Dinner for Two

My beautiful wife Kris and I agree on most things, or are close enough that our difference makes more for a conversation than a disagreement.  As politics go we are extremely close on the spectrum, religion I happily walked into the folds of the church she was raised in.  When it comes to food... well sometimes we have our differences.  Steaks are one of those differences, the difference being I like Strip Steak, Ribeye Steaks, Skirt Steaks, Flank Steak, Lamb Chops, Tri tip, Flat Iron Steaks basically every cut of meat from every animal that ever set foot on a farm.  Kris likes the Tenderloin it is a texture thing, Tenderloin is well... tender, where I don't mind the fight that Skirt Steaks give me (admittedly they have a bit of texture to them but I just love the flavor)  Kris isn't always up to the battle that dinner could be.

Anyway, I wanted steak for dinner on my last day off so I was at the store considering my options, I saw a bunch of good ideas but just couldn't come up with a good "sell" really how many ways can you try to talk someone into a skirt steak?  Then I looked at the tenderloin... $20.99 a pound, that was just out of the question, for God's sake I am a Chef, I can't pay $30.00 for a dinner that I cook!  Then I saw it at the edge of the meat case looking kind of lonely... it was a Porterhouse Steak about an inch and a half thick and I thought "God was really thinking here..." Strip Steak on one side, Tenderloin on the other, a bone to carry the heat through for even cooking and a full bodied flavor.  That was it! get the bigger Porterhouse ($6.70 by the way) and split it.

When I got home I put a little salt and pepper on the steak and put it into the fridge while I did the rest.  I topped the steak with a Roasted Garlic Gorgonzola Butter... Ooh this is good and it can be made several days ahead

The Butter
Take one clove of garlic and cut the top off, drizzle with a little olive oil and loosely wrap with foil and put it into a 350 degree oven for about an hour.  When that is done squeeze that out into a bowl with one stick of softened butter and about 1/2 cup of bleu cheese.  Mix these ingredients together until soft then wrap in plastic wrap and freeze.

The Steak
Couldn't be simpler let it temper for about an hour at room temperature sprinkled with a little bit of salt and pepper then toss on the grill until done to your liking (medium rare for me).  Take the steak off the grill and set aside tented with foil (with some of your butter on top) until you finish up any of your side dishes, at least 5 minutes,

For us I cut along one side of the bone and gave Kris the Tenderloin then along the other to get my full bodied strip.  The flavored butter melts through the steak and soaks into the meat so every bite has the garlicy buttery goodness.  It is pictured above with the last of my Rainbow Chard before I cut it up.

my garden

I had a different picture in my head when I planted my garden.  I imagined me stepping out of the kitchen door and snipping a little bit of fresh oregano off a branch and putting that into a sauce made with my tomatoes grown in an upside down planter.  "Oh yes," I would say to my guests, "I made everything from the freshest vegetables and herbs grown just outside in my garden.  There is just nothing better than peppers plucked fresh from the vine, is there?"

Do peppers grow on a vine?  How would I know, the graceful, sophisticated herb and small vegetable garden that I pictured turned out to be a three foot wide gash of dirt along the back of my house that the dog enjoys laying in.  There are two sad looking jalapeno pepper plants that have so far produced one pepper, a stem of oregano that could easily be mistaken for a frill pick and an undetermined chili pepper plant that keeps falling flat into my grass where I am sure it will be run over with the mower any day now.  What isn't plain black dirt is mostly over run by some series of strangling vines or my incredible, indestructible ever expanding mint.  Oh yes! I was sure I could contain mint... "no problem"  I told my friends "I planted them in buried five gallon buckets, they will add a nice touch to the edge of my herb garden"   these things are worse than dandelions on crack!  I just cut out a bushel of it two days ago an it is back with a vengeance! I think it is going to climb into the bedroom and murder me while I sleep.

The one thing that did take root well and seems to be thriving in all of this chaos is my Rainbow Chard.  I have no clue how or why but the beautiful, colorful stems shine through everything in my (I guess for lack of a better word) garden.  They stand proud against the back wall of my house the only things that even slightly resemble... well... anything.  I cut some a a couple of days ago, it looks like I have enough of this lovely green  to make maybe two portions. 

The first I served with brined pork chops and a balsamic glaze.  When I was a kid my dad always put vinegar on spinach or whatever green we were eating and that has carried over for me.  The tart flavor adds just a bit of comfort for me.

The pork chops:

4 Cups water

1/4 Cup Kosher salt

1/4 Cup brown sugar

2 green onions chopped

1 clove garlic minced

1 TBS parsley minced

Mix the ingredients together in a saucepan and simmer until salt and sugar dissolve then cool.  Once cool add the pork chops and let them sit refrigerated for at least 6 hours or overnight.  Some chemical stuff takes place during the brining process that makes the meat more moist when cooked.  I have read it and it makes no sense whatsoever to me but it works.  When it is time to cook, take it out of the brine and grill for about 3-4 minutes on each side, I like mine about medium.

The balsamic glaze:

3/4 Cup balsamic vinegar

1/2 tsp fresh rosemary minced

1 TBS brown sugar

Simmer until reduced by half when reduced pour though a strainer and hold hot

The rainbow chard:

1 TBS butter

about 8 leaves of chard

1/2 small onion diced

1 clove garlic minced

salt and pepper to taste

Wash chard then cut the stems out, chop the stems and put in the pan with the butter, garlic and onion and cook until softened.  While that is cooking roll all of the chard up like a cigar and cut into one inch strips add those to the pan and saute until done (maybe another 7-8 minutes).  

I served with mashed potatoes so the plate was potatoes next to the chard with the pork chop on top, sprinkle it all with the balsamic glaze.  This is another time that I am going to say that my picture doesn't do this meal justice.  Really it was wonderful all the flavors and textures played well together.  The tart syrupy vinegar was ever present and the chard did taste a wonderful as it looked.