Salisbury Steak with Mushroom Gravy

Using a beef stock cube instead of salt when seasoning ground beef ramps up the beefy flavor of burger patties and Salisbury steak. 

This week’s Sunday Supper theme is “Got You Covered” and this easy recipe qualifies in two ways.  First, the lovely mushroom gravy!  It will cover anything with deliciousness.  And secondly, the Salisbury steak, just a fancy way of saying hamburger patty without a bun, is a quick and relatively inexpensive beef option.  If you are on a budget, it’s got you covered.

Budget aside, it’s one of our family favorites and I often make Salisbury steak with ground lamb and serve it with mint sauce instead of gravy.  In that case, we just call them lamb patties.

Ingredients
For the steaks:
1 small onion (About 5 1/2 oz or 155g, before peeling)
2 beef stock cubes
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
About 2 lbs 6 oz or 1 kg ground or minced beef
Olive oil for panfrying

For the gravy:
Drippings from pan-frying Salisbury steaks
2 rounded tablespoons flour
About 8 3/4 oz or 250g Swiss brown mushrooms or mushrooms of your choice
About 8 3/4 oz or 250g baby mushrooms or mushrooms of your choice

Chopped flat-leaf parsley for garnish, if desired.

Method
Peel your onion and cut it into quarters.  Blend it to a paste with the stock cubes, eggs and black pepper.   I used my hand blender but you can put it in a proper blender as well.  I have tried using my food processor and it doesn’t get out all the chunks but if yours does, you could use that as well.  You are looking for a homogeneous, thick, lump-less liquid.

                   

Put the beef in a large mixing bowl and add in the onion/egg paste.

Mix well with your clean hands or a spoon.

Shape it into patties and, if not cooking immediately, place on a plate covered with cling film.  This makes the patties easier to remove from the plate.

Cover with more cling film and refrigerate until you are ready to cook.  I made five patties, which look rather large (about 7oz or 200g each) to start, but remember that they shrink when cooked.  Of course, you can make smaller patties if you are catering for smaller appetites.

To cook the patties, drizzle a little bit of olive oil into a large non-stick skillet.  Panfry for several minutes on each side, making sure to get a nice brown crust on the patties.

Meanwhile, slice your mushrooms if they are larger than bite-sized.  Little ones can be left whole.  Set aside.

When the patties are cooked to your liking inside, remove them to a platter and keep warm.  (Since this is ground beef, I feel honor bound to tell you that US health authorities recommend cooking until they reach an internal temperature of 160 °F or 71.1 °C.  Do with that what you will.)

Now it’s time to make the gravy.  Use your spatula to loosen all the sticky browned bits from the pan.

Add your flour to the pan drippings and stir until all the flour is absorbed.

Tip in your mushrooms, turn the heat down to low and add a lid.

As the mushrooms cook down, the liquid they release will make a wonderful gravy.  Stir every few minutes to avoid lumps in your gravy.

After the mushrooms are completely cooked, if you prefer a thinner gravy, you can also add some water, stirring constantly, till it reaches the consistency you like.

Serve the gravy covering your Salisbury steaks and any accompanying side dishes like rice or mashed potatoes. I can also recommend these golden marquis potatoes as a great accompaniment. 

Enjoy!

Covered Appetizers and Entreés

• Butternut Squash & Cheddar Potatoes Au Gratin from Cupcakes & Kale Chips
• Excellent Beef Stew from Noshing With The Nolands
• Personal Steak Pot Pies from The Foodie Army Wife
• Pigs in a Blanket (Cabbage Rolls) from Cindy's Recipes and Writings
• Salisbury Steak with Mushroom Gravy from Food Lust People Love
• Salmon en Croute from Curious Cuisiniere
• Slow Cooker Cheesy Party Mix from Hot Momma's Kitchen Chaos
• Slowcooker Bean and Ham Soup from Jane's Adventures in Dinner

Covered Desserts

• 1 Easy Chocolate Macaron Recipe, 3 Japanese Wine Fillings from NinjaBaking.com
• Bacon Cinnamon Rolls with Maple Frosting from Bobbi's Kozy Kitchen
• Banana Butterscotch Muffin-Cake from What Smells So Good?
• Banana Coffee Cake with Chocolate Chip Streusel from Killer Bunnies, Inc
• Caramel Apple Bundt Cake from Pies and Plots
• Chocolate Banoffee Pie from Happy Baking Days
• Chocolate Covered "Party Popcorn" from Ruffles & Truffles
• Chocolate Satin Pie from That Skinny Chick Can Bake
• Dark Chocolate Cake Batter Truffles from Take A Bite Out of Boca
• Streusel Topped Apple Pie from A Kitchen Hoor's Adventures

Not Sure What To Do? We Got You Covered!

• Apple Cider Doughnuts from The Texan New Yorker covering a dish made at home so you don't need to wait in long lines for it
• Back to Basics: How to Truss a Chicken for Roasting from Crazy Foodie Stunts covering a cooking technique
• Cilantro Turkey Salad with Farro and Mango from Shockingly Delicious covering turkey leftovers
• Cranberry Walnut Crumble Bars from Magnolia Days covering an idea for fresh cranberries
• Gluten Free Lego Cookies from Hezzi-D's Books and Cooks covering a gluten-free dessert
• Homemade Yellow Cake Mix from Treats & Trinkets covering a cake mix without the chemicals from store-bought ones
• Mexican Coffee Bun from The Urban Mrs covering a dessert with an uncommon ingredient
• Peppermint Whip Cream from Peanut Butter and Peppers covering a vegan and dairy-free dessert topping
• Prosciutto covered Rosemary Pork from Family Foodie covering a holiday meal on a budget
• Raspberry Swirl Cheesecake Bars from Alida's Kitchen covering a quick and easy cheesecake fix
• Waffled Cranberry Cream Cheese Turkey Sandwiches from Neighborfood covering turkey leftovers

Pin these Salisbury Steaks with Mushroom Gravy! 

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Cauliflower and Leek Soup

Cauliflower gives this soup body, the leeks and bacon give it flavor.  A serving of this, topped with some freshly grated Parmesan, is a bowl of warm comfort on a cold night.  It’s the perfect quick meal after days of excess. 

When I joined Facebook back in 2009, one of the first things I did was start a group for me and my friends to share our recipes.  We were going along great until Facebook, in its infinite wisdom, decided to change the format and the recipes were no longer categorized under Discussions and became jumbled in several long threads.  With all the complications, we stopped using the group.  But not before my dear friend, Jayne, had shared the tidbit that the leftover rind off a wedge of Parmesan makes a lovely addition to soup as it simmers.  (I think she was making potato and leek.)  I kicked myself at the time because I had JUST thrown one away.  But I held on to that nugget of flavorful information and have used it ever since.

You can have this delicious soup on the table in less than 30 minutes so it’s the perfect weeknight meal.  Pop some of your own homemade biscuits in the oven at the same time, and you will be dancing in the kitchen.  (Put on some music too.  Come on, live a little!)

Ingredients to serve two very generously and four you have bread or biscuits to go with.
1 small head of cauliflower (about 1 lb or 500g)
4-5 small leeks or 2-3 large ones (about 1 lb or 500g)
2-3 slices smoked bacon
Olive oil
1 stock cube (chicken or vegetable)
1 rind Parmesan cheese (optional but recommended)
Freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup or 80ml cold milk
1 heaped tablespoon cornstarch or cornflour
Sea salt, to taste at the end

To serve: Freshly grated Parmesan for each bowl (optional but highly recommended)

Method
Cut the large stem off the cauliflower and then cut the florets into bite-sized pieces.  Set aside.

Cut the root ends and the hard green bits off the leeks and discard.  (Or save in scrap and peel bag in freezer for making homemade stock later.)

Now split the leeks in half lengthwise.

Run them under cold water, separating the layers to clean all the dirt off from inside.  This is very important because even one little piece of grit you leave behind will mess up the whole pot.

Chop the leeks into small pieces and set aside.  Slice the bacon into little pieces as well.  Fry the bacon with a drizzle of olive oil, in a pot large enough for all of your eventual soup.

When the bacon is crispy, add in the leeks and give the whole thing a stir and cook for a few minutes or until the leeks have softened.

Now add in the cauliflower florets and stir again.

Add water enough to cover the vegetables, add your stock cube and bring the pot to a boil.

If you are fortunate to have a Parmesan rind, peel off any plastic and pop it in the pot when the stock cube goes in.  Turn it down to simmer and put on a lid partially covering the pot.

Make sure to take the wax or plastic off of your Parmesan rind. 

The soup is almost done when the cauliflower is soft enough for your liking.   Add the cornstarch to your cold milk and stir until the cornstarch has completely dissolved.

Pour the mixture into your pot, stirring constantly.  Bring the soup back to the boil and let it thicken a little.   Add a few grinds of fresh black pepper.  (If you aren’t adding grated Parmesan to each bowl, check the taste and add salt to your taste.  Otherwise, remember that Parmesan is pretty salty and be conservative with the salt.)

Serve with extra grated Parmesan for each bowl.

Enjoy!

Cranberry Muffins #MuffinMonday

Dried cranberries glow like rubies in these beautiful muffins.  Perfect for breakfast or snack time. 

You all are probably laughing at my photo.  Go ahead.  I know it’s ridiculous.  As much as I try to pretty things up with plates and napkins and other props, the bottom line here is that life comes before blog.  What you see there is me on my way out the door to go sailing with friends in Abu Dhabi.  Which is an hour and a half from home.  I baked the muffins and stuffed them warm in a bag to go.  The car was all packed and even the hound was already fully ensconced behind the front seat when I realized that I hadn’t taken a photo of the finished muffins.  So that’s my hand and behind it, my front yard.  And speaking of life, have I told you we bought a small sailboat?  Yep, it’s a Drascombe Longboat and it lives in Abu Dhabi.

Her name is Jade, despite being blue. 

When we aren’t sailing, there is always piddling about to do: cleaning, repairing and general maintenance.  We ended up not sailing on Saturday since weather was poor, but new ropes have been spliced to tie down the boat cover.  It’s a man thing that involves technical knots and fire apparently.

Hard at work, splicing ropes.  Women knit, I was told.  Men splice rope.  Right.
Not to perpetuate stereotypes but I was happy in the kitchen, preparing lunch.   

Anyhoo, the muffins are tasty and perfect for this season of cranberries and holidays.  Make some for Thanksgiving or to bring to a neighbor.

Ingredients
2 cups or 250g all purpose flour
3/4 cup or 170g sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup or 180ml milk
1/2 cup or 120ml canola or other light oil
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 large eggs
1 generous cup or about 135g dried cranberries (Mine are sweetened.)

Method
Preheat oven to 350°F or 180°C.  Generously grease cups 12-cup muffin pan or line with muffin liners.

Mix flour, sugar, baking powder and salt together.

In another bowl, whisk together milk, canola, vanilla and eggs.

Add all the milk/egg mixture to flour mixture.

Gently fold just until dry ingredients are moistened.   Set a handful of the cranberries aside and then fold the rest of them in.

Divide your batter relatively evenly between the 12 muffin cups.

Top with the reserved cranberries.

Bake 20-25 minutes or until muffins are golden.

Remove from oven and let cool for a few minutes before removing muffins from tin.

Enjoy!