Dad's Birthday Dinner

My stepmom put me in charge of my Dad's birthday dinner this year. I was kind of nervous but really excited to get back in the kitchen. I'm pretty sure I get my foodieness (yup I just made up another word)from him. We have similar tastes in things we like and don't(neither of us like ketchup, which is pretty uncommon). Anyway so when I was planning it, Toni(stepmomma) has said she wanted prime steaks and she'd buy them(YAY!) so I just needed to plan the supporting characters. what goes good with an excellent steak? Anything from the Morton's Steak Bible cookbook, that's what. So I did a Morton's style dinner for MUCH less than you'd pay going out. Here's the menu I made and the recipes!

Appetizer
Shrimp Alexander with Buerre Blanc
Main Course
Prime sirloin steaks(these were GIANORMOUS and I got them from Costco)
steamed asparagus
crash hot potatoes
Dessert
Raspberry Cream Pie

Recipes
Shrimp Alexander

BREADCRUMBS:
1 box panko breadcrumbs
5 teaspoons minced garlic
2 teaspoons minced shallot
2 teaspoons chopped fresh curly-leaf parsley
Salt and freshly ground white pepper
-Combine all ingredients, you can keep it in an airtight container and bread just about anything you want as well. These breadcrumbs are EXCELLENT!

SHRIMP:
18 fresh large shrimp (8/11 count OR as large as you can find I used 16/18), shells on
1 cup melted butter
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
1 1/2 cups beurre blanc (recipe included below)
3 lemons, halved, for garnish
-Preheat the oven to 450. Peel the shrimp but leave the tail shell intact. Devein and rinse well. Cut open the shrimp along the vein line approximately two-thirds of the way through the shrimp.
-Dip a shrimp in the warm clarified butter and let the butter drip off the shrimp. Dip the shrimp in the breadcrumbs and press so that it is completely coated. Put the shrimp on a cutting board, cut side down, and press to flatten and form a base. Bring the tail over the shrimp and insert the point between the tail fins into the thick end of the shrimp. Repeat with the remaining shrimp.
-Set each shrimp cut side down on a foil-lined baking sheet. Top with remaining butter. Bake shrimp for 12 to 13 minutes, or until cooked through and the bread crumbs are crisp and lightly brown
-Spoon 1/4 cup of beurre blanc on each plate. Top with three shrimp and garnish with a lemon half.

BUERRE BLANC(aka HEAVEN!!!!!)
1 teaspoon clarified butter or olive oil
1 large shallot, minced (about 1/4 cup)
1/3 cup dry white wine
3/4 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter(I used salted butter & just left the salt, below out), softened
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground white pepper
-In a medium saucepan, heat the butter over medium-low heat. Add the shallot and saute for 2 to 3 minutes, or until it softens without coloring.
-Add the wine, raise the heat to medium-high, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 3 to 4 minutes, or until the wine reduces and the liquid coats the bottom of the pan. Add the cream and simmer, stirring often, for 5 to 7 minutes, or until reduced by half.
-Reduce the heat to low and begin adding the butter, a tablespoon at a time, whisking after each addition. Do not allow the cream to boil once the butter is added.
-Remove mixture from heat and whisk in the lemon juice, salt and white pepper. Using an immersion blender, pulse the mix for 30-45 seconds. Strain the mixture to remove the shallots.

Crash Hot Potatoes



this serves 6, you can tailor it to fit you.
12 whole New Potatoes (or Other Small Round Potatoes)
3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
Kosher Salt To Taste
Black Pepper To Taste
Rosemary (or Other Herbs Of Choice) To Taste

Preparation Instructions
-Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add in as many potatoes as you wish to make and cook them until they are fork-tender.
-On a sheet pan, generously drizzle olive oil. Place tender potatoes on the cookie sheet leaving plenty of room between each potato.
-With a potato masher, gently press down each potato until it slightly mashes, rotate the potato masher 90 degrees and mash again. Brush the tops of each crushed potato generously with more olive oil.
-Sprinkle potatoes with kosher salt, fresh ground black pepper and fresh chopped rosemary (or chives or thyme or whatever herb you have available.)
-Bake in a 450 degree oven for 20-25 minutes until golden brown.

Raspberry Cream Pie



25 whole Oreo Chocolate Sandwich Cookies
4 Tablespoons Butter, Melted
1 cup (generous) Raspberries
3 Tablespoons Sugar
2 containers (6 Ounce Each) Raspberry Yogurt
1 package (3.4 Ounce) Instant Vanilla Pudding Mix
1 cup Heavy Whipping Cream
Extra Raspberries For Garnish

Preparation Instructions
-To make the crust, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Crust cookies in a food processor (or smash in a Ziploc bag with a rolling pin). Stir in melted butter until all combined. Pour into a regular pie pan and press crumbs all over the pan and up the sides. Bake for 3 to 4 minutes—just long enough for it to set. Cool crust completely.
-Place raspberries on a plate or in an empty pan. Smash them with a fork, then sprinkle on 3 tablespoons of sugar. Stir together and allow to sit for 15 minutes.
-In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine raspberry yogurt with the instant vanilla pudding mix (just the powder itself.) Beat on low until combined, about 1 minute. Pour in heavy cream and whip on low for 30 seconds. Stop the mixer and scrape down the bowl with a rubber spatula. Turn mixer on medium-high speed and beat for two minutes, or until mixture is thick.
-Turn off mixer, then fold in raspberries until just combined. Pour into cooled pie pan and spread evenly. Freeze for two hours, or until very firm.



oh and by the way, my little bro Tyler grilled the steaks and I just plain old steamed the asparagus.