Date Night Continued: Risotto with Mushrooms and Sage

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Every so often we need to put a little romance in the mix.

I thrive on the energy I get from going out, whether it may be a night out walking around the new 'Village' or trying a new restaurant, or listening to a live band.  I just love it!  MGG, not so much.  He doesn't get that same excitement level I get from a crowd.  

He likes to slow down, relax, and have a nice quiet, romantic evening in a quiet cafe or preferably at home.  This has led me to create some of our date nights, at home.  Setting the mood with candlelight, mood music, and a themed dinner helps create that intimate atmosphere.

Planning the menu if a fun part of the task in creating the event.  This night was a riff on an Italian theme that I deemed a "Night in Rome".  The menu consisted of a succulent Balsamic Steak, this decadent Risotto with Mushrooms and Sage, and some tender vegetables.  Round out the meal with a special wine we bought at a local vineyard, and some crusty bread, and you have one heck of a date night meal!  

Today, let explore the risotto.  I just love risotto.  MGG just loves risotto.  Although the steak was incredible, I will say that the star was the Risotto. Can you say comfort food? (as my Grandma would say, Oh. my. lands!)  It was creamy, earthy, and just so decadent.  We both wanted seconds...okay maybe thirds!

Now I know you are going to say risotto is involved.  It takes time, and yes, it does.  But it is so worth it.  So so worth it!   I was lucky enough to get a wonderful Breville Risotto Plus make for Christmas, which makes making risotto a snap.  So if you can splurge on this risotto/slow cookers (a multi tasking item) I would totally recommend it.  I love mine.  Just so you know, it sautes, is a rice cooker, a risotto maker, and a slow cooker all in one.  Love the double duty items!  So below I have my recipe, using my risotto maker, but I've included steps for making this on the stovetop as well.

The end result?  this was the bomb!  It came out perfect with my risotto make, just like you stood there stirring all evening. And this was the perfect, comforting side dish that made our date night even better!

Enjoy your date night!







Risotto with Mushrooms and Sage

Serves: Yields 8 side dish servings


2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 medium shallots, small diced
8 oz pound fresh baby bella mushrooms, sliced
1 teaspoon ground sage
salt & pepper
½ cup dry white wine
6 cups low sodium chicken broth
2 cups Arborio rice
¾ cup finely grated Parmesan cheese

In a saute pan, or if you have a saute feature on your slow cooker, cook shallots along with olive oil and butter until softened, about 3 to 4 minutes. Add the mushrooms and saute until softened slightly, about 3-5 minutes. Add sage and season with salt and pepper.

Add rice to toast, stirring frequently another 3 minutes. Add the wine and cook 2-3 minutes until the liquid is absorbed.

For the Risotto maker: Switch your setting from Saute to Risotto. Stir in the broth and cover with a lid. Risotto will cook about 20-30 minutes and will automatically switch to the WARM setting when complete. Remove the lid and stir through the cheese. Test for seasonings and serve.

For Stove top directions: Reduce your heat to medium. Use a ladle to add a cup of hot broth to the rice. Cook, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon over medium heat until broth is almost fully absorbed. Add the remaining stock a ladle at a time, stirring constantly and adding more broth only after the previous addition has been absorbed, until the rice begins to pull away from the sides of the pan, about 16 to 20 minutes.

The risotto is done when it is creamy and the grains are plump and tender with a slight resistance to the bite. Remove from heat and stir in the Parmesan. Serve immediately.

Date Night: Balsamic Steak

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Sometimes you want to have a little fancy dinner at home.

Like a date night.  Or a holiday celebration.  Or a birthday.

To me, fancy usually includes an indulgence, and really says "beef" to me.

That's what I LOVE...Steak!  I usually favor Filet Mignon, but I also love Flank, New York, and Sirloin steaks.  All cuts are juicy, cook up easily and taste great.  When I want to serve fancy slices of steak instead of a whole piece I usually go for a flank or sirloin steak.  London broil is another option that slices up nicely but is a tougher cut of meat and takes a little more prep and cooking to get it really tender.

MGG and I wanted to have a quiet date night at home.  A little cocktail time followed by a delicious dinner and mood music.  Then on to a great movie.  Everyone needs a little down time after the holidays.  (I know I sure do!)  So, tonight I chose a wonderful sirloin steak which I marinaded with some garlic, fresh cracked multicolored peppercorns, and balsamic vinegar. This marinade is a fabulous way to give the steak a lot of flavor.  A slight Italian themed meal is on the horizon!

There is about a 30 minute marinade time which you can do ahead.  The actual cooking time is about 15 minutes depending on how you like your meat cooked.

Serve this with my Risotto with Mushrooms and Sage (recipe coming up next!) and a vegetable of your choice and you have an elegant dinner at home!

Now this is what I call a fancy "Date Night" dinner at home! Date night was a complete success and will certainly be repeated in the near future.

Enjoy!






Balsamic Steak

serves 2

½ cup extra-virgin olive oil, divided
3 large cloves garlic, minced
½ teaspoon cracked black or multi-colored peppercorns
½ cup balsamic vinegar, divided
1 - 1 ½ pounds sirloin steak
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Combine ¼ cup of olive oil, the garlic, cracked peppercorns, and 2 tablespoons of the balsamic vinegar in a ziploc bag. Add the steak and seal the bag, turning to coat the steak completely. Marinate on the counter for 30 minutes

Heat a grill pan (or use and outdoor grill) over medium heat. Remove the steak from the marinade and discard. Place the steak on the grill pan and cook 3 minutes, then rotate the steak 90 degrees to create cross hatch grill marks. Cook for an additional 3-4 minutes. Brush the top of the steak generously with the balsamic vinegar then flip the steak. Brush the other side . Turn the steak over and brush the other side generously with balsamic vinegar. Cook 2 to 3 minutes, then rotate the steak 90 degrees. Cook and additional 3-4 minutes for medium temperature. Transfer to a platter and tent loosely with foil for 10 minutes before slicing against the grain in strips. Serve with a little extra balsamic vinegar drizzled if desired.

Filet Mignon with Bearnaise Sauce

Time for some beef!

Steak is my favorite, and I must say that I'm a filet mignon kinda girl.  I love that it's lean, and cooks up soooo tender!

After a week of turkey and chicken I'm ready for some steak.  This dish is a little more involved since it features Bearnaise Sauce to top the steak.  It lends such a wonderful flavor, it's a great addition to the steak, and is worth the effort.  The Bearnaise sauce comes from Martha Stewart.  She sure knows her stuff and her recipes come out perfect!  She's my go-to source when I want the best of the best!

When cooking a filet mignon, the following cooking technique is recommended because of the thickness of the steak.  In order to cook the inside enough and not char the outside a quick sear on the stove top and finishing it up in the oven is the best way.  All you need for the steak is some good old salt and pepper plus a hot skillet.  One that's oven proof.  If your skillet is not oven proof you will need to transfer the steaks to an oven safe pan for cooking.

Turn your oven on to 350 degrees and let it preheat.  Prepare the Bearnaise Sauce (recipe below).  Once completed start on the steak and any side dishes you may like.  Salt and pepper your steak and then sear on each 2-3 minutes.  Place seared steak and skillet in oven and continue to cook about 6 minutes for a medium done steak.  More or less time to your liking.

Remove steak from oven and allow to rest about 5 minutes.  Serve with Bearnaise Sauce poured over the top.  

Enjoy the deliciousness of a fabulous steak!

Bearnaise Sauce

By Martha Stewart

Ingredients

2 tablespoons tarragon vinegar

2 tablespoons dry white wine

1/4 cup very finely chopped shallots

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper, more if desired

1 tablespoon finely chopped tarragon leaves

3 large egg yolks

1 tablespoon water

1/2-3/4 cup unsalted butter, very soft ( I've always used 1 1/2 sticks)

coarse salt

pepper, if desired

lemon juice, if desired

Directions

Combine vinegar, wine, shallots, black pepper, and 1 1/2 teaspoons tarragon in a small saucepan.  Cook over medium heat until reduced to 1 tablespoon, 5 to 10 minutes.  Add egg yolks and 1 tablespoon of water to reduced vinegar mixture.  Whisk until thick and pale, about 2 minutes.

Set pan over moderately low heat and continue to whisk at reasonable speed reaching all over bottom and insides of pan, where eggs tend to overcook.  To moderate heat, frequently move pan off burner for a few seconds, then back on.

As they cook, the eggs will become frothy and increase in volume, then thicken.  When the bottom of the pan is visible in the streaks left by the whisk and the eggs are thick and smooth, remove from heat.

By spoonfuls, add soft butter, whisking constantly to incorporate each addition.  As the emulsion forms, add butter in slightly larger amounts, always whisking until fully absorbed.  Continue incorporating butter until sauce has thickened to consistency desired.  Season with salt, remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons chopped tarragon and, if desired, pepper.