Beef Stroganoff, Condensed Milk Pudim and Fresh Orange Cake make Perfect SunDay Menu

Between a family day, our tried-and-true Beef Stroganoff with a twist, a classic brazilian Condensed Milk Pudim, orange picking foray in the garden and a new Orange Coffee Cake recipe, this was just one of those Sundays where the world aligns to achieve maximum enjoyment.

Happy Father's Day! ... a couple of days late. We feel justified in making a late post this time though, because this Sunday was just so good, and we made so much good food and that is simply the type of stuff that you gotta share. You just gotta. . After the food was downed we went orange picking in the garden and those gorgeous oranges became the star of late afternoon coffee in a moist, tart, warm orange coffee cake. And as an inaugural post too! Pinky promise that future Insert Day posts will be more timely, and just as lovely.

We decided to stay simple this fathers day because things have been somewhat hectic right now... there's a lot we need to do as we will be moving very soon, and with a hungry grandmother on the way and a dad interested in sleeping in a little, a delicious, luscious comfort food that is already everybody's favorite was the obvious one to go with.

And so it was decided that our Beef Stroganoff fits the bill and then some! In our family we make it with cognac and a bit of garam masala, which might be a bit unorthodox but it adds such a beautiful new depth of flavor. Come to think of it, ketchup and mustard might also be a bit unorthodox, but it honestly makes the dish. It's hearty, it's creamy, it's comforting and to top it all off, it's accompanied by a bed of white rice and the softest, crunchiest, most golden fried potatoes you'll ever have in your life.

Recipe

Serves 7-8 people. 1 hour cooking time.

Beef Strogonoff

1 kilo beef (rump or or shank beef work well)

350 grams mushrooms, sliced

3 cloves of garlic

1 small shallot

1 teaspoon of garam masala *optional but Highly Recommended

1/2 teaspoon dried chimichurri *optional

salt and pepper (to taste)

1 can diced tomatoes

1 tablespoon cognac

1 tablespoon ketchup

1 tablespoon mustard

1 can heavy cream

Potatoes

10 medium potatoes

Frying oil

Water (enough to cover the potatoes)

1 tablespoon of vinegar

1 tablespoon of cornstarch

Instructions:

1. Start with the potatoes. Peel them and slice them to your preferred thickness. Put them in a pot with enough water to cover them, the vinegar and the cornstarch and leave it for 20-25 minutes. This process makes the potatoes extra crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside, and trust me, it's so worth it.

2. Drain the potatoes, dry them with cloth or paper towels, and fry them in hot oil until golden. I like to fry them while working on the beef.

3. For the strogonoff, dice the beef into cubes, around one inch. Crush the garlic , dice the shallots and stir them with some oil until fragrant. Add the beef, the spices, salt and pepper and fry them until cooked through and slightly seared.

4. Add the tomatoes and a couple tablespoons of water and incorporate. When it starts to bubble add the ketchup and mustard. Mix well.

5. Cook for 10-15 minutes, add the mushrooms and cook another minute.

6. Add the cream, mix, and as soon as its incorporated and heated through, turn it off.

7. Serve it with a spoonful of rice and the most beautiful potatoes on the side.

For dessert, my daughter made her fathers favorite: classic brazilian condensed milk flan (pudim): creamy, sweet, caramely delight. You can check out the recipe soon here.

After all of that, you may ask, is there really more? Well, a family day is a day for cooking and baking and eating and rinse and repeat, isn't it? So that is what we do all day when we are together! Foolproof plans.

Now, in our garden we have this beautiful orange tree, and oh, it is packed with juicy, ripe oranges, blooming flowers and quite a lot of buzzing bees.

Isn't she beautiful? You wouldn't believe the perfume!

Me, my daughter and my sister went orange picking in the afternoon, dodging bees and dogs and we got quite the harvest!

That quickly turned into this gorgeously fluffy orange coffee cake, moist and perfectly balanced between tart and sweet.

This cake is very simple and quick to whip up, the ideal star for a afternoon coffee.

Recipe

Serves 10 people. 1 hour cooking time.

Ingredients

2 eggs

1 1/3 cups of sugar

1/2 cup oil

1 cup of fresh orange juice

1 tablespoon of baking soda

2 1/2 cups of flour

Directions:

1. Beat the eggs and sugar in a bowl until light and fluffy. Add the oil and then the orange juice, one at a time. (If you want, adding a tablespoon of orange liqueur would be very delicious as well).

2. Add the baking soda.

3. Incorporate the flour bit by bit, mixing constantly. Once it's a smooth batter, pour in a buttered and floured tin, and bake it in preheated oven at 190ºC for 40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

4. You can add any glaze you want, or honestly even eat it as is. We made a simple orange juice and powdered sugar glaze.

This and a cup of coffee is a pretty perfect way to top off a pretty amazing day.

If you make any of the recipes shared here or have anything to tell us, come say hi! And of course, thanks for reading <3