Steak, Home-Made Chips and Bernaise Sauce

Oh Valentines Day here you are again, as far as I am concerned it's just an excuse to over indulge in food and hopefully receive a lovely bunch of flowers. I actually made this steak, chips and bernaise sauce a few days ago and I'm not really sure what I'm going to make for tonites dinner yet, may even make this again as it his favourite!
This is such an easy and delicious meal to make for your partner, theres not many who don't love a rare steak, roast tomatoes, delicious home chips and indulgent bernaise sauce.

Steak

2 Good quality steaks of your choice of cut
Salt & Pepper
Butter &Oil

Tomatoes

Vine tomatoes or larger
Olive Oil
Salt & Pepper
Fresh Rosemary

Chips

Potatoes
Veg or Sunflower Oil

Bernaise Sauce

3 tbsp white vinegar
1 Large shallot diced
3 free-range egg yolks
225g Melted Butter
Tarragon Leaves finely copped


The first thing you need to do is get your oven on and get the tomatoes in having sprinkled them with sea salt, pepper, olive oil and sprigs of rosemary. Put them on around 180 and cook for an hour.
Peel and Chop your potatoes and get the oil on, rinse and then dry your chips and when the oil is hot enough put them in the oil for around 5mins and then take out and leave to get on with your bernaise. Start by putting the vinegar and diced shallot into a small saucepan and bring to the boil. Turn down the heat and simmer until the liquid has reduced by half. Now strain the vinegar into a heatproof bowl and add the egg yolks and put the bowl over a pan of simmering water and whisk together until thickened and light in colour. Now gradually add the melted butter, whisking constantly. Season with  black pepper and salt if needed, then add the chopped tarragon leaves. Now put your chips in for their second fry and get the pan nice and hot ready for the steaks and add some butter and a dash of oil, season the steaks with salt and pepper and when the pan is searing hot put the steaks on to cook. Get your tomatoes out of the oven and arrange everything on a plate and put some bernaise sauce in little pots or dish for dipping chips and steak in. God it is so yummy, I adore bernaise sauce, I want to dip everything in it!

 HAPPY VALENTINES DAY  XXX

Squid Ink Rissotto with Chorizo stuffed Squid

 
I have never cooked with squid ink before but saw some for sale in a fishmongers stall in Brighton market so thought I would buy it with no idea of what to do with it! I figured squid probably go's well with squid ink and had chorizo and risotto rice so risotto it was! I adapted a recipe from Waitrose website for the stuffed squid.


Stuffed Squid

1 small onion, finely chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
60g chorizo sausage, chopped
1 red chilli, seeded and chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
Squid cleaned, tentacles chopped

a pinch of saffron (optional)


Squid Ink Risotto 

1¾ pint Chicken Stock

50g Butter 

I onion finely chopped 

1 Garlic cloves

250g  risotto rice

125ml White Wine

2 sachets squid ink

salt and freshly ground black pepper

Start by cleaning and preparing your squid if this has not already been done for you and I will say that having several smaller squid would be better than one big one like I used but that's is all they had! Next soften the onion in oil for 5 minutes then stir in the chorizo, chilli and garlic and cook for a few mins and then blitz in the food processor. Stuff your squids with the chorizo mix and secure at the ends with cocktail sticks ready to pan fry when the risotto is ready.

I'm not going to tell you how to make a risotto as I am sure you all know how to do that and do not need me to tell you how! When the risotto is nearly ready start pan frying your squids, and depending on the size of them can take anything from a few minutes up to 6.  Be careful not to overcook the squid and you can just pop the tentacles in the pan in the last minute of cooking. This could be a really nice thing to serve at a dinner party as it looks amazing with the black, white and red!