Jack & Jill Put Up A Blog

Well, we love it. Every morning during the week we have steel cut oatmeal. You might think to yourself ‘gross!’ But you have to doctor it up with yummy healthy things like fruit, nuts, yogurt. In this picture, we have strawberries, walnuts and old school peanut butter (not Jiff – the stuff without all the sugar).

Steel cut oats are different from rolled oats, so make sure to look. Steel cut oats are much better for you and a great carb because they are less processed than other oats. We have all heard the health benefits. But for me if it isn’t yummy – it’s a no go. If anyone out there is thinking they are going to go pick up ‘oatmeal with brown sugar’ packets, think again. That is not healthy. Those little packets are pure sugar. You might as well eat a Snickers for breakfast.

I love organic food, but I don’t like Whole Foods for most things. I think they have capitalized on being ‘organic’ and anyone who shops there will pay a price. Higher than necessary. On the show “Top Chef,” Whole Foods is where they shop and they always have a low budget for their challenges to buy food and we are sitting going “Good luck with that $20 that has to feed 40 people! You’ll come out of there with a head of lettuce and a pinch of salt.” Jack and I have decided that “Top Chef” worked out a discount deal with Whole Foods and that is how they pull it off. Yes, this is the kind of stuff we discuss and think about. BUT, steel cut oats out of the bins there is very very cheap. Also, a bag of almonds is reasonable too.

I did a search recently for “sear oven steak.” (Wow. Fascinate me.) Top Chef made me hungry for a thickass cut of steak that I just couldn’t shake. I’m not a huge fan of reality shows per se, but watching people revel in their element… always captivating and inspiring to me. Anyway, this past season one contestant, we’ll call him Spike, made this incredible looking tomahawk steak, so called. I’d never heard of a tomahawk steak prior but now its forever branded on me brain.

As I remember he prepared it over an open flame. We’re in a condo so… open flame not really an option. But some of the others put a rippin’ pan sear on their cuts of beef and placed it in the oven. I’d never seen that technique before. I’d always thought the best way to cook a steak was open flame grill style. Maybe it is, but without that as an option, I recalled the top cheffers.

So, “sear oven steak” turned up CHOW.com Food. Drink. Fun. I gotta say, I liked it right out of the gate. We’ve got big print. Big illustrations. Short. Sweet. Exactly what you need when you’re under the gun time-wise. Or adult A.D.D..

I also found another great blog post “How to Turn Cheap ‘Choice’ Steaks into Gucci ‘Prime’ Steaks.” from the very funny SteamyKitchen.com. I found it to be a terrific method to use during the “before you grill remove the chill” time when you let the cut sit at room temp for a bit before you actually cook it.

The hybrid of these two ideas made for a great meal and I didn’t have to shell out for a pricey Dry Aged Long- Bone Ribeye aka tomahawk steak.