Weekend Dinner #03 : Pan Roasted Round Steak and Nutty Pineapple Upside-Down Cake

I just can't get enough of red meat these days. I found myself lucky perusing the aisles of the supermarket last weekend for I caught some good round steaks in the meat section. Notably, it has the right thickness that I'm looking for a steak, it's  not too thin nor too thick (about 1 1/2 cm).  So I thought it would be easier to cook. True enough, roasting it in the pan is like a walk in the park. I didn't have to bother at all on its doneness.  It came out just the way I liked it. I served it with baked asparagus and complemented it with a nice mushroom gravy.

 Pan Roasted Round Steak

Heat a non-stick frying pan to high heat. Oil the pan a little, add sprigs of rosemary and 1 garlic clove. Sear the meat for 1 1/2 mins on each side. Transfer to a plate and rest for at least 5 mins before serving.

Mushroom Gravy

Heat the frying pan with the meat drippings. Melt 1 tbsp butter. Add and saute 1 cup swiss brown mushroom slices until the juice comes out. Add 1 tbsp all purpose flour and cook for 1 min. Add 1 1/2 cup of water and season with salt and pepper. Allow to thicken.

Baked Asparagus

Season asparagus with salt and olive oil. Cook in the oven until tender.

Nutty Pineapple Upside-Down Cake

I recently made a Chocolate Almond Upside-Down Cake and it was a hit at home. Hence, I was encouraged to  make another version that will equally be liked. I found out through some research that one of the most popular Upside-Down Cakes is actually Pineapple. When I searched for some recipes, I stumbled upon Martha Stewart's website and I got curious on a family recipe of the the famous designer, no less than Michael Kors. Knowing that the recipe is somehow related to a prominent name, that alone is  more than enough reason to give it a try. Fortunately, I was not disappointed at all.

Pineapple Upside-Down Cake

What you need:
1 can pineapple rings in juice
3/4 cup (12 tbsp) unsalted butter
1 cup light brown sugar
1/3 cup chopped roasted almonds
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
4 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

How to make:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 325F.

2. Drain pineapple and siscard juice. Place on a paper towel lined plate to drain, turning once for 5 mins.

3. Melt 6 tbsp butter and transfer to an 8-inch round cake pan to evenly coat bottom; sprinkle brown sugar evenly over bottom of the pan and top with an even alyer of pineapple rings and almonds. Set aside.

4. Whisk in a large bowl flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside. In a small bowl whisk together eggs, egg yolks and vanilla until well combined. Set aside.

5. In an electric mixer, beat remaining 6 tbsp butter with sugar on medium high speed until light and fluffy. Reduce speed to low and add flour mixture; beat until batter is just combined.

6. Pour batter in prepared cake pan and transfer to the oven. Bake until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean (about 1 hour). Transfer to a wire rack and cool for 10 mins.

7. Run a small knife around the edge of pan to release the cake. Place a plate on top of the cake pan and invert the cake onto a plate. Slice the cake and serve with vanilla ice cream on the side.