This classic Jennie Cooks recipe goes out to Mitch.  He worked as a hospitality professional back in the 90′s, catering jobs  for “Mad About You”, Everybody Loves Raymond”, a few other shows at CBS Radford and about town. I promised  him this recipe for peppershroom steak he was craving. The mushrooms are insanely delicious. The atomic horseradish sauce is good on everything, not just the steak. Happy birthday Mitch!

Peppershroom Steak with Atomic Sauce

Ingredients and Method for the Steak

Marinate one Grass fed Tri Tip in a little red wine and olive oil. Coarsely crush enough black peppercorns to make a nice peppery crust on the steak, about 2 tablespoons or so. We have a dedicated coffee grinder we use for spices and previous to that, we wrapped them in a linen towel and whacked them with a rolling pin.  Encrust the steak with the crushed peppercorns and pressing the pepperinto the steak a little bit. Grill or pan sear the steak, and roast to an internal 120 degrees for a perfect medium rare.

Ingredients and Method for the Golden Shrooms

Turn on the exhaust fan. Melt a little butter and add equal parts olive oil in a large saute pan or dutch oven.  (I like to have the sides because the mushrooms are jumpy). add 2 pounds of button mushrooms. Add 2 bay leaves,  a few hearty shakes of Worcestershire sauce  and  fire up the heat! Get it really hot, move the mushrooms around and get a serious heat going. THEN, when it’s really hot, pour in 1/4 to 1/2 bottle of Marsala wine. IT WILL CATCH ON FIRE! If that scares you a little bit turn down the heat. It still works – And if you want a fire an it didn’t catch right away, light it with a crack lighter. keep the heat going and pay attention to your pan, don’t walk away. Let it burn off a little bit, give it a stir when the fire goes out, turn it on  medium heat and let it simmer till all the juices evaporate and the butter and olive oil glaze the mushrooms to a golden deliciousness.

Ingredients and Method for the Atomic Sauce

Combine equal parts of mayo and sour cream or adjust to your favorite combination of  the two, you could even use greek yogurt. Add 1/4 to 1/2 cup of horseradish.  If it’s storebought, squeeze a little liquid out  and  add a little extra for a real kick.  Grate a fresh apple into the sauce.  Adjust with salt and white pepper.

Serving Suggestions:

Slice the beef, top with mushrooms, send atomic sauce on the side. And Syrah.

This is my most requested recipe. Old fashioned corn pudding with a California twist – Masa instead of flour for a delicious tamale like flavor.

The Amazing Corn Sensation

 Ingredients  for the pudding

3 1/2 cups of corn pureed with a ½ a cup of  water  ( or 2 cans of creamed corn)

¼ cup melted butter or oil

2 TBS sugar

3 beaten eggs

¼ cup Masa Harina

½ cup milk or half and half

 Topping:  2 cup frozen corn, 1 cup grated cheddar and a spritz of oil  to brown the corn ( I like the corn on top but not every chef does)

 Method:  Mix together creamed corn and melted butter (or oil). Beat in eggs, masa, sugar and milk until well combined.  Pour into 9 x 13 greased baking dish. Bake at 350* for 1 hour or until fork comes out clean. Top with cheddar and corn, return to oven until cheesy deliciousness is to your satisfaction.

Vegan Variation: sub Egg Replacer as per instructions on the box, use Earth Balance or olive oil and soy milk.  I haven’t tried it with coconut milk, but I bet it would be DEE lish. Oh yeah, and subbing agave syrup for the sugar would be good too.