Ribeye Steak with Lemon Parmesan Cream Sauce

Ingredients

• 2 ribeye steaks
• 4 red potatoes, cut into quarters
• broccolini, to taste (any vegetable you like works)
• Parmesan cheese, to taste (fresh / freshly grated, as much as your heart desires)
• heavy whipping cream, to taste (for the sauce and the mashed potatoes)
• butter, to taste (for the broccolini water and the mashed potatoes)
• olive oil, a thin layer (for searing the steak; or any oil you like)
• salt, to taste (I like coarse sea salt)
• black pepper, to taste (coarse)
• lemon pepper seasoning, to taste
• garlic powder, to taste (about 1 teaspoon in the sauce; about 1 teaspoon in the mashed potatoes)
• parsley, to taste (dried or fresh; for the sauce and the mashed potatoes)

How to Make It

1. Cut each red potato in half, then in half again (into quarters).
2. Place the potatoes in a pot, cover with water, and boil on the stove until fork-tender (a fork slides all the way through without much pressure).
3. Season both sides of the ribeye steaks generously with a thin layer of salt and with pepper.
4. Let the seasoned steaks sit out for about 20 to 30 minutes to come to room temperature.
5. Heat a pan over medium-high heat with a thin layer of olive oil.
6. Drop a little salt in the pan to test the heat — once it sizzles, the pan is ready.
7. Lay the room-temperature steaks in the pan and do not touch them.
8. Sear for 4 to 5 minutes on the first side (about 4 1/2 minutes for medium-rare).
9. Flip and sear the second side for another 4 to 5 minutes (or to your preferred doneness).
10. Move the steaks to a rack and let them rest.
11. For the sauce, pour heavy whipping cream into a pan over medium-high heat and bring it to gentle bubbles (do not let it hard-boil).
12. Once little bubbles form, stir in about 1 teaspoon salt, about 1 teaspoon garlic powder, and lemon pepper seasoning to taste.
13. Stir (use a whisk if it clumps) until the seasonings break down, tasting and adjusting as you go.
14. Stir in the parsley.
15. Turn the heat down and add the Parmesan cheese, stirring until it melts and the sauce thickens.
16. Once thickened and creamy, turn off the heat, cover with a lid, and set aside (do not boil hard or the sauce will separate).
17. Bring a pot of water to a boil and add butter, salt, and garlic powder to taste.
18. Add the broccolini, make sure it is fully submerged, cover, turn off the heat, and let it blanch for 2 minutes, then remove.
19. Drain the fork-tender potatoes and smash them.
20. Add butter, parsley, salt, garlic powder (about 1 teaspoon of each to start), and heavy whipping cream to the potatoes.
21. Combine, adding the cream a little at a time until creamy (not watery); cover and set aside.
22. Trim the excess fat off the rested steaks and cut them into nice strips.
23. Plate the steak, add a scoop of mashed potatoes and the broccolini, spoon the lemon Parmesan sauce over the steak, and wipe the plate edges clean.

Curtis's Tips

• Who said you have to be a chef to cook like this? The whole point is impressing people without a culinary degree.
• I keep the seasoning list short on purpose — salt, pepper, lemon pepper, and garlic powder give a lot of flavor without using so many different seasonings.
• Use fresh / freshly grated Parmesan over the packaged kind. The packaged cheese has an anti-caking film that makes it hard to melt, so it clumps up in the sauce. You can use packaged if you want — that's probably why it didn't come out great.
• No lemon pepper seasoning in your area? Just use a fresh lemon plus pepper — it's a lemon zest, but with a peppery taste.
• Coarse sea salt is my pick because it contains less sodium than regular iodized salt.
• Bring the steak to room temperature (set it out about 20 to 30 minutes) — otherwise the outside cooks a lot faster than the inside, leaving it raw inside and burnt outside.
• Don't touch the steak while it sears, not even once — touching it messes up the sear. My perfect sear came from never moving it.
• 4 to 5 minutes per side on medium-high gives medium-rare; cook longer for more doneness.
• Season the sauce to taste and taste it as you go so you can adjust each seasoning to preference.
• For dried parsley, cook it into the sauce; if using fresh parsley, add it at the end.
• Don't boil the sauce too fast or it will separate — keep it on medium-high to hold the creamy texture.
• Blanch the broccolini, don't boil it: boil the water first, then drop the broccolini in, lid on, and let it sit just 2 minutes.
• "Fork tender" means a fork goes straight through the potato without much pressure — that's how you know they're done.
• Use heavy whipping cream (the thick kind) for the mash, not half-and-half — half-and-half is looser. It gives a creamier, richer feel without using mayonnaise, and saves money.
• Always cut the steak for your guest — don't ever give somebody a whole steak to cut themselves. The right cut sizes make the steak taste better, and it's restaurant presentation.
• Presentation matters: trim the fat and clean the plate edges — we're trying to impress people.