Did I seriously promise to post TWO recipes today? What am I, crazy?? I won’t even tell you about the state of my house right now……….let’s just pretend that it’s clean and orderly, shall we? I’ll serve you up the promised tenderloin recipe now and the linzer tortes later, so my vegetarian friends will not have to endure slabs of beef while reading about Valentines cookies!
Yesterday I listed Beef Tenderloin with Port Wine Sauce as an idea for a Valentine’s or special occasion meal. I seduced you with this gorgeous photo from Cooking Light, but oh no, my friend, the recipe itself is not from there, and no, it’s not light by any means. But I promise you it’s worth every succulent, non-low-fat bite!
If you are a carnivore, please, please, please try this sauce sometime, with either a beef roast or steaks. You will love me forever for posting this. Look for tenderloin roasts on sale in your meat market or check out your local Costco or BJs. (If you’re one of my local peeps or family, this is in the NCL cookbook, page 122, courtesy of my friend and fellow foodie Tracy!)
Note: the recipe below serves 12. I halve this to feed my family of 5 or 2 couples.
Beef Tenderloin with Roasted Shallots, Bacon and Port Wine Sauce
Serves 12
(Print Recipe)
1 1/2 lbs. large shallots (about 24), halved lengthwise, peeled
3 T olive oil
6 C beef broth
1 1/2 C tawny port
1 T tomato paste
(2) 3-3.5 lb. beef tenderloin roasts
2 T dried thyme
7 bacon slices, chopped
3 T butter
1 1/2 T flour
Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 375. Toss shallots with oil to coat, season with salt and pepper and roast until shallots are deep brown and very tender, stirring occasionally, about 30 minutes. Allow to cool, chop coarsley and set aside.
I remove the crispy outside layer before chopping for the sauce.
Bring broth and port wine to boil in large saucepan and reduce, about 30 minutes. Whisk in tomato paste.
(Shallots & broth/wine mixture can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill.)
Remove that shiny membrane and most of the fat (you’ll replace that fat with bacon drippings, so don’t worry about flavor. You want the seasonings to be on the meat, not the fat.)
Season all over with thyme, salt and pepper.
In large roasting pan set over medium heat, saute bacon until golden, about 4 minutes, and transfer to paper towels.
Add beef to bacon drippings and brown on all sides over medium heat, about 7 minutes.
Tranfer pan to oven; roast until beef thermometer insterted into center registers 125 for medium-rare, 45-1 hour. Tansfer beef to cutting board and tent loosely with foil.
Spoon fat off pan drippings in roasting pan. Place pan over high heat, add broth/wine mixture and bring to boil, scraping pan. Transfer to medium saucepan, bring to simmer. Mix 3 T butter and flour to form smooth paste; whisk into broth mixture and simmer until sauce thickens, about 2 minutes. Stir in shallots and reserved bacon; season with s&p.
Cut beef into 1/2″ slices and serve with sauce. Swoon with delight. Gracefully receive compliments from dinner guests. Give yourself a big kiss in a nearby mirror.
(Imagine a delicious, perfectly cooked piece of tenderloin roast right now. I couldn’t take any more pictures because my family descended upon me and the platter like a flock of seagulls at the beach.)
Enjoy!
