Day 1: Great Britain!

Fireworks ignite over the Olympic Stadium during the Opening Ceremony at the 2012 Summer Olympics, Saturday, July 28, 2012, in London. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

It's Friday, the first official day of the 2012 Summer Olympic Games, and since London is the host city, we chose to explore the food of host country Great Britain first.

But before I get into the menu selections, I want to talk about grocery shopping. We plan our meals two weeks in advance, so when we really had to plan ahead when it came to these games. We actually managed to find everything we needed, however some of it came at a hefty price tag. I'll point those items out as we go.


So, we made a main dish and dessert for Great Britain. First up, the Shooter Sandwich.

Shooter Sandwich

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Prep Time: 25 Min.

Cook Time: 20 Min.

Total Time:  6 Hours, 45 Min.

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Ingredients

• color: #f3f3f3;">1 loaf hearty country bread, unsliced
• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
• 1 (3 pound) boneless beef round steak, 2 inches thick
• 1 onion, thinly sliced
• 2 cups sliced fresh mushrooms
• 1 clove garlic, minced, or to taste
• salt to taste
• ground black pepper to taste
• garlic salt to taste

Directions

1. Cut a thick slice from the top of the loaf for a lid; use your fingers to pull the bread center out of the crust, leaving a thick shell. (Save the removed bread for another use.)
2. Heat 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil in a large, heavy skillet over high heat until the oil is slightly smoking; lay the beef round steak into the hot skillet, and cook until the outside of the meat is browned and crusty and the inside is your desired degree of doneness, 5 to 8 minutes per side for medium-rare. Remove the steak, and set aside.
3. Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil in the skillet, and cook and stir the onion, mushrooms, and garlic until the onions are translucent and the mushrooms have given up their juice, 5 to 8 minutes. Remove from heat, and set aside.
4. Lay the cooked steak into the hollowed-out bread loaf, and pile the onions, mushrooms, and garlic over the steak. Replace the bread "lid," and wrap the whole loaf in aluminum foil. Place the loaf onto a baking sheet; place a heavy flat weight on top of the loaf, such as a board or a heavy skillet, and weight the top with several bricks or jars of water.
5. Place the loaf with its weights into the refrigerator, and chill and press the sandwich for at least 6 hours. To serve, bring to room temperature, and cut off slices of the loaf.

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Recipe alterations: We couldn't find country bread that wasn't sliced, so we chose an Italian bread that worked just as well. We did not use near the amount of steak that was called for which could have possibly been because of the more shallow Italian bread. The sandwich is hearty and will serve 4 - 6 adults.


Our opinion: It was easy to make, delicious, and filling. It would make a great lunch sandwich. However, we would prefer it hot. Definitely worth a try, though. 


We also made an English Trifle!

English Trifle

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Ingredients

• 2 (8 or 9 inch) white cake layers, baked and cooled
• 2 pints fresh strawberries
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1 pint fresh blueberries
• 2 bananas
• 1/4 cup orange juice
• 1 (3.5 ounce) package instant vanilla pudding mix
• 2 cups milk
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1/4 cup blanched slivered almonds
• 12 maraschino cherries

Directions

1. Slice strawberries and sprinkle them with sugar. Cut the bananas into slices and toss with orange juice. Combine pudding mix with milk and mix until smooth. Cut the cake into 1 inch cubes.
2. Use half of the cake cubes to line the bottom of a large glass bowl. Layer half of the strawberries followed by half of the blueberries, and then half of the bananas. Spread half of the pudding over the fruit. Repeat layers in the same order.
3. In a medium bowl, whip the cream to stiff peaks and spread over top of trifle. Garnish with maraschino cherries and slivered almonds.

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Recipe alterations: We cut all of the ingredients in half because I do not own a trifle dish. Instead, I put the trifle in individual serving glasses. We also omitted the almonds. I would say the full amount of ingredients would serve 14 people.


Our opinion: Simple to make, easy to put together. Fruit can get costly, though, so just be aware.