Recently I decided to make a spur of the moment, winter-warming romantic meal for two. It had been a long hard Saturday afternoon in the beauty salon (what? It hurts) and I found my mind turning over what to have for dinner. I was on Kentish Town high street so having the luxury of a great butchers -Harry's Fine Food's - and brimming greengrocers a few meters away, the world was my oyster (in a manner of speaking, it's not oyster season just yet).
I love walking into the butchers with no idea of what I'm making and working my way out from whichever meat takes my fancy. That day it was the fillet steak. I bought 2 relatively small pieces for £7 (the sides maketh the meal), and started checking out the cheese. I only like blue cheese in the winter, and then mainly in cooking but then I really like it. I noticed a bin end piece of Oxford blue looking a little sorry for itself and Harry being the fine butcher that he is took pity on me and insisted that I have it for free. This, my friends is the value in having a good relationship with your local grocers. Higher quality food and conversation at lower prices.
Walking out of Harry's, beaming to myself I decided what to do with my prize goods. The greengrocer furnished me with 2 English potatoes, covered in large clods of earth, a handful of green beans, 6 button mushrooms and 6 shallots. On the way home, I picked up a 1/2 fat creme fraiche and I was all set - store cupboard essentials allowing.
Ingredients:
2 fillet steaks
A handful of green beans
2 tbsp olive oil
For the sauce:
6 shallots finely chopped
6 button mushrooms thinly sliced
100ml 1/2 fat creme fraiche
1 tsp dried tarragon
1 tsp dijon mustard
1 tsp white wine vinegar
A good glug of red wine
For the rosties:
4 or 5 large slices of stale white bread, dried out in the oven and crumbed or 100g breadcrumbs
4 medium sized potatoes mashed and cooled in the fridge
100g blue cheese crumbled
Salt and pepper to taste
Make sure that your steaks are sitting out of the fridge for 1/2 hour before you cook them. Start by making your sauce: heat some oil in a deep frying pan over a medium heat and add your shallots. Stir constantly until browned, then add your mushrooms, creme fraiche, tarragon, vinegar and mustard. Allow the sauce to bubble and thicken for a few minutes before adding your wine. Simmer over a low heat until the right thickness for you.
Meanwhile heat some oil in a non-stick pan and make your rosties. Take the crumbled blue cheese and HALF the breadcrumbs. Mix by hand into your potato mash. You want your mixture to be mouldable into balls - if it needs stiffening, add a little flour until this is possible. Form the mixture into patties about 4 or 5" across. Spread the remaining crumbs onto a chopping board and roll the patties in the crumbs until roughly coated. Once all are done, place one side up in the hot oil and fry for 3-4 minutes on either side or until the sides are golden.
You'll want to put your beans and steaks on, as you come to the end of this process. Steam the beans with a little olive oil, salt and white pepper if you have it. They should take about 3 minutes but make sure your water is boiling before you put them on. For the steaks, rub a few maldon rock salt flakes into them, and cook in a non-stick pan with a little olive oil for a few minutes per side. Make sure you leave them at least 5 minutes to rest before serving. The sauce will heat them up again if you get it bubbling before you pour.
Did I mention that the entire meal cost me £8. Yeah, yeah, I got the cheese for free. So you might end up spending £10-15 especially if you get bigger steaks but this is still an incredibly good value romantic night in even if I do say so myself. Enjoy.
Flo and Elle steak blue cheese potato rostie shallot mushroom red wine sauce Flo and Elle steak blue cheese potato rostie shallot mushroom red wine sauce Flo and Elle steak blue cheese potato rostie shallot mushroom red wine sauce Flo and Elle steak blue cheese potato rostie shallot mushroom red wine sauce Flo and Elle steak blue cheese potato rostie shallot mushroom red wine sauce Flo and Elle steak blue cheese potato rostie shallot mushroom red wine sauce Flo and Elle steak blue cheese potato rostie shallot mushroom red wine sauce Flo and Elle steak blue cheese potato rostie shallot mushroom red wine sauce Flo and Elle steak blue cheese potato rostie shallot mushroom red wine sauce Flo and Elle steak blue cheese potato rostie shallot mushroom red wine sauce Flo and Elle steak blue cheese potato rostie shallot mushroom red wine sauce Flo and Elle steak blue cheese potato rostie shallot mushroom red wine sauce Flo and Elle steak blue cheese potato rostie shallot mushroom red wine sauce Flo and Elle steak blue cheese potato rostie shallot mushroom red wine sauce Flo and Elle steak blue cheese potato rostie shallot mushroom red wine sauce Flo and Elle steak blue cheese potato rostie shallot mushroom red wine sauce Flo and Elle steak blue cheese potato rostie
