Beef

Big-P is sick – when he gets sick he doesn’t do it in halves. Amelia and I went out this morning so that he could sleep and cough and splutter in peace. We joined my Mum, Dad, Uncle Michael and my Parent’s neighbour for coffee followed by a whiz around the market. I spent ages last night sitting in front of Clueless (how I love that movie! “Oops! My bad!”) going through (Webby Winner) Jamie Oliver cookbooks working out some yummy things to cook this week, and then of course left the list at home this morning in the rush to get out the door.
But I did remember that I wanted to cook roast fillet of beef wrapped in porcini mushrooms and prociutto so I managed to remember most of the ingredients for that. I am a scaredy-cat when it comes to cooking meat. I did all of my cooking confidence building in huge student houses way-back-when which means I can successfully wrangle a tofu stir-fry, cook enormous amounts of chickpea casserole to feed 10 and steam almost perfect rice (getting rid of our rice cooker was the best thing I ever did) but show me a cut of meat and I will hide under the nearest bed. Last weekend my Sister-In-Law accompanied me around the market and convinced me to give roasting a try. She said all the right things including “The idea of cooking chickpea casserole gives me the shivers” thus making me feel like a Iron Chef in my own field. She told me to try this fail-safe Jamie recipe and so tomorrow night for our newly instigated Sunday Night Family Dinner (which can only happen on Sundays as Big-P gets home too late to join Amelia for dinner during the week – and Saturday night is reserved for Daddy’s Pizza and a Video Night) I will show that beef fillet who’s boss. Wish me luck! I am seriously terrified.

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13 Responses

  1. wataame@earthlink.net says:

    Happy Mother’s Day! I love your site!

  2. Belive me roasting is easy. just throw it in the oven at 325 farhenheit and leave it until the juices run clear.Any good cook book will give you an approx. idea of how long it takes per pound. Good Luck!
    PS Clueless is a great movie, you need to read Emma, Jane Austin book which the movie is very loosly based on.
    Melanie

  3. I made the exact recipe you mention about two years ago and I made it way, way, way, too rare – and I eat my steaks medium rare to begin with. I am sure this one will come out much better!

  4. Good luck. I roasted a whole chicken a few months back, it was nerve racking!

  5. ben@neuronwave.com says:

    Oooh how about a My Restaurant Rules and Roast night some time…

  6. In the Robinson Kitchen Stadium, I predict Iron Chef Loobylu will prevail in Battle Beef! You can do it! And I must say, it sounds delicious! Mmmmmmmmmm…..

  7. Don’t be afraid, ’cause you know that’ll make you mess up things! Roasting is the easiest thing. Think about it. You prepare it,then stick it in the oven and it comes out perfect. The only thing you have to do is remember taking it out on time! It’ll be good, you’ll see.

  8. you are hilarious – “show that beef fillet who’s boss!” i have the same fears but never even realized i was scared of cooking meat i just thought i was a bad cook. thanks for enlightening me. let us know how it turns out.

  9. nobledesign@sbcglobal.net says:

    Only do this after you get used to cooking cuts of beef but my friend showed me the best thing! She took a tri tip roast (which looks like a small triangular log), put it in a roasting pan, sprinkled the top with corse salt (works far better) and pepper, put the oven on broil setting and left it in there for about 15-20 minutes!! It was perfect! slightly pink at center, tender, flavorful, crusty good! I’ve done it twice since with equal success and last night did the same deal with a London Broil cut. You know, now I don’t know why I always thought cooking beef was a mystery.
    And may I take a moment to add, you are cooking Sunday dinner IN YOUR NEW HOME!! Hooray!

    Get well wishes to hubby.

  10. good luck with the roast! Meat gives me the wiggins too, lucky for me the mister is an ace with meat.
    And I adore Clueless too — such a clever adaptation!

  11. I love Clueless too and could watch it a thousand times (I think I may have already actually!)

  12. tiffanyhutton@indigoink.com.au says:

    That recipe works a treat, truly. Enjoy …

  13. Clueless is such a treasure. My favorite line is when the cop stops her for running a stop sign and she says, ‘I totally PAUSED!’
    xoxo Kay