Beef Dip Sandwich, Coleslaw and Homemade Fries

Beef Dip Sandwiches with Coleslaw and Fries. It's not my typical meal anymore, I've made several adjustments to our diets over the last few years, but as a "pick me up", I figured it would be a better choice considering my Husband's spirits needed a boost. It just means there will be a few more salads in his future...and mine. I can put blogging about St. Patrick's Day themed ideas on hold for a day if he needs to be perked up a little bit.



I understand that sometimes we all need a little pick me up. I don't necessarily think we should choose comfort food to do that, but once in a while, why not. Again, there is that "moderation" thing I keep harping about.

I had pulled a few items from the freezer for use this week. One of them was an end cut from a Roast we had over the Holidays. It has plenty of flavour, and there was enough, not just for dinner, but for his lunch as well. As is the case with some of my meals, there is no "recipe" to follow as the ingredients and amounts depend on the size of your end cut or cooking dish. This is an "Idea" you can apply to a leftover roast if you have one. I figured out how to make this on my own. If you have never made a Beef Dip Sandwich at home, now you know.





Reheating Roast for a Beef Dip

The roast was previously cooked, and I didn't want to over cook it as it reheated, so I added it to a covered pot, added Vegetables Stock, Bay Leaves, Roasted Garlic (it's a spice I have on hand), Salt, Pepper and Worcestershire Sauce.



Preheated the oven to 325 F. and placed it in the oven to reheat and get the As Jus going. When I froze the Beef, I made sure I kept enough of the trimmed fat from the roast so I could use it in preparation of the next meal I was to make with it. The fat carried some of the flavours from the original Roast, and after it had warmed in the oven, I placed it on top of the Roast to keep it moist while it reheated.


I had Rye Bread available, French Bread or a Roll will do as well. I had made a Rye Bread Batch in a previous post, and reserved two of the loaves for our use, had cut them in half and froze them for when I was ready to use them.


It's pretty easy to warm frozen bread up and have it ready for a sandwich or a meal. If you pull your roll or bread from the freezer an hour or so before you need it. You can wrap it in foil and reheat in the oven with your meal as it cooks. It only takes 30 minutes and you get the sense of having fresh baked bread with your dinner.



I did just that, but as the bread had already thawed that morning, I cut the portions I would be using for both dinner and his lunch. wrapped them in foil and placed next to the roast as it reheated.  If the bread is thawed, you may only need 15 - 20 minutes. Prior to serving the Beef up, I added Cheese to one side of the Bread and Mayonnaise to the other.





Coleslaw


Coleslaw, a very basic salad, Carrots and Cabbage with mayonnaise. I did up a version of my own. Again, I'm frugal, I like to use as much as possible from the ingredients I have at hand, and I like a lot of vegetables. We eat a fair amount of asparagus when it's available. I love the spears, and just love the vegetable as a whole. I wanted a little asparagus, but rather then waste the spears in a salad, I broke them in thirds placed the upper part of the asparagus, back in the fridge, and used the centre portion in the Coleslaw.



PLEASE NOTE: 
Asparagus, a fresh spear of Asparagus will "break", if it's gone off, it will simply bend. Not a pleasant texture when using them as an ingredient. 



Store your asparagus in a "standing" position to get the most longevity from them. "break" the lower portion off when you are ready to use them. The very ends of them are woody, though you can use them when making a stock, they are unpleasant to eat. I broke the Asparagus in thirds, the top portions I stood back in the fridge with a slightly damp paper towel, in a standing position.



I used the centre portions to make this Salad, and the bottom stems are in a separate container for use in a stock, or use them to compost, or discard. Up to you...but don't eat them.



Additionally used Red Bell Pepper, and Onion Chive.


Since I was making a slaw, I slivered, the Asparagus, Red Pell Pepper, Chive. I grated the Carrot and Chopped the Cabbage.

It all went into a Bowl with the following:

1 TBSP Mayonnaise
1 TBSP Olive Oil
1/2 TSP Chilli Sauce (I have two versions I keep on hand, as I do use it a lot)
Salt and Pepper

Tossed the ingredients together and placed in the fridge until after I had made fries.



Homemade French Fries


I don't like deep frying food as a rule. We haven't had homemade fries in well over a year, but since I had made those Colcannon Croquettes the other day, my mind just wandered to French Fries since I was aiming for a "diner" like meal to help bolster my husbands spirits. He was just having a day where he needed some cheering up. It amazes me how basic comfort food affects him.


Again, no recipe, but a couple of hints. After you have cut your potato slices, pat them dry with a paper towel, or even better, evenly wrap them in a paper towel and let them sit. The less moisture the better.


French Fries, or Fried Potatoes in general will turn out better if they are submerged as they will cook evenly. But don't "dump" them in all at once. The temperature of the oil will change and you will have greasy fries.



Plan on frying the potatoes twice for best results. Drain them, or pat them dry with a paper towel and let them sit after the first fry. You will want to bring the oil back up to temperature before you re-submerge them again


Another hint, on both the first and second frying, either stir or slightly agitate the pot they are cooking in to keep the potato slices from sticking together.



Once they have begun to turn a golden brown, remove them and drain them again. If you are not ready to serve them, place them on a baking sheet and place in the oven to keep their temperature.


I sliced up some leek, briefly cooked them in the oil after the Fries were done, and placed them aside to serve with the sandwich.


Once they have begun to turn a golden brown, remove them and drain them again. If you are not ready to serve them, place them on a baking sheet and place in the oven to keep their temperature.



I sliced up some leek, briefly cooked them in the oil after the Fries were done, and placed them aside to serve with the sandwich.


Finishing the Sandwich


Once the meat was up to temperature, I drained the As Jus, strained it and added it to a new pot with 1/4 cup red wine and brought it to a boil.


Once that was bubbling away, I thinly sliced the roast,  Sliced some Mozzarella Cheese . I Pulled the bread from the oven, added Cheese to one side and spread a TSP of Mayonnaise to the other side of the bread.


The As Jus,  once the alcohol had cooked away, I filled two ramekins with the As Jus but reserved enough in the pot to let the Roast beef absorb some moisture.


I plated our dishes with Coleslaw, French Fries and added the ramekins then the sandwiches.


A easy enough idea, and it made his day a little brighter. I'll focus on what I want to make today though. I gave him my little speech about finding something good to focus on everyday, even if it's a small thing.  I look forward to hearing what he found pleasant about today.

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