steak frites + the house (apt 4) salad
hi friends, lovers + people probably related to me -
11:11, make a wish
i ran 26.2 miles today, because my 3rd marathon had gotten canceled and also because I’m 26 and 2 months old - so i thought it was funny. honestly it was good + it was really hard - now have a lot to unpack about why i like doing these sorts of things + what i should do next
fancy effing dinner
i miss dressing for dinner, dinner with friends, coworkers, dates, + family dinners at my grandmothers’ as a child, etc. so last sunday evening i changed out of my caramel colored corduroy overalls into my dressy jeans (the ones that make me feel like alison roman, levis - super high rise, a perfect vintage blue) + some statement earrings (might have kept the l.l. bean moccasins on though)
FOR THE FRITES
4 russet potatoes
salt
neutral oil (canola or vegetable)
FOR THE AIOLI
mayo (hellmanns or dukes)
half a lime
1 clove of garlic
pepper
cholula
red pepper flakes
FOR THE HOUSE (apt 4) SALAD
lots of arugula
red onion
ripe avocado
salt + pepper
1 lemon
olive oil
1 clove of garlic
apple cider vinegar
a little honey
dijon mustard ( i like roland’s)
FOR THE STEAK
1 flank steak
1 lime
olive oil + balsamic
couple cloves of garlic
1 serrano or jalapeño
salt + pepper
putting it all together
so i’m going to ask you to do something ahead of time, the day before actually but it’s worth it, boil your potatoes in salted water till they are easily pierced with a fork, set them aside in the fridge to chill overnight - these need to be very cold when you’re going to fry them. The frites in this recipe are Smitten Kitchen’s crispy crumbled potatoes, so you know they are practically perfect. I follow her recipe for the most part, besides the measuring anything or taking the temperature of the oil - you can do either, it gets more intuitive with practice. basically you are going to crumble your cold potatoes into hot oil until they have darkened and gotten crispy (they should be all different sizes + shapes, v. rustic), let drain on a paper towel and salt them immediately. A little tip preheat your oven to like 350 or so you can keep your frites crispy as you fry them
for the aioli mix together a few tablespoons of mayo, the juice of half a lime, one large grated garlic clove, a little pepper, a healthy amount of cholula but you don’t want it to be drippy + lots of red pepper flakes
if it is already v. good no need to change, my steak recipe is still the same one mentioned in newsletter #3 + the house (apt 4 ) salad is from newsletter #1 ( if you’re new here - hi!)
for the steak whisk the marinade together (olive oil, balsamic vinegar, a couple cloves of grated of garlic, the sliced serrano or jalapeño, some lime juice, salt + pepper) pour it over the steak + let it hangout in the fridge for a couple hours. grill at a high heat + let rest while you get everything together
for the arugula salad, whisk together olive oil, apple cider vinegar, Dijon mustard, juice from half a lemon or more, a small spoonful of honey, 1 grated garlic clove, salt + pepper, there’s no measurements just do it to taste
A lot of arugula, thinly sliced red onion + 1 small avocado sliced or cubed
pour yourself a glass of ice cold champagne or prosecco or cava (i broke out my stemless flutes), take sip + enjoy your fancy effing dinner
particularly good things i consumed this week
so much red wine + scream singing on a tuesday night - it’s girls night
1 pint of jeni’s darkest chocolate ice cream, because sometimes you have to be your own bodega santa
this sandwich spread in chicago mag
the cringey/terrible/great “supposed to be taking place in chicago” netflix movie the holidate
little nibbles of some v. dark chocolate gluten free brownies, leftovers from cutting them into tiny hearts
impulsively ordered drunken noodles, extra spicy, with chicken + v. crunchy vegetables
currently consuming + definitely consuming later
this beanie so i will no longer feel like a poseur in my own neighborhood, this near perfect mystery i re-read it every fall, and hopefully later, my weight in reeses pumpkins + red wine
as always,
MK