The Way to a Man Heart…

The Way to a Man’s Heart is Through His Stomach is a statement that is 100% true.  Whoever first coined this phrase must not have cooked very often.  I think my husband likes almost everything that I make, he’s not really even a good judge of what is truly good or bad (that I make) because he is so easy to please in the culinary department.  He is happy with any old meal that I prepare and prefers it to eating out…at least that’s what he says. ????

But if I am ever in the doghouse, so to speak, I will deliberately make something that I know, KNOW he will love.  He knows what I am doing…he watched me jot down the details of this meal, run out to get what I needed, then waited with anticipation to see what I was whipping up.

Sometimes the way to a man’s heart is through a good cut of beef, cooked well, with some potatoes and an ice cold bottle of beer.  Yes, it is sometimes just as simple as that.

So in this case, the way to a man’s heart is by making him flank steak, marinated in Bad Elmer’s Porter!

Flank Steak Marinated in Bad Elmer’s Porter

2 bottles of Bad Elmer’s (Upland Brewing Company ) or any other Porter you prefer.  The Husband also likes Torpedo from Sierra Nevada or Osiris from Sun King to marinade beef in.
1 large or 2 small flank steaks (I also LOVE to make this with Flat Iron steaks)
2 large cloves of garlic-minced
2 large shallots-diced
1 8 oz. container of baby Bella mushrooms, sliced
olive oil
coarse salt/pepper
2 TB butter
2 TB flour
1 TSP dried thyme (or 2 TSP fresh)

**Put flank steak in a shallow dish along with 1 bottle of Bad Elmer’s and allow to marinade, in the refrigerator, for at least 2 hours**

Remove meat from the beer marinade and add to a large, saute pan (that has a drizzle of olive oil) on medium high heat.

Sear the meat that has been sprinkled with salt and fresh pepper for a minute or so on each side then finish off LOW AND SLOW on the grill.

Use the same pan to saute the shallots, garlic and mushrooms in the olive oil and butter.  Just until soft and aromatic, 5 minutes, on medium heat.  Add the Thyme.

Sprinkle the mixture with the flour and stir to cook out the flour taste and incorporate it all together.

At this point, add 1 bottle of the Porter to the mix and scrape with a wooden spoon to loosen and cooked on bits (deglaze the pan).  Allow to thicken, 10 minutes or so.

Serve the sauce over the sliced flank steak that has been allowed to rest before slicing.  Enjoy!

I like to serve the flank steak with homemade mashed potatoes, covered in mushroom-onion gravy. Definitely another way to a man’s heart!