It is hard to beat a barbecued steak on a summer evening. Meat on the bone gives flavour, whether it is a steak, lamb cutlets or chicken. There is a French cut called côte de boeuf (which is a double ribeye,a lso called a cowboy steak) that is becoming very popular in Irish restaurants. You might like to try it. Your butcher will prepare it for you, but remember it is a lot of meat and there will be plenty for two people. Green beans are in season if you are not keen on spinach and I always like the humble spud, sometimes baked and sometimes in a potato salad.
For the cheese, you might like to try Kylemore Farmhouse Cheese; produced by Teresa Roche near Loughrea from their own dairy herd. She was influenced by Alpine mountain cheeses and we use some of it in the restaurant.
At the restaurant, we recently got strawberries from Pat Clarke for our first night open on 1 July. They were delicious. It is the perfect time of year for a mixed berry meringue sundae. Simply Better have recently launched frozen berries from Pat Clarke and Des Jeffares and I love them. For Irish yoghurt it is hard to beat Killowen in Wexford, where there is no sugar added and you get the natural sweetness of the fruits.
Happy cooking,
Neven
Barbecued beef steak with chargrilled potatoes & creamed spinach
Serves two to four
For the steak:
1.5kg côte de boeuf (cowboy steak, on the bone)
For the potatoes:
Four large baking potatoes
2 tsp chopped fresh thyme
1 tsp chopped fresh rosemary
1 tsp snipped fresh chives
2 garlic cloves, crushed
4 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper
For the spinach:
4 tbsp cream
1 shallot, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed
A good pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
500g baby spinach leaves
50g Gruyere cheese, grated
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 Remove the beef from the fridge, season with salt and pepper and allow it to come to room temperature. Seasoning the steak early will draw the flavor out and give the steak a nice crust finish once cooked.2 To cook the steak, you will want to reduce the heat on the barbeque or chargrill to medium, allow the coals to burn down or even raise the grill off the heat to as high as possible, depending on the type of barbecue you are using. At any rate, you should be placing the steak on over a medium heat. This is a big steak and will take about 30 minutes to cook through to medium or 40 to 45 minutes for well done.3 Once you have sealed the steak on both sides it is a good idea to put the lid on the barbecue and allow the heat to build like an oven inside - only remove the lid to turn the steak intermittently. For the final three to five minutes of cooking you can remove the lid and drop the grill down close to the coals, or increase the heat just to crisp the outside of the steak. Once cooked, remove from the heat, cover with some foil and allow it to rest for a good 10-15 minutes before serving or carving.4 Meanwhile, make the potatoes. Cut the potatoes into 2cm (¾in) thick slices and cook in a large pan of boiling salted water for 10 minutes - the potatoes will not be cooked through. Mix together the herbs, garlic and olive oil in a large shallow dish, then season with salt and pepper. Drain the potatoes well and transfer to the herb oil, tossing gently to coat.5 Once the steak is cooked, transfer the potatoes to grill, letting excess oil drip into a dish (reserve the oil in the dish). Grill potatoes, covered, turning once or twice, until tender – about five minutes in total. Return the potatoes to the dish and toss again with the herb oil. Season with salt and keep warm.6 For the creamed spinach, place a sauté pan on top of the hottest point of the barbeque and add the cream, garlic, shallot, nutmeg and seasoning. Bring to the boil and once boiling, add the baby spinach and stir well until all the spinach has wilted down. Stir in the Gruyère cheese. Transfer to a warm dish.7 Place the rested steak on a large chopping board in the centre of the table with a big knife for everyone to cut off their own piece. Have a separate dish of the chargrilled potatoes and the creamed spinach to serve.Mixed berry meringue sundaes
Mixed berry meringue sundaes. \ Photography: Philip Doyle. Food styling: Sharon Hearne-Smith
Serves four
200g raspberries
300g strawberries, hulled
2tbsp icing sugar, plus extra to dust
200ml crème fraiche
200ml natural yoghurt
20 mini meringues
Four fresh mint sprigs, to decorate
1 Put half the raspberries in a bowl. Cut the strawberries in half or quarters depending on their size and add half to the raspberries. Using a wooden spoon, mash to a rough purée.2 Whisk the crème fraiche in a bowl and fold in the natural yoghurt, then fold in roughly mashed up berries and enough icing sugar to taste. Layer up the rippled cream into pretty glasses with the mini meringues and the rest of the berries, topping each one with a raspberry and mint sprig. Add a light dusting of icing sugar just before serving.
It is hard to beat a barbecued steak on a summer evening. Meat on the bone gives flavour, whether it is a steak, lamb cutlets or chicken. There is a French cut called côte de boeuf (which is a double ribeye,a lso called a cowboy steak) that is becoming very popular in Irish restaurants. You might like to try it. Your butcher will prepare it for you, but remember it is a lot of meat and there will be plenty for two people. Green beans are in season if you are not keen on spinach and I always like the humble spud, sometimes baked and sometimes in a potato salad.
For the cheese, you might like to try Kylemore Farmhouse Cheese; produced by Teresa Roche near Loughrea from their own dairy herd. She was influenced by Alpine mountain cheeses and we use some of it in the restaurant.
At the restaurant, we recently got strawberries from Pat Clarke for our first night open on 1 July. They were delicious. It is the perfect time of year for a mixed berry meringue sundae. Simply Better have recently launched frozen berries from Pat Clarke and Des Jeffares and I love them. For Irish yoghurt it is hard to beat Killowen in Wexford, where there is no sugar added and you get the natural sweetness of the fruits.
Happy cooking,
Neven
Barbecued beef steak with chargrilled potatoes & creamed spinach
Serves two to four
For the steak:
1.5kg côte de boeuf (cowboy steak, on the bone)
For the potatoes:
Four large baking potatoes
2 tsp chopped fresh thyme
1 tsp chopped fresh rosemary
1 tsp snipped fresh chives
2 garlic cloves, crushed
4 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper
For the spinach:
4 tbsp cream
1 shallot, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed
A good pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
500g baby spinach leaves
50g Gruyere cheese, grated
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 Remove the beef from the fridge, season with salt and pepper and allow it to come to room temperature. Seasoning the steak early will draw the flavor out and give the steak a nice crust finish once cooked.2 To cook the steak, you will want to reduce the heat on the barbeque or chargrill to medium, allow the coals to burn down or even raise the grill off the heat to as high as possible, depending on the type of barbecue you are using. At any rate, you should be placing the steak on over a medium heat. This is a big steak and will take about 30 minutes to cook through to medium or 40 to 45 minutes for well done.3 Once you have sealed the steak on both sides it is a good idea to put the lid on the barbecue and allow the heat to build like an oven inside - only remove the lid to turn the steak intermittently. For the final three to five minutes of cooking you can remove the lid and drop the grill down close to the coals, or increase the heat just to crisp the outside of the steak. Once cooked, remove from the heat, cover with some foil and allow it to rest for a good 10-15 minutes before serving or carving.4 Meanwhile, make the potatoes. Cut the potatoes into 2cm (¾in) thick slices and cook in a large pan of boiling salted water for 10 minutes - the potatoes will not be cooked through. Mix together the herbs, garlic and olive oil in a large shallow dish, then season with salt and pepper. Drain the potatoes well and transfer to the herb oil, tossing gently to coat.5 Once the steak is cooked, transfer the potatoes to grill, letting excess oil drip into a dish (reserve the oil in the dish). Grill potatoes, covered, turning once or twice, until tender – about five minutes in total. Return the potatoes to the dish and toss again with the herb oil. Season with salt and keep warm.6 For the creamed spinach, place a sauté pan on top of the hottest point of the barbeque and add the cream, garlic, shallot, nutmeg and seasoning. Bring to the boil and once boiling, add the baby spinach and stir well until all the spinach has wilted down. Stir in the Gruyère cheese. Transfer to a warm dish.7 Place the rested steak on a large chopping board in the centre of the table with a big knife for everyone to cut off their own piece. Have a separate dish of the chargrilled potatoes and the creamed spinach to serve.Mixed berry meringue sundaes
Mixed berry meringue sundaes. \ Photography: Philip Doyle. Food styling: Sharon Hearne-Smith
Serves four
200g raspberries
300g strawberries, hulled
2tbsp icing sugar, plus extra to dust
200ml crème fraiche
200ml natural yoghurt
20 mini meringues
Four fresh mint sprigs, to decorate
1 Put half the raspberries in a bowl. Cut the strawberries in half or quarters depending on their size and add half to the raspberries. Using a wooden spoon, mash to a rough purée.2 Whisk the crème fraiche in a bowl and fold in the natural yoghurt, then fold in roughly mashed up berries and enough icing sugar to taste. Layer up the rippled cream into pretty glasses with the mini meringues and the rest of the berries, topping each one with a raspberry and mint sprig. Add a light dusting of icing sugar just before serving.
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