T-bone Steak and Mocha Bliss

It has been a long, cold winter and while we grilled a few times outdoors over the winter it was warmer and easier to grill indoors. Last weekend we grilled steaks outdoors enjoying the beautiful, balmy and rare 16ºC (60ºF) day. The following day it dipped below freezing again but we still had the memories of those great steaks. Nothing beats the taste of outdoor grilled foods!

T-bone Steak

We are now into freezer clean-out mode in preparation for our bulk beef purchase that will be ready the first week of April. I thawed the last two T-bone steaks in our freezer. A T-bone steak is cut from the short loin and tenderloin of the hind quarter of the beef. The steak gets its name from the T shaped bone. The cut involves two cuts of meat with the the larger portion being the short loin and the smaller portion being the tenderloin. T-bone steaks are considered one of the highest cuts of steak just below a Porterhouse that has a larger portion of tenderloin on the bone. This was the perfect steak for outdoor grilling!

I'm of the school that you don't need a lot of flavours to have a good steak so it is very seldom that you will see either of us use barbeque sauce or rubs when grilling steaks. The primary goal for us is to have the taste of the beef shine. We often but not always pair grilled steak with sautéed mushrooms or caramelized onions. Both accent the flavour of the beef without overpowering it. A steaks sauce is nice on the side for some steaks but not T-bone!

Mocha Bliss

Several years ago a variety of no bake desserts based on using CoolWhip® as an ingredient appeared on home style buffets and at home gatherings. For whatever reason these desserts quickly became favourites likely because they were easy to make and didn't cost a lot but the real reason was people liked them! I occasionally make one of these desserts usually because someone asked for that particular dessert or because I know this will be a dessert that will go over well with that particular group.

My husband was going to an event last weekend and as always knew I would send something homemade. It had been a very busy Saturday so I relied on something quick and easy. This recipe uses chocolate pudding but I wanted a bit more of a grown-up taste so I made mocha instead. Mocha refers to the combination of chocolate with coffee. You can substitute the half & half with 2% milk and use low fat CoolWhip® for a lower fat version. It won't be quite as creamy but will still be good.

Mocha Bliss

1 pk chocolate instant pudding
2 c half & half cream
2 tbsp instant coffee
2 c CoolWhip®
1½ c dark chocolate cookie crumbs
2 tbsp melted butter

Pour the cream into the bowl of a KitcheAid® stand mixer or similar. Turn to speed 2 and slowly pour in the instant coffee. Mix until well blended. Continue mixing an pour in the pudding mix. Mix until well blended. Remove the bowl and set in refrigerator until the pudding is set. Spread the cookie crumbs on the bottom of an 8.8 X 11 X 2 - inch glass baking dish. Drizzle the melted butter on top. Mix butter and cookie crumbs well them press firmly on the bottom. Refrigerate. Attach the bowl to the mixer again. Add the CoolWhip® and slowly mix. Mix but leave the mixture marbled instead of uniform. Spread the mixture over the cookie crumbs. Lightly swirl to accent the marbling. Garnish with grated chocolate.