Rachael Ray's 30-Minute Get Real Meals (24 page)

Put the stuffing into a plastic food storage bag and cut a 1-inch hole in one bottom corner. Gather the bag, like a pastry bag, forcing the stuffing to that side. Stand the roast on its end and fill half the roast with stuffing. Turn on opposite end and finish filling the cavity by piping in the stuffing. You might need to push it along with your fingers to make sure it goes all the way through.

Preheat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Cut the roast into eight 1-inch-thick slices. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of EVOO to the pan (2 turns of the pan). Add the meat and cook for 2 minutes, flip, cook 2 minutes more, then reduce heat to medium low and cook for 4 minutes more. Prepare the mushrooms while the meat cooks.

Heat a second large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the EVOO and butter. When the butter melts into the EVOO, add the mushrooms. Brown the mushrooms for 5 minutes, then season with salt, pepper, and thyme. Add the tomatoes and cook for 2 to 3 minutes more, until the tomatoes start to burst, then add the red wine and deglaze the pan. Finish with the parsley and turn off the heat.

Transfer 2 pieces of stuffed steak onto each of 4 dinner plates and garnish with the thinly sliced red bell pepper. Serve with a few spoonfuls of mushrooms alongside the steak.

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Place a large skillet on the stove over medium-high heat with 2 tablespoons of the EVOO. Add three quarters of the chopped garlic, half of the onion, and the watercress and cook for 1 minute. Add ¼ cup of the chicken stock, the horseradish, salt, and pepper. Cook until there is only about 1 tablespoon left of the chicken stock, 2 to 3 minutes. Turn the heat off and add the bread crumbs and Parmigiano. Stir to combine and let the stuffing cool while you prepare the roast.

To create the cavity for the stuffing, use a long, sharp knife, such as a boning knife, and cut into each end of the roast. Turn the
knife to create a 2-inch hole all the way through the center of the meat. Twist the handle of a wooden spoon into the cavity to make sure it is even.

Put the cooled filling in a resealable plastic bag and snip a ½- to 1-inch hole in a corner of the bag. Stuff the snipped end of the bag about 1 to 2 inches into the cavity. Pipe the filling into the cavity. You might need to push it along with your fingers or the wooden spoon, to make sure that it goes all the way through. If you have any doubts, flip the meat over and pipe the filling from that end too.

Thoroughly wipe out the stuffing skillet and preheat it over medium-high heat with 2 tablespoons of the EVOO. Cut the roast into 8 even slices, being careful to keep the stuffing in each slice. Season the steaks with salt and pepper and sear in the hot skillet for 2 minutes on first side. Flip the steaks, sear for an additional 2 minutes, then lower the heat to medium low and cook until done, about 4 minutes more. Remove the meat from the skillet and allow it to rest for a few minutes before serving.

While the meat is cooking, start the mushrooms by heating a large skillet with the remaining 2 tablespoons of EVOO over medium-high heat. Add the chopped bacon and cook until crisp, about 3 minutes. Remove the crispy bacon to a plate lined with a paper towel and reserve. To the bacon skillet, add the mushrooms in an even layer covering the entire surface space of the skillet. Cook the mushrooms without stirring them for about 2 minutes. Stir them thoroughly, then let them set again for another 2 minutes. Add the remaining half of the onion, the remaining chopped garlic, the thyme, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine and continue to cook for 2 minutes. Add the remaining 1 cup of chicken stock and continue to cook until only ½ cup of liquid remains in the pan, another couple of minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat, add the butter, and stir until melted. Finish the ragout with the chopped parsley and reserved bacon.

To serve, distribute the mushroom ragout among 4 dinner plates and top the ragout with 2 slices of stuffed eye round roast.

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Preheat the oven to 450°F.

For the spinach gratin, heat a medium skillet with 2 tablespoons of the EVOO over medium-high heat. Add the onion, garlic, nutmeg, salt, and pepper and cook for 2 minutes. Remove and reserve in a small mixing bowl 3 tablespoons of the cooked onion mixture to use in your saucy butter. To the remaining onion in the skillet, add the squeezed spinach, stirring to distribute the onion in the spinach. Next, add the chicken stock and continue to cook for 2 minutes. Add the cream cheese, stirring to distribute. Transfer the mixture to a small baking dish. Mix the shredded Swiss cheese with the plain bread crumbs. Top the spinach with the Swiss cheese mixture and transfer to the oven for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the top is golden brown.

For the saucy butter, add the Worcestershire sauce, hot sauce, salt, and pepper to the reserved onion mixture. Mix to combine, then add the soft butter. Mix to combine again and reserve in the refrigerator.

For the steaks, heat a large skillet over medium-high heat with the remaining 2 tablespoons of EVOO. Liberally season both sides of the steaks with salt and pepper. Add the steaks to the pan and cook for 5 to 6 minutes on each side. Remove from heat to a platter and top each steak with a rounded tablespoon of saucy butter. Allow the meat to rest and the butter to melt for 3 to 5 minutes. Serve steaks with the spinach gratin.

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For the steaks, preheat 2 skillets each with 2 tablespoons EVOO over medium-high heat. Season both sides of the steaks with salt. Press about ½ tablespoon of freshly ground black pepper evenly on each side of the steaks. Add 2 seasoned steaks to each hot skillet and cook the steaks for 6 to 7 minutes on each side for medium doneness. If you have a huge skillet—14 inches—you can fit them all in one pan.

While the steaks are cooking, start the caramelized zucchini. Preheat a large skillet with 2 tablespoons of the EVOO over medium-high heat. Add the sliced zucchini, distributing it evenly over the entire surface of the skillet, and cook without stirring for 2 minutes. By not stirring the zucchini once you have it settled in
the skillet, you will ensure that it will brown. Add the garlic, half of the sliced onion, and salt, and now you can stir it up to distribute the flavors. Cook for 5 minutes, tossing it occasionally. Add the tomatoes and half of the chopped parsley; continue to cook for 1 to 2 minutes, or until the tomatoes are heated through.

Remove the steaks from the skillet to a platter and tent with foil to rest while you make the sauce. With a rubber spatula, remove the excess pepper from the skillets, being sure to remove any burned bits but leaving the brown bits in the pan. Scrape all the drippings that remain into one skillet. Return the skillet with all the drippings to the heat and add the remaining 2 tablespoons of EVOO. Add the remaining sliced onion, the mustard, and thyme, and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the chicken stock and heavy cream, raise the heat to high, and cook for 3 minutes, or until the sauce is slightly thickened. Taste the sauce for seasoning, and then finish the sauce with the remaining chopped parsley.

To serve, top each steak with some of the sauce and serve alongside the caramelized zucchini.

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