Whiskey Marinade

What could be better than whiskey and meat?

Maybe another whiskey drink neat on the side.

I decided to do a Whiskey Marinade (a.k.a. Bourbon and Brown Sugar Marinade). This is my new love!!

It can be used on steak, poultry, seafood, etc. You can even marinate your vegetables with it too!!

Whiskey Marinade from (allrecipes)
Ingredients:
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup dijon mustard
1/4 (-) cup soy sauce
1/4 (+) cup whiskey/bourbon
a splash Worcestershire sauce
some pepper to taste (optional)

Directions:
Mix all the ingredients (I did it in the order above so that I did not have to wash my measuring spoon by going with the dry ingredient first). I used a bit more whiskey and a little less soy sauce. The original recipe called for one teaspoon of salt but I figured soy sauce already has sodium too. 

Steak:
Usually before I pour marinade, I poke holes all over my meat with a fork (both sides). When I was younger, my parents would have me help with poking holes in the steak before marination. This allows the marinade to seep in even more. You are supposed to marinate the meat overnight but I think 4-6 hours is sufficient. (For seafood, it is only one hour.)

Cook your steak in a big pan/skillet. On high heat, add a tablespoon of olive oil. Place the steak in the pan. Cook for three minutes per side. The cooking time depends on your steak thickness. Mine was half an inch.

The aroma of steak fills the house. But that is not the best part...

EACH BITE HAS A DISTINCT WHISKEY TASTE.

This marinade will now be a staple in my household. I plan to use it on everything in the future. You've got to try it!!

Tip: Save some marinade for later. I had just enough whiskey marinade for my chicken a couple days later.

Enjoy!! 

Spaghetti & Meatballs

My husband LOVES LOVES LOVES spaghetti and meatballs.

One of our Valentine's Week dinners (Yes, I made it a week of cooking...hehe) this year was Spaghetti & Meatballs. He was all touched that I made homemade meatballs just for him. (Well, it's for ME too...haha) Thought I would try the recipe called Meatball Nirvana. I followed the recipe to make my delicious meatballs. The change I made was to use 1/3 cup of oatmeal for the breadcrumbs (and maybe more onions).

Homemade Meatballs
Ingredients:
1 lb ground beef
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 cup onion (diced)
1/2 tsp garlic salt
1 1/2 tsp italian seasoning
3/4 tsp red pepper flakes
3/4 tsp oregano
1 1/2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1/3 cup oatmeal
1/3 cup milk
some hot sauce (I used Tapatio)

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 400F. In a medium sized bowl, mix ground beef with the onion and dry seasonings first. Then add Worcheshire sauce, milk, oatmeal, some hot sauce. Once all the ingredients are incorporated, you are ready to create the meatballs.

I lined a pan with aluminum foil to make it easier to clean. 

Form meatballs with your hands. Make them about 1.5 inches in diameter. I'm sure you can use an ice cream scoop for size control but it's not hard to do with your hands.

Bake in the oven for 25 minutes. 

Meatballs are cooked!! Thought I would show this picture since the finished dish has spaghetti sauce on top.

There were twelve of them. (The other three were in a smaller pan, not pictured.) Cook your spaghetti per the directions. Heat up your sauce in another little pot. I liked keeping the meatballs separate from the tomato sauce. When serving, put some spaghetti on the plate, then the meatballs. Lastly, pour some sauce over it.

Meatball Nirvana is definitely a keeper!!

Enjoy!!