Dan's berth-day dinner: Steak with Blue Cheese Horseradish sauce, Mushrooms and Asparagus

So Danny James turned 24 on Friday. We celebrated on Thurs. night with an appetizer of Oysters on the half shell with a champagne vinegar mignonette, Sirloin steak with a Blue cheese and Horseradish cream topping, mushrooms and asparagus in butter, and a Carvel Icecream cake (the latter was not homemade). We drank Naoussa, a dry full-bodied red from Greece that you can get at Wegmans (or probably Century in Rochester :D). If you have a special occasion coming up, enjoy the menu below!

Oysters on the half shell with Champagne vinegar mignonette

1/2 doz. oysters on the half shell (you can purchase oysters at fish markets or stores, and they should be able to open them for you if you dont know how...i dont!)...plated over ice cubes or ice chips.
for Mignonette:
2 Tb. Champagne vinegar (found at specialty stores, even Trader Joes...I went to DiBrunos)
1/4 c. Dry white wine (i used chardonnay)
1 tsp. diced shallots
1 T. fresh chopped parsley (chopped very small)
A pinch of sea salt and cracked pepper

For the mignonette, combine and wisk together all ingredients except for the parsley. Refrigerate.
Feel free to make the mignonette ahead of time, minus the parsley, and save in the fridge for up to 24 hrs. To serve, finish the chilled mignonette with parsley and spoon over oysters before slurping. Enjoy!!
Philly note: If you go to Anastasia's Seafood on 9th and Washington, and purchase their oysters they will offer to just give you mignonette if you dont want to invest in Champagne vinegar.

Next Course: Sirloin steak with blue cheese and horseradish cream topping with Mushrooms and Asparagus in Butter

Marinate Steak a few hours ahead. You can marinate in any way that you like. I love Mark Bittman's recipe:
4 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
2 tablespoons soy sauce or fish sauce (nuoc mam or nam pla, available at Asian markets)
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon peeled and minced or grated fresh ginger or 1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon sugar
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. After marinating steak chilled in the fridge for at least 20 minutes, Place 1 T. Butter in the bottom of a cast iron or heavy bottom pan and turn heat med-high to warm pan and melt butter. Throw the steak in to sear, about 2 mins on each side and then place in a pan to broil in the oven. Cook according to your preference. If hoping for rare-med. rare take it out sooner than you think! Test with a meat thermometer if you like.

While the steak is broiling, Slice and sautee in 2 Tb. butter about 1 c. mushrooms. I also added 1 T. shallots and 1 T. fresh chopped parsley. Julia Child's says "dont crowd the mushrooms!" so be sure to use a large sautee pan. Remove from heat once just limp and reserve till steak is plated.

At the same time, chop ends off asparagus and place in pan with 2 tbsp. browned butter, cover and cook on low till just limp.

For blue cheese horseradish sauce:
1 tb butter
2 cloves minced garlic
1/3 c. white wine
½ c. whole milk
½ c. cream
1-2 tbs grated horseradish (or I used 3 Tb. prepared horseradish)
1 c. crumbled blue cheese
Salt and pepper to taste

Melt butter, stir in garlic, add wine and reduce to half, add milk and cream and bring to simmer. Continue to cook until reduced by half, then wisk in cheese and horseradish until mostly melted. Flavor to taste. Make ahead and reheat or begin when steak goes in.

I allow the steak to sit for about 15 mins after removing from oven. I then plated by topping the steak with mushrooms, adding the asparagus to the side, and serving the blue cheese on the side in a serving dish. Rave reviews from the birthday boy, but than again he'd eat just about anything!

Buon Compleanno Danny James