Community Cookbook: Celebrate 250 years of America with these tasty recipes

Our country’s 250th birthday is this Saturday. That’s not an insignificant achievement. America has the oldest continuous constitutional democracy on Earth. It’s a big deal, so celebrate and enjoy the event, and participate in the local festivities. After all, they’ve taken 250 years to materialize.

Along with celebrating, the Fourth is a good time to enjoy some delicious food.

Grill, fry or broil dry-brined, reverse-seared steaks. Dry-brining helps tenderize and flavor the meat. Because salt is water-soluble, it’s drawn into the meat, imparting saltiness throughout and helping the steaks remain juicy. Dry-brining takes little work, which is a plus. Properly cooked, these beef steaks will be flavorful and tender. Reverse searing is a popular method for achieving nicely browned, flavorful and juicy steaks when they’re an inch or more thick.

I’m especially pleased with the two side dishes in the lineup, Baked Trail Beans and Another Macaroni Salad. These dishes are likely to be popular at any lunch or dinner they attend. Baked Trail Beans is an interesting variation of baked beans and will feed a crowd. If I had to take one side dish to a barbeque, picnic, potluck or tailgate party, this hefty batch of beans might be my choice.

Another Macaroni Salad isn’t just another macaroni salad. What’s unique about this one is that the vegetables are blanched to mellow their raw flavor and texture. I think it improves the salad’s overall flavor and eating pleasure.

Dry-Brined, Reverse-Seared Beef Steaks

If you’re a beef fan, a good steak may be near the top of your list. Cook these beef steaks on the stove, on the grill or under the broiler. Dry brining, an easy procedure, will improve the flavor, tenderness and juiciness. Indoor reverse searing is easier to do using an oven for the low, slow cooking, then searing in a skillet over high heat. This method is also useful for grilling multiple steaks on a barbeque, using direct and indirect heat or a two-tier grate system.

½ teaspoon table salt

½ teaspoon granulated sugar

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 teaspoon onion powder

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

2 12-ounce bone-in or 3 8-ounce boneless beef steaks, 1 to 1½-inch thick

1 to 2 tablespoons cooking oil

Butter or compound butter (preferably unsalted)

Steak sauce (optional)

Combine the first five ingredients (through black pepper) in a small bowl. Pat the steaks dry with paper towels, and rub the mix into all surfaces. Place on a wire rack set in a shallow baking pan, with a little space between each. Refrigerate, uncovered, for 8 to 12 hours. Rest the steaks at room temperature for 30 minutes. Temperature probes are very convenient. An instant-read thermometer will also work. Insert the temperature probe(s) horizontally into the centers of one or more steaks. Place the pan on the middle rack of an oven preheated to 250 degrees. Bake until the steaks reach an internal temperature of 100 degrees, about 25-35 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and detach any probes. Pat dry with paper towels. Heat a medium skillet over medium-high or high heat. Add a thin layer of cooking oil. Add a steak when the skillet starts to smoke, pressing it down. When it loosens from the skillet, move it around a little with tongs to ensure that as much of it as possible is in contact with the skillet. Cook to the desired finish, flipping as needed. Using tongs, brown the edges, including any fat cap. Transfer to the wire rack and check the internal temperature. It should be about 5 degrees below the finished temperatures listed below (check several spots).

Finished internal temperature: Rare 120 degrees

Medium-rare: 130 degrees

Medium: 140 degrees

Medium-well done: 150 degrees

Top the steak with a pat of butter or compound butter and loosely tent with aluminum foil (the temperature will rise 5-10 degrees while resting). Repeat with the remaining steak(s), replenishing the oil, if needed. Rest for 5 to 8 minutes before slicing. Serve with steak sauce, if preferred.

Notes: Try reverse searing with cheaper steak before attempting the expensive cuts; it may save you some grief. Cooking times will vary based on size, thickness, and internal starting temperature. Popular thick steaks include New York strip, hanger (butcher’s), ribeye, T-bone, top round and chuck.

Yields: Two or three main-dish servings

Baked Trail Beans

What happens when Boston baked beans meld with southwestern cowboy beans? The result might be a robust and hearty casserole like this one. Inspired by a recipe for cowboy beans presented by Carrie Barnard at eatingonadime.com, this hefty dish is perfect for potlucks, picnics, tailgating, and other large gatherings.

1 tablespoon bacon grease or cooking oil

1 cup chopped onion

⅛ teaspoon salt

1 cup chopped bell pepper

2 (15-ounce) cans pork and beans

1 (15-ounce) can white or navy beans, rinsed and drained

1 (15-ounce) can pinto beans, rinsed and drained

1 (10-ounce) can Ro-tel tomatoes and green chilies

½ cup barbeque sauce

¼ cup ketchup

1½ tablespoon brown sugar

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

½ teaspoon garlic powder

½ teaspoon chili powder

¼ plus ⅛ teaspoon ground mustard

½ to 1½ pound some combination of cooked ground beef, chopped bacon, sausage, or cubed ham (optional)

Heat the cooking oil in a small skillet over high-medium heat. Add the onion and salt; cook for two minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the bell pepper and cook until the vegetables are tender but still slightly firm, stirring occasionally. Combine all ingredients in a 3½-quart or larger casserole dish. Bake on a rack in the middle-low position of an oven preheated to 375 degrees for 90 minutes. Stir every 15 minutes, starting at 30 minutes of baking.

Notes: Bulls-Eye’s original barbeque sauce is excellent. Top the beans with shredded Cheddar cheese after the last stir for added flavor.

Yields: About 13 cups

Another Macaroni Salad

The macaroni salad universe is almost boundless, containing nearly every version imaginable. Here’s another. Finely chopped tomato provides little islands of sweetness throughout the salad. The usually raw and crisp vegetables are blanched to lessen their raw taste and soften for a more enjoyable chew.

1 cup mayonnaise

4 teaspoons granulated sugar

4 teaspoons sugar substitute (such as stevia)

2 teaspoons white vinegar

2 teaspoons yellow or Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon smoked paprika

¼ teaspoon garlic powder

¼ teaspoon celery salt

¼ teaspoon black pepper

8 ounces dried medium elbow macaroni (about 2 cups)

¾ cup finely chopped sweet onion

½ cup finely chopped green bell pepper

½ cup finely chopped yellow bell pepper

1 large Roma tomato, seeds and juice removed, finely chopped

Minced parsley or green onion tops for garnish

Prepare the dressing by combining the first 10 ingredients (through black pepper). Cook the macaroni in salted, boiling water until tender (it will firm up slightly when cooled), adding the onion and bell pepper for the last 4 to 5 minutes (this will momentarily stop the boiling). Drain well. Transfer the macaroni and vegetables to a medium bowl and cool to nearly room temperature, stirring several times. When sufficiently cooled, stir in the dressing, then the tomato. Garnish with minced parsley or green onion tops. Chill in the refrigerator before serving, or, if using light or fat-free mayonnaise, keep the dressing separate, then stir it in near serving time.

Notes: Keep the salad cold. If the salad dries out slightly overnight, stir in a little mayonnaise to freshen it. With regular mayonnaise, the salad will last several days in the refrigerator. With light or fat-free mayonnaise, use the salad within 4 to 5 hours of adding the dressing for the best quality. The salad and dressing can be prepared in advance, then combined before serving.

Yields: About 8 cups

Contact Dick Sellers at dickskitchencorner@outlook.com