I love any recipe that has the word “crazy” in it. Check this one out from our friends over at foodbuzz.com.

It’s craaaaaaaaaazy!

Crazy Steak and Potatoes

This ain’t jo mama’s steak and potatoes. Or maybe it is…who really knows. Let’s find out. Still cooking for one this evening, but I misjudged some calculations in the process, so this recipe is written for two. Necessary items:

2 steaks, roughly 1/3 lb each (I used filet this time, but NY strip or rib eye would work just fine)

2 medium yukon gold potatoes, cube to roughly 1/4″

1/3 C chopped fennel bulb

1T chopped fronds from fennel bulb

1 shallot

1 carrot (I’m using a leftover carrot from last night)

1/4 C grated Fontina cheese (or Parm or whatever)

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/3 C red wine (whatever you planned on drinking)

1/4 C low salt beef broth

1/4 C low salt chicken broth

1T tomato paste

1T olive oil

1T heavy creme or whipping creme

1 1/2 T non-salted butter

2T dried oregano

Salt and pepper to taste

Take the steak out of the fridge. Turn the oven on to 400. Combine in medium bowl potatoes, fennel bulb (not fronds), cheese, 1 clove minced garlic, oil, creme, oregano, salt and pepper. Oil or spray w/ cooking spray the interior of 2 cylindrical pieces of metal and place in roasting pan that has also been lightly oiled/sprayed. Toss all the stuff in the bowl until well combined and then pack into the cylinders. Place in oven and set timer for 20 minutes.

Pour/mix a drink. Dice the shallot and carrot. Mince the garlic. Pat the steaks completely dry and salt and pepper each side. Heat a pan on medium high heat and melt the butter until just sizzlin’. Place steaks in pan. (Take a look here for a piece of equipment that will make your life easier for a recipe like this. It’ll protect a lot of splatters and ease clean-up.) Turn the fan on ‘cause if you’re doing it right there’s gonna be lots of smoke. Cook 3 minutes each on the long sides and then 1 minute each on the other 4 sides so you have a nice browned sear on each side. This should realize a medium rare steak. Not sure how to tell if your steak is cooked enough? Try this.

Turn off heat. Place steaks on a plate and tent w/ foil. Let the pan cool for 2 minutes. Place 1/2 T butter in pan and turn the heat to medium. [By the way the timer for the potatoes probably went off about right now. Turn the heat for the potatoes completely off and let them continue to cook.] Back to the pan – saute shallots and carrot until relatively soft. Add wine and broths, tomato paste, minced garlic clove, oregano and boil until reduced to half, stirring occasionally. Set to simmer and add steaks back to pan. Add 1/2 T butter and stir sauce, occasionally flipping steak to warm back up and finish cooking. Do this for 2 to 3 minutes.

Plate steaks. Take potatoes out of oven. Use spatula to ease them off the pan (still in the cylinders) and place down on plates. Press down on tops of potatoes and carefully remove cylinder. Spoon sauce over steak and plate. Chop and sprinkle fennel fronds over potatoes.

Eat up.

You can see the entire article here.

Photo courtesy of foodbuzz.com.

I’m always interested to see what cut of steak people choose. And males and females seem to always gravitate toward specific ones.

This weekend we ate steak with two couples — neighbor friends. You can learn a lot about someone by the steak they eat. I always have a ribeye so I don’t count. We already know I have issues that need to be dealt with.

But the other two women? Filet mignon.

It never fails. It’s the smallest and debatably most tender cut. Perhaps they like to appear feminine and not at all hoggish.

I, on the other hand, have no problem eating every bite of my much larger ribeye.

The men fall into that “macho” category with two of them choosing KC strips and one a T-bone.

I like the T-bone, too. Does that make me macho?

I wore red lipstick that evening in an effort to scream, “I AM FEMALE!”

I hope it worked. Cuz my steak sure was good.

A good steak makes any recipe that much tastier. Here’s a soup recipe from Canada’s Heart and Stroke Foundation. And if they’re endorsing it it’s got to be heart-healthy as well! How could you go wrong with this one?

Steak and tomato soup

Makes 2 to 3 servings

Buy a small steak to create a full meal soup for two. Chockfull of vegetables and beef, this soup tastes fresh and delicious with little effort to get it on the table.

Ingredients

• 1 beef grilling steak, about 6 oz/175 g (such as rib eye, striploin or tenderloin)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp (5 mL) dried oregano
• 1/4 tsp (1 mL) hot pepper flakes
• 1 tbsp (15 mL) canola oil
• 1 onion, thinly sliced
• 1 stalk celery, thinly sliced
• 3 cups (750 mL) low sodium beef or chicken stock
• 1 1/2 cups (375 mL) diced canned tomatoes with juices
• 2 cups (500 mL) frozen mixed vegetables
• 1 tbsp (15 mL) Worcestershire sauce

Directions

1. Trim visible fat from steak and discard. Thinly slice steak and place in bowl. Add garlic, oregano and hot pepper flakes and toss to coat; set aside.
2. In nonstick skillet heat half of the oil over medium high heat and brown steak on both sides, reserving any garlic and herbs for onions. Remove to plate.
3. Add remaining oil to soup pot over medium heat and add onion, celery and any remaining garlic and herbs from steak and cook, stirring for 7 minutes or until softened. Add stock, tomatoes, vegetables and Worcestershire sauce and bring to a boil. Add browned steak; reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes for flavours to develop.

Tip: Use frozen diced vegetables like carrots, peas and corn or green beans for the vegetables. Any small vegetable mixes will work well too.

Nutrition information per serving

• Calories: 242
• Protein: 19 g
• Fat: 9 g
  • Saturated fat: 2 g
  • Cholesterol: 25 g
• Carbohydrates: 24 g
  • Fibre: 5 g
• Sodium: 517 mg
• Potassium: 841 mg

Developed by Emily Richards, P.H. Ec. ©The Heart and Stroke Foundation.

You can see the recipe and their other great resources here.