French Dip Sandwiches on Multigrain Cibatta Rolls w/ Homemade Giardiniera

This sandwich is an adaptation of Italian Beef sandwiches.  The short cut uses already cooked Hormel Roast Beef.  The not so short cut is the homemade giardiniera--well worth the time though.  Plan ahead because the giardinera takes a couple of days.  Thank you food network!  I used multigrain cibatta rolls, but use whatever kind of sandwich roll you like.  The final ingredient is the swiss cheese, baby swiss melts more quickly, so that is what I use.

Homemade Giardiniera

1 Cup diced carrot

1 Cup small cauliflower flouretes

1 large stalk celery, sliced thin

1 red or yellow bell pepper diced

2 cloves garlic, sliced thin

Pour 2 Cups water mixed with 1/8 Cup of salt over the vegetables.
Let stand overnight in the fridge.

Drain and rinse the next day.  Place vegetables in a sealable container,
then add 2 Cups olive oil, 1 Tbl. dried oregano, 1 tsp. cracked black pepper.
Let stand in the fridge for at least one day.

Warm the roast beef and extra au jus in a sauce pan, slice the cibatta rolls, 

have the swiss cheese and giardinera at  room temperature. 

Get ready to assemble by placing a slice of swiss on the cibatta roll.

Next, pile on the warm roast beef and top with some giardinera.
Serve some extra au jus on the side for dipping.

Mmmmmmm

Put the top on the sandwich, dip in the au jus, and dig in.  

Today we had kettle cooked chips and fresh brewed iced tea with the sandwiches.

This is a delishiously messy sandwich.

Enjoy friends!

Bierocks (aka Runzas)

A great old German recipe.  These are made with a sweet dough and stuffed with ground beef, onion, cabbage, salt & pepper.  We like to add swiss cheese, too!

Start by browning the ground beef.  This is one pound of fairly lean beef.

After the beef is browned, gather the other ingredients:  short cut by using a bag of coleslaw (already shredded cabbage and carrots), onion, and drained and rinsed browned ground beef.

Add the ingredients to a skillet and mix everything together.  Pour in a bit of chicken broth to help steam the cabbage. Put the skillet on a medium heat and cover, cook until the cabbage is tender.

Get the dough ready.  Today I used a frozen whole wheat bread dough.  It  was a great time saver.  Roll the dough out into a rectangle and cut into squares approximately 4 inches square.



Take a square of dough, place a small slice of cheese, put a mound of filling on top.

Fold the corners over the filling and pinch the seams of the dough to seal it.

Continue filing all the dough squares, place on a parchment lined baking sheet, cover and let them rise.

Let the Bierocks rise until nice and puffy, bake in a 350 degree pre-heated oven for 15 minutes, or until nice and brown.  Brush the tops lightly with butter, place on a rack to cool.

Enjoy!!









Angel Biscuits

This biscuit recipe is so light and delish that the biscuits can float or fly like angels.  Also when all done, these are kind of like little ham and cheese sliders.  Great for breakfast or as an appetizer.  We have even had them as a midnight snack!

Gather the ingredients:  Flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, sugar, powdered buttermilk, shortening, and yeast.  (The powdered buttermilk is handy if you usually don't have buttermilk on hand.)

2 1/2 C flour (for this recipe I used unbleached white whole wheat)
2 1/4 t. yeast dissolved in 1/4 C warm water (equal to one packet of yeast)
1 C buttermilk or (4 Tbl powdered buttermilk combined with 1 C water)
1/8 C sugar
1/2 Tbl baking powder
1/2/ tsp baking soda
1/2 Tbl salt
1/2 C shortening

This makes one dozen biscuits!

Put all the dry ingredients in a bowl and mix them up!

Put chunks of the shortening into the bowl of dry ingredients. Meantime, add the dry yeast to the 1/4 C of warm water in a small bowl, and mix the 4 Tbl of powdered buttermilk into 1 C of warm water in a measuring cup,.

Cut the shortening into the dry ingredients until it looks like little crumbs or little peas.  Add in the dissolved yeast mixture and the buttermilk and mix lightly!

Turn the mixture onto a lightly floured surface.  Right now it looks like a big scary blob, but just wait.  Knead lightly, very lightly, adding a bit more flour if the dough is sticky.

Shape your dough into a smooth round disk.  The less you mess with this the lighter your biscuits will be!   Roll your dough out to about 1/2 " thick.

Now cut out the biscuits.  I do not own a biscuit cutter so I use a glass or any other round device that will make the size of the biscuits I want.  If you are making these for appetizers, use a tiny biscuit cutter or round device. 

Place the biscuits on an ungreased baking sheet about 1" apart.  Cover and let them rise for 1 1/2 hours.  Bake in a preheated 450 degree oven for 8 to 10 minutes or until lightly browned.  Watch them closely because oven temps vary!

Place the baked biscuits on a cooling rack.  When cool, split the biscuits in half.

While the biscuits are cooling, make the butter/mustard mixture that will be brushed on the biscuits.  Slowly melt one stick of unsalted butter with 1/4 C yellow mustard and some finely diced onions.  Add some poppy seeds too.  I have tried other types of mustard, but the yellow wins out every time.

Brush some of the butter/mustard mixture onto each half of the split biscuits.  Have the ham and swiss cheese slices ready to go.  I have tried other cheeses and other meats, but these work best for this recipe.

Place a slice of ham and a slice of swiss on each biscuit half. 

When they are all done warm them up lightly in the oven or slowly in the microwave.  These will freeze very nicely -- thaw them slowly and then warm them up.  I make huge amounts of angel biscuits for family gatherings and they disappear in no time.  You can use canned biscuits or frozen biscuits if you don't have time for the homemade ones.  But please take the time for the homemade ones!  Enjoy!