Filet Mignon with Lobster Thermidor

Valentine’s Day is this Friday.  Getting a table in a nice restaurant is next to impossible and terribly expensive and noisy.  Instead of going out, my husband and I like to help one another cook a complicated meal.  Being together in the kitchen is very romantic.  We like to drink some wine and listen to music while we work.  This is a great way to spend time together.  Then we relax and enjoy the meal we created.

We made Lobster Thermidor this past weekend.  We ate it for the first time  in St. Martin on our 10^th wedding anniversary.  We loved it.  This is my version of Lobster Therimdor, certainly not Julia Child, but tasty none-the-less. This is complicated so read through the entire recipe before starting.  If you are cooking with your sweetie, get him (or her) to grill the steaks and keep your wine glass full.

Servings: 2
Hardware: A large stock pot, a cutting board and knives, measuring spoons and cups, a small sauté pan, a large sauce pot, a whisk, 2 bowls, a wooden spoon, a fork, a grill, tongs, a meat thermometer, 4 plates, tinfoil
Prep time: 30 minutes, Cook time: 1 hour 

Ingredients:

• 2-8 ounce filet mignons
• Salt & pepper
• 1 large lobster (3/4 pound meat when cooked)
• 1 diced shallot (¼ cup)
• ¼ cup diced Portobello mushrooms
• 2 sprigs fresh tarragon
• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• ½ cup brandy
• 1 cup white wine
• 2 cups chicken stock
• ½ cup heavy cream
• ½ stick + 2 tablespoons butter
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 2 egg yolks
• ¼ cup shredded Parmesan cheese

1. Place the lobster head first into a large pot of boiling water.  Boil for about 15 minutes.  Remove from the pot and place in ice water to end the cooking.  Remove the meat from the claws and tail.  Cut into bite sized chunks. Set aside.
2. Pre-heat the grill.
3. Salt & pepper both sides of the steak.  Set aside.
4. Chop the shallot and mushrooms, measure all the ingredients, remove the tarragon from the stems and set aside.
5. In a small pan sauté the shallots, mushrooms, and tarragon in 2 tablespoons of butter over medium heat until the mushrooms begin to lose their liquid, about 5 minutes.  Remove from the heat and set aside. Wipe out the pan.
6. Place the brandy, white wine, and the chicken stock in a sauce pan over medium high heat and gently boil for about 10 minutes. Add the shallot mixture, mustard, and cream.  Reduce to a simmer. It is important that you don't boil the sauce from here forward. 
7. In the pan over medium heat melt the remaining butter.  Whisk in the flour.  Mix until the flour is smooth.  You are making a roux.  Cook, whisking constantly, until the roux is golden.
8. Whisk the roux into the hot liquid.  Simmer on low until the mixture is thickened about 20 or 30 minutes.  Stir often.
9. While the mixture is simmering. Grill the steak for 4 to 6 minutes per side depending upon their thickness. Check the temperature with the meat thermometer.  Remove them when they reach 135° for medium rare and 145°for medium.  Remove from the grill and place on a plate loosely tented with foil.
10. Back to the sauce, separate the eggs.  Reserve the whites for something else.  Beat the yolks.  Add a tablespoon of the hot liquid to the yolks constantly mixing them.  Add another tablespoon, continuing to beat the yolk.  Continue to do this until you have added 4 tablespoons of hot liquid.  You are tempering the yolks so that you don’t have scrambled eggs.  Slowly whisk the egg mixture into the sauce pot of hot liquid. Continue to whisk until the yolks are mixed in.  Allow to simmer for 3-5 minutes or until thickened.
11. Turn off the heat. Stir in the Parmesan and lobster chunks. Salt and pepper to taste. 
12. Serve the Lobster Thermidor over the steak.  Serve right away.

Land and Sea

I served this with wilted spinach and potatoes gratin. 

Greek Steak Salad

I love salad.  My husband is more of a meat eater.  This makes us both happy.  It will make you happy, too.

Servings: 4

Time:    Prep: 15 minutes; Rest time: 35 minutes; Cook: 10-15 Minutes

Hardware:  A grill, measuring spoons and cups, tongs, an old dish rag, a meat thermometer, 2 plates, foil, a cutting board and knives, a bowl, a colander (or salad spinner),  serving bowls


Ingredients:

• 2 steaks (1 pound of the best you can afford)
• 4 tablespoons Greek seasoning (Konriko Greek Seasoning or your own)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• ¼ cup of oil for the grill

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• 6 cups mixed salad greens (I used spinach, arugula, curly endive, radicchio and iceberg)
• 1 cucumber
• ½ red onion sliced
• 1 cup cold water
• ½ pint cherry tomatoes
• ¼ cup crumbled feta
• ¼ cup pitted black olives
• ½ cup Creamy Feta Dressing
• S&P to taste

Greek Steak Salad

1. Rub both sides of each steak with olive oil and seasoning.  Allow it to sit for 30 minutes.  This allows the meat rise to room temperature and lets the rub adhere.
2. Slice the red onion and soak it in cold water. This will make it less pungent.
3. While the steak and onion are resting, prepare the grill.
4. Use the old rag and tongs to coat the grill with oil.  This will ensure that the steak doesn’t stick and will give you grill marks.
5. Steak should be cooked on a covered grill over a medium-high heat.  Check the temperature by holding the palm of your hand about 4 inches above the hot grill.  The grill is ready if your hand can be held over the heat for 3 seconds.
6. Grill the steak for 5 to 7 minutes per side depending upon the thickness.
• I prefer steak served rare to medium rare.  If you must, steak can be served medium. If you want steak served well, you should quit eating steak.  Dried, over cooked steak is chewy and NOT tasty.  Check the temperature with the meat thermometer.  Remove the steaks when they reach 140° for medium rare and 150°for medium. 
7. Place the steaks on a clean plate and loosely tent with foil. The temperature will continue to rise while they rest. Allow them to rest for 5 minutes before placing on the salad.
8. In the mean time, wash and rinse the salad greens.  Pat them dry. (I use a salad spinner.)  Tear the greens into bite sized pieces.
9. Rinse, chop, and seed the tomatoes. Peel and slice the cucumber. Rinse the olives. Drain the onions.
10. Slice the steak.
11. Divide the greens among the serving bowls.  Top with tomatoes, cucumbers, slices of onion, and dressing.  Place slices of steak on each salad.  Top with more dressing and olives.  Sprinkle with feta cheese.  S&P to taste.

Beef Kabobs

Florida is on fire right now. As of this morning, 250 wild fires raged throughout the state. For weeks now smoke has hung heavy in the air. This happens every year. Wildfires are so common, in fact, that a species of pine tree found here, the Marsh Pine, has evolved to only release its seeds when burned.


All this smoke has made me think of grilling. I know. I’m weird like that.




Few things are more satisfying than food on a stick

Servings: 4-6
Time: Prep: 15 minutes; Marinade time: 2-6 hours; Cook: 40 minutes
Hardware: A grill, measuring spoons and cups, a cutting board, a zester, a gallon Ziplock bag, a large glass bowl, a small plastic container with a lid, a pot, a paper towel, skewers, tongs, an old dish rag, a grill, a microwave, a brush, 2 plates

Marinade

• ¾ cup olive oil
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• ¼ cup lemon juice and the zest of one lemon
• ¼ cup limejuice and the zest of one lime
• 1 cup of orange juice
• 1 green onion, chopped
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon dried cilantro
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon salt

 Shish Kabobs

• 1 pound beef (sirloin, top sirloin, filet)
• 10 baby potatoes
• 1 medium onion
• 1 green pepper
• 1 red pepper
• 10 large white mushrooms
• 10-15 cherry tomatoes
• cooking spray
• oil for the grill

1.  If you are using bamboo skewers soak them in water for 30 minutes. This will prevent them from burning. Weight them down in the sink with a plate.
2. Cut the meat into bite size chunks. Try to make the chunks the same size so that they will cook evenly.
3. In a large glass bowl, mix all of the marinade ingredients. Reserve ¼ cup of the marinade. Store it in the fridge in the plastic container. Put the steak in the Ziploc. Pour the remaining marinade in the bag too. Place that in the fridge. (I always put this in a bowl, bag and all, because sometimes those zippers unzip. Not fun.) Marinate the steak from 2-6 hours, turning the bag over every once in a while.
• Don’t marinate the meat for too long or it will become mushy.
4. Wash the potatoes and boil them for 10ish minutes.  They should be completely cooked, but still firm enough to be skewered with out falling apart.  Drain them.
5. Remove the steak from the fridge and allow it to sit out for 30 minutes. This allows it to return to room temperature and helps everything cook evenly.
6. While the meat is resting wash and prep the veggies. Remove the stems from the mushrooms. (Chop these up and toss them in a salad.) Seed the peppers and remove the white ribs. Cut the peppers and onions into 1-1 ½ inch squares.
7. Spray the skewers with cooking spray.
8. Drain the steak and pat dry. Discard the used marinade.
9. Create the kabobs by skewering the meat and veggies.
• Vary the order that you add the ingredients. I like to put the tomatoes on the ends so that they don’t over cook and fall off.  Try to put the potatoes toward the center to make sure that they are completely cooked.
10. Spray the kabobs with cooking spray.
11. Warm the reserved marinade in the microwave.
12. Prepare the grill by using the old rag and tongs to coat the grill with oil. This will ensure that the kabobs don’t stick and that you get those groovy grill marks.
13. Start the fire.  You should grill the kabobs on an uncovered grill over direct flames. Grill for them for 10 to 12 minutes, rotating ¼ turn every few minutes. Cook 10 minutes for rare, 12 for medium rare.
14. Remove the kabobs from the grill to a clean plate. Brush all the kabobs with the warm reserved marinade. Allow them to rest for 5 minutes.

 Serve with a salad.

Grilled Lamb Loin Chops

Lamb is a dish enjoyed by many people all over the world.  However it is not eaten very often by Americans, less than one pound per person per year.   I think that if more Americans tasted a really good cut of lamb, cooked well, that statistic would change.  I love lamb.  If you follow this recipe, you will, too.

Servings: 2-3

Time:    Prep: 5 minutes; Rest time: 35 minutes; Cook: 10-15 Minutes

Hardware:  A grill, measuring spoons, a food processor (blender or chopper), a zester, a spatula, tongs, an old dish rag, a meat thermometer, 2 plates, tinfoil

• 5-6-bone in lamb loin chops about 1 ½  pounds (these are more expensive than other cuts, but trust me)
• 4 tablespoons fresh thyme
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 2 tablespoons orange zest
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• ¼ teaspoon pepper
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ¼ cup of oil for the grill

1. Wash the thyme and remove it from the stems.  Zest the orange.
2. Add the thyme, mustard, onion powder, zest, sugar, and pepper to the food processor.  Pulse a few times until the thyme is chopped and every thing is incorporated.
3. Scrape down the sides of the processor and add the olive oil.  Pulse a few more times.
4. Rub both sides of each chop with the thyme mixture and allow the lamb to sit for 30 minutes.  This lets the meat rise to room temperature and lets the rub adhere.
5. While the lamb is resting, prepare the grill.
6. Use the old rag and tongs to coat the grill with oil.  This will ensure that the lamb doesn’t stick and will give you grill marks.
7. Heat the grill or start the coals.
8. Lamb chops should be cooked on a covered grill over medium-high heat. Check the temperature by holding the palm of your hand about 4 inches above the hot grill.  The grill is ready if your hand can be held over the heat for 3 seconds.
9. Salt the lamb chops just before you grill them.
10. Grill the lamb for 5 to 7 minutes per side depending upon the thickness of the chops. Flip with the tongs.
11. Preferably, you should eat lamb chops medium rare or medium. Dried, over cooked lamb chops are nasty.  Check the temperature with the meat thermometer.  Remove them when they reach 140° for medium rare and 150°for medium. 
12. Place the chops on a clean plate and loosely tent them with foil. The temperature will continue to rise while they rest. Allow them to rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Serve with Feta Mashed Potatoes, Spicy Mustard Fruit Sauce (made with orange marmalade), and a thick slice of hearty bread