WebLove: Khloe drops PETA

I’m not a Kardashian fan. Not even a little bit. But, I’ve somehow always thought Khloe was probably the lesser of evils (after all, she was at least willing to move when her husband got traded). Today, my suspicions were confirmed.



The Dallasite severed ties with PETA once she discovered exactly who she was dealing with.

Want to know more about animal rights groups? Click here.

Food Network magazine's cocoa-rubbed steak with bacon-whiskey gravy

I had planned on cooking and sharing a new recipe tonight, but since my oven is still out of commission after waiting almost 2 weeks for a part to arrive (it was the wrong part), I had to save that one for later.

But, I did want to share this yummy-looking recipe from the March issue of Food Network magazine that combines 2 of my favorite things: strip steaks and chocolate.

Though I haven’t had a chance to make this yet, I think the recipe would be just fine sans gravy if you prefer. (But who doesn’t love gravy?)

And, if you get the chance, pick up a copy of this magazine while it’s still on the newsstands. There are some super yummy-looking desserts inside!



The after pictures

A few weeks back, I promised some pictures once we got the house painted and everything back to normal. And, so, now — I deliver!

I only wish I had some befores. But, just know, the bachelor pad has gone through a huge transformation.

Since we plan to move out of this house within the next year or so, we didn’t want to invest a ton of money into the place and focused only on the areas we thought would improve resale. So, as a result, it’s not perfect, but we are so happy with the many small changes we’ve made!

Last weekend, my mom came up and helped me hang all of my décor and get it looking all homey. I still have some holes to fill, but it’s made huge strides since August 2010! Here’s a peak into a few areas:



Dining room



TV cabinet from the bedroom in my old house = dining room storage here.

Dining room/kitchen/living room

Kitchen from dining room

Kitchen

More living room

Bathroom from hallway

My office

Deuce decided to photobomb this one

Clearly I need a new comforter. This room used to be mega dark so I went with the a light comforter. Now I need color!

Bedroom storage

WebLove: Busting the "pink slime" myth

I’ve been planning to write a post on lean finely textured beef — that stuff the sensationalists over at ABC News like to refer to as “pink slime”— for the last couple of days. But, by the time I got a chance to sit down at my computer and do so, I discovered a post from a fellow blogger that was so good I decided to share as WebLove instead of reinventing the wheel.

So, be sure to check out this great post by California rancher Jeff Fowle.

And, if you’re still hungry for information, why not check out one of these sites?

Pink Slime is a Myth

Food Insight: Your Nutrition and Food Safety Resource

Meat MythCrushers

The bottom line? All beef is safe, nutritious and delicious. Still have questions or concerns? Post them below or send me an email to makeminebeef@gmail.com. If I don’t know the answer, I’ll find someone who does!

Grady Spears’ cayenne-rubbed steaks with cook’s lime butter

I love new recipe nights! Tonight, I pulled one out of one of my favorite cookbooks, Cooking the Cowboy Way by Grady Spears. While his recipe calls for ribeyes, Certified Angus Beef brand strip steaks were on sale last week, so that’s what I used. I think this rub and butter would complement any cut wonderfully, so pick your favorite and go with it. Time-saving tip: both the butter and rub can be made a few days in advance!

Lime butter ingredients

¼ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

Juice and zest of ½ lime

1 ½ teaspoons minced fresh cilantro

Lime butter directions

Combine the ingredients in a small bowl

Place the mixture on a sheet of wax paper and roll tightly into a cylinder shape

Put it in the fridge or freezer to firm up (but don’t let it freeze solid)

Rub ingredients

1 ½ teaspoons cayenne pepper

1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt

1 ½ teaspoons sugar

2 steaks (about 12 ounces each)

2 teaspoons vegetable oil

Directions

To make the rub, combine the seasonings in a small bowl

Pat steaks dry then brush with oil

Pat rub on both sides of the steak

Grill over medium heat to desired doneness

Remove from grill and allow to rest for about 5 minutes

Slice butter and place one slice on each steak immediately before serving

The Mr.’s plate looked like this (as usual, I had a much smaller-portioned and therefore less photogenic plate):

I served the steaks with twice-baked potatoes and our favorite beer bread:

300 and counting!

Those of you who follow the blog’s page on Facebook know how I like to celebrate our little social media milestones. Hitting the 300-follower mark is no exception!

So, as promised, I’ll be hosting a live chat on the page next Wednesday at 8 p.m. CST — complete with some fun prizes! (I’m still gathering these up, so I can’t announce just what they are yet, but I think they will be popular among a bunch of beef lovers like you.)

Here’s how it will work:

• Hop on over to Facebook at 8 p.m. Wednesday. (Don’t worry — there will be reminders!)
• I’ll throw out a status update relating to beef buying, cooking or meal planning.
• You guys will join in on the discussion by commenting on the status update.
• A few minutes later, I’ll throw out another status update and we’ll repeat the process.
• We’ll pause to give away a prize (or 2), and then give away a grand prize at the end of the chat.

So, if you haven’t liked Make Mine Beef on Facebook yet, be sure to do so before Wednesday (there's a handy link on the right-hand side of this page) so you can play. We’re going to have a lot of fun talking about beef and a couple of you will even get a prize out of the deal!

Cheesy sirloin sandwiches

One of the best things about working from home and having a husband who works roughly 3 miles from home is we get to have lunch together pretty much every day, unless one of us has a meeting or is traveling.

While we eat lunch out about twice a week (it’s much-needed for my sanity to get out and be amongst the 3-dimensional people on occasion), we eat at home the other 3. Sometimes that’s in the form of a sandwich or leftovers, but lots of days I like to actually cook something. (Something I can cook in 15 minutes or so anyway.)

These are perfect for a fast lunch, dinner on the run or can even be cut into thirds for party food.

Ingredients

2 center-split deli rolls

1 sirloin steak (You’ll have some extra for tomorrow’s lunch!)

Sea salt and coarse ground pepper

4 slices pepper jack cheese

4 slices Swiss cheese

Mustard or mayonnaise

Directions

Heat grill to medium.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Season steak with sea salt and coarse pepper.

Grill steak about 5- to 6- minutes per side or until desired doneness.

While the steak is grilling, spilt the deli rolls and place on a foil-lined baking sheet.

Place 2 slices of pepper jack cheese on one half and 2 slices of Swiss on the other half of the first roll.

Repeat.

Cook until well-melted. Finish under the broiler for a minute or 2 if desired.

Slice steak and place on cheesy rolls. Add a little mustard or mayo and any other toppings.

Serve immediately.

The Mr.’s sandwich looked like this: