This is a post about bean salad. A Mediterranean bean salad I made back in June. It has taken me this long to share it, but that’s because I had some other sharing I was obligated to do. It’s a post about Greek seasoning on chicken. It’s a post about stuffing it all together in a pita, serving it with tzatziki to make a chicken gyro and having a wonderful meal with your family and your friends and your neighbors. It’s a post about food.

This is a post about the food I feed to my family.

I made bean salad. I’d had some at Costco, of all places, and I was instantly drawn in. Beans, barley, peppers, sauce. Simple, understated and bursting with flavor. Ole was not convinced as I cooked and drained beans and barley and stashed them away in the fridge to cool. Note: I had originally planned to use three bell peppers in this recipe. That is, of course, until Ole used one of them for something else. Flexibility is key to a happy marriage.

I then made a pretty simple sun-dried tomato pesto using sun-dried tomatoes, basil and parsley from our garden, garlic cloves and oil.

Mix the pesto, the beans and barley, the peppers, a bit of vinegar to pull it all together and a Mediterranean bean salad you shall have to be eaten on pitas or with pita chips or scooped up with a spoon and a fork. And I was happy with it. I packed it up, placed it in the fridge and told Ole to make it a meal with some cucumbers and tomatoes from the garden while I was gone, but he was skeptical. He did not trust me. Turns out, I was right, but he made the chicken anyway.

A Greek-seasoned, dry-rubbed chicken, grilled and thinly sliced. This is what happens when you stock your pantry, meals become feasts in a matter of minutes. In fact, I shared that same sentiment just today how making impromptu meals from your pantry is so much easier when you stock that pantry.

He also paired it with homemade tzatziki, which is easy to make and is so much better when you make it fresh. It’s bright and lively, and it pairs nicely with said Greek-seasoned chicken.

And he put the salad on the side (except the kids and I still put it inside) and made a gyro. I do have to say it looks like a meal I’d love to eat. Ole even called to let me know the bean salad was a new favorite with the kids, and they’d begged to eat it for lunch the next day too.

The moral of the story is that my husband knows not how barley and beans can be mind-blowing. In fact, our dinner guests last month asked specifically for the recipe. My kids cheered when it showed up on the table for a third time this summer. I cried inside when everyone ate it all because it meant I couldn’t eat it for lunch the next day.

And the chicken gyro? Well, it’s pretty fantastic, and so is the man who made it.

Ole is gone, gone gone this week(end) motorcycling in the UP, and I am attempting to remain sane by taking the kids on short jaunts around the neighborhood. We already hit Conny’s Creamy Cone, and I think we’re going to attempt the beach sometime this weekend too. I hope you all have a fantastic weekend!

I haven’t been getting enough sleep. In fact, I can’t remember the last time in my life where I did get the recommended amount of sleep, which tends to be around six hours. I’m thinking it was probably sometime in middle school, before the piles of AP homework kept me up or long nights on the phone or a job or the ever-present worry, disregarding the four kids I had in there.

And while this post here isn’t about sleep and worry, it is about radishes and how adding them to your steak sandwich will change your life. Maybe if you have been sleep deprived like me, you’ll start sleeping. You’ll sleep a full eight hours, rising revived the next morning. (Does that really happen?) And if you’ve been down, radishes, people – radishes will make the world look brighter…or at least your sandwich will be brighter. Okay. So, probably not, but it is pretty freaking good.

Steak sandwiches are one of my favorite ways to reuse leftovers because they don’t really feel like you’re eating leftovers. Of course, I said that about fried rice, too. I’ll have to think some more on that. Life can be confusing when you don’t get enough sleep after all.

For my sandwich I started with a lovely bunch of Easter egg radishes that Ole brought home from the organic farmers market at his work. Yes, there is an organic farmers market located feet from my husband’s desk. Sure enough, he does take photos of the sign where it lists what’s available so I can tell him what I want. Yes, I realize this makes me spoiled. I like it. (Note: I’d rather lazily walk around the farmers market at 6:00 a.m. before the crowd shows up, taking my dear sweet time, but that hasn’t happened since we got married.)

To the radishes add an equal number of onions, and while you’re at it, slice off a few thick slices of sharp cheddar.

Next, toss the vegetables on a flat griddle over a medium heat to get them started cooking.

Chop your leftover steak into thin strips. This happens to be remnants of a porterhouse steak (part of Roundy’s Black Angus by Swift line at Rainbow*) that we had grilled earlier in the week. If I’m being honest, this was in June. It is now August. How did that happen, and where did July go? It’s not like I slept through it.

Toss the meat up on the griddle with the vegetables, which should just be starting to sweat, and butter a large loaf of bread…or a small bun. We make steak sandwiches on whatever bread is lying around the house, and twin French loaves won here.

Toast your bread on the griddle next to the meat and the vegetables.

When your vegetables are tender and your meat is nice and hot, top the meat with the cheese.

Then top the cheese with the vegetables to act as a lid to aid in melting. Plus, your sandwich will stick together better.

Move your layered meat to the grilled bun and behold the best leftovers (on a bun) you could ask for. In a bowl? Go for the fried rice. On a bun, the steak with a spicy radish to change your life.

The oft overlooked radish is present here, but it doesn’t overwhelm. It adds a bit of complexity to your favorite steak and cheese.

*We were provided with a gift card to try out the new Roundy’s Black Angus Beef by Swift Beef at our local Rainbow Foods store, which happens to be just two blocks from our house.

We all know the feeling of the post-Thanksgiving hunger. You finally get hungry after the mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, dressing and turkey has had time to digest, and when you look in the fridge? Thanksgiving leftovers. Not what you were hoping for. Sure, a sandwich is always an option, but the thought of limp bread, cold Thanksgiving turkey and a slice of cheese doesn’t really have you clamoring to eat those leftovers either. That’s not going to sustain you after or during your Black Friday shopping trip. You were looking for something more.

This happens to be my favorite cold sandwich. Hands down. It’s #12 on the Jimmy John’s menu. “The Beach.” (Snicker.) My sister bought me this one. It is what every sandwich should be to me: made on a substantial wheat bread, heavy on the vegetables and loaded with avocados.

It’s time to make one at home with that leftover turkey. Pick a heartier bread, whether it be wheat or white. You’ll need something that’s going to be able to support the mound of fixings you’re going to sandwich in between. Also on the table (counterclockwise from the bread): mayo, an avocado with a bit of lime juice and salt, tomato slices, sprouts, cucumbers, provolone cheese and leftover turkey.

Start the assembly by spreading mayo on both slices of the bread. Then on one slice spread a bit of the avocado, top with a slice of provolone, more avocado and another piece of provolone. Don’t question this. Do not skimp. Just do it. And on the other side place your tomatoes, a layer of cucumbers and the alfalfa spouts. Last, get your Thanksgiving turkey slices in there. I’m missing the lettuce component. We didn’t have any on hand. If I were going to add some, I’d probably go with a romaine. I have no space in my life for iceberg…unless it’s a wedge topped with buttermilk ranch and bacon pieces and…

Then squash the whole thing together.

That’s all you need to turn some of the Thanksgiving turkey into a meal worth eating, one that will get you through the crowds at the mall and keep you going as you decide ever important, life-changing decisions like what color iPod to buy your teenage daughter, whether you go for the wooden train set or the wooden block set for your nephew. Buying the wrong one can mean the difference between the “cool mom” and the “cool aunt” or the out-of-touch one. (I hope we don’t really believe this.) At least your stomach won’t be growling.

The inspiration stemmed from a recent purchase of Tzatziki sauce from Costco, which in true Costco form came in a double pack measuring in at a total of 32 ounces.

The price was too good to pass up, but the sheer volume made it a challenge to use it all creatively (if you throw half of it away, it’s not really a value anymore).  So far the most popular way has been to make a Greek inspired burger.  The flavor can best be described as a beef gyro on a bun.  Big flavors of olive, feta and the cool taste of cucumber dominate this sandwich and the aroma that comes off the grill will have the neighbors stopping by hoping to get an impromptu dinner invitation.

You may not have all the ingredients sitting around the fridge for this one, but it is worth a special trip to the grocery store.

To make up six to eight burgers start with:

2 lbs. ground beef (85/15 is best)

15 Kalamata olives (give or take) chopped

½ cup feta cheese

3 scallions chopped

½ tsp fresh black pepper

½ tsp kosher salt

Fixins should include (but don’t have to):

Lettuce

Tomatoes

White onion

Cucumber

Tzatziki sauce

Blend your hamburger with the feta, olives, scallions, salt, and pepper and pat into 1/3 lb patties.

Heat up your grill to about 400 degrees and lay out the patties.

Let them go about four minutes per side flipping and turning twice (the turn is for nice cross hatches).  Between flips would be a fine time to prepare the fixins.  Notice there was no mustard or ketchup on the list, my favorite part about these burgers is the absence of the “classic” condiments.  It’s not that I’m against them, it is just a nice change once in a while.

You should be looking for the juices to run clear to indicate doneness.  Another nice feature about these is that the feta will sweat out a considerable amount of fat.  This has two benefits: first, that means less fat in your food, and second, the smell of the burning drippings is very appealing.

If you have time, butter and toast your buns on the grill after the second flip.  Once you feel confident that your patties have achieved perfect doneness, remove them to aluminum foil and prep your buns.

Layer the fixins as you see fit and assemble.

Last weekend I made these up the morning before an extended family picnic.  The uncooked patties traveled well in a zip top bag in the cooler.  We prepped our fixins ahead of time too and when it was time to grill, there was no mess.  Just out of the bag and onto the grill.  Luckily I made a few extra because people get curious when they see Tzatziki sauce at a Minnesota picnic.

A Philly cheesesteak isn’t something to mess with, so we didn’t. Instead, we created our own variety of steak sandwich, topped off with a mound of fresh grilled vegetables and a simple chipotle mayo for a bit of kick. It is the combination we keep coming back to. The vegetables balance the steak and cheese and serve to lighten things up a bit. I even topped mine with some iceberg we had sitting around taking up space to give a little crunch.

For these we’re using leftover bacon-wrapped beef tenderloin steaks. We have actually started grilling more of these than we eat so that we have enough to make this meal and Ole has one or two to bring to work for lunch, but we also use leftover chunks of steak from other meals. If we don’t have enough steak to feed the whole family, we’ll pair these with other leftover items from the week on a Saturday evening or add leftover chicken to the vegetable mix. If we’re really short on things, we may even feed the kids grilled ham and cheese.


Mushrooms are one of those like it or don’t types of ingredients. Just ignore them if you’re not a fan. These got a few extra onions added that we had sitting in the fridge from a few nights earlier.


The bacon on the tenderloin will grease the griddle to prevent anything from sticking, and because we cook our steaks to a medium they can withstand another heating without becoming tough like a piece of Bubbalicious you’ve had in your cheek all afternoon while you rode your three-wheeler up and down the block, your Star Wars’ ewok strapped to the back.


Give your buns a bit of butter so they brown while they’re toasting. These are ciabatta rolls from Costco again. The first time I attempted this post I had some lovely bollilo rolls, but then I somehow managed to come out of that sans photos of final product.


And then stick them right on that same griddle.


This is sliced havarti cheese from the deli section at Super Target. I don’t usually buy deli cheese because it’s overpriced (in my opinion), but THIS cheese happened to come free with my dry salame and turkey breast lunch meat purchase. Hello, pre-sliced cheese. Welcome to my home.


Then there’s the mayo matter. This gives the sandwich a bit of zip that it is otherwise lacking. You could use regular Tabasco sauce for a less “roasted pepper” taste, if you preferred. We happen to have Chipotle Tabasco because we marinate the burrito meat in it.


This is sort of the color my kitchen walls were when we bought the house.


Assemble.





And eat.

Start by combining warm water, yeast and sugar in a stand mixer with a dough hook. By “warm” water, I think it feels like my kids’ bathwater. Warm, not hot at all. It should be about 110ºF. Mix together for two or so minutes until it gets cloudy.

That’s my yeast in that plastic container over there. You can buy instant yeast in one-pound bricks for around $3.00 and refrigerate it for up to six months. It’s much cheaper to do it this way if you do any baking, even if it’s not that often. Those little packages off the shelf run you a pretty penny. Besides, you really should bake more… I’m sure I could recommend more than a few wonderful recipes from fellow bloggers.

Flaxseed for texture (you could leave this out if you wanted), flour, kosher salt, rosemary.

Add it all to the mixer and let it mix on medium low setting until all incorporated, and then at a higher speed until the dough starts to look like a ball and pull away from the sides of the mixer and stick to the dough hook in the center.

I put a tablespoon or two of olive oil in a bowl to prevent stinking, dump my bread in there and cover it.

I put my dough in the oven to rise. I usually turn my oven on for a few minutes so it’s slightly warmer in there and then shut it off right away again. Then I place my bowl in and shut the oven door and walk away for an hour and a half.

When the dough has doubled in size, remove it from the oven, give it a punch and flip it out on top of a floured surface.

Knead the dough a few times so it is easier to work with and covered in flour. Then roll it out into a long, thin strip.

Layer toppings on the bottom half only. Ham, Swiss cheese, mustard and cream style horseradish all made it on there. If we had any, banana peppers would have been good too.

Before you look at the next picture, please understand that this is a terrible example of braiding, but it’s what you get when you have exactly 15 minutes to change, eat, finish the braid and get out the door and down the street to “mom’s night” at preschool. So, be really sloppy when you do this too. Or at least have time to roll the dough right and fix your mistake. OR just flop the long part on top and cut a few slits in it to vent it. This would have been (1) faster, (2) easier and (3) looked better because I completely messed it up.

Then slide it on your baking sheet. I used a flexible cutting board to help it over to a baking stone. If you don’t have a stone, you should consider putting a layer of a cornmeal down before placing your bread on top. This will help prevent sticking to the sheet. A tablespoon or so should do. Then stick this back in the oven and let it rise again for one hour.


(This is where Ole takes over and I go to mom’s night at preschool.) After your bread rises, preheat the oven to 400ºF. While the oven preheats, beat one egg yolk and one tablespoon of water. Brush the top of the loaf with the egg mixture and place in the oven.

After 45 minutes in the oven, it’s time to eat. There is life after ham dinner.

Life happens to be wonderful with soup and a salad.