An ode to Ruthann

By now you all should know that Tuesday is movie day. Ruthann and I take turns cooking dinner and dessert and we watch two movies, one for dinner, one for dessert. I don't think it's a competition between us but I do think we like to "wow" each other. My "wow" was a two inch peppercorn steak I grilled. Hers was a beef dish this Tuesday that just blew me away. It was one of those dishes that even when you're full you still want to eat because your tongue is just so very happy with it. She explained when she brought it in the house that it had gone through several 'titles' while it was becoming the wonderful dish it turned out to be. And she said she couldn't repeat the recipe. At the time I was ok with that - after I tasted it, and especially the next day when I had it for lunch, that was unacceptable. I e-mailed her that she HAD to rack her brain to remember and to write down the recipe. We must have that again for lunch. I include here her e-mail to me (I said I would not edit, but I guess I lied, the asterisks are mine).

"To Brooke, Laurie and Sue, I have lunch once a week with a girlfriend. It was my turn to take lunch yesterday and I think I hit on a bit of a treasure. At least Cindy thought so. Okay, so did Jim and I. It really kinda rocked. I told her I wasn't sure what all I put together because I had no planned ending place for this meal. You may be able to pick that up from reading the recipe below. If you wonder what "that beef base stuff" is, I get it in the cooler dept. at GFS. It is like a bouillon base, but WAY less sodium and a much more realistic flavor since it is actually made from roasted beef drippings. They make chicken base stuff too, but use roasted chicken instead, as that stands to reason... Well, when you're hungry, try this out sometime. By the way, before you get up from the computer, check out Cindy's website listed below. She makes awesome cards and lots of other creative stuff. She will custom make stuff too. She's brilliant!! Brooke, this is the one who knew Creighton from CAT.
You start with a big a** piece of lean red meat. Slice it kinda thin and cut that into strips. Brown each piece on both sides. Add salt, pepper, basil, parsley, lotsa garlic and a sliced onion. To the meat juice that cooks out, add a spoonful of that beef base stuff I told you about. Stare blankly at the stuff in the cupboard and wonder what else to put in it. End up adding coriander powder and a little bit of cinnamon. Cover and cook for a while longer, adding another sliced onion because the first one disappeared. Refrigerate over night. The next morning, get it out of the refrigerator and stare at it for a while, wondering what to do with it. Go to the store and buy sour cream and mushrooms. Mix the cold sour cream and some more of that beef stuff, then throw in the "to-this-point-unnamed" stuff. Heat it up and add the mushrooms at the last minute. Boil up the last handful of noodles you have in the cupboard. Bake up some crusty bread. Place this all in your car and drive to my house to feed me. End up calling it Beef Stroganoff, 'cuz that sounds better than That Beef Crap I Threw Together."

If anyone can duplicate this dish from these instructions, please e-mail me, I have blog candy for you. (You will need to figure out what the "to-this-point-unnamed" stuff is though.) So, Ruthann, this card is to you from my taste buds.

Paper: Martha Stewart Playful Blue, Bazzill; Stamps: Magnolia Tilda with 3 Flowers, Gina K A Beautiful Life; Stickles: Yellow, Spiced Marmalade; Copics: [Skin E00, E000, R20][Hair E33, E30, E21][Shoes E34, E31][Clothes Y38, Y35, Y32][Flowers YG67, G24, YR20, YR000]