In putting together this week's column, a simple but elegant dinner for four, we were reminded of our favorite cooking story of all time. A friend who, for good reason, will remain unnamed, has never been known for spending much time in the kitchen. However, both she and her husband work in professions in which they frequently entertain colleagues and customers, and the small town in which they live offers a very limited selection of good restaurants. After taking the same people to the same places repeatedly, it became apparent that they needed more options. On one particular occasion, our non-cooking friend bravely offered to fix dinner for eight executives.
Once the date was set, she called to make an appointment with the chef at their favorite restaurant. During the meeting, they planned a meal that did not appear on the restaurant menu and was also one that could be fixed by a home cook. The chef supplied a list of cooking containers and serving dishes that would be required to "cook" and serve the meal. On the day of the dinner party, our friend (who had taken a day off from work) went by the restaurant and picked up the entire meal along with heating and serving instructions. At the chef's suggestion, she heated some butter in a small pan and cooked some onions which provided the appropriate cooking aroma that met the guests upon their arrival. Other than that, everything went directly into the designated pots and pans to be re-heated. The dinner was served, to much acclaim, and to this day (many years later) none of the guests, including her husband, know who actually cooked the meal.
As much as we love this story, we think it is probably easier to find two or three things you enjoy cooking and when the occasion demands, prepare a meal that doesn't require paying cash and destroying containers to cover up the real source of the meal. We hope this menu will fall into that category.
Ingredients:
Rub the pepper into both sides of each steak. Pour the oil into a large heavy skillet and heat over medium-high heat. Add the steaks to the skillet and cook to desired doneness (6-8 minutes per side for medium-rare). Transfer the steaks to a warm platter and tent with foil.
Place the garlic in the skillet and saute over low heat for 30 seconds. Add the wine to the pan and boil until reduced by half, stirring up any browned bits. Add the beef broth and mustard to the wine and whisk until blended. Boil until slightly thickened, about two minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat. Add butter and whisk just until melted; adjust seasoning. Place steaks on serving plates, top with sauce and garnish with parsley. 4 servings.
Ingredients:
Preheat the oven to 500 degrees. Trim the stems of the asparagus, cutting off the tough ends. Place the olive oil on a heavy baking sheet or jelly roll pan. Place the asparagus on the pan and roll to coat with the oil. Sprinkle with salt. Bake the asparagus for 5-8 minutes or just until done. Transfer to a platter and season with pepper. 4 servings.
Ingredients:
Whisk together the soy sauce, vinegar, oils, ginger, garlic and sugar in a small saucepan. Bring the mixture to a simmer over low heat and cook for 5 minutes. Set aside to cool.
Bring the chicken broth to a boil in a heavy saucepan. Add the couscous, remove from heat and cover. Let stand for 10 minutes. Fluff couscous with a fork and let cool to room temperature. Just prior to serving, toss the couscous with desired amount of vinaigrette. 4 servings.
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