Monday, Monday...

It was cold here, but sunny on Monday. I'm used to the cold, but seeing the sun was great!!!

I had a long, hectic day at work and was glad to get home. I went through the usual routine; all except checking the mail (its President's Day and no mail).

I sat on the couch, checking out a magazine that came on Saturday (hand delivered by my neighbor, if you recall). About 6:30 PM, I went out to make dinner. Tonight's dinner is not about the protein, it's about the side dish!

So, I took a Porterhouse steak I had thawed and let it get up to room temperature.

Meanwhile, I pealed a celery root (ugly little thing, looks like a deformed rutabagas - see Photos) that weighed about a pound. I cut that into cubes and put it in a saucepan. Then I peeled a pound of parsnips, cut them up and into the pan they went, too. I added some water and salt, brought it to a boil and turned it down to simmer.

Meanwhile, I seasoned both sides of the steak with kosher salt, fresh ground black pepper and a little garlic powder. I got out the cast iron frying pan, put in a little canola oil and got it smoking hot! I turned on the vent fan and cracked the kitchen window. I seared the one-inch thick steak for five minutes on the first side and three on the second. I put it on a plate, topped it with a pat of butter, loosely covered it with tinfoil and let it rest.

I had two plum tomatoes that I bought for the gumbo that were starting to look tired, so I sliced them in half, drizzled them with olive oil, seasoned them and popped them in the toaster oven to roast.

When the parsnips and celery root were fork tender, I drained them. I put them in the blender with one cup of milk, 1/2 cup of sour cream, two tablespoons of butter and pureed it all.

I plated the steak, the roasted tomatoes and the celery root and parsnip puree (seasoned with some salt and pepper) and ate dinner. Excellent! The steak was a perfect medium rare and I loved the side dish. This one's a keeper! The tomatoes were a nice, refreshing palate cleanser, BTW.

I watched a little TV, but shut it off at 9:00 PM and went to bed. I was tired...