Marinated Steak and Roasted Asparagus with Shiitake Mushrooms

Beef tenderloin, roasted asparagus with mushrooms, broccoli with peppers, mashed cauliflower

 It's been years since I had a steak. I bought beef tenderloin, an expensive choice, but I might as well make my re-introduction to steak a class act. So here it is:

"Jo Anne, beefsteak."

"Beefsteak, Jo Anne."

Exeunt to the kitchen. After the introductions, now, how to cook this marvelous meat? This is a Phase One (South Beach Diet) recipe for Marinated London Broil. I made some adjustments to it for herbs I didn't have.

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup dry sherry (dry red wine in the original recipe)
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons dried parsley (fresh minced parsley in the original)
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary (fresh oregano in the original)
1 bay leaf
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 pounds beef tenderloin

Whisk together oil, sherry, garlic, parsley, rosemary, bay leaf, and black pepper in a small bowl. Place the steak in a deep bowl and pour on the marinade. Turn once to coat. Cover and refrigerate overnight or at least four hours.

Spray a stove-top grill pan with cooking spray and heat it. Remove the herbs and bay leaf from the steak and put it in the pan.  Grill the steak for 5 minutes on one side then turn it over and grill the second side for an additional 5 minutes. Cut into thin slices across the grain. It came out medium rare, somewhat tasty, and quite chewy. Thai beef isn't particularly tender, which reminds me why I gave up beef in the first place.

Veggies prepared for roasting

I found this on another blog with South Beach Diet-type recipes. I adapted it because I didn't have Spike Seasoning. Unfortunately, it came out mummified as you can see on the plate above! According to the original recipe, the roasting time is less than 20 minutes. That's a pretty big leeway! After five minutes I noticed the asparagus had turned a bright green. I ought not to have taken my eyes off of it.

1 lb asparagus, trimmed
1 lb mushrooms, (I like shiitake) stems trimmed and caps sliced in half
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon Lawry's seasoning salt (Spike Seasoning in the original recipe)
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 400˚F. Combine all ingredients and spread on a single layer in a baking pan. Roast vegetables for 10, not 20 minutes, is my best guestimate.

Herbed Pan Fried Pork Chops

With Pan Roasted Asparagus, Tomatoes and Black Olives and Basmati Rice

I always like to try new recipes. This one is from America's Test Kitchen, which seldom disappoints. It had good flavor without being either too salty or too oily. The only question I had was, what do I do with the crisp bacon bits?

Blended spices (or use your own blend)
1/2 teaspoon marjoram
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1/4 teaspoon basil
1/4 teaspoon rosemary
1/4 teaspoon sage
pinch of ground fennel seed
1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup flour
3 strips of bacon, chopped
4 center cut, bone-in pork chops
1/4 to 1/2 cup vegetable oil


Make the spice blend. Pour blended spices in a shallow pan or pie plate. You may find you will need to make another batch after two pork chops. I did. Pour flour into another pan or pie plate.

Season the pork chops. Dip each chop in the spice blend, then lightly dredge in the flour. Let the pork chops rest in a plate for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, fry up the bacon in a large 12 inch skillet. When crisp, remove the bacon to drain but reserve the bacon fat. Start wth 1/4 cup of oil to the fat and heat until just smoking. Add more oil if necessary.

Fry the pork chops. Put each pork chop in the hot oil. Fry for 3-4 minutes on each side. Mine came out over done so I would reduce that to 2-3 minutes per side instead. Drain on a greased wire rack set over a baking tray in a warm oven. Don't discard the pan drippings.

Still no idea what to do with the bacon bits but since I was making pan fried asparagus with tomatoes and black olives, I decided to dress that up with the bacon. Ta-dah!

Pan-fried Asparagus with Tomatoes and Black Olives (and bacon bits)
2 pounds thick asparagus spears, ends trimmed
1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
1/3 cup black olives, chopped
2 -4 garlic cloves, sliced
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese (optional)
1 tablespoon bacon, chopped and fried until crisp, drained (optional)
4 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped (optional)

Trim the asparagus. Hold up one spear and snap off the end. Cut all the other spears to the same length.

Make the tomato-black olive dressing. Use the pan drippings from the pork chops to make the dressing. Over medium heat, fry the garlic in the pan drippings until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes and olives. Cook until the tomatoes "spring" water and become wilted. Pour the dressing into a bowl, cover with foil, and reserve.

Cook the asparagus. Rinse out the skillet and dry it with paper towels. Heat 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon oil. Lay half the spears in the pan in one direction. Lay the other half in the opposite direction. Cover and cook over medium heat until the asparagus turns a bright green, about 2-4 minutes. Remove to a serving dish and pour the dressing on top. Top with cheese, basil, or bacon bits.