Mixed Peppercorn Steaks With Sherry Marjoram Pan Sauce Recipes

Steps:

• Place ground pepper on plate. Dredge steaks in pepper, turning to coat evenly. Sprinkle steaks on both sides with salt. Heat olive oil in heavy medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add steaks and cook to desired doneness, about 2 1/2 minutes per side for medium-rare. Transfer steaks to plate; tent with foil to keep warm while making pan sauce.
• Add shallots to skillet; sauté over medium-high heat 2 minutes. Add broth and Sherry; boil until sauce is slightly reduced, stirring to scrape up browned bits, about 4 minutes. Stir in marjoram. Remove skillet from heat; stir in vinegar. Add butter 1 piece at a time, stirring until melted. Season sauce with salt and pepper. Pour sauce over steaks and serve.

Steps:

• Heat a frying pan over a medium-to-high heat, then pour in the oil and the clarified butter. Season the steaks with salt and plenty of freshly ground black pepper and cook to your liking (2 mins each side for medium-rare, 3 mins each side for medium, depending on the thickness of your steaks). Be sure to seal the rounded edges, too. Transfer to a plate.
• Add the knob of butter to the pan, then fry the shallots, mushrooms and peppercorns over a medium heat for 5 mins, until the shallots have softened and the mushrooms browned. Return the steaks to the pan. Heat the brandy in a metal ladle, light with a match then carefully pour into the hot pan, standing as far back as you can. Once the pan has stopped flaming, remove the steaks again.
• Pour the wine into the pan, turn up the heat and boil rapidly until reduced by half. This will take about 5 mins. Add the stock and reduce again, this time by two-thirds. Stir the cream in to the sauce and allow it to thicken slightly. Check the sauce for seasoning, then return the fillets to the pan to warm through, spooning the sauce over. Serve straight away.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450°F.
• Cut potatoes into 1/4-inch-thick slices and in a saucepan of boiling salted water cook 5 minutes, or until just cooked through. Drain potatoes well in a sieve and transfer to a 6-cup gratin dish (1 1/2-quart) or other shallow baking dish, 11 by 8 by 1 1/2 inches. Toss potatoes immediately with remaining ingredients and pepper and salt to taste and bake in upper third of oven 20 minutes, or until potatoes are pale golden.