Kir with a Kick Recipe

Un Kir, Sil Vous Plaît!
Not sure how to kick off a dinner gathering? You can't go wrong with a kir(rhymes with "beer" but is much more enchanting to drink). I've enjoyed it often in homes of families I've dined with, and you'd be hard-pressed to find a café or restaurant in France that does not serve this unofficial French national apértif. The drink was named after Félix Kir, a priest and hero of the French Resistance, who became mayor of Dijon after World War II and was said to have served the popular Burgundian drink at official gatherings.

To make a classic kir, pour a teaspoon or two of créme de cassis (black currant liqueur) into a small, stemmed glass, then fill the glass with chilled white wine. Rarely served in a copius portion (about 4 ounces of wine will do), the drink offers a gleeful little lift that chases away any lingering funk your guests might have brought with them from their day.

The wine traditionally used to make a kir is Burgundy's Aligoté, a white that's much less distinguished than the more famous white Burgundies made from Chardonnay. In fact, some sources say that the kir may have been invented as a way to put this otherwise unimpressive wine to its best possible use. Hence, there's no reason to seek out Aligoté to make a kir. A good, lightly citrusy dry white, such as a California Sauvignon Blanc, works nicely. If you can't find an imported créme de cassis (most domestic versions are, I'm afraid, lackluster), use a raspberry liqueur, such as Chambord.

But experiment. There are creative spins on the kir all over France (I'm dreaming now of a rosé wine-based kir, spiked with a liqueur made from a local berry, that I once savored in the village of Thueyts in the Ardéche). And of course, if you're feeling really splashy, clink glasses with a kir royale - a kir made with Champagne or sparkling wine instead of white wine.

Cognac adds virility to the classic kir royale, which is made with Champagne and black currant liqueur. It's a dashing way to kick off the evening.

For each cocktail:
Ingredients:
3/4 ounce Cognac
1/4 ounce créme de cassis or Chambord
Chilled Champagne or sparkling wine
1 raspberry (optional)

Preparation:

1. Pour the Cognac and the créme de cassis into a flute; fill the flute with Champagne. Garnish with a raspberry, if you like.

Recipe courtesy of The Bonne Femme Cookbook by Wini Moranville

France [ print this recipe for Kir ]

Chicken Calvados Recipe

Calvados is the famous apple brandy of Normandy, and the bonnes femmes of Normandy often use the spirit to flavor their cooking. But don't feel you have to buy a bottle of the real thing for this recipe. If there's an apple brandy made in your region, reach for that over Calvados. As for the apples, use the best locally grown apples you can find. After all, the more local your products, the more true-to-France your cooking will be.



Ingredients:
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 1 1/4 pounds total)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 tbsp unsalted butter
1 large shallot, finely chopped (about 1/4 cup)
1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup Calvados or apple brandy or 1/2 cup apple juice or cider and 1/2 cup white wine
2 small tart apples, peeled, cored, and cut into 1/4-inch slices
1/4 to 1/2 cup heavy cream
2 tbsp snipped fresh parsley or chives, or a combination

Preparation:

1. Place the chicken breasts, one at a time, between two sheets of plastic wrap and pound to 1/4-inch thickness. (Alternatively, you can halve each breast horizontally, or butterfly them). Season both sides with salt and pepper.
2. In a large skillet, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add the chicken (in batches, if necessary) and cook, turning once, until no longer pink inside, 6 to 8 minutes (reduce the heat to medium if the meat browns too quickly). Transfer the chicken to a platter and cover with foil to keep warm.
3. Stir in the shallot and sauté briefly, until translucent. Remove the pan from the heat and add the broth and Calvados, taking care not to let the liquid spatter. Return the pan to the heat and bring to a boil, stirring with a wire whisk to loosen any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Add the apples. Let the mixture boil until the liquid is reduced to 1/4 cup, turning the apples occasionally - this should take about 4 minutes, depending on the heat and your pan size; it will take closer to 7 minutes if you substitute apple juice and wine for the Calvados.
4. Stir in 1/4 cup cream and boil until the sauce thickens and the apples are crisp-tender. For a creamier sauce, add more cream, 1 tablespoon at a time, and continue to boil until the sauce thickens to the desired consistency. Season the sauce with additional salt and pepper. Arrange the chicken on four dinner plates, spoon the sauce and apples over the chicken, sprinkle with the parsley, and serve.

Makes 4 servings

Recipe courtesy of the Bonne Femme Cook Book by Wini Moranville

France [ print this recipe for Chicken Calvados ]

Classic Boeuf Bourguignon Recipe

To the French, this is comfort food - a long-simmered dish that evokes warm memories of childhood. To North Americans, it's great bistro food - flavorful and hearty, perfectly suited to a full-bodied red wine and lively evenings with friends. Either way, it's perfect for the slow cooker and great as a leftover since it's even better reheated. Serve with new potatoes in their skins, buttered noodles or plain white rice and a simple green vegetable such as beans or broccoli.

Recommended Equipment:
medium to large (3 1/2 to 5 quart) slow cooker

Ingredients:
1 tbsp oil
4 oz. chunk of bacon or salt pork belly, cut into 1/2-inch(1 cm) cubes
2 pounds stewing beef, cut into 1-inch(2.5 cm) cubes, and patted dry
1 pound cremini mushrooms, trimmed and halved
2 onions, thinly sliced
3 carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tspn dried thyme or 2 sprigs fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
1 tspn salt
1/2 tspn cracked black peppercorns
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups dry red wine
1/2 cup beef broth
zest of 1 orange
chopped fresh Italian flat-leaf parsley leaves

Preparation:

1. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add bacon and cook, stirring, until crisp. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to paper towel to drain. Drain off all but 2 tbsp(30 mL) fat in pan.
2. Add beef to pan, in batches, and brown, about 4 minutes per batch. Transfer to slow cooker stoneware.
3. Add mushrooms to pan and cook until tops are lightly browned, about 4 minutes. Transfer to stoneware. Reduce heat to medium. Add onions and carrots to pan and cook, stirring, until softened, about 7 minutes. Add garlic, thyme, bay leaf, salt, and peppercorns and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add flour and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add wine and beef broth, bring to a boil and cook, stirring, and scraping up brown bits from bottom of pan, until thickened, about 5 minutes.
4. Transfer to slow cooker stoneware. Stir in bacon and orange zest. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours or on high for 4 hours, until beef is very tender. Discard bay leaf. Just before serving, garnish liberally with parsley.

Recipe courtesy of The 150 Best Slow Cooker Recipes by Judith Finlayson

France [ print this recipe for Classic Boeuf Bourguignon ]

Balthazar Goat Cheese and Onion Pizzette (Little Pizza-Tarts) Recipe

From Artisan Pizza and Flatbread in Five Minutes a Day, by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoë François.....

These pizzettes were inspired by a savory tart that my cousin, chef Riad Nasr, serves at Balthazar in New York City. It is a mix of quintessentially French bistro flavors: caramelized onions, goat cheese, and thyme. They go well with many of our crusts but my two favorites are the Cornmeal Olive Oil and the Savory Brioche dough. - Zoë

Makes six 4-inch pizzettes

Ingredients:
1 pound of (grapefruit-size) lean or gluten-free dough or Savory Brioche dough
2 tbsp olive oil
2 medium yellow onions, peeled, cut into 1/8-inch-thick slices
1 bay leaf
2 tspn fresh thyme (or 1 tspn dried)
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
4 oz. soft chévre (goat cheese), at room temperature
4 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
1 egg yolk

Preparation:

1. In a skillet over medium-low heat, add the olive oil, onions, bay leaf, thyme, salt, and pepper. Cook slowly, stirring occasionally, until the onion are golden. This may take 20 to 30 minutes. If the pan gets too dry, add some water to the onions, 2 tbsp at a time.
2. In a small bowl mix together the cheeses and the egg yolk until smooth. Set aside.
3. Preheat the oven to 475 degrees Fahrenheit, with the racks in the center and top third of the oven. Grease two baking sheets. Dust the surface of the refrigerated dough with flour and cut off a 1-pound (grapefruit-size) piece. Dust with more flour and quickly shape it into a ball by stretching the surface of the dough around to the bottom on all four sides, rotating the ball a quarter-turn as you go. Divide the dough into 6 equal portions and form into balls.
4. Stretch the pizzette crusts: Flatten each piece of dough with your hands and/or a rolling pin on a work surface (or shape the disk by hand) to produce a 1/8-inch-thick round. Dust with flour to keep the dough from adhering to the surface. Use a dough scraper to unstick the dough as needed, and transfer to the prepared baking sheets.
5. Add the toppings: Distribute the goat cheese mixture equally among the 6 dough rounds, spreading evenly, then add the onions.
6. Place the baking sheets in the preheated oven. Check for doneness in 10 minutes; at this time, turn the baking sheets around in the oven if one side of the pizzettes is browning faster than the other and switch the pans from the top and the bottom rack. It may take up to 5 minutes more in the oven.
7. Allow to cool, preferably on a wire cooling rack. Serve warm, not hot.

VARIATION: Caramelized Onions, Sautéed Potatoes, and Fresh Pecorino
Add 2 tbsp of wine to the onion mixture while caramelizing. Once the onions are cooked, remove them from the pan and set aside. Add 1 tbsp olive oil to the same pan and sauté 1 thinly sliced potato for about 3 minutes, just to soften. Replace the cheese mixture with 3 ounces of grated pecorino cheese (or any other hard grating cheese). Roll out the pizzettes and distribute the toppings evenly over them, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake as above.

Recipe courtesy of Artisan Pizza and Flatbread in Five Minutes a Day by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoë François

France [ print this recipe for Balthazar Goat Cheese and Onion Pizzette ]

Compote of Apples (Compote de Pommes) Recipe

This recipe for compote of apples can be used as a stand alone dessert or it can be used as a topping. Compote of apples can also be served at breakfast with pancakes or French toast.

Ingredients:
6 fresh apples - I used McIntosh
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup water
zest of 1/2 lemon
juice of 1/2 lemon
pinch nutmeg
pinch of cinnamon

Preparation:

1. Peel the apples and cut out their cores.
2. In a small saucepan over medium heat, add the water, 3 of the apples, and the sugar. Cook for 1 minute.
3. Add the lemon zest and lemon juice.
4. When the apples are blanched, remove the apples and leave the remaining syrup in the saucepan. Reduce the heat to medium low.
5. Add the remaining apples to the saucepan and cook them down to a jelly.
6. Pour the jelly over the apples and top with pinches of nutmeg and cinnamon.

France [ print this recipe for compote of apples ]

Velouté Sauce Recipe

Velouté is a basic sauce that along with Béchamel, Allemande, and Espagnole is know as one of the four French "mother sauces." It goes great with lasagna and meatballs or it can be used as a base to make more complex sauces. You start by making a roux (flour and some kind of fat) and then add the stock of your choice.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
3 tbsp butter, unsalted
2 1/2 cups beef, vegetable, or fish stock
salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:

1. In a skillet over medium heat, melt the butter and add the flour.
2. Using a whisk, stir the mixture continuously until it turns the color of peanut butter - about 4 minutes.
3. To finish the velouté sauce, add the stock of your choice slowly as you whisk. Cook until the mixture begins to boil then reduce the heat to simmer.
4. Serve when the sauce reaches the desired thickness.

France [ print this recipe for Velouté Sauce ]

Whipped Cream Recipe

This recipe for whipped cream is another essential component recipe that you can use with many desserts. It is easy to make and does not have any of the preservatives that the store bought versions of whipped cream contain.

Ingredients:
2 cups heavy whipping cream
1 tspn vanilla
2 tbsp sugar

Preparation:

1. Using a stand mixer, whip all of the ingredients together at high speed until stiff peaks appear.
2. Refrigerate until you are ready to serve.

France

Mayonnaise Recipe

Mayonnaise is an emulsion of egg yolk, oil, and an acidic substance (usually lemon juice or vinegar). Although it is categorized as a French recipe here, it may actually be based on an earlier recipe for salsa mahonesa that originated in Spain.

Ingredients:
2 egg yolks
1 1/2 tspn. Dijon mustard
1 tbsp. wine vinegar
dash of salt
dash of pepper
1 cup olive oil
1 cup canola oil

Preparation:

1. In a mixing bowl, whisk together all of the ingredients except the olive oil and canola oil.
2. Add the olive and canola oil slowly while whisking the mixture.

France

French Fries Recipe

French fries, pommes frites, or Chips - whatever you want to call them, the key to making them well is all about the frying method. Of course you should use the freshest Idaho potatoes available. But when you fry them, the key is to blanch the fries at a lower temperature first in order to cook the fries through. Then you fry them again at a higher temperature to give the fries a golden color and a crispy texture.

Recommended Equipment:
Deep fryer


Ingredients:
3 Idaho potatoes (try get long potatoes)
2 quarts of peanut oil (because of allergy concerns)
Kosher salt

Preparation:

1. Add ice water to a large bowl.
2. Peel the potatoes. Cut them lengthwise into 1/2 inch thick, square shaped sticks.
3. Add the cut fries to the cold water and let them soak for at least an hour to remove the starch.
4. Rinse the fries in cold water.
5. Heat oil in the deep fryer to 280 degrees Fahrenheit.
6. Cook the fries in batches for 7 minutes. Do not try to cook too many fries at one time.
   
7. After the fries have cooked, remove them from the oil and set them on a baking sheet that is lined with paper towels.
8. Cook all of the fries this way first.
9. Next, increase the heat of the oil to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
10. Cook the fries again for 2 to 3 minutes until they are golden brown and crispy.
11. Drop the fries into a large bowl. Lightly salt them.
12. Cover with a towel and shake the fries to coat them with the salt.
13. Serve them hot.

France

Butter Cream Icing Recipe

In a couple of days, I will be posting a recipe for a Brazilian Mother's Day cake. I usually use a lemon meringue icing for this type of cake. However, due to a lack of open space in our refrigerator, I needed an icing that would stand up better to room temperatures. So I tried it with this butter cream icing instead.

If you don't like the idea of using store bought icing for your cakes, try this butter cream frosting recipe. It serves as a base vanilla icing but you could tweak it to make other flavors as well. For example, you could add a teaspoon of lemon extract to make lemon icing. I have also used it with almond extract and hazelnut syrup.

Recommended Equipment:
stand mixer

Ingredients:
1 cup butter, room temperature
3 cups confection sugar
2 tspn vanilla extract
2 tbsp milk

Preparation:

1. Using a stand mixer, cream the butter and vanilla extract.
2. Gradually, mix in the confection sugar.
3. Beat in the milk. If the consistency of the icing is too thick at this point, feel free to add a little more milk to achieve the texture that you need.
   

France

Meringue Icing Recipe

This recipe for Meringue Icing can be used with the Cuban Rum Cake recipe. However, this recipe makes alot of Meringue Icing so if you are using it for the Cuban Rum Cake, you may want to make 1/2 of this recipe.

Recommended Equipment:
stand mixer

Ingredients:
3 egg whites - save the egg yolks if you are going to make the Natilla for the Cuban Rum Cake.
1/4 cup water
1 cup sugar
1/4 tspn salt
1 tspn vanilla extract
1/2 tspn lemon extract

Preparation:

1. In a mixing bowl, beat egg whites at high speed until white peaks begin to appear.
2. In a saucepan, combine the sugar, water, and salt. Cook over medium heat. Stir frequently until mixture begins to boil.
3. Pour the hot mixture in a narrow stream onto the egg whites while beating the egg whites at high speed. Continue to beat the mixture until stiff white peaks appear.
4. Mix in the vanilla extract and lemon extract.

France

Chocolate Éclair Cake

Chocolate Éclair Cake is inspired by the French classic dessert. This version is fast and easy to prepare and will be a favorite of anyone that loves chocolate.

Ingredients:
1 box graham crackers
2 packages French vanilla pudding
3 1/2 cups of milk
9 oz. cool whip
3 1 oz. squares semi-sweet chocolate
2 1/4 cups powdered sugar
3 tspn light corn syrup
1 1/2 tspn vanilla extract
1/8 cup of milk
5 tbsp butter

Preparation:

1. Oil a 9 X 13 inch baking pan.
2. Cover the bottom of the pan with one layer of graham crackers.
3. Mix pudding powder, 3 1/2 cups of milk, and a 9 oz. container of cool whip in a mixer.
4. Put half of the pudding mixture from step #3 over the first layer of graham crackers.
5. Cover the pudding mixture with another layer of graham crackers.
6. Put the remaining pudding mixture on top of the second layer of graham crackers.
7. Put a third layer of graham crackers on top of the second layer of pudding.
8. In a saucepan, add the chocolate, butter, corn syrup, powdered sugar, vanilla, and 1/8 cup of milk. Heat this mixture over medium heat until it forms a smooth chocolate mixture.
9. Pour the chocolate mixture over the third layer of graham crackers. You may need to spread it evenly with the back of a spoon so that it covers the entire top of the cake.
10. Cover the top of the pan with foil or plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
    

France

Sugar Crêpes Recipe

Sugar Crêpes are a great choice for a quick breakfast. The batter is quick and easy to make. The key to making great sugar crêpes is a good non-stick skillet and fresh ingredients for toppings. Sugar crêpes originated in France and are sold on the streets in Paris. With a little practice, your crêpes will taste just as good.

Ingredients:
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup milk
1/4 tspn salt
2 tbsp butter, melted
+ toppings of your choice. I used sliced bananas and confection sugar.

Preparation:

1. In a large mixing bowl, add the flour and the eggs.
2. Next, add the water and the milk.
   
3. Stir until all of the ingredients have combined and the batter is smooth.
4. Lightly grease a skillet with butter over medium heat. Use about 1/4 tbsp for each crêpe.
5. Add about 1/4 to 1/3 cup of crêpe batter to the skillet and whisk it in a circular motion so that the batter covers most of the pan's surface evenly.
6. Cook on each side for about 2 minutes until golden brown.
   

France

Bread Pudding Recipe(Pouding de Pain)

Bread pudding is really easy to prepare and can serve as a great way to use up some unused bread that is going stale. You can substitute this for the French bread and still end up with a great dessert. This recipe is over 80 years old and when I compared it to more contemporary recipes for bread pudding, I found that it uses alot less sugar than many of today's recipes for bread pudding.

Ingredients:
4 cups of French bread, diced
3 eggs
1 cup raisins
3 cups of milk
1 1/2 tspn pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup of sugar

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
   
2. In a 9 inch by 13 inch baking pan, sprinkle 1/3 of the raisins across the bottom of pan.
3. Cover the raisins with 1/3 of the diced french bread.
4. Repeat steps 1 and 2, until all of the bread and raisins are used.
5. In a bowl, lightly beat the eggs.
6. Add the milk, vanilla, and the sugar. Mix until all of the sugar has dissolved.
7. Pour the mixture evenly over the bread and raisins.
8. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes.
   
9. Serve warm with ice cream.
   

France

Béchamel sauce

Sauce Béchamel was first introduced in France and was based on an older Italian Tuscan recipe known as salsa colla. The sauce was first developed by Louis de Béchamel around 1650. It is now considered one of the mother sauces in French cuisine as it is used as a starting component for a myriad of other sauces. In addition to French cuisine, it is often used in recipes from across the Mediterranean region.

To make the Béchamel sauce you first make a roux using butter and flour. Next, scalded milk is whisked in to make a white sauce. You can vary the thickness by adjusting the ratio of roux to milk.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 tbsp butter
1 1/2 tbsp all-purpose flour
pinch of nutmeg
2 cups of milk
salt
pepper

Preparation:

1. Melt butter in a saucepan until it bubbles over medium heat.
2. Add flour and stir the mixture together using a wooden spoon. This mixture is referred to as a roux.
   
3. Reduce the heat. The roux should not change in color.
   
4. In a separate saucepan, heat the milk to a simmer.
5. Whisk the milk into the roux to achieve the desired thickness that you need. Sauce should at least be thick enough to coat the spoon.
   
6. Add a pinch of nutmeg and season with salt and pepper.

France

Cafe Noir

As I think I mentioned in an earlier post, I found an old French/Creole cookbook a couple of weeks ago. When I say old, I mean 1905, turn of the previous century, old!! We're talking culinary archeology here.

Anyway, the book is really interesting in that many of the terms used in the book are completely extinct from the contemporary culinary lexicon. For example, it uses the measure of "gill" which is equivalent to 1/2 cup. The book also has a recipe for a bird called an Upland Sandpiper which is now on the endangered species list.

I really liked some of the dishes described because they talk about how things were made the old way, without pre-made anything and without the aid of machines, devices, etc. Just the basics!!

One recipe that I tried instructs the reader how to make the perfect cup of cafe noir. I tried this process last night and the result was the best cup of coffee that I've ever made. I think that the day that Joe DiMaggio started hocking Mr. Coffees back in the 70s marked the beginning of the end of making coffee this way. It's a lost art.

As far as making good cafe noir, you need to do three things. First, use a pot that you can clean really well. A ceramic container is better than metal because the coffee reacts with metal that creates a residue that will affect the flavor of future cups. Second, use the best quality beans that you can find. In most communities, there is usually at least one mom and pop establishment that roasts their own beans. Be sure to grind the beans yourself, right before you want to use them. Finally, make sure that the water is boiling before you pour it over the coffee grounds as this will release the maximum flavor from the beans. You want to do this gradually over several pours so that you extract the maximum flavor from the beans.

Recommended Equipment:
ceramic coffee pot
small strainer
coffee filter

Ingredients:
4 1/2 cups water, boiling
1 cup coffee beans (I used French/Colombian)

Preparation:

1. Boil water in a sauce pan or small pot.
   
2. Put the small strainer on top of the coffee/tea pot.
   
3. Form a cone out of a piece of coffee filter paper.
   
   
   
   
   
4. Put the cone in the strainer.
   
5. Put 1/2 cup of the coffee beans in clean coffee grinder and grind up the beans.
   
6. When water is boiling, add the coffee to the filter cone.
   
7. Pour about 1/4 cup of the boiling water over the coffee to wet down the grinds.
8. After the water has filtered down into the pot, continue to add another 1 and 3/4 cups of boiling water in small 1/2 cup portions. Wait for each to filter through the coffee into the pot before adding more.
   
9. Empty coffee from filter and repeat steps 4 through 8 again.

This recipe makes about 4 cups of cafe noir coffee.

Related Posts:
5 reasons to not give up coffee

France

Sole ala Normande

I finished reading the introduction to Tony Bourdaine's Les Halles Cook Book the other night. He was talking about how to approach the seemingly complicated French recipes in his book. He recommended breaking the recipes down into different tasks such as deep prep, prep, assembly, etc.

I decided to try this approach on Sole ala Normande, a recipe in an old French cookbook that I bought for only 5 smackers!! The preparation of this dish could have gone wrong at many points. However by reviewing the recipe carefully in advance and getting everything that I needed organized beforehand, I was able to construct this dish without any problems. Anyway, here is the recipe for Sole ala Normande:

Equipment:
mortar and pestle

Ingredients:
2 sole/flounder fillets
3 shallots
5 tbsp butter
1 tbsp sea salt
1 tbsp black pepper
3 garlic cloves
2 tbsp olive oil
2 bay leaves
2 tspn thyme
1 tspn cayenne pepper
2 tbsp flour
2 cups water
2 egg yolks
6 shiitake mushrooms

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Add sea salt, pepper, olive oil, diced garlic, diced bay leaves, and thyme to a mortar and mash ingredients together with pestle.
3. Rub mixture from step #2 onto the fillets and set aside for 20 minutes.
4. In a sauce pan, heat 1 tablespoon butter with 2 tablespoons of flour and stir.
5. When butter has combined with flour, add 2 cups of water and stir over medium heat for 5 minutes. The sauce should be white in color.
6. Add egg yolks and mushrooms to the butter, flour, water mixture. Stir and reduce heat to low. Season this with salt and pepper to taste.
7. Put 2 tablespoons of butter and 1 1/2 diced shallots in a skillet and place a fillet on top of the shallots and butter. Cook on medium-low for 10 minutes then flip fillet and cook for another 10 minutes.
8. Pour the mushroom sauce over fillet, cover skillet, and bake in the oven for 10 more minutes.
9. Plate the fillet and sprinkle with cayenne pepper.
10. Repeat steps 7 - 9 for each fillet or you can bake both fillets simultaneously if you have a big enough skillet (or small enough fillets).

Need a wine to go with this? Try this one: Casa-Silva-Sauvignon-Blanc

France