steak in a bag

Steak in a bag…It’s delicious.  Veronica gave me this recipe about 25 years ago.  I wrote the recipe on an index card.  I’m sure it made sense to me at the time, but not so much anymore.  Here is the adjusted version.  I hope it makes sense 25 years from now.  The original recipe calls for top sirloin.  I made this for Sunshine’s Mom when Sunshine lived at the beach.  The oven was old, and never really got up to temperature.  It cooked low and slow.  No knife needed when it finally came out.

• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 tablespoons butter, softened
• 2 teaspoons season salt
• 1 tablespoon season pepper
• 2 cups fresh egg bread crumbs
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 cup shredded jack cheese
• 2-3 pound top sirloin steak (I used tenderloin of beef)

Combine garlic, olive oil, season salt and pepper.  Rub onto meat.

Schmear it.

Combine bread crumbs and cheese and pack it onto the meat.

Wrap tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

Preheat oven to 375º.  Place in a paper bag on a sheet pan and bring to room temperature.  Bake until desired doneness.  Check internal temperature by using an instant read thermometer: approximately 125º  for medium rare.

Let meat rest for 30 minutes before serving.  Check out the article on Serious Eats – The Food Lab on the importance of resting meat.

And this is from one of the top chefs in the country – Thomas Keller:

Tempering and resting:

“Two of the most important parts of cooking are “tempering” meats and fish that have come out of the refrigerator (letting them come to room temperature) and resting meats and fish after you remove them from heat.  Tempering happens on the countertop away from the stove, and resting takes place in a warm spot such as the top of your stove.  They should both be considered critical parts of the cooking process.

If you put a piece of meat, poultry, or fish straight from the refrigerator into a hot pan or oven, it can’t possibly cook evenly.  To ensure even cooking, you must allow it to come to room temperature.
The bigger the item, the more necessary this is.  A whole chicken or prime rib should sit a room temperature for at least a hour, even longer for a large roast.  But smaller cuts benefit from being allowed to come to room temperature before going into the heat.

Equally significant is the resting period after the food has been removed from the heat.  Everything continues to cook once it’s out of the heat, an effect called carry over cooking.  But, even more important, as meat rests, the juices can redistribute throughout the meat.  The meat fibers also firm up a little as the rest and are able to hold more juices.  Allow a good long rest for big roasts, 30 minutes or so and for whole birds, at least 20 minutes.  Don’t worry about food getting cold, the dense flesh stays hot for a long time.  The smaller the item, the less time it needs to rest.  The only items you should not let rest are thin fish fillets, which lose moisture easily and can dry out.”

I’m getting rid of the clutter.  It’s a beginning-of-the-year thing.  Cecilia turned me on to a great little book: Clearing your Clutter with Feng Shui by Karen Kingston, so now I’m on a mission!

I just got a new rotisserie (Thom and Laura got the old one) and needed space for the new one in my kitchen.

So…the cappuccino maker needs to go.  I like it, I just don’t use it very often.  It needs a loving home.

Who wants it?