Even though I am heading down to the beach to start a weekend of "Thanksgiving"
cooking, I am not ready to give up the ghost of the summer...A steak on the grill is one
of the glories of the summer.  As my mind splits itself into what type of Cider brine
to use on the turkey breast overnight ( you will enjoy that next week ) the other side
of my head says, a nice grilled steak...with a salad, some potatoes...or by itself..
beefy, charred, and smoky...Here are some directions for a phenomenal steak
dinner.  Start off by buying a good porterhouse..good red color, nice marbleing,
don't be put off by fat on this...let it come to room temperature.  The FDA and the
2012 Armageddon pundits have scared Americans into thinking that you need
to walk around in aseptic conditions, with sterile gloves and auto-claved utensils,
thermometers at the ready...or you will die of every germ known to man.  Please
don't Purell your food.  Good sense should keep you safe...remember to wash your
hands after using the bathroom or handling raw meats and eggs..OK, Sanitary
Inspection class is over now.  Bring the meat to room temperature, I repeat..this is
the difference between a good steak, and a WOW steak.  While the steak is aclimat-
izing to your room temp., scrape down your grill, oil the grates, and blast it with the
cover down.  Slice 6 button mushrooms (don't go foodie-fancy here with wild
mushrooms and expensive hard to find varieties). The flavor of these mushrooms
will go well with the steaks intense smokiness.  Add some olive oil to a pan, place
medium heat.  Add the mushrooms, saute' for about 8 minutes.  Add 2 sliced cloves
of garlic, salt, lots of cracked black pepper.  Then add a splash of red wine.  Let this
simmer and reduce, take about 5 minutes.  Chop about 1 tsp. of fresh(FRESH)
rosemary and add it to the pan, blend.  Add 1 pat of unsalted butter, stir, and set
aside.




Rub the steak down with a sliced clove of garlic on both side.  Season WELL with coarse
salt and fresh cracked black pepper.  Add a little olive oil to both sides.  Then place on the
grill.  LEAVE IT ALONE for at least 10 minutes, having lowered the heat to medium-high.
Turn once, and cook for another 5 minutes...remove the steak to a plate.  reheat the
mushrooms and pour them over the steak.  Let the steak rest for at least 5 minutes before
you eat it.  Or you run the risk of the juices running out and drying your steak out.  Is that
really what you want to do?? I didn't think so.  This should yield you a nice medium steak.
Add some more or less time depending on your preference, rare/medium/or well.  What-
ever you do, don't take it off and on again.  The meat toughens up, and you might as well
have bought a box of steak-umms.  Not a cheap meal...one steak can feed 2 peeps, or one
hungry person. 
So, this was my swan-song to the summer.....see you in the springtime...time to start
working on stews, soups, roasts, braises...ok...doesn't seem so bad now, does it?



Porterhouse love....the rosemary plays off the earthiness of the mushrooms, and the hearty
flavor of the beef....