Skillet-Seared Filet Mignon

(serves 2)

When I was younger, I went through a phase where I ate filet mignon for dinner almost every night (feel free to judge). I was a REALLY picky eater and if I didn’t like what was for dinner my grandpa would go to the grocery store and pick me up a steak for that evening. It certainly wasn’t cooked the way I would eat it now, but it was one of my favorite meals. He would pre-slice it, sauté it in butter until it was well done, and serve it with even more butter for me to dip the steak in. Weird, I know!

Nowadays, I don’t pre-slice it, I certainly don’t cook it until it’s well done, but I do pan-sear it in a cast iron skillet with (salted) butter.

I’ve eaten my share of steaks these days, and this is the closest I’ve come to a steak house filet!

Ingredients:

- 2 8oz filet steaks

- 2 tablespoons of butter

- 1 teaspoon of olive oil

- 2 garlic cloves (cut in half)

- Sprig of thyme, rosemary or sage

- Garlic powder

- Salt and pepper

Directions:

Remove your steaks from the fridge about 30 mins prior to cooking them so that they warm up to room temperature. This helps prevent the steak from sticking to the pan and allows for it to get a char without burning. Preheat your oven to 415 degrees and your skillet on the stove-top over medium to high heat while you generously season both sides of your steak with coarse salt and pepper, and a dash of garlic powder. Don’t be afraid to over season. This helps give you that nice steakhouse sear!

Tip: Turn on the exhaust fan to your microwave or hood before the next step. This is can be a smokey process and can set your smoke alarm off if you don’t get ahead of it, trust me!

Add the olive oil, garlic and herb of choice to the skillet with the two steaks. Using a spoon take the butter/ oil mixture in the skillet and continue to pour the butter over the steak. It will run off the steak and back into the pan almost instantly. Continue to do this for 2 minutes and then turn the steaks over. Repeat this process on the other side, constantly spooning butter over the steak for another 2 minutes. Place the skillet into the oven for 6 mins (for medium temperature). Adjusting 1 minute up or down for the desired temperature. For example, medium-rare would be 5 minutes and medium-well would be 7 minutes.

Remove the steaks from the skillet and place on a plate, cover with tinfoil, and allow it to rest for 5 minutes. Resting allows the steak to reach the correct temperature and also allows all the juices to all be absorbed. Be sure to allow a little vent with the tinfoil for moisture to escape. This is an important step to maintain that crust we got in the first few steps! Serve with a salad or a big scoop of mashed potatoes. Just remember to always use salted butter!

Note: if you don’t own a cast iron skillet, I highly recommend getting one. However, any oven safe frying pan will work!