Steak Night

Burk Ridge Farms, Whatcom County 100% Grass Fed Porterhouse
From Rainshadow Meats, Pioneer Square

Phil rode his bike home from work last Saturday.  He had a couple of hours to put in at the office, and it was a glorious, sunny day.  He could ride the ferry across the Sound, and peddle a few miles home, but that’s what mortals do.  Phil takes the overland route via Redmond, Tacoma, Gorst, Bremerton, Silverdale, and Poulsbo for a 100+ miles in the saddle.  If past is prologue, he will arrive just in time for cocktails, legs speckled in chain grease and road dirt (which is sexier than it sounds), claim he didn’t really exert himself (which is just as annoying as it sounds), and then proclaim he is starving.  Ah. For this I have a plan.  It involves steak.  Really, really good steak.

Let’s take a step back here and talk about meat. 

We’d rather have a brilliant, locally sourced, dry-aged, 100% grass-fed steak every couple of months, than something mediocre more often. Lucky for all of us, there are great local places to buy meat.  There are small farms where, if you like, you can shake the hand of the rancher and observe the animals that will one day become your dinner, like Seabreeze Farm on Vashon Island, Shorts Family Farm in Chumacum, or Hey Day Farms on Bainbridge Island.  

SeaBreeze Farm, Vashon Island Uber Dry-Aged Porterhouse

There are also full-service artisan butcher shops sourcing whole local animals, using the nose-to-tail philosophy, so that no part of the animal is wasted, like The Swinery and Rainshadow Meats. 

 Boneless Strip, Harlow Cattle Company, Spanaway, Washington 

We frequently shop at Rainshadow Meats. In addition to beef, pork, chicken, and occasionally duck, goose, turkey, and rabbit, they smoke bacon, make sausages, pate, killer meatballs, duck confit, and more.

Back to tonight's steak.  The butcher cut a steak to Phil’s specifications.  Whether it’s a côte de boeuf, strip steak, or porterhouse, Phil wants it 1-3/4 inches thick.  Why?  Because we like it that way.  One of many great things about having a relationship with a local butcher is that you get what you like, not what’s been mass-packaged, squished between Styrofoam and shrink wrap. That’s no way to splurge.

As soon as you get home with your precious bundle of meaty goodness, sprinkle 1 teaspoon sea salt per pound evenly over both sides of the steak.  Cover and refrigerate at least an hour, and preferably 24 hours.

Côte de Boeuf, Strawberry Mountain Farm, John Day, Oregon 


You can pan-fry, broil, or even deep fry a steak, marinate it, coat it in a rub, etc., but why would you?  You’ve just paid upwards of $60 for about 2-1/2 pounds of exceptional beef.  Don't you want to taste it? I’m in bed with the Tuscans on steak prep.  Bistecca alla Fiorentina.  
Wait, something is missing.  A drink!  It's summer.  The sun is shining.  Let's make daiquiris.


Daiquiri Rebelde
1/2 oz fresh lime juice
1/2 oz simple syrup (1:1 raw sugar to water)
2 - 3 fresh mint leaves, plus 1 for garnish
3 oz Bull Run Distiller's Pacific White Rum
Combine all ingredients in shaker with ice, shake and strain into chilled cocktail glass, up or on the rocks. Garnish with mint leaf.

Drink me now. 

On to cooking.  I turn you over to Phil.  Grill man, take it away . . . 

Refer to Heather's previous post on smoking chicken for how to prepare a gas grill. 

To sum up: soak some chips (I like mesquite for steak) for half hour beforehand. Wrap chips in foil, poke a few holes in foil. Fire up the gas grill. If you've got the time, talent, and inclination, use charcoal. I have none of the above. 

When grill is good ‘n’ hot, add chips.  When wood is smoking, slap that steak on the heat. I did this steak for four minutes each side. Then transfer to cool side of the grill (i.e., turn off all burners but one and move the steak over there). Grill five minutes more each side. If you like a hint of rosemary, as the Tuscans do, take a generous sprig, dip it in olive oil, and brush the steak before each turn.

I know there are professionals who say turn only once and never fuss over the meat. I envy those people. They are people who have staff to start their Argentine bonfire and who remain conveniently off-camera so you don’t know how much work or time is involved. But I digress.

While the steak is grilling, peel a large clove of garlic and cut it in half.  

We eat steak rare, and so remove it from the grill when the internal temperature registers 120-degrees on an instant read thermometer.  With a little experimentation you'll find the temperature that works for you.

Please note that your mileage will inevitably vary from steak to steak. A fattier piece will flare up more, resulting in more char. (And oh, how we can tell you some horror stories).  Marbling affects how fast the meat cooks.  In other words, keep an eye on your steak.

I think we (the collective we) are uncomfortable with the idea that the meat is still cooking while it rests. If you leave it on the grill until it “looks right” it will probably be overdone.  At first I thought this steak was underdone, but it was perfect. Of course, we like our meat bloody. 

I now turn you back over to Long Suffering Wife. . . 

Remove the steak from the grill and immediately rub both sides vigorously with the cut sides of the garlic.  Tent steak with foil and REST FOR 10 MINUTES. Yes, I shouted that.

Remove foil.  If your steak has a bone, cut around the bone to release the meat.  Nibble delicious nubbins of beef from bone.  Share with your spouse/partner. Slice steak across the grain into approximately ½-inch slices.  Plate what you will be eating.  Embellish with a squirt of fresh lemon juice and a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil.

 Mangia tutti.

When you approach the tableside with these intimidating monsters and carve them up, your guests will tremble with awe, basking in your magnificence and casual impertinence.

  -- Anthony Bourdain

Sliced Porterhouse with a Simple Salad of 
Heirloom Tomato, Crusty Bread, Fresh Basil, Olive Oil, and Sea Salt 

The last word:  We get three dinners for two out of a large porterhouse steak.  What to do with leftovers? They're excellent cold on a salad with a red wine vinaigrette, or how about the steak tacos of your dreams?

A Summer (Strawberry) Romance

   Hello, gorgeous

There's a line in a song that goes something like "How can I miss you if you don't go away?" After a winter of abstinence, there is heightened pleasure in eating fruits and vegetables just pulled from the ground or plucked from the vine.

Last week I sat in my car at the Day Road farm stand, a flat of Bainbridge Island Farms strawberries on the seat beside me. I picked one up and bit into thick, garnet flesh, shot through with juice impossibly sweet. I ate another, eyes closed, my head resting against the seat. I may have moaned. Just a little.

Heading home, I ate berries one by one, tossing the rough green tops out the sunroof. Hedonistic pleasure, parceled in tiny jewel-toned bites.  

In winter when our farms lie fallow, I cook for comfort with the corn, tomatoes, peppers, blueberries, raspberries, and strawberries tucked in my freezer when at their peak, and wait patiently for this June day.

What to do with this bounty?  

Make a plan before going home.

The shelf life of local berries is less than 24 hours. After eating as many as you can out of the box without making yourself ill, try these recipes to extend the love affair.

As simple as it gets. Three ingredients become more than the sum of their parts with fresh berries, good sour cream (the only ingredients should be cream and enzymes), and dark muscovado sugar. Dip berry in sour cream, dip again in sugar. Eat.  

Of course you're going to make freezer jam. No cooking, no sterilizing jars, no lengthy prep. Buy a box of fruit pectin, such as Sure Jell, a bag of sugar, and a lemon.  (Some recipes call for a tablespoon or two of lemon juice, others don't. Lemon cuts through a bit of the sugar, so I use it.) Follow the directions for freezer jam in the pectin package. Spend 45 minutes washing, hulling, crushing, stirring and scooping jam into jars. With that wee effort comes months of the freshest and best tasting jam on the planet, with plenty left over for much sought-after hostess gifts.

Next up:  Pop Tarts!

Your friends and family will believe you have super powers if you use your homemade strawberry jam in pop tarts. Here's the recipe from Bon Appetit: Strawberry Pop Tarts Make a double batch and freeze them. The recipe says they freeze for up to a week. Balderdash. I've frozen them for a month and they've been perfect. You can cut them in any shape or size. Just don't over fill with jam, and seal the edges well. I used a 2 x 2 ravioli stamp for the pop tarts in the photo above, but I've also used a heart-shaped cookie cutter, or gone free-form with a pastry wheel or knife. With these darlings on hand, you're 30 minutes away from an elegant little dessert any time. 

And now, the moment you've been waiting for: Ice Cream!  

Roasted Strawberry, Balsamic, and Fresh Rosemary Ice Cream 

I first had a version of this ice cream at Salt & Straw in Portland. It was assertive, potent with vinegar.  I liked it, but it wasn't something I'd eat a quart of. I wanted a more nuanced approach. After trying several online versions, I went back to my own ice cream template and tweaked it. The final result is ultra-smooth, with a subtle back note of rosemary and balsamic. Roasting the strawberries gives them a dark, mellow taste.  All grown up like.

Roasted Strawberry Balsamic Rosemary Ice Cream

Yield 1.5 quarts

1 pint strawberries
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/8 cup balsamic vinegar    
1 tablespoon vodka, cherry heering, Luxardo cherry liquor, or kirsch (optional, but recommended)

2 cups heavy cream
1/2 cup milk

3/4 cup granulated sugar   

1, 4-inch sprig of fresh rosemary
pinch of sea salt 
3 egg yolks 
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 425°. Rinse and hull strawberries. Place them on a baking sheet lined with foil. Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons of sugar and balsamic vinegar and macerate for about 15 minutes. Roast in oven for 10-15 minutes until soft, but not mushy.

Cool, then transfer berries and accumulated syrup, along with 1 tablespoon liquor (if using) to a bowl, cover and refrigerate.  

Whisk egg yolks in a bowl until frothy. Combine cream, milk, sugar, salt and rosemary sprig in heavy saucepan. Heat cream mixture over medium heat on the stove until temperature reaches 170° on an instant-read digital thermometer. Slowly drizzle the warm cream mixture into the eggs, whisking constantly. Return egg and cream mixture to the pan and cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until mixture reaches 180°. Do not let the mixture boil or you'll get sweet scrambled eggs.  Yuck.

Remove and discard rosemary sprig. Strain custard through a mesh sieve into a 4-cup glass Pyrek measuring cup, or a bowl. Whisk in vanilla extract.  Cover and refrigerate for at least four hours or overnight.

Use an immersion blender, or a stand blender and puree strawberry mixture. Pour strawberry mixture and custard into ice cream maker and process according to manufacturer’s directions. Transfer ice cream to glass, plastic, or paper container, cover tightly and freeze until firm.

Ice Cream Base and Roasted Strawberries

Ice cream is incredibly simple to make, and the results are so good. When you're not up to making your own, try the ice cream at Mora, Molly Moon, or Salt & Straw. They use excellent ingredients and don't add junk found in even premium grocery store ice cream. Read the labels.  

All that cooking has made me thirsty. Time to cool off with a fresh strawberry cocktail.
Here's a dangerously good recipe from Imbibe Magazine:  Kentucky Daiquiri.

One bit of advice when buying strawberries. While berries are in season, the Day Road farm stand is open every day at 9:00am, BUT they don't pick every day and berries sell out fast. Be in line at 8:50am. Trust me, it's worth it if you have to try more than once to score your own flat.  

 

Market Watch - What's In Season Now

My Saturday Market Bag (Clockwise from Bottom Left)

Yokatta Na, Four Varieties of Snap Peas, New Red Potatoes, Italian Parsley, Tomatoes, Garlic Scapes, Chinese Garlic, Wild Mountain Spinach, Red Oak Lettuce, Yellow Summer Squash, Manila Clams, Spouted Broccoli, Spring Onions, Cucumber

A sunny Saturday morning on Bainbridge Island. Arguably the best day of the week, in one of the most beautiful places on earth. My day starts with a 7:00am swim with friends. Coach April works us hard, and during the last tough set all I can think about is the prospect of breakfast. A quick shower and I'm at Farmer's Market when the opening bell rings at 9:00am. The vendors are accustomed to the sight of me. I'm a fright. Goggle-eyed, wet hair, essence of chlorine permeating the air around me. Did you have a good swim, they ask? 

The farms are in full swing now, with overflowing displays, and produce even I haven't seen before, such as:

Wild mountain purple spinach and green spinach

You eat stems and leaves of yokatta na  

They taste similar to bok choy with the zip of mustard greens

Check out the peas - There are purple ones!

Shopping complete, I dash home, grab knife, cutting board, whisk, and pan. Saute yokatta na, snap peas and spring onion in butter. Transfer to bowl. Top with shredded wild mountain spinach and red oak lettuce. Drizzle with olive oil and white wine vinegar. Toss around a bit. Top with French omelette and tomato chunks. Sea salt and pepper.

Swimmer's Breakfast

Now, what's for dinner later?  

The friendly folks at Baywater Shellfish had set me up with an oyster to slurp off the shell while they bagged my fresh clams.  Shuck me an oyster and I'll follow you anywhere. They'll be at Farmer's Market every week. This makes me happy, as I need a fix to hold me over until my monthly oyster share from the Puget Sound Restoration Fund.

 

  I had garlic and garlic scapes from Laughing Crow Farm. . .

Add more spring onions, spinach, yokatta na, parsley, and a few other ingredients on hand and a feast of steamed clams came together in a snap.

Phil and I grabbed a baguette from Pain D'amore to soak up the sauce, a bottle of rosé from Bainbridge Vineyards to wash it down, and headed to the deck to watch the sunset.  

Bainbridge Vineyards is offering free wine tasting to island residents 

on June 13th and 14th  

Stop by the tasting room from noon - 5:00pm 

and try their certified organic wines from 100% island-grown grapes

Yup 

That's the view from our deck

Did I mention life here is really, really good?