatoes, according to our much revered, imaginary BFF The Pioneer Woman, are an Australian recipe so I feel like I bring it full circle, from Australia to Pioneer Woman and back to Australia again in my kitchen. They're really simple to make (you basically boil small red potatoes until soft, put them on a baking sheet, smash them down & drizzle them with goodness and bake them a while. So basically, your job is to pour potatoes in boiling water and then put them in the oven. I can handle that.) I don't change up this recipe at all so I'll just wait while you click on over and visit PW's neighborhood. Tell her I said G'day.
p.s. I lied. There's another item missing from this meal. I usually make a green salad or some other veg but that doesn't mean you have to do more work! Just ask one of your kids to do a salad while you're tending to the other deliciousness.
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Okay, you might think you've had lemon bars before. You may even think you've had some really good ones. But this one? The one I'm about to give you? This is IT. Ellie at Less Cake More Frosting has found the holy grail of lemon bars. These have a lovely, crusty top and a gooey lemony filling. The buttery crust at the bottom is perfect. I was going to her site so often to make them that I finally just printed it out for my cupboard. Go. Make these.
I don't know the specific alchemy that takes such mundane ingredients (lemon, flour, sugar, butter...maybe it's not such a mystery) and produces such perfection, all I know is they complete me.
Bon appétit!
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p.s. Speaking of go-to recipes, for my birthday Sarah sent me the cookbook she raved about here last month, Whitney Ingram's The Family Flavor. I'm in love with it. You should see my copy--it has about 54 neon green post-it notes sticking out from all the marking of recipes I've tried or want to try. Pretty much every single page. If you're looking for more go-to recipes, this one is gold.
