Tonight we checked out a new place in our neighborhood: Butcher and the Burger. Suzanne heard about it on the “This Week in Food” podcast (also available on iTunes). On a whim we decided to drop in for dinner on our way to Whole Foods.

This is one of the latest of the build your own burger places. Except, as opposed to places like Custom Burger and Epic Burger, Butcher and the Burger is upscale, with patties like Elf, grass fed beef, shrimp and elk.

The deal is simple, pick a patty, pick a seasoning, pick a burger, add toppings: some included (lettuce, tomato, pickles, etc), and some for an additional cost (such as avocado, grilled onions, fried egg, fois fras).

Behold the menu (also available at their site):

I got the house blend beef with Chicago steakhouse spice blend on a pretzel bun with swiss, dijon, and grilled onions.

Suzanne attacked hers so I didn’t have a chance to snap a picture. She went with the pork patty with the Umami glaze and avocado, wasabi mayo, lettuce and tomato. I sampled, and it was delicious as well.

We shared an order of fries, which was plenty for the two of us.  The fries were incredibly good.

One cute touch was the presentation: everything was served on cutting boards (which are available for purchase). Also we casually commented about sharing the order of fries and they served them on a separate board for easier sharing.

The staff was friendly and helpful. It’s only a few blocks from us and we’re certain to be back.

Suzanne stumbled across this recipe a couple weeks ago and emailed it to me with the subject “Make me yummy food.” I never say no to requests like that. After looking at the recipe, it became even more compelling. A Graham Elliot recipe. Beef Stroganoff. Elaborate and involved. It sounded like fun. The original recipe is here.

I’ve always like beef stroganoff, even as a kid. Growing up, my mom would make “beef stroganoff”. I quote it for a reason: take some ground beef, brown it, throw in a can of cream of mushroom soup and some sour cream, add season with salt & pepper. Mix & serve over egg noodles. This was altogether a different dish.

So here’s the recipe, with my comments and/or changes in italic.

Shallot marmalade

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
10 shallots, sliced crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick rings
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup sherry vinegar

I didn’t have enough shallots on hand, so I used 7 shallots and a large white onion.

In a medium, deep sauté pan over moderate heat, melt the butter. Add the shallot rings and sauté until translucent, about 8 minutes.

Add the sugar and vinegar and continue cooking until amber in color and thickened to the consistency of molasses, about 20 minutes. DO AHEAD: The shallots can be made in advance and refrigerated, in an airtight container, up to 3 days.

I was tempted to just eat this up. It’s onion candy. Wow.

Peppered spaetzle

4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper
2 large eggs
1 cup sour cream

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and keep at a bare simmer. Fill a large bowl with very cold ice water.
In a second large bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, and pepper.

In a blender, combine the eggs, sour cream, and 1 cup water. Purée until smooth then add to the flour mixture and stir to combine (the consistency should be a little thicker than pancake batter, so adjust with more flour or more water as needed).

Working over barely simmering water, force half the batter through a spaetzlemaker, food mill, or colander. Let the spaetzle float to the surface—this will take about 1 minute—wait 30 seconds, then use a mesh skimmer or slotted spoon and transfer the spaetzle to the bowl of ice water. Once cool, transfer the spaetzle to a colander to drain. Repeat with the remaining batter. DO AHEAD: Spaetzle can be made in advance and refrigerated, in an airtight container, up to 2 days.

This seemed to have worked well enough, but I had the batter too thin and they didn’t fry nicely and ended up a bit mushy.

Peppered crème fraîche

1/2 cup crème fraîche
1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper

In a small bowl, stir together the crème fraîche and pepper. The crème fraîche should have an intense pepper note, so add more pepper to taste if necessary. DO AHEAD: The crème fraîche can be made in advance and refrigerated, in an airtight container, up to 1 day.

The beef
4 (1-inch thick) beef tenderloin steaks (about 2 pounds total)
3 tablespoons olive oil

I diverged somewhat here. Keeping an eye on the budget, I opted for a nice grass fed stew beef instead of tenderloin. I’ll reserve tenderloin for a nice steak sometime. I dried the beef and cut it down into smaller pieces. I then browned it in a large dutch oven before adding the broth and some red wine. I dropped the temperature to a simmer and let the beef braise for a couple hours, until it fell apart when stabbed with a fork. Then I drained it and reserved 1/2 cup of the braising liquid for the mushroom puree (below).

Season the steaks with salt and pepper. In a large heavy skillet over moderately high heat, heat the olive oil until hot but not smoking. Cook the steaks to desired doneness, about 4 minutes per side for medium-rare. Transfer to a cutting board as done and tent with foil. Let rest for about 5 minutes before serving.

Mushroom purée

3 tablespoons olive oil
3 cups (about 12 ounces) black trumpet, portobello, or cremini mushrooms, thoroughly cleaned and roughly chopped
5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 shallot, finely chopped
4 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves removed and chopped
6 tablespoons sherry vinegar, plus more to taste
1/2 cup beef stock
3/4 cup grapeseed oil
2 tablespoons truffle oil (optional)

I used a mix of crimini and fresh shitake.

In a large sauté pan over moderately high heat, heat 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil until hot but not smoking. Add 1/2 the mushrooms and sauté until golden brown, about 1 minute. Add 1/2 the garlic, shallots, and thyme and continue sautéing until the shallots are tender, 1 to 2 minutes. Add 3 tablespoons of vinegar and continue cooking until the vinegar is almost completely evaporated, about 30 seconds. Transfer to a large bowl and repeat with the remaining olive oil, mushrooms, garlic, shallots, thyme, and vinegar. Once all the mushrooms are sautéed, reserve about 1/2 cup.

Transfer the remaining mushrooms to a blender, add the beef stock, and purée until smooth. With the blender on, slowly add the grapeseed oil and truffle oil, if using, and continue processing until the sauce is smooth, aerated, and emulsified, about 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and a splash of vinegar if necessary.

In my opinion, the additional vinegar here is not required. The final dish had a very nice tartness.

To serve

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup fresh dill, minced

In a small saucepan over low heat, warm the mushroom purée. When warm, transfer to a gravy boat or other serving dish.

In a large sauté pan over moderately high heat, melt the butter. Add 1/2 of the spaetzle and sauté without stirring until golden brown on the bottom, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the remaining spaetzle, the reserved 1/2 cup of mushrooms, and the shallot marmalade and sauté until warmed through, 3 to 4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and transfer to a serving dish.

Thinly slice the steaks and arrange the meat on a small platter. Dollop the crème fraîche over the meat and sprinkle with the dill. Serve immediately.

Since it was just us and there’d be loads of leftovers, we simply layered everything (spaetzle, meat, puree, and crème fraîche) on one platter.

Once spooned out onto a plate and ready to eat, everything mixed nicely together.

The result was just amazing. We had to explicitly stop eating and pack up leftovers or we might have eaten it all.. it was that good.

Today I have a guest post for you by Joseph Morris, a professional chef for over 20 years. He also owns the site Culinary Arts College for students interested in getting a degree in culinary arts. Have a look at his site, and enjoy his leftover tips.

Thanksgiving is over and you may have already worked your way through the leftovers, but Christmas is just around the corner, which means even more leftovers! Here are some creative ways you can make your leftovers seem new again.

1. Mashed Potatoes – Add some chopped onion and egg, then make patties and fry them in olive oil. You can also add some cooked rice for a little more sustenance.
2. Cranberry Sauce – Add chopped nuts and serve with cheese and crackers for an easy snack. You can also eat it at breakfast as a topping for pancakes or mixed into yogurt.
3. Rolls and Breads – There are lots of easy options here. You can make croutons or breadcrumbs to use for later. If you want to use it up, leftover bread also works well as French toast or bread pudding.
4. Stuffing – Bake “stuffins” (stuffing muffins)! Simply press stuffing into a muffin tin and bake for 10 minutes. You may even want to add nuts, dried fruit, or herbs for more flavor.
	5. Sweet Potatoes – Make a sweet potato bisque to warm you up on a cold day. Puree sweet potatoes and add stock and coconut milk. You may also want to add some herbs or exotic spices like curry or cumin.
6. Roasted Vegetables – Chop up your vegetables into small pieces and make a quiche with some crumbled cheese and diced ham.
7. Ham – Dice up your ham and cook it with lentils, onions, and plenty of spices. Alternatively, you can make ham and lentil soup with mixed vegetables to use up the ham bone as well.
8. Roast Beef – Make roast beef quesadillas with peppers, cheese, and onions. This can be a great alternative to a boring grilled cheese sandwich.
9. Turkey – Forget plain sandwiches made with slices of turkey – make turkey salad sandwiches instead. Dice leftover turkey and mix it with mayonnaise, mustard, chopped apple, and celery.
10. Gravy – Use gravy as a flavorful sauce for whole wheat pasta or egg noodles. You may even want to add some herbs and/or spices to change the flavor.

There are lots of other options for reusing leftovers – all you need is a little creativity. Meals like soup, pizzas, and savory pies could easily use up many leftover foods that might otherwise spoil in your fridge.

Speaking of which, it’s important to remember that even leftovers don’t last forever. Most dishes will only last about three or four days after the big meal unless you freeze them. Make sure you reheat foods thoroughly to kill all the bacteria they might have gained since they were originally cooked.