Beef Tenderloin with Fennel and Rosemary and Creamy Mustard Sauce

This is an incredibly elegant meal that is very easy to prepare. Your guests will rave about it. The recipe calls for beef tenderloin, but you can make this with any type of beef roast (obviously, the better the cut of meat, the more successful the recipe).

Ingredients

1 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil

1 Tbs. finely chopped fresh rosemary

1 1/2 tsp. ground fennel seed

1 tsp. kosher salt; more to taste

1/2 tsp. freshly cracked black pepper

2 1/2 to 3 lb. beef tenderloin roast, excess fat trimmed

1/2 cup creme fraiche (you can use whipping cream if you have to)

2 Tbs. Dijon mustard

2 tsp. fresh lemon juice

Directions

Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 375 degrees Farenheit. 

In a pestal, grind the fennel seed (this releases the flavor) and add the salt and pepper. Pour this dry mixture into a small glass bowl and add the olive oil and chopped fresh rosemary to make a paste. Pat the beef dry with paper towels and rub the paste all over the surface of the meat. If necessary, tie the roast at 1 1/2 inch intervals. (The roast can be seasoned and refrigerated up to 4 hours in advance.)

Put the roast on a rack on a small, rimmed baking sheet or in a shallow roasting pan. Roast until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the center reads 120 degrees F for rare, 125 degrees to 130 degrees F for medium rare, or 135 degrees for medium, about 40-50 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk together the creme fraiche, mustard and lemon juice. Season lightly with salt to taste.

Transfer the roast to a carving board (preferably with a well for collecting juices) and let it rest, uncovered, for 10 to 15 minutes before carving it into 1/3 to 1/2 inch thick slices. Serve the beef, passing the mustard sauce at the table (the leftovers make an excellent sandwich and you can use the mustard sauce as the condiment). 

Hope you enjoy this great recipe. It is one of my favorite ways to prepare beef.

The Silvano

This is a true Italian pizza recipe that we acquired from our dear friend and great chef, Silvano, who lives in Monza, Italy.

Ingredients

4-5 thin slices of the very best prosciutto
Fresh mozzarella
Great olive oil
Chopped romaine lettuce
pizza crust (not cooked)

Directions

Place pizza dough on a pizza spatula. Sprinkle a small amount of olive oil on the crust. Place slices of fresh mozzarella on the pizza dough. Layer the prosciutto over the mozzarella. Add a couple handfuls of the romaine lettuce. Bake in the oven at 500 degrees farenheit for about 7 minutes (watch constantly so that you don't overcook). Pull the pizza out of the oven and add a little more lettuce on top and sprinkle some more olive oil.

Voila - enjoy a wonderful and unique pizza. It is awesome and your guests will rave about it (I promise).

If you need help with making the dough, here's a recipe Make sure you do this first!:

Ingredients:
Approximately 3 cups flour
2 teaspoons yeast
3/4 cup warm water
1 egg

Place the flour into a glass bowl. Add the yeast to the warm water and let it sit (it should foam and if it doesn't you either have the water too hot or too cold). Once the yeast and water mixture has formed a good foam (about 5 minutes), add it to the flour along with the egg. Hand mix the ingredients into a ball and let the ball sit in an oiled glass bowl to rise for about a half hour (minimum). Take the dough, cut it in half and spread it out to make two round pizzas. I do this one at a time. Preheat oven to 500 degrees farenheit.

Tim's Salsa

This is a great salsa recipe that our very good friend, Tim, has provided me. Hope you enjoy it!

Ingredients

3 cans S&W stewed Mexican style tomatoes (14.5 oz. cans)

2 cloves garlic

1 jalapeno (seeds removed)

1 pack green onions (usually use about 6-8 of them)

3/4 cup fresh chopped cilantro

2 fresh limes

Reserve the juice from the 3 cans of tomatoes. Place drained tomatoes into blender and do a very quick blend (about 2 seconds) so that tomatoes are chunky but not too smooth. Place the tomatoes into a bowl. Put about 3/4 cup of the reserved tomato juices into the blender. Add finely chopped garlic cloves and the finely chopped jalapeno, puree. Add the puree mixture to the tomatoes. Finely chop the green onions and the cilantro. Add to the tomatoes. Squeeze the juice of the 2 limes over the salsa. Stir together and let sit for a few hours in the refrigerator.

Makes a big batch, now just get the chips and some friends and enjoy!!