The Ultimate Comfort Food

On V-day my man was out of the country, so instead my sister and I celebrated our parents love and the love in our family by cooking a massive, and totally delicious, feast. The recipes were some that have been on my “must make for dinner” list for awhile now so I was so excited to try them out. And wow, they definitely dazzled and impressed!

The perfect comfort food for a chilly winter’s evening: Steak with a Chianti butter sauce served over olive oil mashed potatoes with a side of creamy endive gratin. Enjoy it with a massive glass of red wine and you’re all set for a comfy night spent indoors.

The Chianti butter sauce was so lovely and had a bit of a sweet accent from the shallots. We really couldn’t get enough and pretty much drenched our potatoes with it. I mean…why not? The endive gratin was a hit (you can never go wrong with something baked in cream, Gruyere and bread crumbs!) and can be made with so many different vegetables- definitely going to try some different varieties before the winter is over.

 

Creamy, cheesy, breadcrumy, bubbly delicious Endive Gratin

Yumm...to me this is a perfectly cooked medium-rare steak

...Why not gaze at it from another angle?

Jamie Oliver's Pan-fried Steak with Chianti Butter Sauce and Olive Oil Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients:

For the olive oil mash:

4 potatoes, peeled and halved 
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
olive oil 
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon butter

For the steak:

2 7 oz sirloin steaks, 1 inch thick, fat scored 
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
olive oil

For the sauce:

3 tablespoons butter 
2 shallots, peeled and finely diced 
2 sprigs of fresh thyme, leaves picked
1 cup chianti

a few sprigs watercress 
good quality extra virgin olive oil

Directions:

Put the potatoes in a large pot of salted water. Bring to a boil and simmer until the potatoes are tender. Drain them in a colander and allow to sit for 5 minutes to steam away any excess moisture. Return the potatoes to the pan and mash, stirring in a large glug of olive oil, the cheese, and butter. Taste, season with the salt and pepper. Cover to keep warm.

Heat a heavy frying pan, large enough to cook both steaks at once without them touching. Season steaks with salt and pepper. Massage with olive oil. Using a pair of tongs, hold the steaks fatty-edge down in the frying pan to render and colour the fat. When the fat is golden, fry the steaks for eight minutes in total for medium-rare, turning them every minute. Remove from pan to rest and tent with tin foil.

Turn the heat down and add 1 tablespoon of butter to the pan. Fry the shallots and thyme for 4 minutes. Pour the wine in and reduce it by half. Pour in the juices from the resting steaks. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter and remove the pan from the heat. Stir briskly to emulsify the sauce. This will make a simple red wine sauce.  Taste and season.