He Grills Meat, I Cook Sides...

For as long as we have been together and that I can remember, my husband grills and I cook up the sides. It works for us. And, he loves to grill steak once in a while. When we treat our family to a steak dinner, it has to be planned with delicious, classic sides. This meal is accompanied by garlic mashed potato, roasted brussels sprouts and buttermilk cheddar biscuits. It seems like such an indulgence, which it is, but I keep in control of nutrition by watching my portion (key!) and making everything fresh from scratch (keeping ingredients as health conscious as possible, but allow such ingredients as butter, when a recipe calls for the real thing). I truly believe you can have what you really want to eat, just eat less of it (everything in moderation), keep active, and learn to cook it up yourself...fresh! It may take some practice. I really had to get into the rhythm of cooking. It takes a while, at least for me. My approach to cooking fresh, keep it simple, try different foods and then challenge yourself. Here's a glimpse of our steak family dinner...

Our busy little kitchen, a whole lot going on. Preping the brussels sprouts for roasting. Shredding cheese for biscuits...

This is the biscuit dough before kneading and rolling out. Yes, there is real butter involved and so good! There is nothing like homemade biscuits. (recipe below)

The beautiful brussels sprouts right before they go into oven (trimmed & cut in quarters). Tossed in olive oil, salt & pepper then spread out on baking sheet, that's it. Roast at 425 degrees for about 20 mins. Brussels sprouts are high in fiber and vitamin C.

Time to eat! A juicy, perfectly grilled steak with garlic mashed potato (you can substitute sweet potato for a healthier option), roasted brussels sprouts and buttermilk cheddar biscuit. It took a lot of persistent offering of brussels sprouts, but the kids see us eating them and now they eat it too. This is hubby's portion, I eat about half except for the veggies. A glass of Cab (only a couple sips for me due to Bambino) to round it off...oh, so delicious!!!

Buttermilk Cheddar Biscuits

2008, Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics

Ingredients

· 2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more as needed (I used whole wheat flour)

· 1 tablespoon baking powder

· 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt

· 12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, diced

· 1/2 cup cold buttermilk, shaken (I used low-fat buttermilk)

· 1 cold extra-large egg

· 1 cup grated extra-sharp Cheddar

· 1 egg, beaten with 1 tablespoon water or milk

· Maldon sea salt, optional

Directions

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Place 2 cups of flour, the baking powder, and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. With the mixer on low, add the butter and mix until the butter is the size of peas.

Combine the buttermilk and egg in a small measuring cup and beat lightly with a fork. With the mixer still on low, quickly add the buttermilk mixture to the flour mixture and mix only until moistened. In a small bowl, mix the Cheddar with small handful of flour and, with the mixer still on low, add thecheese to the dough. Mix only until roughly combined.

Dump out onto a well-floured board and knead lightly about 6 times. Roll the dough out to a rectangle 10 by 5 inches. With a sharp, floured knife, cut the dough lengthwise in half and then across in quarters, making 8 rough rectangles. Transfer to a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Brush the tops with the egg wash, sprinkle with salt, if using, and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the tops are browned and the biscuits are cooked through. Serve hot or warm.

Makes 8 biscuits