May 7, 2012 Sautéed steak and mushrooms with artichoke and lasagna

May 7, 2012 Sautéed steak and mushrooms with artichoke and lasagna

I boiled two artichokes yesterday.  They were the flatter ones, but they turned out to have leaves that were thickly covered with soft flesh, so I now think I like them better than the more elongated type.

We decided to eat PPI lasagna with the artichokes so we thawed a boneless rib eye steak to grill.  Since the wind was howling and Suzette did not wish to outside to grill, I suggested that we sauté the steak with mushrooms and Suzette agreed.  So I sliced four mushrooms and two shallots and smashed a clove of garlic and Suzette sautéed that in a large iron skillet with the steak and a bit of garlic infused olive oil and about 1½ Tbsp. of butter.  After the steak had cooked for about ten minutes I added about 2 Tbsp. of red vermouth and we cooked it for about another five minutes, which cooked the steak to medium rare.  We heated several slices of lasagna in the microwave and I made a sauce for the artichoke using about ½ cup of mayonnaise, the juice of ½ lemon and a dash of dried dill.

We selected a bottle of Cutler Creek Cabernet Sauvignon (Sunflower Market $3.33 per bottle), which was very light and let the subtle flavors of the meat and mushrooms shine through.  The lasagna tasted better the second day.  We loved the meal.

A note - I found a kale leave that had fallen near the gas flame on the stove and dried out or become toasted.  I tasted it and it was crisp and yet chewy and I loved the flavor.  I will experiment with this concept. We have previously fried sage leaves in olive oil but I think I like the flavor of the dry roasted kale better than the oily flavor of the sage.

A very simple meal if you have the proper PPI.

Bon Appétit