coffee steak and bacon sundae of deliciousness +5

about a month ago i tried out a new recipe for coffee crusted steak, and after a few tweaks i think i've got it down. i have been waiting for an excuse to make this meal ever since.

i thought it sounded weird too, but nerds love coffee, (and let's face it: all men, nerd or not, love a great steak). paired with sweet potato mash and oven roasted broccoli and mushrooms, this meal is the perfect dish to celebrate. the occasion?  my nerd winning a fan art contest for one of his favorite boardgames: summoner wars (by plaid hat games), with his drawing of sera eldwyn. and just to make sure we reach our potential for an epic food coma, i've also made a bacon brownie sundae. that's right. bacon+brownies+ice cream=heaven. say what you will, dark fudgy chocolate and perfectly rendered bacon is just about the best combination of salty and sweet there ever was, or ever will be.

coffee crusted steak:


2 thinly cut steaks
salt
pepper
1 tbs olive oil
decaf hazelnut coffee (i really want to stress the decaf here... last time i made this i used regular coffee and we were up all night. no big deal, right? wrong. we have an infant, so we really do need to sleep at night as much as we can.)

add olive oil to large skillet. sprinkle each side of steak generously with salt and pepper, then coat each side with the ground coffee- don't be shy! sear, over medium-high heat, 3-4 minutes on each side (longer, if the steak is thicker). allow to rest several minutes on a plate before serving.

sweet potato mash:


1 large sweet potato
1 tbs salted butter
1/8 c milk
1 tbs brown sugar
salt, to taste

peel potatoes and boil until soft. in a medium bowl combine all ingredients and, using a hand blender, blend until smooth.

roasted broccoli and mushrooms:


1 lb broccoli
1/2 lb mushrooms
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 onion, julienned
extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

preheat oven to 400. in a large bowl combine all ingredients. use just enough olive oil to coat the veggies. spread veggies on a baking sheet in an even layer and bake for 20 minutes.

bacon brownie sundae with maple whipped cream and candied nuts:

brownies-
1 box brownie mix (i use the dark chocolate fudge brownie mix) + ingredients called for on package
6 slices maple smoked bacon

fry bacon until extra crispy. you don't want to add too much extra oil to the brownie mix, so it's super important to render the bacon really well. set aside two slices, and chop the rest into pieces.

prepare brownie mix according to package directions. add chopped bacon. bake as directed.

maple whipped cream-
1/3 c heavy whipping cream
1 tbs maple syrup

mix ingredients and whip until desired consistency. i use a hand whisk, so this takes a few minutes. refrigerate until ready to serve.

candied nuts-
handful of chopped nuts (i had some walnuts and pecans leftover from cookies i baked a few weeks ago, so i used these).
1 tbs salted butter (i used bacon fat this time, since it was still in the skillet)
1.5 tsp sugar

mix all ingredients in a skillet over medium-low heat until sugar is melted and nuts are browned. be careful though, because this can burn easily. transfer nuts onto a plate to cool.

top your bacon brownie with a scoop of ice cream (i highly recommend using either tillamook or haagen dazs. this is one thing you definitely don't want to cheap out on. it's totally worth the extra few bucks!), hot fudge, a dollop of maple whipped cream, and candied nuts. you can crumble the remaining bacon and sprinkle on top, or add the slices whole.


these recipes serve two, but are easily adjustable for company.

unlike the great meatloaf fail of 2012 this meal is a huge hit!