Happy Anniversary :)

Yesterday Tom and I celebrated our first anniversary.  (go ahead, gush about it! ;) )  The dinner we had wasn't totally "fresh" because Tom LOVES filet mignon so I made that for us.  However, my mashed potatoes and beet custard have CSA box ingredients :)

Beef Mashed Potatoes

• 4 cups beef stock (1/4- 1/2 cup reserved after cooking)
• 2 lb. red-skinned potatoes 
• 1/4 cup cream
• salt and pepper

Cut potatoes with skin on into 1-inch pieces.  Pour beef stock over top and boil until potatoes are tender.  Pour out stock, reserving about 1/2 cup.  Add cream, salt, and pepper and mash it up!

Roasted Beet Custard

• 1 lb. fresh beets, washed
• olive oil 
• 1/2 cup cream
• 3 eggs
• 3 egg yolks
• 2 tsp. sugar

Earlier in the day I roasted the beets.  Preheat to 300 degrees.  Drizzle olive oil over the beet and roast for 1 hour and 30 minutes.  Pull them out and let them cool.  Once cool, the peels should pull off easily.  Peel and puree the beets.  Fold in the cream, eggs, and egg yolks.  

Spray small 4 oz. ramekins with cooking spray.  Fill them up with the batter (mine made 3).  Bake at 250 for about an hour.  I put mine in a baking dish in a water bath to ensure even cooking.  Remove when firm.  We bruleed the top with a blow torch (see video).  Put a tsp. sugar on top and burn it up!  This was realllly good. It could've passed for dessert!

Filet Mignon

• 2 filets
• salt and pepper
• 1 tbsp. butter.  

I used my trusty cast iron skillet.  Kept the oven on from the beets and upped it to about 325.  Season the filets with salt and pepper.  Melt butter in the skillet and get it nice and hot.  Sear the steaks on each side (2-3 min per side).  Put skillet in the oven for another 5-7 minutes or until desired doneness.  We eat ours medium-rare.

Thanks for stopping!  I have lots more to upload....maybe another day... ;)

Steakhouse ala Tweedle

Hello all!  I have been slacking majorly.  I actually have been cooking, but just haven't had a minute to sit down and blog.  We have been very busy with weddings and life in general.  This weekend I looked in our chest freezer and saw some nature's basket ribeye steaks and decided to make them today.  What do you get with a steak?  Mashed potatoes and creamed spinach of course! .... Well, with a little twist :)

Steaks with chived and Greek yogurt mashed potatoes and Creamy Kale
---For the steak:
- 2 boneless ribeye steaks, natural if possible
- salt and pepper to season

----For the potatoes
- 4-5 yukon potatoes (from our basket) cut into 1-inch pieces
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1/2 cup of plain Greek yogurt
- 1 bunch of chives (about 1/4 cup- 1/2 cup when finely chopped)
- 1/4 cup skim milk
- salt and pepper to taste


---For the kale:
- 1 bunch of kale, stems removed and cut into ribbons
- 1/4 cup skim milk (should probably have used cream, but I didn't have it...they turned out kind of runny)
- 1/4 cup white wine
- 1/2 tsp. nutmeg
- 4-5 sun-dried tomatoes diced
- 2 tbsp. sour cream


Preheat the oven to 350.  Begin boiling water for kale in one pot and the potatoes in chicken broth (you can use water, but I like the extra flavor) in another pot.  Preheat a cast iron skillet over medium high heat, with a spray of Pam.  When the water comes to a boil, add the kale for about 2-3 minutes until tender.

Once the skillet is preheated put the seasoned steaks into the skillet.  Sear for 3-4 minutes on each side and then put into the preheated oven for about 10-12 minutes or desired doneness.

Remove from the boiling water and put into a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking process and keep the color.  Let it sit for a few minutes then add back to the pot.  Add the milk, wine, and nutmeg and let simmer over medium heat for 6-8 minutes then lower heat to allow liquid to reduce.  My liquid did not reduce all the way down because I used skim milk.  Add the sun-dried tomatoes at the end.

Once the potatoes are tender (about 10-12 minutes) drain from the broth (I keep about 2 Tbsp. of broth in there).  Add the Greek yogurt, chives, and milk and mash and mix.  I like them a bit chunky and I also keep the skins on the potatoes.

Before plating, let the steaks rest for about 5 minutes so the juices can redistribute.  Also, add the sour cream to the kale.

 

Here is a picture of the full stove top :)

Tom got home just in time for dinner:

 

Thanks for reading.  I hope you enjoy the steakhouse at home...it's much cheaper!!