Steak Topper: Red Wine Butter Sauce

Prepare this flavorful butter sauce in advance and use when needed. Pile on top of a sizzling steak and watch it drip its goodness over the sides...yummm! This recipe comes from one of my favorite blogs, Cooking For Friends with Joel Mielle. Joel does a fantastic job with his invaluable step-by-step photos. Check out the link for detailed directions on whipping together this amazing sauce! Let me know how it turned out, I want to hear your experiences!

Red Wine Butter Sauce, by Joel Mielle

Preparation time: 20 minutes, cooking time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

1 x Bottle of a good strong red wine

250 gm of salted butter (1 block)

4 or 5 Echalotes (shallots)

Half red onion

1 x small clove of garlic

1 x Sprig Thyme

1 x Sprig Oregano

1 x Bay leaf

Cracked black pepper

Directions:

A) Chop up very finely your Echalotes, your half red onion and garlic clove. Chop up finely your Thyme and Oregano. Add all ingredients to a large pot with bay leaf and one whole bottle of Red Wine. Put on full heat for all wine to evaporate. Add black cracked Pepper. Keep boiling until mixture is almost dry. It's advisable to stand and watch it towards the end as once dry, it can burn very quickly.  

Once dry, Let cool or refrigerate.

B) Whisk at high speed, room temperature butter (Microwave a little if too hard) in mixer until butter becomes  lighter cream in colour.  It should be fluffy in texture. Add the cooled reduction mixture to the butter. Whisk until mixture is all mixed up properly, this should be quick. Tear up some aluminium foil and scoop out half the mixture into long shape. Fold over and roll into sausage shape. Twist ends until mixture is packed nicely inside. You should end up with two rolls.  A good idea is to refrigerate one and freeze the other. 

Slice and leave out at room temperature before serving. 

Dip in chopped parsley and place on top of steak.

Chocolate Guinness Cake

Simply Recipes

I used to bake three times a week when my family was young and growing. I ate the fruits of my labor, cake, pie, cobbler, cookie, pudding, cream puffs. I was also into nutrition and added powdered "vitamins". The recipe for this cake caught my eye because the ingredients call for unsweetened cocoa powder, brown sugar, and sour cream. These three basic kitchen staples are capable of turning out a rich, deeply satisfying, moist cake. I'm a softie for cream cheese, too, and cream cheese is what tops this cake. I can already tell this is a winner!

Chocolate Guinness Cake Recipe

• Prep time: 10 minutes
• Cook time: 1 hour

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup stout or porter beer, such as Guinness
• 10 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
• 1 1/2 cups superfine sugar
• 1/2 cups dark brown sugar
• 3/4 cup sour cream
• 2 eggs
• 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cream cheese frosting recipe

METHOD

1 Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 8 or 9-inch springform pan with butter and line the bottom with a round of parchment paper.

2 In a large saucepan place the beer and butter. Cook over medium-high heat until the butter has melted. Add the cocoa powder and sugars and whisk together. Take off heat and allow to come to room temperature.

3 In another bowl beat together the sour cream, eggs, and vanilla extract until very, very well combined. Add to the butter-beer mixture and whisk together.

4 In another bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Add to the beer-butter mixture and whisk together until it just comes together. Pour into the prepared pan and give the pan a few short drops onto the countertop to shake the air pockets in the batter to the surface and out of the cake. Bake for 50-60 minutes. Allow to cool on a wire rack. Run a knife around the edge to separate the cake from the pan and pop the ring off the springform.

5 Spread frosting on the cooled cake and serve.

Yield: Makes one 8 or 9-inch cake

Posted by Garrett McCloud of Vanilla Garlic