It's all About the Meat

Beef fillet with a gratin of mushrooms and sautéed new potatoes

Ingredients
4 servings

· 1 shallot, finely chopped

· 1 garlic clove, crushed

· 4 tbsp olive oil

· 100g mixed mushrooms (shiitake, oyster), roughly chopped

· 100g chestnut mushrooms, roughly chopped

· 2 tbsp chives, finely chopped

· 4 tbsp double cream

· 1 large egg yolk

· 4 fillet steaks, about 180g and 4cm thick

· 3 tbsp freshly grated Parmesan

New potatoes

· 500g new potatoes, scrubbed

· 5-6 tbsp olive oil

· few sprigs of rosemary

· 8 garlic cloves, skin on and lightly crushed

· knob of butter

· sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

Preheat oven to 220°C/Gas 7.

Place the new potatoes in a large pan and fill with cold water to cover. Add a generous pinch of salt, partially cover with a lid and simmer for 15-20 minutes until the potatoes are just tender when pierced with a skewer. Drain and refresh under cold, running water. Halve the potatoes and pat dry with kitchen paper. Set aside.

To prepare the topping, gently sauté the shallot and garlic in 1 tablespoon of olive oil for about 5 minutes until nicely softened. Add a further 2 tablespoons of olive oil and sauté the mushrooms over a high heat, stirring frequently, for about 7 minutes until browned and cooked. The mixture should be quite dry. If necessary, tip it into a sieve to drain off any remaining liquid. Remove the garlic clove and transfer the mushrooms to a bowl, allow to cool.

Whip the cream until softly stiff. Fold in the mushrooms along with the egg yolk, herbs and a tablespoon of the grated Parmesan, then season with salt and pepper. Set aside.

Season the steaks all over with salt and pepper. Heat a large non-stick frying pan until you can feel a strong heat rising. Cook the steaks for about 2-3 minutes, turning them to seal all over. Remove from the pan. Put the steaks on a shallow baking tray. Pile the mushroom mixture on top of the steaks and dust with the remaining parmesan. Cook in the oven uncovered, for about 5-7 minutes until the topping is bubbling and golden.

Meanwhile, finish off the potatoes. Heat the olive oil in a frying pan and add the garlic and rosemary, followed by the potatoes. Sauté over a fairly high heat, until the potatoes are golden brown - stir throughout to prevent them sticking to the pan. Add a knob of butter towards the end of cooking, season generously with salt and pepper.

When ready, serve the steaks with the sautéed potatoes.