Park City Indulgence

First and foremost, a huge thank you goes out to Brody for his incredible hospitality.  Brody, thank you for opening your beautiful home and awesome kitchen to me.  After a mellow day on the slopes, and a large evening the night before, we decided to cook in. Brody was gracious enough to thaw out a beautiful whole beef tenderloin strip.  Essentially 8 pounds of filet mignon.  Also on the menu to go with the filet was some brussle sprouts and yams.  I had fun creating this menu.  Lets start with the fliet... 


Instead of just wrapping it in bacon, I used a rub I have tried before but never with this quality piece of meat.  Coffee (espresso roast), brown sugar, nutmeg and cayenne pepper was mixed together and then coated the tenderloin (note: I wanted to add some cocoa powder to the mix but totally forgot until half way through the meal).  With the fat trimmings, I made a simple beef stock with an addition of medium sherry. This would help flavor the sauce.  For the sauce, just a simple balsamic reduction with some of the beef stock added.  Also to the sauce, I added a couple pinches of the coffee rub (next time, I will add a few shots of espresso). This beautiful meat was lightly seared, the roasted at 400* for 35 min.  Perfectly medium rare. 


The yams.  Probably my favorite creation of the night.  Taking a page out of Iron Chef 2, I roasted the yams then mashed.  Added bourbon, butter, brown sugar, cream, salt and a dash of cayenne.  Bourbon and yams are friends. Next time, adding bacon!

Lastly were the brussle sprouts.  Pan cooked with bacon and a little butter & salt.  They added a perfect compliment to the steak & yams.  


The wonderful meal was not without incredible wine.  Brody and Travis picked up 3 fabulous bottles.  Wine lovers - buy Altamera.  Wow. 

And then, an hour or so after our 2nd glass of scotch I stumbled through making dessert.  Grilled peaches with a balsamic-honey whipped cream. Awesome meal. Awesome company. Thanks Brody! I'm looking forward to cooking in your kitchen again soon.