Saturday, July 26, 2008

Beef Carpaccio

Jessica went to Vegas recently for a convention, and came back raving about some beef carpaccio she had. She must have mentioned it ten times over a period of 2 weeks, and really wanted to try making it. She'd found a recipe online. Last night was the night we were going to give it a try.

Bobby's mom pickedup some baby greens, and a package of tenderloin fillets from Costco, I brought some fresh herbs from home, and borrowed my parents' meat slicer. The menu for the night: Beef Carpacio, Caprese Salad, Mushroom Marsala Fettucine, Tenderloin Fillets, and baby mixed greens salad.

Ambitious, right? Yeah, turns out a little too ambitious, with not quite enough pre-planning. For example, we probably should have frozen the meat after it had been in the refrigerator for a couple hours so that it would be easier to cut. the meat was so soft, it was hard to cut in thin slices without shredding it. I think I would have cut it into smaller bite sized peices after slicing it too. It tasted alright, and better on the mixed greens than by itself.

Since I didn't pick up some nice, young, soft mozzarella before coming out, we only had the choices offered at the Stater Bros. in Norco. Amazing what a difference it makes. The caprese salad wasn't as good as we wanted it to be.

Luckily, the Tenderloin Fillets came out wonderfully. Especially lucky since the meat thermometer was broken, and thick cuts of meat can be difficult to get to that nice beautiful medum rare. We sort of winged it on the time, but it came out very nicely medium rare. Oh, and the pasta is always good.

I think I'll give both the appetizers another shot some day... I'll just be more prepared next time.

CARPACCIO DE BUEY (BEEF CARPACCIO) served on a bed of baby greens with balsamic and olive oil). Serves 4
1 lb. beef, tenderloin (filete)
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 clove garlic, minced
3 tbsp drained capers, rinsed, finely chopped
2 tablespoons minced red onion
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1/2 cup Italian parsley
2 tablespoons fresh oregano leaves
5 tablespoons olive oil baby greens
balsamic vinegar and olive oil
freshly ground black pepper
Parmesan cheese (optional)

Directions: In a food processor, add: vinegar, garlic, capers, onion, parsley, oregano and Dijon mustard. Process until smooth, while slowly adding the 5 tablespoons of olive oil.

Season tenderloin with salt and freshly ground pepper. In a large fry pan or grill, over high heat add a little oil and sear tenderloin on each side for 10 seconds. Remove from heat and roll in marinade. Set aside and allow to cool. Wrap marinaded beef in plastic wrap, sealing ends to secure a cylindrical shape. Refrigerate from 1 to 3 hours.

To assemble: Remove the plastic wrap from beef tenderloin with marinade and slice thinly, no thicker than 1/16 inch. Place on serving plate and top with baby greens. Drizzle olive oil and balsamic vinegar on top and decorate with Parmesan cheese.

Serve immediately.

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