Bourbon Steak on Crostini

~ Katy ~

Christmas Eve (better late than never) at home in Minnesota is always celebrated with lots of delicious appetizers. In 2009, we didn’t have any of our out-of-towners in town, so we decided to make sure they were all represented somehow. We wanted to be sure to eat, drink and toast to them. Kevin and Rose’s Alaskan smoked salmon is always a hit. For Mary and John, we topped the Carmelized Onion and Bacon Tart with Chicago bacon they’d brought for us over Thanksgiving. For Sean and Wanda, we had chocolate covered espresso beans and toffee almond snacks from Starbucks. That left us with Mick and Niki.

I was thinking about picking up some Belgian beer like I had in the past, but not everyone drinks anymore, and since the weather wasn’t the best, it didn’t seem like a good idea. Then, Santa saw fit to deliver some fine, Omaha Steaks from Mick and Niki! Mmmmmm. The funny thing is, they came via UPS, and I had unloaded an entire can of boxes from Omaha Steaks that morning. I didn’t look at the addresses, but I’m pretty sure I unloaded my precious gift. Low and behold, one of them was now on my doorstep! As Homer says, “Praise Jebus!”

I had already chosen this recipe to make for our food orgy, so it couldn’t have been more perfect. I found it online at That’s My Home It’s a winner of a recipe, and I have to say that there were other appetizers that didn’t get a second look from anyone, since these were so amazingly great. They’re a must make again soon for me, and the only thing I would change is to use only horseradish (extra hot) for the top and skip the sour cream part. That’s me, though. I like that hot horseradish with the medium-rare beef. I’ll probably make a combo platter next time. The directions for cooking the filet were perfecto. As you can see from the picture, the beef was just the right temp.

Roasted Garlic

Take a whole garlic bulb and cut off the top, exposing the garlic cloves. Place in a dish that can go in the oven and sprinkle with olive oil. I do several at a time as it holds well in the refrigerator. Bake at 400°F. for 25 minutes. Let cool slightly before using. To use garlic squeeze at the base and the cloves should pop out. Garlic gets sweet when it is baked this way. Try adding mashed garlic cloves to mashed potatoes for a change.

Bourbon Steak on Crostini

2 lbs. filet mignon, trimmed

1 C. Bourbon salt and pepper

2 T. olive oil

1 T. butter

1 1/2 C. thin sliced white onion

1 C. thinly sliced red onion

1 baguette French bread

Topping: mix well and set aside until ready to serve.

1/2 C. sour cream

1 T. horseradish

2 T. chopped parsley

Marinate beef for 1 hour in Bourbon. Remove beef from bowl and salt and pepper. Add the olive oil to a saute pan large enough for the beef and over high heat brown the filet quickly on all sides. Place filet in preheated oven at 350°F. for 15-18 minutes or until medium rare. Let sit for 15 minutes before slicing.

While the beef bakes, carmelize the onions in the butter.

To prepare the crostini: Slice the baguette into 36 pieces that are 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. Brush with a mixture of: 3/4 C. olive oil 1 head of roasted garlic cloves. Bake in 400 degree oven until golden brown. Be sure to watch it, as you don’t want it to burn. This can be prepared ahead of time.

Assembly

Slice beef into 18 thin slices. Cut down the center so that you have 36 pieces. Put a piece of the filet on the crostini and top with a small amount of the carmelized onion and a dollop of the sour cream mixture.