Bistecca all Fiorentine, Steak Tuscan Style. Paired with Focaccia Salsa

I have cooked a lot of steaks in my time and this has to be one of the recipes that comes closest to fine steak house style steak. The salsa is an Italian based side dish that pairs very well a delicious ribeye. If you want to serve a nice crisp vegetable with this dish, I might recommend trying a nice steamed or baked asparagus (let me know if you are interested in a few asparagus recipes). I’m adding this recipe by request, which for me is very flattering.

The Steak

2 (one pound) Porterhouse or Ribeye steaks about 2 inches thick.

Sea Salt

Ground Black Pepper

Minced garlic (one to two cloves, depending on your love of garlic)

Olive Oil

Make sure that the steaks are at room temperature. Coat both sides with olive oil and rub with minced garlic. Also apply sea salt and ground pepper to taste.

Pre-heat your oven to 450 degrees. Pour a enough olive oil to barely cover the entire bottom of a cast iron skillet. It’s important that you use a cast iron skillet since you are going to place it in to a 450 degree oven. Turn the burner on high until the oil in the skillet is literally smoking hot.

Once the skillet is smoking hot add the steaks. Allow steaks to cook for 4 minutes, turn and place the entire skillet in the pre-heated oven for another 4 minutes. Remove from oven and place on a cutting board for 4 additional minutes. At this point you can either cut the steaks in to portions or serve whole to your more hungry guests. The times noted are for a medium rare steak. Add a minute for each step if you want it a little more well done, or subtract a minute for rare.

The Salsa

The Focaccia is delicious and is really a great side dish to the steak. Here are the ingrediants you will need to get started.

1 (8-by-8 inch) square faocaccia bread, or 4 (1/2 inch thick) slices of Italian bread.

3 Tablespoons of Extra-Virgin Olive Oil.

2 Tablespoons of finely chopped shallots.

1 Clove of Garlic, minced

1 Tablespoon of chopped rosemary

1 Tablespoon of chopped parsley

Sea Salt and cracked black pepper

Begin by ripping the bread in to small pieces and set them aside. Heat olive oil in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add shallots and cook for 3 minutes until golden brown. Add garlic, bread, rosemary and parsley. Stir until mixture is evenly coated with olive oil and all ingredients turn a golden brown (6-8 minutes). Remove from heat and season with sea salt and ground pepper.

This dish is best served with a nice Tuscan wine, like a Barolo or Barbaresco. 

I simply love to cook and try new recipes. If you try any of my recipes, please let me know how you liked it and if I described it properly. Also let me know if you make any modifications that you find works well.

The Road Not Traveled

Today was like so many other days. I had so many chores to do that before I knew it I was preparing dinner. However, there was a moment today that I could have changed my life forever.

Of the many things that were on my list today, one entailed that I stop by the local car wash and buy a birthday card along with a gift certificate for my soon to be ex-wife. I figured that since I was soon to be absent from her life, why not buy her some car washes since I wasn’t going to be aound to wash her car myself, but I digress.

I quickly found the card that seemed most appropriate considering our current situation and brought it to the girl at the check out. I told her that I wanted 4 “wheel deals” (wash and a tire cleaning). She explained that I could get 6 washes for the price of 5, which I agreed was a fair offer. After I paid I left the car wash at the front exit.

As I exited the door and made a path toward my car, I noticed several expensive cars off to my right. These exotic beauties were parked off the normal Que as if they had been detailed specifically to the owners instructions. Among them were a couple of BMW’s a Mercedes and a new Cadillac. As I approached this row of luxury madness another car jumped the line and pulled directly in front of me. This wasn’t just an ordinary car, it was a Ferrari 612 Scaglietti.

I was about 20 feet from this silver wet dream, when out popped a young Hispanic man that had just completed a thorough cleaning of this lean machine. The hum of the engine was like the low growl of a finely tuned cello. The profile of this fine automobile could be described as a sleek and sexy woman from Verona. The light grey interior was as supple as a baby’s bottom and even from 15 feet away I could smell the leathery aroma.

As luck would have it my car was parked between me and the Ferrari. As I got closer, I noticed that the guy that had just finished detailing the car was looking directly at me and holding the door open as if I was the owner. It was in this moment that an alternate future flashed before my eyes. How easy would it have been to thank this guy for his services, slip him a twenty and speed off in my new mistress. For a moment I could see myself sitting behind the wheel of a machine that could reach nearly 200 miles per hour and go from 0-60 in less than 4.2 seconds. No cop would have been able to catch me. But alas, better judgement always wins.

What a wonderful fantasy and what a beautiful car.

You can see it here.

 http://www.rsportscars.com/eng/cars/612_scaglietti.asp

Lyrics That Touch Your Soul

I adore music. Especially those pieces that can really reach down and rock your soul. Different songs and lyrics have varying meanings in ones’ life. Sometimes they are watermarks for utter joy and sometimes they signify a bitter defeat.

Recently I downloaded “Not Alone” by Patty Griffin. The lyrics are deeply moving, but it is the way that she sings this hypnotizing song that just shakes me to the core. Here are the lyrics. But I urge you to download and play this beautiful melody over and over again.

“She sees him laying in the bed alone tonight
the only thing a touching him is a crack of light
pieces of her hair are wrapped around and ’round his fingers
he reaches for her side for any sign of her that lingers
and she says you are not alone
laying in the light
put out the fire in your head
and lay with me tonight
one of them bullets went straight for the jugular vein
there were people running,
A flash of light then everything changed
nothing really matters in the end you know all the worries sever
don’t be afraid for me my friend
one day we all fall down forever
she says you are not alone
laying in the light
put out the fire in your head
and lay with me tonight
the wedding date was June just like any other bride
she loved him like no one before and it was good to be alive
sometimes that can slip away as fast as any fingers through your hands
so you let time forgive the past and go and make some other plans
you are not alone
laying in the light
put out the fire in your head
and lay with me tonight
you are not alone
laying in the light
put out the fire in your head
and lay with me tonight”

Here is a link to a sample of the song. Download it… If you don’t like it I’ll send you the $.99

 http://www.last.fm/music/Patty+Griffin/_/Not+Alone

 

To Infinity and Beyond!

During recent marketing meeting I was surrounded by some young female assistants, and was inadvertantly sucked into a conversation.

“…So I loved the symbol for ‘infinity’ as part of our new ad campaign, but it’s too bad that it was eventually shot down.”

“I didn’t know it was kicked out. What happened.” I said.

“Well it was decided that most guys wouldn’t recognize the sideways eight thingy as the symbol for ‘Infinity’.”

“What? You’ve got to be kidding! What kind of guy wouldn’t recognize that as the symbol for ‘Infinity?’ I mean come on! I know that!”

“Well… Your different… Your more metro-sexual”

After a long and uncomfortable pause, I said… “I’m not exactly sure how to take that.”

Later as our long marketing meeting progressed, one of the girls stood along side me admiring this cool Italian watch that I picked up in Verona. “That’s really a cool watch” she said, leaning over to get a closer look. Recalling our previous conversation I looked at her with apprehension, then she looked me dead in the eye with a hint of a smile ”I mean in a fashionable and masculine way.”

The following day I came to work with my new pair of Wranglers and the Timex I picked up at WalMart. 

The Rate of Exchange

She stood close

Ebbing a soft warm glow

Contact need not be made

The subtle and unspoken exchange

The essence of her breath

He quietly soaked it in

Composure above all else

She knew that she had him

A Blog to Consider…

I heard an interesting story on NPR today. Seems that the great-grandson of a WW1 foot soldier saved some old letters that were about to be tossed by his grandmother. He’s saved them and is now posting them on a blog 90 years to the date that they were written. I thought it sounded pretty cool and it is!

You can check out the blog here.  http://wwar1.blogspot.com/

In Passing

So there I was, rounding a corner after a particularly grueling hill. I was 2 miles in to my 4 mile run. The three beers and bowl of chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream that I had the night before were laying the guilt on thick.

So as I rounded the corner in the dim morning light, just ten feet in front of me, running directly at me and closing fast, was this incredibly cute girl. She had on tight black running shorts, a white sports bra with a white tank top over it. She had beautifully tan skin and long straight black hair that was tied in a ponytail in the back. Her hair swayed side to side as the distance between her and I quickly evaporated.

You would think that in ten feet you could think of what you should do to appear at least somewhat attractive. However, it was early in the morning and the first cup of coffee was far from my lips. What happened next was both impressive and incredibly sad.  It that short distance she looked me straight in the eye, smiled and cheerfully said “good morning.” I was impressed because she smiled and presented her salutation as if she were on a gingerly stroll. As her surprisingly gleeful greeting registered in my half awake brain, I quickly packaged what I had hoped to be an equally effortless hello. Instead of a delightful smile, I seemed to grimace at what could be only be described of that tooth bearing grin a rabid dog has when he is either about to bite you or simply snarl. In an effort to distract her from this horrible sight, I raised my hand in a simple wave only to have my “good morning” come out something like “gachmooning.” It seemed that the surplus of phlem that had pooled in the back of my throut thwarted my normal vocals. Out of the corner of my eye I could see her delightful smile vanish and her face changed to that of total shock.

Ahhh….  I still have it. Aren’t great first impressions wonderful? 

New Friends and Good Times

This past Saturday night was one that was long overdue. Over the past several years I really haven’t gotten out much. And when I look back, it really was my fault that I hadn’t made the time to experience some new things. Recently I’ve become friends with a Christine (aka “Snapshots made from an unmade bed”). Christine is one of those people that just gobbles up everything around them. She and I met on Flickr and have become good friends. She’s married to Michael, a great guy who really appears to be her perfect match.

This past week they invited me to join them for an informal cook-out. Just hanging with a few friends from Austin. Their friends turned out to be a young band (The Mercers) that completely blew my socks off from so many different levels. Before I made it out to Christine and Mikes place I was totally stressed at how the evening would turn out. You see, I’m totally not the social butterfly and I was worried that I would be uncomfortable to the point of being totally shy and quite. It didn’t take long before Christine and Mike made me feel totally welcome. The guys from the band were also great! Peter, the lead singer had a sence of humor that was contageous. Ian, the drummer, was very soft spoken, but incredible geniune. The brothers, one played bass and the other keyboard and guitar were just as much fun ( just wish I could remember their names). Kim, who is Peters girlfriend was also extremely warm and kind.

After a delicious dinner we all headed to a bar called “The Double Wide.” This place was carved out of a larger portion of what appeared to be a strip center. It really looked to be a double wide trailer, complete with a funnel cloud propped up on the end of the roof. There was a bar on the right, seperated by a court yard, with the room where the bands played on the left.

It’s been years since I’ve listened to live music, but I know good music when I hear it. These guys tore it up! I was fixed on Peter’s blood stained guitar as his semi-visible hands strummed one incredible lick after another. He sang with a passion that I haven’t seen in quite a while. The whole experience wants me to throw something at the television when American Idol comes on.

 Here is a link to a little tribute that Christine did for the band and the evening. Follow her link to the bands website.

  http://www.flickr.com/photos/snapshotsunmade/541024236/in/photostream/

It’s a Beautiful Day

Last night after work I decided to go down to the gym and do a little weight training. As I moved from station to station in my own little world, the song “It’s a Beautiful Day” by U2 came through the earbuds of my ipod. It’s funny how music sends you back to a place in your life. Sometimes you love it, sometimes not.

Before we had Logan properly diagnosed with ADD and Dyslexia, he really struggled in the public school system. Before I go on, you must understand Logan. He is one of the most gentle boys that you would ever want to meet. He is very big for his age and always has been. One of his main goals is to make others around him comfortable and happy. He is and probably will always be a gentle giant.

One day at the start of one of his third grade classes all the kids were complaining about the weather. You see, since it was cold and drizzling at the time, it almost certainly meant that there would be no outside recess. After allowing the students several minutes of complaining about how “ugly” the day was, the teacher gave them an alternate point of view. “I know you guys are dissapointed that you probably won’t be able to go outside today for recess.” she said. “But please remember that although you may not be able to go outside it really isn’t ‘ugly’ outside. As a matter of fact it’s quite beautiful.” She went on to point out that if you look closely you can find all sorts of beauty. And, no matter what, it’s always a beautiful day.

As he always does when he is engrossed in something Logan took this all in. I can imagine him, his eyes fixed on the window, peering out at the cold damp day and seeing the day just as she had described it.

As his teacher re-focused her class at the real task at hand, she began with the days course work. The first assignment of the day was reading. This was a subject that Logan struggled with most. You see, not only do dyslexics see words backward, but they also see some letters backward as well. It always amazed me that he would see the word “bed” as “deb.” The class was asked to read a chapter out of one the books the had been assigned. As the her class complied and quitely read to themselves Logan’s teacher slowly walked between the aisles. As she approached Logans seat she could hear him saying something very softly. She knew by his quite cadence that he wasn’t reading, but he was reciting something. Knowing that Logan struggled with reading, his teacher leaned over and softly asked him what it was that he was whispering to himself. Logan looked up at her with tears welling in his soft blue eyes and said; “It’s a Beautiful Day.”

So here I sit even today, with tears in my eyes writing this story of one childs struggle. But I also see it as a triumph as well. It reminds me that no matter how difficult times may become, that there is always something to look forward to.  There is always that silver lining. That its always “A Beautiful Day.” 

    

Restaurants

I was recently asked by Christine to put together a list of local restaurants that I enjoy. Although the list is small, all of these have great reasons to visit.

My first choice is easy. Mi Piaci in Addison, Texas. This is by far one of my favorite places to dine in Dallas. The food is outstanding and the service and atmosphere is fabulous.  I have never had a bad meal here and the prices are very reasonable. http://www.mipiaci-dallas.com/about.htm

My second choice is one of the best seafood restaurants in Dallas. Oceanaire Is one of those places where the cuisine is always consistent and the service is impeccable. I had dined there one time with an acquaintance when the service was rather poor. The manager arrived at near the conclusion of the meal, apologized and then comped the entire meal. The bill was in excess of $275. http://www.theoceanaire.com/location/index.asp?id=4

Here in Dallas there are more steak places than there are McDonalds. There are so many that are extremely fine and for most staying in business is rather tough.  Randy’s Steakhouse is one place that is far out of the way, but that is worth the trip. Set in the historic portion of downtown Frisco, Randy’s stands as an icon. The steaks are outstanding as well as the extended offering of seafood. It’s not uncommon to see Randy himself walking around the restaurant, scotch in hand, asking customers how their meal is. http://www.randyssteakhouse.com/

My final choice is far different than the previous.  Coppell Deli is also located in an old town center, this time in the center of historic Coppell, Texas. If you want one of the best greasy burgers and the most delicious tater tots or fries this is the place to visit. This is also one of those places that members of the Dallas Cowboys frequent. One world of caution, Coppell Deli is very small. I think it seats 30 people maximum. http://www.coppelldeli.com/new/

I was supposed to ask that some of my blogging friends pull together their list of favorite places as well. But since I don’t have many friends that blog, the few I have on my list are;

Jennifer http://flyingsquirrelblog.blogspot.com/

Jessica http://www.girlstatic.com/?page_id=2