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.
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| Creamy, cheesy, breadcrumy, bubbly delicious Endive Gratin |
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| Yumm...to me this is a perfectly cooked medium-rare steak |
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| ...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.
