SUNDAY
Beer Marinated New York Strip Steaks | Porter-Gorgonzola Butter | Green Beans Vinaigrette | Baked Potatoes
I am currently reading three books. Yes, that is right…three. Now before you jump to the conclusion that I am lady of leisure who spends her days lounging on a chaise in silk pajamas, sipping tea and reading novels…stop, because that is so far from my reality. In between writing a daily blog here, and maintaining a blog over there, carpools, football practices, riding lessons, workouts, meetings, preparing meals, and photographing food I squeeze in a few pages here and there. In the pickup line at school, at practices and riding lessons, at the carwash, waiting for Michael at the ferry and, if I happen to be reducing a sauce for 8 or 10 minutes, I often toggle between the recipe I am preparing and the Kindle on my iPad. I have to admit that the Kindle/iPad, with it’s ability to give you immediate access to books via download, has greatly contributed to my ever expanding reading habit…I am a sucker for instant gratification. So, what literary works are filling these occasional pockets of time throughout my day? Well, honestly, books about food. Crazy isn’t it? I eat food, I shop for food, I cook food, I photograph food, I write about food and, in between it all, I read about food.
It has been almost a year since I started this blog and, in that time, sharing my dinner with you all every evening, I have become increasingly more aware and particular as to the food we eat on a daily basis. I have come to learn that our society has so much misinformation as to what constitutes healthy food {tofu…a big no!} and a healthy diet {non-fat…no way!}. It is a fascinating, and at times appalling, education. If you are interested in learning more about the foods we eat, the dangers sitting on our grocery-store shelves and the science behind processed sugar and flour I highly recommend the following reads…
Now, back to dinner…
Michael is home after traveling two weeks in Finland and Japan and during that time he had recurring visions of steaks on the grill. So, naturally, that is what we are having for dinner tonight…Welcome home honey! I came across this recipe for beer marinated steaks while posting on my Tumblr blog earlier this week and thought this would be a perfect dinner for Michael’s return home. After all, it has two of Michael’s favorites…steak and beer…and the recipe is so easy to prepare, leaving us plenty of time to enjoy our Sunday together as a family.
I put the steaks in a simple marinade of beer {we used Guinness stout}, Worcestershire sauce, smoked paprika and onion powder in the morning and then tucked them, covered, into the refrigerator for about six hours. The port-goronzola butter came together in about 5 minutes in a food processor and then it chilled for about an hour in the refrigerator…
I followed both recipes exactly which you can find by clicking here. The steak and the accompanying butter were both fantastic. The beer was a tenderizer for the meat and the steaks came off the grill so tender and juicy. If steak ranks among your favorites, definitely give this recipe a try!
A baked potato and steamed French green beans dressed in this vinaigrette from Food52 rounded out our Sunday dinner. The vinaigrette was simple, basically a combination of red wine and sherry vinegars with a touch of Dijon and honey whisked together with some olive oil but the added flavor was the perfect finish for the beans. I made a double batch of the dressing which I will use throughout the week on lunch salads and our dinner salad later in the week.
A note on the green beans…the recipe at Food52 calls for boiling the green beans but I prefer steaming the beans…
As Nigel Slater writes in his book, Tender…”I have said elsewhere that I often prefer green vegetables boiled rather than steamed, but I find the opposite with beans. There is something about the bean family’s flesh that works exceptionally well in the steamer. I trim my beans, then cook them in a covered steamer basket over boiling water. I find this way they keep their color and the flavor is often better.”
This evening I cooked a pound of French green beans in my bamboo steamer…exactly 3 minutes yielded perfect beans. A wonderful Sunday dinner in 4 easy steps…
