I'm attempting to imitate Arby's Roast Beef

The flavor is really close to roast beef,  I was really happy with the results. I even got a "OMG" out of Aaron.
 

Every now and then, I get a craving, for Arby's roast beef. I love it plain, with no sauce. Once the craving starts, it doesn't go away, until I have one.

I've had this idea, for quite some time now, but I've not had the courage to attempt it. So, here we go, into uncharted territory (again). The only thing I have to go on is, Arby's uses a pressed loaf, made of beef and ground beef, that is baked for three hours, I taste a hint of, celery, garlic and onion in their loaf, and I can imitate their horsey sauce, pretty well. That's about it.

I learned a little, about making a pressed meat, style loaf, when I was playing around with Gyros , but this will have to be more moist, than that recipe. I'm not expecting to get this anywhere near their texture, or color. I don't have a meat slicer anymore, but, I can live with thicker slices, so long as I can get close to the flavor. Maybe, I could grate the finished loaf.

Ingredients:

For the beef:
2lbs. round steak-cut into small cubes
2 staks of celery
1 onion-whole, peeled
8cups water
2lbs. ground chuck
1tsp.salt
1tsp.celery salt
1/2tsp. garlic powder
1tsp. onion powder
2tsp. brown sugar
1/4-cup reserved broth-plus another cup to marinate the loaf.

You'll also need:
Kaiser Rolls-toasted
Horsey sauce and/or BBQ sauce

Horsey sauce:
1/4cup real Mayonnaise
4tsp. prepared horseradish
1tsp sugar
Combine and chill.

Sweet Mild BBQ sauce:
1/4cup ketchup
2Tbl. corn syrup
1/4tsp. garlic powder
1/4tsp. onion powder
1/4tsp. Worcestershire sauce
Combine and chill.

Preparation:
Boil the steak, celery, and onion, in the water, until it becomes very tender, about 1-1/2 hrs. Cool. Reserve the broth.(I ended up with 2-1/2 cups) Discard the celery and onion. Shred the steak.(I just rubbed it between my fingers)
In a large bowl, combine, the shredded beef, 1/4cup of the reserved broth, and all other beef ingredients.
Knead the loaf for several minutes, until it has a smooth texture.
Shape it into two loaves, put them back in the bowl, pour another cup of the reserved broth, over the top.
Cover and refrigerate overnight. I covered and refrigerated the leftover broth, to keep any leftover roast beef moist.
Make the sauces, and refrigerate.
Preheat the oven to 350*
Put the loaves into 2 loaf pans.
Put the loaf pans into a large roasting pan. (like a turkey roaster) Fill the roaster 1/2 full of water.
Bake for 2hours, or until the juices run clear.
Remove the loaf pans from the water bath. Cool completely.
Slice the Beef, and pour the remaining broth over the slices.
Toast the buns. We added the beef, to the toasted bun, then microwaved 30 second, before adding the sauce.

Boil the steak, celery, and onion, in 8 cups of water for 1-1/2 hrs or until tender. I cubed the steak to cut down on cooking time, and hopefully it will shred finer, this way.

Shred the cooled beef, as fine as possible. Add 1/4cup of reserved broth, and all other beef ingredients. Knead, until the loaf has a smooth texture.

I shaped it into 2 loaves, ( I'll be cooking this in two loaf pans-in a water bath.) and poured 1 cup of the reserved broth over them. Cover and refrigerate. I'm hoping the broth will be absorbed, creating a moist loaf. But, I might have a mushy mess. We'll see tomorrow. I think I'm on the right track, as far as the spices are concerned, this actually smells like Arby's.

Next day, something unexpected happened: About 1/2 the liquid was absorbed. I removed one of the loaves, and it was more solid, than when I put it in the bowl. Hmm.. can't wrap my mind around that one. If anyone knows the answer, I'd be grateful to hear it.

I had planned to press them into the pans, to make them smooth and dense. But, since they kind of solidified, that was out. I put them in a roasting pan, and filled the roaster 1/2 full of water. I learned from making gyros, the water bath makes the loaves moist, and inhibits browning.

It was grainier that what I had hoped for, a lot of crumbling. But I preferred the texture of the crumbled pieces, on my sanwich. I think I'll grate it next time. I poured the remaining 1-1/4 cups of reserved broth over the sliced beef. That really improved the texture! Kind of like a Poor Boy. (My next project.)

Toast the Buns. We put the beef on the toasted buns, popped them into the microwave, for 30 seconds, then added the sauce.

They weren't spot on, of course, but really tasted great, I don't plan to alter the recipe. Although I'm going to try this spice combination on shredded roast, 50% round and 50% chuck.

Spicy Chicken Sandwich

                                         Spicy Chicken Sandwich.
This recipe is for a 3lb. bag of boneless chicken breast, but it's easy to divide. I bake them in a roaster with a rack, but you could also place a cooling rack, or similar in a baking pan, or fry them.

Ingredients:
Boneless chicken breasts-split in half
1-1/2cups buttermilk with 1Tbl. hot sauce added to it (more if you want it hotter)

For the breading:
1-1/2cups plain bread crumbs
1tsp. garlic powder
1tsp. paprika
2tsp. cayenne
2tsp. onion powder
1Tbl. salt
1/2 tsp. chili powder

Preparation:
Preheat the oven to 375*
Whisk together the breading ingredients in a bowl.
Dip the chicken breasts in the buttermilk, allowing any excess to drip.
Roll them in the breadcrumbs, and place them on the rack of a roaster.
Bake about 1 hour, or until cooked through, and the breading has browned.
Serve with lettuce, tomato and mayo.

While the chicken is still partially frozen, I lay it on it's side and slice them to make two thinner pieces. Perfect sandwich size.

10 minute Chocolate-Peanut Butter Bars

                                 10 minute Chocolate-Peanut Butter Bars

The secret to making these (or any similar recipe) taste like Reese's is... Salt. Reese's peanut butter cups are loaded with it. You could add even more than what I use, in this recipe.

Ingredients:

Peanut butter layer:
1cup peanut butter
1tsp. salt
1/2tsp. vanilla
2cups confectioners sugar
water-(up to 1Tbl.)

Chocolate layer:
12oz. milk chocolate chips
1Tbl. peanut butter ( it gives the chocolate a fudge-like texture)

Preparation:
Stir together, the peanut butter, salt, and vanilla, in a bowl.
Add all the sugar, stirring in as much as possible, then knead in the rest.
At this point no two batches, I make, are the same. They are usually, a bit dry, so I add 1tsp.of water at a time, until it is about the texture of play-doh.(neither crumbly or sticky)
Press the mixture, evenly, into a small baking, or casserole dish, about 9x7 or 9x9. Set aside.
Add the ingredients for the chocolate layer, to a microwave safe bowl.
Heat 30-60 seconds, to melt the chocolate. Stir to combine.
Using a rubber spatula, spread the chocolate, evenly, over the  peanut butter layer.
Refrigerate 30 minutes. Cut into fudge sized pieces, when the chocolate is firm.

Baked Breaded Pork Chops with Mushroom Cream Sauce

                Baked Breaded Pork Chops with Mushroom Cream Sauce

Mom once went to visit her sister, for a week, in Colorado, when we were kids. That's when I discovered, Dad could cook.
I knew he could make chili, grilled cheese, hamburgers, and the like. But, when he called us to dinner, one night, I was shocked. He had fried, pork chops, put them on a cookie sheet, spread cream of mushroom soup over them, then baked them until the soup became a glaze. Wow, it was fantastic. It instantly became a family favorite.
This is the way I make it now, a no-oil, fresher tasting, variation of Dad's dish.
(I bake the pork chops in a roaster with a rack, but you could also place a cooling rack, or similar in a baking pan)

Ingredients:
1 pork loin roast-sliced into 1/2-inch chops
1-1/4cups plain bread crumbs
1tsp. salt
1cup buttermilk -or- (2tsp. vinegar added to a cup of milk, allow to stand 15 minutes=buttermilk)

For the mushroom cream sauce:
2Tbl. butter
4oz. fresh mushrooms-sliced
1Tbl. minced onion
1/2tsp. minced garlic
1/2tsp. tarragon
1/2tsp. salt
1/4tsp. black pepper
1Tbl. flour
1cup half and half

Preparation:
Preheat the oven to 375*
Whisk together the breadcrumbs and salt in a bowl.
Dip the chops into the buttermilk, allowing any excess to drip. Dredge them through the breadcrumbs.
Place them on the rack of a roasting pan.
Bake about 1-1/2 hours, or until the they are cooked through and beginning to brown.
Meanwhile, make the sauce.
Melt the butter in a large saucepan.
Add the mushrooms, onion, garlic, tarragon, salt and pepper.
Saute until the mushrooms are tender.
Stir in the flour, until combined, then add the half and half.
Stirring constantly, bring almost to a boil, then turn off the burner.
Allow it to cool, then refrigerate until needed. (It will thicken, further as it cools)
Once the chops are cooked through, place them on a cookie sheet and spread the sauce over them.
Bake an additional 20 minutes, or until the sauce becomes a glaze.

         While the chops are baking, make the sauce, cool then refrigerate.

Bake the chops, until they are cooked through and beginning to brown.
      (They will brown further while you are glazing the sauce.)