Ribeye Steaks with Red Wine Shallots and Béarnaise Sauce (recipe by Rachel green)

(Serves 4)

Red Wine Shallots.

You’ll need:

• 50g butter
• 500g shallots
• 1 tsp sugar
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 sprigs thyme
• 250ml red wine, e.g. Cotes de Rhone

Method:

Peel the shallots, trim tops and root ends. Heat the butter in a heavy saucepan and add the shallots. Cook until lightly golden on all sides, add the sugar, a little salt, pepper and thyme. Add the wine; reduce again until 2 tablespoons are left. The shallots should be tender by now. Remove from heat and add another ½ tbsp. of butter. Check seasoning before serving.

Béarnaise sauce.

You’ll need:

• 3 tbsp white wine vinegar
• A shallot, chopped
• 6 black peppercorns
• 2 egg yolks
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• 150g chilled butter cut into dice
• 1 handful chopped fresh tarragon

Method:

Put the vinegar, shallots and peppercorns into a small pan with two tablespoons of water. Bring to the boil; simmer until very little liquid is left. Put the egg yolks and reduced into a heatproof bowl, and sit over a pan of simmering water, the bottom of the bowl should not touch the water. Add the mustard and whisk well. Add the butter, a little at a time, whisking gently. The sauce will thicken keep whisking until it is creamy and thick. If the mixture looks like it is going to curdle add a little cold water or cream and remove from the heat whisk for one minute then continue.

Rib Eye Steaks.

You’ll need:

• 4x250g British ribeye steaks
• A little cold pressed rapeseed oil and a knob of butter
• Sea salt and black pepper

Method:

To cook the steaks, heat a frying pan or a griddlepan over a medium heat then add a good dash of rapeseed oil and a knob of butter. When the butter is foaming add the steaks to the pan and cook on one side for 2-3 minutes for rare or a little longer for medium then turn and cook on the other side for the same time remove from the pan and rest for 2 minutes and serve with the shallots, some thick cut chips and the Béarnaise sauce.

Tomato, Red Onion and Mozzarella Salad with Basil and Sweet Chilli Dressing.

Ingredients

• 5 Large ripe tomatoes
• 2 buffalo mozzarella cheeses, drained and sliced
• 1 large Supasweet onion, roughly sliced

For the Dressing

• 1 small garlic clove, peeled
• 15g fresh basil
• 30ml / 2 tbsp chopped fresh flat leaf parsley
• 4 tsp sweet chilli sauce
• 2.5ml ½ tsp English Mustard
• 75-90 ml / 5-6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 5-10ml / ½ tsp balsamic vinegar
• Salt and ground black pepper
• Basil leaf to garnish.

Instructions

1. First make the dressing. Put the garlic, basil, chilli sauce, parsley and mustard in a food processor and process briefly to chop. Then with the motor running, gradually add the olive oil to create a smooth puree with a dressing consistency.

2. Slice the tomatoes. Arrange the tomato and mozzarella slices on a plate. Scatter the onion over and season with a little black pepper.

3. Drizzle the dressing over the salad, and then scatter a few basil leaves on top as garnish. Leave for 10 minutes before serving. Serve with a crisp glass of chilled white wine.