The Best Beef Tenderloin Ever!

                                                         

This is the one dish that started me trekking down the path of kitchen Nirvana a little over a year ago.  In my ever increasing recipe repertoire, this is by far my and Aqua Man’s most favorite entree.

The only down side is obviously the cost.  I had never purchased beef tenderloin before attempting this recipe and was literally shocked/flabbergasted/blown away at the price tag the butcher slapped on my 3 lb. tenderloin.  This is most likely a “special occasion” dish, but trust me, it’s worth every penny and bite.  J

One quick little tip, while you can’t beat super store prices like Sam’s, I would recommend trying you local butcher.  Where the tenderloin is pre-packaged, they give you the WHOLE tenderloin, usually somewhere in the 4-5 lb. + range.  Your local butcher might be willing to cut you a smaller piece and you can request that they trim the fat, saving you time and the gross job of dealing with it.  If you go the Sam’s Club route, never fear, Beef Tenderloin freezes well and there are tons of ways to prepare it!

Ingredients:

• 1 ½ Pounds Beef Tenderloin, trimmed and tied ( I use standard kitchen twine)
• 2 Teaspoons coarse Salt
• 1 Teaspoon freshly ground Pepper
• 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
• 2 Tablespoons Balsamic Vinegar
• 1 Cup Chicken Stock
• 1 Tablespoon Dijon Mustard
• 2 Teaspoons Grainy Mustard
• 2 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter

*Here’s where I deviate from the original recipe:

The original calls for 3 large Shallots, peeled and cut into ¼ inch thick rounds, I use:

• 3 Leeks, white and light green parts only

Adapted from: Martha Stewart Living

** I must admit I have never tried this recipe with the shallots, once I substituted leeks, I haven’t looked back and don’t plan to any time soon!  If you decide to go with the original recipe, please let me know how it turns out.

Preparation:

Start by heating your oven to 425 degrees.  Coat your tied piece of Tenderloin with Salt and Pepper.  Select a skillet with an oven-proof handle, place over medium high heat and add the Olive Oil.

When the Olive Oil is sufficiently hot, add the meat and sear on all sides until that lovely shade of crispy-brown is attained. 

Transfer the skillet, with the meat, to the pre-heated oven for 10 minutes.  After the 10 minutes, add the leeks to the pan and return to the oven for 15-20 minutes longer, or until your meat thermometer registers 135 degrees.

Remove the Tenderloin from the pan and set aside.  Place the skillet with the leeks over medium high heat and deglaze the pan by adding the Balsamic Vinegar, making sure to stir up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan.  Add your Chicken Stock, and simmer until the sauce begins to reduce, about 2-3 minutes. 

Reduce the heat to low and add both Mustards and the Butter.  If not serving immediately, make sure to keep the sauce warm.  Cut the Tenderloin into ½ inch slices and smother with the sauce. 

One bite of this and if your family and/or guests aren’t singing your praises, disown them and pick a bunch of more appreciative people!

This does freeze fairly well, again my only recommendation would be to cut up the tenderloin before, unless you enjoy eating micro-waved hockey pucks.

- - Just in case you’re wondering about the sides that are pictured, the Mashed Potatoes are standard, but I do love, love, love my Green Beans.  The recipe came from Aqua Man’s mother and I couldn’t be happier. - -

I usually use just about 1 lb. of green beans, snapped.  I boil these until tender crisp and then drain and remove from the pot.  Next I add 1 onion, diced, to the same pot and fry over medium high heat until soft.  Then I add the green beans back to the pot and pour in an entire 3 ounce package of Oscar Mayer Real Bacon Bits.  Now here comes the secret.  Lastly I add Colgin’s Mesquite Liquid Smoke.  This little bottle contains a magic sauce that simulates the process of grilling over mesquite wood.  It is quite potent, so I would start out slowly and taste test to the right amount.  After adding the Liquid Smoke, I stir the ingredients and heat until everything is warm and delicious. So good!

Also, just so you know, I suffered my first cooking related accident, yes, I am human and make many, many mistakes.  This one involved me and the oven-proof skillet handle.  Obviously, the handle won. Ouch  : (  Have no fear, it's healing well.

Back to the Basics People!

Cream of Mushroom Soup

I know I've mentioned in the past that food is art, but that doesn't necessarily mean that it has to take hours and hours slaving over a hot stove.  Sometimes it's best to take a step back and start at the very beginning, the ABC’s of the kitchen.

Ingredients:

• 10 ounces of White Mushrooms
• 1 Tablespoon Sunflower Oil
• 3 Tablespoons Butter
• 1 small Onion, minced
• 1 Tablespoon All-Purpose Flour
• 2 Cups Vegetable Stock
• 2 Cups Milk
• A pinch of dried Basil
• 2-3 Tablespoons Light Cream (optional)
• Salt and Pepper to taste

Source: The Soup Bible

Before we dive right in, I want to come clean about my relationship with mushrooms.  For many years I avoided the little buggers at every cost, spending numerous family dinners patiently picking them out of whatever dish,  letting my dinner go cold and always ending up the last one at the table.   

But in  a recent effort to try new and daring things (yes, to me ‘shrooms are daring) you might see a recurrent theme of mushrooms through several of my next few dishes.  So not being versed with this particular ingredient, I decided to start simple, really simple...

Preparation:

To start, the mushroom caps need to be separated from the stems.  Finely slice the caps and finely chop the stems.  Next heat the Sunflower Oil and ½ the butter in your sauce pan.  Add to this the minced onion, ‘shroom stems and roughly ¾’s of the sliced mushroom caps.  Fry the mushrooms and onions for 1-2 minutes, stirring frequently.  Reduce the heat, cover the pan and sweat over low heat for 6 or 7 minutes.

Now it’s time for the flour, stir it in and cook for about 1 minute.  Slowly add the Vegetable Stock and the milk, making a smooth, thin sauce.  Bring the mixture to a boil, and then lower the heat and simmer, only partly covered, for 15 minutes.

It’s break time!  Let the soup cool slightly, I say 5-10 minutes.  Pour into a food processor and blend until smooth.  Now add the remaining butter and fry the last of the mushroom caps over low heat for 3-4 minutes, until tender.  Remove these and rinse the pan.  Now pour the blended soup back in the pan, add the fried mushrooms and heat until very hot.  This is your chance to taste the soup and adjust your Salt and Pepper.  Also if you’re using the Light Cream (which I highly recommend) this is the time to add it.  All that’s left to do now is to serve it up.  Well, that and the dishes (sorry)!

 Now doesn't that look yummy?  It is, Boys and Girls!  Quick, simple, short ingredient list, and a hearty meal, there's nothing more to it.

Chicken Scallopine

Alright, for my first act, let me introduce you to Chicken Scallopine.  This fabulous blend of chicken, mushrooms, wine and heavy cream is absolutely scrumptious, as well as quick and easy.  To be honest it was love at first mention of wine and heavy cream.  I have yet to meet any recipe with these two stars that was less than yummy!

The Ingredients:

• 1 Pound Linguine
• 6 Whole Boneless, Skinless, trimmed Chicken breasts
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• Flour
• 2 Tablespoon Olive Oil
• 4 Tablespoon Butter
• 12 ounces, weight White Mushrooms, thinly sliced
• 1 cup Dry White Wine   (yay!)
• Chicken Broth (optional)
• 1 Whole Lemon, juiced and set aside
• ½ cups Heavy Cream
• 1 Teaspoon (heaping) Capers
• Chopped Fresh Italian Parsley
• Parmesan Cheese, for topping

Source: Pioneer Women, August 24, 2009

First I cooked the linguine according to package instructions and then set aside for later. 

Now it’s time for the chicken.  You need to flatten your chicken breasts to uniform thickness.  The easiest method I’ve used in the past is to cover the breast with a Ziploc bag and literally pound the heck out of it with a kitchen mallet ( a very essential tool in my personal opinion). 

Unfortunately, I started this meal quite late (Aqua Man and I have some very bad habits, including eating late), so in an effort to appease my neighbors, I skipped this step, hence the plumpness in the photos.

After flattening your chicken breasts, salt and pepper both sides and then dredge with flour.  Then heat the butter and olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.  Fry chicken breasts until they achieve that lovely golden brown color on each side.  Remove them to a plate and set aside.  You may, depending on the size of your skillet, have to fry your chicken in batches.

Now your skillet is ready for your thinly sliced mushrooms.  Throw your 'shrooms into the skillet and stir.  Immediately pour in the wine (yay!) and chicken broth, if using.  I personally added ½ cup.  Now add the lemon juice.  Stir to deglaze the pan, making sure to scrape up any golden-chicken goodies stuck to the pan.  Cook for about one minute while the sauce reduces.

Now it’s time for the other star player, the heavy cream.  Pour it into your pan and stir, then add the capers and parsley and stir.  Turn off the heat.  Continue to stir the sauce while adding salt and pepper to taste.  That means you actually need to taste the sauce beforehand to get an idea what amount to add people!

Now for the plating of this glorious dish….  This part is up to you.  Pasta, Chicken, Sauce and Parmesan, how could you go wrong?  Food is art and every artist has their own views and tastes.  No matter what you choose, just be sure not to waste a single drop of sauce, after all it is the coup de grace!

Ta da!  From beginning to end, we’re talking about less than an hour until you have a fabulous, hearty meal with a sauce to die for.  After making this for the first time, I will admit that I did double the ingredients to make more sauce, but again, it’s your preference.   Bon Appétit!!   

**One more quick little side note, this dish does fairly well with freezing, my only suggestion is to cut the chicken up before freezing for easier and more consistent defrosting.   

Introduction

Hello to all and welcome to my blog. 

First, a little background, you may skip to the next section if you so please.  I have cooked; no I should say “prepared” food for years.  I am confident that many people will deny that Hamburger Helper could be considered cooking.  With our move to Indianapolis and on the cusp of my 30’s, I stumbled onto, and literally dove head-first, into a new-found passion.  I have subsequently banned my boyfriend from the kitchen (he shall now be known as Aqua Man) and deemed it my lair and providence from now until kingdom come.  Should you like to put a name to the acts of glorious success and absolute catastrophe, you may call me simply Gibson. 

Just so we understand each other, IF you are a calorie counter, non-fat butter, skim milk sort of person, this may not be the blog for you.  One of the best mottoes out there is “exercise, eat right, die anyway.  I want my food, all of it, to be heaven on a plate - the kind of heaven that has you unabashedly licking not only your fingers, but your plate as well.   

Another quick thing, I have to thank a few of my supporters, first Aqua Man, who puts up with me on a daily basis and also Mrs. F, who without her (and her fabulous husband Mr. F and wonderful son Baby Luke) this blog would have never come to fruition.  

After all of the above, if you are still reading, I entreat you to join me – through both triumph and loss, as I strive to dish up the most delectable meals you (and possibly your mom) have ever seen.  Oops, I almost just forgot, one more little disclaimer: I am not, or never would claim to be “a professional (unless you count nap-taking and then I would say Bring It On!).”  I dabble, at the best of times, so proceed with caution, this path may lead both to Nirvana, but also to Purgatory - it’s your choice.  I will try to represent the methods and materials behind the madness and be your tour guide through my kitchen capers.