grilled strip steaks with argentine chimichurri

A and I spent his birthday last year in Buenos Aires. If you've never been, imagine gorgeous architecture (European though, not American in any way, and very classic, 19th century influence), cafes on every corner with young hip-looking people taking espressos with their friends, and best of all, a preference for steak and good wine at every meal. We had some of the best steaks ever (EVER), and these would normally cost around 10 USD. After A left, I stayed a few more days to work, and one of the meals I had with my coworkers was so good I have seriously considered taking a trip back there just so A could try this -- steak with chimichurri. I decided to grill a strip steak (not the thin skirt steaks the Argentines use), and find the best chimichurri recipe I could. The result wasn't exactly authentic (I mean, it's an Emeril recipe after all), but it was a way to share the experience with A, without flying him all the way there again.

Grocery list: couple of steaks (about 12 ounces each, I used local grass-fed strip steaks from WF), 1/2 cup olive oil, 1/3 cup red wine vinegar, 1 T fresh lemon juice, 1/2 cup chopped parsley, 2 T chopped fresh basil leaves, 2 tsp fresh oregano leaves, 3 garlic cloves, 1 shallot, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes. [Note, I made a half batch of the Emeril recipe and it was more than enough for 2 steaks - could have probably worked for 4 steaks at this amount also...]



One great thing about chimichurri: you can make it in the food processor, so it only takes a few minutes. Start by chopping the garlic and shallot, then pulse in the fresh herbs. Then, pour the olive oil and vinegar slowly in the top while continuing to pulse the food processor. Remove the bowl and blade, then stir in the lemon juice, followed by generous amounts of fresh ground pepper, a sprinkle of red pepper flakes; then season with salt to taste.



Put your steaks in a ziploc bag, then add enough of the chimichurri to marinate the meat (1/2 to 1 cup). Cover the rest of the chimichurri and set aside at room temperature. Refrigerate the steaks for at least 2 hours. Remove from the marinade, brush off any excess, then grill over medium-high heat for about 6-7 minutes per side, until cooked to medium or medium-rare. Let the steaks rest on a cutting board for 5-10 minutes before serving. On the side, we had white asparagus (the kind you have to peel first), tossed in olive oil and grilled. This was perfect with the chimichurri sauce covering the plate.

asparagus-ricotta tart with soppressata

I've seen a lot of food blogs touting all kinds of tarts and puff pastries, so I figured it's about time I featured one on AHB. In the April issue of Bon Appetit, there was a spring-y "asparagus-ricotta tart" that sneaks in little slices of soppressata, which spices up an otherwise fluffy tea party type of dish (yes, I really just called it that). It was delicious, but to feed my hungry bear, I'd have to make about 3 of them for one meal - and there's no way I can convince him that this is high-protein and low-carb enough. I think it would be best as an appetizer for cocktail hour, which I'll probably do in the future.

Grocery list: 1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed (note, I used about half a package of phyllo dough, spreading olive oil between the sheets, and it was great), 1 egg, 1 pound asparagus, 1/2 cup whole-milk ricotta, 3 ounces hot soppressata (note, this is twice what the original called for), 3 ounces grated comte or gruyere cheese.



If you end up using phyllo dough like I did, you'll want to prep it by brushing olive oil between the sheets. I used about 8-10 layers of phyllo, or half the package. If you were using puff pastry, you'd have to roll it out, then use the beaten egg to brush around the edges to form a crust. Transfer whatever crust you use to a 13 x 10 rimmed baking sheet.



Next, steam asparagus for 3 minutes, then cool in an ice water bath and drain. Cut off the top 2 inches of the asparagus stalks and set aside to use as toppings for the tart.



Roughly chop the rest of the asparagus and place in a food processor to puree; add the ricotta, the rest of the beaten egg, 3 tsp olive oil, and salt and pepper.



Transfer this puree to a bowl, then stir in chopped soppressata and about half of the grated gruyere.



Spread the filling evenly on the bottom of the pastry / phyllo crust. Toss the asparagus tips with 1 tsp olive oil and more salt and pepper, then arrange on the top of the tart. Sprinkle with the remaining gruyere cheese.



Bake for 20-25 minutes at 400 degrees, until the filling is set. Can be served warm or room temperature.

prosciutto-wrapped apsaragus with lemon-dijon vinaigrette

In this month's issue of Food & Wine, there's an article featuring Mario Batali and his favorite ways to grill "italian-style". The original recipe calls for pancetta and an orange-based citronette, but I modified it somewhat by using a simpler lemon and dijon sauce and by using prosciutto in place of pancetta. This is an easy way to make eating your vegetables a lot more fun and impressive at the same time (it went incredibly well with the steak au poivre; the simpler sauce didn't overpower with its flavor).

Grocery list: 1 bunch asparagus (thicker stalks are better -- less labor-intensive), 1 lemon, dijon mustard, olive oil, prosciutto.



Wash and trim the asparagus. Wrap a slice of prosciutto around each stalk -- I actually cut the prosciutto in half first so there wouldn't be too much meat per each asparagus. Chill the wrapped asparagus for 15-20 minutes. Prep the sauce: whisk together 1 tablespoon dijon, 2 T olive oil, the juice of 1 lemon, salt & pepper.

Using a grill pan or a grill, grill the asparagus over medium heat for 5 minutes, turning to brown all sides of the prosciutto. I placed the pan in a 350 degree oven for an additional 5 minutes to cook the asparagus through (didn't want to burn the prosciutto). Drizzle the sauce over the top to serve. As a side note, in the future I'll try pre-cooking the asparagus for a couple of minutes first so I won't have to bother with the oven.