Steak with Mushrooms and Tomato Cream Sauce

We are back from our fabulous trip to Spain, and the kitchen is open for business as usual once again.  We ate a lot of pork and seafood all throughout Spain, and both of us were hungry for a good steak.  I was still in the Spanish frame of mind though, so this was a good transition meal.  One of the first things I prepared since coming home was this delicious steak dinner topped with a creamy tomato mushroom sauce.  I had seen this recipe for the mushrooms on a video and thought, “I can easily do that”, so of course, I did.  The mushrooms can be served over rice or pasta as is for either a side dish or a light vegetarian meal, or like I did with steak, or with chicken or shrimp too.  No matter how you serve it, I think it will be a winner, and you are all going to like it.  I served it over wild rice with warmed ciabbatta bread and an olive oil dip, along with a bold, delicious, smooth red blend.  What a great dinner to make after a fantastic vacation.  I just noticed we had a steak dinner before we left for Spain, and our first dinner after returning home was also a steak dinner.  HMMMMMM!  I think we like steak.

Mushrooms with a Creamy Tomato Sauce

1 lb mushrooms, rinsed and stems trimmed all the way down

3 cups spinach, stems removed

1 shallot, sliced very thin

1 small can of tomato  paste

2-3 Roma tomatoes, diced medium, or about 1 cup of grape tomatoes or tomatoes of your choice, sliced in half

1 heaping TBSP garlic

olive oil

1/2 cup Parmigiano cheese

1 cup heavy whipping cream

salt & pepper to taste

 

In a hot skillet with olive oil, saute the shallots and the garlic for about 2 minutes, or until the shallots are tender.

Add the tomato paste and completely incorporate into the shallots and garlic.

Then add the cream and mix well.

Once everything is mixed together, add the mushrooms, with the rounded parts down and cook for about 7-8 minutes over a medium heat, then turn them over and continue to cook for about anther 7 or so minutes.  Add the Parmigiano cheese  and the salt and pepper and mix together well.  Then add the spinach and the tomatoes.  Cook just long enough for the spinach to start to wilt.

I added a little butter at the end as a finishing touch, which also cut down on some of the acidity from the tomatoes and the tomato paste.  You can eat it just like this, served over either rice or pasta, or you can use it as a sauce to top steak, chicken or shrimp.  I served it over steak.

I thought the creamy mushrooms and tomato sauce was a perfect compliment to the steak.  I hope you like it too.  Our vacation was great, but it feels good to be home too.

Ciao for now!