Beef, Béarnaise
Eggs Benedict
Seared beef filet tossed with caramelized shallot, with a Garlic/Tabasco Aioli, sautéed asparagus, fried eggs, finished with a creamy Béarnaise sauce, between soft Cuban bread.
Ingredients
Seared Beef
Olive oil
2- 8 to 10 ounce filet mignons
6-8 large garlic cloves lightly crushed
1 shallot, quartered
Salt & pepper
2 tablespoons butter
1 large shallot, minced
Italian parsley
Baking sheet with wired rack
Garlic Aioli
1 tablespoon reserved, puréed garlic
1/2 cup mayonnaise
Tabasco sauce-to taste
Asparagus
Fresh asparagus spears
Olive oil
Salt & pepper
Fried Eggs
Large eggs
Preferred cooking oil
Salt & pepper
Béarnaise Sauce
1 large shallot, finely chopped
3 tablespoons rice vinegar
¼ cup un-oaked Chardonnay wine
1 1/2 tablespoons finely chopped, fresh tarragon
2 tablespoons finely chopped, flat leaf parsley
3 large egg yolks
2 teaspoons water
¾ cup hot unsalted, butter
Salt & white pepper
Cuban, loaf bread or similar
Directions
Seared Beef
Preheat oven to 375F.
Let filets come to room temperature, pat dry with paper towels and season well with salt & pepper. Heat a cast iron skillet over medium-high temperature and drizzle in enough olive oil to sear steaks. Add the filets and sear all sides. Remove filets and place on the baking sheet with wired rack. Turn the heat down add 2 tablespoons of butter along with the garlic and shallot and cook until shallot is caramelized and garlic is lightly golden. Remove and set aside for later use.
Place the baking sheet with filets in the center of oven and cook until the internal temperature reaches 130F-135F. Remove, place steaks on a plate and set aside until ready to use.
Garlic Aioli
Finely chop the reserved garlic and purée it by scraping with the edge of your knife. Add 1 tablespoon (or desired amount) of the puréed garlic and the mayonnaise to a small mixing and and season with some of the Tabasco sauce and a pinch of salt. Whisk well and set aside until ready to use.
Asparagus
Prepare the asparagus by holding the bottom/woody end of spear and bending the top until the spear snaps. Discard the bottom half. Wipe out the cast iron skillet and drizzle with some oil. Add the asparagus, season with salt & pepper and cook until asparagus are al dente. Remove and place on a plate until ready to use.
Fried Eggs
Add some cooking oil to a nonstick pan over medium temperature and fry the eggs over-easy. Season with salt & pepper.
Béarnaise Sauce
Note: If you don't have experience making Béarnaise sauce you may want to make blender Béarnaise sauce by adding the eggs and reduction to a blender and pulsing until the eggs become paler in color and then slowly pouring in the warm butter while pulsing.
Also, shallots and herbs can mixed into the sauce if preferred.
Add the shallot, vinegar, wine and herbs to a small sauce pan and bring to a simmer. Reduce to 2 tablespoons. Spoon the reduction into a small ramekin to cool.
Wipe the sauce pan out and add the egg yolks and water. Place pan over med-low temperature and start whisking. Don't let the pan get too hot or eggs will curdle. Reduce heat if needed. You should be able to quickly place your hand on bottom of pan without burning yourself. Whisk continuously until the eggs are paler in color and slightly thickened. Whisk in the reduction, remove from heat and start dribbling in the hot butter while whisking continuously. Don't add too much butter at a time or sauce won't thicken. If sauce isn't thickening place back on the low heat a 20-30 seconds and continue. Once the sauce starts to thicken you can start adding larger increments of the butter. Once all of the butter is incorporated season with salt & pepper and then assemble the beef eggs Benedict.
Assembly
Note: Bread can be toasted before assembly if preferred.
Slice the loaf in half lengthwise, brush the bottom half with the garlic aioli and arrange asparagus spears on top. Thinly slice the beef and arrange on top of the asparagus. Lastly, top with the fried eggs and right before serving, spoon on the Béarnaise sauce. Serve with Tabasco sauce. Serves 3-4