Steak & Mushroom Faro

I was pleased that one of the favorite dishes I served for a recent "Spring Sampler" fundraiser we hosted for Social Capital Inc. was a new one I concocted for the occasion. I knew I wanted to serve some steak, but wanted to prepare it in a way that would stretch for the 15-20 guests I was anticipating. At first I thought about pasta or risotto, but the former seemed to basic and the latter would have my back to the company too much as I stirred. So I opted for the robust faro grain, which I made in a risotto style.

The recipe below could easily serve 8-10 as a main course; I served it as one of 3 smaller tapas style plates for a bigger crowd. I prepared the steak & mushroom sauce ahead of time, I've written the instructions that way to encourage the advance prep for company.

2.5 lbs steak, I used 2 porterhouse (great way to have a bit of filet!)

10 ozs button mushrooms, sliced

1/2 lb shiitake mushrooms, stemmed & sliced

4 small/medium shallots, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp fresh sage, minced

3 tbsp butter

1/2 cup red wine

1 1/4 lbs faro, soaked for 30 mins & rinsed

1/4 cup cream

1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated

salt & pepper

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp truffle oil

1. Pre-heat oven to 450 degrees. Brush the steaks with the olive oil, the grind salt & pepper on the the steak. Let them sit for 15 minutes or so at room temperature.

2. Lightly coat a large skillet with olive oil spray. Heat on medium-high, add steaks when hot (mine just barely fit into the pan together). Sear the steaks by cooking on the stove top about 1 minute per side so it begins to brown. Move the pan from stovetop into oven, and cook for about 7 minutes--you want them to be rare at this point if you are going to be re-heating. Remove pan from oven, place steaks on platter and loosely tent them with foil.

3. Place the skillet, with the steak juices and morsels, back on the stovetop on medium heat. Melt the butter, then add the shallots & garlic. Saute until the shallots begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms in a few batches, stirring gently to combine, and cook for about 5 minutes until they start to soften. Stir in the wine, herbs, and season generously with pepper and a bit of salt. Cook for about 5 minutes so the wine sauce thickens. Finish by stirring in the cream. You can also add another tablespoon or so of butter at this point for a richer sauce, or use butter instead of the cream. Remove the pan from heat.

4. Cut the steak into bite size pieces, and stir it in with the sauce; I'd suggest doing this in a storage container, or a medium pan that you can re-heat the mushroom steak combination in later.

5. When you are 30 minutes from serving time, boil a large pot of water to cook the faro. When it's boiling, add the faro grain. It takes about 25 minutes to cook until softened. Drain the faro when it's tender.

6. Gently re-heat the steak & mushroom combination about 10 minutes before the faro is due to be done. Take care not to overcook the steak. Combine the faro and steak & mushrooms, add an extra tablespoon of olive oil to facilitate the blending. Add the cheese, a bit of extra salt & pepper, and finish by stirring in the truffle oil after removing the dish from the heat. Serve and enjoy!

Wine pairing: The beef and robust flavors of the faro and mushrooms definitely call for a big red wine, and we had a chance to sample three. My first thought was the 2006 Cantina Del Pinto Langhe Nebbiolo would provide the earthiness to match the dish; it was certainly a nice wine but was definitely upstaged by the pair we had from Southern France. I'd picked up the 2005 Chateau de la Liquiere Vielles Vignes, a red blend from the Faugeres appellation in the the Langeudoc region of France. This combines 40% old vine Carignan, 40% Grenache, 10% Syrah and 10% Mourvedre. This red had the rustic qualities I like from this region and matched the dish nicely. A friend also brought the 2007 Jean-Louis Tribouley Les Bacs Vin de Pays Des Cotes Catalanes, a nice treat and another good match for the dish. I'd previously raved about the 2006 vintage of this one. You can't go wrong with any of these three choices, but any other big red you might have is worth trying with this too.