Enjoy the Delicious

My sun worshipping friends will hate me for saying this, but I'm loving the weather in NYC today:  70F, a light breeze and a sprinkle of rain. Secretly, I'm in full anticipation of autumn and a fuller wind enveloping the air but let's not fool anyone here...I'm really in full anticipation of autumn meals.  I've had it with salads.  I need something to stick to my bones.

I am super lazy today, I just cannot get it together.  The thought of leaving the house is giving me the scares but I'm hungry!  I haven't shopped this week so all I have are the remnants of last weeks trip to The Essex Street Market and I have absolutely no protein in the fridge.  I figure I should pull it together and run down the street to my favorite one-stop-shop market.

Todays meal was inspired by a meal I saw Nigella Lawson prepare on Nigella Bites.  I'm using skirt steak bought from Jeffrey, at Jeffrey's Meat Market and making the mash with a few additions.  This delicious meal is pulled together in about half an hour and it's just what you need on a rainy afternoon.

Skirt Steak with Cannellini Mash

Cut yourself a piece of skirt steak and season it with olive oil, salt, pepper, a rub of garlic, thyme and a squeeze of lemon.  Let it sit for about 15 minutes and then cook it for 3 minutes on each side.  Let it rest and then add another squeeze of lemon before serving.

While your meat is marinating, cook a can of cannellini beans.  Add the can of beans to your pot (I don't drain the liquid) and just throw in 2 smashed cloves of garlic, a few thyme sprigs, olive oil, a generous amount of salt and pepper.  I also like to squeeze in the juice of a quarter of a lemon and then throw in the lemon piece.  The flavors will all infuse together and it will be beautifully aromatic.  Simmer on a very low heat for about 15-20 minutes.  Check your seasoning and then mash it together, adding additional olive oil as necessary

Presentation

Spoon the cannellini mash on your plate and top with tomatoes tossed in a little salt and olive oil.  Slice your steak against the grain and add that to the mix and dig in to this perfect lazy day meal.

I don't drink beer; I never really aqcuired a taste for it.  I recently had some friends round and they brought over a six-pack.  They were in no way interested in my fine bottle of 2006 Bordeaux.  After my friends left, one bottle of the dark, syrupy brew remained and for the past couple of weeks, that lone bottle sat lonely in my fridge.

Every day when I opened the fridge I would pause, cock my head and look at it wondering just how long it was going to stay there.  Maybe I would have another guest that drank Guiness Stout, maybe it would just continue to sit.  The situation was getting ridiculous.

Tonight I bit the bullet; I opened it and took a swig straight out of the bottle.  Eh.  There was only one thing left to do.  Cook with it.

London Broil marinated in Guiness Stout with the most scrumptious potatoes and roasted asparagus.

Ingredients:

• 1 large slab of top round steak
• 1 Bottle of Guiness Stout
• 1 T of brown sugar
• The juice of 1 lemon
• A few cloves of garlic
• Salt and pepper
• 1 Bunch of asparagus
• Recipe for potatoes can be found here.

In a large tupperware, pour half a bottle of Guiness Stout, add the brown sugar and lemon juice.  Rub your steak with smashed garlic cloves, season with salt and pepper and throw it into the syrupy mixture.  Let it sit in your fridge for up to 5 hours.

Take the meat out of the fridge and bring it to room temperature.  Prepare your asparagus by cutting off the ends, dressing with salt, pepper, olive oil and a squeeze of lemon juice.  Cook your potatoes per the linked instructions.

Heat your grill and cook the hunk of meat for approximately 4 minutes per side, which yields your steak medium rare.  2 minutes before it's done, add some of the stout to the pan and let it cook.  Remove the steak to rest and continue cooking the liquid until it is reduced and deliciously syrupy.

To cook the asparagus, place it onto a baking pan, or as I do, onto a folded sheet of foil and roast at 360 for 7-10 minutes.

Slice your steak and prepare your plate.  Drizzle your meat with sauce and enjoy that delicious.

I had the best dinner last night.  Steak with sauteed mushrooms and a glass of Bordeaux to die for!  At this moment I can't write up the preparation but I still want to show you the pictures.  It was so delicious, I just couldn't get enough and so simple you won't believe.  Pictures now, recipe to follow.

UPDATE

This is how it's done:

Sautee one package of wild mushrooms in some olive oil and 1/4 stick of butter.  I also like to take a spoonful of the steak sauce and stir it in.  Make sure to salt towards the end of cooking.

For the steak, season well with salt and pepper and sear in a very hot pan with very little fat for 3 minutes on each side.  Add about 1/2 cup of red wine, 1/4 cup beef stock, pat of butter.  Continue cooking on low heat for 5-7 minutes each side.  If sauce becomes low, just add a little more wine or beef stock.  When you take your beef out of the pan to rest, stir in a small dollop of creme fraiche for richness and make assure that the sauce is condensed down into a thick creamy sauce.

No one wants to cook on Friday nights but since NYC will be a rainy wonderland tonight, stay in and cook a hearty dinner.  Caramelized onion tarts and steak with white beans.