Low Carb Cooking 101
By Di Bauer, CarbSmart Editor
Posted 7/21/2001
Low carb cooking isn't that different from "regular" cooking. In addition to serving well-prepared foods you enjoy, you need to be aware of texture, a balance of taste combinations, and color.
This week's meal proves that all these considerations do not mean that you have to prepare a difficult, time-consuming meal. The Tangy Lemon Parsley Butter and the Simply Strawberries can be prepared the evening before or in the morning. The Anytime Green Bean Medley is a 5-minute recipe, and the steaks take less than 10 minutes to grill or broil.
There is a nice balance of tastes in this meal. The steaks present the most complicated taste, since they are served with the compound butter on top, the beans are plain, and the strawberries add not only an unexpected sweet light taste to the meal, but a chilled component as well.
In addition to the interesting taste differences in this meal, it's colorful. Color is very important, and contributes much to our appreciation of what we are eating. Imagine sitting down to a meal of broiled fish fillets, mashed potatoes, and cauliflower. It's so colorless, it's almost offensive!
In this quick meal we have a dark brown meat with golden yellow pats of butter atop it, green and yellow beans, and glistening red strawberries. (You could use all green beans, of course, but the aesthetic effect just wouldn't be the same.)
Here's this evening's menu:
- Grilled Or Broiled Steaks With Tangy Lemon Parsley Butter
- Anytime Green Beans
- Simply Strawberries
Here's the shopping list for the meal. You may very well already have some of these things on hand:
- 4 New York strip steaks, about 10 ounces each, or beef cut of your preference
- 1 can waxed beans
- 1 package frozen cut green beans or 1 can cut green beans
- 1 pint strawberries
- sugar free DaVinci raspberry syrup (available from CarbSmart: DaVinci Syrups)
- butter
- lemon juice (or juice from fresh lemons)
- grated lemon rind (fresh or jarred)
- Dijon mustard
- dried parsley
- salt
- pepper
Here's the game plan:
The night before, take the steaks out of the freezer and put then in the refrigerator to thaw. Make the Tangy Lemon Parsley Butter and stick it in the refrigerator. Wash and slice the strawberries and put them in a plastic bowl to marinate in the sugar free DaVinci raspberry syrup. Cover the bowl tightly and put it in the refrigerator, too.
About half an hour to 45 minutes before you want to serve the meal, start the grill or preheat the broiler. Cover the broiler pan with foil if you are broiling the meat.
Fix the green beans in the saucepan, but do not turn on the heat. Take the strawberries out of the refrigerator and give them a good shake to distribute the syrup over the berries.
Set the table. Serve the berries in dessert bowls and place them on the table, too.
Place the steaks on the grill or the broiler pan in the oven. Turn the heat on under the beans, and cook them while the steak is broiling/grilling. Broil the steaks for 3-4 minutes on one side and then turn to cook the other side for 3-6 minutes, or until they reach the desired doneness. Remove the steaks from the broiler or grill, and TURN IT OFF. (My husband said I had to add that. I almost always forget to do it.)
Drain the green beans and season them with butter, salt, and pepper, but leave them in the saucepan to keep warm.
Place the steaks on the dinner plates. Get the Tangy Lemon Parsley Butter and slice it into thin slices. Cover the steaks with thin slices of the Tangy Lemon Parsley Butter. Serve the Anytime Bean Medley alongside the steaks, put the plates on the table, and sit down to a relaxing, well-deserved meal.
And, finally, here's the recipes:
Tangy Lemon Parsley Butter
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoons lemon rind, grated
- 1 1/2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 2 tablespoons dried parsley
- salt and pepper to taste
Place all the ingredients in a food processor and blend together. (If you don't have a food processor, you can combine the ingredients in a bowl and mash together with either a fork or a hand mixer.)
Chill the butter until firm and then roll it into a cylinder. Wrap in plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator until needed.
***Note: You don't have to reserve this compound butter for steaks. It's great on vegetables, too.
Grilled Strip Steak With Lemon Parsley Butter
- 4 New York strip steaks, about 10 ounces each
- 1/2 cup Tangy Lemon Parsley butter
- salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Grill or broil the steaks to the desired temperature. Thinly slice the butter and place it on the hot steak. Serve immediately.
Serves 4.
***Tip: If you are broiling the steaks, cover the broiler pan with aluminum foil. It makes cleanup ever so much easier!
Anytime Bean Medley
- 1 can waxed beans
- 1 package frozen cut green beans, thawed or
- butter
- salt and pepper to (taste)
Open the can of waxed beans and drain the liquid into a saucepan. Cut the waxed beans into 1 to 1 1/2-inch pieces.
Add the thawed cut green beans to the saucepan. Or, if you are using canned green beans, drain the liquid into the saucepan and then cut them into 1 to 1 1/2-inch pieces. Add the beans to the saucepan with the waxed beans.
Cook over high heat until thoroughly heated and the green beans (if frozen) and tender. (If you are using canned green beans, you will only need to heat them thoroughly.)
Drain the beans thoroughly and add butter, salt, and pepper to suit your own personal taste.
Serves 4 - 6.
***Note: Leftovers reheat well, and are very nice for lunch the next day.
Simply Strawberries
These berries don't need whipped cream! Don't you dare bother to make any!
- 1 pint strawberries
- 1/2 cup sugar free DaVinci raspberry syrup
Rinse the strawberries and drain them thoroughly. Slice off the tops and any hard tips, then halve the smaller berries and quarter the larger ones. Place all the berries in a plastic bowl with a right-fitting lid.
Pour the sugar free raspberry syrup over the strawberries, tightly cover the bowl with the lid, and gently shake it to coat all the berries with syrup.
Store in the refrigerator until it's time to serve the berries.
Serves 4 - 6.
***Note: Leftover Simply Strawberries will keep 2 or 3 days in the refrigerator if tightly covered, but don't count on them being there that long. These are good! Try some of the leftovers over low carb pancakes in the morning, or in a salad with a raspberry vinaigrette salad dressing for lunch tomorrow.
***Variation: Sugar free DaVinci orange syrup is also very good on strawberries, too.
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