Steaks With Stilton-Portobello Sauce

Kathy arrived today for a month-long visit. She always complains that I’m always talking about this great food I’m making and yet never cook for her when she’s here. She’s right. So I offered to make dinner for the night of her arrival – she was afraid I’d back down but I didn’t. I had already eyed this recipe – I had some leftover stilton – and she was OK with giving it a try (after I explained that stilton was another blue cheese, just like the gorgonzola that she likes).
It was great. Easy to make and delicious – the sort of thing you can serve either for a family dinner or for company. It is terribly fattening (with all that butter, cream and meat). I’m pretty sure it would work just as well with another blue cheese (at least with one of the milder types), so just use your favorite. Finally, if you are not a blue cheese fan, you don’t need to sprinkle the rest of the blue cheese on the steak. The original recipe called for beef tenderloins (expensive), but there is no reason why it shouldn’t work as well with a cheaper cut of meat. I made both a tenderloin for Kathy and New York steaks for us.
The original recipe is for 6 (people/steaks) but that would leave you with too little sauce per person. I think it works best for four. I served them with egg noodles (the first thing that I found on the pantry) and that worked well. Mashed potatoes would also go well with the dish.
Recipe
-4 steaks
-salt & black pepper to taste
-1 tbsp dried tarragon
-5 tbsp butter
-1/2 lb portobello mushrooms, sliced
-1/3 cup red wine
-1/2 cup sour cream
-3 oz silton, crumbled.
Rub steaks with salt, pepper and tarragon. Let rest until they come to room temperature.
Melt 2 tbsp. butter in a large skillet. Grill steaks until done to your taste. Remove and keep warm (put them in a plate and cover them with a heavy napkin).
Melt additional 3 tbsp butter in the skillet where you cooked the steak. Add mushrooms and sautee until soft, 2-3 minutes. Add wine and deglaze the pan. Add sour cream and mix well. Add 1/4 cup crumbled Stilton cheese. Remove from heat.
Spoon mushrooms and sauce over each steak. Sprinkle remaining stilton and serve.