Impromptu Dinner Party

On Monday afternoon my husband called me at work to say that we were having company for dinner!  His childhood friend and college roommate was in town and since Monday was the only night I was going to be home all week, it was settled that Monday would be the day for our dinner party.  An easy menu was definitely in order, with items that can be made quickly with minimal preparation time.  Here is what I came up with:

- Warm Spiced Olives with Orange
- New York Strip Steaks with Cranberry Madiera Pan Sauce
- Roasted Potatos
- Mashed Carrots with Turnips
- Apple Crisp with Vanilla Icecream

First, take your steaks out of the fridge and allow them to come to room temperature.  This will help ensure the steaks are perfectly cooked.

I got things going by cleaning and cutting new red potatos into quarters.  Toss these with a couple of pads of butter, some oil, and a healthy dose of salt and pepper in a pyrex pan and thrown in a 400-degree oven. 

Put your carrots and turnips (peeled and cut into 2" chunks) into cold water on the stove.  Heat to boiling and cook until carrots and turnips are soft.   (You can also use parsnips, which we prefer, but were unavailable at my local grocery store.)  When they are soft, mash with a potato masher or fork, melt in some butter, and season with salt and pepper.  You can keep them warm on the stove or in a ceramic serving dish.

Meanwhile, peel 8 granny smith apples and dice.  Toss in an oven-safe ceramic pan with about 1T sugar, 2t cinnamon, and 1T vanilla.  For the topping, mix together 1/2c brown sugar, 1/4c white sugar, 1/2c flour, and 1/4c oats.  Cut in 1 stick of butter until it forms a crumbly mixture.  Place on top of apples.

To prep the olives, just toss them with red pepper flakes, orange zest, and a little balsamic vinegar (mine were already oily, so no oil added).  I bought a mixture of olives from the olive bar at my local grocery store, so there were some stuffed with feta and other wonderful varieties.  Wrap the olive mixture in a foil packet and place on an oven sheet.  About 10 minutes before your guests arrive, throw it in the oven (which is probably going at 400 degrees for your potatos) for about 10 minutes.  Serve warm.

To make the steaks, heat oil in a large saute pan and seasoned the steaks well on both sides.  Sear the steaks over high heat for about 2-3 minute on each side, or until a good crust develops.  One trick to know whether you've acheived a proper sear on meat is to test whether it will easily lift away from the pan.  If the meat is sticking, it is not ready to be turned.  Once the seared "crust" develops, it will easily lift off the pan.  (Note that this is contingent on having enough oil in the pan.)

Once the steaks are seared, put them (still in your saute pan) in the oven (at 400 degrees) for about 10 minutes, or until cooked to your desired doneness.  When they are done, put on a platter and tent with foil to rest.  In the pan, make your sauce by deglazing with about 1/2c madiera wine.  Reduce.  Add about 1/2c beef stock.  Reduce.  Add cranberry sauce (I made my own, but I'm sure canned would be fine for this).  I spiced the sauce up with grated red chili pepper too. 

Serve the steaks and sauce, potatoes, and carrots with turnips.  Reduce the heat of your oven to 350 degrees and put in your apple crisp.  Cook for about 45 minutes, which should be perfect timing for dessert.  Serve with icecream.

(Optional homemade cranberry sauce:  Combine 1 pint raw cranberries with 1/2c water and 1/2c madiera wine, or other red wine).  Cook over medium heat at a simmer until cranberries pop and a sauce forms, about 20 minutes.  Add juice from 1 orange and about 1/2c sugar to taste.)