This article was written for Annabel & Grace, which is now part of Rest Less.
Also found this comment from the sisters very interesting: “We prefer eating meat for lunch as it takes up to five hours to digest – the last thing we want to do is take the steak to bed with us! For better digestion eat your meat with lots of non-starchy vegetables. Go for a portion of cooked veg and one portion of raw (raw food has helpful digestive enzymes).”
Steak With Cauliflower Mash
Ingredients serves 2 people
2 x organic good quality steak (we used sirloin, ask the butcher to keep the fat on – it’s good for you and necessary for nutrient absorption as well as healthy brain and cell function)
3 tablespoons of butter
1 teaspoons ghee (clarified butter)
1 large cauliflower
1 large leek sliced (leeks are in season now but onions or red onions work just as well)
1 tablespoon good quality Dijon mustard
1 spring onion
1 bunch of watercress or other leaves such as rocket/baby spinach
Small handful of frozen or fresh peas
Squeeze of lemon juice
Sea salt and black pepper to taste
How to prepare
If using frozen peas, place your peas in a bowl with boiling water and leave to stand until tender. Drain and rinse in cold water.
Coarsely grate your cauliflower (or use a food processor), place the butter in the bottom of a large pan with two tablespoons of water and top with the cauliflower (you need room for the steam to form). Season with salt and pepper. Don’t cook yet.
Get a frying pan very hot with a teaspoon of ghee (butter will burn at high heat) and season your steaks.
Fry the steaks until cooked to your liking, bearing in mind that they’ll continue to cook after you take them off the heat. We like medium, so a couple of minutes on each side. Once you start frying your steaks, leave them to caramelise until you flip them over.
Transfer to a plate and cover loosely with foil to allow the meat to relax.
Using the same frying pan sweat the leeks in the lovely meat juices and fat, on a low heat for three minutes or until soft. Stir in your mustard and season. Add a splash of wine, stock or water if you want to make your sauce saucier.
Put the lid on your cauliflower pan and steam for around five minutes, stirring once or twice until cauliflower is tender. Leave chunky as a mash or, if you like, puree with a hand blender until creamy. Stir in some chopped spring onion and taste for seasoning. You can always add garlic, cheese, or whatever else you normally use to flavour your mash.
Plate up your watercress and pea salad by drizzling the veg with extra virgin olive oil and a squeeze of lemon juice. Add the mash, then the steak, and spoon the mustard leek sauce over the top. Pour yourself a glass of organic red wine to finish.
Tip: The sauce would be delicious with a salmon steak – add some chopped fresh dill to it.